Yin was left speechless by the pretty boy's hotblooded response. Qing Wu You's solemn and unyielding speech, albeit unnecessarily long, reminded Yin of a certain silly injured warrior about to set off to the frontlines of war, who was so noisy Yin slapped him silly in front of their father just so he would shut up.
How many eras and eons have passed since then? Yin wondered if like her, her twin brother also reincarnated in a mortal realm somewhere.
"...I'd rather be an ordinary mortal!" Qing Wu You roared, bringing her wandering thoughts back to the present.
Her brows were twitching the whole time he was talking, but it was too late by the time she realized that the boy had been scared silly by her demand.
'I might have gone a wee bit overboard.'
She was caught in between laughing and scratching her head, but she stopped midway after remembering the pretty hairpin Big Sis Xuan'er fixed on her hair. She dared not mess her cute buns. She also dared not laugh at the silly boy because she had to keep her respectable boss appearance.
With her hands behind her, Yin studied the pretty boy from head to toe and silently appreciated her Church's future propaganda director—ahem, she meant future external affairs coordinator.
Yin waved her hand and a delicate black runic plate appeared to rotate on top of her tiny palm before it disappeared inside her spatial pouch.
"Well, congrats, brat." She clapped her hand like she was announcing the finale of a show. "You passed the test with flying colors!"
"Fairy, I won't—" The boy opened his mouth again as if to spout another round of nonsense, but then he blinked his eyes and started coughing. The sight in front of him changed.
The two unconscious bodies were still there, but they didn't look like they were tormented by sword attacks, and the surroundings didn't look like a fierce battle had occurred.
The young Ye disciple looked peaceful in his sleep as he sat with his back against a tree. On the other hand, the bloody meat that resembled a human turned into a middle-aged man who looked like he was poisoned, his seven orifices showing signs of bleeding. However, looking at the movement of his chest, his breathing was stronger compared to earlier where he looked like he was merely an inch away from death. It appeared he was merely sleeping as well.
'Everything is another illusion?'
Seeing Qing Wu You's surprise, Yin raised a brow. "What? Even if I had to fight for my life, I couldn't let an innocent child get hurt."
That tiny, pudgy body, those doll-like features, that laugh that sounded like bells… this Yin couldn't be older than five years old. He compared it to the Ye disciple who looked around nine or ten years old...
'Aren't you the child here?!'
However, Qing Wu You merely kept that thought in his head. In front of this female hooligan, he nodded his head like a woodpecker. "Right, of course, Fairy Yin!"
She continued speaking, "This illusion toy is called the Ancient Nine Heart Laws Banning Array according to its plate. It's a trapping device used to bewilder weak souls, and thus it drags its victims to recall and relive their worst memories. It can also function as a way for a cultivator to face his or her inner demons, and if the cultivator succeeds, it will certainly promote the strength of his soul. However, if the cultivator is unable to extricate himself or herself from the illusion, then his or her soul will regress and it will be prone to soul attacks and puppetry techniques."
Yin sighed as she recalled Second Elder Li Yun Tian's memories, her expression no longer teasing. "It's easy to dodge a spear in the open but hard to guard against an arrow shot in the dark. That is something I have learned today. You'er, you have a Spiritual Body and you have a steady Dao heart, but that's not all there is to becoming a cultivator. I also have to make sure that if I am to give you the ability to cultivate, then you must walk the Dao I walk. Or else, what if I treat you well and you end up betraying me for benefit?"
"Fairy Yin, I--"
"You forget, I'm your boss now."
Qing Wu You flinched. "Y-Yes, Boss!"
He was unable to wrap his head around how this little girl could act like a child one moment and a senior the next.
With hands crossed behind her, Yin leisurely strolled over the little treasure house in a bloodied garb. Qin Wu You did not even notice--or perhaps he did, but deigned to pay it no mind--that the girl acting all adult-like was looting the body of the Second Elder for his spatial pouch and other things that could be worth some money.
Qing Wu You perked up after calming himself. "Will you teach me cultivation now, Fairy--I mean, Boss?"
After getting some interesting finds from the unconscious Second Elder, Yin happily dusted her hand off. She tilted her head towards him. "Hmm, am I hearing this right? You'er, you don't seem to be happy calling me boss. Is it because I'm younger than you? Or as a boy, do you have anything against cute girls?"
"No, no, no." Qing Wu You waved his hand and forced a smile. "How's that possible, Boss? Meeting you is like meeting a long-lost family member! How can I not be happy? See these tears? These are tears of joy!"
At that moment, the light-blue dome created by the Ancient Nine Heart Laws Banning Array had already disappeared. Yin felt familiar auras approaching her location, and she knew it's time for Old Fogey Ye Mo to clean up the mess here.
Thus, it's time for her to run!
"I gotta go. Don't we have a lunch meeting later? Bring me the best food you can find and we'll start your first cultivation lesson after!"