Thud!
Lin Nan, sitting cross-legged, suddenly collapsed onto the ground with a thump.
Shen Yuer hurriedly caught her, her small face pressed very close, full of concern as she said, “Xiao Lin, you’re finally awake! I thought you’d gone mad from your first cultivation attempt! I was so worried!”
“Mhm, thank you, I’m fine.”
The girl was still a bit dazed. Sitting sideways on the floor, she leaned against Shen Yuer’s chest, lowering her head to look at her palm. A tiny white dot was imprinted right in the center.
“If you really can’t find your Qi, don’t force it. Cultivation is about perseverance. It took me many days to find my Qi back then.”
Shen Yuer comforted her, taking off her water flask and handing it to Lin Nan.
Lin Nan nodded and thanked her again, holding the flask and taking a sip.
Her face flushed slightly for a moment. She watched Lin Nan twist open the lid, her soft pink lips pressing against the flask’s mouth. The water slid smoothly into her mouth, her throat moving as she swallowed.
“So bitter.”
Lin Nan put down the flask and gave her a side glance.
Shen Yuer was a good girl in many ways, but her thoughts were too impure. How could a perfectly fine girl fall into such muddy waters so early?
“Hey, Xiao Lin, what kind of look is that! I, Shen Yuer, have sworn to oppose gambling and drugs with all my might!”
“What about ‘yellow’?”
“Ahem,” Shen Yuer grabbed Lin Nan’s hand and awkwardly changed the subject, “By the way, how did you fall into that state of madness just now? But you clearly didn’t have any Qi…”
I don’t have… Qi…?
The girl furrowed her brows and lowered her head again, silently reciting the Long Breath Song’s formula in her heart.
But in reality, there was nothing.
Her Dan Tian was as calm as a deep pool, with no reaction whatsoever. Even the white dot on her palm showed no changes.
Huh.
How is this possible?!
Lin Nan closed her eyes. She had inherited the Tian Dao Fortune of eight lifetimes, all bestowed from the Supreme of the Mortal World of that era.
Shouldn’t I be a cultivation genius? Why can’t I even summon the most basic Qi!?
“Ah, it’s fine. There’s still plenty of time. We’ll have more chances in the future.”
Lin Nan wasn’t truly disappointed. What she really wanted was to stay by Shen Yuer’s side and grow with her. Still, not being able to cultivate was indeed a little regretful.
Moreover,
she suddenly recalled the vision she had seen during cultivation.
She didn’t know if Shu Ying had really given up or if she was still planning to find her.
“If Xiao Ying goes mad, who can handle that? Last life I could suppress her with the Teacher’s identity, but this life, she probably won’t obey me so obediently anymore…” Lin Nan shivered slightly, a trace of worry creeping in at the thought of what might happen in the future.
If I don’t learn some magic for protection, I might be in big trouble…
The matter of the Shen Family’s Fifth Miss fleeing an arranged marriage was a scandal for the entire Shen Family and the Prime Minister’s Residence.
For now, the impact of this incident had been confined and kept secret within two families in the Capital City. Even though the Prime Minister’s Residence sent pursuers, no one dared to spread the news recklessly.
This approach gave Shen Yuer some room to maneuver.
The two of them left the Capital City swiftly and found a shop under the Shen Family’s control, using the immensely valuable face of the Fifth Miss to get credit for a horse-drawn carriage.
They arranged for two charioteers to drive the empty carriage toward Qin Prefecture after reaching Chencang, while she stood with Lin Nan proudly at the entrance of Changge Hall in Chencang.
“You know I’m a concubine-born, right?”
The weather was splendid today—or rather, excessively so.
The scorching sun fiercely roasted the land, as if it wanted to throw everyone onto the ground and bake them front and back.
Half of Shen Yuer’s face was hidden in shadow, the other half burnt by the sun. She waved her small hand to fan herself with a faint breeze. The Fifth Miss, who had been rushing around with Lin Nan, now looked utterly arrogant.
“No matter how concubine-born I am, I am still the Shen Family’s Fifth Miss living in the Capital City. These outlying halls have neither the qualifications nor the guts to meddle in Capital City affairs.”
Lin Nan understood her meaning, but thought, That doesn’t make sense. Since the upper echelons are fighting like gods and demons, shouldn’t the lower ones at least keep a low profile rather than picking sides and attracting trouble?
“Ah, Xiao Lin, you still don’t understand.”
