Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 493 The Little White Hair of Yesteryear

Hanlan City is under the jurisdiction of Hanlan Sect. The sect leader is named Zhang Liying. His son once harassed Long Qinghuang in the street and was directly beaten to a pulp by the mother tyrant.

Later, Lu Xingzhou and Ye Tinglan came again, and Zhang Liying came to their door again. This time, she sought refuge with Ye Tinglan and was taken in as an affiliated sect of the Tianyao Holy Land.

Ling Qixuan of the Ice Prison Sect is obsessed with the Ice Demon, so it's hard to judge his attitude towards Dugu Qingli. Zhang Liying, on the other hand, is much more reliable—everyone knows that Long Qinghuang and Ye Tinglan are mortal enemies, and he has a blood feud with Long Qinghuang for killing his son, so he will naturally cling to Ye Tinglan's coattails.

As for Lu Xingzhou, most people in the world shared Gu Zhanting's opinion regarding the Demon Emperor and the Holy Lord's rivalry for a man: it was either a rumor or, even if true, just a fling, and there wouldn't be any real close relationship. Only the people of Hanlan City were different; many of them had personally witnessed Lu Xingzhou taking Long Qinghuang and Ye Tinglan shopping for clothes in turn…

What kind of relationship would make the Demon Emperor and the Holy Master of Tianyao lower themselves to go shopping for clothes with a man? What kind of relationship would make them change out of their dragon robes and Taoist robes and wear the soft clothes of ordinary women for a man?

Actually, this was a wrong guess, because Lu Xingzhou's relationship with the two of them wasn't that close at that time, but it turned out to be a lucky coincidence.

Theoretically, the relationship between Hanlan Sect and Dugu Qingli is more direct. Lu Xingzhou holds no official position in Tianyao Holy Land, while Dugu Qingli is undoubtedly a Holy Maiden. Yet, despite the Holy Maiden's arrival at the affiliated sect being such a momentous occasion, Zhang Liying, who greeted them at the door, only kept bowing and scraping to Lu Xingzhou: "What wind has blown Lord Lu here? Hanlan Sect is truly honored..."

Who is this white-haired guy? I don't recognize him.

Long Qinghuang's hatred for killing her son? That has nothing to do with Lu Xingzhou. Even if it did, he couldn't afford to offend him, since he has more than one son.

Lu Xingzhou cut to the chase: "Sect Leader Zhang, you're too kind. The main reason I've come to bother you is to ask about the frequent earthquakes that have struck Frozen Moon Cold River in the past six months. The demon cities bordering it to the east have already begun to suffer from the disaster. I wonder how the earthquakes are felt in Cold Mist City?"

“That’s true. There have been frequent earthquakes in the past six months. At first, they were weak and no one paid much attention to them. But later they got stronger and stronger, and some houses collapsed here. Fortunately, no one was injured or killed,” Zhang Liying said. “I have personally investigated and can determine that the epicenter is in the central area of ​​Dongyue Hanchuan.”

Have you analyzed the reasons?

"As Your Excellency knows, the ice in the center of Hanchuan is too heavy, making it difficult for ordinary people to stay for long. Moreover, the ice layer is extremely solid, making it impossible to explore downwards. We are sorry for our incompetence, but we cannot find any problems... This matter has also been reported to the Lord Si, who sent people to investigate a few days ago, but they also found nothing."

Lu Xingzhou remained silent, lost in thought.

Dugu Qingli said, "Is there no one in Tianshuang Kingdom who can use divine sense to explore downwards?"

Zhang Liying said, "Of course we have it, but it hasn't reached the highest level. How far can our divine sense reach? The ice layer in the center of Hanchuan is particularly effective at blocking divine sense. Our cultivation is all ice-based, so we have a certain affinity with it and can go deeper. It is said that the demon race has also sent people to investigate. They will probably have a harder time investigating than us, unless the Demon Emperor comes in person."

So it's not that Long Ao and the others are useless; it's the unique geographical features of the central Hanchuan region that left them helpless.

Zhang Liying smiled obsequiously: "It seems that the Lord Si reported this to His Majesty the Holy Lord, which is why he sent Lord Lu and the Holy Maiden to investigate? With the two of you here, this matter will surely be resolved. Please feel free to give any instructions you may have for my cooperation."

