Chapter 6: Six: The Brains — Godmother Huang Ying

Six: The Brains — Godmother Huang Ying

Shen Shen Yaoqiao was shocked. You could play it like this?

She quickly realized something was off. "Why don't you just re-examine yourself and find out?"

"Have you ever considered that the me in front of you isn't the true body?"

Qin Yuan said softly.

Then Qin Yuan's face stiffened: "Hey, why are you poking my face?"

"Just checking if you're a paper-thin little brother"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao said, sucking on her finger.

She poked Qin Yuan's face again.

Qin Yuan's brow twitched violently.

I'm not some damn paper person, why the hell are you poking me.

"Scamming resources"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao pouted her rosy little lips.

The next moment, Qin Yuan turned into a mass of gas.

He dispersed into the air.

The ground split open, and Qin Yuan rose up.

"So you're made of gas, no wonder I couldn't poke through you"

"Keep my secret for me"

Qin Yuan had just finished speaking.

When he saw Shen Shen Yaoqiao crisply extend her little hand, face deadly serious: "I swear"

Seeing Qin Yuan had no reaction, she upped the ante: "I'll swear two oaths"

Does that even make a damn difference.

Qin Yuan's hands rapidly formed a seal and pushed downward.

A red mark landed on the back of Shen Shen Yaoqiao's foot.

"If you accidentally let my secret slip, your legs will grow thick, coarse black hair all over them."

"What"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao turned pale with fright.

She was a little fairy — how could she grow thick, coarse black hair all over her legs.

"Take it back!"

She demanded urgently.

"As long as you don't tell anyone, it'll be fine"

"Don't run, you little thief — stop right there!"

……

One week later.

The morning light was faint and pale.

Qin Yuan, just returned from a spatial rift, ran straight into Shen Shen Yaoqiao, who had been waiting eagerly.

Her creamy-white skin seemed almost to reflect light in the cool morning glow.

Her curves, front and back, were thrown into sharp relief by the fierce wind.

"A-Yuan"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao came up and tried to grab Qin Yuan's arm.

Qin Yuan stepped back to one side, on guard like Elder Tang encountering a female demon.

Still not reassured, he turned into a ball of golden flame and flew several dozen meters away before resuming human form.

"What spell is that?"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao's eyes sparkled.

"Divine Fire Avatar — just a trick of the eye."

"Teach me"

"No"

"Eeeek"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao used a special footwork to chase after him.

Qin Yuan's face darkened and he barked: "Stop"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao stopped, pouting: "Fine, I won't get close, no need to be so fierce"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao looked so utterly endearing that Qin Yuan had to come up with a method to resist a beauty's temptation.

All beauties are poop, all beauties are poop…

Qin Yuan repeated it silently several times in his heart, and the flower-like, jade-like Shen Shen Yaoqiao was indeed far less alluring.

"Oh, what's that in your hand? A heart-shaped stone — is it for me?"

Shen Shen Yaoqiao's gaze fell on Qin Yuan's hand, with a hint of eagerness.

Damn heart-shaped stone — I'm not Li Chen.

"It's just an ordinary yuan"

Yuan is the currency of another realm — energy.

Similar to spirit stones.

"You want to give it to you."

Qin Yuan handed it over.

Shen Shen Yaoqiao took it and tucked it away with delight.

It was as if it were a token of their love.

"Did you forget what day it is?"

What day?

Wedding anniversary... ahem, forgot I'm not married yet.

Blame those cultivation dramas from my past life that did nothing but talk about romance all day long.

Seeing Qin Yuan's dazed look, Shen Shen Yaoqiao poked his forehead with a white, scallion-like finger in annoyance: "Today is the day the Third Jiangnan Cultivator Conference convenes."

Qin Yuan slapped his forehead.

How could he have forgotten something so unimportant.

He lifted his leg and walked off; seeing Shen Shen Yaoqiao follow again, he warned, "We go separately. I don't want to draw attention."

"Annoying, you're complimenting my beauty again in a roundabout way."

Shen Shen Yaoqiao lowered her small head, shy and bashful.

This train of thought was truly unmatched.

