"Let go of me, don't touch me."
Ye Lingling was slightly angered, not expecting this person to be so shameless as to just grab her. She struggled continuously.
But as a frail and easily bullied support system Spirit Master, and a girl at that, how could she break free from Lin Ye?
"My apologies."
Lin Ye held the sobbing girl in his arms, apologizing softly, his voice filled with remorse.
After a long while, Ye Lingling's emotions finally stabilized. She struggled a bit, but it was still futile.
A slightly annoyed voice reached Lin Ye's ears. "How long do you plan to hold me?"
Hearing this, Lin Ye released Ye Lingling and chuckled awkwardly, saying, "Well, the touch was quite nice, no, I didn't mean to!"
Lin Ye waved his hands repeatedly. Ye Lingling said nothing, only stepping back two paces, putting some distance between herself and Lin Ye.
Looking at Ye Lingling's reddened eyes, Lin Ye comforted her, "Actually, you shouldn't blame yourself for those baseless things."
"Think about it. If your grandmother were still alive, would you not awaken your Spirit? Of course not, you would still awaken your Spirit, just inheriting the Spirit from one of your parents, other than Nine Hearted Velvet Leaf. So, this was never your fault. Your thoughts are just adding to your troubles."
"People must look forward. You still have a great life ahead of you. If your grandmother were alive, she wouldn't want you to be so downcast, would she?"
Ye Lingling looked up at the man before her, a bit dazed, her eyes growing even more moist. For the first time, she felt a trace of care from someone other than her relatives.
It was already dusk. The setting sun dyed the sky a fiery orange. As the evening glow descended, it seemed to cast a hazy filter over the two people in the sea of flowers.
Under Lin Ye's persistent questioning, Ye Lingling finally spoke of her troubles.
"So, you're saying your enemy died at someone else's hands not long ago?"
Lin Ye asked in astonishment. According to Ye Lingling, someone had coveted her mother's Nine Hearted Velvet Leaf ability and tried to persuade her to join their faction.
Her mother refused, and after repeated unsuccessful attempts, the other party became enraged and sent people to ambush and kill them. Ye Lingling's parents died one after another. Only Ye Lingling, who was studying at Heaven Dou Royal Academy, fortunately escaped. Since then, Ye Lingling dared not step out of the Imperial City.
Because within Heaven Dou Imperial City, those people would be wary.
But not long ago, Ye Lingling learned that the murderer who had killed her parents had already died at someone else's hands.
Her great revenge was avenged, but Ye Lingling was not particularly happy.
Before, she had thought about contacting other forces in the future to avenge her parents. Although hope was slim, it was still her persistent goal.
But now, having lost this obsession, she felt somewhat lost. Her father was gone, her mother was gone, and her beloved grandmother had left her even earlier. Only she remained, alone and helpless, with an uncertain future. She couldn't find a goal to strive for.
Lin Ye was indifferent. The Ye family healed people and performed many good deeds, yet they ended up like this.
It's just, who could have done it? Due to the special nature of Nine Hearted Velvet Leaf, Ye Lingling's mother and grandmother had saved countless lives, and many people owed them favors.
The power accumulated by these people should not be underestimated. Didn't even the Heaven Dou Royal Family want to win over the Ye family?
The murderer who killed Ye Lingling's parents died at someone else's hands, but recently, he hadn't heard any news of major power upheavals.
No, there was indeed something. For some reason, Lin Ye suddenly thought of Tang Ritian's recent attacks on various Spirit Halls.
"Ye Lingling, your enemy, could it be someone from Spirit Hall?"
Lin Ye asked suspiciously. And indeed, if it were Spirit Hall, they truly could do such a thing.
After Bibi Dong took charge of Spirit Hall, her actions became aggressive and forceful, with a strong sense of 'those who obey prosper, those who defy perish.'
Spirit Hall might not care about ordinary geniuses, but if it was someone who could influence the situation, that would be different. Following the principle of 'either for me or for no one,' it was perfectly normal for Spirit Hall to target the Ye family.
Recently, only Spirit Hall had been significantly disturbed, so Lin Ye speculated that the death of Ye Lingling's parents might have been Spirit Hall's doing.
If that were the case, it was quite possible that Ye Lingling's enemy was killed by Tang Ritian.
"How did you know?"
Ye Lingling asked in surprise. Clearly, Lin Ye had guessed correctly.
Lin Ye shook his head, not answering, and stood up, saying, "It's getting late, I should go."
"Wait a moment!"
The girl's clear, cold voice made Lin Ye pause slightly. He turned to look at Ye Lingling, asking puzzledly, "Does Miss Ye have something else, or perhaps you want me to stay the night?"
"Pfft, pervert!"
Ye Lingling glared at Lin Ye disapprovingly upon hearing this. After a slight silence, she asked, "I want to know, what do you live for?"
A pair of sky-blue eyes gazed deeply at Lin Ye.
"Oh, Miss Ye thinks someone like me shouldn't be alive, right? Do you think you're helping a villain?"
Lin Ye asked with some self-mockery. In others' eyes, wasn't he a fallen Spirit Master now?
Fallen Spirit Masters refer to Spirit Masters who cultivate by devouring spirit power, spirit rings, mental force, flesh and blood, souls, and Spirits.
Any normal person deeply detests fallen Spirit Masters, wishing to eradicate them, because the existence of fallen ones poses a great threat to them. Who knows when they themselves might become nourishment for a fallen Spirit Master's cultivation?
This situation became even more extreme in later generations.
In later generations, fallen Spirit Masters were also called evil soul masters. No matter what you wanted to do, or what you did, as long as your awakened Spirit leaned towards evil and darkness, you would be labeled an evil soul master.
The prevailing belief was 'better to kill a thousand innocent than let one guilty escape.'
Lin Ye smiled self-deprecatingly. By devouring residual souls for cultivation, he had indeed become an out-and-out fallen one now.
Ye Lingling shook her head slightly, "I didn't mean that. Before, I cultivated diligently to avenge my parents in the future, but now…"
As she spoke, Ye Lingling's eyes became somewhat lost. Her parents' revenge was settled, and she wouldn't go to the extreme of hating the entire Spirit Hall just because of a few scoundrels.
And now, she couldn't find her direction for effort, nor was she clear about what she truly wanted or what she wanted to do.
Lin Ye couldn't find the right answer to this question, but he thought of himself. Why was he alive? Of course, it was to kill the trash who wouldn't let him live.
"It's similar to you, but I'm lucky enough that I can probably kill my enemies with my own hands."
Lin Ye's voice was relatively calm. Since his resurrection, he had reflected. He had been too impulsive back then, knowingly doing the impossible, like throwing an egg against a rock. What was the outcome? His entire family died, not even one person was left to report it.