Sinful, sinful heretic.

The first half of the night was uneventful; even mosquitoes wouldn't dare venture into the dilapidated courtyard. But things started to get interesting in the second half. A figure stealthily slipped into the courtyard and, under the cover of darkness, entered the small building through a window. Ye Jiang watched with clear eyes; the darkness hadn't diminished her vision. She clearly saw that the person who had climbed into the courtyard was carrying a takeout container. By the time she came out of the window, the container was gone, and the person quickly left the courtyard without lingering.

Ye Jiang entered the girl's bedroom silently, like the wind blending into the air. On the bedroom table, she saw a still-steaming lunchbox, placed next to the one she had seen during the day.

Ye Jiang darted out of the bedroom and quickly left the courtyard, soon catching up with the woman in the night. The woman, shrouded in darkness, was completely unaware of her presence and ran forward, finally vaulting into a courtyard.

A familiar courtyard.

Ye Jiang stopped outside the courtyard wall of Hua Ling's house.

A sound came from the courtyard; it was a woman's voice.

"Wow, you're all here already? I went... once, I'm late."

Ye Jiang recognized her immediately; this woman was the neighbor who had fought with Hua Ling earlier that day.

There were many sounds coming from the courtyard. Ye Jiang carefully distinguished them and matched them one by one with the voices of the townspeople who had come to fight during the day.

This group of people had done things with Hua Ling during the day, and then gathered again in Hua Ling's yard at night.

The most interesting thing is that Hua Ling is there too.

Hua Ling's voice rang out. "Hey everyone, didn't you go too far during the day? You had a good time cursing me, didn't you? You don't know, because of what you did, I'm being treated like a scoundrel!"

"Ah, I'm sorry, I'm bad with words, I really can't think of a reason to fight..."

"Me too..."

"I also."

Hua Ling sneered, "I think you're doing this on purpose."

Haha, it's just a tiny bit, just a tiny bit.

"Screw you."

From the other side of the courtyard wall came soft, playful chatter. Ye Jiang hadn't seen this kind of normal interaction between acquaintances in the small town, but she found it in the courtyard that night.

The pushing and shoving didn't last long; it quickly quieted down. In the silence, someone asked calmly:

"Hua Ling, is that them?"

"... Hmm," Hua Ling replied, "It should be... one of them."

Chapter 87 Sin, Heresy of Sin.

Hua Ling noticed that the female guest who had moved into her house was looking at her strangely. They bumped into each other in the living room downstairs that morning, and the other woman looked up at her. Hua Ling swore that the look was very strange, even stranger than the way the guest had looked at her during the day when she was being portrayed as a wicked and despicable person.

Hua Ling frowned, feeling awkward. Why was she looking at her like that?

She secretly searched the room for reflective objects, trying to figure out what was wrong with her. Just then, footsteps came from the courtyard, and another guest, Rong Yin, walked in, enveloped in the damp morning mist.

Upon entering the house and seeing the two, Rong Yin explained that he had gone out to buy breakfast and hadn't noticed he'd bought too much. He then naturally handed one of the breakfast bags to Ye Jiang, while he continued carrying the rest. Hua Ling, seeing this, didn't bother looking for a reflective object to grab her own portion, thinking to herself that this young man was quite considerate. However, as she reached out, the young man preemptively handed out the other breakfast bags in several batches, none to her, not a single one; they were all given to Ye Jiang.

Hua Ling: "..."

He's a complete idiot!

Hua Ling's hand trembled slightly as it awkwardly hung in the air. Only then did the young man notice her hand. He lifted his eyelids slightly and explained, "No, I didn't bring much."

What he meant was that although he brought too much, it wasn't enough to share with a second person.

Nonsense!

Hua Ling stared at the abundant breakfast in someone's hand, her lips twitching uncontrollably, but she didn't want to say a word.

She twisted her elbow, shoved her hand heavily into her pocket, turned and walked away to get breakfast; she had no interest in eating leftovers!

Just as I turned my head, I caught a glimpse out of the corner of my eye of the person who had received the sumptuous breakfast pulling something out of their person—a slender, verdant willow leaf with black stripes mixed in with its emerald green color.

Hua Ling paused, her eyes instantly filled with astonishment. "This is..."

Ye Jiang, who had taken out a willow leaf, looked at her. Ye Jiang Hua Ling up. Seeing that she didn't intend to continue, Ye Jiang handed the leaf to the young man who had given her breakfast as a return gift. While exchanging gifts, she stuffed meatballs into her mouth. The fried vegetable meatballs smelled delicious, so her attention was mainly on the meatballs that suited her taste, and she didn't pay much attention to what she had taken out.

"For you."

She said it casually to the young man.

Rong Yin didn't move. If you looked closely, you could see his dark pupils trembling slightly, as if he were in a state of surprise.

