Chapter 14

Qin Lie walked woodenly on the stone path at the town entrance, his expression blank. Just like half a month ago, his eyes were hollow, his clothes were stained with mud, and he looked disheveled and wretched.

Behind him, Ling Ying, dressed in colorful attire, her figure full and her bright eyes filled with intense suspicion, followed him neither too quickly nor too slowly.

Half a month ago, after Qin Lie left Medicine Mountain, the head of the Ling Family thought he was in the mountain's belly and was eager to see him, so he arranged for people to guard the mine entrance day and night.

Ling Feng would watch at night, while Ling Ying would take over during the day. They took turns, and as soon as he appeared, they would immediately report to the head of the Ling Family.

Because of this, Du Heng, who was curious about the inside of Medicine Mountain, never found a chance to explore it deeply.

Ling Feng and Ling Ying were also required by Ling Chengye to wait only at the mine entrance of Medicine Mountain, strictly forbidden from entering the mountain's belly. Therefore, they didn't know that there was a strange array protecting the inside of Medicine Mountain.

This evening, Ling Ying, as usual, was guarding the mine entrance, so bored that she was about to fall asleep, when she suddenly saw Qin Lie returning from the direction of the Extremely Cold Mountain Range.

Ling Ying was so shocked that she almost screamed.

She followed Qin Lie all the way, her suspicious eyes lingering on him, but she couldn't figure out anything, which made her even more puzzled.

"This fool wasn't in the mine but stayed in the Extremely Cold Mountain Range for half a month. What did he do there? How did he survive alone in the Extremely Cold Mountain Range?"

The more Ling Ying thought about it, the more confused she became. Her charming face was filled with surprise, and for the first time, she felt curious about Qin Lie.

Qin Lie, of course, knew that Ling Ying was always sizing him up from behind. He remained calm, having already hidden the two bags carefully before reaching Medicine Mountain, to avoid unnecessary trouble. Now, he was relaxed and didn't fear that the Ling Family could find out anything from the items he carried.

He didn't have any particular feelings toward the Ling Family, neither good nor bad. In his view, the relationship between his grandfather and the Ling Family was just a pure transaction.

His grandfather repaired spirit artifacts for the Ling Family in exchange for the right to use the inside of Medicine Mountain, helping him cultivate the Heavenly Thunder Punishment—nothing more.

As usual, he entered the town from the entrance, ignoring the gazes and gossip of others, and walked straight to his stone house.

The strange shouts of "the fool is back" were filtered out by him, as he was used to them and they didn't affect him at all.

Soon, he returned to the three stone houses. The stone houses were clearly cleaned, spotless. Qin Lie didn't mind, closed the door, and started to rest.

His return to town puzzled many people, such as the brothers Ling Chengye and the Du Family...

Some people were indifferent, like Ling Xuanxuan, who was still shouting in the training ground and didn't even glance at Qin Lie...

"Head of the Family." Ling Ying left Qin Lie, her clothes fluttering, and quickly came to Ling Chengye's side. Her charming face was full of doubt, and she whispered, "He didn't come out of the mine, but... from the direction of the Extremely Cold Mountain Range! He hasn't been in the mine for the entire half month!"

Upon hearing this, the three members of the Ling Family were all surprised and curious about Qin Lie's whereabouts for the past half month.

"Understood. Don't talk about this to others," Ling Chengye said after a moment of thought. He instructed Ling Ying not to spread the word, signaled her to leave, and then gave a look to Ling Chengzhi. The two brothers and Ling Yushi got up and walked toward Qin Lie's stone house.

The three soon arrived at the door of Qin Lie's stone house, and Ling Chengye knocked, "Qin Lie, it's your Uncle Ling. Please open the door."

Inside, Qin Lie opened his eyes, frowned slightly, then quickly adjusted himself and opened the stone door with a blank expression, allowing the three members of the Ling Family to enter.

Over the past five years, Ling Chengye occasionally came over, and when Qin Shan was still alive, he would come to find Qin Shan to repair spirit artifacts.

