Lin Xiaoxiao offered Zhang Yu a few more words of gentle comfort, but Zhang Yu remained silent with his eyes closed, as if he were asleep, completely unmoved.
Although she still had some worries, she knew that Unfulfilled Desire.
Everyone has their own destiny, and all she can do is offer her best wishes.
Lin Xiaoxiao sighed softly and said no more.
She turned to the young beggar, Xiao Luo, who had been standing guard to the side, and said softly:
"Xiao Luo, I think this old man... probably has a knot in his heart that he can't untie in a while."
If you have any free time, please keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't... really do something rash.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Luo immediately puffed out his thin chest and nodded vigorously, as if he had received some sacred mission:
"Don't worry, Miss Lin!"
I... I will definitely keep a close eye on him and prevent him from doing anything foolish.
After giving her explanation, Lin Xiaoxiao glanced at the hunched figure huddled in the corner and shook her head slightly.
Then she picked up the empty bucket, turned around, and walked away lightly along the way she had come.
Xiao Luo watched Lin Xiaoxiao's figure disappear around the street corner until she was completely out of sight. He stood on tiptoe and craned his neck to look for a while before reluctantly turning his gaze away.
He kept his promise and found a relatively clean place to sit down near Zhang Yu, but his gaze kept drifting towards the direction Lin Xiaoxiao had left.
"You like Miss Lin?"
A hoarse, dry voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, suddenly rang out, interrupting Xiao Luo's reverie.
Xiao Luo shuddered, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
He turned his head sharply to look at the source of the sound, which was the old beggar.
No, no!
What nonsense are you spouting!
Xiao Luo's face instantly turned bright red, like a boiled shrimp, and he waved his hands repeatedly in denial.
But his tone was hurried, his eyes darted around, and his flustered and embarrassed appearance practically screamed "I'm protesting too much."
Zhang Yu found it quite amusing to watch the little beggar's naive and vehement denials, which only made things worse.
For the past three thousand years, he Incarnation as a beggar, traveled far and wide, witnessed all aspects of human life, and his heart has long since become as still as an ancient well.
The sight of this young boy experiencing his first stirrings of love and his anxieties reminded him of some vivid emotions from his own, almost forgotten, past, days when he was just Mortal.
He suddenly became interested and decided to tease the little guy, and also... settle the score for today's "charity"?
Zhang Yu adjusted his lying position to make himself more comfortable.
Then, in a tone that was both languid and strangely alluring, he slowly said:
Young people should dare to love and hate.
If you like something, just say you like it. Why hide it?
Miss Lin is pretty and kind-hearted. It's only natural that you like her. What's wrong with telling others?
Xiao Luo blushed at Zhang Yu's blunt words, stammering and unable to speak, only lowering his head and unconsciously grinding the dust on the ground with his toes.
Seeing this, Zhang Yu maintained his tone and continued:
If you really like her, then go for it!
Whether it succeeds or fails, you'll only know by trying.
It's better than silently grieving here and only adding to your troubles.
These words seemed to touch upon Xiao Luo's deepest, most secret feelings.
He remained silent for a long while before raising his head. The embarrassment from before was gone from his face, replaced by a gloom and self-mockery that seemed out of place for his age.
He murmured softly, as if talking to himself:
What am I supposed to use to pursue him?
She is the second young lady of Azure Cloud Tower. Although the Lin Family is not a wealthy or powerful family, they are still a prominent family in No Delusion City. They have no worries about food and clothing and are served by servants.
And what about me?
He tugged at his tattered clothes and said with a wry smile:
"I'm just a little beggar begging on the street."
How could I possibly be worthy of liking her?
It's nothing but... wishful thinking.
The boy's words were filled with the helplessness of reality and a deep sense of inferiority.
Zhang Yu listened quietly, a knowing glint flashing in the depths of his cloudy old eyes.
He slowly closed his eyes, as if about to fall asleep again, but uttered a sentence in a flat, almost cold tone:
"However, it's no use if you like her."
Miss Lin has a face that suggests an early death; there is a dark aura gathering between her eyebrows, a sign that she is destined to die young.
In my opinion, she... won't live past eighteen.
"What?"
As if struck by lightning, Xiao Luo abruptly raised his head and stared intently at Zhang Yu.
His face was drained of color, and his lips trembled.
"What nonsense are you spouting!"
How could you... how could you Curse Miss Lin like that? She... she was such a good person...
His first reaction was that the old beggar was talking nonsense, or even a vicious Curse.
But looking at Zhang Yu's calm and indifferent expression, a strange chill suddenly shot from the soles of my feet to the top of my head.
This old beggar... though strange, his words were so certain that they carried an eerie chill.
Zhang Yu kept his eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to Xiao Luo's pale face and turbulent emotions, and continued unhurriedly:
"If you really like her, then considering your 'good intentions' today, I, the old man, could have shown you the right path."
