Shanggong Changge did not rush her. She had already seen that the relationship between Zhao Min and her junior brother was definitely not a simple one between fellow disciples.
In order not to affect Zhao Min's future cultivation, she did not make her words absolute, only saying that the two could not meet again until she had achieved minor success in her cultivation method.
In truth, once one began cultivating the "Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate," it was already destined that the two would have no further connection in the future.
The clan elders would absolutely not permit it. With Zhao Min's constitution, if she were to seek a Dao Companion in the future, it would have to be from within the White Demon Clan.
Only then would their offspring belong to the White Demon Clan, and only then would there be a chance for the "Ice Soul Blue Jade Body" to appear again.
But for now, she would try her best not to provoke the white-robed young woman before her. It was better to bring her back to the clan first and discuss things later.
"Very well, everything will be as Senior decides. I only hope that Senior will save my junior brother's life as soon as possible. This junior thanks you in advance."
To Shanggong Changge's surprise, the white-robed young woman did not look at the man for very long and quickly made a decision that surprised her.
As she spoke, the young woman had already bowed deeply. Her decisiveness was so swift that it left Shanggong Changge slightly stunned.
After hearing that she was not allowed to bring her junior brother into the White Demon Clan, the young woman's face had remained cold from beginning to end. She showed none of the reluctance or hesitation that she had imagined.
'Could I have guessed wrong? Are the two of them really just fellow disciples?'
But she immediately understood the meaning behind the young woman's words, and Shanggong Changge sighed inwardly again.
'Her personality is a bit of a headache. She's even colder than I am!'
Zhao Min's words did not mention what would happen if her junior brother could not be saved.
But her insistence on calling her "Senior" meant that until the man was saved, she would not acknowledge her as her Master.
"Your junior brother's injuries are very severe. Even with my help, it will take a great deal of effort. Afterwards, he will not be able to awaken immediately."
"He has injured his Essence Soul. I estimate he will need to sleep for one to two days before he wakes up."
"At the same time, I do not wish for us to leave after he wakes up. In the future, after you have achieved minor success in your cultivation method, you can go and find him. But for now, he cannot know where you are."
"This is a point you must understand!"
"Then how can I know that my junior brother is alright?"
"This is very simple. You will soon see his aura balance, his Spirit Power circulate on its own, and the life force in his body recover."
"At that time, I will arrange for him to be in a safe place. You can leave behind a voice transmission, revealing a little about your whereabouts."
"But remember, you cannot say where you are going, so I will have to inspect this voice transmission. This point is not up for negotiation."
Shanggong Changge's voice began to grow indifferent, devoid of its previous emotion.
"Senior's meaning is that when we leave, my junior brother will still be in a coma or deep sleep. But how can I be truly certain that he will recover in the future?"
Zhao Min looked seriously at the blurry figure in the rain, showing no intention of backing down. This was something she had to insist on.
As if expecting Zhao Min's question, Shanggong Changge said coolly, "In the voice transmission, you can tell him an address. I will tell you this address after I treat him."
"A few days later, when your junior brother wakes up and recovers, he can find that place and likewise leave a voice transmission from him and a token from your sect."
"I believe there must be a token between you that can confirm each other's identity. At that time, these tokens will naturally come into your hands. What do you think of this?"
After hearing this, Zhao Min once again fell silent.
The other party had clearly cut off all paths of retreat. She also knew what she was thinking—that even if Li Yan's voice transmission talisman was given to her in the future, she probably wouldn't believe it.
With the methods of cultivators, it was no problem at all to imitate Li Yan's voice.
For the other party to so easily say she could save Li Yan, Zhao Min already had a rough judgment of her cultivation level. The divine abilities of a cultivator at this realm were not something she could fathom.
Even if the other party had never heard Li Yan speak, when she was treating him later, as long as Li Yan let out a pained or subconscious murmur, Shanggong Changge would remember it firmly.
But for the other party to have Li Yan attach a token later, that would be complete proof.
Similarly, Zhao Min also believed that in the future, Li Yan would not be able to find any information about her from the address left behind.
The other party wanted to completely separate her from Li Yan. For a cultivator of this level, it was simply too easy to prevent a Foundation Establishment cultivator from finding any clues left behind.
"I implore Senior to act!"
Zhao Min took a deep breath. Her expression remained as cold as ice as she looked at the blurry figure in the rain screen and spoke quietly.
At this moment, however, a murderous aura suddenly appeared on Shanggong Changge's face. She waved her jade-like hand, and immediately, several long, miserable screams came from the heavy rain connecting the heavens and the earth in the distance.
She said in a chilling voice, "Since you are so persistent, then you can all go and die!"
The cultivators who had been quietly trailing Zhao Min died without ever knowing how they lost their lives.
They did not see anyone appear next to the rapidly moving ball of dense fog, let alone know that the two parties had been conversing for a long time.
...
Two hours later, in a village drenched in rain, inside a simple room.
Zhao Min looked at Li Yan, whose breathing was even and whose Spirit Power was slowly circulating within his body. She gently placed a Jade Slip by Li Yan's pillow.
Then she turned to look at Shanggong Changge, who was sitting on a chair to the side with her eyes closed in rest, and the tall Demon Clan man who was standing by the door with one foot in and one foot out, looking apprehensive. She spoke softly.
"Master, why place my junior brother in this ordinary village, instead of finding a cultivation sect for him to recuperate?"
