“I believe your potential has been greatly underestimated by others.”
“Of course, I also know that you’re intentionally playing dumb. Although I don’t know why you’re doing this, every day I spend with you, I discover something new about you…”
“Perhaps this is also the joy I find in wanting you to stay on Ranmo Peak.”
….
….
The praise Yino had received from Yuyan in the past half hour was almost ten times more than all the compliments he had received since coming to the Sect.
Honestly, Yino was truly flattered. He didn’t know what had come over Yuyan, suddenly pouring out her heart with such emotion, making it seem as if this Snow Village mission was some kind of life-and-death farewell.
Yino had the complete strategy guide for the [Snow Village Mission], and originally he was just going to the village with the mindset of taking advantage of an easy task, not feeling nervous at all. But after being praised so emotionally by Yuyan while she stroked his face, Yino felt a bit uneasy, as if Yuyan had unknowingly planted many red flags above his head.
It was very strange. Yino hadn’t done anything special, just spent some time living with Yuyan on Ranmo Peak, chatting and playing chess occasionally.
-How had Yuyan suddenly come to value me so much?-
Could it be…
“Could it be that Senior Sister has guessed your divine identity, and that’s why she’s looking at me with such new eyes?” Yino wondered as he walked along the mountain path, absentmindedly rubbing the cheeks of the little deer beside him.
Wangxue, taken aback by the caressing, felt her entire face crushed into a ball, staring at Yino with eyes that appeared curiously resentful, like a little steamed bun.
When they first came up the mountain, Yino had already instructed Wangxue to keep a low profile and not reveal her identity as a divine deer. So these days, Wangxue had been concealing the colors on her antlers, pretending to be an ordinary little snow deer.
Logically, Yuyan shouldn’t have been able to see through her true identity.
“Yino, you’re walking too fast! Wait for me!”
In the meantime, the girl in the green dress had been running to catch up, finally reaching Yino halfway down Ranmo Peak.
She supported herself on her knees, panting lightly.
Seeing how tired she was, having just climbed Ranmo Peak and now descending again without much rest, Yino thoughtfully took out a water bottle from his chest.
“Senior Sister, have some water.”
“Ah! Thank you…”
Yunjin, being pure-minded, didn’t hesitate to accept the water bottle.
Because when she was a guest on Ranmo Peak, Yino had poured hot tea, causing Yunjin to wait a long time without taking more than a few sips. Now that she finally had some cool water, Yunjin was truly thirsty and took a big gulp from the bottle.
However, she quickly remembered something and took the bottle away from her mouth, as her face blushed.
But just as she took it away, there were still two strands of saliva hanging from the bottle’s mouth.
“I, I didn’t mean to…” Yunjin lowered her head in embarrassment, quickly taking out a handkerchief to wipe the bottle clean.
But after Yino took back the water bottle, he only hesitated for a moment before taking a small sip in front of Yunjin: “It’s no big deal, as long as the bottle mouth is wiped clean. I don’t mind, after all, Wangxue often licks this bottle when drinking too.”
He said casually, also bringing up the little deer beside him to ease the atmosphere.
“Meh?” Wangxue raised her cute face, tilting her head at Yino, feeling that not being able to speak human language was really a disadvantage!
For a moment, Yunjin, caught in the middle, felt that her own startled reaction was the strangest.
She was going to say something, her cheeks still crimson, but before she could, her gaze was diverted to the expressive little deer next Yino.
“By the way, Young Master hasn’t introduced this… um, is this little deer called Wangxue?”
Yunjin struggled with her wording, even though it was just an ordinary little deer, her mind inexplicably associated it with some childhood memories.
Speaking of Wangxue, Yino was about to introduce her.
But at that moment, he noticed Yunjin crouching down in front of the little deer, the two silently gazing at each other as if communicating something.
After a moment of silence, Yunjin nodded as if she understood something:
“I see, so Wangxue is Young Master’s best friend in the whole world, and you’ve never shared a bottle with Young Master… Is Young Master bull-bullying you because you can’t speak human language…?”
Yunjin recited the little deer’s thoughts, but her voice grew softer and softer, her cheeks once again flushing red hot.
She carefully turned to observe Yino’s expression, while Yino smiled awkwardly and spread his hands, saying calmly, “Well, I was just worried you’d feel bad… Look, we’re fellow disciples, and in the future when we’re on the battlefield fighting against evil cultivators, at that time of life and death, having anything to drink would be good enough. So why bother about these small things now?”
“Don’t worry! Yunjin understands Young Master’s good intentions!”
She nodded with seriousness in her eyes, though her cheeks remained rose red.
As she finished speaking, she crouched down again, gently stroking the little deer’s face;
“Hello, my name is Yunjin! I’m Young Master Yino’s senior sister. Can Wangxue be good friends with Yunjin too?”
“Meh!”
Yunjin smiled brightly, and with her green clothes and white hair, she really did match well with the mountain snow deer.
Happy to have made a new friend, Wangxue also raised her antlers and hummed a little tune.
Suddenly, Yino seemed to realize something.
