Chapter 66 He Deserves to Starve

When Chu Tianfeng returned to the top of the cliff, he was met with a hero’s welcome.

The edge of the precipice was crowded with people—mostly tourists, with a sprinkling of park staff, medical personnel, and 119 rescue workers.

Jiang Ziyue was the most emotional of all. Before the rope around Chu Tianfeng’s body had even been untied, she rushed forward and asked loudly, “Where’s Xu Yan? How is Xu Yan?”

“Don’t worry, she’s fine.” Chu Tianfeng frowned deeply as he glanced at the throng pressing in around him.

He felt secretly relieved that he hadn’t picked the Flame Dragon Fruit at the time. Otherwise, he’d likely be facing a whole new round of pursuit by now.

“Really? Is it true?” Jiang Ziyue cried out in delight, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“It’s true,” the firefighter said as he helped Chu Tianfeng untie the rope. “The other girl is still down there—she’s unhurt.”

“Thank you, thank you!” Jiang Ziyue threw her arms around Chu Tianfeng, weeping and laughing at once.

“All right, please step aside.” Two doctors approached. One, an older woman, patted Jiang Ziyue on the shoulder.

“I’m fine,” Chu Tianfeng waved off the doctor, stopping her from coming closer. “Just some scratches—I can handle it myself.”

“Qianling,” Tang Yi came over as well and advised, “Your back seems seriously injured. Let the doctor take a look.”

“Yes, we’re responsible for your well-being. At least let us perform a thorough check-up,” the female doctor interjected.

Chu Tianfeng shook his head.

If he let the doctor examine him, his identity would surely be exposed. He wasn’t a fool; he understood this well enough.

“Miss, we’re only doing this for your own good. Don’t worry, it won’t take long,” the doctor persisted.

“All right, all of you, step aside. I still have to go back down for the rescue,” the firefighter said impatiently in a loud voice.

Chu Tianfeng tossed the rope aside and walked toward Du Jingjing.

Du Jingjing understood his intention. After a moment’s thought, she asked, “Are you sure you don’t need a doctor?”

“That’s up to you,” Chu Tianfeng said with his arms folded. “We’re in the same boat. If my identity is exposed, it won’t be easy to get to Thousand Bird Lake.”

A threat! An utterly blatant threat!

She knew full well Chu Tianfeng was threatening her, but there was nothing she could do.

“What about Xu Yan? Is she hurt?” Du Jingjing asked again.

“Even if she is, I can heal her,” Chu Tianfeng replied nonchalantly.

“Fine! For the sake of your heroic rescue, I’ll help you this once.” Du Jingjing bit her tiger tooth and produced a red document, then turned to approach the squad leader of the 119 rescue team.

“Hello, may I help you?” the squad leader asked politely.

Du Jingjing handed over the document and snapped off a quick salute. “Sir, the one who fell from the cliff was my partner. I need to escort him away first.”

The squad leader examined the document closely, then returned it to her. “Understood. We’ll cooperate. Go ahead.”

“Thank you!” Du Jingjing saluted again, then beckoned to Chu Tianfeng.

He hurried over. “How did it go?”

“Don’t worry, just follow me,” Du Jingjing said with a slight upward curve of her lips.

Chu Tianfeng grinned, nodded at the squad leader, and followed Du Jingjing away from the scene without a backward glance.

“You did well today,” Du Jingjing praised as they walked.

“In what way?” Chu Tianfeng asked, changing his clothes as they went. “Tell me and I’ll be sure to correct it.”

He knew this girl rarely complimented anyone, and he didn’t like being praised by her either.

“You’re impossible! You’re actually proud of yourself.” Du Jingjing shot him a look. “You’re usually so selfish, but when it mattered, you put yourself on the line and saved someone.”

Chu Tianfeng was speechless. He knew he was a bit self-centered, but he didn’t think it was a flaw, nor did he intend to change.

“Could you be generous once more and teach me your lightfoot skill?” Du Jingjing asked, her eyes full of hope.

She’d witnessed the miraculous effects of Chu Tianfeng’s movement technique more than once; every time had left her deeply shaken.

“What are you thinking? Planning to leap off cliffs every day once you learn it?” Chu Tianfeng laughed.

His Wind Riding technique was a form of spellcraft, not mere lightfoot skill, and he had no intention of teaching it lightly.

“You’re impossible!” Du Jingjing rolled her eyes. “If you don’t want to teach me, so be it. Besides, my cover is blown. I’ll probably have to go back to headquarters from now on.”

Chu Tianfeng thought to himself, You shouldn’t have come out in the first place. With your mid-stage dark energy cultivation, risking your life just to show off is hardly worthwhile.

Afterward, Chu Tianfeng returned to the hotel. After lunch, he shut his door to all visitors and continued his meditation to heal his injuries.

It wasn’t until after six o’clock that he emerged from his room.

“Senior, you’re out!” As soon as he opened the door, the one next to his banged open as well, revealing Xu Yan’s delighted face.

Clearly, Xu Yan had been in the neighboring room all along, keeping an ear out for any movement from Chu Tianfeng’s side.

“Mm.” A warmth flowed through Chu Tianfeng’s heart.

He had to admit, being cared about was a wonderful feeling.

“How are your injuries?” Xu Yan hurried over and naturally took his hand.