Hearing Zhao Min finally utter the word "Master," Shanggong Changge opened her beautiful eyes, a hint of softness flashing within them.
At this moment, her face also showed a trace of weariness. To re-solidify a person's soul within their physical body was a huge drain, even for someone as powerful as Shanggong Changge.
At the same time, she had not hesitated to use a fifth-rank "Soul-Consolidating Pill" on Li Yan, which finally saved his life.
"You and I are both cultivators. You should know that if he is placed in a cultivation sect, he will be surrounded by cultivators."
"Once we leave, although they will obey my orders to the letter, they will not lack covetous thoughts towards a comatose cultivator."
"One less problem is better than one more. Leaving him here is, in fact, the safest option. You can rest assured on this point."
"I have observed your esteemed junior brother's physical body. He should be on the path of pure body refining, right? This physical body is already comparable to that of a Golden Core cultivator. Even if the villagers here were to chop at him with knives and axes, they wouldn't be able to harm him in the slightest."
In addition, Shanggong Changge had also learned about Li Yan's Miscellaneous Spirit Root while healing him. Although she was surprised that such a spirit root could successfully achieve Foundation Establishment, she then thought that the master of these two should also be a Nascent Soul cultivator, and a deceased one at that, which meant he was an old-timer. It was possible he possessed heavenly materials and earthly treasures that could allow a Miscellaneous Spirit Root to advance.
Moreover, Shanggong Changge discovered that Li Yan's physical body was extremely tough, several times stronger than that of a Demon Clan cultivator of the same rank. This further confirmed her belief that Li Yan was a Body Cultivator, not a Dharma Cultivator.
Perhaps this boy had a talent for the physical body, which was why a Nascent Soul cultivator was moved to take him as a disciple.
After Shanggong Changge finished speaking, she gently glanced at the large man standing by the door.
That man had been extremely nervous. He wanted to retreat, but was afraid the High Immortal would have orders. Standing here made him very frightened.
After hearing Shanggong Changge's words, the Demon Clan man was so scared that he knelt directly on the ground.
"Great Immortal Master, Great Immortal Master, this little one dares not have any ill intentions. I will definitely do my best to handle the matter you've arranged."
"I will ensure this injured Great Immortal Master is safe and sound, and I will serve him well."
As he spoke, he subconsciously squeezed the small, white Order Arrow in his hand.
That was what Shanggong Changge had given him earlier. One reason was to show her identity and warn him not to act recklessly.
The second was to tell him that if anything happened, he just needed to crush the Order Arrow, and someone from a nearby cultivation sect would come.
If it weren't for this small white Order Arrow, the man, though not daring to resist now, would have notified the Immortal Master in charge of this area later. He would not dare to randomly take in a cultivator of unknown origin.
He knew about this Order Arrow. It was something only the large army stationed here possessed. Even the Immortal Master who managed them had to obey the army's orders.
He had heard that those who could produce an Order Arrow to issue commands were all Immortal Masters of high status, who could not be offended in the slightest.
Shanggong Changge didn't pay this matter any mind. An order arranged by the garrison army was the most authoritative existence, second only to the decrees of the clan elders. No one dared to disobey.
The army's management of the Order Arrows was also particularly strict. They were not easily passed to outsiders, and no one dared to forge them. Doing so would result in a relentless, life-or-death pursuit.
"Mm, if there is nothing else, someone will come to retrieve this Order Arrow in a few days."
Although she could track the location of the Order Arrow she gave out at any time, she would not just let it remain in the outside world.
"Everything is at the Great Immortal Master's discretion..."
The man hurriedly nodded in agreement. Having this thing with him made it hard for him to eat or sleep in peace.
Although it seemed like he temporarily had great power, the Great Immortal Master's item was not something he could use casually. One wrong move, and his entire village, old and young, would be implicated.
After saying this, Shanggong Changge had already stood up. She still had to deal with the affairs of the two clans at the border and had been delayed here long enough.
"Let's go!"
She looked at Zhao Min, who was sitting by the bed, and then walked straight out the door.
Zhao Min swept her Divine Sense through Li Yan's body one last time, then gracefully stood up.
Her long ponytail swung behind her, gently brushing against her snow-white back. Without another glance at Li Yan, she disappeared into the rain outside the door.
Only the Demon Clan man, bowing in farewell, and the sleeping Li Yan on the bed in the room were left behind.
...
Li Yan's head was splitting. He slowly opened his eyes. What greeted him was a dark-brown roof and dim light all around.
'Where is this?'
Li Yan endured the headache and gently turned his head to look around.
He initially thought it was a Cave Residence, but he soon discovered it was not. This was a very spacious room, likely built from some kind of huge green stones.
The room had a bed, a table, and a few large chairs woven from some unknown vine placed against the wall. Apart from a coarse porcelain tea set on the table, the rest of the room was empty.
The door was closed. At this moment, only a little light seeped in through the lattice of the two large windows.
A burst of splitting pain surged into his mind. Li Yan remembered falling from a long bridge and landing in a pitch-black deep pool.
No matter how he struggled, he couldn't escape the pool. Slowly, his whole body grew colder and colder, a pain like awls piercing his bones, until he finally lost consciousness completely.
At this moment, Li Yan's mind was still stuck on the image from before he lost consciousness. He had not yet fully awakened.
But the unfamiliar environment made him subconsciously want to sit up and see clearly where he was.
He propped himself up with both hands on the edge of the bed. Just as his upper body was raised, he felt his hands go limp, instantly losing all strength!