Chapter 0940: Longing without promises
“Is that the Heavenly Fragrance Physique?” Shui Yueke quickly sobered up and shouted in alarm.
Immediately afterwards, panic appeared in her eyes as she shot another glance at Yan Ji, unsure what to do.
Heavenly Fragrance Physiques only appeared in women, and these physiques had a natural but faint fragrance. More specifically, the Heavenly Fragrance Physique wasn’t known for its aroma. Rather, this fragrance was only an auxiliary effect. This body type allowed cultivators to experience an explosive increase in cultivation speed, advancing quicker than others.
However, the Heavenly Fragrance Physique was also considered one of the most miserable of all auxiliary qualifications. Nine out of ten times, women with such physiques would end up with a fate worse than death.
Primarily because this physique was a natural and peerless furnace. As soon as any male cultivator discovered the Heavenly Fragrance Physique, he would never give up on it. No matter the qualifications of that male cultivator, as long as he had such a furnace, his cultivation speed would double, or even triple, with half the effort. Moreover, the male cultivator’s perception of the world’s dao rhythms would also enhance significantly.
Of course, it only happened if one used the Heavenly Furnace Physique as a cultivation furnace. If one became her dao companion for dual cultivation, the effect on the male cultivator wouldn’t be as intense. But then, how many male cultivators would treat a woman with Heavenly Fragrance Physique as their dual cultivation dao companion?
What made things worse was that one simply couldn’t conceal the Heavenly Fragrance Physique. People would eventually discover it no matter where one was.
Shui Yueke felt alarmed because after discovering that Yan Ji had a Heavenly Fragrance Physique, she knew they had no way to conceal it. In other words, as soon as they exited the airship, Yan Ji wouldn’t be able to hide.
But that was just one of the dangers. The Heavenly Fragrance Physique had another name, the Heavenly Fragrance Saintess Physique.
A woman with such a physique was the most suitable to be a sect’s holy maiden. Even if she wasn’t discovered and taken away by another male cultivator. A large sect would eventually find her and take her away to groom her into a holy maiden.
But this wasn’t even the most frightening thing about it. One could also refine the blood of a female cultivator with a Heavenly Fragrance Physique into a Heavenly Fragrance Pill, the most dangerous thing and alluring for any woman.
Heavenly Fragrance Pill could give other female cultivators a natural body fragrance. But more importantly, it could enhance their cultivation speed and comprehension qualifications. Just that first point alone would attract the attention of almost every female cultivator. Just think about it. What would happen if a woman with a Heavenly Fragrance Physique got discovered by an alchemist?
Yan Ji saw Shui Yueke’s gaze at herself go from envy to shock, then to horror, and she immediately understood that her changes might not be a blessing.
Heavenly Fragrance Physique, she actually obtained the Heavenly Fragrance Physique.
She already knew that she had a natural body fragrance after advancing to the Heaven Seated Realm. But her natural body fragrance was very faint, and she usually tried to hide it as much as possible. Fortunately, she had done an excellent job of it till now.
But who would have thought that this time she would wake up and suddenly have a Heavenly Fragrance Physique? Yan Ji quickly went over the same reasons that made Shui Yueke panic and became equally alarmed. If she truly had a Heavenly Fragrance Physique, she wouldn’t be able to hide at all. No matter where she tried to hide, she would be found out. In fact, there was even a distinct possibility that she would be found out even before she found any place to hide.
What should I do?
Yan Ji looked at Shui Yueke, forgetting why Shui Yueke wanted to save her. Shui Yueke likewise looked at Yan Ji, forgetting about Ning Cheng for the moment.
Currently, they were on the airship flying away. But even if the two went to a spa.r.s.ely populated region, Yan Ji’s Heavenly Fragrance Physique would quickly come to light.
But even if they stayed on the airship, a powerful cultivator could easily sense the Heavenly Fragrance Physique. It was like a blooming flower that one couldn’t conceal even one wanted to.
Shui Yueke then suddenly recalled the woman who had saved Yan Ji. Did she know that Yan Ji would form a Heavenly Fragrance Physique after consuming the Sacred Marrow Fruit?
