Liu Erlong's expression seemed to sink into a state of extreme conflict, a trace of agitation slowly appearing on her face.
But even like this, she remained silent, not saying a word.
This left Mo Li, seated across from her, terribly anxious. He pressed her with a few more questions, only for Liu Erlong's eyes to grow even redder.
Her black eyes, usually so cold and stern, now seemed to shimmer with tears, as though she had suffered some tremendous injustice.
Mo Li sat there helplessly, but instead of hearing Liu Erlong speak, he watched her abruptly rise to her feet.
His gaze followed her as she stood, full of confusion. But Liu Erlong wouldn't meet his eyes. She hurriedly tossed out, "I'm going to the academy. You should focus on your cultivation," then fled as if running for her life.
Before he could fully collect himself, Liu Erlong had already vanished into the woods.
By the time he came to his senses, Mo Li wore an expression caught between laughter and tears. He had no idea what Liu Erlong was making such a fuss about.
If she didn't want him getting involved, he could simply stay out of it. Why act as though he had done something terrible to her?
At the thought, Mo Li felt a little stifled. From Liu Erlong and Yu Luomian's conversation, he had managed to glean some useful information.
From the way they had spoken at first, it seemed Liu Erlong had spent some time in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and that period had been far from pleasant. She must have suffered plenty of indignities.
Mo Li furrowed his brow and quietly committed the matter to memory.
The two of them had truly lost control of their emotions when Yu Luomian mentioned Liu Erlong's mother.
Mo Li had a rough idea of the reason. With Yu Luomian's timid, second-son temperament, he had dared to do what he did but hadn't dared to take responsibility. He had been unwilling to bring the mother and daughter back into the clan, keeping them elsewhere in secret.
Later, he had taken the initiative to acknowledge them and brought Liu Erlong back to the clan. Though Mo Li didn't know what status she had held there, he could imagine that what had happened between her and Yu Xiaogang had left her surrounded by gossip and slander.
Yu Luomian had made that point clear as well.
The greatest disagreement between them was that Sister Erlong's mother had never received the status she deserved. Perhaps clan rules had stood in the way, and perhaps Yu Luomian and Liu Erlong simply hadn't been strong enough to stand above the rest. In the end, the clan leader had suppressed the matter.
At the Mountain Gathering, Yu Luomian had mentioned that Liu Erlong had parted from the clan on bad terms. There had to be plenty of hidden details, but with so little to go on, Mo Li couldn't guess what had happened at that gathering.
What had happened afterward was clearer. It was probably around the time she had found him. From the age of three, he had lived at Blue Tyrant Academy, right up until today.
It was strange, too. By his reckoning, Sister Erlong ought to have hated the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan deeply. So why had she named the academy Blue Tyrant Academy?
Wasn't that just asking to make herself miserable?
Mo Li rubbed his chin and pondered with a frown for a while, but couldn't come up with any reasonable explanation. In the end, he let the matter rest. Perhaps only Sister Erlong herself knew the answer.
After estimating the time, Mo Li waved his hand, clearing the tabletop. He put all the tea things and cups into the bracelet on his left wrist.
Then he went to the grassy spot where he usually spent his time and began cultivating.
He quietly circulated the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Art. A faint halo of Soul Power appeared over his body, and he seemed to slip into some wondrous state.
Mo Li wasn't surprised by this state. Ever since absorbing his second Soul Ring, he had noticed this change in his body whenever he circulated the art.
After studying it, he had discovered that the halo could slowly absorb the Soul Power drifting nearby and draw it into his meridians.
The strange phenomenon had delighted him for only a short while. He soon realized that although he could use the Soul Power absorbed into his body, it wouldn't stay there, nor could it increase his Soul Power cultivation.
It was like a loan of Soul Power: after a while, it would drain away just as it had come.
Mo Li had clearly studied it quite thoroughly. Although this Soul Power lasted only a short time, he could still use it to unleash his own Soul Skills.
But at this rate of absorption, even if he sat there absorbing it all day, he could barely muster enough to release his first Soul Skill. What was more, the Soul Power he drew in kept dissipating the entire time.
Its practical value took another sharp hit. Mo Li could only console himself that even a mosquito's leg was still meat. Before long, he stopped paying much attention to it.
The day passed as Mo Li lost himself in cultivation.
After dinner, Mo Li walked back alone.
From behind the classroom building, he followed a blue-stone path shaded by the primeval forest. After crossing a stretch of woods, he could see a clear lake to his right and two wooden houses to his left, along with a garden enclosed by a nearby fence.
It was still early. The pale golden glow of the setting sun spilled through the trees, gilding the mist like gauze. The scene was dreamlike and dazzling.
Mo Li walked by himself along the winding blue-stone path. He had walked this road countless times, and everything was as usual.
Then, as he walked, Mo Li suddenly stopped. He shifted his left shoulder, tipped backward toward his right, and reached behind himself with his left hand without even looking.
A faint Black Flame flickered in his palm.
The next moment, a crisp voice sounded behind his head, and Mo Li immediately dropped all his prepared attacks.
"Hm?"
At the same time, a sweet fragrance wafted over. Liu Erlong appeared on Mo Li's left, looking somewhat surprised.
"Sister Erlong, are you trying to scare me to death?" Mo Li complained, though there was not the slightest trace of resentment in his voice.
"Heh. Aren't you even unafraid of Titled Douluo? How could a Soul Saint like me scare you?" Liu Erlong teased.
"That's different." Mo Li smiled too. Seeing that Liu Erlong seemed to have recovered her usual mood, he couldn't help feeling relieved.
"How is it different?" Liu Erlong asked curiously.
Mo Li only smiled, making Liu Erlong furrow her brows and glare at him for a long while. When it became clear he still had no intention of answering, she gave a soft snort and quickened her pace through the forest.
Just as Mo Li opened his own door to go inside, Liu Erlong poked her head out of her room and called, "Come to my room."
"Oh." Mo Li lowered the hand he had been about to use to push open his door and turned into Liu Erlong's room.
After entering, Mo Li sat down at the table. Looking at Liu Erlong's brows, knitted almost into a knot, he couldn't help wondering what was on her mind.
"Today, you..." Liu Erlong began.
"Sister Erlong..." Mo Li spoke at the same time.
The two exchanged an awkward glance. Why did they always seem to share some strange unspoken understanding whenever they tried to talk?
"Go ahead, Sister Erlong. I'm listening." Mo Li didn't dwell on it. He was more curious about what she wanted to say.
Liu Erlong glanced at Mo Li, then turned to look at the bright oil lamp. A moment later, she said in a tired voice, "You must be wondering why I treated my father that way."
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious. I still want to know what happened to you, Sister Erlong. That way, when I fight my way back to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, I'll have a good reason for it," Mo Li said.
"Fight your way back where?" Liu Erlong turned toward him with an annoyed look and glared at him.
"Of course, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Don't you hate them, Sister Erlong?"
A faint flicker passed through Liu Erlong's eyes. Their light, like the flame burning in a lamp's wick, wavered between bright and dim. She slowly replied, "I don't hate the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and I don't want you to hold a grudge against them because of me."