The sky was very blue, and the mountains were very high.
Stelle was nimble, and A-Zhi often climbed mountains to gather herbs, so there was no need to say more about her.
Yan'er, on the other hand, was enthusiastic at first, but halfway up the mountain, he started to lose his spirit.
He looked like he was about to collapse at any moment, which made Stelle a little speechless.
There was no other way but to suggest they sit down and rest for a while.
"This, this mountain, why is it so steep?"
Yan'er gasped, collapsing onto a large rock nearby.
As a member of the Treasure Hoarders, she spent her days in the wilderness and ruins, so her stamina was definitely much better than that of a proper scholar.
But even so, the steep mountain path had left her legs aching, forcing her to stop and rest.
"There's still a bit of a path here, but once we get further ahead…"
A-Zhi looked up into the distance, "We'll have to use both our hands and feet there."
Even A-Zhi was feeling a bit exhausted at this point.
This mountain peak was indeed not easy to climb, and to be honest, they might even return empty-handed.
After all, Grandma Ruoxin's hint was only [high place], and this mountain was undoubtedly the highest peak within Qingce Village, but what if they finally managed to climb up, only to find that there was nothing they wanted to see at the summit?
Wouldn't this afternoon's efforts be in vain?
"Sigh…"
Yan'er sighed, but for the sake of what she wanted, she quickly regained her spirits.
As long as she could finally solve the mystery of that fragment and obtain the treasure she desired, all the exhaustion and hardship she endured now would be worth it.
And, if everything went smoothly in the end…
Yan'er looked at Aether, who was resting there, and A-Zhi, who was gazing into the distance.
Afterward, she could take Aether with her, and as for A-Zhi, considering she had at least hosted them for a night, she wouldn't kill her; she'd just knock her out and dump her somewhere.
Thinking of this, Yan'er felt re-energized; she immediately got up and looked at the two:
"Let's keep going; the sooner we climb up, the less late it will be when we go back."
"Are you sure? There won't be any good places to rest once we go further ahead."
Aether couldn't help but remind Yan'er, seeing her determined expression.
The mountain ahead was even steeper, and there was no proper path for people to walk on anymore.
They could only choose to climb up in one go, without stopping midway.
Otherwise, if they accidentally fell, even if nothing major happened, sprains and fractures were still possible.
"I'm sure. We'll climb up in one go; it won't be too late to rest once we reach the top."
Yan'er nodded, then took the lead and continued walking forward.
Aether and A-Zhi exchanged helpless glances and immediately followed Yan'er.
After walking for another stretch, they could only rely on their hands and feet to climb upwards.
As a herbalist, A-Zhi was the most experienced in this kind of rock-climbing activity, so she took the lead.
Next was Yan'er, with Aether following behind them.
If anyone accidentally slipped and fell, Aether could help pull them up.
Her stamina was sufficient, and she was strong; moreover, she had a Wind Glider, so even if she couldn't hold on, she could just fly down.
The three of them slowly climbed upwards, with Aether occasionally looking up at the two to observe their situation.
From her angle, A-Zhi seemed to be doing well—as expected of a proper herbalist, this small mountain peak seemed to be nothing to her.
However, Yan'er's situation was hard to say; she looked like she was about to fall at any moment.
"Yan'er, we're almost at the top; just hold on a little longer."
Aether couldn't help but call out to Yan'er.
"I know, I know; don't worry, I can still hold on."
Yan'er quickly responded.
Unfortunately, from Aether's angle, she could only see Yan'er's rounded buttocks, covered by her leather shorts, but not the expression on her face.
Otherwise, she would have realized that Yan'er was just putting on a brave front at that moment.
Moments later, A-Zhi was the first to reach the summit; she immediately lowered her head and extended her hand to Yan'er.
Yan'er was already on the verge of collapsing; seeing A-Zhi's outstretched hand, she immediately used all her strength to grab the other's hand.
A-Zhi didn't dare to delay, instantly increasing her strength and pulling Yan'er up.
Fortunately, Yan'er was a petite girl; otherwise, A-Zhi might not have been able to pull her up.
After much effort, Yan'er was up; next, it was Aether's turn.
Aether initially thought she didn't need A-Zhi's help, but facing A-Zhi's outstretched hand, Aether subconsciously reached out as well.
However, Aether was taller than them, and naturally a bit heavier; although she couldn't possibly be as heavy as an adult male, the change in weight still caught A-Zhi somewhat off guard.
She felt a little flustered, fearing that this sudden change would cause Aether to fall; her adrenaline surged, and with a burst of unknown strength, she leaned backward and pulled Aether up in one go.
Not only that, Aether even hung in the air for a moment before falling straight into A-Zhi's embrace, her cheek buried between two soft Slimes.
"Mmph, mmph…"
Aether hadn't quite figured out the situation yet; she just felt her breathing somewhat obstructed and quickly struggled.
However, after a moment, once she understood what was happening, her struggles became much smaller…
Yan'er stood to the side, completely stunned by this sudden scene.
This was too ridiculous; she had read many novels and comic books before and always thought that the various coincidental physical intimate contacts between male and female protagonists were fake.
How could such a scene actually play out in reality??
She, who was originally out of breath and had no strength, couldn't help, but seeing this scene unfold, Yan'er inexplicably felt some regret.
Even if she had no strength, she should have stood over there.
...
After a long while, Aether finally managed to wriggle out of A-Zhi's embrace.
Actually, logically speaking, A-Zhi's Slimes were not large at all, just within the normal range, so it was impossible for them to trap Aether's cheek.
The main reason was that A-Zhi was temporarily exhausted and couldn't push Aether away.
And Aether?
She was also [out of strength] from climbing the mountain, so she couldn't get up for a while.
"I, I'm sorry, A-Zhi."
Aether touched her nose; she could almost still smell the fragrance between A-Zhi's two peaks from just now…
"It's okay."
A-Zhi's face was flushed; she covered her chest with one hand and lowered her head, not daring to look at Aether.
A-Zhi, a child who grew up in Qingce Village, raised by the community, was completely naive about such matters.
She would probably never forget this intimate contact with Aether.
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