Chapter 199: Meeting Cai Die Again
"Young master, sister, when will you return..."
Cai Die whispered softly, her peach blossom eyes gazing at the distant horizon. In her mind, a figure appeared, and she stared at it for a long time, lost in her memories, until the struggle of Ling'er in her arms brought her back to reality. With an apologetic smile, she gently patted Ling'er's head.
Ling'er raised a small, pink paw and irritably patted the peaks in front of Cai Die, letting out a soft "Ying Ying."
"Hmm?"
At that moment, a strange feeling surged in Cai Die's heart, and she abruptly looked up. Her eyes fixed on the distant sky, where three streaks of light were speeding toward her. The speed was incredibly fast, and the aura they emitted made Cai Die stand up in shock and excitement. The next moment, she broke through the window and flew toward the incoming figures.
The movement naturally alarmed Hua She'er and Yue Mei, and many of the Serpent Clan's guards also soared into the air, quickly following behind.
As soon as they saw who the visitors were, everyone exchanged glances.
But Cai Die didn't pay attention to anything else. She immediately leapt into Yao Yan's arms, so forcefully that she almost knocked him over.
Yao Yan looked at the beauty in his arms, gently stroking her soft long hair with tenderness in his eyes. He whispered, "I'm back."
"Mm~" Cai Die responded, tightening her arms around Yao Yan, afraid it was just a dream. Fortunately, the sensation and the breath were so familiar—he, the one she had missed so much, was finally back.
"Ying Ying~"
Ling'er struggled out of Cai Die's arms and poked her head out. Her large ears stood up high as she chirped at Yao Yan, before skillfully leaping onto his shoulder. She tilted her head, her green eyes examining Yao Yan before affectionately rubbing against his cheek.
Years had passed, but this little one showed no signs of distance.
This was normal, though. For a creature born from the heavenly flames like Ling'er, a few years was merely a brief nap.
"Your Majesty, Young Master!"
At that moment, Hua She'er, Yue Mei, and the others flew over, all respectfully bowing to Yao Yan. As for Cai Die, who was still in Yao Yan's arms, they chose to ignore her—after all, she was the queen, and queens could do whatever they wished.
"Get up, there are too many people watching," Yao Yan gently patted Cai Die's shoulder, signaling her to calm down.
"No~"
Cai Die pouted and mumbled. At this moment, she no longer had the aloof and domineering image of the Queen. In fact, many of the Serpent Clan's powerful warriors were left stunned.
Cai Lin glanced at the two in her arms with a complicated expression. Her eyes narrowed, and her tone remained indifferent, "Nothing important, everyone go back."
"Yes!"
Hua She'er and Yue Mei responded, and they led the others back toward the palace.
Yao Yan, still holding Cai Die, gave Cai Lin an helpless glance before flying forward with everyone else. Zi Yan, curious, looked at Cai Die and then pulled on Cai Lin's sleeve after a moment, "Cai Lin, you and your sister look so alike… but why does she have a tail instead of legs?"
"…Sister, you've successfully advanced?!"
Cai Die froze upon hearing this, and only then did she look at her sister. Upon noticing the long and straight legs of Cai Lin, she was pleasantly surprised and said, "Wow!"
"Mm." Cai Lin nodded slightly, but her face didn't show much joy. Instead, a hint of helplessness flickered in her eyes. If it weren't for the evolution of the bloodline within her, she would never have gotten involved with Yao Yan like this.
As for emotions... with her pride, how could she admit to having those feelings? Should she really admit that she and her sister were fighting for a man?
"Sister, you seem even more beautiful now~"
Finally, Cai Die released Yao Yan from her embrace and flew around Cai Lin in a circle. Her bright face smiled with genuine warmth as she sincerely said, then, she instinctively wrapped her arm around her sister's, leaning against her.
She then looked at Zi Yan curiously and asked, "Who is this little one?"
Fortunately, Zi Yan had already reached the fifth level. She no longer looked as childlike as before. Otherwise, Cai Die might have suspected that she was Yao Yan's and her sister's child.
"I'm her adopted younger sister~" Yao Yan said softly.
As they spoke, the group neared the Serpent Clan's palace.
Unlike the environment of the Tagore Desert, the Serpent Clan now lived near the Beast Mountain Range in an oasis. About 60% of the Serpent Clan lived here, while the rest still resided in the Tagore Desert. Many of the elders did not want to leave the place where they had grown up.
