Pei Lianxue tilted her head to look at her torn sleeve, pouted, and then retracted her Spirit Sword into her Storage Bag, walking back towards Yun Xi and Zhang Yihe.
Zhang Yihe stared blankly at the dismembered snow bull in front of him, unable to tell whether the snow bull was more terrifying or the harmless-looking girl in front of him.
It was Yun Xi’s murmuring from behind that pulled him out of his daze:
“Leaf Shadow Sword Art… it’s already at the fifth layer.”
“Ah? Young Miss… what?”
Pei Lianxue walked up to Yun Xi, crouched down, and after a moment of thought, said, “Are you okay?”
Yun Xi was stunned for a moment, then shook her head. Ignoring the sharp pain all over her body, she reached out, grabbed Pei Lianxue’s shoulder, and asked, “Do you have a father?”
?
Pei Lianxue was taken aback, then nodded blankly, “Yes.”
“No… I mean…” Yun Xi was a bit incoherent. After organizing her thoughts, she asked again, “Have you ever met your father? Is your mother a beautiful Fairy?”
Pei Lianxue’s brows furrowed slightly, seeming a little unhappy. But remembering that Senior Brother had told her to try and tell the truth because she couldn’t lie, she replied:
“I’ve met him. Both my parents are mortals. My mother is beautiful, but she’s not a Fairy.”
“Mortals…”
Yun Xi looked into Pei Lianxue’s eyes, convinced she was telling the truth.
But…
Whether it was last time at Chi Long Mansion or just now when Pei Lianxue was slicing up the snow bull, she used the orthodox Leaf Shadow Sword Art, and she had even cultivated it to the fifth level.
The Leaf Shadow Sword Art was a secret transmission. Even she herself only received it from her “stinky father” after she became the “Young Miss.” Outsiders absolutely could not learn it.
Rather than believe Pei Lianxue’s “mortal background” story, she was more inclined to believe:
—Her “stinky father” had gotten some girl pregnant outside, but since that girl couldn’t find her father, she had no choice but to send the child to a pair of mortal parents. Then, as the child grew up, her father disguised himself as a hermit living in the mountains, pretended to encounter the child, and passed the Sword Art to her…
But this was just her speculation. There might be other things she hadn’t guessed.
Yun Xi shook her head, glanced around, and asked:
“What about the person who was with you last time? The one with purple eyes…”
“Not here.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Hmm…” Pei Lianxue recalled for a moment and replied, “My Senior Brother was invited by the Eldest Miss of Moon Shadow Sword Sect to marry into her family, so I followed him.”
?
Hearing this, Yun Xi was slightly stunned.
Marry in? Yun Yiyi?
This girl in front of her could very well be her father’s illegitimate daughter, and her Senior Brother could very well be her father’s illegitimate son.
And if that young man married into Yun Yiyi’s family, then the illegitimate son would be marrying the legitimate daughter.
This girl followed because the young man was marrying in, meaning she also liked that young man. Then the illegitimate daughter liked the illegitimate son.
Yun Xi’s lips trembled, her heart filled with a complex mix of emotions. If her assumptions were correct, this situation would be unprecedented.
…
At this moment, the injuries on Yun Xi’s body finally reached her brain through her marrow. Coupled with the shock in her heart after thinking about this matter, her eyes suddenly rolled back, her head tilted, and she collapsed onto the snow.
Pei Lianxue paused, picked up the unconscious Yun Xi, and turned to look at Zhang Yihe, who was still standing there in a daze. She asked:
“Moon Shadow Sword Sect, which way is it?”
“Ah…” Zhang Yihe was startled. He looked at Yun Xi, then at the sky, stood up, cupped his hands, and said, “Miss, thank you for your help earlier. May I ask for your name?”
“Pei Lianxue.”
“Then, Miss Pei, could you please guard her for us? I will set up the tent so that Young Miss can rest inside. After Young Miss’s injuries have recovered a bit, we can continue our journey?”
“Mhm.”
Pei Lianxue nodded, then glanced towards the woods to the east. Although she couldn’t see her Senior Brother’s figure, she still nodded, indicating her success.
…
Deep within the woods to the east, Ye Anping stood on a tree branch. Seeing his junior sister nod at him, he took out a flute from his Storage Bag and placed it between his lips, playing a few rhythmic notes:
Jeejee—jeejeejee—jeejee—jee—
Translated, it meant: Junior Sister, be careful. See you in seven days.
Then, he jumped down from the tree and approached Feng Yu Die, who was waiting below.
Feng Yu Die was leaning against the tree trunk, hugging her sword, her brow furrowed in thought. Seeing him descend, she quickly asked:
“Young Master Ye, when Junior Sister Pei kissed you just now, why didn’t you dodge? What if a crane flew by and brought you a baby?”
?
At this question, Ye Anping was stunned for a long time. He suddenly remembered that the first time he rescued Feng Yu Die back to Hundred Lotus Sect, he had discussed this issue with her.
At that time, Feng Yu Die had said—”Babies are brought by cranes.”
And he, not knowing how to respond, had said—”Junior Sister is transformed from a Ginseng Fruit.”
After a period of silence, Ye Anping replied, “Didn’t I tell you that my Junior Sister is transformed from a Ginseng Fruit? You forgot.”
“Yes, I remember.”
“Then why do you think kissing will make a crane bring a baby?”
Feng Yu Die’s brows were knitted, and she tilted her head to ask:
“Isn’t it that when a crane sees two people kissing, it goes to the ginseng tree, picks up a baby transformed from a ginseng fruit, and brings it to those two people?”
“… Did your Master teach you that?”
“Yes.” Feng Yu Die nodded vigorously. “Otherwise, would my Master lie to me?”
“…”
Ye Anping wanted to speak but stopped. After a long silence, he replied:
“…My father bought a crane a few months ago and keeps it at Hundred Lotus Sect. You take a pair of Cultivation Partners there, kiss in front of that crane, and see if it brings a baby.”
Feng Yu Die flinched, tilted her head, and asked:
“So, kissing doesn’t result in a baby?”
“…Right.”
“Then where do babies come from?”
“They are born from their mothers.”
“Then what about two mothers?”
“Two mothers can’t give birth.”
“Then you said they are born from mothers.”
“I…”
Ye Anping took a deep breath through his nose, suddenly wanting to slap himself. He shouldn’t have engaged Feng Yu Die in this conversation.
He calmed himself down for a moment, completely ignoring Feng Yu Die, and looked up at the sky, saying:
“We need to reach Jiùquán Town, near Moon Shadow Sword Sect, before nightfall. Then I’ll take you to Yun Jiujiu.”
“Oh, okay!” Feng Yu Die nodded, but then asked again, “Kissing really doesn’t result in a baby?”
Ye Anping summoned his Flying Sword and stepped on it, replying, “No.”
Feng Yu Die also stepped onto the Flying Sword and asked again, “Then if Junior Sister Pei kisses me in the future, I won’t dodge either!”
?
Ye Anping turned to look at her, narrowing his eyes slightly:
“Did Junior Sister want to kiss you before?”
“Not before, but maybe in the future.”
Ye Anping looked at her face, which was twitched with emotion. In all his years in this world, Feng Yu Die was the only one who could make his emotions rollercoaster with just a few sentences.
Truly, the only person in the world.
“Tsk… Let’s go!!”
“Okay~!”
…
