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nThe ship sailed toward the Cloud Piercing Continent, arriving at the shores of the Kingdom of Jiao a week after they departed, and then cruised the shorelines of the Outer Ocean toward the Piercing Cloud Empire.

nThere was a small gulf on the outer side of the continent which was quite conveniently located for Wu Long’s purposes as the Cloud Piercing Sect was on one side of it, and the capital of the Empire was located near the most inland part of the gulf.

nThere were several attacks by 9th-tier Demonic Sea Beasts on their way, but they were all either used as target practice for members of the Dao Family, or thwarted by the ladies of the Frozen Garden Palace.

nIn this time, Wu Long explored his cultivation, as he now had Hong Ye’s Yin Qi and her Innate Yin Qi as well.

nThough he did not intend to use the latter until he figured a certain way to cultivate further as it was too precious to waste on experimenting.

nHe refined Yin Qi in small dozes, attempting to advance his cultivation further, but that only increased the amount of Spiritual Qi in the ring around the Core, and no change was perceptible in the Core itself.

nThe ring also did not have any palpable change aside from the increased reserves within.

nHe tried to probe the Core with methods known to him but none of it worked, leaving it as a complete mystery.

nOne night during the weeks of travel, as he was meditating and pondering on his cultivation, he saw a lonely shadow on a lower deck.

nThe corners of his lips curled up in a smile as he stood up and stepped forward, silently appearing not far from the figure, as crimson eyes looked at him, contrasting with snow white hair that was flapped by the rather harsh Northern winds in the autumn.

n“You called, and here I am”, he smiled as she narrowed her eyes at him.

n“I didn’t call”

n“Of course you didn’t”

nHer gaze made it apparent that she didn’t like that he so easily saw through her.

n“And you still insist that there are no mind-control in that technique of yours?”, she asked as he chuckled.

n“I don’t need a technique to figure out what it means when someone who is rarely seen unaccompanied by their sibling, passes alone under the balcony I usually meditate on in the evenings”, he leisurely responded as he went toward the railing and looked toward the sea as she kept her eyes on him.

n“Even if that is true, you do realize that showing you know my thoughts, whichever method you use, is not exactly helping your case, do you?”

n“I don’t intend to lie and say I don’t see something when I do”, he shook his head with a smile, breathing in the cold air of the Northern night.

n“You are quite puzzling”, she said with a slightly complicated look.

n“Haha, I like to think the opposite. I am quite simple, much simpler than you think, which is exactly why you have trouble figuring out my motives. You’re just using a too complex standard”, he turned to her, leisurely resting both elbows on the railing and leaning his back on it as well.

n“You are saying that your actions are exactly what they look like on the surface…”

n“Correct, though you have to be more specific on which actions, but the ones you refer to certainly are”

n“Isn’t that a bit hard to believe? The one who would should be utterly naive”

n“Mm, not arguing that. But despite perceptions, it is nonetheless true, and any opinion that it is not does not change the fact it is”

n“…”, Hong Yue’s intense gaze gave away her hesitation to take his words at face value.

n“Alright. Think of the most nefarious motive I might have. And then compare my current actions and attitude to the alternative ways I can get to that supposed goal”, he then changed tactics, going from the negative argument.

n“…”, her lips moved for a moment and then froze, as she revealed a baffled expression, and then her gaze changed again, opening her mouth to this time say “The fact I do not know of a motive does not mean there isn’t one that requires such behavior”

n“Hahaha, you got me, that was a good shot though, right?”, he chuckled, as he was aware of the logical fallacy of trying that argument.

n“It seems to me that you are not taking this conversation seriously”, she sighed, turning to walk away as she did not seem to be able to get an answer from him.

n“Don’t be so hasty in making conclusions, I am plenty serious. I just wanted you to explore the possibilities on your own and see if you could come up with anything that I need to explain”, his voice from behind caused her to stop, as she turned to him again.

nHe smiled looking at that.

n“What you want to know ultimately is not whether the Bahshi Ghost Ruler Eyes, that I used in that cave hall, have the ability to mind-control, or any specifics of how I know certain things, or even why and how I possess those techniques”, he continued speaking as the look in her eyes revealed thoughts swirling in her head.

