Chapter 7

It was unknown how long it had been, but the woman in green slowly opened her eyes.

Ye Mo was staring at the Crimson Blood Vine in her arms, pondering how much he should ask for.

The woman in green was startled to see a young martial artist with a green sword on his back sitting opposite her. She felt something amiss on her chest and looked down at her ample bosom, only to find that her pink chest binding was loose.

"You scoundrel, you actually defiled the purity of this princess! I will kill you!"

She was instantly shocked and angry, grabbing the sword beside her and trying to struggle up.

However, a sharp pain in her chest made her collapse to the ground, almost fainting again.

The woman in green lay weakly on the ground, noticing a large amount of cold green herbal paste on her chest.

She finally remembered the battle in the forest in the afternoon, where she had been severely injured and fainted.

Now, she had woken up in a cave, with a large amount of herbal paste applied to her chest. It was clear that the plain-looking young martial artist in front of her had used healing herbs to save her, which was why he had undone her chest binding.

"Ah, did you save me?"

The woman in green regained her composure, understanding the situation, and finally looked at Ye Mo with a resentful and helpless gaze. Seeing Ye Mo's ordinary civilian martial artist attire, she felt some disdain in her heart.

"Hmm~!"

Ye Mo was momentarily speechless, not knowing what to say. The process of saving her had been too awkward, and he felt it was better not to say too much.

"Thank you!"

The woman in green's expression was melancholic and complex.

"You're welcome."

Ye Mo replied calmly.

"My name is Mo Ling, may I ask yours?"

"Ye Mo!"

Then, there was a long silence, lasting as long as the burning of an incense stick, making the atmosphere in the cave extremely awkward.

"Uh..."

Ye Mo pondered for a long time, thinking that staying silent would be a disadvantage, and finally couldn't help but speak, "Miss Mo Ling, I used my herbs to treat your wounds. Shouldn't you give me some compensation?"

"Ah!"

Mo Ling was taken aback, realizing that Ye Mo had been thinking about the herbal compensation all this time, finding him rather petty.

"But, I don't have any silver!"

Mo Ling said.

"No silver needed! I saved your life and used a pack of healing herbs. That should be enough to exchange for the Crimson Blood Vine in your hands. I don't like owing others, nor do I like being owed. Let's settle it clearly, and neither of us will owe the other."

Ye Mo pointed to the Crimson Blood Vine in her arms.

"But, I urgently need the Crimson Blood Vine! I'm in the middle of the Body Tempering stage and need it to advance to the later stage."

Mo Ling hurriedly said.

She knew very well that without Ye Mo's help, she would have lost her life, let alone the Crimson Blood Vine. However, she was in a difficult situation and really needed the Crimson Blood Vine to enhance her strength.

"You have six inches in total. Give me four inches, and you keep two inches!"

"Alright!"

Mo Ling was silent for a while before agreeing.

She cut four inches of the Crimson Blood Vine and threw it to Ye Mo, keeping less than two inches for herself.

In her current state of severe injury, if Ye Mo wanted to take it by force, she had no way to protect the Crimson Blood Vine.

Ye Mo didn't have such thoughts, and he didn't take advantage of the situation. She was secretly relieved. If the black-clothed martial artist had been sitting opposite her, she would have probably committed suicide to preserve her purity.

"Alright, now we're even!"

Ye Mo took the four inches of Crimson Blood Vine with a clear conscience and leaned against the cave wall to rest.

Adding the three inches of Crimson Blood Vine he had obtained from the black-clothed martial artist, he now had more than seven inches in total.

Ye Mo was secretly delighted. He had traded a pack of healing herbs worth a few taels of silver for a seven-grade Body Tempering herb worth several taels of gold. This deal was too good.

Once his internal injuries were slightly better, he could start Body Tempering and aim for the seventh layer of the Body Tempering stage.

"Did you also come to this island after your ship was caught in a storm?"

Mo Ling seemed dissatisfied with the awkward atmosphere and asked.

"Yes, the ship encountered a big storm the night before last and drifted to this island. There should be many other martial artists on the island. I don't know how to leave here!"

Ye Mo said helplessly.

"Where are you from?"

"I'm from the Wu Kingdom. Where are you from?"

Ye Mo was somewhat curious.

"I am Princess Mo Ling of the Donglai Kingdom!"

The woman in green said with some pride.

"You're the princess of the Donglai Kingdom? But you look so poor, and you were being chased by that black-clothed martial artist for a Body Tempering herb!"

Ye Mo was somewhat skeptical and glanced at her indifferently.

