Unbothered by the disturbing scene before his eyes, Di Tanxue looked sideways at a middle-aged man seated in a corner deep in meditation.
Dressed in gray robes, with refined facial features and a majestic air; the middle-aged man had the appearance that any mundane would imagine a true immortal to possess.
Giving the middle-aged man a cursory glance, Di Tanxue took an elevated-seat directly opposite to the middle-aged man which also happened to be next to a window.
As the wind flew inside through the window, Di Tanxue could hear the young noble apologising to the caravan guard captain.
He seemed to have offered something as compensation which the guard captain refused initially but reluctantly accepted after insistence.
A few moments later, Di Tanxue next heard the young noble having a conversation with the chubby young man tending to the armoured beast's injuries. It was a brief conversation regarding the armoured beast's current state and how long it would take to recover.
Two days. The young noble sounded dissatisfied hearing this and gave only an incense stick worth time for the beast to be prepared for departure.
"Haha… Elder, I hope this lowly Xu Tian's carriage is to your liking;"
The young noble, Young Master Xu Tian, entered with a jovial look on his face.
"We'll be prepared for departure in a short while;"
Rummaging through his storage bags as he spoke, Young Master Xu Tian took out a person-sized table and placed delicacies and fruits of various kinds, be it sweet, sour or spicy, on the table with practiced ease.
"Please have some of these while you wait;"
With no need for any insistence, Di Tanxue tasted a few as a blissful smile surfaced on his face under the cloak. Next, he picked up a cup of fragrant tea kept to his left and took a sip.
'Haa, how refreshing;'
Although Young Master Xu Tian could not see the smile on Di Tanxue's face, he could sense his improved mood. Watching him eat with relish, Young Master Xu Tian sighed and whispered to nobody in particular.
"I should wake her up now;"
The young girl lying in a puddle of blood, she was not dead obviously, neither was she injured and the blood on the floor was also not her own… technically speaking.
It was but a common consequence of a failed or an interrupted Initiation Cycle.
"Little Hua;"
Young Master Xu Tian called out as he nudged the girl's shoulder gently with his hands yet there was no response.
A few more attempts and the girl still remained asleep, as such Young Master Xu Tian looked behind and gave Di Tanxue an apologetic look.
"Don't mind me;"
Di Tanxue shrugged his shoulders as he popped a juicy grape in his mouth and picked up a leather-bound book from the side.
Young Master Xu Tian let out a relieved breath and bowed his head.
"Apologies, I'll be right back;"
Suddenly, a mass of water appeared next to Young Master Xu Tian and grew to surround both him and the girl within a thin but opaque spherical structure, isolating vision and sound from the outside.
"Tch, how overdramatic;"
Why apologize for leaving him alone for a few moments? As expected of a noble, Young Master Xu Tian's way of entertaining a guest was way too strict and burdensome for someone like Di Tanxue.
Shaking his head, he opened the leather-bound book with one hand and took a bite of an apple with the other.
""Shocking! The Holy Church's Successor Finally Revealed?""
""Blood Princess, Why She Is The Apex of The Upcoming Generation!""
""Suspicious Activity Near The Southern Shores.""
""The Gu Family of The West and Their Ever-Rising Influence."
""Mysterious Death of Earthly-Spark Palace Lord.""
Mindlessly reading the first few pages of the book, Di Tanxue did not look much interested. The monthly gossip magazine of Gentle Rain Commerce, it was as stale and boring as ever.
It was only after half an incense stick worth of time had passed that the spherical structure disintegrated to reveal Young Master Xu Tian and the girl.
Giving them a once over, Di Tanxue noticed that Young Master Xu Tian had gotten rid of the bloody puddle on the floor and the girl too had cleaned up and changed out of the dirty clothes.
"She is Hua Ming, my fiance;"
Young Master Xu Tian introduced the girl's identity with a smile as they sat opposite to Di Tanxue.
For the next few moments the carriage was filled with chatter with Young Master Xu Tian's lead and while the other two appeared not as interested in conversations, he still somehow managed to keep it from getting awkward.
"Oh, Brother YongShou, is everything ready?"
Young Master Xu Tian stood up seeing the chubby servant return inside the carriage and took a breath of relief receiving an affirmative response. Little Unicorn, their carriage Beast was not yet fully healed but it could still drive the carriage albeit at a reduced speed.
