Qing Lin

A string of vicious curses reached their ears, the words as sharp as knives, filled with undisguised disgust.

Little Doctor and Su Zhao frowned at the same time and looked toward the source of the noise.

Up ahead on the street, the crowd had automatically parted around a conspicuously empty stretch, as though avoiding the plague.

In the open space, a timid little girl walked quickly with her head lowered, clutching a small packet of medicine tightly to her chest. She looked as though she had just picked up medicine from an apothecary.

She was small and thin, dressed in faded old clothes that had been washed until they were nearly white. Her dusty face was smudged with dirt, her pale green hair was somewhat messy, and her eyes were filled with fear and unease.

She only kept her head down and hurried forward without watching where she was going, slamming straight into the leg of a burly man ahead of her. Her tiny body bounced backward at once.

"Ow!"

The little girl fell onto the ground, and the medicine packet rolled away, spilling its contents everywhere.

The burly man she had bumped into looked down and immediately flew into a rage. "You damned Snake-People bastard! You dare run into me? You're asking for a beating!"

His thick arm swung high, his palm lashing toward the little girl's face.

However, before that hand could fall, another hand suddenly seized his wrist.

That hand possessed tremendous strength, clamping down on his wrist like iron pincers and leaving him unable to muster any strength at all.

At some point, Su Zhao had already appeared before the burly man. His face was cold, his gaze faintly chilling. "If you have the guts, take your anger out on the Snake-People outside the city. What kind of ability is it to vent it on a little girl?"

The man grimaced in pain. He tried to pull free but could not, and roared in humiliation and fury, "You! Mind your own business!"

Su Zhao snorted coldly and casually flung his arm. The burly man flew away like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily to the ground two or three meters away and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Ow—"

The burly man clutched his aching back and waist as he grimaced and climbed to his feet. He wanted to fly into a rage again, but the moment he met Su Zhao's icy eyes and felt the pressure emanating from him, he forcibly swallowed the harsh words that had reached his lips.

He had spent many years getting by in Desert City and knew exactly who he could provoke and who he could not. The young man before him was clearly someone he could not afford to offend.

He could only stagger away in a panicked scramble, not daring to look back.

Su Zhao swept his gaze over the bystanders who had been surrounding the girl and hurling insults. When those men and women met his eyes, they scattered like startled birds, terrified that this young man would casually send them flying as well.

In moments, the once-noisy corner of the street was left with only Su Zhao, Little Doctor, and the little girl sitting on the ground.

"Heh, a bunch of cowards who bully the weak and fear the strong."

These people hated the Snake-People Tribe deeply, yet lacked the ability to seek out the Snake-People outside the city. So they vented all their resentment on a little girl. They were nothing but cowards!

Little Doctor had already crouched down and gently helped the little girl to her feet.

The girl appeared to be around ten years old and was painfully thin. Her hair was an unusual pale green, and her pupils carried a hint of strange turquoise.

Little Doctor gently brushed the dust from her clothes, her voice soft. "Little one, are you all right?"

The little girl raised her grimy face and looked at the gentle face before her. A flicker of panic crossed those turquoise eyes as she timidly said, "M-Miss..."

When she noticed that Little Doctor was holding her hand, she was startled and hurriedly tried to pull away. "Miss, Qing Lin is dirty..."

Hearing her timidly call her "Miss," then seeing that she was actually afraid of dirtying someone else's hand, Little Doctor's heart immediately ached.

How much mistreatment must she have suffered to feel unworthy even of being touched?

Heart aching for her, she reached out and gently wiped the dirt from Qing Lin's face with her sleeve. "It's all right. But you took quite a fall just now. Does it still hurt?"

Feeling a tenderness and concern she had never known before, Qing Lin's eyes reddened slightly. Yet she still shook her head. "Qing Lin is fine. Thank you, Miss..."

Little Doctor covered her mouth and smiled softly, her tone warm. "Why call me Miss? If you don't mind, call me Sister instead. Where do you live? Sister will take you home."

Qing Lin froze for a moment, clearly unused to being treated with such kindness.

She opened her mouth, intending to refuse, but when she saw Little Doctor's gentle eyes, she swallowed the words that had reached her lips.

Then she seemed to remember something and hurriedly said, "Ah! It's all right, Sister. Qing Lin can go by herself..."

She bent down to gather the medicinal herbs scattered across the ground, carefully placing them back into the packet. Then she stood and bowed to Su Zhao and Little Doctor.

"Big Brother, and Sister, Qing Lin has to go home first. Mother is still waiting for the medicine at home. Thank you, Sister. Thank you, Brother."

With that, she hugged the medicine packet to herself, lowered her head, and hurried away. Her small figure darted through the crowd before quickly turning into a narrow alley.

Little Doctor straightened up, her gaze following that small retreating figure, her eyes full of pity. "Such a pitiful little girl... Su Zhao, we..."

Though she did not finish, Su Zhao already understood what she meant.

Little Doctor was kind by nature and could not bear to see such a weak child suffer injustice. Moreover, Qing Lin's timid yet sensible manner was enough to soften anyone's heart.

Su Zhao smiled. "Then let's follow her and take a look."

"Okay."

That was exactly what Little Doctor wanted. The two of them quickly followed after her.

Though Qing Lin ran quickly, she was still only a ten-year-old girl. She had not gone far before Su Zhao and Little Doctor caught up to her.

Little Doctor crouched down and swept Qing Lin into her arms, speaking brightly. "Little Qing Lin, how about it? Would you like to invite Sister to sit at your home?"

Qing Lin was a little flustered at being held and quickly struggled twice. "Ah? Sister, my home is a little..."

"It's all right. Just show us the way."

Little Doctor smiled.

"Sister happens to be a physician, you know. I can take a look at your mother. And this big brother is an alchemist."

Qing Lin abruptly raised her head. Surprise first flashed through her turquoise eyes, followed by a surge of joy. "Really?"

She was still young. Her mother was seriously ill, and they could not afford a doctor, so she could only go to the apothecary herself and buy the cheapest herbs to barely keep her mother going.

Now that this beautiful older sister said she was a physician, and that the big brother who looked so formidable was actually an alchemist, excitement filled her young heart. Alchemists were lofty figures to her, people she would normally never even get the chance to see.

If they were willing to treat Mother, did that mean Mother could be saved?

"Mm, it's true."

Su Zhao smiled faintly, ruffled Qing Lin's loose hair, and softened his voice.

"Show us the way."

Qing Lin nodded vigorously. The timid distance in her eyes finally melted away by more than half, revealing a trace of the innocence and joy she should have had at her age.

She raised her hand and pointed toward the end of the narrow alley ahead. "Over there. My home is over there..."