He hadn't expected her actions. After a long while, he reached out his hand and let Ye Jiang place the willow leaf in his palm. He gently held it, the faint light in his eyes intensifying, flickering and shimmering in his cold gaze.

Hua Ling watched the handover process. She watched as the young man took away the willow leaves, and her complicated gaze slowly shifted from the willow leaves to Ye Jiang, where it stopped. Ye Jiang was focused on eating and didn't care about the gaze falling on her.

"Hey, you went to Mei Ti's house?" Hua Ling asked, her voice low.

"Mei Ti?" Upon hearing the familiar name, Ye Jiang paused her delicious breakfast and looked at Hua Ling.

"It's the family where you got the willow leaf." Hua Ling's expression was inscrutable. "Where did you go?"

Ye Jiang readily admitted that she had gone, and asked her, "Do you know Mei Ti?"

Hua Ling smirked. "Everyone in this town knows her."

So the target of the mission was a celebrity?

Thinking this to herself, Ye Jiang asked aloud, "Is she that famous?"

Hua Ling pointed to her own yard, then waved her hand. The air outside swirled like waves, and several bluestone slabs in the yard were suddenly overturned, revealing another side... and the graffiti on it.

Ye Jiang saw the familiar painting and had a guess in her mind. The next second, her guess was confirmed.

"This is what that naughty girl drew," Hua Ling said. "I've never seen anyone with so much energy. There's over two thousand people in the town, and not a single house hasn't been ruined by her."

Therefore, everyone knows her.

Ye Jiang: "..."

So that's how he became famous.

This was something she hadn't considered.

Seemingly annoyed by the paintings, Hua Ling waved her hand and flipped the bluestone slab back over, covering all the graffiti. The yard became clean, and Hua Ling's expression returned to normal.

Her gaze swept between the two guests, and she said softly, "The willow leaves from the Mei Ti family aren't ordinary broken leaves. That willow tree is called the Willow Mother Tree in our Shuiling Town. The leaves bestowed by the Willow Mother Tree contain energy. Using them can temporarily boost one to two times one's abilities, lasting for five to ten minutes. It's similar to a power-up item, so it's quite precious. Don't just give it away as a favor."

Ye Jiang said "Oh".

Her expression remained calm; so this was the effect of the energy clinging to the willow leaves.

"Oh?" Hua Ling's face twitched, sensing that she hadn't understood; otherwise, why would she seem so indifferent?

They're such a worry!

Hua Ling clicked her tongue, unusually showing a sense of responsibility, and patiently repeated herself, "Didn't you hear what I said? I said this is a very precious thing!"

It's one thing in Shuiling Town where superpowers are rampant, but outsiders probably really like this stuff. Trading it for a breakfast is such a waste!

Hua Ling added, "Besides, this thing is bound; it can only be used by the recipient. Whoever the Willow Mother Tree gives it to, that's who it belongs to. If someone else takes it, they can't activate it at all. Exchanging it would be a waste for both parties."

Hearing this, Ye Jiang's expressionless face finally showed a hint of emotion. Hua Ling, seeing this, said with relief, "You finally understand how precious this thing is..."

"Give it back." Ye Jiang held out her hand to the young man. "You can't use this. Give it back, and I'll give you something else."

Someone failed to grasp the value of the buff item, realizing that she had given away something useless.

Hua Ling: "..."

"It's alright," Rong Yin said. "No need to replace it, I think this willow leaf is just fine."

"Real?"

"Um."

"Oh."

Those who collect things don't care whether they're useful or not, so Ye Jiang didn't care either.

Exchange complete.

Hua Ling: "..."

She went through all that trouble to persuade her, and this is the result?

She wiped her face hard, deciding to ignore them. It was a mutual agreement; why should she waste her breath? Fine, let them use the Energy Willow Leaves however they want. She should worry about what to have for breakfast instead!

The aroma of food wafted from the side, and a customer was munching on her vegetable dumplings like a little hamster. The delicious smell made Hua Ling's stomach churn, and she frowned and walked away.

Ye Jiang didn't let her leave. She asked in a straightforward tone, "No one's home at Mei Ti's house. She's not here. Do you know where you can find her?"

Hua Ling paused, then looked up at the guest who had asked her the question. The latter's face was expressionless, and her purpose was unclear.

"You

"Why are you asking this?" Hua Ling looked her over.

Of course, it's all for completing the mission.

Ye Jiang lied with a straight face. "I want to find her and make a deal with her."

What transaction?

"I'll buy the willow tree in her yard and plant it in my house," Ye Jiang said. "I'm planning to buy a new house, and it's lacking in greenery."

Quiet.

Hua Ling's lips twitched. "Guest, do you even know what that is and you want to buy it?" How could this little brat's head be so big? She had lived in this town for so many years and this was the first time she had ever seen someone want to move Willow Mother Tree to Writer decoration.