Since the spiritual contract mark rarely flared up, Yaohua had almost forgotten about it. Hearing this, she couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.
Seeing her like this, Chongming thought she had feelings for Zhaowu and no longer wanted to dissolve the contract mark with him. His heart couldn't help but feel a bit of inexplicable disappointment.
But he still summoned up his spirits and said, "If you don't want to dissolve it, it's actually okay."
"Ah?" Yaohua was slightly startled. "What do you mean, Master?"
Chongming said indifferently, "Although Zhaowu is a demon, he has now broken with the demon clan. After he recovers from his injury, he will be very powerful and can be your helper. Moreover, he is extremely kind to you. It wouldn't be a bad choice for you to be with him."
At first, Yaohua was a bit happy when she heard about removing the contract mark. But the more she listened, the more something seemed wrong. When she finally understood what Chongming meant, she immediately retorted, "How could I be with him?"
Chongming paused for a moment and turned his head away. "You don't have to worry about me obstructing you. I'm not a pedantic person."
"Do you think he and I are a good match, Master?" Yaohua felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her heart when she heard him say this, and her tone became a bit unhappy.
Chongming didn't say a word. He just gave her a cold look.
"Zhaowu is indeed very kind to me," she said, biting her lips.
Chongming thought to himself that it was indeed so. But he didn't want to hear what she would say next. He just said, "If you need any help, I will try my best to assist you."
"If I really liked him, would you just watch me marry him, Master?" Yaohua couldn't help but question.
Chongming countered, "You're my disciple. When you get married, shouldn't I be there as a witness?"
Yaohua looked at him in disbelief. She had thought that she was special in her master's heart. But now it seemed that he still only regarded her as a little disciple.
A bitter feeling welled up in her heart. She wanted to question him but didn't know where to start. They were just master and disciple. From beginning to end, he had never taken the initiative to involve himself in any amorous affairs. He always behaved in a proper and polite manner.
It was she who had used her cute little girl act to be coquettish and had taken advantage of her status as his disciple. But she had expected a response.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but show a self - mocking smile. "It should be so. You're absolutely right, Master."
Chongming frowned slightly. "I've agreed to your marriage, but you don't seem happy?"
Yaohua let out a long breath, as if trying to expel all the pent - up frustration in her chest. "I've only been pretending to get along with him these days to save Big Brother. There's no real affection between us. Naturally, this contract mark should still be removed."
Chongming was a bit surprised, but his mood unexpectedly improved.
Seeing this, a glimmer of hope rose in Yaohua's heart. She asked cautiously, "Do you also not want me to marry him, Master?"
Chongming nodded. Before she could be happy, he said, "Your status is not a good match for his. If you get married, there will probably be both opportunities and dangers."
"So it's because of this..." Yaohua murmured softly and couldn't smile at all.
Seeing her ugly expression, Chongming said silently, "If you really don't want to remove the contract mark, it's okay."
"I really want to remove it. I just hope that in the future, you won't randomly pair me up with irrelevant people," Yaohua emphasized the word "Master" heavily.
Chongming frowned. "Why are you being so sarcastic today?"
"Really?" She was angry in her heart and her attitude was cold. "Isn't this the normal attitude of a disciple towards her master? Do you think I'm not respectful enough?"
"... That's not necessary. We've been master and disciple for many years. There's no need to deliberately maintain formalities." Chongming didn't know what was wrong.
At this moment, Qingcang, who was nearby, heard the commotion and strode over. "What's going on?"
Seeing Yaohua looking angry, he couldn't help but be a bit curious.
Chongming was also a bit puzzled. "Maybe she's in a bad mood today. I've found a way to dissolve the contract mark and was going to let her try it."
Qingcang's eyes lit up. He originally wanted to say that it was a good thing, but seeing his precious daughter's expression, the words on his lips changed abruptly. "It must be that your tone was too harsh just now, which made Yaohua angry."
Chongming showed a confused look.
He thought what he had said was quite normal.
But Qingcang was used to protecting Yaohua. He directly asked, "May I ask what the method to dissolve the contract mark is? Has it been tested on others? Are there any side effects?"
"This..." Chongming was stumped. "This is a method from an ancient book. I just learned it and haven't tested it on anyone else."
"You just learned it and came to show off. No wonder my precious daughter doesn't want to use it." Qingcang found an excuse to mock him and said very sarcastically, "If the god has nothing else to do, please go back. Otherwise, the countless beautiful fairies in the immortal realm will be anxious to find you. If they know you're delaying here, they'll probably take all their anger out on my poor daughter."
Chongming was momentarily speechless. Seeing that Qingcang disliked him so much, he didn't want to make a fool of himself anymore. He said, "Then I'll go back first. Please take care, Clan Chief."
After saying that, he looked at Yaohua again. "There's still some injury in your body that hasn't fully healed. Don't cause any trouble these days. Just rest and recover."
After Qingcang politely sent him away, he turned around to comfort Yaohua. "My precious daughter, what's wrong? Who made you angry? Was it that bad demon?"
Yaohua lowered her head and said nothing. After his repeated coaxing, she reluctantly said, "Master insisted on pairing me up with the demon. He didn't care at all whether I liked him or not. He even said that we were a good match and that I didn't need to dissolve the contract mark..."
"What?!" Qingcang was furious. "How could he be so confused?"
If he had known that Chongming was so excessive, Qingcang would definitely not just have mocked him a few times. He would have pulled him over for a good fight and asked him why he wanted to harm his daughter.
Yaohua sighed and asked sadly, "Dad, did I really do something wrong?"
"How could you be wrong?" Qingcang immediately said, "Demons are dirty, ugly, and heartless. How could they be worthy of you?"
Yaohua was in a bad mood. "I'm not talking about this... Before, in order to save Big Brother, I pretended to get along with the demon. Does this make Master think that I'm a frivolous girl?"
"Nonsense. You're the kindest and purest. Using a little trick to save your brother is a smart way to protect yourself. How could that be considered frivolous?" Qingcang comforted her.
With her father's encouragement and affirmation, Yaohua finally regained some confidence. "Then... why did Master suddenly say such things?"
"He has bad judgment," Qingcang said without hesitation.
When he met Yaohua's skeptical gaze, he slowly said, "Maybe it's because you've really reached the age for marriage?"
Saying this, Qingcang stroked the stubble on his chin. He secretly thought that if his daughter got married, she might not be so rebellious and worry - causing.