The vendor's hand froze in mid-air.
He turned his head following the sound and saw a figure in a black dress rush out from a corner of the alley not far away.
The newcomer's face was covered by a black veil, and her figure was graceful. Even though her full features could not be seen, her eyes, which shimmered with a purple light, were enough to captivate anyone.
It was the Yao Yue.
The vendor's expression changed slightly, and he subconsciously withdrew his hand, asking warily, "Does the young lady know this child? I didn't bully her; she's the one who's been blocking my stall and causing trouble. I've explained it several times: you can't get candied hawthorns without spirit stones."
Yao Yue completely ignored him.
Her gaze was fixed on A Li, but she stopped three zhang away from the girl.
My back was soaked with cold sweat.
She had been hiding in the alleyway just now, only wanting to make sure she hadn't mistaken someone for someone else.
But when the vendor raised his hand to shoo A Li away, she was nearly scared out of her wits.
This human fool had no idea that he had just been half a step away from disappearing.
A Li was also taken aback for a moment.
A hint of displeasure flashed in her large, dark, bright eyes, as if someone had interrupted something she had been looking forward to for a long time.
But when she turned her little head and saw the approaching Yao Yue, her dissatisfaction quickly dissipated.
"Huh?"
A Li's little nose twitched slightly, and a look of surprise appeared on her face.
"It smells good!"
She took short strides and excitedly ran towards Yao Yue.
It moved very fast, but it didn't cause any shockwaves or leave any trace of spiritual energy.
Yao Yue felt a blur before her eyes, and A Li was already standing in front of her.
Those bright, sparkling eyes didn't look at her face; instead, they were fixed on her lower abdomen.
To be precise, they were staring at the ancestral Heavenly Fox bloodline and the origin of the Heavenly Demon Emperor Physique within her.
A trickle of tears slowly flowed from the corner of A Li's mouth.
Yao Yue felt a chill run down her spine and took several steps back, instinctively covering her lower abdomen with her hands.
"What... what do you want to do?"
Seeing her retreat, A Li seemed to remember something and raised her delicate white hand to wipe the corner of her mouth.
Then, she took two steps forward and stretched out her right hand with a serious expression.
"Hey, my A Li. A Li thinks you taste delicious... no, A Li thinks you're very pretty. Can we be friends?"
Glug glug.
A Li's stomach growled again.
Yao Yue's delicate body trembled slightly.
Deep in her memory, a secret realm that had shrouded Qingqiu for tens of thousands of years seemed to reappear before her eyes.
That year, she had not yet fully transformed into human form and could only hide behind her mother, watching from afar as this exquisitely beautiful little monster stood before the sacred mountain of Qingqiu.
A Li also stretched out her hand, asking the previous Qingqiu if they could be friends.
Before the Demon Emperor could reply, a hot-tempered Demon King stepped forward and berated him, even trying to drive A Li away.
What happened next became a nightmare that the entire Qingqiu was unwilling to revisit.
The entrance to the Inheritance Realm was bitten to pieces by A Li.
The spiritual herbs, mineral veins, and spiritual veins that had accumulated within the secret realm for tens of thousands of years all vanished, leaving not even the spatial core that supported the secret realm.
After finishing her meal, A Li patted her stomach and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
In the years that followed, other secret realms in the Western Continent also mysteriously disappeared one after another.
The Qingqiu once secretly speculated that since no more secret realms had appeared in the Western Continent in recent years, most of them had ended up in the belly of this little monster.
With that in mind, Yao Yue dared not hesitate any longer.
She strode forward, grasped A Li's small hand firmly, and looked as solemn as if she were making a blood oath.
"Okay, I agree to be your friend."
Fearing she wouldn't believe him, Yao Yue added earnestly, "My name is Yao Yue. From now on, we're friends. Friends shouldn't hurt each other, and certainly shouldn't treat each other like food. You understand that, right?"
A Li looked at her little hand being held, but her face fell.
The disappointment was palpable.
She released Yao Yue's hand, touched her empty belly, and nodded weakly.
"Okay, my friend can't eat it."
