At that time, she guessed that Duan Rong had been captured by the Judgment and Rectification Department, and after some inquiry, it turned out to be true.
Xia Honghua was in great trouble back then, and with Duan Rong captured, someone needed to be found to handle the accounting anew.
She called in favors and finally found an old accountant, an elderly man who appeared to have a youthful demeanor despite his age, and seemed like an experienced accountant.
Xia Honghua was overjoyed, thinking she had found a savior.
But after trying for a few days, Xia Honghua realized that the old accountant was a bit senile. The accounts he produced were jumbled and disorganized, not only worse than Duan Rong’s work but even worse than hers.
She immediately sent the old accountant away and gave a good scolding to the person who had recommended him.
She was at her wits’ end these days and unexpectedly, Duan Rong returned.
Duan Rong worked tirelessly for three days at Xia Honghua’s place, sorting out the backlog of accounts. Once progress was on track, he returned to his routine of two hours daily.
With matters settled at Xia Honghua’s, Duan Rong immediately went to the Stone Workshop and Weapon Workshop to check on Xiao Yu and Ximen Kankan.
Both of them had become adept at their crafts, and after the third month of training, they could manage their own monthly workload much like the veterans in the workshop, without having to be there every day.
Having not visited them for over a month, Ximen Kankan seemed unfazed, but Xiao Yu was somewhat worried.
She even took the time to visit Master Shang’s mountain. But after circling the entire area, she found it deserted, with no sign of anyone.
At that time, Xiao Yu thought Duan Rong might have been on a mission, so she had no choice but to return to the Stone Workshop.
Ten more days passed, and Xiao Yu grew increasingly anxious. She was just about to finish work and planned to discuss with Ximen Kankan about looking for Duan Rong again, and if they couldn’t find him, they’d ask old Qin in the Lower Courtyard.
She was thinking about this while washing up by the stream, and suddenly saw Duan Rong emerging from the dense forest on the opposite side, smiling at her across the water.
Duan Rong walked to the stream bank.
Seeing Xiao Yu still squatting across the stream, staring blankly at him, he suddenly kicked a pebble from his feet into the stream, splashing Xiao Yu’s face with water.
Xiao Yu snapped out of it, leaped over the stream, and went to hit Duan Rong playfully.
The two of them fooled around in the woods for a while, then sat on a large bluestone to chat idly.
Xiao Yu asked about Duan Rong’s recent activities.
Duan Rong was afraid of worrying Xiao Yu with unsettling matters, so he said only that he had been closed-door cultivating and refining elixirs with Master Shang for the past month, and had not had any free time.
They chatted about other matters, with Duan Rong inquiring carefully about Xiao Yu’s situation in the Stone Workshop.
Although he had a stable income of sixty Contribution Points per month from Xia Honghua, his cultivation method consumed a lot.
Therefore, he planned to take on tasks to earn Contribution Points at the Guanglu Institute with Xiao Yu and Ximen Kankan.
With Shang Xiangyu and Pan Yong having disappeared, he was now largely free, depending mainly on Xiao Yu and Ximen Kankan’s availability.
Xiao Yu told Duan Rong that starting next month, her three-month training period would be over, allowing her to arrange her time freely. Then she could join Duan Rong in taking on tasks at the Guanglu Institute.
Then, Xiao Yu asked Duan Rong about Shen Mizi. In Xiao Yu’s heart, she always regarded Shen Mizi as a sister, and occasionally she saw the shadow of Xiao Baijiao in her.
Duan Rong said the Elder Hall is the core of the sect’s power, almost a forbidden area. They couldn’t possibly enter, and could only wait for Shen Mizi to find time to come out and meet them.
The two chatted in the dense forest until dusk fell, then returned to the Stone Workshop, to Xiao Yu’s cave.
In the darkness, the two embraced and passionately kissed.
At this moment, Duan Rong no longer had concerns. Previously, with Shang Xiangyu around, Duan Rong had once planned to escape the sect.
But now, the mountain that weighed on Duan Rong’s mind, Shang Xiangyu, had left by itself.
Besides, Duan Rong had already tasted the pleasures of life with Lv Qingzhu in the ruined temple.
At this moment, passion overwhelmed him, and he began to tug at Xiao Yu’s pants.
Xiao Yu grabbed Duan Rong’s hand, her face blushing, and with a hint of anger said, "Don’t take an inch and want a mile."
In the darkness, Xiao Yu looked into Duan Rong’s eyes and asked, "I ask you, will you marry me?"
Duan Rong said, "I will marry you."
Xiao Yu lifted her body, kissed Duan Rong on the forehead gently, and said, "Wait until you marry me then. For now, you better sleep on the ground."
