Chapter 12: Tuoba Xiū

  In the space filled with scorching hot air, the lava lake not far from the entrance was still "gurgling" away, while a corner to the right of the entrance seemed somewhat quiet.

  I don't know how long it's been.

  "Hmm..."

  Ling Qingyan slowly opened his eyes, feeling the scorching heat emanating from the crimson scorched earth beneath him. He propped himself up with his right hand and sat up. Ling Qingyan shook off the dizziness in his head, looked around, and finally remembered what had happened earlier. At the same time, his gaze towards the slender man sitting cross-legged not far in front of him was tinged with a hint of apprehension.

  Those eyes, which still make my heart feel a chill to this day. Those eyes, in Ling Qingyan's mind, had already transcended the bounds of humanity, an endless vortex that could make one completely lose themselves with just one glance.

  "You're awake," the lean man sitting on the ground seemed to have sensed Ling Qingyan's awakening, reopening his eyes. This time, he didn't know if it was intentional or not, but his eyes sparkled with a hint of light, and there wasn't a single difference from ordinary people. They were extremely normal, and it was impossible to compare them to the previous pair that seemed like a deep, mysterious abyss.

  Upon hearing the thin man's voice, Ling Qingyan's body involuntarily trembled, and his gaze, which had previously been directed at the thin man, immediately shifted to the side. He didn't want to make eye contact with the man again, lest he fall unconscious once more.

  "Are you scared?" The lean man said with a rare smile on his face, which was full of stubble.

  Ling Qing heard the words, first stunned, then a burst of anger in her heart, "Damn it, I was too embarrassed earlier, just exchanged a glance with him and fainted... I don't believe it's really that evil, this time be careful, I won't believe I'll faint again."

  At this thought, a determined look flashed across Ling Qingyan's slightly immature face, and he immediately turned his head to look at the lean man. When he saw the ordinary eyes of the lean man, which were no different from those of ordinary people, Ling Qingyan was taken aback in his heart. Could it be that just now was also his own illusion? What has been going on these days? Is it possible that he is homesick? First, there was a hallucination when he saw the signboard at the entrance of "Jian Xiao Ge" for the first time, and earlier he even fainted. If this were to happen in his previous life, he would be laughed to death if he told anyone.

  "This big brother, who are you? How did you end up here?" Ling Qingyan stared intently at the lean man, his eyes scanning him up and down as he asked. At this moment, Ling Qingyan had dismissed everything he had seen before as an illusion, and looking at the ordinary-looking man in front of him, all the apprehension in his heart disappeared without a trace.

  Upon hearing Ling Qingyan's words, the thin man was taken aback at first, then couldn't help but say: "Little girl, you call me big brother? My age is enough to be your grandfather's grandfather."

  "Whoa!"

  When the lean man said this, Ling Qingyan was like a fox whose tail had been stepped on, and he suddenly jumped up. "You think you can take advantage of me? Looking at your appearance, you're no more than thirty years old... And don't think I don't know that even if you're a top-notch martial artist, I've seen it before. That old man who brought me here, although he has white hair and a youthful face, is obviously an old guy who's lived for over a hundred years."

  Before, because of the "hallucination" was frightened and fainted, Ling Qingyan felt that he had lost face in front of this lean man. At this time, seeing him dare to take advantage of himself, he couldn't help but jump up and shout loudly, completely like his youthful and arrogant appearance in his previous life. Of course, this is also because Ling Qingyan subconsciously feels that the lean man is very close to him, so he "lost control". It's worth noting that even in his previous life, only one person, his elder brother "Tieshan", could make Ling Qingyan so unrestrained and restore his true nature.

  A lean man saw Ling Qingyan like this, first stunned, then seemed to remember something, and couldn't help but laugh, "Okay, you can call me big brother."

  "What's so funny?!"

  Ling Qingyan saw the thin man smile, and couldn't help but reveal his true expression at this age. He twitched his mouth and asked: "By the way, that old man threw me off earlier and ran away by himself. He told me to come here to find someone... Hmm, brother, where is the senior who is in seclusion here?"

  "Senior?" The lean man was taken aback again, and then shook his head. "There's only me here, always has been."

  Looking at the lean man's expression that didn't seem to be deceiving himself, Ling Qingyan was taken aback for a moment, and then his heart suddenly started racing. "Could it be? Did I really encounter the kind of 'returning to simplicity' person from my previous life? And judging from the fearful look on the face of the previous Heavenly Sword Sect master's teacher, it's clear that he's afraid of the person hiding here... Moreover, since the unbelievable things like returning to youth have happened in my previous life, restoring one's appearance to over 30 years old shouldn't be a difficult task either?"

  Thinking of this, Ling Qingyan's apprehension suddenly rose again, and he looked at the lean man with some trepidation, "You, you won't be a senior from the Tianjian Sect too, will you?"

  "Is he a senior of the Tianjian Sect? Hmm, I suppose so. The old man who brought you here..."

  Upon hearing this, the thin man nodded, and a smile spread across his face as he spoke, "I only know that even if that old man sees me, he'll still have to call out 'Ancestor'."

  Looking at Ling Qingyan, after hearing his own words, his face turned pale and changed color, the slender man couldn't help but tease him again: "What's wrong, are you also thinking of calling me 'old ancestor'? Haha!"

  Indeed, Ling Qingyan was now regretting his earlier actions, deeply afraid that he had unintentionally offended this senior of the Tianjian Sect. But upon hearing the mocking tone of the lean man, Ling Qingyan's expression suddenly recovered, and with disdain, he said: "Calling you elder brother has already given you face, humph! Even if you are a senior of the Tianjian Sect, what does it matter? I'm not a disciple of the Tianjian Sect now anyway."

  Looking at the lean man, Ling Qingyan couldn't help but think to himself: "Why was it that when I woke up earlier and saw him, a sense of familiarity seemed to emanate from the depths of my consciousness? This lean man gives me a feeling that's really similar to 'Iron Mountain Big Brother'. It's precisely because of this that I was a bit flustered earlier... But fortunately, in this world, there is finally someone who can let me put down all my burdens and release myself freely. And also, this person doesn't seem to have any malicious intentions towards me, and even appears to be quite friendly..."

  "Good!"

  A lean man saw Ling Qingyan's reaction, and a hint of satisfaction flashed in his eyes. He then said solemnly: "From today on, I'll acknowledge you as my brother. And don't worry, acknowledging me as your big brother will definitely not put you at a disadvantage. I already know your name, and now I'll tell you mine too - remember it well, my name is Tuoba Xiū!"

  Tuoba Xiuyi's expression was calm at this time, but in his heart, he couldn't calm down for a long time.

  "This brother of mine, who has just acknowledged me, what kind of demon beast is his white totem from his juvenile period? Not only can it rival his other mature 'Blood Python' totem in a battle of wits and occupy the sea of consciousness. But it can also resonate with my 'Burning Fiend' totem! The resonance between totems, that's something that only exists in legends..."

  P.S: Ah, let Qingyan acknowledge a big brother. I believe everyone can also feel that this big brother is between Cow A and Cow C, right?