Seeing how gentle and honest those Sand Camels were, and knowing that their massive size left them with nowhere to hide, forcing them to endure the sandstorm head-on, she couldn't help but feel a pang of compassion.
Unsure how much longer the sandstorm would rage, Shi Yu decided to take advantage of this time to refine some healing medicine that could soothe Earth-element spiritual Qi for the Sand Camels.
Not wanting to disturb anyone, she went to a corner and set up her pill furnace. However, the cave was only so big, so her actions naturally drew quite a bit of attention.
The six other cultivators traveling with them, having gotten on the caravan's bad side earlier due to their ill-advised remarks, were looking for a way to change the subject and make up ground. Seeing Shi Yu, one raised his eyebrows and said, “Yo, Young Master Shi, what are you doing?”
Su Guanying also looked over, quite surprised. “Young Master, you know alchemy?”
“Only a little.” Shi Yu warmed the furnace while taking out handfuls of spiritual plants. Not knowing when the sandstorm would end, she didn't bother carefully selecting them to save time, throwing them all into the pill furnace at once.
Furthermore, because the Sand Camels were so massive, a mere handful of pills would likely be ineffective, so she threw in an unusually large amount of spiritual plants. They nearly stuffed the entire chamber, filling the furnace so completely at a glance that the flame could barely be seen.
Such a crude technique choked back whatever Su Guanying and the others were about to say right down their throats.
The six traveling cultivators, who had felt a bit of caution and respect toward Shi Yu's potential status as an alchemist, rolled their eyes immediately upon seeing her utterly careless extraction method, mockingly amused expressions spreading across their faces.
They had never seen any alchemist extract medicinal liquid like this. With such an amateur, crude method, who would believe this young master named Shi was an alchemist?
The caravan members only glanced at Shi Yu before averting their gazes, their faces solemn and free of any desire to mock or gossip. Having traveled through the ancient desert for years, they naturally understood the consequences of encountering a sandstorm. Right now, they were focused solely on using every second to regulate their breathing and recover, preparing for any situation that might lie ahead. When life and death were on the line, they cared little about what others were doing.
The six traveling companions lacked experience. Though they knew the situation wasn't good, they didn't take it to heart, assuming that if the sky fell, Su Guanying and the others would hold it up. Exchanging glances, they were still in the mood for amusement, whispering and gesturing at Shi Yu, occasionally letting out playful chuckles. “Just putting on a show to seek attention.”
Ji Yu felt angry. Pulling Mo Tong along, he stood behind Shi Yu to block their view. “Don't disturb my Big Sis—Brother's alchemy!”
This only drew even mockingly louder laughter from the group.
Qingzhou cast a side glance, his pupils narrowing slightly into slits as a faint intent to kill radiated from him.
Shi Yu was focused on refining pills and hadn't paid attention to her surroundings. Sensing the cool chill of the life scale beneath her eye and feeling Qingzhou's mood, she spoke up in time to warn him, “Qingzhou.”
Only then did Qingzhou lower his eyes, withdrawing his killing intent. With a slight twitch of his fingers, he spread a deep blue, opaque water curtain around Shi Yu, blocking out the prying eyes of others.
...
Fortunately, the sandstorm showed signs of subsiding in less than two hours. As the howling outside the cave gradually quieted down, everyone stood up, packed their belongings simply, and prepared to step outside.
Shi Yu also happened to finish refining her pills and unsealed the furnace. After storing the pills inside, she asked Qingzhou to remove the water curtain.
“Yo, Young Master, did you actually finish refining pills?” one of the traveling cultivators chuckled. “Why not let us broaden our horizons?”
With repeated provocations like this, even though Shi Yu was usually disinclined to bother, a trace of displeasure flared within her.
Standing guard by her side, Qingzhou swept his gaze over them. Six sharp cones condensed from flowing water materialized out of thin air, locking onto the six blabbermouths.
Feeling the chilling intent to kill and intense sense of danger emanating from the water cones, the six froze, looking at Qingzhou in horror, their words choked in their throats.
Only then did Qingzhou shift his gaze away, and the water cones dissolved back into mist.
The leader of the six was still reeling from the shock, but no matter how he looked at Qingzhou's cultivation, it was merely at the seventh layer of the Qi Refining Realm. He cursed under his breath, Must be a bluff...
The blue-robed cultivator glanced over, ignoring the undercurrents between them, and blasted open the sealed cave with a single punch. A cloud of dust billowed toward them, forcing everyone to narrow their eyes. It took a good while before they could clearly see the scene outside.
The sky had cleared once more, the sunlight casting a golden sheen across the desert. A dense smell of dust filled the air, carrying a desolate sense of post-storm stillness.
Ignoring the utter mess before them, it could be considered a rare beauty.
However... Shi Yu frowned slightly as she looked at the battered camel-carts tilted every which way nearby, and the Sand Camels lying on the ground, whimpering and licking their wounds.
The camel-carts were actually in decent shape; their inner frames were made from specialized Iron-Bone Wood, which was extremely tough and thick. Even under the raging storm, they suffered little damage, and the cargo loaded inside remained mostly intact.