"Let us set out then;"
Having received the order, YongShou, the chubby servant nodded his head and the carriage began moving forward. There was no need for him to go outside and handle the reins in person as he shared a mental connection with the Beast and could command it remotely.
*****
Half a day later, the evening was about to approach, hence Young Master Xu Tian ordered YongShou to find a place to camp for the night.
They found one within no time since the Cardinal Highways were the preferred way of transport for Inter-Domain trades and the abandoned campsites left by past travellers were a common sight within the surrounding vegetation.
As befitting of a loyal retainer, Yongshou was the first to disembark. He set up the camp all on his own before his lord, Young Master Xu Tian, or anyone else could alight the carriage.
Taking care of everything within a short few moments, he had already begun preparations for the dinner.
By the time Di Tanxue, along with Young Master Xu Tian and his fiance, came outside, he could smell a mouthwatering fragrance in the air.
"Young Master Xu, I must admit, your servant is quite skilled in his duties;"
Hearing Di Tanxue's praise, Young Master Xu Tian burst into laughter.
"Indeed, indeed, Brother Yongshou is one of the finest retainers in my clan. Sometimes even I wonder why he chose to serve someone as unremarkable as me;"
"Unremarkable? Far from it, Young Master Xu. For even a practitioner of Orthodox Path to serve as your escort, you're anything but ordinary;"
Hearing these words, Young Master Xu Tian gazed back at the carriage and let out a silent sigh.
"Is it about Old Man Wang? He is one of my father's personal bodyguards."
"I've heard he was a big shot in the Central-Continent back in his youth."
Young Master Xu Tian said nothing further about the middle-aged man left behind alone in the carriage. Not to mention, his words had a hostile tone to them which Di Tanxue found a little amusing.
"Seems like you trust him a lot…. enough to not be afraid of inviting a stranger like me on board;"
"What? No! Elder, please don't make fun of me;"
"This Xu can never trust that wily old fox. He knows how important my Little Hua is to me and yet he went out of his way to endanger her soul earlier!"
Young Master Xu Tian roared with indignation, not at all afraid of Old Man Wang seated inside the carriage hearing his words.
Earlier this afternoon, Young Master Xu Tian had requested Old Man Wang for assistance with his fiance, Hua Ming's Initiation Cycle; Old Man Wang had complied in the beginning… only to suddenly withdraw his Anchor mid-process.
Were it not for the kind-hearted elder's(Di Tanxue's) timely assistance, Hua Ming's soul might've been washed away in the waters of the Great Ocean, leaving behind a soul-less husk of meat desperately clinging to life.
It was only a wonder how Young Master Xu Tian could remain so calm and collected despite suffering such a severe betrayal of trust.
Listening to Young Master Xu Tian's laments, Di Tanxue remained unmoved. Finding a spot to sit comfortably, he inquired.
"Why the rush to complete your fiance's initiation? Can't you do it once you reach your destination?"
"It will be too late by then;
Young Master Xu shook his head and offered no further explanation. Shooting occasional glances filled with self-pity towards Di Tanxue, he waited till the food was prepared and served to the trio.
"Elder, please forgive my impudence.. but can you help us out? I'll make sure to compensate you for this trouble;"
"Hmm… Alright;"
Gulping down a mouthful of vegetable porridge, Di Tanxue appeared to be in a pleasant mood. He accepted Young Master Xu's request, which he had seen coming from miles away, with close to no deliberation.
As could be guessed, from the very beginning Young Master Xu's objective was to somehow persuade Di Tanxue for help. It was why he invited him to the carriage and also why he took such good care of his needs.
Di Tanxue, of course was not averse to it since all he wanted was to freeload some good food out of Young Master Xu.
It was a mutually beneficial situation.
Watching Young Master Xu set up an altar and a few simple formations on the ground; Di Tanxue requested for a second filling and silently deployed his Anchor in the vicinity.
Once everything was set up, Young Master Xu and his fiance sat before the altar and called out in unison with great respect.
"Salutations O Sole Hope of Humanity;
O Transcendent Empress of Immortality;"
A distance away, an intrigued light flashed through Di Tanxue's eyes.
Transcendent Empress?
So Young Master Xu and his fiance aren't descendants of someone from Divine Spirit Army?
He mused inwardly while an archaic gaze filled with boundless might settled upon them sending shivers down everyone's spine! The sensation caused their body to freeze instinctively but recovered soon after, influenced by Di Tanxue's anchor.