After a massive feast, Paimon patted her bulging little belly and collapsed onto the ground.
"Ugh... I can't eat another bite... Lumine's grilled fish and Su Ming's Black-Back Bass Stew were both just too good!"
"Black-Back Bass is truly a great species, growing itself to be so delicious. Hehehe."
Lumine looked at her with a face full of dark lines. "You glutton! That was a huge fish, and you ate more than half of it yourself. Su Ming and I barely got any!"
"It's fine, it's fine. The fish is gone, but I can always catch more," Su Ming said with a smile, bailing Paimon out.
He actually wanted to see how long it would take to get a reward from fishing now that his reward cards were exhausted.
Lumine shook her head. "Forget it. Fishing takes too much time. We need to find the Conqueror of Demons as soon as possible."
"Sorry," Lumine said with an apologetic smile. "Paimon is always like this. Please don't hold it against her."
"If you're still hungry, I have some bread here. If you don't mind, have some."
Lumine held out a small bun toward Su Ming.
Su Ming took the bread and took a bite. "Fair enough. Important matters first. We can worry about food once we reach Wangshu Inn."
"The chef there, Yanxiao, is a real pro. They have a huge variety of dishes."
Paimon, who had been playing dead on the floor, suddenly bolted upright. "Really!?"
"Of course. Mt. Aocang is a bit of a distance from Wangshu Inn, but at our speed, we should be there in no time."
Paimon shouted, "Then what are we waiting for! Let's go! We can't keep the Conqueror of Demons waiting!"
Lumine facepalmed and sighed. "Is it the Conqueror of Demons you're worried about? I'm almost embarrassed to call you out."
Paimon ignored her completely, flying off toward the mountain path while waving them over. "Hey! What are you guys waiting for? Hurry up!"
"I am so sorry... she's always like this," Lumine explained to Su Ming, looking awkward.
"No need to be embarrassed. With a companion like her, the journey is never boring, is it?"
"However, since we're heading down, let's skip the mountain path. I'll take you down directly."
Lumine was confused. "Is there a shortcut?"
Su Ming gave a sly grin. "You'll see in a second."
He suddenly reached out and swept Lumine up by the waist, then stepped forward to snag Paimon with his other hand. In an instant, he activated the Sky Dancing Technique and took to the sky.
"Kyaaa!"
Both Lumine and Paimon shrieked in unison.
Lumine, realizing Su Ming was holding her firmly by the waist as they soared through the clouds, instinctively covered her eyes.
How strange, Lumine thought.
She had once been capable of high-altitude flight herself.
So why was she afraid to open her eyes now?
She slowly lowered her hands, letting her vision return, only to see a cheerful, confident face smiling back at her.
Sensing her gaze, Su Ming looked down at Lumine.
Lumine's heart gave a violent throb, skipping a beat before she hurriedly covered her eyes again.
As for Paimon... oh, she had already passed out.
It was truly bizarre a creature that spent its whole life flying was actually afraid of heights. Was she that scared of a fall?
But Su Ming wasn't overthinking it.
Just as he didn't notice Lumine's strange reaction, he was too caught up in the thrill. The feeling of free flight was simply intoxicating.
Especially for him, as flight required almost no effort now. Under the influence of the Dragon Factor, the energy consumed by the high-speed Sky Dancing Technique was replenished in just a few breaths.
He was regenerating mana faster than he could spend it.
This allowed him to fly at high speeds with absolute reckless abandon.
"Hm? We're already here?"
Su Ming glanced down at the towering tree in the distance, realizing they had reached Wangshu Inn.
He slowed his pace, gradually descending from the sky and landing in a secluded clearing to set Lumine and Paimon down.
"We've arrived. That was my first time carrying passengers, so I hope it wasn't too uncomfortable."
Paimon groaned, "Uh... Lumine... Lumine, did you learn a cloning spell... why are there so many Lumines..."
After being set down, Lumine silently turned her back, not daring to meet Su Ming's eyes.
Su Ming blinked, realizing his mistake.
Okay, for a new friend he had just met, that move might have been a bit too forward.
However, judging by the results, neither party seemed truly unhappy about it.
Lumine really is the cutest, even if she is a bit cheeky.
Su Ming didn't push it. He sat down on a nearby rock, waiting for them to recover.
To his surprise, Paimon recovered faster than Lumine.
"Huh... are we down the mountain? Wait, wait, wait! Isn't that Wangshu Inn! We're actually here!"
Paimon flew up, checking her surroundings repeatedly before finally believing they had reached their destination.
"So fast!" Paimon gasped, then glared at Su Ming. "Wait a minute you can fly!?"
Su Ming laughed it off. "Adepti cultivation has many mysteries. Besides, I'm my master's top disciple, so knowing a flight technique isn't that strange, right?"
"And since this is an emergency, we couldn't afford to stroll. My master and uncles are waiting for the Conqueror of Demons to discuss matters."
Su Ming's excuse managed to fool Paimon.
By then, Lumine had finally regained her composure.
After taking several deep breaths, she managed to steady her racing heart.
Paimon flew over to her. "Lumine, are you okay? Do you feel sick?"
"Ahem, no, I'm perfectly fine," Lumine replied, her voice sounding a bit forced.
Paimon looked confused. "Eh? But your face is so red. Are you sure?"
"I said I'm fine! One more question and I'm cutting your food budget for next month!"
"Wait, no! I'll stop asking! I'll stop!"
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