Though they looked terribly battered, it was merely the outer layer of wood and cloth that had been weathered out of shape.
However, despite Iron-Bone Wood's durability, a sandstorm of this magnitude was bound to cause some snapping and wear. The blue-robed cultivator shouted orders, calling out people to organize things quickly:
“You eight, inspect the camel-carts thoroughly inside and out, and find every crack and deformation! You five, haul out the spare Iron-Bone Wood and prepare for repairs! As for the rest of you...”
“Hurry, hurry, hurry! Don't waste time! We're hitting the road in half an hour at most—whatever isn't finished can be dealt with on the way!”
The caravan members raised no objections to such a tight schedule and quietly set to work, orderly and swift, clearly experienced in handling such matters.
As for the Sand Camels, their situation looked far less encouraging.
After enduring the wrath of the sandstorm, every single one of them was a tragic sight. Covered in bloody, mangled wounds with patches of missing fur, their breathing had turned weak and faint. The oldest among them—the most human-like in understanding—had stood on the outermost edge to block the brunt of the storm, leaving it the most severely injured, breathing its last gasps.
Seeing this, everyone in the caravan felt heart-wrenching pain. Su Guanying pressed her lips together without a word, pulling large jars of medicinal powder from her storage bag to sprinkle over the Sand Camels' wounds.
However, while the wounds on the Sand Camels' bodies looked ghastly, they were not the real threat. Given the Sand Camels' natural constitution, even without powder, they would recover quickly. The truly fatal issue was the lingering, severely imbalanced Earth-element spiritual Qi raging inside their bodies, which would take at least three to five days to calm.
Yet right now, everyone had to rely on these Sand Camels to press on with the journey. They couldn't afford to give them time to recover, meaning they had to treat the injuries simply before setting off again.
These Sand Camels were the caravan's fortune and lifeline, and having traveled together for so long, deep bonds of affection had formed. Overwhelmed with guilt, the caravan members stroked their companions' necks and heads, whispering comforting words while holding back tears.
Gentle and loyal, the Sand Camels maintained their mild tempers even when injured to such a degree. They lightly nudged the people comforting them with their snouts, letting out low, soft calls as they struggled to stand, as if showing that they could still carry cargo and press on.
Su Guanying walked over to the oldest Sand Camel, the one most severely injured. Seeing that it lacked even the strength to open its eyes and was on the verge of death, her tears finally fell uncontrollably. She dropped to her knees, hugging the Sand Camel's neck, sobbing hysterically, “Dahuang... please hold on a little longer. Once this merchant run is over, I'll take you home to retire, okay? Just hold on a bit longer...”
Her shoulders trembled as she struggled desperately to suppress her grief.
Just then, feeling a hand rest on her shoulder, Su Guanying looked up through tear-filled eyes. Seeing that it was Shi Yu, she had no mood to speak, continuing to cry quietly.
“Feed this to Dahuang.” Shi Yu squatted beside her, opening her palm to offer a handful of dark, unappealing pills.
“This is...” Su Guanying wiped her tears. “What you refined earlier?”
Shi Yu nodded. Seeing the hesitation on Su Guanying's face, she added, “Either way, Dahuang can't hold out much longer. Why not give it a shot? Think of it as a last-ditch effort.”
Su Guanying sighed, taking the pills and thinking to herself: Ah well, Young Master Shi means well.
Just as she was about to shove the unappealing pills into the Sand Camel's mouth, the scene caught someone's eye. The blue-robed cultivator rushed over, calling out in alarm, “Third Young Lady, what are you doing!”
He glared at Shi Yu, snatched the pills, and said anxiously, “The Sand Camels are our reliance for navigating the ancient desert. How can you recklessly feed it unknown substances?!”
The others gathered around as well.
“Indeed... Who knows if that stuff is even edible?”
“Dahuang is so severely injured; it likely won't survive today anyway.”
The six traveling cultivators sneered even more. “Third Young Lady, the Sand Camels have served your caravan heroically. It would be a tragedy if it dropped dead from eating some bizarre thing.”
Ji Yu couldn't help snapping back from the side, “What, do you just hate seeing the Sand Camel recover? Spewing 'drop dead' with every breath, are you cursing Dahuang here?!”
“You!”
Su Guanying silently stroked Dahuang's neck, then suddenly looked up at the blue-robed cultivator. “Ninth Uncle, if I don't feed Dahuang these pills, it won't survive more than a few breaths anyway. Why don't you place them by Dahuang's mouth and see if it wants to eat them?”
The blue-robed cultivator also realized Dahuang's dire condition. Frowning, he let out a long sigh after a pause. “Fine.”
He squatted down as well, bringing the handful of pills near Dahuang's mouth. Unexpectedly, the old Sand Camel's nose twitched slightly. It struggled to turn its head, sweeping its tongue out to swallow every single pill in his hand.
The blue-robed cultivator and Su Guanying exchanged a look, seeing surprise in each other's eyes.
Rate on N.U.