Shen Yuer’s face turned serious. She watched the hall master, hunched over, hurry toward them respectfully to escort the two girls inside. He was considerate enough to send away all the servants and personally brewed two cups of tea.
Lin Nan really didn’t get it. She felt like her previous eight lives had been wasted. Was this the real difference between monsters and humans? Truly, “different trades are like different mountains.”
“Miss, this is…”
The hall master kept glancing at the unknown girl beside the Miss, unsure whether to continue speaking.
“Pft—”
Shen Yuer couldn’t help it and chuckled softly, covering her mouth. She playfully patted Lin Nan’s arm and teased, “Ah, there’s no need for all these twists and turns. Old Li is willing to receive me just because I saved his family’s lives before.”
“Don’t think there’s anything complicated going on~”
“That’s right. For the Li Family, the Miss’s favor is a debt that can never be repaid!”
Lin Nan watched the exchange and couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.
Shen Yuer stood up, the serious look on her face gone without a trace. She pursed her lips and masked the deep anxiety in her eyes with a bright smile. “Old Li, prepare three sets of carriages and horses as I previously instructed. I will take the top-grade carriage to Tong City, the remaining mid-grade carriage will bypass Tong City and head west, and for the lowest-grade carriage, arrange several death row prisoners disguised to take it back to Changjing City.”
“Miss, everything is ready. The people to meet you in Tong City are also arranged.”
“Good, thank you, Old Li. We’ll meet again if fate allows.”
Without wasting any more time, Shen Yuer bowed to Old Li, took a finger ring emitting a blue glow, and led Lin Nan out of the hall at a quick pace.
Watching the two girls’ departing figures, the hunched Old Li hesitated to straighten his back. After a long while, he sighed deeply and murmured, “Miss, blame it on your favor that can never be repaid…”
“Um,”
Feeling the softness of the hand holding hers, Lin Nan frowned slightly.
“Just call me Yuer,” Shen Yuer always wore a brilliant smile. She smoothly led them into a dark alley behind the hall.
A luxurious horse-drawn carriage was parked there.
Even though Lin Nan didn’t fully understand so-called exotic beasts or magical artifacts, she could clearly tell this carriage was a level above the one Shen Yuer had taken when escaping Changjing City.
“Yue… Yuer… I have a bad feeling about Old Li.”
Lin Nan’s danger sense was almost innate. Even as a Half-Demon now, this gift had not truly faded.
“He’s always been off.”
Shen Yuer grinned, casually shoving the finger ring into Lin Nan’s palm. “This is a Qi Storage Artifact. It allows ordinary people to operate the Longge Hall’s carriages and horses.”
“The only drawback is that the Qi inside the ring is limited. Also, using this artifact to communicate with the carriages only lets them follow pre-set routes.”
“If we use this ring, we can only end up going to Tong City.”
Lin Nan blinked. She finally understood why Shen Yuer, despite being the Shen Family’s Fifth Miss, was cultivating a broken copy of the Long Breath Song.
Shen Yuer had learned it through theft!
“Hehe, you figured it out?”
The girl made a scissors shape with her small hand and stuck out her little tongue at Lin Nan.
“Don’t be fooled by my carefree attitude—I’m actually very clever~”
“Xiao Lin, don’t worry about anything else. We will definitely reach Qingyun Gate safely. With me around, no one will be allowed to abandon us anymore.”
As the carriage rolled out of Chencang, gently swaying, Lin Nan examined Shen Yuer’s profile.
The words “With me around” sounded so familiar, so very familiar, familiar enough to have been said countless times in Lin Nan’s previous eight lifetimes—but this was the first time they had been said to her by someone else.
Perhaps, this was what it felt like to be protected?
Indeed, it brought some peace of mind…
Shen Yuer sat across from Lin Nan, propping her chin on her hand, her gaze calm as she looked out the swiftly passing world outside the carriage window.
Suddenly, a lock of hair fell down. As she reached to tuck it back, the girl opposite bent forward, long fingers picking up her hair and tucking it behind Shen Yuer’s ear.
She smiled warmly at her, looking into those gentle emerald eyes, and joked, “Xiao Lin, you’re not really falling for me, are you?”
The girl’s expression remained neutral. She shook her head, her smooth white hair swaying behind her.
She extended her right hand, pinching a perfect distance between her thumb and forefinger, and said coldly, “Only a little.”
Shen Yuer froze for a moment, quickly turning her head.
A blush spread across her cheeks,
creeping behind her ear.
Settling deep within her heart.
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