Sima Rong doesn't plan to seize power, and I can't persuade him with my current status. In case it doesn't go well and Sima Rong isn't incited successfully, my identity will be exposed to Mo Qing, which is not profitable at all.
So I briefly mentioned a few things about the scabbard with him, then sat on the side playing with the wood. Mo Qing and Sima Rong entered the workshop together, and Mo Qing instructed me, "I have something to discuss with the West Mountain Lord. Wait outside for now."
I smiled understandingly and gently, "Okay, Master."
The workshop door closed.
I was full of curiosity.
Before this, I went to the Book Pavilion in Chen Ji Mountain, and I heard about the disposal of the Northern Mountain Lord. I thought Mo Qing wouldn't have anything to avoid me now. But apparently there's still something here.
Thinking about Sima Rong's gentle attitude towards Mo Qing and the endearing "Chen Lan"... and then connecting Sima Rong leaving Chen Ji Mountain with Mo Qing firmly taking the position of Lord, I couldn't help but... speculate a bit?
Initially, when Mo Qing killed me, the position of Lord should have been his, but in order to secure that position, he would have needed someone to assist him.
The Northern Mountain Lord Yuan Jie still has some resentment towards Mo Qing and wouldn't help him. The Southern Mountain Lord Gu Han Guang is indifferent and doesn't like to get involved in other matters. The Eastern Mountain Lord is a bit insane, and I haven't seen her for a year. I haven't seen her since I left the forbidden area. She probably cried a lot after my death and then disappeared.
The only person who could help Mo Qing and become a strong ally is Sima Rong.
But he was the most likely person to inherit the position of Lord, yet he willingly assists Mo Qing...
The more I thought about it, the more curious I became. Just then, a "thud" came from inside, as if something had fallen on the ground.
Oh my, did they accidentally bump into something? What exactly are they doing in there? I tried to use a remote viewing spell to look inside, but all I saw was a pitch-dark mass. Mo Qing must have used his magic to block my line of sight.
Unable to see, I felt bored and had to find a chair to sit on the side. As soon as I sat down, I found a way to listen to the corner.
I took off Zhiyan's body and floated out. Qin Qianxian, who usually practices the Bodhisattva's path, was not here today, so I could easily pass through the ordinary boundary. But just as I was about to float over there, I suddenly heard a rebuke in my ear: "Stop!"
I was startled and looked to the side, but saw no difference around the room compared to before. The wooden people were all minding their own business, except for... a white-clad female ghost hanging upside down from the high ceiling, slowly dropping down.
Fortunately, I had been to the ghost market many times before and had seen all sorts of strange ghosts, so if Zhiyan were here today, she would have been really scared.
The white-clad female ghost stood in front of me and stopped me. "What kind of ghost are you?"
I held my hands together and squinted slightly. Sima Rong's house seemed nice at first glance, but it turned out to be a haunted house. Did he break his leg after moving here because of this female ghost? I looked the female ghost up and down. She had a round face and almond-shaped eyes, and except for being too pale, she looked like a cute young girl. She didn't seem like an evil ghost and couldn't harm anyone.
Seeing that I didn't answer her, she didn't seem afraid of me. The little girl frowned and walked around me, then pointed at Zhiyan. "Did you steal her body?"
"No," I said calmly. "She gave it to me willingly."
The little girl was stunned for a moment, then frowned again and scolded, "Nonsense! How could someone willingly give you their body? What kind of ghost are you? Why are you here?"
I tilted my head and smiled, "What's it to you?" With that, I ignored her and went straight through her body to listen to the corner. But as I was about to pass through the door, the little girl suddenly dashed in front of me, surprising me with her speed.
"Are you trying to hurt Arong?" she shouted. I was a bit stunned by her shout, and when I heard her call Sima Rong by his name, was she familiar with my master from Xishan? Since she seemed to be an acquaintance, there was no harm in revealing my identity.
"I..."
"Nobody can hurt him!"
The little girl interrupted me, and suddenly a burst of force pushed me next to Zhiyan's body.
I blinked and felt a bit incredulous.
Just now...
This little girl had actually pushed away my ghostly form?
I turned to look at her and saw a flickering of black and white energy around her, staring at me. Her eyes seemed to be focused elsewhere as she said to herself, "No one can hurt him. I will protect him." Her aura was like she was about to turn into an evil spirit.
Just now, she seemed fine... Did she think I was going to hurt Sima Rong? Did that touch on her bottom line, causing her to get angry? She cared so much about Sima Rong? But I didn't remember Sima Rong having such a woman by his side. I frowned and asked her, "What's your relationship with Sima Rong?"
"Sima Rong?" Her face of animosity faded, and she stared at me with a trace of confusion. "Who is Sima Rong..."
I was a bit puzzled. "You want to protect Arong, aren't you? Don't you know his name?"
