The next stretch of the way was entirely silent.

Only when they reached the spot to gather herbs did the two gradually start chatting again.

He Xiran seemed very curious about Wangcai and Brother Diao.

She kept grinning foolishly at Wangcai whenever she got the chance.

This made Wangcai a little fearful of her—not the fear of terror, but the kind that keeps you at a respectful distance.

It’s not that Wangcai is a coward, but anyone would feel uneasy if they found a stranger grinning at them for no reason on the street.

That’s exactly how Wangcai felt at the moment.

Chen Yang, who was engrossed in herb gathering, also sensed Wangcai’s feeling of fear towards He Xiran.

When he realized it was due to He Xiran’s gaze, Chen Yang felt a bit strange about it too.

Unable to resist, he asked, "Xiran, why do you keep grinning foolishly at Wangcai? Do you know how creepy you look?"

"Huh? Is it creepy?"

He Xiran hadn’t realized how she appeared.

"Of course it’s creepy; imagine walking down the street and someone inexplicably grinning at you—what would you think?" Chen Yang explained.

"..."

He Xiran was suddenly speechless and embarrassed.

"I just think Wangcai is amazing, alright? His nose is so sensitive, can smell herbs everywhere, and he’s so obedient," He Xiran explained.

Chen Yang naturally knew that He Xiran liked Wangcai, but her gaze was indeed a bit scary.

"Liking is one thing, but you shouldn’t grin foolishly like that; it really gives off an impression of being out of your mind," Chen Yang said with a laugh.

Woof woof.

After Chen Yang said that, Wangcai also quickly barked twice, as if agreeing with him.

"..."

He Xiran was speechless again.

"Alright, continue gathering herbs. If you’re bored, you can take a walk around here, just don’t go too far," Chen Yang said, seeing that He Xiran didn’t talk much and seemed uninterested in herb gathering.

"Oh." He Xiran replied, and then really wandered off to another area.

Chen Yang shook his head helplessly and continued gathering herbs with Wangcai.

There were many herbs in this area, and most of them were useful to Chen Yang, so he gathered a lot in one go.

With the storage bag, he could accommodate all the herbs, no matter how many he collected.

After gathering for a long time, it started to get dark gradually, so Chen Yang decided it was time to head down the mountain.

"Xiran?"

Chen Yang turned around and called out, intending to go down the mountain.

But there was no response nearby.

"What’s going on? Where has that girl gone?" Chen Yang wondered, calling out loudly again, but still no response.

Really? Lost in the mountain?

But she’s a Qi Cultivation master; shouldn’t be possible.

Chen Yang was bemused but not particularly worried.

There are many beasts in the mountain, but with He Xiran’s skills, there shouldn’t be any danger.

But it was indeed true that she got lost.

Chen Yang was quite helpless, but with it getting dark, he needed to find her quickly.

"Wangcai, follow the scent and find where Xiran went," Chen Yang instructed Wangcai directly.

With Wangcai, finding someone was still easy.

Woof woof.

Wangcai understood Chen Yang’s intention instantly, immediately retraced their steps, sniffed along the way, tracking the scent.

Soon, they were back at the place where they parted with He Xiran.

There, Wangcai paused briefly and then directly headed towards the deep mountain.

"That girl, said she’d stay nearby, so why did she go deeper into the mountain?"

The deep mountain might be complex, but Chen Yang still didn’t take it seriously.

After all, He Xiran is a Qi Cultivation master.

No way something unexpected could happen.

She must have seen something fun and followed it in; that’s the only possibility.

Chen Yang thought so.

But as Wangcai walked for about ten minutes, Chen Yang gradually became uneasy about some small signs appearing nearby.

The branches near the small trail had signs of being snapped in a battle.

"Was there a fight?"

Chen Yang was unsettled.

Because those battle signs were evidently fresh, indicating it hadn’t been long since the fight occurred.

This deep mountain area is usually deserted; except for He Xiran, who else could it be?

"Wangcai! Speed up, quickly find Xiran!" Chen Yang grew a little worried and urged Wangcai to hurry.

Wangcai sensed something was wrong too, let out a howl, and dashed out like an arrow.

Speeding into the depths of the forest.

Chen Yang naturally followed closely behind.

As they went deeper, the signs of fighting became more distinct.

Even a trail of blood was visible on the ground.

This made Chen Yang very anxious.

"What did she encounter? Fighting so intensely?"

Seeing the blood trail, Chen Yang paused briefly, then continued chasing deep into the forest following Wangcai.

After chasing for more than ten miles, they finally heard He Xiran’s voice.

"Not yielding yet? Today I’ll make sure you surrender! You won’t lose by sticking with me!"

"Did you hear me? Still want to resist? I’m going to get you today, big cat!"

He Xiran’s voice reached them.

Hearing her voice, Chen Yang was taken aback.

What’s going on?

What exactly happened?

Hearing the voice, Chen Yang quickly slipped through the forest.

Soon, he saw He Xiran.

And was shocked by He Xiran’s form.

He saw He Xiran pinning down what appeared to be a leopard-like mountain cat.

One hand gripping the mountain cat’s neck, preventing it from moving, while the other hand held tight, delivering punches onto the mountain cat.

The mountain cat was crying out, with several wounds bleeding profusely.

Its appearance was as miserable as it could be.

"Do you surrender now?"

He Xiran raised her fist triumphantly, still taunting.

The mountain cat remained silent, clearly beaten into submission.

Witnessing such a fierce scene, Chen Yang was genuinely shocked.

He was momentarily speechless.

He had been worried all the way for this girl, but it seemed the mountain cat should be the one concerned?

"Xiran."

Chen Yang spoke out, still stunned.

Hearing the voice, He Xiran immediately looked up at Chen Yang.

Seeing him arrive, her beautiful face broke into a cheerful smile.

"Chen Yang, you’re here! Look, I caught a spirit beast. Come over and teach me how to make it obey." He Xiran said.

Hearing this, Chen Yang understood.

Turns out, He Xiran was also looking for a spirit beast, no wonder she kept shouting about surrender; so that’s what was happening.

"Xiran, taming a spirit beast doesn’t rely on brute force," Chen Yang quickly stepped forward, advising.

He Xiran looked innocent: "I didn’t use brute force; it attacked me first, I was forced to retaliate."

"..."

You’ve beaten it to this state, yet you call it forced retaliation.

If this mountain cat understood what He Xiran meant, how angry would it be?

"No matter who started it, just release it for now. If you keep hitting it, it’ll probably die." Chen Yang urged.

Not knowing how to proceed, upon hearing Chen Yang’s words, He Xiran obediently let go of the mountain cat.