Lovebird Feather

Qin Yi scrambled to his feet, forcing a smile as if nothing had happened, "Then... shall I, the Cauldron, take the Young Master to the guest room?"

His shamelessness alone is at least unparalleled. Meng Qingying looked at him with a half-smile for a while, seemingly unable to do anything about him. "Let's go."

Both of them knew perfectly well that discussing matters concerning the underworld was the real business.

Qin Yi accurately grasped the core of the matter. Both Yu Shang and Meng Qingying could only fall for his diversion, giving him the opportunity to defeat them one by one... As for Minghe, she was still confused.

At this moment, Minghe sat blankly in the guest room, her chin resting on the table, staring at the Green Lamp on the table with cross-eyed eyes, not knowing what she was thinking.

It was just a religious ceremony... how did it turn out like this...?

Disrupting the wedding was wrong, arguing afterwards was wrong, staying after the argument was wrong—if you think about it rationally, you shouldn't have done anything, but somehow you ended up doing everything...

Minghe felt like she was possessed. Could it be that the Winged Human Race's Temple had some kind of Evil Method that could corrupt people's minds?

On the day she emerged from seclusion, she felt that she had completely forgotten Qin Yi and that if she saw him again, she would surely greet him with a friendly hello.

Daoist cultivation of nature can greatly influence a person's emotions; the deeper the cultivation, the less ripples one feels. Many Daoists in the Shining Sun Realm have become as numb as stones, Minghe was almost the same... If it were anyone else in front of her, they would definitely feel that Minghe was too distant to be touched, as if even her heart was not in the mortal world, farther away than when Qin Yi first met her, a distance that could be measured in light-years.

Minghe also thought so...

Qin Yi is Minghe's obsession and Love Tribulation, a fact that Minghe herself has long since acknowledged, and she is facing and overcoming it. The key to breaking through the Huiyang realm is to forget this tribulation; if one can truly sever emotional ties with a sword, that is the path to Qianyuan.

Leaving aside Qian Yuan, on the day of Hui Yang, she felt that it had nothing to do with Qin Yi anymore... at least she couldn't think of him in her daily life.

Master's promise to meet again in the Realm of Radiant Sun was insidious. Once they reached the Shining Sun Realm, she would seem indifferent, while Qin Yi would feel a distance between them. They might not even be able to exchange a word, and their feelings would naturally fizzle out. Minghe knew that's what her master was thinking at the time, but Minghe also felt that her master underestimated Qin Yi. If Qin Yi felt it was too distant, he might unleash a powerful move, making it unlikely to end so easily...

He pursues himself because he's been stimulated by that distant dream, wanting to reach for the stars... No matter how far away you are, he will definitely stride forward to chase after you.

Therefore, it's far from useful; it must be cut off. The root of the problem lies within oneself. As long as one is completely uninterested, Qin Yi can only leave in disappointment.

Now that Master has met Qin Yi, he probably understands him to some extent and feels that simply letting time fade things away is probably not very useful, so he has decided to change his strategy.

To be suddenly confronted with his wedding, the intense impact of the flickering candlelight was almost suffocating.

So he withdrew, battered and bruised.

That's how it ended.

The effect was a bit too intense. Master probably never expected that he would actually rebel and cause trouble at the wedding... As a result, things got out of control, and they even stayed behind to argue afterwards... Was it because that winged person was too infuriating, with all sorts of Witch Daoist Nun trying to squeeze in!

Am I here to squeeze in?

This is terrible. When he comes, how am I supposed to talk to him? I really didn't mean anything by it, but I acted like this. He'll definitely think I still have feelings for him. How am I supposed to break it off?

It was really a misunderstanding! The wedding disturbance stemmed from a rebellious attitude towards the master's drastic actions, not from trying to steal the man!

She wouldn't steal a man even before! Let alone now?

How could it have turned out like this...?

Minghe slumped weakly on the table, puffing out her cheeks.

Just as I was thinking this, I heard two knocks on the door.

Minghe immediately sat up straight, closed her eyes slightly, and assumed the most formal cross-legged position, saying calmly, "Please come in."

Qin Yi brought in a plate of fruit and said with a smile, "The Feathered People prefer vegetarian food, which suits your taste perfectly..."

