Asked About The World Of Mortals

Chapter 24: Ye Ling

Li Qinglin left, but Ye Ling didn't follow. She stood there straight, neither speaking nor sitting. Li Qingjun sat beside her, feeling annoyed. She wanted to talk to Qin Yi, but it was difficult with Ye Ling standing there. So she said, "Could you give us some privacy?"

Ye Ling didn't respond and simply disappeared.

Li Qingjun shook her head. "I don't know where my brother found this little guard. She's skilled, but she's a bit strange. She always wears a weird cloak. Hey, do you really want her to be your guard? It's not appropriate for a man and a woman to be alone..."

Qin Yi felt annoyed by Li Qingjun's words. "You praised her for being quiet in front of her, but what are you saying now that she's gone?"

Li Qingjun hummed. She didn't know why she said those things. After a pause, she said, "With the incident involving my eldest brother, my second brother probably won't plan anything else for a while. If you're bored here alone, you can come to the princess's mansion to find me. The princess's mansion is..."

Qin Yi interrupted, "I'm not bored. I'm used to being alone at home and can stay indoors for a month without going out. I can just read books and refine medicine. By the way, help me find some books to read, as well as medicinal herbs and a pill furnace. You should be familiar with them..."

Li Qingjun choked for a moment and became angry. "Ask someone from the royal mansion to help you find them!"

After saying that, she left in a huff.

Qin Yi was stunned. Why did she ask for privacy and then say those things?

Did he answer something wrong? Qin Yi was quick-witted and felt as if he could hear Liu Su's mockery. He took the initiative and hid the wolf tooth club under the bed.

Liu Su couldn't help but cry and laugh. It was the first time it had seen Qin Yi, who was usually cautious and calm, act so foolishly. This included hiding the club under the bed to deceive oneself. It was not like Qin Yi at all.

Normally, it would mock him, but this time, for some reason, it remained silent and didn't make a sound. It seemed to be thinking about something from a long time ago.

Not long after, Ye Ling appeared again.

This time, her gaze at Qin Yi was a bit strange, as if she couldn't figure out his relationship with the princess.

Qin Yi also snapped out of his embarrassment and looked at Ye Ling in silence.

She actually stayed naturally, as if she really considered herself his guard.

"If I remember correctly, I told you not to, right? You're not my guard," Qin Yi sighed. "I said, as a powerful Body Transformation Stage monster, don't you want some face? If you want to be a human guard, then be a human guard. I almost hurt you just now, but you didn't even get angry."

"Face?" Ye Ling said indifferently. "I awakened in ignorance, responding to a call from my soul. I directly entered Donghua Zi's demon refining formation. When I saw piles of monster bones, I realized my purpose of existence. So, what face do I have?"

This serious and indifferent speech from a young child, combined with her innocent appearance, was somewhat eerie and contradictory. Qin Yi became interested. "What happened?"

"I was originally an ordinary little snake. I was born due to Donghua Zi's demon mist, awakened as a monster, and I don't know why I grew wings. He set up the demon mist to give birth to little monsters and obtain Beast Cores to refine and consume for cultivation and longevity. That is the meaning of our existence."

There was a hint of resentment on her young face, but more than that, there was a sense of indifference towards others and herself. Qin Yi pursed his lips and felt that this child's birth was already a tragedy, so it was no wonder she didn't act her age.

At this age, she should be carrying a school bag and going to school, not talking about killing and bones like a little adult.

He sighed softly.

So, Donghua Zi's purpose in creating the demon mist was not to cause chaos or build power, but to kill monsters and obtain their cores for his own cultivation. This matched what Ming He said. Ming He believed that Donghua Zi showed no mercy when killing monsters, and of course, he wouldn't.

Ye Ling continued, "I don't know why I broke through so quickly. The demon refining formation couldn't trap me, and I struggled to escape, but I was left with only a breath. It was His Highness who saved me. Even my name was given by His Highness at that time. He said it was a tender feather that emitted a panicked blood color in the night."

Qin Yi exclaimed, "I didn't expect Li Qinglin to be so poetic."

"What do you mean by poetic?"

"Oh, I mean he actually feels sympathy for monsters."

"It's not sympathy. I voluntarily swore allegiance with my blood as the price to beg him to save me. His Highness discovered that I had escaped from Donghua Zi and thought I would be useful to him..." Ye Ling sounded a bit sad. "Just now... when your peach wood sword was about to kill me, he just watched. Maybe it would be better for him if I died now..."

