Little Alpaca – Chapter 161

Volume 4: Immeasurable

If I’m Afraid, Who Else Can Protect You?

Just before dawn, a powerful wave of spiritual energy rippled from the distance. That was Xun Chi, helping Chao Yun break the seal on her divine power.

The power of gods and immortals was far too great for the mortal realm. If any of them were to use their divine power to aid a mortal, they could potentially topple an entire dynasty. For this very reason, the Heavenly Realm¹ had its own set of Heavenly Rules² to restrain them. No god or immortal was permitted to descend to the mortal realm lightly.

If divine power manifested in the mortal world, the Heavenly Realm would surely notice.

Xun Chi had left his mountain because of the Huodou³ incident. To cut first and report later⁴ was not out of the question for him.

But the Wood God⁵ had descended for the matter of the Golden Crow’s tribulation, an act that was an absolute violation of the Heavenly Rules.

Chao Yun had not yet returned to Jade Sea. If she broke her seal here, the Heavenly Realm would undoubtedly detect it. It wouldn’t be long before they sent someone to bring her back for punishment.

If she remembered correctly, in the original text of 《Thin, Withered Branches》, Chao Yun had been forced to shatter the divine seal within her to save Jiang Yuyao. But while she had succeeded, Jiang Yuyao had already been consumed by hatred. There was no room for anything else in his heart besides endless grief and resentment.

After Chao Yun broke the seal, the Heavenly Realm sent people to retrieve her for punishment several times. But she couldn’t bring herself to abandon Jiang Yuyao, who now had nothing. After much deliberation, she chose to defy their orders and remain, protecting the gravely injured Jiang Yuyao as they hid.

But in the end, Jiang Yuyao still chose a path to ruin. Twenty years of guardianship in the mortal world had amounted to nothing.

After Jiang Yuyao was gone, Chao Yun seemed to lose her way. She lingered for a long time at the place haunted by his Vengeful Spirit,⁶ refusing to return to the Heavenly Realm. In the end, she angered the Heavenly Emperor⁷ and was rescued by You Yan, who brought her to the Demon Realm.⁸ She became a Fallen God.⁹

Now, many of the misunderstandings and tragedies from the original story had been avoided. She had no idea how the plot would change this time.

“Will Chao Yun return to the Heavenly Realm?” Yi Qiu couldn’t help but ask.

“Perhaps not,” You Yan said languidly. “She has someone she can’t let go of.”

“Jiang Yuyao… Luo Mingyuan.” Yi Qiu paused, then looked up at You Yan. “Or that wicked Yi Bird?”

“All of them,” You Yan said, closing her eyes.

“The people she cares about can’t possibly reconcile with each other. How can she find a solution that satisfies everyone?” Yi Qiu gazed quietly at the two intertwining beams of spiritual light in the distance, her thoughts a tangled mess.

“In that story you told, wasn’t she the same?” You Yan asked coolly.

“…” Yi Qiu let out a soft sigh.

You Yan was right. Wasn’t the Chao Yun from the original novel just like this? She wanted to protect Jiang Yuyao, and she wanted to protect Luo Mingyuan. But the people she sought to protect were already separated by a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood,¹⁰ born from countless misunderstandings. They could never get close to each other again.

In that story, Chao Yun had always been someone who didn’t know how to choose. Her kindness had always been her greatest cowardice. If she hadn’t been so timid, perhaps she could have at least poured all her strength into protecting one of them.

So what kind of choice would she make this time? Would she continue to hesitate between two difficult options, or would she summon the courage to make a trade-off?

But no matter what, this was something others couldn’t easily interfere with.

Chao Yun, who hadn’t slept all night, didn’t delay for a single moment. Without even a hint of rest, and with Xun Chi standing guard, she opened the Dream-Entering Formation¹¹ for Jiang Yuyao.

Normally, Ao’an Mountain had no outside visitors. Although there were guest rooms, they certainly couldn’t accommodate so many people at once.