Minghe rolled her eyes inwardly. I have no appetite at all, so how could I have any taste? She hummed in response, coldly ignoring him.

Qin Yi placed the fruit plate on the table, plopped down opposite her, and rested his chin on his hand as he looked at her.

Minghe remained unmoved.

Qin Yi stared at her face for a long time.

This tactic used to be quite effective against Minghe. Minghe would quickly become overwhelmed and angrily ask, "What are you looking at?"... and that would break the deadlock.

It seems this time it didn't work. Minghe sat there quietly, her eyes still slightly closed, as if the person in front of her was air.

The Milky Way in the sky will not respond to the gaze of the world; it is meaningless no matter how you look at it.

If Qin Yi had encountered her acting like this before the wedding, he might have actually suspected that she was completely unintentional... But after this incident, and with this kind of behavior, Qin Yi could only conclude that she was angry and giving him the cold shoulder!

After much deliberation, he finally said, "I don't know if what I'm saying sounds particularly scummy... but to be honest, Yu Shang and I don't have much of a relationship, so it's a bit unexpected that things have come to this."

Minghe frowned slightly. These words did make her uncomfortable. They had nothing to do with her; instead, she felt indignant on Yu Shang's behalf. "Qin Yi, you've gone too far!"

What a kind-hearted Little Daoist Nun, she ruined her magic for someone else...

Qin Yi sighed inwardly, but still said seriously, "That is indeed the truth. I said the same thing to Yu Shang, and Yu Shang herself knows that we have only just begun. Even the wedding was just a scheme to lure Gu Shuanglin into making a move. Originally, it could have been canceled... at least it didn't need to be held in Xun Wood City."

Minghe said with a hint of sarcasm, "So, Fellow Daoist Qin is just using this as a temporary measure, and he's not actually going to marry Yu Shang?"

"Even though it's just the beginning, it's still the beginning. Once it's started, you won't miss out."

Minghe's eyes widened. "Since when have you become so shameless?"

"From the moment I met you."

Minghe was speechless.

Then it turned out that Qin Yi was right...

It seems that Qin Yi really started to become a jerk after she... Before that, he seemed quite innocent.

After a long moment of stunned silence, Minghe finally snapped out of her daze and angrily retorted, "So you're saying that I'm the one who harmed you?"

"No," Qin Yi said seriously, "I've always been the one hindering your cultivation. I know it's wrong, and I've tried to give up several times, but I just can't bear to."

Minghe's expression gradually softened; she knew Qin Yi was speaking from the heart.

Their previous meeting in the underworld was quite obvious. Qin Yi himself was conflicted; he didn't want to harm her, yet he couldn't bear to let her go. Minghe felt the same way; she wanted to pursue the Dao, but she also had feelings for him. Thus, their connection remained entangled, forever ambiguous.

Now that Huiyang has been reinstated and has not violated his master's prohibition, we can lay everything out and discuss what should be done.

Qin Yi said, "It is said that we can discuss this matter after Huiyang, but I know there is nothing to discuss. You are a monk, and it is impossible for you to let go of these shackles, and I cannot force you. So it is just a cycle that never ends, and there will never be an answer."

Minghe shook her head. "This is not a shackle, but a difference in our paths. You say I am bound by shackles, but I say you are the one in shackles. You walk the path of worldly affairs, while I seek Quiet Serenity world. Our views are different, that's all."

Qin Yi pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "If that's the case, would you be willing to try something?"

"What?"

Qin Yi took out the pair of feathers from the lovebird. "These are lovebird feathers. If we use magic, they can be tied with a red string; if we don't use magic, each of us can hold one and see our own hearts clearly, casting off worldly shackles. We'll know whose shackles we are in the future."

Minghe smiled slightly, "Since you covet me, why don't you use your magic on me?"

Qin Yi shook his head. "I would never do that."

Minghe picked up the red feather, a symbol of femininity, and weighed it in her hand. She repeated, "I'm quite certain it's meaningless, Qin Yi. Our problem isn't worldly constraints; it's that we walk different paths and pursue different goals. If you don't force me, I'll continue my cultivation. One day, we'll sever all ties."

Qin Yi insisted, "Let's give it a try."

"... Then let's give it a try."