Chapter 325

She had watched this child grow up. Although she was at odds with Division Head Xu Zhengfeng, after all, her sister's death had been partly due to her brother-in-law, it wasn't her niece's fault.

There was no need for the grievances of the previous generation to involve this generation.

Moreover, this was her sister's only daughter; she doted on her too much to be angry.

When her niece was abducted by that evil Cultivator, who knew how anxious she was!

Fortunately, fortunately, before the evil Cultivator escaped the Jinling City territory, she successfully found and killed him, bringing back her little niece. This also upheld her reputation as the Second Division Head of the Shenxing Division.

"Leave all those matters to your father. I'm not here to be a clerk, hmph, my time is precious, of course, I have to spend it with my Ruanyao!"

Aunt smiled and rubbed her little niece's head, pulling her towards the lively area. "Alright, alright, let's not talk about these bothersome things when we're out having fun!"

Xu Ruanyao let her Aunt pull her along, her maids hurrying to keep up.

The young girl looked at Aunt's profile, which showed an excitement like that of a young girl, completely at odds with her mature and beautiful appearance. She always felt a strange sensation, that her Aunt was a bit too "free".

Her Aunt seemed even more childish than herself…

However, this kind of Aunt was also quite good…

Xu Ruanyao suppressed these strange emotions. In her heart, she actually felt quite warm.

She had been a bit gloomy these past few days because of her Golden Core Breakthrough failure. Her Aunt must have noticed, so she specifically took leave to take her out to play, hoping to help her get over the gloom sooner.

What did her Aunt take her for… it was just a Breakthrough failure, it wasn't like she couldn't accept it…

Xu Ruanyao wanted to show a helpless expression, but after keeping a straight face for a while, a smile finally appeared at the corner of her lips, and her eyes curved slightly.

"Come, look at this, do you like anything?"

Xu Ruanyao gently shook her head, and Aunt didn't mind, enthusiastically starting to pick things out at a stall.

Although she was a great Cultivator, her temperament was still like that of a young girl, fond of snacks and play.

Xu Ruanyao followed Aunt, ostensibly accompanying her, but at first, she would ask her a couple of questions, then she would just look around on her own.

It was hard to say whether the Aunt was taking the niece out, or the niece was accompanying the Aunt.

At the street corner, leftover snow was piled high. A lone early plum tree in the corner of the wall tremblingly stretched out its branches, revealing a few dots of vermilion. Occasionally, one could see a crooked snowman made by some child in an open space.

Listening to her Aunt's cheerful voice and seeing her happy look, much of Xu Ruanyao's frustration over her Breakthrough failure diminished.

"Aunt, why are you still like a child…?"

"You're the child! So disrespectful, is that how you talk to your Aunt? Hehe, Aunt is already an adult!"

"There's nothing bad about being a child."

"Hmm… there's nothing bad about being an adult either!"

"Really?"

Xu Ruanyao watched Aunt stuff a meatball into her mouth, her small face puffed out.

She chewed, refuting her words in a muffled voice.

Xu Ruanyao took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the corner of her Aunt's mouth. Aunt didn't dodge, her eyes narrowed with a smile, and then she put the meatball in her hand into her niece's hand.

"It is!"

Aunt replied with certainty.

Xu Ruanyao took the meatball and handed it to the maid waiting beside her. She had been educated since childhood and did not eat while walking. Aunt might not care, but she did.

Just as Xu Ruanyao was about to open her mouth to refute her Aunt, her peripheral vision seemed to catch something. She paused slightly, then looked up, but her view was still bustling.

"Hmm? What's wrong, little niece?"

Aunt blinked, tilted her head, and looked in the direction of Xu Ruanyao's gaze. Seeing nothing, she was a little puzzled.

"Nothing, maybe I saw wrong."

Xu Ruanyao withdrew her gaze and shook her head.

But for some reason, her heart started beating faster, as if she was about to encounter something special. She actively walked forward; before, Aunt had led her, but now she was leading Aunt.

