To be Fond of is a Form of Freedom
“Did you agree to their request?” Mu Yu inquired.
“We had to. Else, how are we going to enter it?” answered Helian Kong. Voice quiet, he asked, “Did you obtain Reverend Xuan Jizi’s inheritance?”
Mu Yu provided a brief recount of the events, finishing with, “We’re back to a stalemate. Gui Ximing will find his way out within time.”
“Guess that means we have to wait for him to return, then,” commented Helian Kong, somewhat disappointed.
“Elder Helian, have you heard of World Manifestation Reincarnation Seal?”
“I have, but I’m no expert on it. Reverend Xuan Jizi told me him implemented a defence system due its dangerous nature. Gui Ximing doesn’t know how to use the seal even though he has obtained World Manifestation Starcloud. You’re only using it once you have both items.”
“May I ask if someone else came to the island? I thought I heard the alarm.”
“A maiden landed on this side of the island not long after you went in. Her name was uh… Qiao Xue.”
“Where is she now?”
“Ghost Gate’s group claimed she was a fiend and wanted to lynch her. She looks human to me, though. That’s why I decided to rescue her. I assigned several souls to guard her for now. You know her?”
“I do; she is my friend!”
“I’ll have her brought over, then.”
Receiving a gesture from Helian Kong, a middle-aged soul went and escorted Qiao Xue over with another five souls.
“Mu Yu!” exclaimed Qiao Xue.
Mu Yu ran over to Qiao Xue, grabbing her hand. “Are you all right? Did that damned fiend, Long Xingyun, not bring you onto the island?”
“I didn’t see them. After the mermaids trapped me in, I was on the run the entire time until my winning fish found aqua fiends to ask for directions to the island. We discovered that very few aqua fiends know the island’s location. We, in fact, asked several thousands before one of them knew the way.”
“I guess I was luckier. Oh, right, this is Elder Lianhe Kong…”
Listening to in Mu Yu’s introduction, Gui Yeming decided to fill in the void Mu Yu deliberately left out. “She’s a spy the fiends sent. He’s in cahoots with her, yet you would trust the two of them?”
“Who would you rather trust, you are me? You’re notorious for being full of crap. Where’s the evidence to prove I’m working with the fiends? Nothing to say now? That’s what I thought.”
Gui Yeming’s face cramped.
Helian Kong leaned in and whispered, “Mu Yu, are you two a couple?”
“They are. Mu Yu said he and Qiao Xue were going to” – Xiaoshuai perked his brows up twice – “Ehehehe.”
Qiao Xue hid her face, while Mu Yu responded, “Yeah, do you have any blessing gifts for us? Courtesy gifts are good, too.”
“Hahaha, I gave you my most cherished femur already, and you still want more? She’s a strong girl. You two go well together. You remind me of my younger days. Back then, Li was also…”
Mu Yu politely listened to the long-winded description (flattery) Helian Kong had for Miss Li.
“I confessed to her eighteen times, and she rejected me nineteen times. That’s when it occurred to me that I could never win her heart regardless of how great I was as an alchemist…”
“Wait, you confessed eighteen times and were rejected nineteen times? I am feeling mathematically challenged.”
“You just have to make me embarrass myself, huh? That means she rejected me once before I even opened my mouth! Once I resigned myself to failure, I asked her why she didn’t accept me, and she told me she only liked women. Good grief, I swear I saw the sky fall down that day…”
Resisting a laugh, Mu Yu consoled, “Elder, it is one’s freedom to choose who they like. We cannot force others to reciprocate our feelings. I bet plenty of women had a crush on you knowing how skilled you are. You just need to spare a look for those around you.”
“There was a gentle and kind girl who had a crush on me for a long time…”
“See? And then?”
“Ru Hua… had a beard thicker than my chest hair…”
“Pftt!” Mu Yu exhaled hard a few times to calm himself hen took Qiao Xue’s hand. “I’m glad the girl I like is rather normal.”
Qiao Xue narrowed her eyes on Mu Yu upon hearing “rather normal”.
Gui Ximing soon stepped out from the mirror and immediately began vindictively searching for Mu Yu. Mu Yu waved back. “Finally! You kept me waiting.”
Gui Yuzi quietly asked Gui Ximing a few questions prior to voicing, “Helian Kong, your junior and my junior have one piece each. We have to speak with the fiends, or nobody will be able to enter the pagoda.”
“Let’s go speak to them now.”
On the way to visit the fiends, Mu Yu filled Qiao Xue in on the island and helped her catch up with current events, deliberately following at the back of the group. “Don’t acknowledge your relationship with the fiends when we meet up, or Ghost Gate will try to start something. Humans and fiends are ready to rip into each other on this island.”
“Okay, but… did you say you liked me before.”
Mu Yu’s brain stuttered as he forced an awkward smile. “It was a spur-of-the-moment thing.”
“So you don’t like me?”
“No, that’s not what I meant. How can I not when you’re so pretty. I’m going to cast a formation to hide your appearance, lest Long Xingyun and company recognise you.”
“Um… Okay.”
Mu Yu ran his finger with an active formation on it over Qiao Xue’s smooth face, both behaving shyly. He stopped for a moment to admire her face in detail, viewing his own reflection in her eyes. Suddenly, she went up on her toes and pecked him on the lips, short circuiting his brain.
“Uh… Is it really time for this?” the dragon vine muttered.
“Ahem, ahaha.” Mu Yu, fidgeting, mumbled, “The, uh, weather is nice, huh? I’ve just been violated, haven’t I?”
“Qiao Xue, give me a kiss, too!” cried Xiaoshuai, bouncing up and down on Mu Yu’s shoulder.
Mu Yu tossed Xiaoshuai aside. “Kids should behave like kids.”
“You’re the one who said everyone has the freedom to like who they choose, so you can choose to feel how you decide about me, while I shall choose to feel how I like about you,” expressed Qiao Xue, fully in control of her emotions this time.
“That means it’s my free choice to like you, too…” Xiaoshuai leaped into Qiao Xue’s bosom and buried his head in there.
“You have no freedom. Momo is still waiting for you,” interjected the dragon vine.
“Shut up!” Xiaoshuai wagged his bottom in the dragon vine’s face.
Mu Yu was still lagging behind, frozen in place.
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