She stood still, with a dazed look and kept muttering Sima Rong's name silently, "I don't know." She murmured, "I don't know, I have forgotten... who he is and what is the relationship between us... I have forgotten..." Her appearance had a touch of madness.
I felt like I had learned something new. So... even ghosts could go insane...
Seeing her like this, I didn't ask further, to avoid accidentally touching on her obscure emotions and causing her to go down the path of becoming a malevolent ghost like before.
At that moment, the gate creaked open, and Mo Qing walked out, with Sima Rong pushing a wheelchair behind him. Mo Qing glanced at Zhi Yan's body, and Sima Rong also looked over, asking, "Is she asleep?"
Hearing him speak, Zhi Yan turned her little round face in that direction, gazing directly at Sima Rong's face. Her expression changed, "A Rong, Sima Rong... I won't forget, I will protect you..." She continued, her gaze fixed on me, "I won't allow you to hurt him! I won't let anyone hurt him in front of me again!"
Her aggressive demeanor startled me, and I felt unfairly accused, "Who said I would hurt him!"
At this point, it was evident that she could no longer listen to anyone's words and charged towards me.
I tried to move aside, but even with my spirit-enhanced body, I couldn't escape as quickly as a fierce ghost bound to this place. I felt a surge of hostility pass through my chest, experiencing a pain as if I were still alive.
The vivid and long-lost pain distracted me for a while. But when I turned around, the angry little round-faced ghost seemed to be coming towards me again.
This was a chaotic situation. Heaven knew if she would knock me out of my senses! I stepped back and ended up falling into Zhi Yan's body, feeling a heavy sensation in my limbs in the blink of an eye.
I took a deep breath, startling myself awake. The conversation between Mo Qing and Sima Rong came to an abrupt halt as they both turned to look at me. The fierce ghost of the little round face was no longer visible.
It seemed that her ghostly presence was not powerful enough to interfere with the lives of the living.
Rubbing my chest, I pondered on what had just happened, and a dark figure crouched down in front of me.
Mo Qing gazed up at me, his black pupils filled with my figure, "What's wrong?"
It seemed like he did not think that the manner in which the Lord of Million Ghosts was crouching in front of a person and looking up at them was a loss of dignity. He was only concerned with the slightest changes in my facial expressions, forgetting to conceal his own emotions as he usually did.
I saw the worry in his eyes, and an unexplainable... fear?
Fear of what? I wouldn't die again.
I suppressed my emotions, "When you went inside to talk, I accidentally fell asleep." I squinted and smiled, "I had a little nightmare, but luckily, Master, you came out and pushed the door open."
He did not let me brush off these words, continuing to ask, "What nightmare?"
"I dreamt that an evil spirit was hunting me, it fell from the rafters and tried to kill me." I grabbed Mo Qing's hand, "Master, I'm so scared, please don't leave me alone again in the future."
Mo Qing's eyes darkened, "I did not leave you." Just as he spoke, Sima Rong behind him suddenly burst into laughter.
It seemed that my coyness made him find it extremely amusing, and he couldn't stop laughing for a while. The last time I saw my Western Mountain Master laugh like this was when Yuan Jie, the old man, had a fight with the people from Xianmen, injuring his waist, and asked Gu Han Guang to give him a massage. Gu Han Guang's hands were heavy, and the Northern Mountain Master shouted as if he was no different from the old man at the foot of the mountain.
Sima Rong stood by and didn't stop laughing.
And now, I was just being a bit coy with Mo Qing...
Can't you stand seeing someone being coy?
Finally, after Mo Qing glanced at him, he managed to stop laughing, "Miss Zhi Yan." He called out to me, "It was just a dream, don't take it seriously. Come with me and choose the type of wood you like."
The wooden figure pushed Sima Rong to the backyard, and I followed. This time, Mo Qing didn't follow, and Sima Rong looked up at me, his eyes deep, "Miss Zhi Yan, I've never seen him dote on anyone like this before."
"Oh, maybe because I'm cute."
I managed a sentence, turned back at the corner and saw Mo Qing looking around the house, as if searching for something.
Did he just notice the hostility of that little round face? These strange clowns are really powerful now, so sensitive to the breath from the other side of the world...
While I was pondering, I heard Sima Rong's laughter, he covered his lips, laughed, and coughed several times before stopping.
I stared at him in extreme confusion. Has my master of the West Mountain also gone mad living in this house? Why has he become so fond of smiling?
Sensing my gaze, Sima Rong glanced at me, and another laugh escaped from his mouth. Oh, it turns out that Zhiyan is very funny? Sima Rong waved his hand, no longer looking at me, and gazed into the distance: "Miss, forgive me if I seem presumptuous, but seeing you feels like meeting an old friend. I miss it deeply."
An old friend? Who? Have I made a big name for myself?
You must be joking, right? If you dared to joke in front of me like this before, I promise to break all your legs.