(Southern Region- Xercopolis Empire)
(The Forbidden Desert)
Seven days had passed, and Xu Lu was getting sick of seeing the same scenery for hours and hours every single freaking day.
She hated to say it but... she missed the internet.
This journey would be a lot more bearable if she could just pull up some videos on YouTube to pass the time.
A heavy sigh leaked out of the saintess' mouth as she finally crossed one mountain of sand and discovered...
More mountains of sand.
Xu Lu walked down the side of the enormous sand dune and sat down in the shade. She decided to take a small break.
Most missions in the forbidden desert took up to two months so there was no telling just how far the missing disciples had travelled into the desert.
They could be hundreds of kilometres away.
Honestly Xu Lu was tempted to use her qi to travel on her flying sword, but she forced herself not to give in to her urges.
It took a great deal of energy to keep her weapon in flight and the last thing she needed was to encounter an unexpected enemy with no qi in her dantian.
Xu Lu reached into her storage ring and pulled out a large teapot, a small gourd-shaped water bottle, a tiny cup, and some tea leaves.
She poured some of the water into the teapot and then added the leaves.
She used her fingers to gently stir the mixture and soon the clear water turned into a pleasant shade of green.
The saintess carefully poured the resulting mixture into the tiny cup until the tea reached the edge of the porcelain.
Xu Lu's fingers touched the corner of her mask, and she lifted up the bottom slightly in order to sip the tea.
Her fingertips trembled violently as she tried to remove her mask further.
Even though she was by herself and in the middle of the desert... the original Xu Lu's personality was still affecting her.
The most she could do was reveal her lips.
Anything above that and it would take a great deal of effort on her part to remove the mask. It could be done but frankly Xu Lu just wanted to relax.
Xu Lu raised up the cup to her mouth and took a small sip.
The tea was bitter with an aftertaste that lingered in her mouth. The saintess sighed contently as she took another sip.
This was good tea.
Squeak! Squeak!
A noise interrupted Xu Lu's tranquility. She looked down in the direction of the sound and saw her little mouse companion poking its head out of her robe's pocket.
"Hello little one," Xu Lu teased softly as she stretched out her hand and gently brushed the top of the mouse's head.
"Want some tea?"
Xu Lu got a fresh cup from her storage ring and poured out some tea into the cup.
She carefully lowered it towards her mouse and the furry creature hesitantly stuck out its tongue.
The little white mouse took a few licks of the tea and then pushed away the cup with an unhappy expression on its face.
Xu Lu laughed and reached for a treat to hand to her pet. The mouse squeaked happily and then dove back into her robe.
The saintess smiled warmly and then stood up from the ground. She placed all of her items back into her storage ring and then continued on her journey.
She travelled for around thirty minutes before something in the distance caught her attention.
There was a slow-moving procession of tribespeople crossing a dry flat plain.
The group transported their tents and vital supplies on the backs of camels while the men, women and children walked alongside the animals.
The midday sun was shining brightly in the sky, so the tribespeople wore thick robes that covered their entire bodies.
It may sound strange to wear thick robes in the desert but unlike cultivators, mortals had to protect themselves from desert storms and hot winds.
The saintess observed the procession from the distance and debated silently in her mind whether or not to approach them.
The village head had given her a general direction where the missing cultivators had gone but after days of fruitlessly searching...
Xu Lu was beginning to suspect that she would not find them.
This could be yet another lead to narrow down her search.
The only problem was that she remembered the reaction of the last group of tribesmen when she revealed her identity as a cultivator.
Xu Lu's brows furrowed as she contemplated what to do. Her fingers clenched into a tight fist as she finally made a decision.
It was a stupid one but...
She changed her direction and moved towards the procession of camels and tribespeople.
If she really made them uncomfortable then after she got the information that she wanted, then she would leave at once.
The saintess approached the group with quick steps and was soon spotted by the scouts at the back of the procession.
She raised up her hand and waved at the scouts in a friendly manner.
One of the desert tribesmen, a hulking six foot tall muscular man broke away from the ground and approached her.
"What is your purpose?" the man asked in a fierce tone.
His muscles could clearly be seen even beneath the robe that he wore, and a curved sword hung on his hip.
"I am a righteous cultivator and I have been looking for a group of missing disciples... have you seen them?" Xu Lu asked politely.
The muscular man rubbed his chin and then yelled out some words in a language that Xu Lu did not understand.
The other tribespeople began to murmur among themselves until a camel broke away from the procession and moved towards the back of the line.
The camel stopped a few feet away from Xu Lu and a feminine figure jumped off the back of the animal.
A slender woman walked towards the saintess. She had dark brown skin and lovely black eyes that seemed to stare into Xu Lu's soul.
"Greeting cultivator..." the woman bowed respectfully and spoke in a gentle tone.
"I am the 'Mehistan' of my people. I heard that you are searching for missing disciples?"
"Yes... don't worry I will leave immediately once you tell me what you know," Xu Lu made sure to gently reassure the strange woman.
"Nonsense... it would be an honour to have you travel with us," the strange woman smiled gently but Xu Lu was sure that her smile did not reach her eyes.
"Cultivator with your strength... you would make our journey much smoother... please... stay with us for the next few weeks..."
A strange emotion briefly surfaced in her gaze, and it was one that Xu Lu recognised immediately.
It was a hint of bloodlust.
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