The Maple Tree, which had been empty just a moment ago, now held Ling Yao, standing tall as though he had always belonged there. His long tail hung beneath the branches. Though it was a solid red, it seemed to shimmer with endless shades and brilliant colors.
Xiao Xiao slowly walked toward the Maple Tree.
He stopped very sensibly three paces away.
Xiao Xiao looked up at Ling Yao, but for a moment, he was at a loss for words.
Only now did he realize that although he'd been eager to meet Ling Yao, in the end, it was simply his curiosity about a talking monster that had driven him.
So what was he supposed to say now?
Xiao Xiao froze. Was he really supposed to say, "Hello, nice to meet you. My name is Xiao Xiao"?
Just thinking about it made him cringe.
Heh. He'd never imagined that one day, his future self would be agonizing over how to get along with a monster.
This grove of Maple Trees wasn't deserted. Every so often, visitors passed by Xiao Xiao, alone or in groups of three or five.
Their cheerful chatter sounded close by, yet somehow as distant as the horizon.
Those passing by glanced casually at the young man standing alone beneath the Maple Tree.
Even though it was a little strange to see him staring up at the tree in a daze, they only thought, You don't often see young people who like Maple Trees this much.
Knowing what others thought allowed Xiao Xiao to stare at Ling Yao openly and without restraint.
He stood there, lost in thought.
Trying to figure out how to start a friendly, warm conversation with a monster.
Perhaps Ling Yao had finally had enough of Xiao Xiao's foolish behavior. With a hint of condescension, he spoke. "Human, you came looking for me. What is it you want?"
Xiao Xiao had been thrilled to hear Ling Yao speak, but in an instant, he was completely dumbfounded.
"Idiot." Ling Yao looked at him with disdain.
Huh? Xiao Xiao came back to his senses. As his mind began working again, he recalled his first conversation with a monster. Back then, the other one had spoken in plain language.
So was this monster messing with him?
Xiao Xiao couldn't help laughing wryly.
But his nervousness and awkwardness eased.
"Humans are as foolish as ever," Ling Yao said lazily. If he hadn't gone so long without meeting a human who could see him, he wouldn't have bothered with this one.
Xiao Xiao had no response to that.
"Hello, my name is Xiao Xiao."
Yes, after thinking it over and agonizing about it for a long time, the foolish human Xiao Xiao had still decided to start with an introduction.
But Ling Yao merely swished his beautiful tail. A magnificent glimmer flashed before Xiao Xiao's eyes, and Ling Yao didn't say a word in response.
His disdain couldn't have been clearer.
Ugh. Xiao Xiao felt as if he'd taken a direct hit.
But Ling Yao hadn't vanished. He hadn't disappeared before Xiao Xiao's eyes again.
So that meant they could still talk, right?
Just as Xiao Xiao was racking his brains for something to say, his head suddenly felt heavy. He stumbled, nearly falling over.
The moment he saw the familiar tail feathers in front of him, Xiao Xiao instantly realized what was on his head.
Xiao Xiao's brows twitched. "Hmm?" He suddenly found himself at a loss for words. What should he call this monster? The voice sounded like that of an adult man, so... "...Monster, uh, Mr. Ling Yao, you..."
Xiao Xiao had barely started when Ling Yao cut him off.
"You know I'm Ling Yao?" Ling Yao, who usually seemed to look down on everyone, had flown back to a branch of the Maple Tree. His dark eyes were murky and inscrutable, and for the first time, his emotions were plain to see: some surprise, some suspicion, and some wariness.
This human could see him. Even though people like that had become increasingly rare in modern times, they did still exist. But for him to identify Ling Yao at a glance was highly unusual.
As mentioned earlier, as the ages changed, fewer and fewer humans could see monsters.
In the past, although they were uncommon, Ling Yao still encountered one or two from time to time.
But now, he hadn't met one in nearly a century.
That was why he'd been so amused by this human.
Why he'd appeared before him again and again.
Otherwise, how could such a clumsy human possibly have found him?
But now, it seemed this human might not be as simple as he looked.
Not just anyone could know Ling Yao's identity.
Had Ling Yao misjudged him?
Ling Yao carefully sensed Xiao Xiao's aura. There was still not a trace of spiritual power. He was just an utterly ordinary human.
For once, the centuries-old monster felt confused.
Xiao Xiao, of course, had no idea what was going through Ling Yao's mind.
But he understood the sudden change in the monster's gaze.
He just didn't know how to explain himself.
The Monster Compendium wasn't something he could reveal.
He had a feeling it might become his greatest source of support.
So even as sweat ran down his face beneath Ling Yao's intensely pressuring stare, Xiao Xiao could only hold his ground.
He wore an innocent, bewildered expression.
"I read about it in a book."
"Because I suddenly became able to see monsters, I've spent a lot of time lately reading books about them."
"So..."
Xiao Xiao shrugged. "I guess reading really does help."
Ling Yao naturally wasn't going to believe Xiao Xiao's explanation so easily. But he wasn't some inexperienced little monster, either, and he wasn't about to press him for an answer.
As a Great Yao with a sense of propriety, Ling Yao respected other people's privacy.
He only needed to know that the human before him wasn't as simple as he appeared.
So in response to Xiao Xiao's explanation, Ling Yao merely gave a soft snort and said nothing more.
Xiao Xiao, meanwhile, was being rather scatterbrained. His first reaction was to marvel that a monster could pull off the difficult expression of giving a soft snort. Only afterward did he realize that Ling Yao was letting the matter drop, and he breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Maybe he was overthinking it. But even with people, it was wise to be on one's guard. How much more so with monsters?
It wasn't a matter of prejudice against another species. It was just that the old saying had some truth to it: Those who are not of our kind must have different hearts.
Better safe than sorry.
The atmosphere suddenly relaxed.
Monsters had always respected the strong. Now that Ling Yao knew Xiao Xiao wasn't simple, he stopped putting on airs. He still didn't treat Xiao Xiao as an equal, but he no longer acted indifferent toward him.
Talking with a monster was a novel experience.
A monster who'd lived for centuries possessed a breadth of knowledge beyond what most humans could imagine.
And when Ling Yao learned that Xiao Xiao had only recently become able to see monsters, he offered him a few pointers, giving him a rough understanding of them.
In Xiao Xiao's eyes, though Ling Yao's nature as a monster made him unpredictable and dangerous, his beautiful appearance made it easy to lower one's guard around him. What was more, though Ling Yao didn't say much, he had told Xiao Xiao a great deal that he hadn't known before. He might have learned those things eventually, but it would have taken a lot of time and effort. So Xiao Xiao was grateful for Ling Yao's generous advice.
Whatever Ling Yao's reasons for telling him all this, Xiao Xiao would remember the kindness.
The only disappointing thing was that Ling Yao couldn't give him a clear answer about why he had suddenly become able to see monsters. He only told him to let things take their course, and that everything would become clear in time.
Xiao Xiao wasn't particularly concerned about the answer to that question. After all, whatever the cause, the result was that he could see monsters.
That was what mattered most.
Rather than agonize over how he'd started seeing monsters, shouldn't he spend more time thinking about what to do now that his life had begun to drift away from its normal course?
That was what he most needed to consider right now.
Before you continue