Perhaps... it might save her life.
He paused, seemingly waiting for Xiao Luo to process what he had said.
However, Zhang Yu changed the subject, sighing in a tone that was both regretful and seemingly indifferent:
"It's a pity you don't even have the courage to admit you like her."
Since that's the case, then forget it.
After saying that, he actually turned over, his back to Xiao Luo, and said nothing more.
Xiao Luo stood frozen in place, like a clay puppet.
Zhang Yu's words struck him like a heavy hammer.
"Short-lived appearance," "won't live past eighteen," "can save her life"... these words echoed wildly in his mind, weaving together into a chaotic storm.
Does he believe it?
Should he believe it?
Can you trust the words of an old beggar of unknown origin, with strange behavior and seemingly insane personality?
But what if it's true?
Miss Lin... such a kind and beautiful Miss Lin, would she really... die young?
Xiao Luo was torn between his Celestial Person conflict and his belief.
Just as Xiao Luo was in a state of utter confusion and inner turmoil, Zhang Yu's hoarse voice rang out again:
"If you believe me, go to the dilapidated temple ten miles south of the city at midnight tonight."
There was a Drunken Daoist in the temple who could save Miss Lin from her calamity.
If you don't believe me, just pretend I didn't say anything.
He spoke succinctly, and then fell silent, as if he were merely providing an address rather than discussing a matter of life and death.
How do I know if you're lying to me?
Xiao Luo blurted it out almost subconsciously, his voice shrill with excitement and doubt.
The sudden "guidance" jolted him awake, deepening his doubts.
This sounds... way too much like the tactics of some con artists!
At a specified time and place, find a shill (the Drunken Daoist)?
He stared intently at Zhang Yu's back, trying to discern any flaws or even a hint of guilt from that hunched figure.
However, all that answered him was the empty shadow in the corner and the slightly cool evening breeze blowing across the street corner.
Xiao Luo was stunned. He blinked, and the old beggar in tattered clothes who had been lying with his back to him just moments before had vanished!
Without a sound of footsteps, without getting up, without even a movement of air, it simply vanished into thin air.
It was as if what he had just seen and heard was all an illusion.
"N-it's gone?"
Xiao Luo suddenly stood up, his heart pounding, and he hurriedly looked around.
The streets remained unchanged, pedestrians hurried by, and the afterglow of the setting sun cast long shadows from the eaves.
The other beggars squatted or sat, silently eating their meager remaining food in their respective corners.
The old beggar who had spent the afternoon sunbathing in the corner had vanished without a trace.
A chill ran down Xiao Luo's spine.
This is something no ordinary person could do!
Could it be... that I've really encountered the legendary... Immortal?
Or... a monster?
The moment this thought arose, it immediately intertwined with the old beggar's assertion that Miss Lin "wouldn't live past eighteen," causing Xiao Luo's face to turn deathly pale.
"If he really is Immortal... then Miss Lin..."
Xiao Luo dared not think any further; a tremendous sense of panic gripped his heart.
No!
Absolutely not!
The boy's clenched fists turned white from the force, and his body trembled slightly, but his eyes, after the initial fear and hesitation, were quickly replaced by an unprecedented determination.
At this moment, Zhang Yu was no longer in No Delusion City.
In that instant when Xiao Luo was filled with excitement, he had already used a small Illusion Technique and the Divine Ability of Shrinking Land to Inch to quietly leave the corner.
In the blink of an eye, they found themselves on a desolate path dozens of miles No Delusion City.
He wasn't annoyed by Xiao Luo's criticism, nor was he afraid of anything.
Having reached his level of enlightenment, the joys and sorrows, life and death, fortune and misfortune of Mortal are no longer able to move his heart.
He simply found it troublesome and didn't want to get too entangled in the karma of these two Mortal young people he had just met.
Pointing out Lin Xiaoxiao's fate and revealing the solution was already an act of kindness, done out of consideration for that spoonful of leftover porridge and the boy's sincerity, thus ending this karmic connection of being "given alms" and "enlightened."
Whether they believe it or not, whether they go or not, and whether they succeed or not, that is their own destiny and choice.
The karmic consequences of worldly affairs are troublesome; the less trouble one has, the better.
He originally planned to continue his journey and find another place to continue begging.
However, he stopped as soon as he took a step.
Two figures appeared silently in the middle of the path ahead.
Zhang Yu was startled at first upon sensing the familiar presence of the two, then a helpless wry smile appeared on his face. He shook his head and sighed:
What's meant to happen will happen eventually.
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the two people opposite him, his tone laced with a hint of teasing yet also a subtle seriousness, and slowly said:
"Second... Number Three Vessel?"
"I wonder what brings you here today to block my way?"