Mortal: I have a Spirit Gathering Cauldron

Lin Feng followed Qi Yunxiao through the portal, and a bright and clear view suddenly appeared before him.

The formation contained a hidden world.

A lush bamboo grove, with several exquisite bamboo houses nestled among the bamboo trees.

A stream flows gently in front of the bamboo house, its water crystal clear. Several unknown medicinal herbs grow along its banks, emitting a faint, ethereal glow and a delicate medicinal fragrance.

What a paradise on earth!

As Lin Feng was surveying the valley, the door of the bamboo house opened, and two women came out to greet him.

The woman at the head of the group was dressed in blue, of medium build, with an elegant demeanor and bright, clear eyes that seemed to speak volumes.

Even if her appearance is average, her unparalleled beauty is truly stunning at first glance; it must be Xin Ruyin.

The girl next to her was about seventeen or eighteen years old, with fair skin and pretty features; she must be the maid, Xiaomei.

She walked up to Lin Feng, bowed slightly, and spoke softly, her voice clear as water: "Brother Qi, who is this senior?"

Qi Yunxiao stepped forward and introduced, "Yin'er, this Senior Lin gave me the thousand-year-old spiritual medicine four years ago."

He then turned to Lin Feng, his tone filled with respect, "Senior Lin, this is my close friend, the genius array master, Xin Ruyin."

A hint of surprise flashed in Xin Ruyin's bright eyes, but she quickly regained her composure. She bowed to Lin Feng again, this time with a deep bow.

"Thank you so much, Senior Lin, for saving my life four years ago." Her voice was still soft, but more solemn than before. "I am deeply grateful."

Lin Feng waved his hand and laughed, "Miss Xin, you're too kind. It's just an equal exchange. What you gave is far more than a single spiritual herb; I've actually gotten a great deal."

Xin Ruyin shook her head slightly, her tone earnest: "To you, it is nothing more than a spiritual herb, but to me, it is a life-saving grace. It is nothing to mention."

As the two were still exchanging pleasantries, Qi Yunxiao, unable to bear it any longer, interjected with a smile, "Yin'er, Senior Lin, let's not stand on ceremony at the door. Let's go inside and have a cup of tea. Senior Lin has important matters to discuss with us; let's not delay his important business."

Xin Ruyin snapped out of her daze and quickly stepped aside to lead the way: "It was Ruyin's fault for being rude. Please come in, senior."

The three entered the bamboo house.

The interior furnishings were more elegant than Qi Yunxiao's room, with a bamboo table, a few bamboo chairs, and a calligraphy scroll on the wall that read "Quiet". The brushstrokes were elegant, but there was a hint of suppressed restlessness.

Lin Feng glanced at the calligraphy again.

Xin Ruyin noticed his gaze and said softly, "That was written by Ruyin a few years ago. I apologize for the restlessness in the writing, senior."

"Well written." Lin Feng withdrew his gaze and said nothing more.

The maid Xiaomei served the spiritual tea. The tea was fragrant and refreshing, sweet on the palate, and had a lingering aftertaste. It was far superior to the spiritual teas sold in the market.

Lin Feng took a sip, put down his teacup, and didn't offer any more pleasantries.

"I've come here today to ask Miss Xin to repair a formation for me." He got straight to the point, his tone solemn. "As long as you can complete it, you can name any conditions you desire, such as spirit stones or magical artifacts."

After saying that, he took out the jade slip engraved with the ancient teleportation array pattern from his storage bag, placed it on the table, and pushed it over.

Xin Ruyin took the jade slip, placed it on her forehead, and probed it with her divine sense.

A moment later, her brows furrowed slightly.

After a moment, her brows furrowed even more, and her expression changed from confusion to surprise.

"An ancient teleportation array?" she blurted out.

Lin Feng nodded without saying anything more, picked up his teacup and continued drinking tea.

Xin Ruyin did not notice his silence; her entire attention was drawn to the array patterns on the jade slip.

Qi Yunxiao sat to the side, quietly drinking tea, occasionally stealing a glance at Xin Ruyin's profile, his eyes full of tenderness.

A full incense stick's time had passed.

