"Not exactly... and yet, yes."
Hearing this perplexing answer, Xuan Yue's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, but inwardly, she felt a quiet sense of relief.
For reasons she couldn't articulate, she didn't want to become an enemy of the young man before her.
"What do you mean by that, fellow Daoist Ye?" Xuan Yue's tone softened somewhat.
"Fellow Daoist Xuan Yue, I told you before that I could tell you things within a certain scope!" Ye Ming smiled and said, "And now, we've gone beyond that scope!"
Ye Ming's meaning was simple: he had nothing more to say.
After Ye Ming uttered these words, the scene once again fell into silence.
Some things weren't impossible to say, but rather, the time wasn't right.
"Alright! I understand!"
Xuan Yue retracted her sharp gaze, reverting to the composed demeanor Ye Ming and Nangong Qian had first encountered.
Gentle, amiable, and kind to others.
"Fellow Daoist Ye, I don't know what you're planning, but there's one thing I still wish to tell you!"
At this moment, Xuan Yue's tone carried a hint of unspoken meaning.
"I'm eager to hear it!"
At least, so far, Ye Ming felt no hostility from the woman before him.
Therefore, Ye Ming was willing to heed her advice.
"I believe you understand that the current situation is maintained due to the existence of that Ancestral Decree. However, as ten thousand years have passed, the decree's constraint is not what it once was. Your sudden appearance has become an opportunity in the eyes of certain individuals. Therefore..." Xuan Yue looked deeply at Ye Ming and continued, "Therefore, you must be more careful in the future. At the same time, I hope you do not become a... tool for others to use!"
This was both a reminder and a warning!
Xuan Yue's words revealed a great deal of information.
"Miss Xuan Yue! I thank you for this!"
Ye Ming clasped his fists in a salute to Xuan Yue, acknowledging her goodwill.
"Brother Ye is too kind. I'm merely offering some humble opinions from an observer's perspective!" Xuan Yue smiled faintly, seeming to take a liking to this polite and discerning young man.
"Miss Xuan Yue! May I ask..."
"Just call me Xuan Yue! Brother Ye and I seem to get along well, there's no need to be so formal!"
Xuan Yue interrupted Ye Ming.
"Ah... alright!"
Since she had said so, Ye Ming didn't mind. He smiled, "Then... Xuan Yue! May I ask if there are many places like Yuanyang Tower in Hua Guo?"
In fact, upon seeing Xuan Yue, Ye Ming's mind had subconsciously conjured up two other people.
These were Yuan Ling and the woman in the purple dress he had met at Emperor's Residence.
Among them, the one who concerned him the most wasn't Yuan Ling, but the woman in the purple dress.
This was because Yuan Ling was merely a martial artist, while the woman in the purple dress was a true immortal cultivator.
This was why Ye Ming had said, "your friendship" and "their friendship" were different when he spoke to Yuan Ling on the phone.
At that time, what he truly wanted wasn't Yuan Ling's attitude, but the attitude of the person behind him, or rather, the attitude of the woman in the purple dress.
Thinking back now, Ye Ming noticed two astonishing commonalities.
First: both the woman in the purple dress and Xuan Yue wore veils and did not reveal their true faces.
Was this... a coincidence?
Secondly, according to Yuan Ling's account, he had said, "they are not enemies." And Xuan Yue had also not shown him any hostility.
Was there a connection between these two points?
"Oh! Why do you ask, Brother Ye?"
Xuan Yue was somewhat curious about this question.
"Does Xuan Yue happen to know a man named Yuan Ling!" Ye Ming asked.
"Yuan Ling?"
Xuan Yue's delicate brows furrowed. She didn't seem to recall anyone by that name.
"Oh! Right! Beside him was a woman in a purple dress, who, like you, is also an... immortal cultivator!" Ye Ming decided to mention the other woman as well.
"Purple dress? Immortal cultivation?"
Upon hearing the latter part, Xuan Yue's delicate brows suddenly relaxed. A captivating curve appeared on her lips beneath the veil, and she smiled, "I didn't expect you had already met her!"
"Hmm? It seems you know her!"
Ye Ming was somewhat surprised, but it was within reason.
"Heh heh! Not only do I know her, but I know her very well!"
Seemingly happy to hear news of the woman in the purple dress, Xuan Yue said, "If I'm not mistaken, she also didn't show you any hostility! Right?"
"This... indeed."
Now Ye Ming was certain that those previous occurrences were definitely not coincidences.
"Brother Ye! I'm very sorry! There are some things I cannot tell you right now! But there is one point... I can reveal to you!" Xuan Yue mused for a moment, then continued, "Actually, the woman in the purple dress whom you met and I are not the only ones who don't harbor hostility towards you. Most immortal cultivators would not feel hostility."
"Ah... this!"
Upon hearing this, Ye Ming's eyes widened, and he felt inexplicably hurt.
He had thought it was his unique charm that had made them take a liking to him, and that was why they acted this way!
He hadn't expected it to be for such a reason.
Ye Ming thought to himself: It was all just his wishful thinking.
"Hahahaha!"
Seeing Ye Ming's somewhat disappointed expression, Xuan Yue couldn't help but giggle, "Brother Ye, you're actually a good person. Don't feel too dejected! You give me the impression of being a good person!"
"What the hell!"
Hearing this, Ye Ming felt like he had just taken ten thousand points of critical damage.
How had he inexplicably been given the "friend zone" card again?
Ye Ming thought to himself: He needed some quiet time.
"Stop! Xuan Yue! You don't need to say any more! I know everything!" Ye Ming quickly raised his hand to signal, changing the subject. "Logically speaking, aren't you immortal cultivators not allowed to casually enter the mortal world? Why then..."
He was afraid his sensitive heart couldn't take it if she continued.
Hearing this, Xuan Yue stopped joking and explained to Ye Ming, "Don't you remember what I told you before? The Ancestral Decree's constraint is not what it once was. And people like us, you can think of us as 'stepping stones.' As for other reasons, please forgive me, but I cannot tell you yet!"
"After all, from a certain perspective, we are merely not enemies at the moment. And in the future..."
As she spoke, Xuan Yue's tone gradually became serious.
Although it was her personal wish not to be Ye Ming's enemy, fundamentally, it was only her personal wish.
She didn't have that much authority.
"I understand!"
From her words, Ye Ming also perceived the gravity of the situation.
"Thank you for being willing to tell me this!"
Ye Ming was genuinely grateful to the woman before him.
He knew that for her to tell him this information might already be pushing some boundaries.
Xuan Yue looked at the polite and humble young man before her, her gaze shifting slightly. She unconsciously clenched her fists, as if contemplating something.
"What's wrong?"
Seeing her staring at him, Ye Ming felt somewhat uneasy.
But the next second, Xuan Yue's words left him stunned.
"Brother Ye! Why don't you come with me?"