Qin Yuan looked up at the heavens in speechless despair.

"Ah Yuan, if big sister were to find a boyfriend, what kind should she look for?"

As Shen Shen Yaoqiao asked, she gazed at Qin Yuan with a faint, lingering look.

Qin Yuan's first reaction was: Why bother with love? Strive for cultivation, seek eternal life, live without restraint—isn't that better?

After a moment's thought, he gave an answer that clearly showed he'd never been in love: "You could find a man who gives you special consideration and gentleness, who cares for you twenty-four hours a day, and would even risk his life for you."

Shen Shen Yaoqiao rolled a coquettish eye. Such men were everywhere, like flies that couldn't be swatted away no matter how hard you tried; why would she need to look for one?

Shen Shen Yaoqiao secretly glanced at Qin Yuan, who was saintly as a Buddha both in public and in private.

She still preferred someone different from the rest.

Her attitude toward Qin Yuan had changed over time.

At first, she only felt the care of an older sister for a younger brother.

A child who had lost both mother and father from a young age, and was so small and frail—it was too pitiful.

Later, as she grew older, a swarm of sycophants like flies appeared around her, and then Qin Yuan showed up.

Unlike the others, Qin Yuan never harassed her; he was polite and devoted solely to cultivation.

It was as if a gleaming piece of gold had appeared in a pile of dung.

Love is based on sexual desire.

The familial affection between childhood sweethearts is contrary to sexual desire.

Originally, nothing would have happened between Qin Yuan and Shen Shen Yaoqiao; even if it had, she would have been snatched away by some sudden arrival, just like Linghu Chong.

Qin Yuan deliberately kept his distance from Shen Shen Yaoqiao, thereby avoiding that possibility.

Pity Qin Yuan didn't know this; otherwise, he would surely have grown closer to Shen Shen Yaoqiao.

Soon, Qin Yuan and Shen Shen Yaoqiao arrived at the Welcome Pavilion, one after the other.

A group of academy teachers were greeting guests, literally.

One person in particular drew special attention.

She appeared to be in her thirties or forties, slightly shorter than Shen Shen Yaoqiao, and bore a seven- or eight-tenths resemblance to her in looks, possessing both the fair, tender skin of a youthful maiden and the charm of a mature woman.

This person was none other than...

... Qin Yuan's godmother, Huang Ying.

Besides being a great beauty, she was also the Dean of the Luzhou Cultivator Academy.

Standing beside her, the level of attention was far greater than when she was with Shen Shen Yaoqiao.

Just as Qin Yuan was about to slip in through a side door unnoticed, Huang Ying's gentle voice sounded by his ear: "You two brats, come over here."

Qin Yuan had no choice but to go over.

At that moment, countless gazes turned toward them.

Most of them, however, were fixed on Shen Shen Yaoqiao.

Even so, the less-than-ten-meter path felt like the ten-thousand-eight-thousand-li journey to the Western Scriptures for Qin Yuan.

"This sister, let me help you greet the guests."

Shen Shen Yaoqiao, who had gone ahead first, hugged Huang Ying's arm, her eyes curved like crescent moons.

Compared to her stern father, she preferred her mother, who spoiled her almost without limit.

She often made random jokes.

She called Huang Ying by all sorts of names: sister, younger sister, auntie, Old Huang, and so on.

Huang Ying never got angry.

"No need. Most of the guests have already arrived. You and Ah Yuan go in first."

Huang Ying affectionately patted her daughter's arm.

Her husband often said she spoiled her daughter too much, but she didn't agree at all.

Compared to how high her daughter's achievements might rise in the future, she hoped more that her daughter would live her whole life without restraint.

Shen Shen Yaoqiao let go of Huang Ying and instinctively reached for Qin Yuan, but grasped nothing; the latter, having anticipated this, had already darted two meters away.

Shen Shen Yaoqiao puffed her cheeks in anger.

A trace of worry flashed imperceptibly in Huang Ying's eyes.

It was not that the daughter loved Qin Yuan, but rather an unspeakable reason.

She hoped that secret would remain forever unknown to Qin Yuan.

She sighed in her heart.