The little girl, Yin Xingyue, didn't answer Shen Siyuan immediately. Instead, she stood at the door, her hands clasped, fidgeting with her thumbs, clearly caught in a dilemma.
Shen Siyuan didn't rush her. He sat down on the sofa and took out his mobile phone to scroll through it.
"I'm home, good night."
Jiang Tingyu had sent him a WeChat message five minutes ago.
Shen Siyuan quickly replied.
"I just got home too, good night."
Then he opened his Moments and saw that Jiang Tingyu had also made a post.
The content was simple, just a short sentence.
[Wind, good night.
]
The accompanying picture was a casual snapshot of the night sky.
He had no idea if the "wind" she was referring to was a person, or just the actual wind.
Shen Siyuan didn't give her a like. Scrolling down, he saw Tian Yunrui's post about food, Wang Chao's post of movie tickets, Cai Weiqiang's post of his cat, and Lu Ran's post about his night run… each living their own life.
Just then, the little girl Yin Xingyue suddenly spoke, "Uncle bullied me."
Hearing this, Shen Siyuan looked up, his eyes wide, thinking, 'When did I ever bully you?'
Seeing Shen Siyuan's expression, the little girl seemed to realize her mistake and said softly, "The Uncle who is with Mom."
Shen Siyuan's brow furrowed at her words.
There seemed to be a serious problem here.
"What about your dad?" Shen Siyuan asked.
"He's dead."
"You haven't seen his ghost?"
Yin Xingyue shook her head, her expression a little sad.
Having died herself, she naturally knew there was only one reason for not seeing her dad's ghost: he had let go of all his attachments and disappeared from the world.
But she had always missed her dad, yet he…
This made her, a girl starved for a father's love, even more upset.
"What's the deal with this Uncle you mentioned?" Shen Siyuan pressed.
Hearing this, the little girl began to hesitate again, looking a little scared and finding it hard to speak.
So Shen Siyuan comforted her, "Don't be afraid. I think I have some abilities, I should be able to help you."
Yin Xingyue nodded lightly at his words.
Shen Siyuan was the first person who could see them.
And that little sister was so powerful, too.
Not only did she burst into flames, but she could also fly.
"Mom married Uncle.
He's my new father, but I don't like him…"
The little girl's logic was quite clear, and she spoke methodically. Shen Siyuan quickly understood the whole story.
It turned out the little girl's father had passed away when she was very young. Because her mother had to work and couldn't take care of her, she was sent to her grandmother's house in the countryside.
A few years ago, her mother found another man and married him, so she brought her back.
But it was obvious this man was no good.
He looked scholarly and gentle, but he was a beast in human clothing.
Yin Xingyue had told her mother, but her mother didn't believe her at all.
She even scolded her, calling her a jinx, saying that at such a young age, her mind was full of filth and that she was trying to destroy her family…
When her stepfather found out, not only did he not restrain himself, but he became even worse. He would often whip her with a belt, saying he was teaching her how to be a proper person and keeping her from going astray.
Because she often had injuries on her body, her teacher noticed and contacted her parents. Her stepfather then slandered her, claiming she stole things, and even accused her of looking at messy websites and videos, saying that her parents were just too angry and had to hit her.
Because of this, Yin Xingyue was ostracized at school and deprived of her parents' love at home. In the end, she chose suicide.
Hearing this, Shen Siyuan's brow furrowed tightly. This stepfather had serious issues.
It was likely he didn't just want to abuse Yin Xingyue, but to destroy her life, and then completely control her, both mentally and physically.
This was a terrifying form of PUA.
Once her life was completely under his control, one could imagine what her future would have been…
But what Yin Xingyue's stepfather hadn't expected was that she would choose suicide directly, causing his plan to go up in smoke.
"You must have been very disappointed with a life like that, right?"
Yin Xingyue remained silent.
"In that case, what do you still have to linger for in this world?"
"Unwilling to let go? Or is there someone you're still attached to?"
Shen Siyuan remembered the slight upward curl of her lips when she had just mentioned her grandmother.
Sure enough, Yin Xingyue whispered in reply, "Grandmother is sick.
I'm waiting for her."
"Your stepfather is so evil, don't you want to get revenge on him?" Shen Siyuan asked.
Yin Xingyue's head snapped up at his words, her eyes fixed on Shen Siyuan.
"You don't need to do anything to him.
Just scaring him should be punishment enough," Shen Siyuan said calmly.
Now that he knew about such a scumbag, he couldn't just let him get away with it.
It wouldn't sit right with him.
"But… but I can't do anything," Yin Xingyue said with a sad expression.
It was obvious that, in her unwillingness, she had been angry, furious, and had tried to lash out at him, but it had all been useless.
"That's what I'm here for," Shen Siyuan said with a smile.
Then, with a beckoning motion of his hand, the Ten Thousand Souls Banner appeared in his palm. He formed a seal with his fingers, and a ball of eerie blue flame materialized in the air, drifting down towards Yin Xingyue.
Yin Xingyue took a few steps back in fear, but when she saw the look Shen Siyuan gave her, she mustered her courage and stood her ground. In the end, she let the ball of eerie blue flame land on her, and in the next moment, her entire body was engulfed in flames.
However, Yin Xingyue didn't feel any pain. She looked down with some curiosity at the blue flame erupting from her hands.
But before she could get a closer look, she felt a pulling force that yanked her into the air and towards Shen Siyuan's palm.
Looking at the tattered Ten Thousand Souls Banner in his palm, Shen Siyuan whispered, "Be good and stay in the banner for a night.
I'll let you out tomorrow."
With a thought, he put the Ten Thousand Souls Banner away.
Then he continued today's exercise training of the Eighteen Forms. Since he decided to practice, he couldn't skip a single day.
As his sinews and bones stretched, accompanied by pain, the muscles all over his body trembled uncontrollably. Shen Siyuan's cheeks contorted, and for a moment he wanted to stop, to just give up.
No wonder most of the cultivators in The Great Wilderness would choose Internal Cultivation. Internal Cultivation was easy, simple, and fast—all advantages.
External Cultivation, on the other hand, was too difficult and too painful, with no guarantee of results. Other than those with extremely poor aptitude, or those who lacked techniques and resources, few would choose External Cultivation.
Even Lan Tuo Temple, the creator of the Great Arhat Eighteen Forms, only used it for new disciples for tempering the physical body, and they would eventually switch to Internal Cultivation.
It was another exhilarating "battle."
Shen Siyuan was as drenched as if he'd been washed. His sweat dried and then soaked him again, giving off a sour, foul smell.
Shen Siyuan gulped down a large glass of water, then went into the bathroom to take a shower before lying comfortably in bed.
The thought of going back home tomorrow made his head ache again.
He wondered what kind of girl his Mom had arranged for him this time.
Last time, she had asked a friend to help introduce him to someone.
After Shen Siyuan added the person on WeChat, he mentioned that a friend had made the introduction.
The girl replied directly, "300 for one time, 800 for the night," which rendered him completely speechless.
PS: A new week, the new book rankings have fallen I don't know how far down again. If you have any monthly tickets, please toss one this way.
I'm on my knees begging~