Fortunately, Yi Qiu had gotten used to having to eat the wind and sleep in the dew¹² over the past few days. As the sky brightened, a wave of sleepiness washed over her. She couldn’t help but yawn. Waving to You Yan, she leaped down from the tree and leaned against its trunk, dozing off.

Perhaps she had too much on her mind, because she didn’t sleep soundly.

One moment she was dreaming of her former, incredibly busy work life; the next, she was an alpaca so hungry it had resorted to eating grass.

The scene shifted. A giant Yi Bird had the red Qinyuan¹³ pinned underfoot, and the increasingly sinister five-colored spiritual light looked as if it was about to swallow it whole…

Yi Qiu woke from the dream in a panic. She found herself lying on her side, her head resting on You Yan’s lap. A familiar red feathered cloak was draped over her shoulders.

She stared up blankly and saw You Yan looking down at her.

“Another nightmare?” You Yan asked softly.

“Mmm…” Yi Qiu frowned, instinctively nuzzling closer to You Yan. “I guess I was just thinking too much.”

“What did you dream about?”

“A lot of things. It was all a mess, I don’t know how to explain it,” Yi Qiu mumbled. After a moment of silence, she added timidly, “I dreamed you were pinned down by Yi Bird.”

“Her?” You Yan reached out and smoothed the hair by Yi Qiu’s ear, her tone dismissive. “That little colorful bird? Even if she’s fallen to the demonic path, she’s no match for me.”

Yi Qiu couldn’t help but laugh.

Little colorful bird? What a strange nickname. You Yan really loves giving people nicknames.

“If my injuries weren’t still healing, I wouldn’t need to fear her at all. You don’t have to worry,” You Yan added.

“Mmm… what time is it?” Yi Qiu murmured. She squinted, then turned over and raised her head, shielding her eyes as she looked at the sky.

The sun was directly overhead. It had to be around noon.

I wonder what’s happening over there. What’s the situation in the dream?

“Want to go see?” You Yan asked softly.

“How do you always know what I’m thinking…” Yi Qiu pouted, climbing off You Yan’s lap. She closed her eyes and stretched luxuriously.

You Yan just smiled faintly. “Who told you to always wear your heart on your sleeve?”

Yi Qiu shrugged. “Yeah, yeah, I can’t hide anything from you!”

With that, she swayed to her feet, looked down to pat the dust off her clothes, and turned to walk ahead.

They weren’t far from the small house deep in the mountains, and it didn’t take them long to arrive.

The aroma of cooking food wafted toward them. As soon as Yi Qiu stepped through the courtyard gate, she saw Yue Zhuo standing in the doorway of a room, waving at her.

That girl was just as casual as ever. After greeting her, she turned and went back inside without so much as a word of invitation.

Yi Qiu was still hesitating when You Yan walked past her and went inside.

Yi Qiu hurried to follow. The moment she entered the room, she saw a large table laden with a rich variety of dishes. But only Jian Li and Yue Zhuo were at the table.

“I knew we’d have guests, so I made sure to cook extra.”

Jian Li stood and welcomed Yi Qiu and You Yan to the table.

Yi Qiu glanced around and asked, “Is it just the four of us?”

“Xun Chi doesn’t eat mortal grains, Young Master Luo hasn’t woken up, Miss Jiang has entered the dream, and the Wood God can’t get away,” Jian Li explained with a helpless smile. “Fortunately, this meal wasn’t made for nothing. Don’t we have the Demon Lord and… Little Sheep Girl?”

“Mmm…” Yi Qiu scratched behind her ear and sat down. “You can just call me Yi Qiu,” she said quietly.

Little Sheep Girl? That sounds so weird.

Speaking of which, this was the first time she had ever eaten a meal with these two Ferocious Beasts.¹⁴ It felt a little surreal.

Maybe this is what they mean by ‘don’t fight, don’t get to know each other’.¹⁵

Back then, in the Wuzhou Stone Cave and on the Xianlu Broken Cliff, the little hot dog now stuffing her face at the table had nearly roasted her alive. Who could have imagined that today, they would all be sitting together, sharing a meal?

