Xu Liling: “There’s movement, let’s go check it out.
Ying Ran sensed for a moment, “It’s quiet now, not as noisy as before bedtime.
Xiao Huang came out yawning, thinking to itself, Because of the barrier, obviously.
Xu Liling, however, said, “Hmm, they just finished fighting.
“Finished fighting?”
Ying Ran asked with concern, “How did it go? Did the Demonic Path win, or the Mysterious Path? Can we safely leave Ming City tomorrow?”
Xu Liling: “Which do you hope won, the Demonic Path or the Mysterious Path?
“Of course, the Mysterious Path…”
She paused, remembering Xu Liling was a demon, and added, “But if it’s you against the Mysterious Path, then I hope you win.
Xu Liling: “Then it’s me who wins.
Ying Ran thought to herself, You didn’t even fight them, what’s there to win?
She pulled Xu Liling’s hand to head back inside, “Fine, you win. Since they’re done fighting, let’s rest early. We have to travel out of the city tomorrow.
Xu Liling: “Mmm.”
He let her pull him along, lying down with her and closing his eyes.
The next morning, Ying Ran walked along the street toward the west city gate, looking at the utterly ruined Ming City, feeling a bit dazed.
Xu Liling pulled her along, telling her not to look, “There are corpses hidden in those ruins.
Ying Ran immediately averted her eyes and hurried out of the city.
At the city gate checkpoint, the Mysterious Guards kept staring at Xu Liling.
Ying Ran grew nervous, her palms sweating, worried they’d discover he was a demon.
Fortunately, the guards followed the usual procedure and let them pass.
Ying Ran let out a sigh of relief, mounted the flying steed with Xu Liling, and felt much lighter.
Leaning into Xu Liling’s arms, she continued their unfinished conversation about cultivation from the previous day.
Ying Ran: “I thought about it, and I’m more interested in the Yin-Yang Path.
It was mainly because cultivating this path would help her complete missions as a departed soul.
She still had to go back a thousand years to bring Huai Zhen away from the Demonic Path.
Since she wanted to study the Yin-Yang Path, Xu Liling began teaching her, “The Yin-Yang Path is a branch of the Daoist school. Building on the principles of natural harmony and effortless action, it emphasizes the fate of life and death. To cultivate the Yin-Yang Path, you first need to understand the balance of life and death…”
He explained in great detail, but the more Ying Ran listened, the sleepier she felt, as if she were attending a philosophy lecture.
Ying Ran muttered, “I thought the Yin-Yang Path was just about learning ghost-related techniques.
Xu Liling: “You will learn those, but to master them deeply, you need to thoroughly understand the fundamental principles of the Yin-Yang Path. I’ll get you some books later.
Ying Ran: “What books?
Xu Liling: “Books related to the Yin-Yang Path.
“Do I have to memorize them?
“You need to understand them thoroughly.
That sounded even harder.
Ying Ran let out a sigh, perking up, “Where are you going to get those books?
Xu Liling: “From the books I studied on the Yin-Yang Path before.
Ying Ran: “You studied the Yin-Yang Path too?
Xu Liling: “I’ve studied everything.
Ying Ran: “Wasn’t that exhausting?
Xu Liling: “Not really, I remember things after reading them once.
Ying Ran, jealous: “For real?
Xu Liling chuckled at her expression, pinching her puffed-up cheeks from pouting, “For real.
Ying Ran swatted his hand away, teasingly bitter, “You photographic-memory genius, don’t touch me.
Xu Liling wrapped his arm around her waist, his hand holding her chin, gently forcing her to look up at him.
Ying Ran struggled but couldn’t break free, playfully tussling with him. She nearly fell off the flying steed, but he pulled her back, her heart nearly leaping out of her chest from the scare.
Seeing the amused glint in his eyes, she knew he’d done it on purpose.
Huffing, she turned her face away, “I’m not playing with you anymore.
Xu Liling finally restrained himself, holding her properly as he guided the flying steed.
Ying Ran genuinely stopped talking to him.
He asked softly, “Want to stop and rest for a bit?
She turned her face away, ignoring him.
Xu Liling fell silent for a moment, then leaned on her shoulder, his breath tickling her ear as he whispered, “My mistake.
Ying Ran glanced at him sideways, “Why do you always tease me like that?
Xu Liling: “Do I?
Yes!
In her dreams, a thousand years ago, he teased her too.
But she couldn’t say that to him, so she just pouted and bumped her forehead against him.
Xu Liling’s nose got hit, and he tilted his head back for a moment.
Ying Ran, thinking she’d hit him too hard, asked worriedly, “Are you okay?
He lowered his head and playfully bit her cheek.
She pushed him, but he grabbed her hand.
Ying Ran stopped teasing, leaning into his arms and muttering, “Why do you always scare me?
Xu Liling paused, then said, “Next time, if you feel I’m scaring you, just tell me.
Ying Ran looked up at him, noticing his distant expression, as if he hadn’t even realized he was scaring her.
Is it because he’s a demon? Do demons just enjoy scaring people?
So childish?
Ying Ran pondered silently.
Xiao Huang, sprawled on the horse’s rear, rolled its eyes.
Only clever Xiao Huang knew Xu Liling didn’t mean to scare anyone.
Xu Liling’s malice was pure, and he instinctively found joy in it.
Because it was her, he pulled her back immediately.
If it were someone else, like Xiao Huang, he’d have let them fall to their death.