In the game, Yunjin, as a character with a medical profession, had an innate talent for resonating with the hearts of various small animals in the mountains.
Now, she had clearly already communicated across languages with the nine-colored deer!
Thinking of his own Wangxue’s naive and simple personality, Yino quickly awakened the contract inscription on the back of his hand and reminded through his thoughts:
[Wangxue, it’s fine to make friends, but don’t foolishly reveal your identity!]
[But, Wangxue knows her…]
In the thought channel, the nine-colored deer reluctantly answered softly.
Over these days, as Yino and Wangxue got more in sync, they both gradually became more proficient with the contract inscription.
Although Wangxue still wasn’t skilled at speaking out loud, at least she had learned to express thoughts in the thought channel.
[Wait, you say you know her?]
Yino raised an eyebrow slightly, once again looking with confusion at the ahoge girl crouching in front of the little deer full of gentleness.
At this moment, Yunjin also looked up, saying happily:
“Young Master, Wangxue is so cute!”
Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly noticed the contract inscription on the back of Yino’s hand: “Oh, so Wangxue is Young Master’s contracted spirit?”
“The contract is just a binding of identity. In fact, over these years, I’ve long since regarded Wangxue as family, which is why I brought Wangxue along when I came to Wuji Sect.”
Yino smiled gently, somewhat evasively pulling down his sleeve to cover the inscription on the back of his hand.
He was naturally making this up, but whether true or false, these words made Wangxue’s deer body tremble.
-Fa… family…-
-Does Wangxue already have a family?!-
The little deer’s eyes sparkled with stars, its ears drooping down, and even her small gaze towards Yino seemed a bit overwhelmed.
In fact, many times, she couldn’t understand Yino’s behavioral logic at all.
She only knew that Yino had saved her, and he seemed to be very clever and far-sighted… And as the best friend in the whole world, when Wangxue felt confused, believing in Yino was never wrong!
“I see, as expected of a noble family like the Grand Tutor’s Mansion, to have contracted a spirit beast for you before coming to Wuji Sect.”
Yunjin nodded without feeling any doubt in his lie.
Compared to the night they first met, she seemed to be less surprised now.
After all, contracting a snow deer wasn’t that extraordinary; basically, any ordinary beast-taming cultivator in Wuji Sect could do it.
What really made Yunjin a bit envious was that this little deer named Wangxue had such excellent qualities. Not only was it imbued with powerful spiritual energy, but her personality was also obedient and sensible, simply the ideal elegant and beautiful snow deer princess!
“That’s right, but Senior Sister Yunjin seems so touched. Did you resonate with some information from Wangxue?” Yino asked casually, pretending to be unconcerned, but his cold eyes flashed an imperceptible chill.
Beside him, Wangxue’s originally warm expression was startled by the sudden chill from behind.
Life is not easy, the little deer sighed.
Although Wangxue didn’t want to admit it, she truly felt that Yino’s quick change of face and dark, cold smile were exactly like that bad fox from that night, and could even be said to have quite a marital resemblance…
“Young Master is indeed sharp-eyed, no little thoughts can be hidden from you…”
Amidst the casual conversation, Yunjin’s smile also fell into silence.
She bit her lip, reluctantly patted the little deer one last time, then stood up and said with an embarrassed smile: “It’s not that I resonated with anything specific, just that Wangxue reminded me of a beautiful childhood memory…”
“A childhood memory?”
Yino’s expression became more serious.
He roughly knew that Yunjin was from a village, raised by her grandparents since she was little, but because Yunjin was killed off too early in the game, Yino had never heard her personal story.
“It’s just a childhood story of a village kid… if Young Master is interested in hearing it…”
Speaking of her past, Yunjin couldn’t help but smile a bit shyly.
After all, she was just a child who grew up in a small mountain village, and her life was really too unsophisticated compared to that of a young master from the Grand Tutor’s Mansion.
Yino smiled faintly: “We can talk while we walk. The road down the mountain is still long, it’ll help pass the time.”
“Mm! Then I’ll start, Young Master, please don’t fall asleep while listening!” The girl put her hands behind her back and smiled apologetically.
Yino waved his hand: “Don’t worry, Sister Yuyan lectures me every day like she’s chanting sutras, and I’ve never fallen asleep. How could your story be more boring than chanting sutras?”
Yunjin covered her mouth and giggled at his joke.
After a moment of laughter, her beautiful eyes turned to gaze at the northern mountains, brewing memories, and she began softly:
“When I was little, I lived with my grandparents in a small village at the foot of Northern Luo Snow Mountain”
“When I was only three years old, my grandfather suddenly fell seriously ill. The village doctor said that only an herb growing on the Northern Luo Cliff could cure this kind of illness…”
“The villagers all said that unless you were a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, ordinary people couldn’t climb the cliff under the extreme cold storm… So, they said grandfather’s illness definitely couldn’t be cured, unless a deity appeared…”
“But my grandmother was stubborn. She just wouldn’t give up and was determined to try for grandfather’s sake…”
“Later, on a snowy night, after lulling the young me to sleep, grandmother packed her bag and set off alone up Northern Luo Snow Mountain to find the medicine for grandfather…”