Bai Xuanling's arrival at Ten Thousand Flowers Ridge seemed genuinely simple, just to visit Xie Lingyu and Qinghe.
She gently sipped the tea left by Bai Qing, reminiscing as she began recounting some of Lingyu's childhood antics.
At first, Xie Lingyu's expression wavered slightly, but she glanced around and noticed only her own people—most importantly, Chu Xingchen's disciples were absent.
After all, she was of the same generation as Chu Xingchen, and having juniors hear certain things would make future encounters rather awkward.
Xie Lingyu watched her esteemed master's rare gentle expression, hesitated for a moment, but swallowed her slight embarrassment and silently listened to the embarrassing stories of the past.
The teapot in Chu Xingchen's hands seemed to empty in no time.
Perhaps Bai Xuanling drank quickly, or perhaps Lingyu's childhood antics were truly amusing.
"Before Lingyu, I had never raised anything nor believed I could keep anything alive. Back then, I just felt life was fragile, fading away from various causes even without interference." Bai Xuanling held her teacup, a smile appearing on her face as she continued, "I thought I couldn't even raise a spirit pet, so taking in Lingyu left me rather at a loss." "I may not be a qualified master, but I unexpectedly raised a fine disciple." "Perhaps I have more talent in teaching disciples."
Xie Lingyu met her gaze, her tone sincere: "I've always thought you were a wonderful master." Bai Xuanling's smile deepened: "So Lingyu has learned to flatter." "I haven't," Xie Lingyu replied firmly.
Qinghe's gaze fell upon the two of them. It could clearly sense something was off with Bai Xuanling's unusually talkative and sentimental mood. After a moment of thought, it spoke up decisively: "Lingyu is right.
Although Bai Grandma sometimes goes too far and likes to get physical, she's always cared about us deep down. Bai Grandma taught me well too! Qinghe also thinks Bai Grandma is wonderful!"
Bai Xuanling raised an eyebrow, her gaze slightly shifting toward Qinghe. She had always known about Qinghe's habit of calling her Bai Grandma behind her back, as Qinghe occasionally slipped up.
Bai Xuanling didn't really mind; she admitted she was old, no longer possessing the fiery spirit of her youth. It just gave her an excuse to study Qinghe when she was in a bad mood, to cheer herself up.
"You?" Bai Xuanling's tone was puzzled, "Haven't I always kept you as a pet?" Qinghe froze at the words, then stood up straight. Its eyes held no confusion, only a surge of grievance. Qinghe, who had never backed down after being beaten or having its horns cut, suddenly had ripples in its eyes.
What did she mean by keeping it as a pet? It had clearly treated Bai Xuanling like family, like its own kin. How had it come to be considered a pet?
Its entire dragon heart had been misplaced with this black-hearted woman!
Bai Xuanling stared at Qinghe's extremely aggrieved expression, momentarily stunned that Qinghe was taking this so seriously. She quickly backtracked: "Oh, oh, don't tell me you're crying over a simple joke." Before Qinghe could blink, its arm had covered its eyes, then dropped as quickly as it came, the ripples vanished.
It pouted, displeased: "Who's crying! Pet is pet! After all, you're the one who fished me out!"
Bai Xuanling sighed softly, slowly rose to her feet, and stepped before Qinghe, reaching out to gently stroke its head. Her tone softened somewhat: "That day you hit your head, you don't actually remember clearly. You weren't fished out by me, but entrusted to me.
I wouldn't have agreed if you wanted to be a pet—you'd have to blame the daughter of an old friend."
Qinghe tilted its head slightly, complaining in a low voice: "Anyway, I don't remember what happened back then. Say what you want, whether fished or entrusted, it's all up to you." At this, Bai Xuanling sighed lightly: "Very well, then I'll notify Tianyan Sect later. My little Qinghe from Zhujifeng was actually fished out of a pit, and the pit was full of stinking..."
"You...!" Before Bai Xuanling could finish, Qinghe anxiously interrupted. But the moment the word left its lips, its eyes met Bai Xuanling's gentle gaze. Bai Grandma rarely looked at it like this.
The expression on Qinghe's face vanished. Without another word, it silently reached out and hugged Bai Xuanling.
Bai Xuanling gently patted Qinghe's little head, then looked at Xie Lingyu: "You two stay here. I won't have time for you when I return. The Sect Leader is useless anyway; staying here you'll have more freedom.
I have matters in Tianyan Sect, so I won't linger longer."
Chu Xingchen stood up: "I'll escort you back." "No need. It's not far from Tianyan Sect." Bai Xuanling released Qinghe, retrieved a strange talisman from her spatial ring that continuously emitted thick spiritual energy, and handed it to Chu Xingchen, "This talisman can directly send messages to me. Contact me if something seems wrong."
Chu Xingchen didn't reach for it: "I have the Tianyan Order and the Xuanqing Tianzong's token. Besides, if anything happens, I can handle it through Xuanqing Tianzong.
You've been busy for so long; it's time to rest for a while." Bai Xuanling placed the talisman on a nearby stone table: "I'm talking about emergencies. You wouldn't dare bother me with trivial matters, would you?
If you insist on playing the hero and dying, I can't stop you, but just keep this talisman as a good luck charm."
Chu Xingchen's gaze fell upon the talisman, and after a moment, he accepted it. After all, it was Bai Xuanling's goodwill. Moreover, since the choice was Chu Xingchen's, and Bai Xuanling's condition was clearly off, she should rest for a while.
However, Bai Xuanling was always stubborn; asking Lü Xuan later might reveal her true condition. "In that case, I accept your kind offer," Chu Xingchen said with a warm smile, "But to repay this kindness, allow me to escort you back to Tianyan Sect." Hearing this, Bai Xuanling didn't refuse.
After bidding farewell to Xie Lingyu and Qinghe, she turned and left.
Without further instructions or admonitions, she also declined Xie Lingyu and Qinghe's request to accompany her to Tianyan Sect.
In a moment, a streak of rainbow light shot from Ten Thousand Flowers Ridge toward Tianyan Sect.
Qinghe and Xie Lingyu watched the rainbow light disappear into the distance.
"Bai Grandma's killing intent..." Qinghe's tone was worried. Xie Lingyu lightly pursed her lips: "We can't help Master, so we shouldn't add to the chaos or become a distraction. With the Sect Leader here, nothing should happen.
Let's ask about the situation in a few days." Qinghe nodded its little head, then looked at Xie Lingyu with a questioning tone: "I have a question to ask." "What question?" "Did Bai Grandma ever tell me whether I was fished out or entrusted to her?" "Knowing Master's personality, if it wasn't necessary, she wouldn't fish out a dragon, let alone a true dragon."
Hearing this, Qinghe nodded in satisfaction, then said with a wistful tone: "Then tell me... under what kind of emergency would I be entrusted to Bai Grandma? My parents couldn't have..." Xie Lingyu glanced over: "After all, Master is here.
Perhaps the situation wasn't urgent, but rather you were too stupid for even a dragon to tolerate?" Qinghe's eyes widened, its tone rapid and angry: "Lingyu! You've definitely been corrupted by that black-hearted boy!"
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