Thinking of this, Shui Yueke immediately picked up the jade box once again. Looking at the box carefully, she saw a thin jade strip with an engraved lotus flower stuck to the bottom of the jade box.
Shui Yueke picked it up and found a red silk thread attached to it. Suddenly, a row of faint words appeared in Shui Yueke’s mind. “Yan Ji’s body has a natural fragrance. So once she takes the Sacred Marrow Fruit, there is a small chance she would form a Heavenly Fragrance Physique. If she formed a Heavenly Fragrance Physique, remind her to wear this lotus jade at all times. It can help her for a few years. But if she can’t shape her dao in these few years, she should immediately go into hiding in some remote place and not come out….”
Once the words ended, Shui Yueke felt ecstatic. Let alone hiding the scent for a few years, she would have been happy even if it was for a few months. A few months should be more than enough for Yan Ji to find a remote place and not come out.
“This is for you to put on. Fortunately, that senior left this jade in antic.i.p.ation of such a situation. Otherwise, I really wouldn’t know what to do.” Shui Yueke quickly handed the jade piece to Yan Ji, feeling slightly relieved.
“Which senior was it?” The exact words appeared in her mind, so she couldn’t help follow it up with a question.
Shui Yueke quickly told her what had happened without concealing anything. When Shui Yueke finished, Yan Ji was staring at Shui Yueke with wide eyes, full of disbelief. It took a long time for her before she spoke up in a broken, almost stammering voice. “Senior Apprentice Sister Shui, you said he, he…..”
Seeing that Yan Ji couldn’t express her thoughts, Shui Yueke had to nod her head and take the initiative to speak, “That’s right, Ning Cheng is right here.”
Shui Yueke then raised her hand to remove the concealment restrictions, revealing the unconscious and severely injured Ning Cheng. Fearing the exposure of Ning Cheng’s current appearance, she also took the initiative to remove Ning Cheng’s already coming apart disguise.
“Ning Cheng….” Yan Ji’s heart pounded violently the moment she saw Ning Cheng; her legs started to tremble. She wanted to rush up but found that she couldn’t move her feet. She had lost too much and experienced too much to search for Ning Cheng. And now, Ning Cheng was right in front of her.
A moment later, Yan Ji sensed Ning Cheng’s severe injuries. Seeing Ning Cheng in such a state, her trembling legs suddenly straightened. She suddenly pounced straight up and picked up Ning Cheng to channel her essence into Ning Cheng’s body to help him.
“Wait-wait….” Shui Yueke quickly stopped Yan Ji’s actions and told her what Ruo Xi had mentioned.
Only then did Yan Ji sober up. That’s right, Shui Yueke’s cultivation far surpa.s.sed her. If she could save Ning Cheng, wouldn’t Senior Apprentice Sister Shui have already done it?
Yan Ji’s expressions changed from incomprehension to great delight at seeing Ning Cheng, then endless worry. Everything manifested at once at this moment.
“Senior Apprentice Sister Shui, what now?” Tears started to swirl at the corners of Yan Ji’s eyes. She didn’t know what she should do right now; she felt utterly lost.
She hadn’t been at such a loss of words even when her desperate attempt to advance destroyed her foundation and vitality. But at this moment, she couldn’t even put her thoughts into words. Rather, she had no idea what she should do right now.
Seeing how Yan Ji held Ning Cheng and could only shed tears without knowing what to do, Shui Yueke sighed. “We can only wait.” Shui Yueke replied with a firm tone. “That Senior said that Ning Cheng can only rely on himself. Others helping him would only harm him.”
She had never imagined that the person Yan Ji liked was actually Ning Cheng. However, she also felt relieved when she thought of Ning Cheng’s strength in the Grand Essence Great Meet and the Extraterritorial Spirit Spring. Yan Ji obviously had good vision, and it showed today. Compared to Ji Pingzhong, whom she would have married today, Ning Cheng was countless times much better.
