After a long while, Qian Renxue's sobs finally began to subside.
She lowered her head and raised a hand to wipe the tears from her face, asking in a hoarse voice:
"So... you don't want to take me to see Mom, do you?"
An Yi nodded frankly. "To be honest, I really don't."
Qian Renxue's fingers trembled violently.
An Yi continued, "If I go alone, I can calm her down and get her to relax. But if I take you with me, I'll have to be on guard every moment in case she loses patience, suddenly flies into a rage, and stabs me to death."
At that, he couldn't help sighing.
"Why should I take such a huge risk?"
"What's even more ridiculous is that you threw a tantrum and gave me the cold shoulder over it, as if it were only natural for me to risk being stabbed to death by her just to grant your wish."
Qian Renxue lowered her head and said nothing.
She recalled her irritation that morning when she had run to the courtyard and found An Yi absent. She also remembered how she had confidently demanded that he take her along after hearing he had gone to the Saintess Hall.
She had never considered why An Yi was willing to go, or why he was willing to take her with him.
She had simply thought that since he could do it, he ought to do it for her.
An Yi looked at her and continued, "Your grandfather hired me to be your teacher. You should know what he offered me in return."
"A status equal to an elder's, and the authority to draw on the Spirit Hall's resources."
"And for that, you want me to risk my life for you?"
Qian Renxue's shoulders trembled slightly, but she was still unwilling to accept it.
"Then... does that mean you won't take me anymore?"
An Yi looked at her in silence for a moment, then suddenly crouched down to meet her eyes.
"It's not that I can't take you, or that I can't take those risks."
"But why should I?"
Qian Renxue stared at him blankly.
"You need to answer that question. Why should I take those risks for you?" An Yi asked.
"No one gives without a reason. The payment your grandfather offered me doesn't cover this, and it isn't enough to make me take that kind of risk for your wish."
"If you want me to do something, you have to offer something in return."
Qian Renxue's eyes reddened, and she asked softly, "What... what do you want?"
An Yi took a handkerchief from his robes and gently wiped the tear tracks from her face.
"Obedience."
Qian Renxue paused, seemingly unable to grasp what he meant. "Obedience?"
"That's right." An Yi placed the handkerchief in her hand. "I don't need you to ask your grandfather for some treasure to give me, and I don't need you to trade me anything precious. I only want what you can give me."
"Obedience. That's the only thing you can give me, and the only thing I need."
"As long as you behave, I'll naturally grant your wishes when I'm in a good mood."
"But if you throw another tantrum and give me the cold shoulder, don't expect me to take you to see Bibi Dong again."
Qian Renxue panicked and hurriedly nodded. "I'll be obedient! Absolutely obedient!"
An Yi was unmoved. "You said that before."
Qian Renxue grew anxious and immediately raised three fingers. "I swear on my Martial Soul that I'll always listen to you from now on, Teacher!"
For a Soul Master, swearing on one's Martial Soul was the most solemn oath.
An Yi looked into her eyes. "Remember what you said today. I'm not a good-tempered or patient person. This is the last time."
Qian Renxue's heart tightened, and she nodded quickly. But then something else occurred to her, and her gaze began to wander.
"Then... you wouldn't make me do anything bad, would you?"
An Yi asked in return, "What kind of bad things? For example?"
Qian Renxue pressed her lips together, her voice growing quieter and quieter.
"Like... certain perverted things?"
An Yi: "..."
What on earth went on in this girl's head all day?
Smack!
An Yi raised a hand and flicked her forehead.
"Ow!"
Qian Renxue cried out in pain and clutched her forehead, landing on her bottom with tears springing to her eyes.
An Yi looked down at her, speechless. "Looks like you really are getting older. Your imagination's already running wild."
"Since you think I'm that kind of pervert, go play by yourself and leave me alone."
With that, An Yi turned and walked away.
Ignoring the pain, Qian Renxue scrambled to her feet with a hand over her head and hurried after him. "I didn't mean it like that! I was just joking, really!"
An Yi strode forward without looking back. "You guessed right. I am a pervert, and I have wicked designs on you. Hurry back and find your grandfather so he can come and cut me down with his sword."
Qian Renxue was so anxious she was almost in tears.
She had finally managed to placate An Yi. She couldn't let a single joke drive him away again.
Seeing An Yi walk faster and faster, Qian Renxue rushed forward and grabbed his hand. She tilted her face up and looked at him pitifully.
"Teacher, I was wrong!"
"I won't say things like that again. Can you forgive me this time?"
An Yi finally stopped.
He lowered his head to look at the little girl clinging tightly to him, then suddenly bent down and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead.
A cool sensation brushed her skin and vanished.
Immediately afterward, a gentle current of Soul Power swept across her forehead, and the pain vanished completely in an instant.
Qian Renxue froze.
She raised a hand to touch her forehead, then looked at An Yi in a daze.
An Yi straightened up and said calmly:
"That's the kind of pervert I am."
With that, he turned and continued walking.
Moonlight spilled over him, and his long silver-white hair fluttered gently in the wind. His figure looked somewhat unreal in the cold moonlight.
Qian Renxue stood where she was, unable to come to her senses for a long time.
An Yi suddenly stopped ahead of her and turned around. "Are you coming or not?"
Qian Renxue snapped back to her senses, a blush spreading uncontrollably across her cheeks.
She quickly trotted after him and took his hand again.
An Yi let her hold it as he reminded her, "We'll do the same as last time. I'll go in first, and you wait until I call you in. Got it?"
Qian Renxue nodded vigorously and answered obediently.
"Got it."
The Saintess Hall, small garden.
The night was growing deeper, and everything around them was quiet.
Bibi Dong sat cross-legged on the soft grass, but she wasn't meditating with her eyes closed as she usually did.
Her head was tilted slightly upward as she gazed at the bright moon in the night sky, her expression complicated. She seemed to be waiting for something, yet also seemed to be doing her utmost to suppress something.
A gentle breeze swept past, rustling the flowers and leaves.
Suddenly, the bright moon in the sky seemed to grow a little brighter.
Its cold silver light poured down like spilled mercury, illuminating the entire garden.
A silver-white figure had appeared beside her at some unknown point.
An Yi sat down next to her, braced his hands behind him, and looked up at the moon.
"What, were you afraid I wouldn't come?"
Bibi Dong's heart skipped a beat, but she forced herself to remain calm and shot him an annoyed glare. "Who told you to come?"
An Yi raised an eyebrow. "Then should I leave?"
As he spoke, he pressed his hands against the ground and made as if to rise.
The next moment, a hand suddenly caught his sleeve.
An Yi looked down.
Bibi Dong froze too.
Her hand was still suspended in midair, her slender fingers gripping his cuff tightly.
The two exchanged a glance.
Bibi Dong let go as if she had been burned and quickly turned her head away.
Damn it! What was she doing?!