When Qin Yi arrived at Ye Ling's small house, he immediately saw her lying on the floor, her small body seemed to be smoking. In her little hand, she was holding a piece of wood that was already charred, making it hard to tell what it originally looked like. There was a big hole in the roof, with blackened edges, showing that the dark smoke had indeed come from Ye Ling.
Her clothes were full of holes, exposing her delicate, pale skin, which was also covered in ashes. Strangely, her wings seemed to have shrunk, looking like a child dressed up as a little demon, which was quite cute.
Qin Yi rushed over and saw a coat by the bed. He quickly grabbed it and wrapped it around Ye Ling, helping her sit up.
Seeing Qin Yi, Ye Ling whimpered, “It hurts so much…”
“What happened? Did you get struck by lightning?” he asked.
“I don’t know…” Ye Ling looked confused. “It felt like a fire was burning from my heart, and then it just exploded…”
Qin Yi felt speechless; asking this silly snake was probably useless. He would rather rely on Liu Su.
Sure enough, Liu Su said, “The Broken Nether Dark Star Formation draws demon fire to burn the body, sending the demon energy away. It’s very effective against those little monsters whose wild nature and killing intent are hard to suppress. This silly snake is doing okay, at least she didn’t die. If there are other little demons hiding in this Fire City, they’re probably all dead.”
Qin Yi understood now; this was likely why Ming He didn’t continue to bother him. Perhaps she saw that the wooden sword had lost its connection and judged that he, Qin Yi, had already colluded with the monsters, so she gave up on relying on his cooperation and decided to set up a big formation to wipe out all the monsters in the Fire City.
It was simple and straightforward.
He remembered Ming He’s calm and distant gaze, like the Milky Way hanging in the night sky.
Qin Yi sighed softly, looking at the charred wood in Ye Ling's hand. “So what is this? I thought you accidentally touched something that caused this.”
“This is just ordinary wood…” Ye Ling choked up a bit. “I was just carving a little monkey to give to you… I’ve been listening to your stories and using your medicine, but I had nothing to give you…”
Qin Yi was taken aback, staring silently at the charred wood.
He had felt a bit annoyed that she had messed things up, but now that feeling had completely vanished.
“Silly snake…”
“You're the silly one!” Ye Ling struggled to get up. “Have I been exposed? I need to run, thank you for everything these past few days…”
After saying that, she turned into a black light and dashed toward the hole in the roof.
The next moment, she awkwardly fell back down with a thud, landing on the floor and looking up at the sky with fear in her eyes.
Qin Yi also looked up through the hole, seeing Ming He quietly hovering above, looking down at them.
Qin Yi knew he couldn’t escape this trouble, so he called out, “Ming He, Daoist, why not come in and have a chat?”
Ming He slowly descended, her robe fluttering, and Qin Yi felt she truly looked like a celestial being coming down to the mortal realm.
For ordinary people, she really was a genuine cultivator.
Ye Ling, terrified, crawled around on the floor, hiding behind Qin Yi. He stepped aside a bit to shield her and looked directly at Ming He. “Daoist, someone like you should be carefree and enjoying the world, so why involve yourself in worldly power struggles and act as a thug?”
Ming He shook her head slightly. “Worldly power struggles have nothing to do with me. However, when demons kill, I cannot ignore it.”
Qin Yi replied, “To be honest, demons killing also doesn’t concern you. At your level, don’t you know that all beings are equal? From your perspective, is there a difference between a demon killing and a human killing?”
“There is,” Ming He said calmly. “What you say sounds reasonable, but thousands of years ago, there were people who held such views, and the result was that demons ran rampant, devouring people, turning the land into wasteland. This goes against the way of heaven. Even if you avoid the world and pretend not to see, the demons will eventually invade your spiritual mountain and your cave. This is what it means that those who are not of my kind will have different hearts.”
“…” Qin Yi found himself at a loss for words. He had thought that this Daoist was not pure in heart, but it turned out that she was thinking on a completely different level.
