Chapter 777 - 698: Ascend to the Peak 97
With so many storage stones, Tan Shuangshuang has stored an enormous amount of food and water, enough for everyone to eat for a hundred years. Giving some to Sha Qionghua is just a sprinkle of rain to her. Of course, Tan Shuangshuang didn’t act like a foolishly generous person and offer too much. She gave enough food and water for about ten people for a month, enough for emergencies.
Sha Qionghua didn’t leave without giving back, though. After receiving the food and water pouch from Tan Shuangshuang, she offered her thanks repeatedly and stubbornly left behind a mid-grade spirit stone before departing.
After Sha Qionghua left, Bai Sheng, who had been indifferent and quiet, suddenly spoke, "That woman is born with charm bone." After saying that, Bai Sheng closed his mouth again, reverting to his aloof demeanor.
Born with charm bone, everyone was momentarily stunned and then realized why this woman was so alluring. It’s said that those born with charm bone are famously enchanting.
Any woman with charm bone is an absolute beauty, and she doesn’t need to cultivate bewitching techniques to make men’s hearts flutter effortlessly. Even an ordinary sentence or glance carries extreme allure. No one can resist this, unless they are a man who prefers men.
For women born with charm bone, this isn’t a good thing. Charm bone makes these women seem like they’re seducing people in everything they do, regardless of their intention, so women born with charm bone have always been seen as female foes.
Men cannot resist the allure of women with charm bone, they crazily pursue them, competing against each other, irrespective of whether the women want this attention or not.
They’re like precious items, fought over, forced to wander among different men, unable to act by their own will, living a life without freedom.
Many women born with charm bone do not wish to live such lives. Some have tried to hide their charm bone, but it causes a woman’s every move to radiate charm and cannot be concealed, akin to a human aphrodisiac.
Being fought over, confined, toyed with, and cursed, some women can’t endure such days and have ended their own lives or gone mad. Others, twisted by such confines, exploit their beauty to toy with men, driving them mad only to meet their untimely end.
Every appearance of a woman born with charm bone ignites a turbulent storm, whether she wishes it or not. Over time, women born with charm bone have been labeled as femme fatales, isolated by all upon their appearance.
Once, to avoid chaos caused by women with charm bone, people frantically sought them out and killed them en masse, under the guise of preventing the root of chaos in advance.
Latterly, after all women born with charm bone were found and exterminated, this madness gradually faded. For many years, no women born with charm bone appeared until today, unexpectedly encountering one.
However, Tan Shuangshuang was confused. If she truly had charm bone, her allure shouldn’t be so weak. Bai Sheng is an exception; he is a tiger and naturally likes only tigers. Lu Tianyi and Tan Feiyu should not be so calm. Even if not interested, they should at least glance twice. This isn’t about conscious attraction; charm bone’s allure is so strong that men, uninspired, would still look twice, unlike Tan Feiyu and Lu Tianyi who remain calm.
Not every man goes crazy for a woman’s allure. Cultivators are particularly resolute, and the higher the cultivation level, the stronger the resolve. Still, to be driven mad by a woman shows the immense power of charm bone.
Such allure capable of driving resolute advanced cultivators to lose their senses should not be resisted so easily. Perhaps sensing Tan Shuangshuang’s confusion, Bai Sheng said more, "That woman’s charm bone has been suppressed. She likely cultivated a technique to conceal her innate charm bone, releasing only a trace, making it hard for others to notice her charm bone’s constitution."
Bai Sheng left unsaid that the woman seems to intentionally cultivate bewitching techniques. Bewitching techniques can allure men for ordinary women, but the innate allure of charm bone surpasses all such techniques. Cultivating bewitching techniques only diminishes the power of charm bone.
Everyone was merely curious about Sha Qionghua, such a rare woman with innate charm bone, but only curious. After some interest, they resumed drinking and feasting, as it’s merely a fleeting meeting, the Blood Mist Desert is vast, and they might never meet again.
After a day of rest and fun, the group resumed cultivation, and Sha Qionghua’s ship had long since departed. After a day of clear skies, the Blood Mist Desert returned to its wind-swept sandy demeanor.
In the blink of an eye, ten days passed. On this day, the group arrived at a red thorn forest within the Blood Mist Desert. This red thorn requires little water to survive and possesses extremely tenacious life force.
Legend has it, the Blood Sand Stone most commonly appears in the red thorn forest of the Blood Mist Desert. The red thorn forest is notoriously difficult to locate, often taking explorers months to find one in the Blood Mist Desert.
Tan Shuangshuang and her companions were indeed lucky. Despite not intending to find Blood Sand Stone, focusing solely on cultivation, they stumbled upon this red thorn forest by sheer accident.
Though they hadn’t planned to search for Blood Sand Stone, it was only natural to look around since they’d found the red thorn forest.
Having initially planned to acquire some Blood Sand Stone, everyone had explored information on it. Blood Sand Stone invariably emerges under the red thorn forest. The reason is simple: the unique aura emitted by Blood Sand Stone can be absorbed by red thorns, promoting growth. This is why thorn forests exist where Blood Sand Stones are found.
The larger the thorn forest, the more Blood Sand Stone lies beneath. Without knowing the exact location of the Blood Sand Stone, nothing can be detected. Everyone could only use a simple method: dig. If the spot is right, naturally, Blood Sand Stone will be discovered.
But sand isn’t soil; it doesn’t stay still. Sand is fluid. Excavating deep-buried objects under sand isn’t easy. It requires controlling the sand to prevent it from flowing back into the freshly dug pits using spiritual power.
During this process, the one digging the sand must concentrate and use Divine Sense to search meticulously for Blood Sand Stone amidst the excavated sand.
The best way to excavate Blood Sand Stone is through cooperation: someone controlling sand flow, someone digging, someone using Divine Sense to feel out the Blood Sand Stone’s location.
Tan Shuangshuang and company opted for teamwork; Fei Hu and Tan Feiyu managed the sand flow with spiritual power, Bai Sheng and Lu Tianyi took turns digging, while Tan Shuangshuang, with the strongest Divine Sense, controlled Thousand Silk Entanglement standing aside, ready to retrieve any discovered Blood Sand Stone.