Shui Yueke walked over to Yan Ji and helped her put the jade piece with the lotus flower engraved around her neck. The faint fragrance coming from Yan Ji’s body slowly gathered and disappeared in just a few moments. Unless one was intimate with Yan Ji, no one would be able to sense it.
“Senior Apprentice Sister Yan Ji, it’s useless to be sad right now. Since 9-Revolving Sacred Dao Sect is still after us, we have to escape as far as possible.” Shui Yueke gently advised her from the side.
Yan Ji eventually took in a deep breath and finally stopped shedding silent tears. She wiped her eyes, laid Ning Cheng back on the floor, walked over to Shui Yueke and bowed deeply. “Senior Apprentice Sister Shui, Yan Ji will never forget this great kindness. When the airship reaches a secluded s.p.a.ce, you can just drop Ning Cheng and me off.”
“How can I do that?” Shui Yueke spoke up in surprise. “You’re only at the Life and Death Realm, and Ning Cheng is still unconscious with serious injuries. Putting you down, wouldn’t that……”
Shui Yueke didn’t say the following words. She believed that Yan Ji would understand what she meant.
Yan Ji picked up Ning Cheng once again. However, this time, she felt completely different. “Senior Apprentice Sister Shui, I’m serious about it. Back then, when I was still a small Profound Congealing cultivator, Big Brother Ning had carried me through one danger after another while still in a daze. If it weren’t for Big Brother Ning, I would have died a long time ago.”
“The heavens sent Big Brother Ning to me again, and I have long been grateful for it in my heart. I love him, I love him very much. I worked very hard to cultivate just to find Big Brother Ning, and now that I found him, I have no regrets. No matter what’s in store for me in the future, I will always accompany Big Brother Ning…..”
Speaking of this, Yan Ji looked up at Shui Yueke, “Senior Apprentice Sister Shui, you are different from me. Your future achievements are destined to be immeasurable. You also have to seek out opportunities to shape your dao; perhaps your dao shaping opportunity is right around the corner.”
Shui Yueke understood Yan Ji’s words. If not for bringing Ning Cheng and Yan Ji with her, she would have indeed gone out to seek opportunities to shape her dao. Moreover, she also had a high chance of succeeding. But if she took Yan Ji and Ning Cheng with her, she would have to postpone shaping her dao indefinitely. After all, Yan Ji had a Heavenly Fragrance Physique. Once someone found out about Yan Ji’s const.i.tution, that person would never let anyone around Yan Ji live.
Shui Yueke sighed, “No wonder Ning Cheng would risk his life to save you. You deserve a man who would give up so much for you.”
Yan Ji looked down at the still unconscious Ning Cheng. She had jumped down the blood river twice for Ning Cheng and suffered countless hardships as she wandered the starry skies for Ning Cheng. Yan Ji had even forgotten about how many times she had almost died in her journey. She also had forgotten how many times she had woken up in shock in the middle of her sleep. This was because, ever since she had left Le Continent, she had never had a single day of peace or quiet.
She continued to cultivate like an insane person for Ning Cheng’s sake. Every time she entered dangerous areas searching for resources, she would comfort herself with a thought. A thought that she could quickly find Ning Cheng as long as there were enough cultivation resources. Time after time, year after year……
She could never forget that after learning of Ning Cheng’s fall in Grand Essence Ruins, she had cried for several days and nights. After learning that Ning Cheng had entered the Land of Broken Laws, she couldn’t forget what she felt. She had pushed herself to the limits to cultivate, just to enter the Land of Broken Laws to find him. But in the end, Yan Ji destroyed her foundation in the process. She wasn’t sad about it; rather, she felt sorry that she could no longer go looking for Ning Cheng.
Then she heard Shui Yueke mention how Ning Cheng had rushed out of the pond to s.n.a.t.c.h her away from a Dao Raising and a Dao Transformation Holy Emperor. Those words wiped off all the suffering she had gone through over the years. It had all turned into a longing, a longing without promises.
She couldn’t tell any of this to anyone, nor could she express it in words. Only by experiencing those hardships could one understand the true meaning. But whether others understood it or not, she experienced it all.