Ming He continued, “As cultivators, if we only seek longevity, we could simply close the mountain gate and selfishly refine our pills. But we learn the techniques of flying swords, the laws of thunder, and the formations of battle, what is the purpose? It is not for fighting but to subdue demons and protect the world. Only when demons do not dare to act recklessly can living beings thrive. You, sir, enjoy the fruits of this, yet you speak for the demons; that is truly foolish.”
As she spoke, her gaze fell on Ye Ling, who was nervously clutching Qin Yi’s sleeve, peeking at her.
“That’s all I have to say. Do you really want to protect this demon?”
Qin Yi could only say, “Can’t there be good demons? What if a harmless little rabbit accidentally becomes enlightened? Would you still say it’s not of your kind and must be killed immediately?”
“I am not unreasonable,” Ming He replied calmly. “But does this demon not harm people?” She continued, “Who killed the prince? You don’t need to argue about it. You might deceive others, but how can you deceive me?”
Qin Yi realized he couldn’t argue with her right now. After leaving the mountain, he had indeed seen many demons that ate people. She held a righteous heart to eliminate evil, and there was no fault in that. If he said that demons could be good or bad, Ye Ling had indeed attempted to assassinate the prince, which was outright murder in front of Ming He. How could he justify that?
If he had to say something, it would mean he was being fooled by a demon, and his views were all wrong.
But… if he said she was right and suggested killing this girl, how could he do that?
Looking at the charred wood on the floor, Qin Yi knew he couldn’t go through with it.
At that moment, Liu Su’s voice came through, “There’s a change in Ye Ling. I suspect her demon energy has faded, which is why Ming He is talking so much. Otherwise, under the influence of demon energy, she would have acted by now.”
Qin Yi’s heart stirred; this made things easier. Who wouldn’t play dirty? “Who said she is a demon? Daoist, you must have evidence when you speak.”
Ming He frowned.
Liu Su had hit the nail on the head. Since entering the house, Ming He had been sensing Ye Ling but found her demon energy was so faint that it was almost undetectable, completely different from the strong and fierce aura during the prince’s assassination.
Based on the previous energy signature, there should have been a snake demon in this house, likely a Teng snake.
Teng snakes are cunning, known for lies and killing; their demon energy is very different from that of plants and is easy to distinguish.
Looking carefully at Ye Ling, she was wrapped in a coat, her small face blackened from smoke, and her big eyes looked at her in fear, appearing quite pitiful. Not only was her demon energy very faint, but there was also no sense of killing intent.
She had sworn when she left the mountain to only kill demons and not harm humans. She would worry about making a mistake and breaking her vow. That’s why she had talked so much with Qin Yi; otherwise, she would have acted long ago.
“Though her demon energy is thin, it still exists. If she’s not a demon, then what is she?”
Qin Yi blurted out, “Her name is Zhou Dongdong, and she’s just a silly child.”
Ming He: “…”
Qin Yi knew Ming He wasn’t easily fooled; she was just cautious. So he pressed on, “Daoist, this matter is a bit complicated and not as black and white as you think. How about this? There must be a good show happening outside the mansion right now. Come with me to take a look. After we watch this performance, we can discuss things further?”
Ming He stared at him for a while and slowly said, “Do you know, sir, that my vow does not completely forbid harming others?”
Most likely, it meant if someone tried to deceive or harm you, you could kill them. Qin Yi shrugged, “If I’m not mistaken, Daoist, you came to this mortal world to seek the truth and to see the various aspects of life. In other words, you came to watch a show. If you get too caught up in slaying demons, it loses its meaning…”
Ming He was slightly moved by his words. She looked into Qin Yi’s eyes, which were clear and sincere.
Suddenly, she smiled slightly, “Watching a show… are you also?”
“Me?” Qin Yi was taken aback for a moment, then thought for a while and sighed, “I might have been at first, but now I’m already part of the show.”
(End of Chapter)