Lightweight
When Yun Qian opened her eyes again, it was already late at night.
Moonlight streamed through the window, casting a soft glow on the bedside. Zhihua curled up beside her pillow, her fluffy body rising and falling gently with her breath. The kitten, highly alert, opened its glassy eyes almost the instant she awoke, turning its head to gaze silently at her.
Yun Qian reached out and rubbed its soft head before getting out of bed. Her body still felt heavy, but she was much better than before she fell into a coma.
Pushing open the door, a cool night breeze swept in. A figure sat quietly before the stone table in the courtyard. Clad in a blue robe and with ink-black hair, he resembled a freehand ink painting under the moonlight.
It is Lin Huaiyu.
Yun Qian was not surprised. As soon as she woke up, she smelled a faint fragrance in the air, a scent unique to Lin Huaiyu.
She walked slowly closer and sat down on the stone bench opposite him. "What are you doing here?"
"I figured you should be awake by now, so I was waiting for you." Lin Huaiyu looked up, a faint smile appearing in her eyes. "You've been asleep for three whole days, and I've missed you."
"Really?" Yun Qian had no concept of the passage of time while she was in a deep sleep, and only then did she realize that she had slept for so long.
“For three whole days.” Lin Huaiyu picked up the teapot, poured her a cup of warm water, and watched her sip it before continuing, “During these three days, did you dream of me?”
"No," Yun Qian replied truthfully. She hadn't dreamed at all for the past three days; she had simply slept. If she hadn't smelled his scent upon waking, she probably wouldn't have thought of him immediately.
After that calamity, Yun Qian finally understood why she always felt a strange sense of familiarity with Lin Huaiyu. It was this realization that subtly changed her attitude towards him.
She seemed to suddenly trust him more, simply because he resembled Bai Yan.
Although Lin Huaiyu didn't know the reason for her change in attitude, he was a sensible person. He was quite pleased with the current just-right way they were getting along, so he didn't delve into who she was looking at through him that day.
Moonlight streamed across his exquisite profile, casting a hazy glow over his already striking face. Yun Qian gazed at him and said solemnly, "Thank you."
Lin Huaiyu chuckled: "There's no need for thanks between us."
"Besides, it was just two bolts of lightning." He paused, his tone tinged with self-reproach. "If I had arrived sooner, you wouldn't have been so badly injured."
“But without you, I would have been hurt even more badly,” Yun Qian insisted. “So I still want to thank you.”
Lin Huaiyu rested his chin on his hand, gazing intently at her: "Even when I wasn't there that day, you were able to withstand the last two bolts of heavenly lightning."
“The small sword in your hair is no ordinary item; it possesses a sword spirit and is an ancient divine artifact. With its help, you can also get through this safely.” His gaze was clear. “So there’s no need to thank me.”
"If I had known it would turn out this way, I definitely wouldn't have left," Lin Huaiyu said with regret. He never expected that such a major event would occur after only a short absence. If he had stayed on the jade platform, he could have protected her the moment the heavenly lightning struck.
"Who can predict such a sudden event?" Yun Qian suddenly remembered the strange fragrance she smelled on the Wuji Platform that day and asked, "When you were on the platform that day, did you smell anything unusual?"
Lin Huaiyu thought for a moment, then shook her head: "No."
So, only those within the formation can smell that strange fragrance? Yun Qian pondered to herself.
She's been in a deep sleep for the past few days, only certain that Baichuan smelled it too. Tomorrow she'll need to ask Qin Wu if he's noticed anything.
We must confirm whether Qin Wu's sudden promotion is related to that strange fragrance. This peculiar scent is most likely connected to Sili, and we must be extra vigilant in the future.
Hearing Yun Qian's question, Lin Huaiyu seemed to remember something, "Can you describe the smell to me?"
Yun Qian frowned: "It's sweet and cloying, a very strange taste."
"Perhaps it's Li Xiang."
"Li Xiang?" Yun Qian had never heard of this before.
Lin Huaiyu explained, "That's a strange fragrance passed down from the ancient demon race. It's said to amplify the evil thoughts in people's hearts, and even greatly enhance a cultivator's cultivation level when they advance, thus inducing inner demons."
Judging from his words, what he smelled on the Wuji Platform that day was most likely the Fragrance of Separation. In other words, Qin Wu was only one step away from the Nascent Soul stage, and then he smelled the Fragrance of Separation on the platform, causing his cultivation to surge in a short period of time, which triggered both his inner demons and the heavenly tribulation.
Breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage at the age of one hundred is rare even in the Three Realms. Yun Qian's rapid advancement at Cangmin Mountain also attracted a Heavenly Tribulation. Zhihua once said that the Heavenly Tribulation is meant to eliminate all beings in the Three Realms that defy reason. In this light, Li Xiang on the Wuji Platform that day wasn't actually targeting Qin Wu; it just so happened that he advanced at that exact moment.
“This must be the fragrance.” Yun Qian nodded. “I smelled this scent in the Li Kingdom’s palace a hundred years ago…”
That day also attracted a heavenly calamity... She didn't believe it was just a coincidence.
"Then do you know who can make this kind of incense?"
“There are too many.” Lin Huaiyu pondered. “The method of making Li Xiang has not been banned, and there are quite a few people who know how to make this incense. Anyone who is willing can find a way to make it.”
"However, if you smell the fragrance of parting, you can use the Spirit-Subduing Grass to alleviate its effects."
"What is the Spirit-Hidden Grass?" Yun Qian pressed.
Lin Huaiyu suddenly laughed, pointed to his cheek, raised an eyebrow and said, "I happen to have a Spirit-Hidden Grass. Give me a kiss and I'll give it to you."
Yun Qian hadn't expected this person to suddenly become so frivolous while they were talking about serious matters. She frowned, her pale face filled with disdain: "Have you no shame?"
"What's the use of having a face?" Lin Huaiyu's smile deepened. "Only your kiss is useful."
Yun Qian felt there was no reasoning with this person, and made to get up and leave, but her wrist was suddenly grabbed. Caught off guard, the distance between them instantly closed. A night breeze swept by, and their faces were no more than a fist's width apart.
At this distance, Yun Qian could clearly smell his unique, cool fragrance. She blinked, about to lash out, when a strangely shaped herb landed in her hand.
Yun Qian looked down and realized that this should be the Spirit-Hidden Grass.
The next moment, a warm touch brushed against her forehead and then parted. Yun Qian looked up in surprise, meeting Lin Huaiyu's smiling eyes.
"you……"
"Me?" Lin Huaiyu released her hand and calmly created some distance. "The Nine-Tailed God Clan never helps people for free. I always have to get something in return."
"Flirtatious!" Yun Qian retorted angrily.
Lin Huaiyu smiled at her freely: "There's nothing I can do. For hundreds of years, I've only ever wanted to flirt with you."
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