Versatile Mage: I have 999 talents!

Chapter 173 Jiang Shaoxu Takes the Initiative
The Parthenon at night is picturesque, with countless stars shining down on the Mount Pleiades, like a dazzling Milky Way winding around the sacred mountain.

The twinkling starlight and the temple lights complement each other, draping the entire mountain in a dreamlike silver veil.

Ander stood alone on the temple terrace, the night breeze gently caressing her shoulder-length hair.

She gazed up at the vast starry sky, her emerald eyes reflecting the shimmering stars, yet veiled by a faint sense of bewilderment.

"Lost"

After a long while, Ander's slender fingers slowly rested on the thin belt around his waist and gently tugged it.

The saint's silk robe slid down her perfect curves, shimmering like pearls in the moonlight.

Her clothes trailed on the ground, revealing her flawless body, which, under the starlight, resembled a perfect statue.

She took a step forward with her slender, jade-like feet, and the loose rocks on the cliff edge tumbled down with her.

"Goodbye..."

Ander closed his eyes, opened his arms, and plunged into the abyss.

Under the starlight, that perfect body fell like a fallen angel, quickly swallowed by the pitch-black night.

……

Inside the Venice Treasure Hunt space.

Wang Feng wrapped his arm tightly around Jiang Shaoxu's slender waist, and suddenly a strange, blood-red flame rose around his body.

Amid Jiang Shaoxu's exclamation, the two plummeted like meteors, heading straight for the churning layer of poisonous fog.

"ah--!"

Jiang Shaoxu instinctively wrapped her arms tightly around Wang Feng's neck, almost embedding herself in his embrace.

But the next second, her beautiful eyes widened as she stared in disbelief at the extraordinary sight before her—

The dense black poisonous mist, as thick as a tide, melted away rapidly upon contact with the crimson flames, like spring snow meeting the blazing sun.

Wherever the flames passed, the poisonous mist hissed and burned a vacuum channel.

In the blink of an eye, with the fabric fluttering in the wind, the two had already passed through the thick poisonous miasma and landed steadily at the bottom of the valley.

"What? You don't want to come down?" Wang Feng's smiling voice rang in my ears.

Jiang Shaoxu then realized she was still pressed tightly against him, hurriedly releasing her arms from his neck and landing lightly. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly changed the subject: "There...it seems there are no signs of life here?"

The surroundings were eerily silent; not even the wind could be heard. Only the two people's breathing was exceptionally clear in the stillness. The murky air was filled with the smell of decay, as if time itself had frozen there.

“Yes, the Mind Stone should be at the deepest part.” Wang Feng said, taking the lead and walking forward.

Jiang Shaoxu followed closely behind, and the two soon arrived at the edge of a strange pool.

Seven narrow fissures in the earth converge here; if filled with water, they would surely form an unfathomably deep dragon pool.

A bright light shone in Jiang Shaoxu's hand, but it could only illuminate a few meters in front of her, like the faint light of a cell phone in the dark.

As they ventured deeper, the space ahead gradually opened up, but the poisonous miasma overhead grew increasingly thick, piling up like dark clouds tens of meters thick, shrouding the entire bottom of the pool in eternal darkness.

"No wonder I felt like a few people were missing; they were all here." Wang Feng's eyes narrowed as he looked up at the top of the stone nest.

On the jagged stone wall, dozens of corpses hung densely—weathered skeletons, shriveled mummies, and several fresh corpses still dripping blood.

Crimson drops of blood were falling, one by one, into the groove in the center of the stone nest below.

"This...this is..." Jiang Shaoxu covered her mouth tightly, her beautiful eyes filled with shock.

Wang Feng's eyes suddenly blazed with silver light, the space around him distorted, and he made a grabbing motion in mid-air—

Two ugly demons fell from the darkness.

They have humanoid bodies, but topped with small, pointed heads, and their lower bodies are snake tails covered with black scales.

Wang Feng flicked his finger, crushing it instantly. "Ugh—" Jiang Shaoxu gagged, choked by the stench. "What...what kind of monster is this?"

"The Heart-Eating Demons. This poisonous miasma is their doing," Wang Feng explained.
"Them?" Jiang Shaoxu's voice trembled.

"Hmm, there's another nest." Wang Feng suddenly revealed a sinister smile.

In an instant, a bone-chilling cold spread from his feet, and white frost swept across the entire stone nest like a tide.

"Gah—!!" A series of sharp shrieks suddenly echoed in the darkness.

But as the frost covered the ground, these sounds quickly fell silent.

In the blink of an eye, the entire stone nest transformed into a crystal-clear ice cave.

"Hiss—it's so cold!" Jiang Shaoxu hugged his arms tightly, and his breath instantly condensed into frost.

Wang Feng walked through the frost to the stone pillar and took down the ancient wooden box.

The moment the box was opened, a black stone the size of a fingernail lay quietly on the velvet lining, its surface swirling with dark spiritual energy.

"Here, the Mind Stone." Wang Feng casually tossed the wooden box to Jiang Shaoxu. "It's enough for you to break through to the fifth level of mental power."

Jiang Shaoxu hurriedly caught the wooden box. The moment his fingertips touched the stone, a cool spiritual wave traveled up his arm and straight to his mind.

She looked up in disbelief: "This is such a valuable thing, you're really giving it to me?"

As a spiritual practitioner, she was acutely aware of the value of the prayer stone.

"Anyway, I don't need it." Wang Feng said in a calm tone, as if he were giving away an ordinary item.

Jiang Shaoxu's fingers trembled slightly as she held the wooden box, and her eyes glistened with tears.

She suddenly took a deep breath, rushed to Wang Feng, and, under his astonished gaze—

"Chirp~"

A kiss as soft as a feather landed gently on Wang Feng's lips.

Jiang Shaoxu quickly took a half step back, her earlobes flushing a lovely pink, her gaze darting away, avoiding his eyes: "Thank you, thank you."

Wang Feng's Adam's apple bobbed, and he suddenly reached out and wrapped his arm around her slender waist, pulling her into his embrace.

Jiang Shaoxu exclaimed in surprise, nearly dropping the wooden box in her hand.

“It’s time to go,” he said, his voice slightly hoarse, as he took out a spatial scroll. “There’s nothing left here to miss.”

“But these…” Jiang Shaoxu looked uneasily at the frozen corpses.

"Someone will handle it." Wang Feng smiled meaningfully, and the scroll flashed with silver light.

……

After leaving the treasure hunting space, Wang Feng quickly finished registering the list of his spoils and then eagerly took Jiang Shaoxu's wrist and walked out.

"Where are we going now?" Jiang Shaoxu asked in a voice so soft it was almost inaudible, yet she let him lead her through the bustling square.

Her fingertips curled slightly, tickling Wang Feng's palm and creating a tingling, itchy sensation.

Wang Feng smiled but didn't answer; he simply rubbed his thumb against her wrist.

Turning the corner, a neon sign flashes an ambiguous heart shape.

Jiang Shaoxu's earlobes were so red they looked like they were about to bleed. She looked down at the overlapping hem of their clothes, her eyelashes casting trembling shadows on her cheeks.

Those usually cunning fox eyes were now filled with honey-like anticipation, and tinged with the shyness of the first snow.

When Wang Feng pushed open the hotel's glass door, she even took a half-step forward, her toes lightly touching his heels.

……

(End of this chapter)