Youngsters could choose to leave, but the elders didn't want to leave, especially with the lingering hatred...
Cai Die chattered away with Cai Lin about the changes in the Serpent Clan, occasionally looking at Yao Yan. It wasn't until the topic turned to Yao Yan that Cai Lin's gaze subtly shifted.
"Young master, over the years, have you been bullying my sister?" She said, holding her seductive little waist, her gaze serious.
"Most of the time, it's your sister bullying me."
Yao Yan thought for a moment before giving a serious answer.
Because Cai Lin's personality was really too proud, and many times she chose to be on top rather than on the bottom~
"Really?" Cai Die squinted her eyes, suspiciously eyeing Yao Yan, then turning to her sister. She truly wanted to know what had happened between them. Her sister had clearly been disinterested in Yao Yan before, so how had she changed so much in less than three years?
"Don't worry, there's nothing between me and him." Cai Lin's gaze shifted for a moment before she forced a calm expression.
"Every time you lie to me, you sound so cold… but don't worry, I won't mind~" Cai Die said, acting nonchalant, but there was undoubtedly some jealousy. However, since Cai Lin was her own sister, she couldn't get mad at her. If it were anyone else, she definitely would.
Cai Lin pursed her red lips, not knowing how to answer.
"This is all my fault. You know the cultivation technique I practiced has some issues. After obtaining another heavenly flame in the Black Corner Domain, the Heart Fire was burning through my body. If your sister hadn't saved me, I would've been burned to death. You don't know how dangerous it was..." Yao Yan explained, a hint of fear in his voice.
Half of it was true, and half was exaggerated, but to Cai Lin, it seemed completely real because, at that time, Yao Yan was really in danger.
Yao Yan was pretending very well.
"?!"
Upon hearing this, Cai Die tightened her grip on Cai Lin's arm, feeling as though she was reliving the moment... and indeed, it almost felt like that.
"But your sister actually benefited from this disaster. A twist of fate allowed her to obtain the power of a heavenly flame, which not only saved her life but also fully evolved her bloodline," Yao Yan said seriously.
He spoke casually, but Cai Lin, who was standing beside him, felt increasingly uncomfortable, wishing she could give Yao Yan a hard slap.
"Does that mean I can do the same?"
Cai Die blinked her beautiful eyes, quickly coming up with an idea.
"It shouldn't be a problem."
Yao Yan, like a big scam artist, coaxed Cai Die into willingly going along with his suggestion.
Cai Lin, hearing this, felt her frustration grow. Yet, she couldn't find any reason to stop it. She couldn't stop her sister from advancing, not after she herself had succeeded. Still, she felt a strange discomfort. It was obvious that Yao Yan was the one benefiting, but somehow, it was turning into them benefiting.
"Okay~" Cai Die's eyes gleamed with some expectation. Since her sister had 'cheated,' she wouldn't fall behind.
Everyone had some competitive spirit.
"I'll go see the elders..." Cai Lin, hearing the increasingly outrageous conversation between the two, couldn't stay anymore. She said this and was about to leave.
"Sister, I'll go with you."
Cai Die was curious about what else had happened. Instead of getting an uncertain answer from the young master, she'd rather ask her sister directly. After all, in matters of emotions, her sister was much more innocent than her. She felt that in these days, her sister must have been coaxed by Yao Yan.
The young master was really good at lying.
And Cai Die already knew that Yao Yan liked her sister. He had admitted it before, but at the time, she thought her sister could never fall for Yao Yan... but now, she never expected the two to develop so quickly. They were almost ready to get married and have children.
Zi Yan sat on a chair, swinging her short legs. Her big purple eyes looked at the second-level Green Wood Fox on Yao Yan's shoulder with some surprise, "This little guy doesn't seem to be afraid of me."
After all, even some level six or seven magical beasts would be suppressed by her bloodline power. Lower-level ones would immediately lie on the ground. Yet this second-level Green Wood Fox had no fear at all and even dared to make eye contact with her.
"Ling'er is not an ordinary magical beast," Yao Yan explained softly.
"What is it, then?"
Zi Yan blinked her big eyes, curiously asking.
"Just like you, a little glutton who loves to munch on pills." Yao Yan took out a bottle of pills from his spatial ring and handed it to Ling'er. Then, under Zi Yan's wide-eyed gaze, the little creature grabbed the pill and swallowed it whole, just as confidently as Zi Yan would.
