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Unfortunately for them, the little Stranger seemed to have noticed their malice as well. It rarely left the Celestial Spring, and even if it did, it took care to walk around them. As a result, Innocent Miao and her group wasted a whole day trying and failing miserably to capture it.

The only reason they succeeded in the end was because Innocent Miao exploited the little Stranger’s kindness and used herself as bait.

Speaking of which, the reason Ye Qing did not stop Innocent Miao immediately was one, he wanted to know what they planned to do with the little Stranger, and two, to teach the little Stranger a small lesson.

After all, he could protect it for a time, but he could not protect it forever.

He had thought of taking the little Stranger with him, but he quickly gave up the idea. For one, the little Stranger might not be willing to go with him. Two, he was hardly going on an idyllic, relaxing adventure. He knew full well that there was a high chance he might die during this journey, and his act of kindness might very well doom the little Stranger as well.

Finally, the little Stranger was a kind, innocent soul. He did not think it would be the best idea to expose it to the cruelties and filthiness of the world.

Sure, the little Stranger would be lonely and sad at the Celestial Spring, but compared to the million other worse tragedies out there, it was almost a blessing and a kindness. Ye Qing resolved to spend some time with the little Stranger if he managed to come back alive.

In any case, this was why he didn’t rescue it from Innocent Miao’s clutches immediately. It would be terribly sad if it did not live long enough for him to return. As horrible as it might be, the lesson would teach the little Stranger to be wiser, and it would survive the guile of men long enough for him to return.

On a related note, he hadn’t planned on killing Innocent Miao and her men at the beginning. Tempted he might be, he only wanted to teach them a harsh lesson in reality. It wasn’t until they treated the little Stranger and Wang Shengkui the way they did that he actually indulged his impulse.

He had killed Tong Chuan and the others to take revenge for the little Stranger, but he had left the mastermind and cruelest villain of them all, Innocent Miao, alive. That was because he wanted to use her as a warning to Dragonrider Mountain.

As for why he scoured Innocent Miao’s soul, that was to dig up information regarding Dragonrider Mountain and see if they were strong or not. If they weren’t, then he didn’t mind paying Dragonrider Mountain a visit. He would be able to hone his strength and take revenge for the little Stranger, effectively killing two birds with one stone.

As for Hanxue, he didn’t kill her because one, he needed someone to bring the message back to Dragonrider Mountain, and two, she was the only person out of everyone in the group who harbored good will toward the little Stranger.

It was also why he let her leave without harming a hair on her person.

If Innocent Miao was a representative of the malice of humankind, then Wang Shengkui was the opposite.

Wang Shengkui was willing to throw away his pride and even his life for a Stranger. To say that he was impressed would be an understatement. He knew he would never be able to lower himself like Wang Shengkui had, and for that, he held only the utmost respect for the man.

But of course, he did not envy Wang Shengkui like Innocent Miao. One of the worst things one could do in life was to envy another’s goodness with their malice.

Goodness and sincerity were some of the most beautiful qualities in this world. They should be cherished, not envied or destroyed.

Ye Qing knew deep down that he did not possess either quality, but he could at least strive toward it.

One should always face toward the light.

After Ye Qing surfaced from his thoughts, he looked at the little Stranger still trapped inside the Dragon Subjugating Net and teased, “I saved your life, you know. Shouldn’t you at least offer me your thanks?”

When the little Stranger did not respond, Ye Qing shrugged and opened up the net. He gently placed it on the ground next to the net and patted its tiny head.

“You can go home now, little one. Make sure you don’t fall for a ploy like that ever again.”

It was only now the little Stranger seemingly jolted back to reality. It abruptly disappeared and reappeared inside the Celestial Spring.

Right now, it was completely hidden under the water. Only its single lotus leaf was floating on the water surface. No one would even notice the lotus leaf if they weren’t paying attention, not to mention the pair of eyes hidden beneath it.

The pair of clear, pure eyes were currently examining Ye Qing with doubt and puzzlement. While harboring equally clean thoughts in his mind, Ye Qing slowly made his way to the shore and said to the little Stranger, “Don’t worry. I won’t capture you. Instead, do you want to be friends?”

The little Stranger’s eyes lit up, and its submerged head slowly rose out of the water. Its cute, round eyes seemed to be shining with happiness.

“I’ll take your silence as a yes. Since we’re friends now, I have a gift for you. I hope you would enjoy it.”

Ye Qing produced a small bottle of Nature’s Water from his Nature’s Shell. It was also his last bottle.

The Nature’s Water was a priceless treasure for both humans and Strangers, so he thought it would be useful for the little Stranger as well.

“I’m leaving it here. Feel free to take it whenever you want.”

Ye Qing placed the bottle at the lakeshore before rising to his feet. He then said with gentle eyes, “I’m leaving now, little one. Take care.”

A hint of loneliness and sorrow flickered in the little Stranger’s eyes when it heard this.

“Don’t worry. I will return,” Ye Qing assured it. “My name is Ye Qing. Ye for Leaf, and Qing for Green. I look forward to our reunion.”

With that, Ye Qing waved his hand and took off toward the sunset.

Inside the Celestial Spring, after Ye Qing was completely out of sight, the little Stranger finally swam over to the bottle that was almost as large as its own head and hugged it tight against its chest. Then, a crisp, melodious giggle that warmed the soul broke the silence.

The little Stranger was very happy today. For the first time in a very, very long time, it finally met someone who could see it and was willing to speak with it.

It was also the first time in a long time that someone had given him a gift and asked to become friends with it.

That was why it was very, very happy.

However, its happiness soon devolved into sorrow. After all, the new friend it just made was leaving.

He said he would return, but it did not know if he would.

A long, long time ago, the man who created this spring and left him here also promised that he would return one day. He promised that he would take him on a journey, show him all the mountains and rivers the world had to offer, bask in the soothing rays of dawn and sunset, and even pluck the moon from the nine heavens.

That was why the little Stranger stayed at the Celestial Spring every day. It was because it hoped that one of the travelers who visited the spring would be the man he was waiting for so, so long, and it was unwilling to leave even for a moment for fear of missing the man.

The man was also the reason it loved listening to the tales of the jianghu. It was hoping to hear about the man from one of the stories.

But despite its long wait, the man never returned.

Was it because the man had forgotten about him? Was it because he had found a new friend? Or was it because he was delayed by something?

It did not know, but it knew it was very sad and lonely.

Still, it finally met someone who was willing to speak with him, give him gifts, and become its friend, so it wasn’t all bad.

But now, its new friend was leaving as well.

Sure, its new friend promised that he would come back to see it, but would he really keep his promise? Or would he forget about him and their promise like the one before?

The little Stranger thought long and hard. In the end, it held the bottle tight, jumped out of the water, and chased after its new friend.

Many, many years ago, it had simply watched its friend leave, and its friend had never returned.

This time, it was going to leave with its new friend. This way, it wouldn’t have to wait anymore.

It would travel together with its new friend and search for its old friend.

It had waited long enough.

This time, it wouldn’t wait anymore.