“I’m fine now, thank you!” Chu Tianfeng nodded.

“No need to thank me!” Xu Yan responded with a hint of reproach. “You were so badly hurt—you should have seen a doctor.”

“No need,” Chu Tianfeng smiled. “My body’s as tough as diamond.”

“Heehee! Senior, you’re amazing!” Jiang Ziyue came running out, too. “I don’t even hate you anymore, really!”

Chu Tianfeng looked at her in confusion, not sure what she meant.

“On the way here, you kept listening to English lessons and drove her crazy. Last night, she even talked in her sleep about wanting to eat you up,” Xu Yan giggled.

Chu Tianfeng couldn’t help but smile.

“What do you want for dinner?” Another graceful figure stepped out.

“Why were you in their room?” Chu Tianfeng asked, puzzled.

“Xu Yan invited me. She said you needed peace and quiet to recover and told me not to disturb you,” Du Jingjing replied testily. “Satisfied?”

Chu Tianfeng shrugged.

“What do you all want to eat?” Du Jingjing asked again.

“River crabs! Lobster!” Jiang Ziyue shot her hand up enthusiastically. “After the scare I got today, I need a feast to comfort myself.”

“Fine.” Xu Yan agreed unexpectedly quickly. “Dinner’s on me tonight.”

“I’ll pay,” Chu Tianfeng said, knowing Xu Yan was trying to express her gratitude. But she only earned a little each month—it would be too much for her.

“Enough, both of you. I’ll treat tonight.” Another graceful figure appeared in the hallway.

They all turned and saw Tang Yi.

She wore a white cheongsam, her long hair casually draped down her back, radiating intelligence and beauty.

“Miss Tang!” everyone greeted her warmly.

“Though I’m always broke and barely get two sponsorships a year, tonight I want to indulge myself, just as Jiang Ziyue said—to calm my nerves,” Tang Yi said, her gaze sweeping over Chu and Xu.

“Where’s Li Shijun?” Chu Tianfeng glanced behind Tang Yi.

Tang Yi and Li Shijun each had single rooms, side by side; normally, Tang Yi would have invited him to dinner.

“He said he wasn’t feeling well and didn’t want to eat,” Tang Yi smiled. “Let’s go. We’ll bring him something later.”

“I’m not bringing him anything. If he starves, he deserves it!” Jiang Ziyue pouted.

Everyone rolled their eyes in unison.

After dinner, Chu Tianfeng slipped away from Tang Yi and the others, snuck out of the hotel, and, after making sure he wasn’t being followed, headed straight for the Bridge of Sending Immortals.

The bridge wasn’t far—just a few miles from the hotel—but the mountain path was narrow, winding up and down and not easy to traverse.

Every now and then, a tourist or two blocked the path, resting or gazing into the distance. When they saw Chu Tianfeng carrying his big pack, they greeted him heartily.

After about an hour, Chu Tianfeng finally shook off the last of the tourists and arrived at the Bridge of Sending Immortals.

The sun had just set, leaving a faint blush on the horizon. Chu Tianfeng rested for a while, waiting until there was no one else in sight before leaping lightly over the edge, descending into the ravine below.

Alone, it was much easier. Once he used his Wind Riding technique, his descent was slower than during the day, but his energy was consumed at a much lower rate.

Passing the platform he’d used earlier, he merely used it as a springboard before gliding down toward the Flame Dragon Fruit tree.

The tree itself wasn’t large—only as thick as a walking stick. Its roots clung to the cracks in the cliff, the trunk twisted and bent, stretching just about a meter out over the void.

Clusters of bright red Flame Dragon Fruit hung from the branches. Counting them carefully, he found as many as fifteen!

Chu Tianfeng was overjoyed. He carefully picked all fifteen fruits and packed them into his bag.

All fifteen were ripe; only three showed minor blemishes—most likely pecked by greedy birds, but the damage was negligible.

His alchemy skills were still lacking, so he could use these three for practice.

At present, he could only refine lower-grade spirit pills—specifically, the Restorative Pill. The Rejuvenation Pill was still beyond him.

The Restorative Pill wasn’t hard to make; in his previous life, he’d managed it twice, with one success, yielding five pills he’d treasured ever since.

Those two Flame Dragon Fruits had been stolen at great personal risk, and when Qianling found out, she’d given him a thorough beating.

The other ingredients were common spiritual herbs. The Benevolent Hall likely had them in stock, so Chu Tianfeng wasn’t worried.

Once he’d packed everything away, he swiftly returned to the platform. After cultivating for about ten minutes and fully restoring his energy, he began to climb back up.

Now at the fourth stage of Qi Refining, he could leap three or four meters upward at a time. When his strength failed, he’d grab onto a protruding rock or pine tree, use it for leverage, and continue climbing.

He’d already surveyed the cliff during the day; there were plenty of jutting rocks and trees to rest or cultivate on.

Each time he climbed several dozen meters, he’d pause to rest and circulate his energy a few times. Once recovered, he’d use the Wind Riding technique again, soaring upward like an eagle.

After about twenty minutes, he finally reached the top of the cliff.

By now, night had fallen completely, and the tourists were surely long gone.

Chu Tianfeng sat down cross-legged, intending to cultivate and restore his energy.

But just as he settled, a burst of rough laughter echoed from afar.