Yue Sheng initially thought he was hallucinating from blood loss, but the rustling grew louder and louder, as if some living creature was pushing its way through the grass.
Almost simultaneously, everyone reached for the hilts of the blades at their waists, the firelight reflecting on their tense faces.
Before long,
the tall grass was parted by something.
First to emerge was a fair, slender hand.
Followed by a lean, thin figure.
He appeared to be a young man in his early twenties, dressed in a green robe. His hair was draped loosely over his shoulders, with a few withered leaves and grass seeds caught in the strands.
Seeing this, the caravan members let out a sigh of relief.
He was just a frail youth, not some desert beast like a wild wolf. There was no need to be so tense.
But as the young man drew closer, and they saw his inhuman features clearly by the firelight, they collectively gasped, their eyes filling with terror.
Feather-like markings swept up across the young man's face, extending from the corners of his eyes to his earlobes, and a pair of wings grew from his back.
He looked incredibly bizarre.
“A... a monster...” Instinctively, the crowd drew their sabers, pointing the tips at the youth. Their voices were tight. “Stay back!”
Yue Sheng also forced himself up despite his injuries, his eyes warily locked onto this uninvited guest who was clearly not human.
A'han stepped in front of Lan Yi, his left arm tightly cradling his swaddled daughter against his chest while his right hand held his long saber horizontally before him, the blade reflecting the dancing firelight.
“Get back!” his voice was low and raspy.
The youth ignored him completely.
He tilted his head with an air of innocence, his gaze passing through the crowd surrounding him to land directly on Lan Yi.
As if confirming something, his bright black eyes blinked, and then he vanished from the spot.
Everyone froze in shock.
In the next instant, a warm breeze brushed against Lan Yi's veil. The youth was already standing right in front of her, posing a question.
“Did you once save a little bird in the snowy mountains?”
Unlike his bizarre appearance, his voice was exceptionally pleasant, possessing the ethereal quality of a singing kingfisher.
A dead silence fell over the area.
Everyone exchanged bewildered glances. For a moment, they didn't even know where to point their blades.
Lan Yi stared at the youth in front of her, taking a long moment to find her voice. “Are you... that bird?”
There was a trace of uncertainty in her tone.
To atone for their past misdeeds, she and A'han had been doing whatever good deeds they could.
If it were a person she had helped, she might still have some memory of them. But she had saved far too many wild creatures of the mountains to possibly remember them all.
The youth suddenly grinned, revealing a row of white teeth, his eyes curving into crescents. “It's me! Look at me—I could hardly be a spiced pressed duck, could I?”
Lan Yi did not understand what a spiced pressed duck was, but seeing that the youth harbored no ill intent, she signaled for A'han and the others to lower their weapons. She then lowered her gaze slightly, choosing her words carefully as she spoke to him. “Forgive my ignorance. I did not realize a bird immortal had graced us with their presence.”
The youth waved his hands in a hurry.
“Oh, I wouldn't dare claim such a title! I am merely a Biyi bird with shallow cultivation. How could I presume to call myself a bird immortal?”
Despite what the youth said, Lan Yi did not look down on him in the slightest. After all, no matter how shallow his cultivation was, he was still not someone a mere mortal like her could contend with.
Thus, she had to remain on friendly terms and avoid offending him. “May I ask what brings you to seek me out, Your Excellency?”
“I'm here to repay your kindness!” the youth said with a smile. “That day, my wing was broken by a heavenly tribulation, and I was lying helpless in the snow. If you hadn't bandaged my wound, I probably would have been picked up by someone and boiled for dinner. I would never have had the chance to receive the Divine Lady's enlightenment and follow Her to cultivate the Dao. You did me a massive favor!”
Hearing the youth mention the Divine Lady, the last of Lan Yi's wariness vanished. “It was merely a small effort. Lord Biyi, you need not take it to heart.”
“That won't do! If I don't repay your life-saving kindness and resolve this karma, I won't be able to ascend to immortality!”
The youth raised his hand and rubbed his chin. “Don't you mortals have a saying about repaying a life-saving favor by offering oneself in marriage? How about this: I will marry you and accompany you for the rest of your life. That should count as repaying your kindness, right?”
“If you don't like my current face, I can even transform into whatever look you prefer.”
A'han's eyes widened. “!!!”
He opened his mouth to speak but hesitated.
In the end, he could only look at Lan Yi with pleading eyes.
If he could, he wanted to say he was Lan Yi's husband. Yet, in his heart, he was acutely aware that he was merely a dark guard.
Sensing his gaze, Lan Yi subconsciously turned her head toward A'han, and their eyes met.
Just from his expression, she could guess that he was feeling insecure about his status as a dark guard again, not daring to declare to others that he was her husband and the father of her child.
With this thought in mind,
she took hold of A'han's hand. “Lord Biyi, I am already married to another, so I naturally cannot marry you. If you wish to repay my kindness, why not give me some money instead?”
The corners of A'han's mouth curled up uncontrollably.
The youth, however, looked utterly distressed. “But I don't have any money. If all else fails, he can be the primary husband, and I can be the secondary one.”
He grinned mischievously. “Don't worry, I'm not here to break you up. I'm here to join you.”
Lan Yi: “...”
A'han: “...”
Everyone else: “...”
“Lord Biyi, please do not joke about such things.”
Lan Yi frowned slightly. Knowing that A'han was already sensitive, she worried he would overthink things, so she added, “I love only my husband in this life, and I only wish to spend the rest of my days with him.”
A'han's eyes grew slightly red.
The young mistress said she loved him. He was overjoyed!
“Sigh.”
The youth let out a heavy sigh. “This won't work, that won't work... how on earth am I supposed to repay your life-saving favor? This is my hard-won chance to ascend to immortality...”
At this point, his eyes suddenly lit up.
“Right! There's still ascension!” He balled his right hand into a fist and tapped his left palm, speaking excitedly. “Lan Yi, come cultivate the Dao with me! I will teach you the methods of cultivation, freeing you from the mortal suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death. This way, I can repay my debt, and you will have the chance to ascend to the heavenly realm. Isn't that wonderful?”
A look of shock flashed in Lan Yi's eyes.
A mortal could actually cultivate the Dao and ascend to the heavenly realm?!
To say she wasn't tempted would be a lie.
The surrounding crowd looked at Lan Yi with eyes full of envy. They all silently resolved to do more good deeds and treat living creatures well in the future. Perhaps one day, a similar blessing would fall upon them.
Out of everyone present, only A'han felt a mixture of joy and sorrow.
He was glad that Lan Yi could attain the Dao and become an immortal, yet he also dreaded it. He already felt unworthy of her, and if she became an immortal, he would be even more out of her reach.
After pondering for a long while, Lan Yi did not agree immediately. Instead, she asked the youth, “Lord Biyi, if I follow you to cultivate the Dao, may I bring my husband and daughter along?”
“Of course not. Cultivators must sever all mortal ties. Otherwise, they cannot cultivate the Dao.”
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