Chapter 60: A Promise Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold

The two of them returned to the bloodthirsty flower patch, plucked a handful of the blooms, and once again made their way back to the crevice. Holding the bloodthirsty flowers, they approached, gently waving them so that a faint dusting of pollen drifted through the air. As expected, the mutated Blood-armored Lizard recoiled in fear, retreating step by step before finally turning tail and fleeing outright.

A task handled with ease.

They tucked the bloodthirsty flowers into their belts and began to climb the crevice. The fissure slanted upward, thick with weeds and brush, making the ascent a challenge for ordinary people. But for Lu Yan and the young woman, it was a simple matter. Halfway up, they stowed the flowers away and continued their climb.

Moments later, a shaft of light broke through. They held their breath and carefully peered outside. After confirming that no one was around, they clambered out.

It was broad daylight, the sun shining brightly. They found themselves in a hilly region overgrown with grass and shrubs, the ground fissure well concealed. Even if someone passed nearby, it would be difficult to notice their hiding spot.

Still, they dared not be careless. After a thorough inspection of the surroundings, they were finally certain—they had completely escaped the encirclement of the two great clans, putting more than ten miles between themselves and the forbidden grounds.

Of course, they were still within the borders of the Changfeng Mountains.

Whish!

The girl flung a small knife, striking down a yellow antelope with practiced ease. She swiftly gutted and cleaned the animal, washing and skinning it, then fished out a packet of spices from beneath her black pot and rubbed them onto the meat.

She kindled a fire and began roasting the antelope. Soon, a rich aroma wafted through the air, making Lu Yan's stomach grumble uncontrollably.

“Here, this is for you.”

Once the roasting was done, the girl tore off a leg and handed it to Lu Yan. The golden leg gleamed with dripping fat; the tantalizing scent made his mouth water. Without hesitation, he accepted it and devoured it hungrily.

When he finished the leg, he was stunned to find that the rest of the antelope had disappeared—devoured entirely by the girl, leaving only a pile of white bones.

One had to know, this yellow antelope weighed over forty pounds. Lu Yan’s share, a single leg, was about ten pounds; the remaining thirty had all gone into the girl’s stomach.

She patted her now rounded belly, looking completely satisfied.

“A glutton—my guess was right, she’s a total glutton,” Lu Yan muttered inwardly.

“To be honest, I really do have a favor to ask of you,” the girl suddenly said, her tone quite earnest.

“You want me to help you hunt mutated Blood-armored Lizards again?”

“It’s refreshing to deal with someone clever. Yes, my culinary skills have hit a bottleneck—I need to seek out higher-grade ingredients to improve my art, to raise my rank as a martial chef.”

She nodded seriously.

Apparently anticipating Lu Yan’s reluctance, she continued, “As I said before, I have no interest in the Blood Meridian itself—only in the meat of exotic beasts I’ve never tasted. I just need some of the meat to hone my skills; the rest is yours. Moreover, any martial food I prepare, aside from my own portion, you can keep.”

“And one more thing—I’ll cook your martial meals for free for half a year. How about it?”

Lu Yan’s eyes flickered; the last part was tempting.

There was plenty of exotic beast meat in the Blood Meridian, but without a martial chef to turn it into martial food, it was useless—no better than a pile of refuse.

Sell it? A low-ranking Crimson Guard like him, hawking large quantities of exotic beast meat? The clans would be on to him in no time.

“Two years. Cook my martial meals for free for two years.”

Lu Yan held up two fingers.

“Two years? Dream on! My goal is to travel the world, to sample different martial foods and seek out new recipes to refine my craft. I intend to become a deity among martial chefs—how can I waste time here? Impossible.”

She flatly refused.

“Then there’s nothing to discuss,” Lu Yan replied with a shake of his head.

“I’ll add two months—eight months.”

“A year and a half.”

“Nine months…”

After some haggling, they finally agreed: the girl would prepare Lu Yan’s martial meals for free for one year.

“I have one more condition. Teach me your movement technique.”

Lu Yan began driving a hard bargain.

“You’re certainly ambitious. Unfortunately, that movement technique of mine is a first-class martial art—it requires a Mind Chart to practice, and I don’t carry the chart with me,” she said, shaking her head.

