Crackle crackle---
The branches in the bonfire kept making crisp sounds, and sparks flew upwards.
After listening to Xiao Tian's report, Ye Anping was completely dumbfounded. Even though he had calculated everything, he would have never thought that his sister and Xiao Yunluo would come all the way to the Northern Region just to find Xiyue.
He could count the number of times he mentioned "Xiyue" to his sister on one hand, so how come she remembered it so clearly?
However, in hindsight, it wasn't that abnormal.
His sister had been recording his yang energy outbreak from the start in a small notebook and had even inferred its pattern.
She really was something, but why didn't she tell him?
She actually hid this from him and even found the excuse of collecting spiritual herbs in a mission for the Black Star Sect...
Wait---
Hiding it?
If there was something to be hidden from a person, it must be something bad...
Ye Anping was silent for a moment and then turned pale.
Sister wouldn't want to hide it from him and get rid of Xiyue first, right?
After a moment's thought, Ye Anping shook his head and threw this speculation away. Although his sister was very possessive, she absolutely would not kill people indiscriminately. Her name was Pei, not Feng.
However, he was still worried.
Xiao Yunluo and Feng Yu Die followed her; one of them was full of immortal palace gaudy pictures, the other was full of borrowed birds and roasted chicken.
Xiyue was only twelve years old this year, at the age of forming her worldview, and it would be extremely easy to be led astray.
Ye Anping's mind inexplicably conjured scenes where Feng Yu Die ate roasted chicken together with Xiyue, teaching her that "men are all bad", and Xiao Yunluo held Xiyue's hand and explained the " Immortal Palace Erotic Pictures " to her.
"..."
At this moment, he felt that the roasted chicken he had just taken a bite of and had not had time to swallow was no longer fragrant.
But rather than these miscellaneous matters, what worried him more was Feng Yu Die's heavenly destiny.
Feng Yu Die and Xiyue in the game had no direct contact, and that was why Xiyue had always been a background character.
At this point, Xiyue should only be at the fifth or sixth level of Qi Refining . If Feng Yu Die brought her into the main storyline of Cold Country , she would definitely become cannon fodder...
"Xiyue..."
Since Ye Anping was taken by surprise, he had actually forgotten that Li Longling was beside him, and he murmured the name unconsciously.
As she was leaning on his shoulder, Li Longling's ears twitched slightly, and she asked, "Xiyue... is Mr. Ye's sweetheart, right?"
?
"...Sweetheart?" Xiao Tian was taken aback and scratched her head. "Anping, why haven't I heard you mention it? When have you been to Cold Country ? You shouldn't..."
Ye Anping ignored Xiao Tian and looked at Li Longling, slightly puzzled. "Longling, how did you know?"
"Have you forgotten?" Li Longling covered her mouth, chuckling. "You told me six years ago when you treated my eyes for the first time."
Ye Anping recalled for a while, it seemed that he had really mentioned it... At that time, Li Longling expressed her feelings and asked him for a home. He was not together with his sister at that time, so he was a little hesitant and used "Xiyue" as an excuse to decline.
Li Longling looked at Ye Anping's expression with the eyes of the Fire Phoenix and smiled playfully. "Girls have an unusually good memory of what the men they like said. Master Ye, do you remember what I told you?"
"Well, you said that you wanted a home."
Li Longling nodded slightly and rested her forehead on Ye Anping's shoulder again. After a while, she asked, "What kind of person is Xiyue?"
"It's..." Ye Anping lowered his eyes in thought for a moment before replying, "A girl very much like you."
"What do you mean exactly?"
"Gentle, independent, strong, and considerate."
"Is this a compliment?"
"You could say so."
Li Longling smiled and continued to ask. "So is she better looking than me?"
"Not better, not worse."
"Hmm~~ Then, is her family background better than mine?"
"Of course not."
"Then, what's the difference between her and me?"
"She's ordinary."
"Ordinary?"
Ye Anping said calmly with a hint of self-ridicule in his eyes. "She is just a girl with dual spiritual roots of metal and water, and she doesn't have a rich family background. I have also been an ordinary double spiritual root cultivator, so..."
"Master Ye, too much modesty becomes hypocrisy."
"At least, I was an ordinary double spirit root cultivator before." Ye Anping replied with a shrug. "I'm not the kind of person who wants the whole world. When I was little, I was determined to make a second or third-grade golden core, marry Xiyue, and live an ordinary life in the Hundred Lotus Sect, along with my sister as well."
"You said before..."
"That was until I saved someone in Wuxi Town who should have been saved by someone else."
Saying this, Ye Anping turned his head and looked at Xiao Tian who was listening quietly beside him, and suddenly felt a little tired.
Xiao Tian was supposed to be one of Feng Yu Die's plug-ins*, giving her advice and helping her find the winning move in the game of chess by aiding her as the spirit of the Holy Emperor's Heavenly Dao Scroll .
But what happened instead?
She had become a matchmaker with no achievements, who, apart from 'interior decoration', was lazing around every day, only trying her best to match him with Feng Yu Die.
Tsk, useless thing.
"Sigh..."
Xiao Tian didn't understand his look. She blinked and tilted her head. "Eh? What?"
Li Longling thought for a while, then asked, "Then, if I abandon the Dragon House and become a common girl like Xiyue, can you give me a home?"
Ye Anping turned his head to look at Li Longling, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. He felt that this was not something Li Longling would say.
Dragon House should be more important to her than anything else...
However, seeing Li Longling's smiling face, Ye Anping understood and smiled too. "Would you do that?"