Aunt frowned, looking at Xu Ruanyao's expression with some surprise. She said "nothing," but she was actually very concerned, wasn't she?

She shed her carefree demeanor and reverted to her mature and beautiful self.

As a great Cultivator of the Nascent Soul Stage, there was no one she dared not provoke in this land. If she really couldn't win, she could call for backup; behind her was the Empress of Kyushu!

Her Divine Sense surged, enveloping the entire street. Her gaze swept around, searching for any potential abnormalities.

After Xu Ruanyao experienced that crisis, she became somewhat sensitive to such things. Every time Xu Ruanyao went out, she, her "Dao Protector," would at least be by her side.

However… under the shroud of her Divine Sense, there was nothing strange about the market before her… and that was the strangest thing of all!

Aunt was already ready to call for help.

…

Lin Yi looked up at the sky, extending his hand. Without using spiritual power, his fingertips felt a chill penetrate his skin.

First, a few strands of snow drifted down with the cold wind, then large flakes of snow fluttered and scattered over this small northern city.

It was snowing.

Lin Yi withdrew his hand, not caring. Spiritual power swept over his body, and not a single snowflake remained on his shoulders.

The surrounding streets became increasingly lively. With the snow, most vendors began packing up their goods, preparing to leave. Only those with their own storefronts remained, enjoying the leisure of watching another heavy snowfall.

"It's cold…"

"This year is better than previous years…"

Faint complaints drifted. Although this was a world with spiritual power, for these Mortals, those were legendary matters. They might never leave Jinling City in their entire lives.

And the existence of Cultivators rarely had any benefit for productivity. They were often absorbed in pursuing the Dao; other things were not within their consideration.

Mortals? As long as they exist, as long as they can live.

A temperament like Xuanyuan Mingzhu's was indeed rare. Those in power always had "their own considerations," wanting to "start from the big picture." But shouldn't the big picture benefit the small picture? And isn't the small picture also for the big picture?

"Don't worry, things will get better and better…"

With them supporting Xuanyuan Mingzhu from behind, there was no need to consider checks and balances or opposition. For these common people, relying on Xuanyuan Mingzhu's character, things should indeed get better and better.

Lin Yi walked past, and the crowd naturally parted. On the other side, a young girl was pulling her Aunt, also heading this way.

Chapter 436: He Favors.

Xu Ruanyao stood still, staring at Lin Yi as he walked through the parting crowd.

Behind her, Aunt opened her mouth, about to ask why she had suddenly stopped, then followed her niece's gaze and saw the white-robed figure.

Lin Yi frowned, looking at Xu Ruanyao and Aunt's expressions, which were both unexpected and within expectation, a little surprised.

Logically, as a Dao Harmonizer, it should be impossible for his existence to be discovered by two youngsters who hadn't even reached Soul Transformation. But now, they had somehow sensed his arrival…

Never mind Aunt, but what was going on with Xu Ruanyao?

Sword's voice sounded in his ear, offering a brief explanation.

[As you save more Fairies and more worlds, a temperament that attracts these Fairies and Saintesses, or rather [Luck], will naturally gather on you.]

[The essence of this [Luck] is the world's hope for survival. As it grows stronger, these Fairies and Saintesses will be mutually attracted to you, like magnets. Unconsciously, you will seek them out, and they will also seek you out.]

[In Xu Ruanyao's case, it's probably her hallucination, having already sensed your arrival.]

Lin Yi's frown relaxed slightly. So it was a Stand User, they would attract each other.

As he continued to part the crowd and walk towards Xu Ruanyao and Aunt, who were standing still, he conversed with Sword in his mind.

[So, the essence of the System is the world's desire for survival?]

[Yes, hmm… let me put it this way: the Inner World is like a membrane covering the surface of the normal world. As time passes, this membrane will eventually completely change the world, like a渗透, completely integrating into this world.]

[At that time, the world will "die," and a new will be born on the corpse of the world. Can that be considered the original Him? It's hard to say…]

[This is somewhat similar to Theseus's Ship, right?]

