Green Lotus Core Flame, Came Out on Its Own?

On the way back, Qin Yu walked ahead, while Xiao Yi Xian followed behind, carrying Qing Lin.

Although she said she was holding him, Xiao Yi Xian hardly used any effort. Qing Lin was so light that she could hardly feel any weight in her arms.

Qing Lin's arms were tightly wrapped around Xiao Yi Xian's neck, her head buried in the crook of Xiao Yi Xian's neck, but her body was trembling incessantly.

The people on the street didn't change much because of Qin Yu's earlier intimidating aura.

They dared not approach to cause trouble again, but their gazes remained undiminished—indifferent, disgusted, gloating—as if they were looking at a pile of garbage that shouldn't be there.

Xiao Yi Xian pulled Qing Lin closer to her, letting her head rest on her shoulder to shield her from those gazes.

"It's fine."

As Xiao Yi Xian spoke softly, a feeling that was hard to describe—whether it was anger or heartache—simmered in her heart, choking her and making her feel uncomfortable.

The Snake-People Tribe abducted human women, harming both adults and children.

A ten-year-old girl, who knows nothing, has to bear the infamy of all the Snake People and is forced to accept their hatred.

She gritted her teeth and quickened her pace.

Qing Lin's home is in the most remote corner of Stone Desert City, only half an alley away from the city wall.

It was called a home, but it was really just a small house pieced together with mud bricks. The walls were cracked in several places, and the door was hanging crookedly on the frame, unable to be closed properly and unable to keep out the wind and sand.

Xiao Yi Xian put Qing Lin down, and the little girl timidly pushed open the door, calling out softly:

"Mother, I'm back."

There were no lights on inside; only a few rays of sunlight seeping through the cracks in the walls barely illuminated a small patch of the floor.

The room was small, with a low bed made of adobe bricks taking up most of it. The bed was covered with a thin layer of dry grass, and there was no mattress on top of the grass.

A woman was curled up on top, her lips cracked and white, her eyes closed, and her breathing so faint it was almost inaudible.

"Mother?"

Qing Lin called out again, but the person on the bed did not respond.

Her eyes instantly reddened, and she rushed to the bedside, grabbing her mother's thin wrist with her small hands and shaking it violently, her voice already trembling with sobs:

"Mother, wake up! Mother, Qing Lin is back, Mother!"

The woman still didn't react. Qing Lin finally couldn't hold back anymore and burst into tears. Her cries were like a large net suffocating Xiao Yi Xian's chest, making it hard for her to breathe.

The Xiao Yi Xian quickly walked to the bedside, squatted down, and placed two fingers on the woman's wrist pulse to check her condition.

A moment later, Xiao Yi Xian's tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly; Qing Lin's mother only had a fever.

However, she had some old injuries that hadn't fully healed, and years of overwork had caused her physical functions to decline considerably.

Xiao Yi Xian hugged Qing Lin and said softly:

"Don't cry, your sister will help you heal your mother."

She withdrew her hand, took out some medicinal herbs from her Storage Ring, and began to prepare the medicine.

When the medicine was being fed, the woman's lips barely responded to swallowing, Xiao Yi Xian had to drip the medicine into her mouth little by little.

After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Yi Xian finally straightened up after feeding the medicine, her forehead already beaded with a fine layer of sweat.

About an incense stick's time later, the woman on the bed finally moved.

Her eyelids trembled, and she slowly opened her eyes. It took her cloudy gaze a while to focus on Qing Lin by the bedside.

She raised her thin, bony hand and tremblingly touched Qing Lin's head.

"Mother!"

Qing Lin threw herself into her arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Mom, you scared me to death! What happened to you? Waaah..."

The woman gently patted her back, her gaze slowly shifting to the two strangers beside the bed.

After calming down, Qing Lin briefly told her mother what had happened.

The woman listened quietly, her cloudy eyes slowly welling up with tears.

After listening, the woman suddenly struggled to sit up.

However, because she moved too quickly, she aggravated her old injury, causing her to wince in pain. But she gritted her teeth and refused to lie back down.

She propped herself up halfway, slowly lowering her head towards Qin Yu and Xiao Yi Xian.

"Benefactor."

Her voice was very hoarse, but the words she spoke instantly drained all color from Qing Lin's face:

"If you don't mind, please take this child with you. I'm dying, and if I leave, she won't survive in this Stone Desert City."

The whole room fell silent.

Qing Lin seemed stunned by those words. She opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a single word. It took her a long time to find her voice:

"No! Mother! I don't want to go!"

Qing Lin threw herself onto her mother, clutching her clothes tightly with her little hands, crying so hard she couldn't utter a complete sentence.

Seeing Qing Lin crying, Qing Lin's mother could only hug her tightly, her chapped lips pressed against her daughter's hair, tears streaming down her face silently.

The mother and daughter hugged each other and cried, which also brought tears to Xiao Yi Xian's eyes.

She turned around, tugged at Qin Yu's sleeve, and pulled him outside.

Xiao Yi Xian stood with her back to the door for a while, her shoulders rising and falling slightly, and she took several deep breaths.

When she turned around and looked up at Qin Yu, her eyes were still red, but her gaze became very firm.

"Qin Yu, I want to stay."

As if afraid of Qin Yu's objection, she quickened her pace and said:

"Her mother's health is too poor; simply reducing the fever isn't enough, she'll need continuous medication to regulate her condition."

"Qing Lin is still so young. If I stay, at least I can help them get through their current difficulties."

After saying that, Xiao Yi Xian suddenly deflated and lowered her head slightly.

"Besides, without me by your side, you can use your Flying Dou Technique faster and more efficiently on your own."

"I know I can't be of much help to you in the first place... If things get delayed again because of Qing Lin and her mother..."

Before she could finish speaking, Qin Yu reached out and gently rubbed her head.

"It's alright, just do whatever you want."

"Your choice is the Xiao Yi Xian I know."

Xiao Yi Xian was stunned for a long while, then her nose suddenly stung with tears, and the tears she had been holding back inside almost fell now.

However, she held back, sniffed hard, and resumed her usual expression.

"Then be careful and don't take any risks. We'll wait for you here."

"Um."

Xiao Yi Xian returned to the house, took out the dry food, water, and a few useful medicinal herbs from her Storage Ring, and began to examine Qing Lin's mother.

Qing Lin's mother initially refused, but she couldn't persuade Xiao Yi Xian to listen.

Qin Yu then squatted down in front of Qing Lin. The little girl was still sobbing in her mother's arms, her eyes swollen like walnuts.

"Be a good boy and listen to your mother and sister."

Qin Yu reached out and ruffled her hair. Qing Lin looked up at him with teary eyes and nodded vigorously.

Qin Yu stood up, waved to Xiao Yi Xian, turned and walked out of the crooked wooden door, leaving Stone Desert City.

Purple Cloud Wings unfurled behind him, and with a flap of his wings, he soared into the air, heading towards the depths of the desert.