Path Of The Dragon (A Dark Fantasy Cultivation Wuxia Xianxia Progression Series)

Chapter 51 Heping City

Jie looked out the window again. "It's fine if you don't know who they are," she said smoothly.

The older woman's aura pulsed and the pressure in the cabin increased. Jie restrained a smile. To think this woman was so easy to aggravate. She didn't say anything though, and Jie didn't bother to continue. After all, this woman was unlikely to be helpful anyway. She simply stared out the window, utterly disinterested.

"I happen to be one of the strongest healers and alchemists in this entire region," said Pan Keai.

Jie looked back to the older woman, but she remained unimpressed. This woman could kill Jie easily, sure, but her power was like a drop in the ocean compared to Ming. And Ming was weakened. She was no good unless she knew of someone or something that would actually be useful.

For some reason, the older woman seemed to get even angrier as Jie looked at her, still largely disinterested. Was she supposed to be awed or something? How stupid.

"Perhaps I'll teach you, if you learn some manners," said Pan Keai, her lips curling into a disgusting smile once more.

"No thanks," Jie said.

The Pan siblings' eyes went wide and the older woman's eye twitched.

"You should be begging for the opportunity," Pan Keai said.

"Can you heal gods?" Jie asked, bored.

"No..." the older woman said, forcing the words through her teeth.

"Then, my family wouldn't approve," Jie said. She was concerned that Pan Keai's vastly superior cultivation would enable her to see through lies. So, Jie thought of how Ming wouldn't approve of anyone he considered weak and how he felt like family to her.

She hoped a half, twisted truth would be harder to see through than a blatant lie.

The older woman swallowed hard, and her expression shifted from rage to... something else.

"Your family wouldn't allow you to apprentice to anyone who can't heal gods?" Pan Keai said.

"Mmm," Jie said, "they're pretty strict about things like that."

"Well," the woman said, "I suppose I can take you with me to a few places. With me there, we can ask around and perhaps find you someone. Do you just want alchemists and healers?" The woman's entire tone had shifted from abrasive to smoother than silk. It made Jie suspicious. Was this some kind of trap or something?

"Just healers and alchemists," Jie said, "I can always look at the others when I get a chance. But... I suppose anyone that can heal would be good. I like the idea of being able to heal people."

Jie kept her statements as close to the truth as possible while trying to keep as calm as she could. With the older woman's cultivation so far above her own, she could probably hear Jie's heartbeat or something equally absurd. Outright lying would just be stupid.

"I see..." said the older woman, "so... you're interested in healing? I'd have thought you were more of a fighter." Though her words might've been an insult before, now they dripped with honey.

Jie shrugged. "What's the point of fighting if you can't keep the ones you care about alive?" she asked.

The older woman blinked as though she didn't understand but smiled anyway. Her smile was practiced and reminded Jie of politicians back on Earth. Like her, their eyes never smiled. They were soulless, calculating things. Like snakes.

"Well, we'll certainly try to find you someone," the older woman said, "although... someone that strong... they would be exceptionally hard to find. Gods are little more than legends. And, no doubt outrageously expensive."