Lost and Distraught

In the bathroom, Qing Lin was clearly somewhat restrained. She usually lived and bathed alone, and Zi Yan's sudden presence made her feel awkward.

Qing Lin stood naked in the mist-filled bathroom. Even though she could not see, she could still sense an invasive gaze upon her.

"Zi... Sister Zi Yan, could you stop looking at me...?"

Though they were both still little kids, Zi Yan felt utterly indignant. "Why are you taller than me?!"

"Qing Lin, do you remember me?"

Zi Yan's sudden question left Qing Lin confused. She shook her head and asked doubtfully, "Have I met Sister Zi Yan before?"

What caught Qing Lin even more off guard was that Zi Yan suddenly hugged her.

"Come on, Big Sister will get you all nice and clean." Zi Yan, who loved mischief and pranks, was now truly taking care of Qing Lin like a considerate older sister.

"Hm? Is Sister Zi Yan crying?" Qing Lin sensed a sorrowful emotion.

"How could I be? That's just water..."

There were still bruised scars on Qing Lin's body, perhaps left behind from being beaten due to discrimination.

"Qing Lin, your sister here is a little dumb, so if you ever feel wronged or get bullied, you can tell me."

"Mm-hm, thank you, Sister Zi Yan." Little Qing Lin nodded her tiny head. How could she possibly be angry with Zi Yan? Compared to her former life of endless darkness, her current life was practically heaven. The more she felt its beauty, the more she cherished and appreciated the present.

Seeing that Qing Lin still had a black cloth covering her eyes, Zi Yan gently removed it.

"Sister Zi Yan, you can't. Mom said my eyes are inauspicious." The little girl seemed extremely insistent and refused to let Zi Yan take it off no matter what.

"Qing Lin, your eyes are actually very beautiful..."

"Very beautiful eyes..."

"Really?" Qing Lin had never seen the world, and this was the first time someone had said her eyes were beautiful.

"Of course it's true..."

By the time the two little girls came out, Xiao Fan had already instructed someone to prepare the meal. Zi Yan did not like eating rice, so she took the Sugar Pill Xiao Fan had given her and sprawled flat on the bed.

Zi Yan marked a location...

Xiao Fan had long grown accustomed to this, but things were different now. Qing Lin was right beside them, and he did not want Zi Yan to lead the little girl astray.

"Qing Lin, don't learn from Zi Yan. All she does every day is eat and sleep."

Little Qing Lin found herself in a difficult spot. She felt that Sister Zi Yan must have been exhausted after helping her bathe, so she definitely was not being lazy.

But she did not know how to defend Sister Zi Yan, so she could only stand there awkwardly.

Having changed into clean clothes, her delicate, fair little feet stepped across the smooth floor, still bearing faint red marks from standing there for quite some time. Though she remained somewhat thin, the blue silk dress lightly wrapped around the young girl's slender body.

Xiao Fan smacked his forehead. "Qing Lin probably still hasn't adjusted yet. Then again, she suddenly gained a brother and sister out of nowhere. She probably needs some time to get used to it."

"Qing Lin, why are you standing there? Come over and sit down to eat."

Qing Lin instinctively wanted to refuse, but Xiao Fan directly took her little hand and pulled her down to sit beside him.

The dazed Qing Lin accepted the bowl and chopsticks Xiao Fan handed her, taking tiny bites of rice. Even though it was only rice, Qing Lin found it exceptionally delicious.

Though she was clearly starving, she still ate small mouthfuls at a time, afraid that Xiao Fan would dislike her for her unsightly table manners.

How could Xiao Fan possibly dislike her? He only felt sorry for the little girl...

"Rice alone isn't enough. You're still growing."

Afraid Qing Lin would not be able to pick up the dishes, Xiao Fan proactively piled food into her bowl.

Xiao Fan also began eating, though the taste still could not compare to Xiao Yi Xian's cooking...

Xiao Yi Xian's cooking seemed to have become addictive to Xiao Fan...

At the table, Xiao Fan also asked about Qing Lin's condition. He needed to find out why her eyes had gone blind.

"Qing Lin, do your eyes usually feel uncomfortable or sting at all?"

Qing Lin thought carefully, then shook her head. "Brother, it seems my eyes have been unable to see since I was born..."

Qing Lin also desperately wished she could see, but she had not been fortunate since birth. As a child, she had often fallen ill, and those around her would suffer all kinds of calamities. That was why people called her inauspicious.

Xiao Fan thought carefully. Restoring her sight might not be difficult. Transplanting new eyes or cultivating to a certain level would allow one to perceive everything nearby without relying on their eyes.

But Xiao Fan felt Qing Lin's situation was anything but ordinary. "Could the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils have some unique awakening method I don't know about?"

"Qing Lin, how about I give you an examination later?" Xiao Fan wanted the little girl to see the world again.

"Brother, I was born this way..."

"Qing Lin, birth isn't important. I'm an orphan too. I never even met my parents and was raised by others."

"But now I'm already a fourth-tier Alchemist."

"An Alchemist!" Qing Lin had not expected her brother to have such an identity, much less that he was an orphan too.

"So, Qing Lin, the future is something you fight for yourself. You have to believe that Brother can cure your eyes and let you see the light."

"Mm."

Qing Lin had a new hope again. People always needed hope to keep going.

"How could this be?"

Xiao Fan frowned. Qing Lin's physical condition was even worse than he had imagined. Her meridians were completely severed, her blood and qi were in chaos, and her body was functioning through an extremely bizarre method. What puzzled Xiao Fan even more was that Qing Lin's soul was damaged. If he had not seen that she still had a heartbeat, he would have thought she was already dead.

To put it simply, a person should have seven souls and six spirits, but Qing Lin seemed to have been forcibly stripped of one soul and one spirit, as though heaven and earth themselves did not permit her existence.

Though Xiao Fan knew that offspring born from the Snake-People Tribe and humans were all fated to die young, that was different from Qing Lin's situation. No matter how poor one's constitution was, it could recover through external assistance. But damage to the soul was not something Xiao Fan could handle so easily.

Moreover, this loss of soul was not the usual kind caused by trauma or forcibly stripping it away. "It's more like a curse?"

There was no light at all in Qing Lin's gray, misty eyes. No matter how Xiao Fan investigated, there seemed to be some sort of restriction within those eyes that blocked his examination.

But it was not entirely bad news. At least it proved that Qing Lin was not blind. Her loss of sight was caused by the special circumstances of the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.

"Brother... how is Qing Lin's body...?"

Qing Lin was incomparably anxious. For someone who had only just gained hope, nothing was more frightening than seeing that hope shatter once again.

"Very moist... Cough, cough. Qing Lin, there's a small problem with your body, but it's nothing serious. Brother can cure it. And Brother promises you that I'll definitely let you regain your sight!"

Xiao Fan lied to Qing Lin. In truth, he did not have much confidence either. The Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils were already an extraordinary pair of eyes on the continent, and their possessors were exceedingly rare. To understand Qing Lin's condition, perhaps only...

"Heavenly Snake Mansion..."

"Perhaps the Nine Nether Earth Python clan has records as well..."