A Heart-to-Heart Talk Between Mother and Daughter

Outside the well.

Nan Shuishui, who had just given Nan Qiuqiu a good scolding after Qin Yue went down, was in a fine mood. As she admired the flowers she had painstakingly tended in the garden, she hummed an unknown tune under her breath.

With flushed cheeks, Nan Qiuqiu pouted. Yet she did not dare bare her teeth at her mother and could only quietly stare at the White Mist Dragon still standing tall in the well water. She wondered what secret lay beneath the water that could make the handsome Qin Yue travel all the way to the Earth Dragon Sect.

About half an hour later, Nan Qiuqiu grew worried. Turning toward Nan Shuishui, who was still tending the flowers beside her, she asked, "Mom, why don't you go down and take a look? Didn't you say you could only hold out for a few seconds? It's been so long already. What if something happened?"

Nan Shuishui sneered at her daughter, whose concern was clearly not really for the well. "What, getting anxious? Qin Yue going down is dangerous, but me going down isn't? You want your mother to risk herself just because he's handsome? He doesn't even know your name, and you're already fantasizing."

"Mom! What are you talking about?" Nan Qiuqiu's face instantly reddened, but she did not dare meet her mother's gaze. Turning back to stare at the spring water, she stammered, "I'm just... I'm just worried it might affect the Earth Dragon Sect. You always talk nonsense."

Nan Shuishui still looked disdainful. She knew her daughter well. Nan Qiuqiu was merely putting up a stubborn front after having her feelings exposed.

Then again, what young girl did not dream of love? Suddenly meeting a man her age like Qin Yue—handsome, capable, and backed by extraordinary forces—it was perfectly normal for Nan Qiuqiu to be dazzled for a moment.

Nan Shuishui's eyes shifted. She stopped looking at her flowers and turned toward the well as well, suddenly saying, "If you truly like him, then give it a try. I won't stop you. Whether it ends well or badly, you'll bear the consequences yourself."

"Huh?" Nan Qiuqiu froze, clearly not understanding what her own mother meant.

"What do you mean, huh?" Nan Shuishui rolled her pretty eyes. "Your soul was hooked away in no time. It would be fine if you forgot him after a few days, but it would be troublesome if you buried him in your heart and could never let go."

"Your mother is a woman too. I know women are emotional, especially a little thing like you whom I see every day. If I bluntly told you not to get close to Qin Yue, I'm afraid you'd keep brooding over it. You might not resent your mother, but there would inevitably be a knot in your heart."

"Qin Yue is already so outstanding at his age. So long as he does not die young, he will surely become a dragon among men. Even if you remain in Dragon City and he is in Forest Spirit City, you'll still hear bits and pieces about him. If you still haven't forgotten him by then, you might naturally dump the blame on your mother."

"I wouldn't..." Nan Qiuqiu lowered her head and kept refuting her mother's guesses, though she sounded rather lacking in confidence.

Nan Shuishui did not mind. To keep her daughter from failing in pursuit later and turning love into hatred, she immediately poured cold water on her hopes. "And don't think too highly of yourself. Do you really think all you need to do is walk up and greet Qin Yue? In Dragon City, you can be considered fairly pretty. You have a bit of your mother's charm when she was young. But what about Shrek City?"

"At Qin Yue's age, he is very likely a student of Shrek Academy. Shrek Academy only selects talented Soul Masters to nurture. Unless their Martial Souls are unusual, female Soul Masters are never ugly. Can you be sure you're the prettiest female Soul Master Qin Yue has ever seen?"

"Forget those far away. Isn't there one right here in Dragon City? City Lord Ling's eldest daughter, Ling Luochen, called the 'Princess of Snow' because of her imperial collateral bloodline. Do you think you can compare to her?"

Nan Qiuqiu fell silent. She wanted to argue, yet could not find the words. She had seen photographs of her mother when she was young, and she had also met the eldest daughter of the Ling Clan. Ling Luochen was indeed even prettier than she was. Even her mother, born and raised in Dragon City, could not compare. How much less could she compete with the female Soul Masters at Shrek Academy, who came from all corners of the world?

Seeing her daughter speechless, Nan Shuishui smiled smugly. This was exactly the effect she wanted. Qin Yue truly had exceptional qualities and was a peerless candidate for a son-in-law.

But that was precisely the problem—he was too good. In the future, he would certainly attract swarms of admirers. Her daughter was always so foolish; how could she possibly contend with those scheming vixens?

Rather than let her come home crying in the future to complain to her mother, it was better to make her give up on the idea now and settle the matter once and for all.

The area beside the well suddenly fell quiet. Nan Shuishui waited for her daughter to make a decision, while Nan Qiuqiu considered whether the process or the result was more important.

Just then, a loud bang suddenly sounded from inside the well. Immediately afterward, a figure flew out of the white mist and landed before the two women.

The heavy chill flashed away in an instant. Qin Yue then took out a small black box and placed the Scarlet King Broken Tooth back inside.

Nan Shuishui ignored her daughter, whose eyes were practically fixed on Qin Yue, and smiled calmly. "You finally came back up safely. Otherwise, I might not have been able to withstand the pressure any longer and would have acted."

Qin Yue thought the "pressure" referred to Qin Haichuan, so he did not pay much attention to it. Shaking his head, he smiled.

"The exploration went smoothly. The Ice Cave beneath this spring truly is a treasure land. I'm very satisfied with this harvest and will bring the Ascending Dragon Pill as soon as possible to complete the trade."

"However, the Ascending Dragon Pill is not easy to refine, so I hope Sect Master Nan will not be too impatient."

Qin Yue was not lying. He truly could not produce an Ascending Dragon Pill anytime soon, because the Qin Clan had no stock left, and the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect had not yet gathered the materials needed for the Dragon Extreme Pill.

Nan Shuishui had expected this long ago. Otherwise, she would not have said they would only begin relocating after seeing the Ascending Dragon Pill.

With a flick of his wrist, Qin Yue produced the smallest Ice Extreme Divine Crystal, one that had not formed an Ice Spirit.

"This is the special ore I found beneath the spring. It is called Ice Extreme Divine Crystal, one of the finest special ores in the world. I hope Sect Master Nan will take good care of it."

Nan Shuishui glanced at the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal in Qin Yue's hand and discovered that its surface was changing from icy blue to sky blue, while the light it emitted remained deep blue.

Under the sunlight, the entire Ice Extreme Divine Crystal was covered in an exceptionally dreamlike sheen. It was simply the most beautiful gemstone in the world.

"So beautiful," Nan Qiuqiu unconsciously sighed, staring blankly at the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal in Qin Yue's hand.

Qin Yue was speechless. He had not expected Nan Qiuqiu to react so strongly. After thinking for a moment, he simply placed the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal in her hand.

"There are many more Ice Extreme Divine Crystals below. Miss Nan can keep this one. Consider it a memento."

Nan Shuishui's heart skipped a beat. This is bad.

Sure enough, Nan Qiuqiu tightly gripped the Ice Extreme Divine Crystal. Her beautiful eyes fixed on Qin Yue as she smiled softly.

"Thank you. I'll keep it safe. I definitely won't lose it."

Qin Yue felt that Nan Qiuqiu's gaze was somewhat different from before, but he could not tell what was different. He could only smile and nod in response.