I don’t know what Jiang Fengxian is thinking. Anyway, after Zhouyang expressed his intentions, she didn’t force him to give her a satisfactory explanation.
Perhaps she is also conflicted inside, not knowing what kind of explanation she truly wants.
Zhouyang’s words had some rhetoric in them, but the logic was not wrong.
If, because of her pressure, Zhouyang abandoned his current Dao companion to be with her, with her pride, she probably wouldn’t be willing to accept that outcome.
However, asking her to willingly lower herself and share a Dao companion with other women is something she absolutely cannot do.
Thus, the matter was temporarily put indefinitely on hold as Zhouyang hoped, never to be brought up again.
Jiang Fengxian’s attitude returned to how it was before they encountered the Wood Demon, as if nothing had happened between them because of the entanglement in the Cyan Treasure Cauldron, at least on the surface.
To Zhouyang, he was already quite satisfied with this outcome.
Although sometimes, he would recall the delightful experience inside the Cyan Treasure Cauldron for three days and three nights.
But he knew well that before he and Jiang Fengxian could clarify their relationship, it was impossible and unsuitable for the two to have that kind of relationship again, otherwise it would only become more tangled.
No matter what Jiang Fengxian thinks, Zhouyang has already considered her as his woman in his heart.
Therefore, on the journey that followed, he paid a lot more attention to details compared to before.
For example, every time they rested, he proactively took on the role of guardian so Jiang Fengxian could rest better.
Also, when facing troublesome enemies, he acted more bravely compared to before, choosing to get hurt himself rather than letting Jiang Fengxian suffer any harm.
And when distributing the spoils of war, he always allowed Jiang Fengxian to choose first, even when encountering treasures that tempted him greatly.
This change in details wasn’t something Jiang Fengxian, who isn’t wooden, would fail to notice.
Thus, even if she said nothing, her attitude toward Zhouyang indeed softened considerably and her tone became much gentler.
When Zhouyang noticed this, he was naturally delighted and more motivated.
If his pursuit of Xiao Ying had been somewhat utilitarian in the past, his pursuit of Jiang Fengxian now was solely out of love.
Zhouyang did not expect Jiang Fengxian to be moved by these small gestures and agree to become his concubine; that was impossible.
If Jiang Fengxian were such a person without principles, she couldn’t have cultivated to her current realm.
So he only hoped through these small gestures, Jiang Fengxian would feel his affection for her and see his true heart; that would be enough.
As he had told Jiang Fengxian, cultivators seek eternal freedom—as long as she doesn’t reject him, he believes that over hundreds and thousands of years, he could make a stone bloom.
Perhaps misfortune had run out during the encounter with the Wood Demon, as on their journey through "Celestial Rift Canyon," Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian did not encounter any powerful beings that threatened their lives, and after camping out for over three months, they successfully traversed the entire canyon.
After leaving "Celestial Rift Canyon," without the threat of hidden spatial rifts in the skies above, Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian were finally able to fly on clouds. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novelꜰire.net
However, this did not mean they could traverse freely, for bordering the "Celestial Rift Canyon" was the "Cold Wind Plain," which was equally perilous.
This "Cold Wind Plain," far from being a plain, was rather an ice field.
The ground was covered in perpetual permafrost and snow, with tall hardy trees and low shrubs, and fierce cold winds scoured the land year-round.
On this icy field, many formidable demon beasts roamed, both in the air and on land.
When Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian first set foot in this place, they impulsively flew high on clouds, which attracted a swarm of "Double-headed Ice Wind Vultures" to attack them.
These "Double-headed Ice Wind Vultures," as the name suggests, have two heads: one capable of releasing wind magic, and the other ice magic, and upon maturity, reach Tier Three.
If they successfully condense a demon pill, Tier Four beasts can wield mixed magic of both ice and wind, making them overlords of the "Cold Wind Plain."
At that time, the "Double-headed Ice Wind Vultures" attacking Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian numbered over a hundred, including a dozen Tier Four beasts and two Tier Five beasts, a formidable force indeed.
Had this been the only lineup, with Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian’s abilities, they wouldn’t necessarily fear these beasts.
However, demon beasts like "Double-headed Ice Wind Vultures" often have a common feature: when the population reaches a certain size, and there are high-tier beasts above Tier Four present, they will resonate bloodlines, mastering joint magical casting.
At that time, over a hundred "Double-headed Ice Wind Vultures" were led by two Tier Five Demon Beast leaders, combining their magical power to release a spell that directly triggered a terrifying blizzard, enveloping Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian.
Spells have grades, but the power of a spell is not completely limited by its grade.
A simple Tier Two Lower Grade Technique "Wind Blade Technique" wielded by a Qi Cultivation Stage Cultivator and a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator shows a world of difference in power.
The spells performed by over a hundred "Double-headed Ice Wind Vultures" together, though not comparable to those cast by a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, are far beyond the spellcasting level of a Golden Core Stage Cultivator.
