Clouds Stir

Seeking the Dao in the Mortal World

Li Qingjun stood rooted to the spot, holding the jade pendant, her heart filled with confusion.

Qin Yi's complaint about her being brainless was actually unfair. In essence, Li Qingjun was by no means dumber than Qin Yi. As the only princess of Nanli, she had always been the center of attention, like stars surrounding the moon. No matter what foolish things she did, her father doted on her, and her brother indulged her. Since childhood, there had been no situations that required her to think carefully, so she had become accustomed to being reckless.

The moment she held the jade pendant, a sense of foreboding flooded her heart. Li Qingjun suddenly realized that the issue she was facing was not simply about whom she would marry, something that could be solved by throwing a tantrum. Instead, it was an unprecedented upheaval in Nanli, one that could determine the kingdom's survival.

Whatever her brother had discussed secretly with Qin Yi last night, after sending her away, must have been something very difficult for her to accept.

It was a pity that for some reason, her brother hadn't told her about this whole matter, not even Qin Yi had. This left her completely ignorant of the beginning and end of the situation, utterly confused, and wanting to help but not knowing what to do.

Right... there's one person who definitely knows!

Li Qingjun suddenly turned around and ran towards Ye Ling's small courtyard.

Ye Ling was sleeping on the ground, covered with a small blanket. The medicinal pill Qin Yi had given her yesterday was for internal injuries in humans, which wasn't quite the right treatment for her condition, but it still had some therapeutic effect. The feeling of her injuries recovering and being nourished made her very sleepy. By now, she had slept for about five or six hours and was still completely unconscious.

With a loud "bang," the door was pushed open. Ye Ling woke up with a start. Li Qingjun clearly saw her wings suddenly spread out on her back, and the fierce look on her small face was almost enough to devour someone.

The next moment, seeing that it was Li Qingjun, her wings immediately drooped, and her small face became very awkward. "Pr... Princess..."

"Ye Ling is super fierce..." Li Qingjun slowly walked in.

"Haha... just a little morning grumpiness..." Ye Ling slowly retreated.

"So your wings can move... I used to think they were a cloak."

Ye Ling retreated to the corner. Li Qingjun stopped a few feet in front of her, not pressing her too hard, just watching her quietly.

Ye Ling lowered her head and mumbled, "I'm a demon, Princess."

"No wonder, such a small guard like you actually has a private courtyard and was assigned to protect Qin Yi—although you haven't fulfilled your protective duties at all." Li Qingjun wasn't surprised. She said in a low voice, "The demonic energy that surged through the residence yesterday was because of you, wasn't it? That's why brother and Qin Yi even came here to talk. So... you must know very well what brother and Qin Yi were doing, right?"

"I really don't know what they were doing. Yesterday, Qin Yi didn't agree to His Highness's proposal, so His Highness left by himself..."

"What proposal?"

Ye Ling squatted down and covered her head with her wings. "I didn't hear clearly..."

Li Qingjun looked at her black feathers, then looked up at the hole in the roof. The charred edges of the hole were still clearly visible. She looked for a long, long time, then slowly said, "Black, demon. The one who killed my elder brother was you."

Ye Ling jumped up and ran towards the backyard.

"No need to run." Li Qingjun said calmly, "Since it was you, then you are just a knife in my second brother's hand."

Ye Ling stopped in her tracks.

"No wonder Qin Yi kept it from me. He didn't want me to know these things either." Li Qingjun smiled self-deprecatingly. "It's my own fault for not using my brain. Actually, there were many signs that I should have seen myself."

Ye Ling cautiously watched her expression, but found that she was truly calm.

Li Qingjun spread out her hand. In her palm was Li Qinglin's jade pendant. Her expression became even more complex.

This was something Li Qinglin used to save his life, yet he gave it to her. Judging from the Corpse Worm Demon's reaction when it touched the jade pendant back then, this was a genuine treasure, worth a fortune, perhaps even something that the entire Nanli Kingdom couldn't be exchanged for.

"You are the biggest flaw in my second brother's plan. Why didn't he kill you?" Li Qingjun suddenly asked.

Ye Ling hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.

Actually, the reason Li Qinglin gave for protecting her back then, something about her contact with Minghe, now sounded a bit unconvincing.