“Again with the Mind Chart,” Lu Yan thought, exasperated. He’d coveted her movement technique for some time, but if he couldn’t practice it, there was nothing to be done. He settled for second best. “What about second-tier martial arts? Teach me a few of those?”

“Since I began cultivating, I’ve spent all my effort on first-class martial arts—I haven’t bothered with second-tier ones.”

“Not even one?” Lu Yan pressed, unwilling to give up.

She considered for a moment. “Well, I did practice one second-tier martial art—but it’s a spatula technique. Are you interested?”

“A spatula technique?”

“Exactly this…”

She took the spatula from her back and tapped it on the iron pot. “It’s the technique of the spatula.”

“…What a ridiculous martial art. I’d sooner die—if I weren’t a martial artist, I would still…”

“I’ll learn it!”

In the end, Lu Yan gritted his teeth and agreed.

Whatever the style, so long as it was a martial art, he’d learn it. Whether he could use it or not was beside the point—for him, the more martial arts he cultivated, the more branches he could open, and the faster he could accumulate vital energy.

“Very well, I’ll transcribe it for you later. Now, come with me—we’re going to hunt mutated beasts.”

She gestured grandly.

“Right now? Do you really think the two of us can manage that?”

Lu Yan asked.

“You won’t know unless you try. You still have a trump card you haven’t played—I’m not convinced it’s impossible,” she replied.

“In three months. During that time, I’ll practice a finishing move as well—then we’ll have a better chance.”

Lu Yan explained.

Mutated beasts were tough, their hides thick and their defenses formidable—fists and feet alone were no use. He needed this time to master the Sky-splitting Blade; with its aid, the odds of taking down the mutated Blood-armored Lizard would be much higher.

“That’s fine. I’ll use the time to study the properties and toxicity of Blood-armored Lizard meat—then preparing the mutated beast’s heart will be easier later.” The girl thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement. “By the way, I won’t be going to Changfeng City—I’d rather not risk being noticed by the two clans. Could you buy me some cooking tools? A special stew pot, a boiler, and some auxiliary spirit herbs…”

She rattled off a long list of items, and Lu Yan had to repeat it three times before he could remember everything.

“And, of course, buy me some food—delicious food,” she added.

Lu Yan nodded silently.

“Let me introduce myself. My name is Shen Yinuo—‘Yinuo’ as in ‘a promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold.’ What’s your name?”

The girl asked.

“Lu Dachuan—‘Chuan’ as in ‘mountains and rivers.’”

Who knew if she was giving her real name, so Lu Yan made one up on the spot.

“……”

A silence fell between them; they stared at each other, one with big eyes, one with small.

“Where’s the silver?” Lu Yan prompted.

“What silver?” the girl asked, puzzled.

“You want all those things—don’t you need silver?” he reminded her.

A rare blush crept onto her pale cheeks. “I’ve been traveling for two years, and I spent all my money on ingredients. You’ll just have to cover it for now—it’s not much, and I have promised to cook your martial meals.”

“Off I go, we’ll be in touch.”

Lu Yan had no choice but to accept, thinking of the martial meals she’d prepare for him later.

He didn’t return home directly, but slipped back to the edge of the forbidden grounds and retrieved the Crimson Guard uniform he’d hidden earlier. After putting it on, he struck his own shoulder, tearing the fabric and leaving the mark of a palm strike.

After being gone for days, he needed an explanation.

He used the Shifting Form technique to return to his original appearance, went home to reassure his parents, then made his way to the Crimson Guard headquarters.

No sooner had he returned than the captain summoned him for questioning—where had he been these past days?

Lu Yan had already prepared his story: on that rainy night, he had discovered someone trying to break into the forbidden grounds and pursued them, fighting but losing to the intruder, who struck him hard enough to injure him. He had been hiding in the mountains to recover and only returned now that his wounds had improved.

He even showed the captain his injury.

A seventeen- or eighteen-year-old, having broken through twice, the captain didn’t suspect much and told Lu Yan to rest for a couple of days before returning to his post outside the forbidden grounds.

With a word of thanks, Lu Yan left the Crimson Guard headquarters and returned home.