Xin Ruyin let out a long sigh, removed the jade slip from her forehead, and carefully placed it on the table. Her face was somewhat pale, but her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Senior Lin," her voice was more serious than before, "I happen to have some expertise in repairing the damaged parts of this ancient teleportation array."

Lin Feng paused slightly in his teacup.

His anxiety finally subsided.

He had previously worried that the explosion of the Heavenly Thunderstone would worsen the damage to the teleportation array, making it impossible for Xin Ruyin to repair, which would cause a major problem.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness." Lin Feng thought to himself with a sigh of relief, but kept a straight face and continued drinking his tea.

Xin Ruyin gently stroked the jade slip with her fingers, pondered for a moment, and said, "The damaged corner of this ancient teleportation array is quite large. I haven't studied it in great depth, and I estimate it will take about a year to figure out the whole thing."

She paused, looked up, and glanced at Qi Yunxiao.

He continued, "In addition, I haven't finished restoring the power of the Reversed Five Elements Formation to half of what I promised you, senior. Doing both things at the same time is expected to take a year and a half."

"At that time, I will hand over the details of the formation repair and all my insights on the formation to you, senior."

"Very well." Lin Feng put down his teacup, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Miss Xin's mastery of formations is truly remarkable. May I ask what Miss Xin needs? If it's within my power, I'll do my best without hesitation."

Xin Ruyin and Qi Yunxiao exchanged a glance.

That glance contained helplessness, bitterness, and the warmth of mutual support.

Qi Yunxiao nodded slightly.

Xin Ruyin turned her head to look at Lin Feng, her tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible expectation: "This junior still wishes to exchange it for spiritual herbs. Even if they are not thousand years old, seven or eight hundred years old will do."

Lin Feng fell silent.

He looked into Xin Ruyin's eyes; those clear, watery eyes held no greed, only a longing for the future.

He sighed.

"Miss Xin, you still haven't given up on cultivation?" Lin Feng's voice was much softer than before. "Even though your current situation is much better than I expected, you should also know that spiritual medicine can only suppress it. The more you cultivate, the shorter your lifespan will become."

He himself felt that these words were somewhat superfluous.

Xin Ruyin was not unaware of this principle; she should have understood it better than anyone else. Those with the Dragon Roar Physique are born with abnormal meridians; the more they cultivate, the heavier the burden on their meridians becomes, and the shorter their lifespan.

Even the most miraculous medicines can only suppress or delay the symptoms, not cure the disease.

But Xin Ruyin still chose to cultivate.

Xin Ruyin stood up and bowed deeply to Lin Feng.

Her voice wasn't loud, but every word was firm: "Thank you for your advice, senior. But Ruyin is unwilling to give up. Even if the road ahead is difficult, I will not regret it even if I die a hundred times."

Lin Feng looked at the woman in front of him and suddenly didn't know what to say.

He wanted to say, "You're courting death," he wanted to say, "Living is more important than anything else," he wanted to say, "Isn't it good to live a peaceful life as an ordinary person?" But looking into her eyes, he couldn't say anything.

"Alright then." Lin Feng stood up. "I'll bring the elixirs a year and a half later to retrieve the repair methods and formation insights."

He took out several mid-grade spirit stones from his storage bag and placed them on the table as a deposit.

"The demonic path has already begun to invade Yue Kingdom. Even though it has not yet affected Yuanwu Kingdom, you two still need to be careful and take good care of yourselves."

Qi Yunxiao and Xin Ruyin stood up at the same time and bowed to Lin Feng with clasped hands.

"Take care, senior."

Lin Feng nodded, turned around and walked out of the bamboo house.

After leaving the valley, Lin Feng activated the Wind-Escape Shuttle, transforming into a silver streak of light and hurtling towards Yellow Maple Valley.

He kept thinking about Xin Ruyin the whole way.

"To die a hundred times without regret? Even with unparalleled talent, one cannot defy fate. What a pity, what a tragedy, what a lament!"

Lin Feng pulled himself out of his complicated thoughts, and the silver light of the Wind-Escape Shuttle weaved through the clouds, accelerating its flight towards the cave.