"...Can it digest that?" Zi Yan's lips moved slightly, looking utterly astonished.
"In a way, it can eat even more than you," Yao Yan teased while ruffling Ling'er's soft fur.
Zi Yan might be able to eat until she's stuffed, but Ling'er didn't have that limitation. If she needed to, Ling'er could consume pills without limit. The life flame within her allowed her to absorb pills at will, even tempering high-level pills and promoting their growth. Although this process took quite a long time.
Zi Yan was stunned, staring at Ling'er, as though she were looking at her own sister.
"Ying Ying~"
After finishing the bottle, Ling'er happily rubbed against Yao Yan and snuggled into his embrace, curling up to absorb the herbal essence in the pills. These things could help her grow, though the speed of growth was quite slow.
The fastest way for the heavenly flames to advance was to absorb other heavenly flames, but it was clear that Ling'er didn't have that ability.
After some thought.
Yao Yan flipped his palm, summoning a flame of heavenly blue. The flame looked as beautiful and ethereal as the sky after rain. It appeared harmless, but as soon as it emerged, Ling'er's fur stood on end, and her eyes became alert. Only when she saw that it was Yao Yan's flame did she relax and let her fur fall back down.
Then the little one tilted her head to look at Yao Yan, then at the flame in his palm, hesitating.
"Whoosh~"
With a thought, Yao Yan transformed the heavenly blue flame into three different-colored heavenly flames, each distinctly floating in his palm. The three flames gently swayed, releasing an indescribable aura that caused Ling'er to purse her lips.
The next moment, the three flames were absorbed into Yao Yan's body. With no hesitation, he picked up Ling'er and threw her to the side, where the curious Zi Yan was waiting. He smiled, "Zi Yan, want to have a contest and see who eats more?"
As he finished speaking, the spatial ring on his finger flashed, and a series of bottles of pills appeared on the table, enticing Zi Yan to the point of almost drooling.
"Definitely me!" Zi Yan said confidently.
Ling'er, however, suddenly lost interest in the pills and kept glancing at Yao Yan. Her expression was truly adorable.
After tempting Ling'er, Yao Yan stood up and walked out the door. There, Hua She'er was standing guard.
After several years, Hua She'er was still dressed in her heroic armor. Her delicate face showed some excitement and restraint as she respectfully greeted, "Young master."
"You've reached two-star Dou Huang? Your cultivation speed is not slow." Yao Yan gave her a once-over and smiled.
"Thanks to the pills the young master gave me."
Hua She'er nodded slightly and spoke softly.
"Where's Yue Mei?" Yao Yan hadn't forgotten his other maid. He was surprised not to see her around.
"Yue Mei is currently handling some matters in the city. She'll come to see the young master once she's done," Hua She'er explained.
"Is she resentful?"
Yao Yan quickly exposed Hua She'er's lie. Compared to Hua She'er, Yue Mei clearly had some schemes. Back then, Yao Yan had not given her pills, worried that her power would rise too quickly, making it difficult for Hua She'er to control her.
Compared to Yue Mei's flirtatious charm, Yao Yan still preferred Hua She'er's dignified nature.
Men are sometimes simple creatures.
They like the seductive, but they also like the dignified.
"Yue Mei wouldn't dare." Hua She'er shook her head slightly and defended Yue Mei.
"She has a lot on her mind and needs to be held back. If her strength surpasses yours, you might not be able to control her. I'm looking out for you," Yao Yan said softly as he gently stroked Hua She'er's cheek.
"Young master..." Hua She'er trembled slightly, gazing at Yao Yan's handsome face, and for a moment, she became somewhat captivated.
"I'll talk to you later."
Yao Yan gently tucked a strand of Hua She'er's long hair behind her ear, looking into her affectionate eyes and whispering softly. At the same time, he couldn't help but sigh at Hua She'er's 'simplicity.' When it came to emotions, neither Cai Lin nor the two sisters could compare to Yue Mei's clarity.
Yue Mei might not have deep feelings for Yao Yan, but she understood the importance of relying on a strong master.
In comparison, Cai Lin, her sisters, and Hua She'er were too 'emotionally driven.' Yao Yan didn't doubt that, if he were ever in danger, these women would fight to the death for him. With Yue Mei, however, it wouldn't be so certain.
But Yao Yan didn't see this as an issue. After all, this was the norm!
(END CHAPTER)
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