Dugu Qingli kept a straight face, hardly daring to say that they had been commissioned by the Demon Emperor.

Oh no, the Demon Emperor didn't originally make a request. He originally wanted to come on his own, but Lu Xingzhou volunteered to go in place of his pregnant wife, and she, Little White Hair, became part of the couple's loving relationship.

Lu Xingzhou finally said, "Since Si Han has sent people to investigate, and you think they will investigate more thoroughly than the demon race... then write a letter to Si Han for me, and ask him to send the person who was in charge of this matter before to tell me about the situation."

Dugu Qingli looked at Lu Xingzhou with some confusion, feeling that Lu Xingzhou's caution was a bit excessive.

Why not just go and see for herself? Could Si Han's investigation be clearer than Dugu Qingli's own investigation? After all, Dugu Qingli's trip to Dongyue Hanchuan was truly home for her. She could probably penetrate places that others couldn't with their divine sense.

But Lu Xingzhou transmitted his voice, saying, "I can only let you go if I make sure it's not related to the Ice Demon. If it really is related to the Ice Demon, I'll have to summon the Master."

Dugu Qingli pursed her lips.

One of the reasons Master sent me out with Lu Xingzhou was to prevent me from going to Dongyue Hanchuan, but due to unforeseen circumstances, I still ended up here. Lu Xingzhou is taking responsibility for this.

His intentions were good, and he was a composed person... but was the person he was responsible for Dugu Qingli or Ye Tinglan?
"Never mind..." Dugu Qingli said indifferently, "Since I have nothing else to do, I'll take a stroll around Hanlan City."

Lu Xingzhou quickly replied, "I'll accompany you; I know this city well."

"No need, I came here for supplies when I was a child, so it's not unfamiliar to me."

Zhang Liying suddenly realized: "You...you wouldn't happen to be that little snow woman from more than ten years ago, would you?"

Dugu Qingli: "...What kind of address is that?"

Zhang Liying was a little embarrassed: "That's what we call her in private. Back then, a little girl with white hair and blue eyes came to the city. She was so cute and adorable that some people wanted to catch her as a pet, but she got hurt and ran away. She never appeared again. At the time, everyone said she was an ice and snow elf from Hanchuan, and some people said she was the incarnation of an ice demon."

Lu Xingzhou said with a stern face, "Is Sect Leader Zhang involved in the arrest...?"

"No, no, that's really not true. I only saw it from afar, and it had already run away by the time I got close."

Dugu Qingli ignored these words and silently left the Hanlan Sect's mountain gate, heading towards the city.

Lu Xingzhou then silently stayed by his side.

I feel so sorry for the little white-haired girl back then. Just thinking about that scene makes me want to hug her and comfort her.

After walking for a while, Dugu Qingli finally said, "Pity me?"

"Yeah. Kind of."

“From childhood to adulthood, I’ve never been very good at getting along with humans.” Dugu Qingli smiled, a rare occurrence. “You said I’m beautiful. Most women probably wouldn’t feel anything after hearing that, but for me, it’s quite… shocking. Putting aside your lewd thoughts, I have to thank you for that compliment.”

"I must emphasize that my evaluation is not at all lewd; it comes from the bottom of my heart."

"casual."

"Actually, they also said you were incredibly cute, like a porcelain doll." "It's a nice phrase, but it's used to describe pets and spirit beasts, not people." Dugu Qingli paused, "Although they weren't originally human either."

"After accepting the fact that I am the embodiment of the Ice Demon, have some of the things that troubled me before actually disappeared? It's like a feeling of giving up entirely?"

Dugu Qingli said calmly, "A little... Anyway, since we're not human, why care whether we can be like humans or how humans would evaluate us?"

"However, you would rather be a human being."

"Because I've considered myself a person for over a decade and have tried my best to prove it to people."

"My name is Dugu Qingli, I'm not a demon, remember that." The girl used to tell others this very seriously.

Lu Xingzhou suddenly realized that the transformation of the Ice Demon had a more severe impact on Dugu Qingli's heart than everyone had imagined.

No wonder that despite Ye Tinglan's repeated warnings against contacting the Ice Demon too early, Dugu Qingli still couldn't resist trying it out several times.

