Judging by My Years of Experience

With a soft sigh, Ning Yurong stepped forward, grabbed Xue Mingqing's wrist, and led him toward the carriage behind them.

Feeling the grip of Ning Yurong's slender hand, Xue Mingqing's body instinctively stiffened, and he followed her with a sense of awkward constraint.

He had never been particularly good at interacting with girls.

"Don't be nervous, I don't bite."

Sensing his tension, Ning Yurong said with a playful tone.

Seemingly realizing his own embarrassment, Xue Mingqing coughed awkwardly, though he did manage to relax his mood and followed Ning Yurong into the carriage.

Seeing this scene, the six men led by Wang Chao, standing twenty meters away, blinked in confusion, completely unable to guess what Ning Yurong was thinking.

Among them, Ma Han, who sported a thick beard, stroked his chin as if he had realized something.

Beside him, noticing his behavior, Wang Chao raised an eyebrow and nudged Ma Han with his shoulder.

"Looking at you... what did you figure out?"

Stroking his beard, Ma Han pondered for a moment.

"Judging by my years of experience..."

He paused, whetting everyone's appetite, before blurting out.

"This little girl is likely going to become our young mistress..."

Inside the carriage, Xue Mingqing and Ning Yurong stood facing each other. He rubbed his nose, feigning composure.

"So... ahem, Sister Yurong, what did you want to say?"

Since Ning Yurong called him "little brother," it was only natural for Xue Mingqing to address her as "sister."

Hearing how he addressed her, the light in Ning Yurong's eyes softened even further.

"I called you here because I wanted to return this to you..."

As she spoke, her delicate hand swept across the soul storage device at her waist and produced an item.

Looking down, Xue Mingqing's pupils suddenly constricted!

Lying in Ning Yurong's hand was, quite clearly, a spirit bone!

Judging by its appearance, it was a right-arm bone of a significant age!

"This... what does it have to do with me?"

He looked up in confusion, finally understanding why Ning Yurong had sent Wang Chao and the others away.

Since ancient times, it has been said that wealth moves men's hearts; for a spirit master, a spirit bone is a treasure far more precious than any other riches.

If Ning Yurong had brought this out in front of everyone, heaven knows what might have happened!

Seeing Xue Mingqing's expression of shock and suspicion, Ning Yurong smiled slightly. She stepped forward, took his hand, and placed the spirit bone into his palm.

"Take it. This dropped when you instantly killed the Four-Eyed Demon Fox. You were unconscious at the time, so I kept it safe for you, fearing something might happen to it."

Hearing this, Xue Mingqing looked deeply at Ning Yurong, his estimation of her character rising another notch.

The allure of a spirit bone to a spirit master is fatal, and that was no exception for Xue Mingqing.

Even he had felt an impulse to claim it for himself the moment he saw it.

Yet, this Ning Yurong...

Thinking of this, Xue Mingqing couldn't help but smile. He casually stored the spirit bone into his own storage device and patted Ning Yurong on the shoulder.

"Thank you, you're a good person."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Ning Yurong's pretty face stiffened slightly, and she gave Xue Mingqing a look of helpless resignation.

She said nothing more.

For a time, the carriage fell into a somewhat subtle and quiet atmosphere...

When one is focused on a task, time passes quickly.

For Xue Mingqing and his group, who were focused on their journey, the addition of Ning Yurong to the team did not disrupt their progress. Instead, it gave the mercenaries a topic to tease Xue Mingqing about during meal times.

As for what they teased him about...

It was always the kind of topics that would make both Ning Yurong and Xue Mingqing blush a deep red.

Several days of travel passed quickly, seemingly validating the words Xue Mingqing had once spoken—

A gambler won't lose every day, a child won't cry every day, and he certainly wasn't Conan.

Setting off once more, they truly did not encounter any further special circumstances.

The road was completely smooth and unobstructed, to the point that when they finally came to a stop again...