Sword thought for a moment, then nodded. She hugged her knees, sitting deep within Lin Yi's Sea of Consciousness.

[Somewhat similar.]

[What about these Fairies and Saintesses? What kind of existence are they?]

Lin Yi already had a guess in his heart, but he still asked.

[If the Inner World is a membrane, they are the anchor points on this membrane, responsible for anchoring the membrane to the surface of the world, preventing the world's will from eradicating it.]

Lin Yi nodded, roughly as he had thought.

[Then, I have one more question.]

[Who exactly anchored this membrane to the surface of the world, right?]

Sword answered preemptively, seeming to have thought of something, her expression a little strange. Then, she shook her head again.

[I don't know, and the world doesn't know either. At some point, suddenly, He discovered this situation.]

[It's like a person who finds their clothes getting tighter and tighter, even gradually squeezing them into a ball of flesh. Would this person sit idly by?]

[He tried many methods, wanting to cut the clothes with scissors, wanting to corrode the clothes with chemicals… but all failed.]

[Just as He was about to despair, He suddenly discovered a new hope…]

[Me?]

[Yes, Master, it's you!]

[Actually, your appearance was earlier than when you were brought back to the Sword Sect by Pei Yuhan.]

[No… not earlier, because for Him, time is irrelevant. He discovered you countless years ago, or countless years later, and then placed you in that snowstorm, on the path Pei Yuhan was destined to take.]

[Then, He let Pei Yuhan discover you and bring you back to the Sword Sect.]

[And the reason why Master is hope is because Master possesses a special power, a power that can corrode this increasingly tight membrane, tearing open tiny gaps in it…]

[Is that also why I didn't activate the System until more than a decade later?]

[Yes, it wasn't until last year, after more than ten years of corrosion, that the power you unconsciously emitted finally opened a gap in the membrane, allowing Him to finally find an opportunity to create the "System."]

[The System's essence is a wish-granting machine, and its energy is His power. As you continuously save Fairies, save worlds, pull out anchor points, and clear the black mist, His power is also returning, and the power He can wield will become stronger, and the feedback He can give you will also increase.]

[He actually wanted to give you power exceeding that of a Dao Lord from the very beginning, but He couldn't… at that time, being able to provide Golden Core Realm power was already His limit.]

Sword spoke solemnly, as if defending Him.

Lin Yi was silent. Sword's words seemed to imply that He didn't intentionally make him walk this path and face these powerful enemies alone, and the favoritism and apology contained within were evident.

So… was He treating himself as some kind of foster mother figure?

This was what Lin Yi found particularly strange.

[Sword, why are you suddenly talking about these things today? Can you stop hiding it from me now?]

[Oh… no, how could Sword hide anything from Master?!]

Lin Yi could almost imagine Sword's flustered and adorable attempt to explain in his Sea of Consciousness, even her words carried a sense of urgency.

He just nodded calmly.

[It's just that He gave these things to Sword just now, which means He wants to tell you! Sword didn't hide anything from Master!]

Sword replied with certainty. She could perceive Lin Yi's emotions and knew that Lin Yi didn't mind and hadn't misunderstood her, so she felt relieved.

[Then, what else can I know? Tell me everything.]

[Mhm!]

Sword nodded obediently.

["Friend of Fairies" is a unique Buff, because it's your own power, He just activated it with His own power!]

[Of course, this is also His favoritism, because He has placed His hope, His love… all on you!]

[This is the world's favoritism!]

[The Great Sun Scripture and later the Path of Taiyin and Taiyang, even the Creation Realm, were all specially prepared for you by Him… you probably already guessed this…]

[Is it possible that I brought that membrane? You haven't said why I came to this world.]

Lin Yi suddenly spoke, interrupting Sword's words. The clear girlish voice in his ear abruptly stopped. After a long silence, Sword spoke again.

[Sword doesn't know, perhaps it is, perhaps it isn't… Sword and He have both considered this possibility, but ultimately felt it was impossible, because Master is just a child, isn't he? He doesn't have that kind of power.]