The hair ribbon had protected its owner and then resumed its original appearance, quietly resting on Yaohua's head.
Yaohua blinked. She had forgotten that her master had left this treasure for her. Then she looked at the black - cloaked man and was momentarily stunned.
The black - cloaked man covered his chest with difficulty and got up from the ground.
He hadn't expected that this little girl had such a magical treasure on her. This time, he had been careless again.
"Uncle, you're so good - looking. Why do you always do bad things?"
Xie Ling was stunned.
He seemed to see a young man sitting under a bodhi tree. The red bean bracelet on his wrist swayed slightly. The sunlight filtered through the dappled tree crown, falling unevenly on his face. The light and shadow flickered. Only someone hiding in the tree crown had hung a worm with a rope, slowly lowering it into his line of sight.
He had been concentrating on the scroll in his hand, but was spoiled by a worm. He had no choice but to roll up the scroll helplessly and turn to look at him.
"Xie Ling, you're so good - looking. Why do you always do bad things?"
At this point in the memory, Xie Ling felt a bit dazed. He looked at Yaohua, his lips moving.
"What did you say?"
Yaohua didn't hear his voice clearly and couldn't help taking a few steps closer.
Xie Ling suddenly let out a cold laugh. All his emotions vanished instantly. His blue - and - yellow heterochromatic pupils both turned as red as the setting sun. "What does it matter to you?"
It really had nothing to do with her.
Yaohua shrugged slightly. "You want to kill me, so it does matter to me."
She took a few wary steps back. "Uncle, you're injured. You can't do anything to me now. Why don't you let me go for the time being?"
The response to her was Xie Ling's long sword.
Yaohua let out a cry. This man had suddenly attacked. He was really unfair!
She closed her eyes and silently prayed, "Master, save me!"
The next moment, she fell into a cold embrace.
She opened her eyes in surprise and really saw the familiar side - profile of her master.
"Master!"
Chongming glanced at her and nodded, which was a response to her call.
At the same time, the sound of the long sword hitting the ground instantly drew Yaohua's attention back.
Yaohua, who had been amazed by Xie Ling's appearance before, had now calmed down.
"Master, it's him who abducted me. He wanted me to lead him to the potatoes and even wanted to kill me!"
Chongming suddenly frowned. "Potatoes?"
Yaohua almost bit her tongue. "Y - yes."
Only then did she realize that Chongming didn't know the origin of the potatoes. Before, it was because he disliked the two walking corpses for being dirty. But now the potatoes on the black - cloaked man hadn't been touched by the walking corpses. Her master would surely ask some questions.
Yaohua regretted it very much. She should have just said that the black - cloaked man wanted to kill her!
She saw Chongming's gaze fall on the black - cloaked man.
"Xie Ling."
He calmly called out the other man's name. "Have you ever thought about the cycle of cause and effect and the coming of retribution when you do such immoral things?"
Xie Ling was initially a bit confused that he had recognized his identity. Now hearing his words, he regarded him as just another hypocrite full of benevolence and morality.
"What does it matter to you?"
Yaohua looked at Chongming and then at Xie Ling, suspecting that her master knew something she didn't.
At this time, Chongming didn't explain it to her. He just stared at Xie Ling with his cold eyes that seemed almost devoid of any emotion.
"Life and death are predestined. If you can't understand and remain obsessed, even the grace of all the gods has nothing to do with you."
Yaohua didn't understand a single word of this riddle. For a moment, a look of confusion couldn't help but appear in her eyes.
But her master had always been unfathomable. Yaohua was already used to it.
Xie Ling's face changed several times and finally returned to a cold expression. "The grace of all the gods? What is that? If there really were gods, they would just be blind and deaf, useless things that can't see or hear!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Yaohua heard a rumbling thunder in the distance.
This was a warning from the heavens to those who insulted the gods.
If Xie Ling continued to blaspheme the gods, those thunderbolts might strike him.
Although Yaohua had never been struck by thunder, she had heard from the villagers that the heavenly thunder was merciless. If it was determined to strike someone, it wouldn't show any mercy. Even if the god Chongming intervened, he would be backlashed.
"Don't talk nonsense. The gods can't be like what you said!"
Yaohua quickly spoke up to stop him. Although she regretted that this good - looking man did bad things, she still couldn't bear to watch such a living person die in front of her.
"If the gods had eyes, why would the land of Shenzhou be like this?" Xie Ling sneered. "People exchange their children to eat. Good people become bandits and eat innocent people. What's the use of gods?"
"But the gods are already trying to maintain order." Yaohua argued. "Otherwise, there would be no mortals in Shenzhou long ago."
"Mortals?" Xie Ling scoffed. "Aren't mortals just the food of the three realms?"
After the great apocalypse, the survival of mortals had become extremely difficult. But none of the gods they usually worshipped had stepped forward to help them!
Thinking of his childhood sweetheart who had died a tragic death, being slaughtered right in front of his eyes, Xie Ling's heart ached as if being stabbed by a knife.
"You may not believe in the gods, but you shouldn't commit heinous crimes." Chongming's voice suddenly sounded, interrupting their conversation.
Although his face didn't seem to change much, Yaohua could see the pity in his eyes.
Her master didn't seem to want this man to die.
Was there some hidden secret in this matter?
Xie Ling suddenly got excited. "What are heinous crimes! Everything I've done is for Shenzhou!"
Yaohua was dumbfounded.
How could someone say such a shameless thing so justifiably?
Not to mention anything else, just the fact that he had tried to kill her had nothing to do with saving Shenzhou.
Would the world in Shenzhou be fed for a lifetime if she died?
Oh my god, surely no one would think like this?
"Quibbling!" she couldn't help but say. "It's clearly your own problem, but you shift all the blame to others. How could there be a person like you in the world?"
"A delicate young lady like you, living in luxury, naturally doesn't know what we've been through."
Xie Ling seemed to think of something and suddenly calmed down.
At this time, a puff of black mist suddenly flew out of his black robe and surrounded the two of them in an instant.
"I really hope you can come out alive." Xie Ling's face was distorted. "Come out alive and then become like me."
When they had tasted all the hardships he had endured, he wanted to see how they could refute him!
It was impossible, Yaohua denied in her heart. With her master here, he would never allow the black mist to harm them.
However, when she looked up, she saw Chongming standing calmly in place, allowing the black mist to surround them. When he saw her looking over, he even took her hand. "Don't worry."
Yaohua whispered, "Master, what are you going to do?"
Did the god sometimes have a whim and want to experience the perils of the mortal world?
This was too exciting!