Qin Yi vaguely understood why Li Qinglin didn't stop him. It was very likely that Li Qinglin believed it would be better for Ye Ling to die than to live.

The romance between the snake rescuer and the snake he saved has come to an end just like that. Qin Yi felt something shattered inside him and shook his head slightly, saying, "You were originally created by Donghua Zi, so there must be something that can restrain him and deal with him, right?"

"Yes, and all my abilities awakened spontaneously without much understanding of cultivation. I don't even know the principles behind many things, so Your Highness must be disappointed."

Qin Yi felt that this little sister probably not only didn't understand many principles of cultivation, but she might also not understand many common knowledge of life. She probably learned everything slowly in the palace... including her manner of speaking like a little adult and her choice of words and tone, which might have been influenced by Li Qinglin's style - not cute at all.

But this time, he felt that Ye Ling was useful.

At least now he had a deeper understanding of Donghua Zi.

She also understood Li Qinglin... and she had no loyalty or awe towards Li Qinglin at all, casually revealing his thoughts like that.

She was indeed a helpful assistant to him, so he wouldn't be completely clueless... but unfortunately, there would be huge consequences.

Qin Yi finally asked, "Do you know why I didn't want you to be my bodyguard?"

Ye Ling smirked, "Because I'm ugly. Compared to Princess Zhaoyang, I'm like a winged monster encountering a real phoenix."

"What does your appearance have to do with anything? Why compare yourself to others?"

Ye Ling remained silent with a straight face.

Qin Yi said, "That's not the reason. I actually think your wings are amazing. I wish I had a pair of wings like that."

"..." Ye Ling's expression twitched slightly.

But then Qin Yi continued, "The real reason is that a powerful cultivator has set their sights on you. If you really stay with me, even I will be in danger. I suggest you run away..."

Ye Ling finally changed her expression, "So you knew."

"So you knew too!" Qin Yi laughed, "It seems like you had another purpose for coming to me today."

Ye Ling didn't say anything and looked down at her shoes, showing a somewhat embarrassed expression. Qin Yi found it amusing that this little sister seemed cold on the surface but was actually more sensitive than Li Qinglin.

No wonder, she's not some kind of aphrodisiac. Why would a powerful monster latch onto her? It turns out it's for self-preservation, mistakenly thinking she's amazing...

Qin Yi sighed, "Li Qinglin had you follow me just for this?"

"Not entirely..." Ye Ling whispered, "I really think His Highness values you a lot."

Her feelings were too obvious. Li Qinglin's attitude towards Qin Yi and towards her were truly like night and day.

"He's so obsessed with Donghua Zi?" Qin Yi wondered, "A powerful monster like you, and he's willing to do anything just to win me over?"

"He definitely is willing. Not to mention a monster with scales and horns in his eyes, he would be willing to give you even more. Besides, I am also an archenemy of Donghua Zi. No matter who I follow, it makes no difference to him when it comes to dealing with Donghua Zi." Ye Ling said firmly, "Driving Donghua Zi off the divine altar is His Highness's greatest obsession, even more important than the throne."

Qin Yi became even more curious, "Is it that extreme? Donghua Zi must have done something... uh, never mind."

Ye Ling didn't understand and remained expressionless.

After a moment of contemplation, Qin Yi finally said, "I have to say, there's no need for you to be my bodyguard. It's inconvenient for a man and a woman to be alone together. We can be friends instead. I still need to consult you about Donghua Zi."

Ye Ling didn't know about Qin Yi's many secrets, so how could she dare to follow him? Nevertheless, her eyes softened a bit after hearing this and she nodded, "I'm not Your Highness's bodyguard to begin with. It's more like a cooperation..." She gestured with her small hand, "I have a small courtyard. You can come find me."

Seeing her gesture the size of a courtyard with her small hand, Qin Yi couldn't help but laugh, "You can also come find me. When we talk about Journey to the West, I can tell that you're really attentive. I guess you like it?"

Ye Ling seemed a bit embarrassed and suddenly disappeared.

Qin Yi thought that Journey to the West was really amazing. Li Qinglin, Li Qingjun, and Ye Ling seemed to have found different ways to relate to it and saw their own shadows within it.

Once again, only Qin Yi remained in the room. A wolf's tooth club rolled out from under the bed slowly. Qin Yi didn't know what to say as he looked at it, his mind filled with words but unable to speak.

(End of this chapter)