Chapter 2818 — The Celestial Chan
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"The Five Baleful Dragon... Could it be a five-attribute spirit beast?" Wei Zhao asked.
"Indeed. You should be able to tell from the skills it unleashed," the beauty said with a nod.
"Oh? Then you must be a five-attribute cultivator as well?" Wei Zhao asked, feigning casualness.
The beauty's expression tightened almost imperceptibly, but she nodded nonetheless. "I am a cultivator of four substantive attributes and one illusory attribute. Do you know what substantive and illusory attributes are?"
"A little." Wei Zhao nodded, enlightened—and deeply startled. This beauty was a cultivator of four substantive attributes and one illusory attribute? That was simply too formidable.
"Let us not speak of this. By the way, what is your name? Are you also a trial participant in this Mystic Pill Sect trial?" Unwilling to dwell on matters concerning herself, and seeing the astonishment on Wei Zhao's face, the beauty changed the subject.
"Wei Zhao," he said, making no secret of it—there was no concealing such a thing anyway. "Who else would be here but trial participants?"
"That is true." The beauty nodded, reached for the pack at her side, and drew out a spirit herb, which she handed to Wei Zhao. "This is the spirit herb I promised you earlier—you will need it for this trial."
"Oh? Then I shall not stand on ceremony." Wei Zhao nodded and accepted it without demur. "What is your name? Which sect are you from?"
"I... am called Tian Chan, a lone cultivator." The beauty hesitated, but gave her name all the same—though about her sect, she lied. Her sect was presently at odds with Wei Zhao, and for reasons she could not quite name, Tian Chan did not wish there to be too great a gulf between them—perhaps she feared he would think he had saved an enemy. So Tian Chan reasoned.
"Tian Chan? 'A painted tower by the water stands; from every house, shadows mirror the fair moon's grace'—truly, the name suits the person." Wei Zhao looked at Tian Chan and spoke from the heart.
A faint blush rose to Tian Chan's cheeks—how could she fail to hear that Wei Zhao was praising her beauty? Never in her life had anyone called her a beauty, and now, praised thus by Wei Zhao, she could not help but feel a little shy.
"By the way, why did you come to the Five Baleful Mountains?" Tian Chan asked, changing the subject. She had wondered before why Wei Zhao would come to the summit of these mountains.
"Oh, I went treasure hunting," Wei Zhao said, speaking the truth without concealment; had he invented some excuse, Tian Chan would not have believed it anyway.
"Treasure hunting?" Tian Chan was taken aback.
"Oh, this thing here." Wei Zhao brought out the essence core he had obtained earlier and showed it to Tian Chan.
"An essence core? You actually found one of these?" Tian Chan was stunned. She had not expected Wei Zhao's luck to be so good as to find a spirit beast's essence core.
"You know what this thing is used for?" Wei Zhao had not expected Tian Chan to recognize it at a glance.
At his question, Tian Chan could not help but start, and hesitated a moment before saying, "It can be made into a protective necklace—but it requires an artificer."
"Are you an artificer?" Wei Zhao asked.
"I..." Tian Chan pressed her lips together, then nodded. "I suppose so—though I have never actually forged anything."
"How about you forge one for me?" Wei Zhao said with a laugh, half in jest.
"Ah? One is not enough—you need at least five," Tian Chan said. "And besides, after this trial, I must return to my sect. You and I will likely never cross paths again."
"Heh, which sect are you from? Perhaps we shall meet again someday," Wei Zhao said.
Tian Chan hesitated and fell silent. She did not want to lie to Wei Zhao, yet she did not want to name her sect either. The Mystic Pill Sect and Wei Zhao were, as things stood, steeped in enmity, and Tian Chan did not wish her sect to ruin the rapport between them.