25 An old hobby

"Why, I will travel wherever these old legs take me." He answered as he walked straight into the forests that did not have any dirt paths to follow. There were no traces of the grass having ever been trampled on.

[That did not answer my question.] She thought in her heart.

Xue'er followed closely behind, wondering if he even knew where he was going. After surveying the area, she concluded that this place has been rarely touched by human hands, it was practically a paradise for the plants and animals.

She was fond of such isolated places.

They both took light steps, which ensured that the grass stayed in pristine conditions as if it had been undisturbed all along. It was more like preventing creatures from following their footsteps, not that there was anything that would like to follow them in this isolated place.

But still, one could never be too sure.

Along the way, she found a tree with clove-like leaves that were pointy at the ends, it resembled a peacock's feathers. Xue'er's eyes lit up, as she climbed the tree and broke off a branch of the tree before putting it in her bag.

Gan Tian Chi saw an excitement in Xue'er's eyes that she patted her bag gently. This was the excitement of a child when they were playing with a favorite toy.

He also recognized that tree, the neeme, it was known as the fairy's tree, as it was able to cure a variety of ailments that plagued most of the people. It was a pity that no one really knew of such a miraculous plant and opted for more costly options. Even if they knew, it would still be useless, as it was very rare.

"You like herbs?" Gan Tian Chi asked after he saw the childlike excitement on her face.

Xue'er nodded. Herbs were one of the most enjoyable things she liked. There was a time when she would play with herbs daily and experiment with her grandfather, it would not be an overstatement to say that she had at least seen all the herbs discovered by humans.

Of course, this left out the herbs that were undiscovered, and it was also what she wanted the most.

She loved how there could be endless combinations with herbs to make medicines.

Along the way, they met with other kinds of herbs, which were also harvested by Xue'er and placed into her bag.

It wasn't long before her bag was overflowing with precious herbs and there was nothing else that she could put into the bag.

"Don't put any more into your bag." Gan Tian Chi advised her.

Xue'er nodded and gave a sigh as she looked at the bag that was filled to the brim with herbs. It was a pity that she would be unable to add more herb to her overfilling bag.

She decided to no longer pluck any more herbs, or even sniff the air as she could easily discern the smell of herbs instantly, she kept her eyes down on the grass and followed Gan Tian Chi like a docile little lamb.

Gan Tian Chi smiles, seeing how quickly she changed and continued to walk on.

When night fell, they rested in the branches of a tree with amber leaves. This year was similar to the last and now that they were closer to the north, it was colder than last year. They were not tired at all besides, they were at a point where they could have walked thousands of miles within one step, but Gan Tian Chi insisted that they should rest and admire the beauty.

Still, the tree provided a warmth, with the leaves acting as insulation, preventing the cold winds from falling down to the ground level. It was almost like a little house that prevented the elements from reaching those under its protection.

But still, they would not have gotten cold, even if they wore extremely thin clothes, it was not possible for the cold or heat to invade their bodies, for the depth of their inner qi was unfathomable.

As for Xue'er, she was cold to the touch of the human hand, but she herself did not feel the chilling weather. It was a strange condition that her body had, but she knew that there were small differences in her body, compared to the body of an actual human being. Her inner qi did not do much to allow her body to be warm to the human touch.

Even though the differences were slight and it was barely discernible, but they could be seen through if a person were to painstakingly examine.

[As of now, who knew what other things have not been shown yet.

Perhaps in a few years, everything will be known.]

Xue'er thought to herself. She looked towards the smoke like clouds that had wrapped itself around the moon, preventing the moon from showing any luminosity, there was only a slight glow, yet it was enough. The clouds had also covered all the stars, making the night sky quite beautiful, as it looked like the clouds were glowing.

The unknown, although slightly scary, was also filled with endless possibilities.

Xue'er laid back on the thick tree branch, staring through the small opening in the leaves that allowed the faint moonlight to fall through. Her breathing was ever so disciplined that not a single insect or bird on the tree sensed her presence and fled.

Gan Tian Chi was on another tree branch, his breathing was also disciplined. Out in this place, he seemed to be a man in his thirties. In truth, he looked ageless. Anyone who saw him would be baffled, he looked like he could be thirty, forty, or even fifty years old.

They were both practically invisible, that even if there was someone beneath the tree, they would not be able to sense anything out of the ordinary. After all, the animals that were the most sensitive to movement could not discern their movements, so how could a human accomplish such a task?

Their skills were like that of a well-trained assassin's and it seemed that it would be a waste of talent if they were not to do what they excelled at.