After his grandfather's passing, Ling Chengye hadn't come over for the past two years. This visit made Qin Lie suspicious, unsure of the Ling Family's intentions.

After the three members of the Ling Family entered, they saw Qin Lie sitting on a stone stool, staring blankly at a cup on the stone table, as if the cup was more interesting than the three of them...

Ling Chengye stared at him for a while, then suddenly said, "Qin Lie, I don't know if you can hear me, or if you will always be like this. I just want to say... the spirit herbs on Medicine Mountain are crucial to the Ling Family. In the past two years, these herbs have started to wither in large numbers, which has affected the foundation of the Ling Family."

He paused, looked deeply into Qin Lie's eyes, and saw no abnormality. Feeling helpless, he continued, "If you can hear me, if you have a way, I hope you can stop the withering of the spirit herbs on Medicine Mountain. The Ling Family... cannot bear such a heavy loss. Please pay attention to this matter."

Qin Lie remained silent, continuing to look at the cup.

"There is one more thing," Ling Chengye hesitated for a moment, then said more helplessly, "I promised your grandfather that I would take care of you until you are seventeen. One way to do this is to arrange a betrothal between you and my daughter. According to the agreement between your grandfather and me, the ceremony should be held soon. I am informing you... it will be between you and Yushi. I will arrange it as soon as possible, within this period."

Qin Lie remained expressionless, while Ling Yushi blushed and looked shy.

"However, I want to make it clear that this betrothal is to protect you and will only last for two years. After two years, I will dissolve the engagement, so please be prepared." Ling Chengye continued, paused for a moment, and added, "Your grandfather has done a favor for the Ling Family. We have cooperated well over the years, and I hope it continues. No matter your true condition, I won't interfere in your affairs in the future. Let's try to get along well."

With that, Ling Chengye got up, signaled his brother and daughter to leave.

"Father, I want to talk to him alone for a moment. You go ahead," Ling Yushi said softly, lowering her head.

Ling Chengye felt guilty and sighed inwardly, nodding without saying more, and left the stone house with his brother.

The room suddenly became quiet, and the atmosphere gradually became strange. Qin Lie's expression was blank, showing no reaction, as if he didn't know there was a beautiful young woman in the room.

Ling Yushi bit her lower lip, her cheeks slightly red, and suddenly stood up, saying, "You haven't taken a bath for a long time. I'll prepare the water for you."

With that, she got up gracefully, rolled up her sleeves, revealing a segment of her snow-white wrist, and went to the washing room to prepare the water for Qin Lie, looking somewhat flustered...

After filling the wooden tub with water and placing the towels, she returned.

Through these actions, she adjusted herself. By this time, she had gradually calmed down.

A hint of self-pity and helplessness appeared on her gentle and beautiful face, and she said resignedly, "The Ling Family owes Grandfather Qin Shan a favor. I will repay it over the next two years. After we are betrothed, I will often come to take care of you. Sigh, I can only do things like cleaning and preparing water for you. I hope you can understand..."

As she spoke, Ling Yushi took a wet cloth and, regardless of Qin Lie's reaction, began to clean the room skillfully.

Qin Lie's eyes were blank, but his mind was clear. Through Ling Yushi's familiarity with the room, he quickly realized that the cleaning work in the past half month must have been done by this gentle and beautiful woman.

"Sigh, you are quite pitiful. After Grandfather Qin Shan passed away, you were alone, and your mind isn't very clear..."

"Originally, my father planned to betroth you to my younger sister, who is about your age. But she is the future hope of the Ling Family, and my father is afraid that the betrothal might affect her cultivation and future marriage, so... I will take her place."

"Ha, although I am the older sister, I don't have as high a cultivation talent as my younger sister. I am already seventeen, and I doubt I can break through to the Origin Opening Realm before I turn twenty. The Nebula Pavilion is very picky. If I can't break through to the Origin Opening Realm before I turn twenty, I will never gain their approval."

