Li Wanwan Vs Lan Suoya (2)

The wind was light, the sky was clear, and the sun shone down from the southwest corner, dyeing the eaves of the street with a layer of gold. In front of the rice shop, the dust rolled up, and a figure in green stood like a sculpture, with her sleeves swaying without wind, and her long hall drooping like a willow, her eyes calm and peaceful.

It was Lan Suoya.

She stood at the door, silent, but her eyes had already fallen on the familiar back in the store…

It was Pi Guang, standing side by side with a strange woman.

Li Wanwan's hand was holding the rice bag, and the smile was still hanging on the corner of her lips, but it gradually faded at that moment.

The one who moved faster than her was Pi Guang. He seemed to take a step forward instinctively, calling softly, "Lan Suoya."

The tone of his calling her name was not polite, but also not ordinary. Instead, it sounded like a sigh released after a long silence beneath the rain.

The moment the words left his mouth in that way, Li Wanwan's smile faded a little. Her hand, still gripping the rice sack, tightened ever so slightly.

Lan Suoya stepped inside, her green robes brushing the floor, her sash fluttering softly. She did not look at Li Wanwan, she had clearly seen her before, but she seemed to ignore her.

Looking only at Pi Guang, she asked coolly, "Why are you here?"

Pi Guang paused, then replied, "To buy some rice."

"I see." She nodded lightly, her voice devoid of concern. Her gaze shifted toward Li Wanwan and paused. "You came with her?"

Before he could answer, Li Wanwan stepped forward with a bow and a smile ever so polite but clearly empty. "Disciple Li Wanwan of the Li Clan. I happened to be out with my Master and came along."

"The Li Clan?" Lan Suoya's lips curved into the faintest smile. "A famous name indeed."

Their words were polite, yet tension crackled in the air. Only, Pi Guang couldn't notice the tension.

Li Wanwan raised an eyebrow.and suddenly spoke. "Suoya Immortal seems quite familiar with my family name?"

Lan Suoya's eyes flashed ever so slightly. "Of course. The Li family have gone to and from the Lan estate, delivering silk and leaving letters before my grandfather's altar." She really knew how to speak words that make one feel less. "Is it not?"

"Gifts of silk are customary for families below the Li family," Li Wanwan replied with a growing smile, replying just hot enough. "The letter was on behalf of my father."

Pi Guang attempted to speak because there was really no time to banter here and there over the Li and Lan family, but Li Wanwan was faster: "I'm his disciple, I call him Master. I can also deliver letters to the Lan family on his behalf too."

"Master?" Lan Suoya's voice lifted. "Senior Guang, you've taken a disciple?"

Pi Guang was silent. After a moment, he said, "She insisted on calling me that."

Lan Suoya turned to look at him. Her gaze was as gentle as water, but carried the edge of a blade. "She insists, and you agree? Do you understand what such a title means in our cultivation world?"

Pi Guang lowered his gaze and did not answer. He knew what she meant, and he had no defense. Twenty years ago, she had been the granddaughter of one of his own master. As a child, she often played by his knee, and later trained in Lingfeng Sect. Though not his direct disciple, she carried a thread of true inheritance.

Their bond was more than just friendship between him and Lan Suoya; it was… soul-bound, it became soul bound when her grandfather wrote his name in a talisman and hers beside.

So, Lan Suoya meant by her words that if anyone should be his disciple, it should be her and not some Li wanwan of the Li family.

Li Wanwan observed the familiarity between the two, her eyes flickering and smile deepening. "If Suoya Immortal believes I'm unworthy to be his disciple, why not say so plainly? Instead of speaking in riddles."

Lan Suoya's expression changed slightly. "You don't know who he is. He was my grandfather's favourite in the temple who he used to give words of wisdom, and you were not even born at that time."

"All I know is that he means a lot to the Li Clan," Li Wanwan answered, enunciating each word clearly, like pearls falling onto jade. "And I give myself away to him to teach me the path, lead me in conduct. In cultivation, worthiness comes from the heart, not the name."

Pi guang stood between them, visibly stiffening. But their exchange flowed like a tide, impossible to stop.

Lan Suoya's smile didn't reach her eyes. Her gaze turned once more to Pi Guang. "You'll just let her speak so freely?"

Pi Guang frowned faintly. "She's not wrong."

Lan Suoya was silent for a long moment before saying, "Come back with me to the mountain. Grandfather, no, Master… wishes to see you. You seldom come to see him after these years."

Pi Guang's heart trembled slightly. He thought of that now-aged man, no longer even stepping onto the Immortal Platform. A wave of guilt passed through him, but he nodded. "Alright."

Li Wanwan's expression shifted, but she said nothing.

Pi Guang continued. "Now that I think of seeing him, I have something to ask him. I'll go when I have time."

"Why not today?" she asked gently. "Come with me. Let her carry the rice back to the sect where a disciple should be."

Before Pi Guang could respond, Li Wanwan suddenly stepped forward and embraced him.

It was a hug.

It came suddenly and without any warning.

She leaned her face against his shoulder and said naturally. "Just now a flying insect came towards you, I was afraid it would bite you."

Then, she slowly let go and smiled obediently. "Master, I will protect you. After all, you have done a lot for my Li family, and I will remember it in my heart."

After the words fell, the surroundings were quiet.

Lan Suoya's fingertips trembled slightly, and her palms clenched. She said coldly. "Senior Guang paid merit points to your Li family, that is the favor you owe, but you know, my family also did a lot for him." Before she finished speaking, Lan Suoya's feet tilted, her body was unstable, and she suddenly fell down.

Pi Guang was startled, and almost subconsciously pushed Li Wanwan away and picked up Lan Suoya.

"Where are you hurt?" he asked in a low voice, his eyes full of anxiety and distress.

Lan Suoya lay in his arms, her black hair hanging down, smiling at the corners of her lips without saying a word.

At this moment, it was Li Wanwan's turn for her expression to change.

Her hug had been deliberate, a provocation for Lan Suoya. But Lan Suoya's fall, whether real or staged, had put her in an even more intimate position: in his arms, face close, held like someone precious. Not just that, Pi Guang didn't want to let go.

He had actually felt a thousand tiny snake dragons inside of his stomach twirl when he held Lan Suoya close. What was this? Could it be the Soul Pill acting up? Or the thousands of dragons that had all forced themselves into his mouth?

His hands tightened around her as he suddenly felt the natural energy of everything. It totally felt like from here while holding Lan Suoya, he could make a grain of rice rise from a bag, floating into the air and then cause it to breathe like it was alive. Without touching it.

Pi Guang suddenly frowned at his own foolish thoughts that came out of nowhere. What kind of cultivation was that? Raising a grain of rice to life like it was dead?!!

Immediately, he noticed the pendant tied to Lan Suoya's neck that dropped on her chest. "This…"

"Brother Li Tang? You are also here?" Li Wanwan raised her voice quickly and called out, interrupting what he was about to say.

The name rang out like a bell in the quiet street.

Hearing the familiar name, Pi Guang looked up, surprised. Lan Suoya's gaze sharpened. And Li Wanwan had already taken a step toward the man, wearing that same poised, unreadable smile.

Li Tang??!!