n“All that is just tiptoeing around what concerns you most, which is why I didn’t bother addressing those properly”, he shrugged his shoulders and then abandoning his leisurely position straightened up, slowly approaching her.

n“What you want to know, ultimately, is whether I am your foe”, his words caused a very visible reaction in her gaze, while he continued with “So I am going to ask you, who is your enemy?”

nHe stopped right in front of her, looking in her eyes.

n“Those who wish to harm us sisters”, she answered without hesitation.

n“Then the answer to the core question is not in those details, but straightforward. I am not your enemy, because I do not wish you harm. You may not believe me, and that is fine. But I believe that my actions so far warrant at least a wait-and-see approach”, he chuckled at the end of his speech, changing the tone to lighthearted and playful again.

n“Your earlier words about not rushing to conclusions… were not only about this conversation, were they?”, she spoke with realization and he smiled.

n“You have the time to determine whether I want you harm. Why discard it to make an immediate decision? Use it. You are in a unique position, where scrutiny and doubt is allowed, even welcome”, he spoke in a calm tone.

n“You are awfully patient and generous with someone who doubts you”, she narrowed her eyes.

n“Hahaha, that is the reason I say that your position is unique, as not everyone gets the same courtesy. I am only as patient because you are someone dear to Ye’er, and secondly because I ultimately have some goodwill toward you”, he lightly laughed as she continued to look at him for some time with the same expression.

nAfter some time, she silently nodded and disappeared in the darkness as the moon was covered with a cloud.

n“… I must say your control over your physique’s natural powers improved tremendously, Min’er. To attune your emotional state so completely as if to blend with nature is something you can be proud of…”, he then turned to a corner of the deck where a shadow came out of the corner and as it went into the newly reappeared moonlight, revealed heterochromatic eyes.

n“Though I will have to disappoint you, but even that does not make you invisible to someone as skilled in stealth and detection as her. She allows you to doubt her for the same reason I allow her to doubt me”, he chuckled, as Shen Min came closer to him and widened her eyes.

n“I still don’t trust her…”, Shen Min spoke as Wu Long nodded with a chuckle.

n“Of course, that is normal. I should thank you for always being vigilant to keep our family safe”, he gently smiled toward her as he raised his hand to move the lock of hair that was thrown onto her face by the harsh winds.

n“I do it because I want to”, her eyes revealed a softer look than normal, a look she only showed him and her closest friends in the Dao Family.

n“Do you really intend to let her doubt you?”, she then asked, returning to the topic of Hong Yue, as she looked in the direction the latter disappeared into.

n“Mm, I can’t ease those doubts without time after all”, he chuckled.

n“Is it because her world crumbled around her recently?”, Shen Min made a guess that he nodded to.

n“Of course, after a strong shock like that, anyone’s vision can become binary. Friend or foe, good and bad. It is something that is currently her new world. The same was with you”, he made a gentle smile as he looked into her different-colored eyes.

n“I only identified Lust Cultivators as enemies…”, she first denied his words and then understood that it also was a binary vision as she was speaking, enemy and friend simply were Lust Cultivators and their supporters on one side, and all others on the other.

n“And because you went through it, you know that in such a state it becomes difficult to go beyond the simplest measure to decide who to trust. Although it can happen to normal people too, as they become cynical and more disappointed with the world.

nScrutiny of smaller details and nuance, everything that makes up the intricacies of our lives fades into two colors of black and white, and the pace at which you make decisions rises until you miss all context and complexity.

nThink of the situation with Xiang’er, and how all details and nuance of her situation completely escaped your vision, as you were focused on her single action”, Wu Long spoke with a slight lament as memories of his own time in this state floated in his mind.

n“Mm, I still think about it now and then”, Shen Min nodded, remembering that state.

nIt was not like that careful and suspicious side of her completely disappeared now, as it was already part of who she was, and was part of her even before. But she now was far more measured and exhibited far more care in looking at the whole picture in her actions.

n“Thus I cannot start with wanting to become friend, I can only start by becoming someone neither, who doesn’t fit into the two categories so that she is forced to create a new one, and that takes time”, he chuckled as he added, and she nodded with understanding.

n“Though I still want to make sure she brings no harm to us”, she then added as he chuckled, locking his arms around her, and pulled her into his embrace.

n“That’s my Min’er”, he smiled, as his lips leaned to meet hers.

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