Chapter 574: Childlike Innocence
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"Ba… Baozi?"
"Huh? You can talk~ You're right, what I'm holding is a bun. Do you want to eat it?"
"Yes! Yes! Not angry, yes!"
For a fleeting moment, Li Shiyao seemed to sense something, but she didn't dwell on it.
It was like a drop of ink splattered on a blank sheet of paper, adding a hint of color. Though faint, it was undeniable.
"Shiyu is sharing her bun with you. Do you understand? What should you say to Shiyu?"
The little boy looked adorably dazed, clutching the steamed bun in both hands like he was paying New Year's respects. He opened his mouth awkwardly.
"Share, thank you, I… not angry!"
"That's not not being angry. When you get something you like, you should be happy!"
"Heart?"
"Yes, happy—that's how you should feel right now~"
"Thanks, I'm happy!"
For this little boy, there would never be another child his age in Lingxian Hall.
Perhaps because both possessed such pure hearts, they seemed to become friends almost instantly.
Although Li Shiyu regarded him as the child of her master and senior sister, at this moment, whose child he was seemed to matter little.
The little boy appeared to be smiling, his earlier wariness gone. He simply sat beside Li Shiyao, eating the steamed bun she had given him.
But halfway through the bun, the little boy froze!
He slowly stood up, staring blankly into the distance…
Though puzzled, Li Shiyao extended her divine sense to investigate but detected nothing unusual. Not only were there no strange people, but not even a single small animal was in sight!
"Shiyao, over there!"
The boy pointed at the empty haystack, repeating this phrase over and over. A hint of impatience could be seen on his slightly weathered little face.
"What is it?"
"Senior Sister, over there! Shiyu, over there!"
It seemed that upon hearing Li Shiyu and Ye Qinghan address each other this way, the little boy had mistaken "senior sister" and "Shiyu" for the sisters' names, shouting frantically.
Ye Qinghan approached upon hearing this, wondering if the child had discovered something—perhaps even a way out?
This thought arose because the three adults and the child were currently trapped here. For the past month, this area had been suppressed. Not only were all the magical treasures and equipment Shiyao carried rendered useless, but even her divine abilities were suppressed!
With only the primordial treasure, the Chaos Bell, on Li Shiyao's person, the three adults and one child had nothing else to rely on.
"What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Ye Qinghan rushed over upon hearing the commotion, only to find himself and Li Shiyao staring wide-eyed at the little boy. The child was frantically pointing toward the side, as if he had seen something terrifying!
Before they could process it, the boy darted to Li Shiyao's side, grabbed her hand, and tugged her forward.
Deciding to see what the child intended, Li Shiyao let himself be led along…
Then came three days and nights of running. The little boy seemed utterly tireless, just running on and on!
But this couldn't go on forever, could it?
Ye Qinghan had initially thought the boy was leading them somewhere, but now she too sensed something was terribly wrong!
The boy was running straight ahead in one direction, with no concept of a path at all!
"Stop running! Halt!"
But before Ye Qinghan could finish speaking, the little boy grew impatient first!
"Senior Sister, behind us! Something's angry!"
"Shiyao, be happy. I'm leaving!"
Seemingly abandoning Ye Qinghan, the boy grabbed Li Shiyu and tried to pull her away. But facing the senior sister's terrifying glare, how could Li Shiyu dare to run?
"Shiyao, talk to him. Is this some kind of escape? What exactly happened?"
Li Shiyu did possess a natural talent for communicating with children. Rumor had it she could even converse with the spirit beasts raised on the Sacred Mountain, so Ye Qinghan found this ability unsurprising.
"Behind us… angry? Senior Sister, do you think something angry is chasing him?"
Ye Qinghan was utterly speechless. She had no desire to communicate with such an idiotic child. Since embarking on her immortal path, she had rarely run so far in one breath!
What kind of nonsense was this? Just dragging them along without a word?
"Ask him! Why should I know?"
The senior sister’s temper wasn’t exactly a recent development, and after so long without seeing the master, she naturally wasn’t in the best mood!
Li Shiyao pursed her lips inwardly, thinking this little boy was far easier to talk to than the senior sister!
Though she thought it to herself, she obediently crouched down and began trying to communicate with the little boy, whose face was clouded with worry.
"You said something was chasing you from behind. Is there something scary after you?"
The little boy seemed to understand upon hearing this!
"Scary, yes! Chase! Shiyu, Senior Sister, chase it!"
"You mean we should run, right?"
"Run! Yes, scary! We—Shiyao, Senior Sister—we all have to run!"
By now, Ye Qinghan had heard enough. She had to admit, this child seemed to have gained some understanding of human nature!
Naturally, Ye Qinghan understood that all this was thanks to her precious junior sister.
But now, it was time for her, the eldest senior sister, to step in!
"Shiyao, tell her we came here for this very reason! Fear not! This Emperor shall see who dares to cause trouble on my junior sister's turf—whoever it is, they must be suicidal!"
"Uh, Senior Sister, you forgot—you didn't bring the Ling Shuang Sword with you!"
Li Shiyu's words, of course, had her own little scheme in mind!
If Senior Sister didn't have the Frostsword, and some real terror showed up, wouldn't that mean she'd have to handle it?
"But I'm here, aren't I?" Ye Qinghan laughed heartily. Could Li Shiyu's little scheme possibly escape her notice? The moment her fox-like eyes swept over Li Shiyu, seeing that timid little expression, Ye Qinghan knew exactly what was going on~
"Senior Sister! Shiyu can't do it! Shiyu is scared!" As she spoke, Li Shiyu shielded the little boy in front of her, her face now set with unwavering resolve. It was as if there was no room for negotiation—she absolutely refused to fight!
But Ye Qinghan wasn't about to indulge Li Shiyu. While she might overlook her usual eating and drinking, anyone who backed down at a time like this was committing treason!
As the eldest senior sister, she wouldn't let it slide… She wouldn't stand by and watch Shiyu betray Lingxian Hall!
In short, whether it was a twisted logic or not, heh, if things had been handled properly from the start, it would be one thing. But now, Li Shiyu could forget about hiding behind her!
"Are you sure about this?"
As Ye Qinghan finished speaking, he stared at Li Shiyao with an utterly expressionless face…
Li Shiyao's once unshakable resolve now began to melt like an iceberg, clearly shaken by Ye Qinghan's few words…
Within mere seconds, Li Shiyu felt as though she were being roasted over a fire. Before long, she had no choice but to surrender!
"Alright, alright, Senior Sister. Shiyu will help. But if Shiyu can't handle it, we'll run away fast, okay?"
Ye Qinghan froze. She knew Shiyu was timid, but hearing her speak like this was truly a first!
"Shiyu, did you sense something?"
Li Shiyu hadn't sensed anything, of course. After all, the great terror the little boy spoke of hadn't yet entered the range of her divine sense.
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