Xiao Yu too was overwhelmed with desire at this moment, but she didn’t want Duan Rong to take her lightly. She might belong to the Jianghu world, but in her heart, she had already decided on Duan Rong, wanting to be with him as long-term partners.
During this past month, Duan Rong hadn’t come looking for her, and it was only then that she realized she had become somewhat disoriented. At that moment, she was astonished to find that Duan Rong had occupied such an important place deep in her heart, even to the point where her entire life seemed tied to him.
The so-called, "longing that seeps into the bones," perfectly captured her state of mind at that time.
Xiao Yu spoke, then stood up to light the candle.
She laid a grass mat and bedding on the ground and gave Duan Rong a beast skin blanket.
Xiao Yu settled Duan Rong comfortably on the ground before she climbed onto the stone bed.
The two of them lay one above the other, looking at each other, as the candlelight flickered.
After a while, Duan Rong fell asleep.
Xiao Yu gazed at Duan Rong, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly. As she watched, sleepiness washed over her, and she drifted into slumber without extinguishing the candle...
The next day, Duan Rong went to the Weapon Workshop to meet Ximen Kankan. He arranged with Ximen Kankan that starting next month, Xiao Yu and the three of them would head to the Guanglu Institute to take on tasks and earn Contribution Points.
After returning from the Stone Workshop and the Weapon Workshop, Duan Rong resumed his previous routine, apart from spending two hours a day accounting with Xia Honghua. The rest of his time was devoted to training in the dense forest.
Ever since Duan Rong returned from the dungeon of the Judgment and Rectification Department, the peak where Shang Xiangyu resided seemed to have finally attained peace.
This place was already secluded, being Shang Xiangyu’s personal peak. Once the case’s commotion had passed, it felt as though it had been completely forgotten...
On this day, Duan Rong sat cross-legged on a green stone not far from a pond in the dense forest. Within his meridians, True Qi churned, enveloping and refining the medicinal power...
Despite being locked in a cell by Yang Yi for over a month and unable to refine Elixirs, his cultivation of True Qi had advanced extremely slowly.
However, with these recent days of rigorous practice in the woods, his True Qi had thickened day by day. According to Duan Rong’s estimation, it wouldn’t be long before he achieved the True Qi Realm First Level.
As Duan Rong was refining True Qi, a "whoosh" sounded in the air, like an arrow piercing through the sky.
Duan Rong’s brow furrowed slightly, and he suddenly opened his eyes to see a green fruit being hurled at him by a baboon in the treetop not far away.
With a flick of his sleeve, Duan Rong knocked the green fruit away.
Then he turned his head to look at the baboon in the treetop and actually gave a faint smile.
At that moment when Duan Rong smiled at the baboon, a flicker of fire suddenly appeared before its eyes.
The firefly danced in front of its eyes like a firefly.
But it was daytime, and the daylight was bright. How could fireflies produce such a bright light during the day?
This baboon, which had spent years roaming within the sect, was quite intelligent.
As it wondered about the peculiar flickering firefly, it suddenly darted into its brow.
The baboon immediately reached out a paw to slap its forehead, but seeing nothing on its paw, it paid no heed, thinking that the strange firefly had been swatted to death.
But the next moment, the baboon suddenly saw a dark shadow wiggling its buttocks under the tree...
The baboon rubbed its eyes and found that somehow, a female baboon was sensuously swaying its hips and winking at it under the tree...
The baboon’s eyes immediately became transfixed, and drool dripped incessantly from the corners of its mouth...
It jumped down the tree, heading for the female baboon...
Just as it was about to leap onto the female baboon, it suddenly discovered the female baboon emitted the strangest laughter.
It looked intently, only to see the female baboon become blurred and transform into Duan Rong. Duan Rong laughed, his face started twisting, and baring his fangs, lunged at the baboon.
The baboon was so startled it screeched and retreated, realizing that all the trees in the dense forest began to warp too. They all turned into replicas of Duan Rong, their faces twisted, mouths full of fangs, closing in on it from all directions...
The baboon was so terrified that its legs shook, and it retreated towards the clearing in the center of the forest. As it retreated, it suddenly tripped next to the green stone.
It fell and looked up, only to see Duan Rong sitting cross-legged on the green stone, smiling at it...
The baboon was scared to death, chattering as it dashed out of the forest.
Duan Rong sat cross-legged on the large green stone, watching the baboon disappear into the dense forest, and chuckled happily.
"Terrifying, isn’t it?!
Though his progress in cultivating True Qi had been hindered during the over month-long confinement by Yang Yi, he had managed to decipher the basics of the Divine Soul Illusion Technique, specifically the initial stage of Ying Huo, during his time in the dungeon.