Chapter 21: Enemies Face to Face

"What species is this? Never seen it before..."
"Violet? That’s decent for treating snake and insect bites."
"Huh? Isn't this Glechoma longituba? Useless."
"Why is everything here a medicinal plant..."

Ling Yinyin crouched in the forest, intently identifying the cluttered plants covering the ground, muttering to herself. Xiao Ze stumbled along behind her, struggling to master the legs he had just manifested. After coming ashore, a merman can transform his tail into human legs, but since they hadn't been used for a long time, they were somewhat atrophied. He had wrapped a wide leaf around his waist to cover his private parts and was working hard to tame his limbs.

"I’m a perfumer, not a physician. These plants are useless to me..." After some searching, Ling Yinyin hadn't found anything useful. She simply sat down under a tree, intending to rest for a while.

"Yinyin, haven't you found it yet?" Xiao Ze asked.

Observing his wobbly gait, Ling Yinyin couldn't help but advise, "Maybe you should go back into the water. I'll be fine on my own."

"No. If a wild beast appears, who will protect your safety?" Xiao Ze sat beside her. "It’s just walking on feet; I’ll be able to master it soon."

"Alright then." He had a point.

The night breeze by the lake was strong, and the temperature was pleasantly cool. The two enjoyed the evening breeze, feeling remarkably comfortable. It had to be said that the air in the beast world was fresh and rich in oxygen; if one ignored other factors, it was indeed a good place for humans to live. Living in such a pollution-free environment would probably extend one's life by twenty or thirty years.

Thinking of this, Ling Yinyin suddenly asked, "Xiao Ze, how old are you?"

Xiao Ze pondered for a moment and replied, "Forty. How about you, Yinyin? You look very young."

"I’m twenty-five."

Xiao Ze looked surprised. "That’s just reached maturity."

Ling Yinyin asked curiously, "In the Holy Beast Continent, how long do you beastmen live?"

"About one hundred and fifty years. Someone like you, Yinyin, is just a cub who has reached sexual maturity and entered the age for mating."

"Oh... I see."

Ling Yinyin understood. Based on the lifespan of beastmen, forty for Xiao Ze was the prime of his life, while she was equivalent to eighteen. That was fine; why wouldn't being even younger be a good thing?

"Oof!"

Just then, she suddenly felt something hit the top of her head. Seeing this, Xiao Ze quickly pulled her into his arms to check for injuries.

"Yinyin, are you okay?!"

"Yes, I'm fine. It doesn't hurt."

Ling Yinyin was suddenly pulled tightly against him, her cheek pressed against Xiao Ze’s firm, bulging pectoral muscles. Her cheeks turned crimson, and she pretended to be nonchalant as she straightened up. Goodness, it was so soft and springy—absolutely brimming with hormones.

She looked down at the ground and found that a white, crystal-like object had hit her. It looked familiar, so she stooped down to pick it up.

"Huh... what is this..." She crushed the crystal and sniffed it lightly.

Immediately, Ling Yinyin’s eyes lit up with delight. "It’s borneol!"

Seeing her sudden excitement, Xiao Ze was very puzzled. "What is borneol?"

"I'll explain it to you later," Ling Yinyin said. She stood up quickly and looked at the tree behind her, deducing that it was a Dryobalanops aromatica tree. Borneol usually comes in two forms: one synthetically extracted and one naturally secreted by the camphor tree. Clearly, this piece came from the latter.

Borneol has a clear, strong fragrance and acts as a sedative and analgesic. If added to sandalwood, it could greatly enhance the calming and soothing effects, serving as a powerful auxiliary agent. Dryobalanops aromatica trees were rare and came in many varieties; Ling Yinyin had only seen pictures of them in books, which was why she hadn't recognized the tree immediately. In the lab, she had always used synthetic borneol.

She hadn't expected to find this tonight; the trip hadn't been in vain. Ling Yinyin rolled up her sleeves and started climbing the tree.

Xiao Ze was startled and quickly shouted, "Yinyin, come down! It's dangerous up there!"

She ignored him, and after climbing up, she soon found a large amount of borneol in a crevice of the tree. Ling Yinyin carefully scraped off the white crystals and wrapped them in a leaf, folding it securely. These were treasures; they couldn't be lost. She stuffed the bundle into her pocket, zipped it up, and after confirming it wouldn't fall out, began to climb down.

But in a moment of carelessness, her foot slipped.

"Ah...!"

"Yinyin!"

Xiao Ze’s breath hitched. He lunged forward and barely managed to catch her in his arms. Both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yinyin, you’re being too reckless." Xiao Ze said with lingering fear, "Call me next time. Don't take such risks. What would happen if something went wrong..."

Ling Yinyin nodded. "I'm sorry." She had been too excited, and her behavior had indeed been inappropriate. "Thank you, Xiao Ze," she smiled.

Xiao Ze blushed. They were so close that the fragrance from Ling Yinyin drifted into his nostrils. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and he said awkwardly, "If you give me a kiss, I'll accept your thanks."

Ling Yinyin: "..."

A handsome man asking for a kiss—it would be a lie to say she wasn't tempted. However, she was a bit reserved and preferred to take things step by step. "Let's put it on credit, okay?"

"Oh..." Xiao Ze looked dejected, like a large golden retriever being ignored by its owner. It made Ling Yinyin want to ruffle his hair.

"Put me down..."

"Shh..."

Xiao Ze’s expression suddenly changed. He held his breath, his eyes darting somewhere.

Ling Yinyin tensed up. "What is it?"

"Don't speak," Xiao Ze said sternly.

*Swish—*

"..."

The forest was silent, save for the rustling of leaves in the breeze. Xiao Ze’s ears twitched, catching an extremely subtle sound traveling through the air. Almost instantly, he carried Ling Yinyin and retreated several dozen meters.

Where they had just been standing, a raging fire suddenly erupted. Ling Yinyin was all too familiar with those eerie red flames. A strong, bad premonition washed over her.

Xiao Ze chuckled coldly. "Is this how you greet others?"

A tall, lithe figure emerged from the darkness. Mo Yin’s gaze fell, seemingly inadvertently, on the arm Xiao Ze was using to hold Ling Yinyin. Ling Yinyin cursed silently and nudged Xiao Ze to let her down. If she remembered correctly, these two were mortal enemies!

Mo Yin raised his eyes and met Ling Yinyin’s gaze. "Come here."

She could tell that although Mo Yin was expressionless, he was actually on the verge of exploding.

"I..." Ling Yinyin took a step forward, then stopped. Goodness, she was afraid that if she went over now, Mo Yin might just swallow her whole. He looked truly terrifying. Behind those serpentine pupils hid a bloodthirsty madness.

Xiao Ze blocked her behind him, looking at Mo Yin with disdain. "Stinky bug, you can only threaten females, can't you?"

Mo Yin raised his hand, flickering flames dancing at his fingertips. He spoke again, his voice strained. "Ling Yinyin, are you coming over or not?"

Ling Yinyin wasn't stupid; now she was even less inclined to go. She hid behind Xiao Ze, heart pounding against her ribs, her brain racing to think of a countermeasure.

Xiao Ze said, "She isn't going anywhere."

Mo Yin could no longer hold back. "You're courting death."