"I brought over twenty palace guards and several chests of valuables when I set sail. But when the ship sank, only I survived. The guards either drowned or went missing, and all the chests fell into the sea. I drifted to this deserted island alone, with only a sword on me. If my guards were still here, that black-clothed man would have been flayed and chopped into pieces long ago!"

Mo Ling pouted, feeling frustrated and depressed.

"Are you really the princess of the Donglai Kingdom? Why did you come to the sea? For someone like me, a small martial artist, there's no future in the Wu Kingdom, so coming to the East Sea to adventure is normal. But you, a noble princess of the Donglai Kingdom, with a prestigious position, enjoying luxurious food and riding in fine carriages, why did you come to the sea to risk your life? Don't you know the sea is very dangerous? Are you an imposter?"

Ye Mo was very puzzled and asked curiously.

"Why would I pretend to be a princess? On this deserted island, being a princess or not makes no difference! Not only am I a princess of the Donglai Kingdom, but I am also the granddaughter of a Qi Practitioner. Unfortunately, my grandfather went on a journey to the East Sea and never returned. I didn't want to be a peaceful princess in the Donglai Kingdom, so I came to the East Sea to seek immortals and find my grandfather, hoping he would take me to cultivate! I want to become a powerful cultivator like my grandfather."

Mo Ling pouted disdainfully.

"What, your grandfather is a cultivator!?"

Ye Mo was truly shocked and sat up. In his eyes, the identity of a cultivator's descendant was a hundred times stronger than being a princess of the Donglai Kingdom.

"Of course!"

Mo Ling couldn't help but chuckle at Ye Mo's shock.

"That's amazing! So you must know a lot about cultivators!"

Ye Mo quickly asked.

"Yes. When I was young, my grandfather often told me stories about the East Sea's cultivation world. I know much more about cultivators than ordinary martial artists!"

Mo Ling nodded.

"Did those sea merchants really know the location of a spirit village in the East Sea?"

Ye Mo quickly asked.

"The East Sea indeed has mysterious spirit villages; otherwise, who would risk the dangers of the East Sea to venture out?"

"My grandfather told me that these spirit villages are the lowest-level spirit cities, not ordinary settlements, but the most important strongholds for cultivators! Spirit cities are divided into different levels: spirit villages, spirit towns, and spirit cities. The levels of spirit cities differ greatly in terms of the number of cultivators, the functions and buildings within the city, and the overall strength in alchemy and artifact forging."

"Correspondingly, cultivators are generally divided into two types: the masters of spirit cities and the itinerant cultivators."

"The masters of spirit cities, or city lords, have their own strongholds and territories, becoming leaders in the cultivation world. In any spirit city, the city lord is usually the most powerful cultivator."

"Itinerant cultivators do not have their own strongholds. They either attach themselves to a city lord and become his subordinates, or they wander freely in various spirit cities, free from others' control. They may also form trade guilds or other organizations to find their own paths."

"The spirit villages mentioned by those sea merchants are the lowest-level spirit cities, built by Qi Practitioners. They construct walls and other structures to defend against external threats like sea beasts and evil cultivators."

"Even we martial artists, if we have enough good fortune to find these spirit villages in the East Sea, are allowed to enter. However, for higher-level spirit towns and spirit cities, it would be very difficult for ordinary martial artists to enter; only cultivators can go in."

Mo Ling said proudly. Only someone like her, a true descendant of a cultivator, would have the opportunity to learn such detailed information. Otherwise, ordinary people would only know that there are spirit villages at sea.

"So, the spirit villages in the East Sea do exist! As long as we keep searching, we have a chance to find them!"

Ye Mo's expression became excited.

Although cultivators might not look favorably upon him or take him as a disciple, at least it was a hope, a goal to strive for. He had already sold his family's old house and embarked on the journey to find the spirit villages in the East Sea. There was no other path for him.

"Don't be too happy too soon!"

Mo Ling's face showed no joy but rather a serious expression.

"What's wrong? If there really are spirit villages, why aren't you happy?"

Ye Mo asked curiously.

"Before we find a spirit village in the East Sea, there is a major issue concerning our survival that needs to be addressed!"

Mo Ling said solemnly.

"What issue?"

Ye Mo had a bad feeling.

"My grandfather once told me that sea beasts often appear on the islands of the East Sea. Especially at the end of each month, with the rising tide, sea beasts will come with the waves to the islands of the East Sea, looking for food! One of the most important uses of all spirit cities, towns, and villages is to defend against these sea beasts."

Mo Ling said worriedly.

"Ah? At the end of each month, there is a high tide, and sea beasts will come to the islands?!"

Ye Mo was shocked. He immediately thought of the young sea crab he had encountered on the beach. He couldn't even deal with an immature sea beast; what would happen if more came?