Mermaids Weep (10)

Ye Yingying was somewhat surprised; she hadn't expected Yun Yanqiu to say such a thing. In her previous impression, this taciturn man always adhered to his own set of rules in his behavior and conduct, being sharp, decisive, and ruthless, let alone considering others.

She was in a similar situation when she first met Yun Yanqiu—back then, she had traveled to the Northern Continent to find a way to enter the Profound Realm in order to fulfill a bet with the Ghost Calculator. Unexpectedly, the Northern Continent was teeming with ferocious beasts, each one bloodthirsty and warlike. She was at a disadvantage in her battle with the beasts, and just as she was about to be devoured, she stumbled upon a pine and cypress forest. Standing in the forest, she discovered that for some reason, the ferocious beasts dared not approach this place, only daring to pace menacingly at the edge of the forest.

The pine and cypress forest was covered in snow. Ye Yingying looked down at the snow on the ground but didn't find any signs of life. After thinking for a moment, she dragged her injured arm deeper into the forest. Deeper into the forest lay a different world. Several simple wooden huts stood there, surrounding a clearing. The ground was clean, without snow, and there was a square table and benches. On the table were a warm teapot and a clean porcelain cup.

Not far away was the edge of a cliff, where a man in white was sitting cross-legged. His back was to Ye Yingying, his black hair was casually draped behind him, and his back was upright and unmoving, as if he had not noticed the visitor.

Just as Ye Yingying curiously approached, wanting to see the man's true face, a deep voice immediately rang out: "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Ye Yingying was startled and quickly bowed: "Junior Ye Yingying, I came to the Northern Continent for training and accidentally wandered into this place. I did not mean to disturb your cultivation. I hope you will forgive me."

The man didn't turn around, but said, "Just follow the thickest cedar tree on the west side and you'll be able to leave safely."

"Thank you, senior."

Ye Yingying thanked him verbally, but didn't move an inch.

"Is there anything else?"

Ye Yingying cupped her hands in greeting again, showing utmost respect: "I didn't know you were here, senior. Have you ever heard of the Profound Brightness Realm?"

Ye Yingying asked directly, but was met with silence.

Seeing that the man remained silent, Ye Yingying suddenly had a bad feeling. To avoid any complications, she quickly spoke up, "Since senior doesn't know, then I'll..."

"This is the Xuanming Realm."

The man in white suddenly interrupted Ye Yingying. He stood up and turned around, revealing a handsome and aloof face. His eyebrows were like swords, his eyes were like the night, and he had an otherworldly air about him, untouched by the mortal world. Ye Yingying was completely mesmerized.

"You are... Yun Yanqiu?"

Ye Yingying was incredulous. She had thought the master of the Xuanming Realm would be an old man like the Ghost Calculator, but the man in front of her was tall and straight, and looked like a young man in his prime.

Ye Yingying was deeply shocked, staring intently at Yun Yanqiu as if she wanted to bore a hole through him.

Her gaze was too direct; anyone else would have shown some displeasure in that situation. But Yun Yanqiu was completely unaffected. He glanced at Ye Yingying's bloodstained shoulder, showing no concern, and simply asked, "Who sent you?"

This question brought Ye Yingying back to her senses. She quickly produced the prepared explanation and said with great emotion, "To be honest, senior, I was originally a rogue cultivator. My parents died early, leaving only my younger sister and me to depend on each other. That cunning fortune teller from Michen Mountain kidnapped my only relative and is using her to blackmail me into finding a treasure for him. If I can't get it back, my sister might..."

What are you looking for?

Ye Yingying thought that Yun Yanqiu had been moved by her pitiful experience, and she was secretly delighted: "Reporting to Senior, it is Rakshasa Jade."

But as soon as she finished speaking, Yun Yanqiu, expressionless, waved his hand, and his wide sleeves drew a neat arc in the air. Ye Yingying was unconsciously drawn to that arc.

Yun Yanqiu turned around and sat down in the same spot, continuing to meditate with his eyes closed. Ye Yingying, who had been standing in front of him just moments before, had vanished without a trace.

When Ye Yingying came to her senses, she was shocked to find herself in a dark bamboo forest. It was pitch black all around her and there was no sign of life except for her.

She tentatively moved her feet, and in an instant, a sword light, seemingly appearing out of nowhere, accompanied by a sharp whistle, grazed her cheek. A thin, long cut immediately appeared on Ye Yingying's fair face, from which tiny beads of blood seeped.

Blood beads slowly trickled down Ye Yingying's face, making her heart pound. At that moment, Ye Yingying realized that this was a killing formation; just because of a Rakshasa Jade, Yun Yanqiu wanted her dead without saying a word.

From that day on, Ye Yingying's impression of Yun Yanqiu was that he was cold and ruthless.

Thinking back to the past, and then to Yun Yanqiu beside her, Ye Yingying felt a sense of estrangement. He had changed during the years her consciousness had been dormant.

Yao Yao was clearly surprised by Yun Yanqiu's words. She asked in astonishment, "Senior Yun, you're so strange. Didn't you tell me not to take the initiative to find him before?"