Feeling that she had been seen through, Li Longling shook her head with a wry smile. "No. Dragon House is the only thing my father left me, and it is my responsibility. Everyone is counting on me. I will not betray the loyalty of those people to win your heart."
Ye Anping smiled bitterly. "...I also wouldn't let you trade the Dragon House for me."
"If you had agreed, I would have wondered if I had fallen for the wrong person."
Li Longling asked as she lowered her head. "Then, why were you so kind to me?"
"Saving the Dragon House , let's just say I went with the flow."
"That's not what I'm referring to." Li Longling shook her head. "What I want to ask is why would you take the initiative to help me treat my eyes when at first, you just left."
"I like a good ending. Secondly..." Ye Anping paused. "It was also a favor to your father."
"My father?"
"That night in the Dragon House , he could have killed me, but he held back, so I repaid the favor. Although your father ended up going astray, he is still a cultivator worthy of being remembered by the world."
Ye Anping sighed and continued. "A man must keep his promises, and I will never make a promise that I cannot keep."
"Well... Master Ye, can you close your eyes?"
"What?"
"..."
Li Longling hesitated, then suddenly turned around, grabbed Ye Anping's cheeks, and pressed her lips to his.
Ye Anping was startled and subconsciously tried to grab her shoulders. However, he realized that the Fire Phoenix standing aside was glaring at him intently as if to say: If you dare to do anything to my master, I'll poke your eyes out!!
?
Your master is forcefully kissing me...
The Fire Phoenix proudly puffed out its chest as if to retort: Keep it in mind, boy! This is your honor!
Ye Anping was speechless. It seemed that this bird was not very intelligent. In other words, only its master was allowed to set the fire, and other people were not allowed to light the lamp...
There was a slight stinging pain on his lips, and Ye Anping was about to taste it carefully, but then he glimpsed at Xiao Tian who was floating beside him, looking at him with accusing eyes that said, "Ye Tianchong" ...
"..."
The kiss didn't last long.
Li Longling just bit him lightly, then let it go, lowering her head and moving aside with a blushing face. Then, she raised her finger and touched her lips. "Taste like roasted chicken..."
"...I just ate a few bits, so it's natural to taste like roasted chicken."
"Moderately salty and just right."
Li Longling quickly changed the subject. She reached out, snatched the roasted chicken that almost got cold in Ye Anping's hand, and took a small bite.
Seeing her like this, Ye Anping understood that she probably didn't want to say more, so he shook his head helplessly and said, "Have a good rest. We have to continue our journey tomorrow."
"Hmm... Can I lean on you?"
"Uh-huh."
Li Longling pursed her greasy lips and smiled as she moved her butt back, leaning on his shoulder and nibbling on the roasted chicken.
The snow outside the cave seemed to be a little lighter, and the whistling sound was no longer so harsh.
Overnight, everything was silent.
After Li Longling finished eating the roasted chicken, she rested on Ye Anping's shoulder and fell asleep soon. Ye Anping slowly took out a set of fur cloaks from the storage bag, wrapped himself and her in it, added firewood, and kept watch all night.
"Anping, when will you treat Yu Die like this? You accept all other girls, so why do you dislike Yu Die so much?"
"She is interested in my sister."
Xiao Tian raised her eyebrows and leaned on his head. "Then, let her fall in love with you and she will forget about Miss Pei. Then, you will have another beautiful, lovely, and capable wife. Isn't this killing two birds with one stone?"
"Have you finished decorating?"
"...Oops--"
With a depressed look on her face, Xiao Tian shook her head and sighed. As she pulled out the nail hammer from the bundle on her back, she slowly drifted inside Ye Anping's head to knock things around.
After she went into the house, Ye Anping looked at Li Longling, who was hugging his arm tightly, and breathed a sigh of relief. He carefully took out the plan he wrote in the Hundred Lotus Sect and thought about it.
The demonic cultivators' invasion of the Cold Country was not a big deal. However, because the demonic cultivators' whereabouts were carefully hidden, and the cold air of the Northern Region did not allow the expansion of the spiritual sense, the Empress did not find out what happened until the third formation knot of the Northern Region was broken.
If the Empress had known earlier that demonic cultivators sneaked in, it would have been impossible for a few Core Formation demonic cultivators to stir up any waves.
So now, all he had to do was send the news to the Empress through some means, and then everything would simply be left to the Snow Guards to deal with.
The only problem was, how was he going to deliver the message to the Empress?
On his own, he wouldn't even get through the palace gate. Even if Li Longling, the head of the Dragon House , requested a meeting, she would need an appointment. When he set out from the Hundred Lotus Sect, he had already sent a letter in Li Longling's name. The letter had probably just arrived at the Cold Country 's mail department, and it would take several months to reach the Empress.
Therefore, he needed a messenger.
Ye Anping's original plan was to gain the trust of a cultivator in the Deification stage, named Han Xueyan, and have her tell the Empress about the demonic cultivators' plan.
That person was the head of the Snow Guards and was staying in Cold Moon City , the capital of Cold Country .
However, since his sister and the others came here for Xiyue, they would go to the city where she was located.
So...
Ye Anping thought for a while, crossed out the name "Han Xueyan" on the plan, and then wrote another name. "Xu Mulan".
---Xiyue's biological sister, the leader of the Snow Guards of Heavenly Wind City , at the late Core Formation cultivation level.
He went over the plan in his mind, and after making sure there were no major problems, he put it back into his storage bag.
He served as Li Longling's pillow until dawn, then took her and headed straight to Heavenly Wind City .