Chapter 99: 82. Confession to the Beautiful Master! The Inner Stirrings of the Fairy Hongling (7K words)_2
Lin Xiao's old face flushed red, and he shook his head. "Stop it, Yingying! These are supposed to be the best years of your life. You should be focusing on diligent cultivation to attain The Great Path sooner, not these... indecent, irrational things! Understand?"
Before his ascension to immortality, he felt it necessary to steer his Junior Sister back onto the right path, to prevent her from straying.
Of course, that was only one reason.
The biggest reason was...
This girl was merely sitting on his lap, yet he was already finding it hard to restrain himself!
"Eldest Senior Brother, Yingying doesn't want to listen to your reasoning…"
"Here! This is for you! Perhaps after Eldest Senior Brother sees it, you will... understand Yingying's feelings! Yingying doesn't want to hear anything else!"
Tears streamed down Lu Yingying's face as she took a glittering object from her pocket. Holding it carefully with both hands, she presented it to Lin Xiao.
"This... what kind of ring is this?"
Lin Xiao felt compelled to reach out and take the ring. It was woven from various Spirit Flowers and Spirit Grasses and enveloped by a potent, auspicious, life-giving aura.
"Eldest Senior Brother, do you remember when we were young? You took me back to the Lu Family's land to help me eliminate my inner demon by killing that Black Winged Demon Hawk."
"Hmph, that's all in the past. Why bring it up? You're an excellent Beastmaster now. Eldest Senior Brother is very pleased." Lin Xiao waved his hand dismissively.
"Yes, but does Eldest Senior Brother know?" Lu Yingying's small face blushed as she continued, "In our hometown… when a girl is approaching marriageable age, if she personally makes a ring and gives it to a boy, it means she has already given him her heart and will be faithful until death!"
"And if the boy doesn't agree..."
"What happens then?" The corner of Lin Xiao's eye twitched. He had a strong feeling this little minx was playing a very deep game!
"The girl will remain alone for the rest of her life, never marrying! Or…"
With those words, she rested her head on Lin Xiao's chest again, cupping his handsome face with her hands as she murmured, "She kills the one she loves, then herself! That way, they can be together forever in the next world!"
What the hell!?
What kind of twisted affection was this!?
Even a degenerate like him found this utterly perverse!
Lin Xiao was so creeped out he almost jumped to his feet.
"Eldest Senior Brother, don't misunderstand…" Seeing the drastic change in Lin Xiao's expression, Lu Yingying quickly hugged him gently. "Yingying loves Eldest Senior Brother so much! Yingying would never do anything to harm Eldest Senior Brother!"
"Eldest Senior Brother, did you know? To make this Sky Heart Ring, Yingying pored over countless ancient texts, consulted with over a hundred Spirit Artisans in the sect, and gathered the essence of more than three hundred kinds of Spirit Flowers and Spirit Grasses!"
"I originally planned to give it to you before you left for Canglan City, but I never expected…"
"Eldest Senior Brother completely forgot about Yingying… BOO HOO HOO…"
Memories of that day flooded her mind again, and the young woman couldn't stop herself from covering her face and bursting into tears.
"Alright, Yingying, Eldest Senior Brother was indeed in the wrong about that. I've already apologized. Please don't be angry anymore, okay?"
Deeply touched, Lin Xiao grasped the ring—a token of her love—and proactively reached out to encircle the young woman's slender waist.
"Mm, I'm not angry anymore… If Eldest Senior Brother says Yingying isn't angry, then Yingying isn't angry!" Lu Yingying wiped her tears, pursed her lips, and asked shyly, "So, Eldest Senior Brother, are you willing… to accept this ring?"
"I…"
Lin Xiao's heart skipped a beat.
He certainly knew what this meant.
Accepting this ring was tantamount to accepting her!
And he was destined to achieve immortality and leave eventually. If he accepted her, enjoyed her affection, and then just ran off, wouldn't that make him a complete scumbag?
Unless something unexpected happened during the Five Branches Tournament…
An astonishing thought surfaced in Lin Xiao's mind.
"Yingying," Lin Xiao said, gritting his teeth and looking intently at the young woman before him. "The Five Branches Tournament is in a few days. Your Eldest Senior Brother still has to go and crush that damn Ye Chen, right? Can we discuss this matter later, okay?"
His statement indeed contained an element of a gamble.
He hadn't explicitly refused, nor had he accepted.
Everything would depend on how the plot of the Five Branches Tournament unfolded.
Hearing his words, Lu Yingying paused, slightly taken aback, then suddenly said, "Eldest Senior Brother, actually, have you ever considered… that you might not actually… Oh, never mind."
At that moment, she desperately wanted to tell her Eldest Senior Brother that Ye Chen was protected by destiny's mandate; in the Five Branches Tournament, that cur was fated to win!
But…
Looking into the gentle yet resolute eyes of the man she loved, how could she bear to tell him?
"Alright, it's a promise then!" After a moment of contemplation, Lu Yingying suddenly chuckled softly. "Eldest Senior Brother, Yingying will wait for your answer after the Five Branches Tournament!"
Yes, if the plot proceeded normally, during the duel between Eldest Senior Brother and Ye Chen, he would fly into an explosive rage and use a Forbidden Treasure. Afterward, Master would send him to the Cliff of Reflection, where he would endure the contempt of his senior martial sisters.
And she, Lu Yingying, only needed to become the sole light in Eldest Senior Brother's life then, infusing warmth into his being, and everything would fall into place!
As long as she could marry Eldest Senior Brother and have a bunch of super-cute babies, what did it matter if they had to stay on the Cliff of Reflection for a lifetime?
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became. The blush on her face deepened, lending her young, made-up face a captivating beauty that belied her age, making her incredibly alluring.
"Mm-hmm, that's a good girl." Lin Xiao patted his Junior Sister's small face.
He thought he had managed to navigate this romantic tribulation for the day.
He never expected, however, that Lu Yingying would stand up from his lap and, enunciating each word carefully, ask:
"Then, before that, can Eldest Senior Brother answer Yingying directly just once: do you like Yingying?"