After barely enduring the first round of spell attacks, Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian decisively chose to escape into the underground ice fields.
This is the advantage of cultivators. Although they do not have the ability to unite through blood resonance like demon beasts, they can master various attribute spells beyond their own cultivation techniques, which gives them a greater adaptability than demon beasts.
Due to the threat posed by these aerial raptors, Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian had no choice but to fly at a low altitude to avoid the attention of these demon birds.
But during their low-altitude flight, they encountered another overlord-level demon beast on the ice field, the "Ice Demon"!
The "Ice Demon" is an ugly demon beast with a body like that of an ape, a head like a wolf, claws like a tiger, and a tail like a scorpion.
This demon beast does not like flying but prefers running on snow and ice. Its running is not purely physical but a special body technique aided by magical power, making its speed not inferior to the flight speed of cultivators of the same tier.
The most terrifying aspect is that this demon beast also possesses the ability to become invisible on snow and ice. Its invisibility can elude the divine sense and most pupil techniques of cultivators of the same tier, with only a few pupil techniques or creatures capable of detecting the "Ice Demon’s" stealth through sight, smell, and sound.
At that time, the Ice Demon that ambushed Zhouyang and his companion was a Tier Five Ice Demon. Perhaps following the principle of picking the softer target, it chose Zhouyang, who had a lower cultivation, as the target of its ambush.
Before its ambush, Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian, who were flying at low altitude, failed to notice any signs.
It was only when it jumped and attacked while being invisible that Zhouyang, thanks to his divine sense comparable to that of a late-stage Golden Core Cultivator, detected the anomaly.
In such a situation, an average Golden Core Stage Cultivator would at most activate protective spiritual artifacts and divine techniques for emergency defense, having no time to counterattack.
However, Zhouyang decisively chose to meet the Ice Demon’s sharp claws with a punch in a fraction of a second.
The result of the clash was that Zhouyang had several deep claw marks on his hand that almost reached the bone, but the Ice Demon also had one of its sharp claws fractured by his punch—a mutual injury indeed.
Yet Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian were ultimately unable to detain that Ice Demon.
Because, after its attack failed, the cunning and ferocious demon beast immediately chose to flee invisibly from the scene upon realizing that the prey was more troublesome than anticipated, giving them no chance for a counterattack.
On their journey afterwards, Zhouyang and his companion discovered two more Ice Demons, which Zhouyang proactively identified using the "Separation Fire Golden Eye" divine technique.
As those two Ice Demons were only Tier Four, out of curiosity for this exotic demon race, he preemptively killed these two unaware Ice Demons whose whereabouts had been exposed.
Within the bodies of the dead Tier Four Ice Demons, Zhouyang did not find a demon pill, but he discovered a sort of cold, white crystal core in the brain. Presumably, it was the equivalent of a demon pill and the source of the Ice Demons’ power, which Zhouyang named "Demon Core."
One day, as Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian traveled across the "Cold Wind Plain," they suddenly sensed a powerful magical combat fluctuation from afar.
When they followed the fluctuation to the outside of an ice lake, they saw a lady in a blue dress engaged in magical combat with a giant white toad.
"You two are just in time," the blue-robed woman said. "I am Beigong Bai Feng, an elder of Xuechan Palace of the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm. If the two of you are willing to assist me in defeating this exotic Ice Toad, I am willing to reward you both with the [Ice Crystal Snow Lotus] that the toad guards!"
The blue-robed lady Beigong Bai Feng, with a cultivation of the Eighth-Layer Golden Core, had long since noticed Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian approaching. Upon seeing that their cultivation was at the First-Layer Golden Core and Fourth-Layer Golden Core, respectively, she relaxed her guard and promptly sought their aid through a sound transmission.
Upon hearing Beigong Bai Feng introduce herself, Zhouyang was quite surprised. He had not expected to encounter a cultivator from the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm here.
He had heard of the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm while in the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, knowing it was a cultivation realm larger than Liuyun’s.
However, according to what he’d heard, although Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm was extensive, most of the area consisted of uninhabited ice fields and wastelands, territories dominated by demon beasts.
Very few areas were occupied by cultivators of the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm, and their numbers and level were far less than those in Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm.
As for Xuechan Palace, which Beigong Bai Feng mentioned, Zhouyang had not heard of the sect. But seeing Beigong Bai Feng’s confident demeanor, it seemed the sect was quite famous in the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm, possibly even a major sect with Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators.
While Zhouyang pondered these matters, Jiang Fengxian suddenly said to Beigong Bai Feng, "We don’t need the [Ice Crystal Snow Lotus], but you must share with us a portion of the [Moon Toad True Blood] from inside this exotic Ice Toad, or there’s no deal!"
Moon Toad True Blood?
Zhouyang looked at Jiang Fengxian with surprise, then at the exotic Ice Toad battling equally with Beigong Bai Feng, and his eyes flashed with a peculiar light.