She once tried so hard to be a decent human being, diligently learning human thought, hoping to gain people's approval and acceptance, and even a kind word would move her deeply. In the end, everything collapsed; it turned out that it was all meaningless, and all those years of proof were nothing but a joke.

So it turns out it really wasn't human. What's the point of proving that?

It seems Ye Tinglan is good at teaching disciples cultivation, but not at raising children. Yuan Muyu and Dugu Qingli's cultivation is impeccable, but Yuan Muyu was raised poorly, and Dugu Qingli isn't much better.

At least, they haven't received proper comfort, and they have a knot in their hearts.

Perhaps it's because the world of cultivation prioritizes cultivation, so we can't entirely blame Ye Tinglan... In general, people with special attributes like Dugu Qingli should be cold-hearted and indifferent, and shouldn't care about the opinions of others.

Perhaps it's true if we say it now. But... she was just a child back then.

For a child, the feeling of being misunderstood by others because of their appearance is quite serious. Other children might become withdrawn because of this, but the little white-haired child is relatively less affected due to his/her appearance.

Ye Tinglan had briefly discussed this matter with Lu Xingzhou before. She believed that discrimination and exclusion from fellow disciples could cause the child to harbor resentment towards the sect, which would be detrimental to her physical and mental health. Placing her in Dongyue Hanchuan would not only be more suitable for her cultivation but also avoid this problem. Besides, Qingli's icy and aloof nature was inherently suited to working alone. At the time, Lu Xingzhou initially thought it made sense, but now, upon closer examination, he felt it was inappropriate.

There's no such thing as being suited to solitude... First and foremost, he's a child, and only then does he possess the icy nature.

Of course, it's hindsight to say this now. I didn't think much about it when I heard it back then, so there's nothing to say about Ye Tinglan.

The two walked silently for a while, feeling that Dugu Qingli's unusual desire to "stroll" was to fill some void from her childhood. Back then, she came to buy supplies but was ambushed, injured someone, and escaped. Now, as a saintess, she openly strode in, and no one dared to look her in the eye.

That's roughly how I feel, right?

After thinking for a moment, Lu Xingzhou finally spoke: "You don't need to prove anything to people."

Dugu Qingli said, "Yes, she is an ice demon after all."

Lu Xingzhou said, "That's not what I meant."

"That's what's called having a pure heart and a detached mind; one shouldn't care about what others think."

"It seems you've been instilled with quite a bit of this since you were little."

"That's right. True Master Tinglan is the best in the world, and Tianyao Holy Land is the most outstanding in the world. There are many people who understand cultivation and mind refinement."

"That's so sarcastic." Lu Xingzhou chuckled, "But that's not what I meant."

"Hmm?" Dugu Qingli finally turned to look at him: "What's that?"

Lu Xingzhou asked, "Do you know what Qinghuang was dressed like when I first met her?"

"It is said that she usually wears a golden dragon robe, the kind that shines with gold."

"Not only that, she also had gold patterns painted on her face."

Dugu Qingli: "..."

"I said to her at the time, wouldn't it be strange if people looked at her like that when she came and went in human society? Qinghuang said that's because other people don't know how to appreciate it. Isn't it beautiful? She only erased it later because she didn't want to attract too much attention."

Dugu Qingli's expression was somewhat strange, and she looked down at the road again.

Lu Xingzhou said leisurely, "That's the kind of confidence we should have. I look the best this way. If others say it's not good, it's because they don't know how to appreciate it. They're a bunch of idiots. Yuan Yao writes books and Chu Yun writes poems. They need to have this kind of spirit. Otherwise, if they take other people's random comments seriously, wouldn't they get so angry that they'll have breast engorgement? What's wrong with us having white hair and blue eyes? My Lu Xingzhou likes it very much. What do those mediocre people know about aesthetics?"

Dugu Qingli finally managed to utter, "Who is my home?"

"Don't worry about the details... In short, everyone knows that true friends are hard to find, and kindred spirits are even harder to come by. As long as the people you care about care about you, who cares about others? I don't even think they're human. Who would pay attention to me?"

After pondering deeply for a long time, Dugu Qingli concluded: "You're trying to seduce me."

Lu Xingzhou choked back all his words and didn't know how to answer for a long time.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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