Chapter 0: 41. The Seal of Affection
If one were to summarize the cause and effect of Old Qin and Old Lu’s encounter on Dragon God Island in a single paragraph, it would be…
From the very beginning, Lu Zhili felt her solitude and weakness. Old Qin, however, was trusted by her far more than many others at the time, so she continuously sought to appease him. But Qin Gou, due to Kong Tou, already felt it was his indisputable duty and was extremely unwilling to let Lu Zhili think his contributions were out of utilitarianism or for some romantic reward. Thus, when he lent aid on Dragon God Island, he even deliberately used a false identity to play along with her misunderstanding.
Who would have thought that after such a ferocious operation, he inadvertently and bewilderingly turned Lu Zhili’s initial pretense of liking, which stemmed more from trust and admiration, into genuine affection.
Regarding the truth of the matter, Qin Gou had half-jokingly told Lu Zhili about it before, but she clearly didn’t believe him then. Now, it’s a done deal, and since Black Robe had thrown caution to the wind, Old Qin was stunned on the spot.
“Ahem, Old Lu, follow me first.”
After speaking, the two of them left the bustling Main Hall together and went to a secluded spot. Qin Gou then continued to ask, “Can you explain in more detail? What exactly was said in that Spirit Power Transmission you received back then?”
Lu Zhili asked doubtfully, “What? Does Qin Sheng truly not remember?”
“I definitely didn’t deliberately forget… Our experiences on Dragon God Island are still vivid in my mind, but I don’t know how I expressed myself in that Spirit Power Transmission. After all, I did try to probe you a few times, but you never believed me.” Qin Gou touched his nose and asked again.
Lu Zhili nodded and replied truthfully, “Because in that transmission, Qin Sheng recalled in detail everything that happened that day. It’s impossible for someone who didn’t personally experience it to describe it to that extent. Moreover, Qin Sheng at the time truly had no reason to deceive Zhili… Of course, there’s also the most direct evidence. These words are condensed from the transmission token from fellow Daoist ‘Yin Yu’ that Zhili has carefully kept, making it impossible for anyone to forge.”
“So that’s how it is.”
It seems, then, that Black Robe was direct and completely open with Lu Zhili.
“Is this all the content of the letter?” Qin Gou’s tone seemed very sincere regarding all of this.
Black Robe, surely he didn’t come up with some strange farewell like, ‘After this matter is concluded, if I can still return, I will never fail you again,’ right?
“Of course, there’s other stuff too, for example,” Lu Zhili said with a slight smile. “Qin Sheng also clarified that the reason for using the name ‘Yin Yu’ and not revealing the truth was not because he disliked Zhili’s current background as a ‘Heartstriker Snake Woman’.”
“Indeed,” Qin Gou nodded seriously.
From beginning to end, he had truly held no prejudice against Old Lu’s current reincarnation as a Heartstriker Snake Woman. If one were to talk about prejudice, it would be Lu Changli, who was also a ‘Wind and Snow Returnee.’ He was furiously disdainful of Lu Zhili. However, if the situation truly fell upon himself, it would mean that no matter what bloodline he was reborn into in the future, his soul would always belong to the Wind and Snow Returnee Lu Changli… It’s hard to say what kind of strange psychology that is.
At the same time, a look of emotion in Lu Zhili’s eyes, as she recalled, she seemed to suddenly remember something and added, “By the way, Zhili actually sent a Spirit Power Transmission back to Qin Sheng at the time. I wonder if Qin Sheng received it?”
“Oh?” Qin Gou shook his head. “I didn’t receive that transmission. Was there anything important in it?”
“It mentioned that Zhili always wanted to give fellow Daoist Yin Yu a thank-you gift.”
Lu Zhili blinked her beautiful eyes and chuckled lightly, “I can present it to Qin Sheng right now!”
In reality, it would be perfectly fine for Lu Zhili today to not address him so formally as ‘Qin Sheng,’ but the key was that Old Qin quite enjoyed hearing it…
“I wonder what this thank-you gift is?”
