Chapter 15

While it was still dark, Qin Lie quietly went to the Medicine Mountain and put back the two leather bags he had brought from the Extreme Cold Mountain Range into the cave where he practiced.

One leather bag contained the beast core of the Shadow Lightning Carving and a dozen or so Ice Stem Grass plants.

The other leather bag contained some spirit stones, spirit pills, and other miscellaneous items that originally belonged to the Ice Shattering Manor warriors he had killed.

Recently, he had been using the Shadow Lightning Carving's beast core and the Ice Stem Grass for cultivation. These two materials greatly helped him condense his spiritual energy, allowing him to clearly feel the abundance of power within his Spirit Sea.

He didn't really care about the spirit stones, spirit pills, and other items, partly because he didn't know their true value, and partly because the Ice Stem Grass and the Shadow Lightning Carving's beast core were currently more effective for his cultivation.

"Engagement ceremony..."

Qin Lie picked out some of the spirit pills and spirit stones that looked good, put them in a smaller cloth bag, and placed it inside his clothes.

When he heard Ling Yushi mention the engagement, his first thought was to refuse, as he didn't want to get entangled with the Ling family and didn't want to harm Ling Yushi.

After much consideration, he felt that this was something his grandfather had arranged long ago, so his resistance was much less.

Moreover, the head of the Ling family had clearly stated that the engagement was not genuine, just a formality, and would be dissolved after two years.

A fake ceremony, in his view, was just a formality, and it didn't matter much.

Recently, Ling Yushi had often come to serve him, and he had gradually gotten used to it.

After all, he was just a fifteen-year-old boy who had been isolated for so long. Having a beautiful girl like an older sister come to help him with chores made him feel quite comfortable.

If he were to get engaged to Ling Yushi, she would continue to serve him for two more years, otherwise, he might not be able to enjoy such treatment anymore.

After careful consideration, Qin Lie no longer rejected the idea and was prepared to go through the formality.

Although he was already awake, he usually pretended to be crazy, but for this engagement ceremony, he felt a bit guilty, so he came to the Medicine Mountain to take some things with him, just in case.

Generally, before an engagement ceremony, the groom's side not only needs to prepare the dowry but also bring along the elders of the family and perform ancestral worship.

Qin Lie had no relatives and didn't know where his ancestors were, so this step was skipped.

After taking the things with him, he hurriedly returned to the stone house before dawn, tidied himself up a bit, and waited quietly for someone from the Ling family to guide him.

...

In the main hall of the Ling family.

"Ah, what a pity for the young miss, she actually has to get engaged to that fool. Wasn't it supposed to be the second miss?"

"The second miss has great talent and is destined to enter the Nebula Pavilion. She can't have any blemishes. There's no way out. Grandfather Qin Shan helped the Ling family in the past, and the head of the family has already promised, so we can't go back on our word."

"Why can't we? Qin Shan is already dead, and what does that fool know?"

"The young miss is so beautiful, and she has to marry a fool. It's so unfair!"

"Yes."

Many members of the Ling family were gathered in the hall, whispering to each other, feeling sorry for Ling Yushi and lamenting her sacrifice.

After Ling Chengzhi and Ling Xuanxuan left for Ice Rock City, the head of the Ling family suddenly announced the engagement of Qin Lie and Ling Yushi. Without waiting for everyone to react, he planned to hold the ceremony today.

Ling Chengye did not notify or invite the friendly forces nearby, but only made an announcement in the town, clearly not intending to make a big deal out of it.

At this moment, many members of the Ling family were invited to gather in the hall, including a clan elder, Ling Kang'an.

He was the only clan elder invited.

The Ling family had three clan elders: Ling Kang'an, Ling Xiang, and Ling Bo. They were all senior warriors of the Ling family, of the same generation as Ling Chengye's father.

Due to the Ling family's proximity to the Extreme Cold Mountain Range, the development of the warrior forces faced many challenges. Sometimes they had to enter the depths of the mountains to hunt spirit beasts and find spirit herbs, and sometimes they had to fight against enemy forces under the command of the Nebula Pavilion. Therefore, it was not easy to have a good end.

The previous head of the Ling family, Ling Chengye's father, was killed in a battle against enemy forces.

Ling Kang'an, Ling Xiang, and Ling Bo, these three clan elders, had all suffered serious injuries, either losing their cultivation or regressing in their realm. They usually stayed at home to recuperate and rarely participated in clan affairs.

In theory, for Ling Yushi's engagement, not only should Ling Chengzhi and Ling Xuanxuan be present, but the three clan elders should also be there.

However, Ling Chengye had been opposed to this from the beginning and was already preparing to break the engagement in the future, so he did not arrange for the other two clan elders to come, only letting Ling Kang'an come to make a show.

"The people surnamed Du didn't come. The head of the family probably didn't invite them. Yes, this will be much quieter."

"Hmph! They're not from our Ling family town, why invite them?"

"Seeing that mother and her two children makes me so angry!"

Many young members of the Ling family, when mentioning Du Jiaolan and others, had angry expressions and cold eyes.

...

An old woman from the Ling family led Qin Lie to the main hall. Along the way, she didn't know what to say, not sure if Qin Lie could understand, but she said, "Just follow me, everything will be arranged by us. The head of the family is very considerate and has arranged everything for you. Here, even the dowry you should give is already prepared."