Smashed to pieces, he wouldn’t spare them a glance.
That was a demon.
The distinctions of good, evil, joy, or fear in the eyes of the world were not the boundaries in a demon’s eyes.
Ying Ran, leaning in Xu Liling’s arms, mulled it over but couldn’t figure it out, so she started chatting with him idly again.
Yunzhou is truly vast.
After spending the morning traveling like this with him, by noon when they planned to rest, they still hadn’t seen another city.
However, they discovered a small village nestled among the mountains and fields.
The village wasn’t large, but it was home to quite a few people.
Ying Ran asked Xu Liling to land outside the village, hoping to borrow a household’s earthen stove to eat something warm.
But as soon as the villagers saw them, they became wary. Several elders stepped forward to question them, but Ying Ran couldn’t understand a word they said.
The elders scrutinized Ying Ran and Xu Liling, noticing the cat and dog following them, and their demeanor softened considerably.
After a while, an old man approached and asked, “May I ask, what brings the two immortals to Wuyin Village?”
Ying Ran: “We’re not immortals, we’re ordinary people.”
The old man said a few words to the villagers.
Some young people who had been intentionally or unintentionally hiding emerged again, resuming their tasks.
The old man’s cloudy eyes lingered on Xu Liling, and he smiled, “Wuyin Village rarely sees outsiders, so our hospitality may be lacking. Please forgive us.”
Ying Ran quickly replied, “Not at all. We’d like to rest here for a bit, if that’s not too much trouble?”
The old man: “Of course, it’s no trouble at all.”
He warmly welcomed Ying Ran and Xu Liling into the village.
Along the path, children stared with round, curious eyes, innocent yet intrigued.
As Ying Ran was about to greet the children warmly, Xu Liling suddenly wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her to his side.
Ying Ran bumped into him, confused, “What are you doing?”
Then she heard someone speaking behind her.
Turning around, she saw a woman rushing over to scoop up a three-year-old child who was reaching for her waist.
The child was fixated on the sachet at Ying Ran’s waist, still reaching for it.
The woman swatted the child’s hand and muttered something Ying Ran couldn’t understand, though she too glanced curiously at the sachet.
The old man apologized, “The villagers never leave the village and lack experience. Please forgive them.”
Ying Ran shook her head, saying it was fine, and untied her sachet, intending to give it to the child.
Xu Liling casually took the sachet and tucked it away.
Ying Ran couldn’t snatch it back and pretended she hadn’t planned to do anything, shooting him a look: What are you doing? Is there something wrong with this village?
Xu Liling subtly shook his head.
If there was no problem, why wouldn’t he let her give away the sachet?
It was just an old one she’d used.
Ying Ran pursed her lips silently and followed the old man to a farmhouse to sit down.
In the farmhouse, there was an old woman whose tone suggested she was the old man’s wife.
The old woman seemed a bit intimidating.
The old man spoke to her in what sounded like a dialect, which Ying Ran couldn’t understand.
But the old woman gave Ying Ran a friendly smile before going inside to bring out a pot of tea.
The old man invited Ying Ran and Xu Liling to sit.
Xu Liling went to tie the flying steed in the courtyard, while Ying Ran sat down first, with Da Hua and Xiao Huang lying at her feet.
The old man asked, “Where are you two coming from? How did you find our Wuyin Village?”
Ying Ran: “We came from Yiwang Continent, passing by on our flying steed. We saw this village from above. It’s noon, so we thought we’d stop to rest. Sorry for the intrusion, and thank you for your hospitality.”
The old man repeatedly said, “You’re too polite,” but he seemed lost in thought, his eyes occasionally glancing at Xu Liling, making Ying Ran frown slightly.
The old man: “May I ask what your relationship is?”
Ying Ran: “He’s my husband.”
The old man nodded and asked, “How old are you both?”
Ying Ran answered vaguely, “Around twenty.”
“Around twenty…” The old man pondered, “I can see you both have extraordinary bearing. Are you truly not immortals?”
Ying Ran: “No, we’re not.”
She thought to herself, We’ll rest for a bit and leave. This old man is so strange.
But then the old man looked at Xu Liling again, smiling with a hint of melancholy.
He seemed to realize his rudeness and explained, “To be honest, your husband reminds me of someone who saved my life years ago.”
Ying Ran: “Reminds you?”
The old man looked ashamed, “It’s been so long that I can’t clearly recall my savior’s face, only his name.”
Xu Liling, having tied up the steed, came over and sat beside Ying Ran.
The old man gazed at Xu Liling, his eyes distant, “Though I don’t remember clearly, looking at your husband, I feel he’s so similar, so very similar…”
“For you to land here today, and for your husband to resemble my savior so closely, I believe this is fate—a chance for me to resolve an old regret.”
The old man rambled on, then suddenly asked Xu Liling, “May I ask your name, young friend?”
Xu Liling sipped his tea and didn’t answer.
Ying Ran could tell from his demeanor that it wasn’t that he couldn’t answer—he was just too lazy to.
The old man’s expression grew forlorn.
Ying Ran said, “His name is Xu Liling.”
The old man’s eyes lit up, “My savior was also surnamed Xu.”
Ying Ran: “No, his surname is Xu Li…”
Before she could finish, the old man said, “His name was Xu Yinzhen.”
Ying Ran’s mouth hung open, she blinked, and let out an “Oh.”