“Does Qin Sheng still remember that when you healed my injuries back then, you were accidentally enchanted by my Heartstriker Snake Woman’s talent?”
“I would not dare to forget,” Qin Gou said with a wry smile.
A blush crept onto Lu Zhili’s face. “Then what does Qin Sheng think of this technique?”
“It’s very powerful. It could instantly disrupt one’s mind. If I hadn’t happened to have a method at the time that could somewhat counteract this technique, I’m afraid the situation would have been completely out of control,” Qin Gou mused for a moment, then continued. “Moreover, during the process of dispelling this technique, I was unable to even fight back. Thinking about it now, it was extremely risky at the time. If I had been ambushed, the consequences would have been unimaginable.”
“Then the thank-you gift I want to present to Qin Sheng is a Spiritual Seal. With this seal, Qin Sheng will be completely immune to the mandatory charm of the Heartstriker Snake Woman clan from now on!”
“Really? But will this cause any harm to Zhili yourself?” Qin Gou immediately asked.
“No,” Lu Zhili said with a relaxed expression, shrugging her shoulders. “This is originally a part of my clan’s talent, prepared only for the most trusted… fellow Daoist. Is Qin Sheng ready?”
“What do I need to do to cooperate with Zhili?”
“Don’t resist my Spiritual Power.”
With that, Lu Zhili gently raised Qin Gou’s right hand. After receiving his unspoken permission, she forced out a drop of Spirit Blood from her fingertip with her Spiritual Power and slowly drew it onto Qin Gou’s palm with great care.
During this time, Qin Gou was also observing Lu Zhili very carefully. He could even clearly feel the gradual depletion of her Spiritual Power, bit by bit. This was because he was afraid Lu Zhili hadn’t told the truth, and he worried that performing this technique would actually damage Lu Zhili’s lifespan or Cultivation Realm, which would truly not be worth it.
An incense stick later.
“Qin Sheng, it’s done!”
Lu Zhili, with a hint of exhaustion in her eyes, smiled charmingly.
“Is it true?” Qin Gou had actually only asked casually. As he spoke, he had already felt the Spiritual Seal in his palm completely merge with his own Spiritual Power.
“Uh… whether it’s true or not, Zhili can’t really prove it to Qin Sheng right now.”
“Why?” Qin Gou was momentarily confused.
“Otherwise, do you want me to take off my clothes on the spot?” Lu Zhili retorted impatiently.
“Ahem, I asked too much!” Qin Gou couldn’t help but chuckle. “Mmm, I’ve sensed it carefully again. It seems this Spiritual Seal of yours is more like some kind of protection? It doesn’t require me to actively activate it?”
“Exactly. And through this Spiritual Seal, as long as they are cultivators of the Heartstriker Snake Woman clan, they will all understand that Qin Sheng is a friend our clan absolutely needs to respect, and they will never dare to be rude to Qin Sheng again.”
“That amazing?”
“After all, with this ‘Seal of Affection,’ it represents that you are the person Zhili… has been waiting for,” Lu Zhili said with warm eyes.
“The Seal of Affection? Old Lu…”
Qin Gou was stunned. After a long moment, he managed to say, “But will every Heartstriker Snake Woman cultivator directly know this? Won’t that mean…”
“Of course not!”
Lu Zhili couldn’t help but laugh. “Unless Qin Sheng deliberately reveals the Spiritual Seal to them, it would be too strange! Don’t worry, in this world, only I myself will directly feel this Seal of Affection from you, because I am the one who performed the spell.”
“This, Old Lu! Is this Spiritual Seal like the Dragon Race’s Dragon Pearl, essentially a Token of Love for your Heartstriker Snake Woman clan?”
“Qin Sheng is too direct,” Lu Zhili’s pretty face flushed red.
“And you can sense it directly!”
“Yes.”
“Something big has happened.”
“Ah?”
“If Old Lu were to detect this technique, she’d surely be scared out of her wits!”
“Qin Sheng, I’m right in front of you.”
“No, what I mean is…”
For a moment, Qin Gou, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, held his forehead. In this way, when he returned and faced the other Lu Zhili, who currently knew nothing, what was he to do?!