The old woman waved the wooden box in her hand.

Qin Lie was surprised and pondered for a moment. He smiled foolishly, took out the cloth bag from his chest, placed it on the wooden box in the old woman's hand, and indicated that it was his dowry.

The old woman was clearly taken aback, first looking at Qin Lie with a strange expression, then feeling the cloth bag expertly, weighing it in her hand. When she realized that the cloth bag contained hard objects like stones, her face was filled with self-mockery.

She shook her head, not opening the cloth bag to check, thinking: I thought he was smart, but a fool is still a fool, picking up stones and treating them as treasures...

Soon, amid the sound of firecrackers, the old woman led Qin Lie to the entrance of the main hall.

She presented the wooden box in her hand along with Qin Lie's cloth bag, then pointed at the wooden box, indicating to the person receiving the dowry that it was already arranged, and shook her head at the cloth bag with a smile, before pulling Qin Lie in.

The noisy hall suddenly fell silent when Qin Lie arrived.

Everyone looked at the expressionless Qin Lie, their brows furrowing, and they couldn't help but shake their heads and sigh, feeling sorry for Ling Yushi.

Qin Lie saw Ling Yushi at first glance.

She had clearly been carefully dressed up.

A bright, tight-fitting red dress accentuated her slender and graceful figure. The light blush on her cheeks made her look exceptionally beautiful, and the delicate crystal accessories made her appear playful and cute.

Her fair, jade-like skin, beautiful face, clear and bright eyes, and elegant demeanor made her look like a fairy from the Moon Palace, so beautiful that it made one's heart flutter uncontrollably.

However, the more beautiful and charming she was, the more people felt sympathy and pity for her.

Seeing the elegant and refined Ling Yushi, and then looking at the expressionless Qin Lie, everyone felt uncomfortable, sighing and feeling even more uneasy.

Of course, not everyone was so kind. Some Ling family women, who usually had a poor relationship with Ling Yushi and envied her beauty, whispered unkind words and showed mocking and ridiculing expressions.

Ling Chengye, looking at his beautiful and calm daughter, and hearing the murmurs in the hall, felt deeply guilty.

He didn't want the ceremony to last too long and quickly signaled the old woman to finish the ceremony as soon as possible, to end this farce he had orchestrated.

The old woman understood and loudly called out, guiding Qin Lie and Ling Yushi through the complicated ceremony.

Hearing the murmurs and enduring the pity, sympathy, mockery, and other gazes, Ling Yushi could only pretend to be calm, occasionally giving a forced smile.

... The bitterness and sorrow in her heart were known only to herself.

"This is my fate, I can't blame others. My father and others have sacrificed so much for the family, it's my turn to sacrifice for the family. Although Qin Lie is... like that, being foolish has its benefits. He won't bully me or interfere with my affairs. He actually looks quite handsome when he closes his eyes. If, if he weren't foolish, if he were normal, even just an ordinary person, it would be easier to accept..."

Ling Yushi consoled herself, but as she thought about it, she couldn't help but feel self-pity.

Every woman dreams of a heroic and extraordinary partner who can protect and care for her. She was only seventeen and was no exception, having once had such dreams.

But reality was so cruel...

At that moment, a hand suddenly grabbed hers, making Ling Yushi suddenly tense up.

Then she heard the old woman's call, realizing that the ceremony had reached this point, and she and Qin Lie should hold hands and continue. She also realized that Qin Lie's hand was probably grabbed with the old woman's help.

Having never had physical contact with a man before, she felt a bit flustered. She soon discovered that Qin Lie's hand was very long and soft, and seemed more comfortable to hold than her sister's hand, which surprised her, and she couldn't help but look at Qin Lie beside her.

She suddenly noticed that deep in Qin Lie's expressionless eyes, there seemed to be a faint light, which could only be seen faintly when she was so close.

That light made her feel inexplicably at ease, and her chaotic heart gradually calmed down.

"Strange..."

She muttered to herself, involuntarily gripping Qin Lie's hand tighter, feeling even more at ease.

"Brother, what do you mean by this?" At that moment, Du Jiaolan's sharp and harsh voice suddenly came from outside.

Then, the Du family's three mother and children, along with the warriors arranged by Du Haitian, and the other two Ling family clan elders, burst into the hall.

When everyone's attention was drawn to them, Du Jiaolan's face turned dark, and she said coldly, "For such a big event as my niece's engagement, Brother didn't even notify me? Are you ignoring me, or do you not consider me part of the Ling family?"

Before Ling Chengye could explain, she suddenly pointed to the two clan elders in wheelchairs behind her and said acidly, "And these two clan elders, who fought to the death for the Ling family and ended up disabled, were not even invited. Ling Chengye! What do you mean by this?!"

"Ling Chengye, what's going on here?" One of the clan elders, Ling Xiang, also had a stern face, being pushed forward in a wheelchair by a Du family warrior. "We two old men have worked hard for the Ling family all our lives, and now we don't even have the right to attend a young person's engagement ceremony?"

"You're completely ignoring us!" The other clan elder, Ling Bo, hit the wheelchair hard, his face full of anger. "Don't forget, the three of us clan elders have the right to remove the head of the family!"

When these words were spoken, not only did Ling Chengye's face change, but the entire hall of Ling family members was filled with fear.

...