Yi Qiu picked up her bowl and chopsticks, her gaze drifting unconsciously toward Yue Zhuo.

After a brief silence, Yue Zhuo looked up at her. “What are you looking at me for?”

“Nothing, it just feels so surreal…” Yi Qiu said, then couldn’t resist asking, “By the way, little hot dog, do you remember me? I’m the alpaca you almost roasted.”

“Did I?” A flicker of confusion crossed Yue Zhuo’s eyes. “I’ve only seen you on the day of the pact.”

Yi Qiu pouted and said no more.

Figures. A weak little demon like me wouldn’t be remembered by anyone.

“That night in Wuzhou, my soul had just returned to my body and my consciousness hadn’t fully recovered. I attacked everyone I saw on instinct. Did I hurt you then?” Yue Zhuo paused, seeming to think for a moment, before adding bluntly, “I should apologize to you. I hear that in the mortal world, when you do something wrong, you have to do this to gain the other person’s forgiveness.”

With that, she stood up and gave Yi Qiu a deep bow. “I’m sorry!”

It was obvious that her apology was extremely formulaic. She had clearly been taught the method but hadn’t put any real heart into it.

Then again, it hadn’t been long since that stone heart of hers had grown flesh and blood. The future is long; she had to learn slowly. It wouldn’t be right to demand too much too soon.

“It’s not important, not important! It was just a minor injury!” Yi Qiu shot to her feet, waving her hands and shaking her head, at a complete loss. “It was so long ago, I was just asking casually…”

If anyone deserved an apology, it was You Yan, who had been the most seriously injured at the time. What right did she have to be dramatic over four singed hooves?

She swore she was just trying to make small talk, to fill the silence at the table.

“You won’t forgive me?” Yue Zhuo, however, was very serious. She remained standing by the table, staring at Yi Qiu, refusing to sit down. She looked as if she would stand there forever if Yi Qiu didn’t forgive her.

“Uh…” Yi Qiu froze. After a moment of awkwardness, she blinked and said, “I forgive you.”

Only then did Yue Zhuo sit back down and continue eating her lunch.

Jian Li, watching from the side, didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She leaned over and began whispering in Yue Zhuo’s ear. The little hot dog listened with a serious expression, nodding earnestly. Who knew if, after one awkward “field test,” she had gained a deeper understanding of the word “apology.”

After lunch, Yi Qiu wanted to help with something, but she and You Yan ended up being left in the room. She couldn’t even manage to snag the job of washing the dishes.

With nothing to do, she sat by the window to bask in the sun, her eyes unconsciously fixed on the closed door of the room next door, lost in thought.

After some time, You Yan suddenly walked over and pulled up a stool to sit beside her.

“You’re worried?” You Yan asked faintly.

“Not really… He’s the protagonist. No matter how much his protagonist halo has faded, he’s not going to die in a dream, right?” Yi Qiu replied softly.

“You certainly seem to take things in stride. Just like those two Ferocious Beasts. Their lives are clearly in someone else’s hands, yet they don’t seem the least bit anxious.”

“Because I know that being anxious is useless. It’s not like anyone else can help… If this were before, I would definitely be anxious. But now…” Yi Qiu trailed off. After a moment, she pressed her lips together and said, “Now I don’t really have any strong feelings about it.”

“Why not?” You Yan couldn’t help but ask.

“When you don’t have any secrets in your heart, you feel at peace,” Yi Qiu said after thinking for a moment. She smiled. “With you here, I have nothing to fear.”

“But I’m afraid.”

“Huh?”

“I’m afraid that if something happens to them, you’ll be taken away along with them.”

Yi Qiu couldn’t help but look up. It wasn’t until she met You Yan’s gaze that she remembered that no one in this world was indestructible.

“You…”

“But I can’t be afraid,” You Yan said, looking out the window. “If I’m afraid, who else can give you peace of mind?”

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The author has something to say:

Some weaknesses are also the very courage that makes one willing to shoulder everything.

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