Chapter 341: 155: My Son Ping'an Has the Talent of a Martial Saint!_1
The journey to Ruyi Prefecture from here would take roughly three to four days.
The two of them were mere mortals, lacking the physical and mental stamina for such a trek.
They promptly found a city to settle down in.
He let them rest for a night and have a good meal.
With Granny Zhao’s help, Bai Ling changed into a beautifully ornate white fairy dress.
Her lustrous black hair was tied in twin ponytails, making her look like a cute porcelain doll.
“Brother.”
She approached Lu Changsheng timidly, her eyes filled with hope as she showed him her new clothes.
But her entire demeanor was still very nervous, her small hands clutching the hem of her dress. Like a frightened little rabbit, she looked pitifully adorable.
“Little Ling’er is really cute.”
Lu Changsheng smiled warmly at Bai Ling’s timid and delicate appearance.
He ruffled her little head, making a happy and contented smile appear on her cute face.
“Let’s go, it’s time to eat.”
Then, Lu Changsheng took the little girl by the hand to have a meal.
Just then, Lu Changsheng noticed the slight scale patterns on Bai Ling’s wrist and gave them a few glances.
When the little girl saw Lu Changsheng looking at the scales on her wrist, her face turned pale instantly.
She quickly pulled down her sleeve to cover her wrist, her delicate body trembling, and spoke in a scared, anxious voice, “Brother, I’m sorry, I… I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Seeing the little girl acting like this, her voice anxious and fearful, with a cry in her tone, Lu Changsheng sighed softly.
He knew that over the years, the little girl had endured much ridicule and indifferent stares because of those scales.
It had made her extremely sensitive in this respect, having developed a conditioned response.
He gently kneeled down.
Looking at her face, full of fear and self-doubt, he carefully lifted her sleeve and, seeing the white snake scales, spoke in a gentle tone, “How could this scare anyone? These scales are very pretty.”
Saying this, he gently stroked the scales with his hand.
The white scales blended perfectly with her fair little arm, almost imperceptible unless closely examined.
They felt slightly cool to the touch but not uncomfortable, quite smooth indeed.
The little girl, her face full of fear, paused in surprise at his words.
Ever since the scales had appeared on her body, even Granny Zhao had been a bit frightened at the time.
Later, a boy from the village saw the scales on her arm and called her a monster.
This led to the other villagers finding out, all of whom deemed her a monster.
She had even thought about cutting the scales off with a knife.
But each time she tried, it would be a bloody mess and the scales would grow back soon after, leaving no scars.
It was only after Granny Zhao comforted her and said it was okay that she gradually accepted the scales.
Yet, these scales remained a lump in her heart, always covered by clothes and not something she wanted others to see.
Lu Changsheng was the first to say that the scales, which even she was concerned and frightened by, were very pretty.
At that moment, the little girl’s insecure and fragile heart experienced an inexplicable feeling.
Her clear eyes, black and white like peach blossoms, teared up and looked at Lu Changsheng as if intoxicated but not, asking timidly, “Brother, do you really not find it scary?”
Lu Changsheng, seeing the clear distinction in Bai Ling’s eyes, suddenly sensed an enchanting allure, bewitching and deeply moving.
It made his Mental Spirit ripple, and he was momentarily distracted.
“This…”
If it weren’t for checking with his Divine Sense multiple times, confirming that she was just an ordinary little girl, Lu Changsheng might have thought she was using a Bewitching Technique.
However, the charm disappeared in an instant.
The distinction in her eyes remained pitifully innocent.
The allure he had just felt seemed like an illusion, as if it had never been there.
“How could it be scary? I think it’s very pretty,” Lu Changsheng said, looking at the timid and fragile girl while smiling gently.
He was even more surprised at her condition.
It had actually made him, a Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator, slightly distracted in her presence.
He didn’t look any further, knowing the little girl couldn’t adapt all at once.
He pulled Bai Ling’s sleeve back down and then ruffled her little head again, smiling, “Little Ling’er, don’t pay too much attention to what others think.”
“If Brother says it’s pretty, then it’s pretty, understand?”
Listening to Lu Changsheng’s gentle words, Bai Ling felt as if she were basking in the spring breeze, quietly serene and peaceful in her heart.
She then nodded vigorously.
“Let’s go, it’s time to eat,” he said, taking the little girl’s hand to dine.
Outside the room, Granny Zhao looked at this scene and also breathed a sigh of relief.
She did not know what the Immortal had seen in Bai Ling.
Whether he would dislike her because of Bai Ling’s condition.
But at this moment, she felt that the scales on Bai Ling’s body shouldn’t be a bad thing.
Otherwise, this Immortal wouldn’t have taken an interest in her.
Soon after, the trio went to a private room to eat.
Facing a table full of exquisite delicacies, Bai Ling and Granny Zhao were dazzled and appeared a bit restrained.
Lu Changsheng told them to make themselves at home, chatting with them while they ate, and began to inquire about some things.
Through the conversation, Lu Changsheng gained a rough understanding of Bai Ling’s situation.
She was eleven years old.
She lost her mother at two and her father at five.
After begging for food for a while, she was taken in by Granny Zhao.
For some unknown reason, at the age of seven, Bai Ling discovered scales beginning to appear on her wrist.
Then, scales gradually started to appear on her neck, shoulders, and lower legs as well.
These white scales terrified and frightened her.
However, the scales didn’t cause any unusual symptoms in her body.
If anything, they seemed to make her grow even whiter and more delicate, and she was much stronger than her peers.
“Seven years old,” Lu Changsheng paused for a moment when he heard this age.
In the Cultivation World, children could be tested for their Spiritual Root when they reached the age of five or six.