"My father and Uncle have always wanted to join the Nebula Pavilion, but fate has not been kind to them. They have never achieved their goal and can only寄托 their hopes on my younger sister."

"Sigh, because the herbs are withering and the Du Family has caught us in a bind, they have been causing us endless trouble. That woman is determined to take over Medicine Mountain. This time, it's not clear if we can stop her."

"..."

Perhaps because she was about to be betrothed to Qin Lie, or because she thought he didn't understand what she was saying, Ling Yushi felt no need to guard her words. She kept talking while doing her tasks, which gave Qin Lie a deeper understanding of the Ling Family's situation.

It also changed his perception of Ling Yushi to some extent...

After finishing her tasks, Ling Yushi didn't stay any longer. She told Qin Lie that the water was ready and to remember to take a bath early, then quietly left the room.

Qin Lie listened for a while, confirming that she had left, and then went to the washing room.

Seeing the large puddle of water and the towels that were not neatly folded, he shook his head and smiled wryly.

He could tell that Ling Yushi was not used to doing such tasks and, due to her nervousness and haste, had made a mess.

Touching his nose, Qin Lie didn't mind, took off his clothes, and entered the wooden tub. He shivered, almost screaming.

It was cold water!

...

The next day, Qin Lie, with a blank expression and a runny nose, entered the Ling Family dining hall.

Ling Yushi, feeling guilty, quickly lowered her head and avoided looking at him when she saw him enter with a runny nose, trying to suppress her laughter.

Ling Chengye and Du Jiaolan soon began to argue over the spirit herbs, the tension so thick that Qin Lie felt they might start a fight right at the dining table.

After the meal, he continued to the Medicine Mountain mine to cultivate. Since he was not in a state of no mind, he carefully controlled the Heavenly Thunder Power to avoid the electric current killing the spirit herbs and medicines.

Ling Chengye's words had the desired effect. He didn't want to destroy the Ling Family's foundation and cause endless trouble.

With Qin Lie back to normal, Ling Feng and Ling Ying no longer guarded the mine. One night, Du Heng finally found the opportunity to enter the mine.

After a dizzying exploration, Du Heng was shocked, just like Ling Chengzhi, by the changes inside the mine.

While Du Heng reported the situation to his mother, Ling Chengye was making arrangements. He asked Ling Xuanxuan and Ling Chengzhi to temporarily leave and go to Ice Rock City.

He knew that once Ling Xuanxuan found out that her sister was taking her place in the betrothal, she would surely cause trouble and try to stop the ceremony between Qin Lie and Ling Yushi.

Ling Chengye sent them to Ice Rock City for two reasons: to keep Ling Xuanxuan away and to inform the Nebula Pavilion.

Ling Xuanxuan had exceptional talent, and the Nebula Pavilion had noticed her early on. Ling Chengye hoped that the Nebula Pavilion would, for Ling Xuanxuan's sake, extend the time for the Ling Family to pay the herbs.

...

In the past few days, Ling Yushi indeed came to Qin Lie's stone house frequently.

During the day, when Qin Lie was not around, she would take his dirty clothes to wash them. In the evening, after Qin Lie returned, she would bring the dried clothes, prepare the water for his bath, and help clean the house.

The awkward incident of the cold water never happened again, but her habit of talking to herself didn't change. She kept chattering every day.

After the initial awkwardness, Qin Lie gradually adapted and got used to having someone take care of him.

Once Ling Yushi prepared the water, he no longer waited for her to leave but went to the washing room directly.

Each time he bathed naked in the wooden tub, listening to Ling Yushi's soft complaints from the other side of the door, he would raise his eyebrows slightly, and sometimes a strange smile would appear on his lips.

"I'll leave now. Take your time," Ling Yushi's soft, sultry voice came from outside. Just as Qin Lie thought she was leaving, Ling Yushi's breathing became a bit irregular, and she whispered, "Tomorrow, tomorrow is the day my father arranged..."

Long after she left, Qin Lie sat in the wooden tub, staring blankly at the ceiling, lost in thought for a long time.

...

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