The rest of Wu Jian’s day passed by in a flash, and he parted ways with Wu Meiying to retire for the night. Of course, she would eventually show up. Then they would head out to the Twin Fang Mountains.

Yet as the time for Wu Meiying to make her appearance drew near, Wu Jian began second-guessing himself. Was this really the best choice they had? Should they really be doing this? His mother had informed him that a magical beast who had stepped into the Asura Realm was prowling around the forest.

Magical beasts were creatures that had gained power after somehow acquiring a spirit core. Spirit cores acted similarly to a human’s dantian and meridians, allowing the magical beast in question to use the same mystical power as humans and even cultivate like humans did. Wu Jian had read stories about magical beasts that even managed to gain a human form after cultivating for several centuries, but those were only fictional stories. He didn’t know if they were true.

Even if they weren’t true, a magical beast at the Asura Realm was not something he and Wu Meiying could deal with on their own. He had doubts about their decision to sneak out because of that. By the time a knock sounded at his door, he was overflowing with worry and reluctance.

“Jian? Are you in there? It’s me. Hurry up. We need to leave now if we want to have any hope of sneaking out of the compound,” Wu Meiying said from the other side of the door.

Wu Jian slid his door open to find Wu Meiying standing before him, a bright smile on her face, body cloaked in darkness. She wore long robes that went all the way down to her ankles and black boots with fur lining the interior. The color was not pure black but more of an extremely dark blue, though it was hard to tell in this lighting.

“What are you doing still dressed like that?” asked Wu Meiying. “Hurry up and put on your cloak.”

“Mei… should we really be doing this?” asked Wu Jian. When Wu Meiying just looked at him, he continued. “I mean… I heard there was a magical beast who had reached the Asura Realm living on the Twin Fang Mountains. If we run into something like that…”

“Are you getting cold feet? Don’t worry. Even if we do run into that magical beast, we won’t die,” Wu Meiying said with such confidence that Wu Jian couldn’t help but believe her. Even so, he hesitated for a moment longer. When she saw this, Wu Meiying smiled softly. “Do you want to remain here? If so, I can gather the herbs you need myself.”

Her words caused a fire to burn inside his chest. Wu Jian felt the determination that had been wavering out of fear return with a vengeance. Let her go alone? Not a chance.

“There’s no way I can let you do something so dangerous on your own. I’m going with you,” he declared.

“I thought you might say that. Now, hurry up and put on a cloak so we can leave.” Wu Meiying gestured toward his cloak with a broad grin.

While Wu Jian felt kind of like he had been played, he still grabbed the cloak folded on the dresser and donned it. He didn’t mind getting tricked so long as she was the one who did the tricking. The cloak settled over his shoulders, thick and warm. It was the same color as Wu Meiying’s and would help him blend into the night.

“I’m ready,” he said to Wu Meiying, who nodded and raised her hood. He followed suit as she gestured for him to follow her and led the way outside.

Wu Jian had never snuck around the clan compound at night before. He felt a strange sense of exhilaration as he followed Wu Meiying, who led him across the clan compound. Sometimes she would stop and duck behind a boulder or a tree, waiting for the patrolling guards to pass, before moving again. The guards always moved in pairs. Despite this, they were never caught. Wu Meiying made sure to cover their tracks. She did so with a large leaf she had grabbed from somewhere, using it to erase their footprints in the snow. Wu Jian was impressed by how thorough she was.

It did not take long before they reached the other side of the compound. Wu Meiying led Wu Jian to a section of the wall that was covered in vines that had long since died. Despite how brittle they appeared, they were quite sturdy, and Wu Meiying didn’t hesitate to climb them. When she reached the top, she looked down the other side as if checking to see whether there were any patrolling guards, then leapt down. He heard the soft thud as she hit the snow-covered ground.

“It’s your turn, Jian.”

“Coming.”

Wu Jian took several deep breaths and placed a hand against his chest, feeling the way his heart was pounding. Was this excitement or fear? He didn’t know. Maybe it was both.

Reaching out, Wu Jian only flinched a bit when the biting coldness of the vines encroached on his hand, but he didn’t let that stop him. He grabbed the vine with his other hand and pulled himself up. One hand at a time, he climbed the vines, until he reached the top. Wu Meiying was waiting for him on the other side, waving at him.

“Hurry up and jump down,” she said.

“R-right.”

Wu Jian gulped, then leapt from the wall, wincing as he hit the ground. However, he had trained in how to land without hurting himself. He bent his knees to absorb the impact, sending snow flying everywhere, then stood. His legs were a bit sore. Even so, it didn’t hurt nearly as much as he had expected it to. He was a little surprised.

“Are you ready?” asked Wu Meiying.

Wu Jian nodded. “Yes.”

“Then let’s go!”

Hand in hand, Wu Jian and Wu Meiying made their way to the closest of the Twin Fang Mountains.