Seeing this, Yao Yue breathed a long sigh of relief.
Just as recorded in the clan's records.
If you sincerely agree to her request to be friends, she will not make a move on your friends. However, if you refuse, hesitate, or attempt to make a move, the consequences are unpredictable.
The vendor stood to the side, looking completely bewildered.
The woman in the black dress had been quite aggressive just now, and her cultivation level was clearly far beyond that of ordinary people.
Why are you so nervous around a three- or four-year-old child, as if you're meeting some unparalleled expert?
Also, what's edible or not?
"She looks stunningly beautiful, but her mind seems a bit off."
The vendor muttered to himself, about to pack up his stall, when A Li turned around and stared longingly at the candied hawthorn stand.
Yao Yue noticed her gaze and quickly took out three mid-grade spirit stones and handed them to the vendor.
"I'll buy all the candied hawthorns from your stall. Take the spirit stones and leave immediately. Don't utter a single word about what you saw today."
The vendor took the spirit stone, his eyes widening in surprise.
Three mid-grade spirit stones are enough to buy his candied hawthorn stall dozens of times over.
His earlier dissatisfaction vanished completely. He deftly handed the entire candied hawthorn stand to A Li, hoisted the stall, and turned to leave, afraid that Yao Yue might change her mind.
A Li hugged the candied hawthorn stand, which was several times her own height, and beamed with joy.
She took a big bite of the whole skewer without spitting out the bamboo stick, her cheeks puffed out round.
Yao Yue's eyelids twitched violently. She forced a smile and asked tentatively, "Senior... A Li, how did you come to the Great Qian Imperial City? It must be extremely far from where you used to be, right?"
A Li chewed on a candied hawthorn while tilting her head and thinking for a moment.
"Oh right, A Li almost forgot."
As if she had finally remembered the important matter, her dark eyes lit up again, and she raised her hand to point to the golden array gate above the central square that had not yet completely dissipated.
" A Li came looking for food. A Li smelled delicious food from far, far away, so she secretly ran away."
Yao Yue's smile froze.
She pointed cautiously to the entrance of the Heavenly Mystic Secret Realm, her voice tense. " A Li, the delicious food you mentioned, could it be that secret realm?"
A Li nodded vigorously.
"Yes, it smells wonderful, and there's lots of stuff inside. A Li has been traveling for a long time, and she's starving."
After saying that, she seemed to suddenly remember something, and looked at Yao Yue with puzzled eyes.
"Hey, miss, do you know A Li? Why do you seem so afraid of A Li?"
Yao Yue's heart tightened, and she quickly shook her head.
"I'd only heard some rumors about you back in the Western Continent, and I knew you were amazing. People also said you would never hurt your friends."
She had heard of it more than once.
When the Qingqiu Secret Realm was devoured, she hid behind her mother and watched it with her own eyes.
When A Li heard the word "rumor," the smile on her face gradually froze.
She held the candied hawthorn stand, her expression suddenly becoming tense.
"Oh, what rumor? How come A Li doesn't know about it?"
She looked around and lowered her voice considerably.
"Oh no, oh no, has Master already found out that A Li sneaked out? Master said A Li is not allowed to eat random things. If she gets caught and brought back, A Li will be punished again."
Yao Yue was somewhat bewildered.
This little monster, capable of swallowing an entire secret realm whole in one gulp, actually has a master?
Just what kind of being is that master, capable of restraining A Li, and even making her so nervous at the mere thought of being discovered?
Before she could even ask, A Li had already hurriedly hugged the candied hawthorn stand and ran towards the central square with her short legs.
"It's too late! A Li has to finish eating and go back quickly. As long as she gets home before Master finds out, A Li has never run away."
Yao Yue watched the small figure fly away quickly, first feeling both amused and exasperated, then suddenly waking up with a start.
"Not good!"
She could no longer care about concealing her whereabouts. She unleashed her Divine Sea Realm Sixth Layer demonic power, transforming into a black streak of light as she gave chase.
" A Li, wait for me!"
(P. S.: I haven't been following the manga series much, but it's already over 500 episodes! That's fast!)