They had already come to a halt before a magnificent, bustling, and prosperous city.

This was Nine Treasures City, a city established by the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect located near Sky Soul City.

Standing before the gates of Nine Treasures City, a trace of reluctance unexpectedly surfaced upon Ning Yurong's usually calm and composed, peerless face.

She gazed at Xue Mingqing and his group, though her eyes lingered only upon Xue Mingqing himself.

She spoke once more, "Little Brother Mingqing, are you truly not going to come in for a seat? It would at least allow me to fulfill my duties as a host."

Seeing this, Wang Chao and his group very tactfully kept their distance, leaving the space to Xue Mingqing and Ning Yurong.

While they might joke and tease during their travels, they knew when to read the room.

It was clear that Ning Yurong only had words for Xue Mingqing; to crowd them now would be a breach of etiquette.

Hearing Ning Yurong's words, Xue Mingqing, who sat cross-legged on the carriage seat with a gentle smile, merely shook his head.

"No, Sister Yurong. We still have to hurry to Shrek; it is inconvenient for us to stay too long."

Upon hearing this, Ning Yurong's crimson eyes dimmed slightly.

She looked at the youth's perpetually gentle and elegant appearance, her jade fingers curling tightly beneath her flowing sleeves.

Yet, on her face, she maintained that same calm, composed, and generous demeanor, nodding gently.

"I... understand."

Taking in Ning Yurong's reaction, Xue Mingqing's eyes could not help but lower slightly.

To be honest, now that the moment of parting had truly arrived, he also felt a sense of reluctance.

In truth, he could not even distinguish what his feelings for Ning Yurong were at this moment.

At the beginning, his reason for saving Ning Yurong was merely for the potential reward money.

But after truly saving her and spending so many days in her company, he had long since ceased to covet that reward.

Because he had already come to regard Ning Yurong as a friend, or perhaps...

A feeling that transcended friendship?

However, even if Xue Mingqing had truly fallen for Ning Yurong, he would not find it strange.

After all, she possessed outstanding beauty, a superb figure, and a generous personality that carried an otherworldly, ethereal coldness.

Even if he had truly fallen for her, he would not find it odd.

But then again, who would know?

He was only six years old now, and she was only nine; they had plenty of time in the future, and to discuss such things now would be far too premature.

Furthermore.

Xue Mingqing truly could not distinguish his feelings right now, so he decided.

He did not want to dwell on it or sort it out; he would simply leave everything to time. Time would provide the answer.

With a soft chuckle, a slightly mischievous smile tugged at the corners of Xue Mingqing's mouth as he waved at Ning Yurong.

"Alright, don't be too sad, little lady. We shall meet again somewhere under the heavens; if fate allows, we will surely see each other again."

"Wang Chao, let's go."

"You got it, Young Master."

Responding with a shout, Wang Chao hurried forward and nodded at Ning Yurong as a gesture of farewell.

Following that, he hopped onto the carriage, and with the help and escort of the mercenaries, slowly, ever so slowly.

He drove the carriage, carrying Xue Mingqing away from the gates of Nine Treasures City, continuing toward the center of the continent.

And what of Ning Yurong?

She merely stared blankly at the departing figures of Xue Mingqing's group, paying no mind to the "little lady" he had called her.

In her eyes, there was only an indescribable sense of loneliness.

"We shall meet again somewhere under the heavens..."

Murmuring softly, Ning Yurong watched as Xue Mingqing's group gradually disappeared at the end of the road, a slight curve forming at the corners of her pink lips.

"I will not wait for fate, because..."

"I will catch up to your footsteps..."

Speaking to herself, Ning Yurong turned around, her expression returning to that calm, composed, and unflappable state as she prepared to step into Nine Treasures City.

However, the moment she lifted her foot.

A frivolous and playful child's voice rang out.

"Oh my, who is it that has our little princess so preoccupied...?"