The most reliable explanation seemed to be that Li Qinglin had genuinely felt compassion and was protecting her, not hesitating to leave a huge flaw for this.

Li Qingjun looked at the jade pendant and pondered, "Whatever they discussed secretly last night, since Qin Yi didn't agree, I don't want to know anymore. I just want to know, what is my second brother doing now?"

Ye Ling pouted her small mouth. She had originally thought she knew more than Li Qingjun and didn't want to answer, but now she realized that she might not necessarily know more than Li Qingjun, because she didn't know the answer to this question either...

Li Qingjun's heart suddenly skipped a beat. "Oh no! Qin Yi went into the palace alone, he's in danger!"

After saying that, she picked up her spear and was about to go out, no longer wanting to delve into the matter.

A black light flashed, and Ye Ling blocked her path. The small face that had been acting cute finally became incredibly serious. "If you go out now, you'll truly be alone."

Ye Ling's speed made Li Qingjun narrow her eyes. She didn't blame her for blocking her, but just said, "Then you come with me. Aren't you Qin Yi's guard?"

Ye Ling said seriously, "I can go, you can't. Whether it's His Highness or Qin Yi, your safety is their top priority right now. The place you should go is Qin Yi's backyard. Just stand by that Wooden Sword Array and don't go anywhere. In that place, besides Minghe, no one else can touch you."

Li Qingjun glared at her. "I've practiced martial arts my whole life, not to be like a delicate young lady embroidering in her boudoir, timidly waiting to be protected."

Ye Ling pursed her lips. "Unfortunately, in this situation, your martial arts are no different from embroidery."

She raised her head and looked at the sky through the hole in the roof. There were white clouds drifting leisurely, changing shape as they were blown by the strong wind.

"Princess, if I wanted to kill you, it would probably only take one move," she said softly. "But in Dong Huazi's hands, I don't know how many demons there are like me."

Qin Yi was scrambling through the crowd, causing chaos and commotion along the way. In a trance, he felt like he was in a Jackie Chan movie.

There was nothing he could do. Although the fight just now seemed impressive, the other side still had more people. If they caught up to him, he would definitely be finished. There were even ambushes on the way back to the Crown Prince Residence, making it difficult for him to return.

The ambush was actually very meticulously planned, even accounting for the possibility of him escaping, aiming to achieve their goal in one fell swoop.

But the other side had calculated everything except for the fact that he actually recognized one of the people, leading to a complete collapse of their plan.

A Wolf Tooth Club roared past, bringing with it the sound of a tiger's roar. A burly man in front of him was smashed in the waist, his body folded in half. Qin Yi stepped over his corpse without stopping, heading not towards the Crown Prince Residence, but towards the Princess Residence.

He didn't know that Li Qingjun hadn't returned to the residence. In the current situation, he felt that if Li Qingjun was in the Princess Residence, she would definitely be in danger, and he had to meet up with her.

It was easy to understand why Dong Huazi and Mang Zhan wanted to ambush him. They still hoped to finalize the marriage between Li Qingjun and Mang Zhan before the king died. As long as Qin Yi died, even if the king was angry, he wouldn't have any other options.

But there was another way to handle this matter, which was the "drug her" method that everyone knew about.

If Mang Zhan really got Li Qingjun first, then the matter would be settled. Although Nanli was a remote small country, it had known etiquette for many years. Seeing Li Qingjun's shy appearance when she was in love with Qin Yi, one could tell that she cared very much about her purity. Once she was in that situation, she would either commit suicide or accept her fate; there would be no third option.

So, since someone had ambushed Qin Yi, would someone go to the Princess Residence to seize her?

Perhaps they were originally afraid of Li Qingjun's famous fierce temperament, and she would likely commit suicide, which was a last resort that couldn't be used. But since the ambush on Qin Yi failed, that last resort would probably have to be used out of necessity.

Because the king really didn't have many days left to live, they had to get things done during this period and couldn't afford to delay.

Understanding this, Qin Yi became more anxious, but his mind became increasingly calm.

There was a commotion ahead, and another group of people came to intercept him. Someone said with a surprised "咦," "This Qin Yi, why does he look a little familiar?"

Another person with a deadly grudge.

Qin Yi's heart was like still water. With a "whoosh," he accelerated and darted into a side alley.