“That’s because I knew Han Chengyu wouldn’t recognize you, and I was afraid you’d make a fool of yourself.” Yun Yanqiu said calmly. “But since you’re so concerned about him, it wouldn’t hurt to ask.”

Yao Yao pouted: "But he has clearly forgotten..."

“Then let him remember.” Yun Yanqiu said firmly, “He’s come all this way to shore, let’s not leave him with any regrets.”

Hearing this, Yao Yao seemed to be touched.

Hearing this, Ye Yingying felt that things were about to spiral out of control, so she immediately interrupted, "Wait, recognizing each other is fine, but how about we finish our business first?"

Yao Yao was already somewhat upset, but Ye Yingying's words gave her time to sort out her thoughts, so she nodded and said, "Sister Ying'er is right."

Seeing that Yao Yao had agreed, Ye Yingying quickly changed the subject: "Alright, alright, it's getting late today, let's rest first, and I'll take you shopping tomorrow. Didn't you want to see how people on land live?"

"Right? Senior Yun?"

Yun Yanqiu glanced at Ye Yingying, and seeing her nervous appearance, he agreed and said nothing more.

There were only two rooms in the guest courtyard, so Yao Yao and Ye Yingying shared one. After returning to the room, Ye Yingying sat cross-legged and began to gather her qi for cultivation.

Yao Yao sat on the edge of the bed, her mood calming down a bit, and began to observe her surroundings. She rolled her eyes, looking around at the furnishings in the room, but finding them uninteresting, she turned her gaze to Ye Yingying, who was meditating, and suddenly asked, "Sister Yingying, what is your relationship with Senior Yun?"

Ye Yingying was startled by the question: "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

Are you two Daoist partners?

Yao Yao's words were shocking, startling Ye Yingying, who quickly shook her head in denial: "No, no, that's not true."

Yao Yao leaned forward, resting her chin on her hands, her eyes full of curiosity: "Is Senior Yun pursuing you?"

"No, no!" Ye Yingying was sweating profusely. What if Yun Yanqiu heard this little devil?

Ye Yingying steadied herself and said earnestly, "Senior Yun is my benefactor. He saved my life. There's nothing shady between us."

"Really?" Yao Yao squinted, half believing and half doubting.

"Of course, Senior Yun came here only out of kindness to help me find mermaid tears to cure my eye disease," Ye Yingying said righteously. "On land, we call this helping someone to the very end."

"Oh—" Yao Yao responded, her drawn-out tone leaving a somewhat intriguing impression.

Although Yao Yao didn't know much about people on land, she had heard plenty of stories from the old turtle in the sea, many of which were about love between men and women. Based on her experience from those stories, Senior Yun treated Sister Ying'er a little differently, at least compared to how Senior Yun treated her. But since Sister Ying'er said no, she would reluctantly accept that.

That "oh" gave Ye Yingying goosebumps. Her intuition told her that this girl wanted to keep probing, so she quickly changed the subject and asked, "Yaoyao, why do you call mermaid tears 'dewdrops'?"

“This—” Yao Yao explained with her big, bright eyes, “It’s the fruit of the medicinal coral. When it’s ripe, it falls to the ground and is used as a medicine for injuries.”

"So this thing really can cure all diseases?"

"It depends on the quality. The older the coral tree, the better the medicinal effect of its fruit. For example, 'dew' that is only a dozen years old can only treat some superficial wounds, but 'dew' that is several hundred years old has a different medicinal effect."

So these things have different ages, Ye Yingying thought to herself, and then asked, "The one you sent out must have been quite old, right?"

“That dewdrop was a reward from the clan, it must be at least a hundred years old.” Yao Yao proudly raised her chin. “Grandpa promised to give you one that’s even older, since the coral tree that produced that ‘dewdrop’ is about the same age as Grandpa.”

Yao Yao was full of pride when introducing her treasures, but when she thought of her own bead, she showed a hint of disappointment: "I originally gave my bead to Han Chengyu, but I never expected it to be in Han Chengjin's hands now."

"Speaking of this..." Ye Yingying paused, "Is it possible that I remembered it wrong?"

Yao Yao was silent for a moment, still conflicted: "It's not that I haven't thought about it, but the person I always met when I was little said his name was Han Chengyu."

"Let's start from the beginning and go through this again," Ye Yingying said seriously. "Yaoyao, why did you give him the dewdrop in the first place?"

“Yes, he saved me. I was seriously injured once and was swept ashore by the ocean current. He treated my wounds and saved my life,” Yao Yao recalled. “He stayed with me until I regained consciousness, and that’s when we met. I always wanted to repay him. Coincidentally, some time later I was awarded by the tribe and received a dewdrop of a hundred-year quality. So I thought I would give it to him as a gift.”

How many times have you two met in total?

"I can't remember... I only remember that we used to meet every night of the full moon. We met many times and talked about many, many things..."

As Ye Yingying listened, she recalled the experiences Han Chengjin had once recounted, and a thought suddenly popped into her mind. So she asked, "Is it possible that the person who appeared when you gave the gift wasn't Han Chengyu, but Han Chengjin?"