Their gazes met. Though Gu Fang knew no mind-reading techniques, he could still see traces of confusion in Xiao Yi Xian's eyes.
Flecks of fear, along with other emotions.
And while Gu Fang was looking at Xiao Yi Xian, Xiao Yi Xian was looking at Gu Fang as well!
Xiao Yi Xian had thought she would see disgust in Gu Fang's eyes, hatred, a look that wished she were dead.
Yet none of that was there. Not even the most common desire.
There was only that indifferent—or rather, calm—gaze.
How long had it been since she had seen such a gaze, one that regarded her as an ordinary person?
Not some so-called savior, not the healer trusted by everyone, nor the poison body hated by all. Just an ordinary person, as ordinary as a green leaf in the woods.
In what felt like an eternity, Xiao Yi Xian finally spoke.
"You know who I am. Aren't you afraid of me?"
Xiao Yi Xian asked softly, her voice seeming to seep from her throat, so low that one would not hear it without paying close attention.
One could imagine...
Just how much she had struggled within herself before asking that question.
After asking, Xiao Yi Xian lowered her head. But then she stubbornly raised it again and met Gu Fang's eyes.
She waited silently, like a criminal about to be judged, awaiting Gu Fang's final verdict.
"Of course I know. You merely have the Calamity Poison Body!"
Gu Fang said, "I'm an alchemist, and I have Heavenly Flames. I'm not afraid of poison, so why should I be afraid of that?
Most importantly...
You were born with this constitution; it isn't something you wanted. I'm not afraid of poison, so surely fear and disgust are what require a reason, aren't they?"