The Proof of Affection

‘That’s right, Lin Mo must be fond of me!’

‘Absolutely!’

Mu Qingli was absolutely certain.

‘He definitely likes me!’

Two pieces of evidence supported her conviction.

Evidence One: His ever-present gaze.

Under her subtle ‘observation,’ Lin Mo’s actions were unequivocally clear.

He consistently, perpetually, cast his gaze in her direction, whether intentionally or not, whenever she was within his line of sight.

His eyes, darting and flustered, carried a hint of… the shyness and evasion of someone caught in the act?

‘This could be no mere coincidence!’ she mused.

‘If his heart weren’t already taken, if he weren’t utterly captivated, why would he be so acutely aware of my gaze?’

‘Why would he go to such lengths, simply for another glimpse?’

‘Indeed! This is an undeniable, irrepressible desire, the kind a young man feels for his beloved, a longing that cannot be hidden or suppressed.’

‘Hadn’t her master said it before? When one likes someone, their gaze involuntarily follows. Lin Mo’s symptoms aligned perfectly!’

‘Otherwise, why would Lin Mo be so preoccupied with her gaze?’

‘Throughout the past few days of her observation, she had noticed him consistently stealing glances at her, whether consciously or not.’

‘Of course, considering she was not only a woman but also the esteemed Sect Master, endowed with both beauty and dignity, it was only natural for Lin Mo to find it difficult to meet her gaze directly.’

‘To him, she must appear as a radiant sun, while he was but a sewer roach gazing upward, overwhelmed by even a sliver of her brilliance.’

‘Moreover, in this world, there were countless instances of men having their eyes gouged out for stealing glances at women. If he was willing to risk such a gruesome fate just to peek, what else could it be but affection?’

This led her to Evidence Two: His illogical ‘devotion.’

Having nearly been killed by someone whose Sect Master position was merely titular, any sensible person would have fled the moment Martial Aunt Zhao Qiubai extended an invitation.

Yet, what of Lin Mo?

He had stayed.

‘Could this truly be explained by ‘gratitude’ or ‘duty’?’

‘Such explanations were far too feeble!’

Her master’s adage echoed in her ears once more: “Once a person falls in love, they become foolish, capable of many absurd actions, even disregarding life and death.”

‘Wasn’t Lin Mo’s unwavering devotion the perfect embodiment of ‘preferring death over abandoning love’? Indeed!’

‘This was clearly profound love, deeply rooted and impossible to extricate oneself from!’

However, when Mu Qingli had asked her master why her own father had abandoned her and her mother, her master had been unable to answer, instead speaking of strange things.

She had spoken of believing that one day, people would be able to fly through the skies without cultivating immortality, riding in enormous, metallic objects, like colossal birds soaring across the heavens.

Yet, Mu Qingli believed her.

Her master had never lied to her about anything in her life, save for one instance.

Thus, she trusted her master’s words about the great iron birds and believed that men truly were like that.

Moreover, Lin Mo’s appearance and all his actions now seemed to confirm her master’s words.

For her, Mu Qingli, he was even willing to disregard his own life.

Evidence Three: His clumsy yet wholehearted attempts to ‘please.’

Initially, her gaze had rendered him utterly flustered, his eyes darting away like a startled rabbit.

Later, he seemed to have ‘grown accustomed’ to it, or perhaps, in an effort to ‘respond’ to her ‘attention,’ he began to ‘perform’ in various ways.

‘What was that called, ‘crosstalk’ (TL Note: A traditional Chinese comedic performance involving witty banter and rapid-fire jokes)?’ Mu Qingli had never encountered it before, yet he managed to portray multiple characters, interjecting jokes and witty remarks, genuinely amusing her to the point of nearly losing her composure.

‘Was this not an attempt to win her smile?’

‘Otherwise, why would he expend such effort?’

Then there was the puppet show!

The story of ‘The Trials of the True Young Lady’ infuriated her so much that she yearned to rush in and shake the stupidity out of those dolts’ heads.

The narrative began with a true young lady from an aristocratic family being swapped by villains, leading to the fake young lady enjoying ten years of carefree life while the true one suffered in solitude, only to be discovered years later.

The story was intensely irritating, not for its plot, but because the fake young lady was genuinely despicable, not only insidious and cunning but also a compulsive liar.

Even more infuriating were the parents and the so-called elder brother, who chose to believe the slanders of a fake young lady over their own flesh and blood, their true daughter and sister.

To make matters worse, the slanders were baseless, mere verbal accusations without any evidence, yet everyone believed them.

Despite her being their biological daughter, they treated her as if she were a sworn enemy, showering the fake daughter with endless affection while despising their true child.

However, each time she was slandered, the true young lady responded with her sharp intellect, leading to constant reversals, making the story captivating and full of dramatic twists.

Yet, precisely at every critical juncture, he would halt!

This left her utterly suspended, her appetite whetted to its fullest!

‘This game of feigned indifference… Hmph!’ she scoffed inwardly.

Nevertheless, she had to admit that this agonizing anticipation was a fresh, long-lost sensation, one she hadn’t experienced since she had been confined to her Sect Master’s seat, treated as if she were invisible.

He was like an unexpected gust of wind, sweeping away the stagnant waters of her life.

‘Didn’t he bring all this simply to make her happy, to make her look at him more often?’

‘Indeed! This was merely clumsy courtship.’

Thus, confronted with this myriad of evidence, Mu Qingli reached her conclusion.

Conclusion: The evidence was irrefutable!

‘He loved her!’

‘He liked her!’

‘He was fond of Mu Qingli!’

As for why he had fallen for her?

‘Heh, who cared for reasons?’ she thought.

‘Matters of the heart were inherently illogical. Hadn’t her master also said that liking someone simply meant liking them?’

More importantly, this ‘affection’ was an absolute godsend!

She needed him by her side; she needed his assistance in completing the 《Ming Jue Xuan Yin》.

‘Since he ‘liked’ her, wouldn’t it be effortless to make him utterly devoted?’

‘A mere man, easily manipulated!’

Her strategy was equally straightforward: to do the exact opposite!

Her master had also said, “The more one sees, the deeper their affection grows.”

‘Very well, then she would continue to ‘watch’ him!’

She would watch him with even greater focus, with even more ‘profound affection’!

She would lead him to mistakenly believe that she, too, was moved by his ‘infatuation’ and had developed ‘feelings’ for him.

In this way, he would undoubtedly become even more infatuated, willingly following her every command until the cultivation technique was complete.

Consequently, Mu Qingli’s gaze grew even more ardent, falling upon Lin Mo with heightened ‘tender affection.’

Observe!

The effect was instantaneous!

He clearly felt her ‘fiery’ gaze, immediately growing uncomfortable, his eyes once again darting away!

‘What did this signify?’

‘Why was there not a hint of shyness in his expression?’

‘It proved her strategy was working! He had been thrown into disarray by the illusion of ‘mutual affection,’ completely ensnared! Indeed!’

However…

As time progressed, and as she continued to watch, Mu Qingli realized that her dedicated ‘observation’ seemed to have exceeded her initial plan.

This Lin Mo… he genuinely seemed rather intriguing.

While his ‘crosstalk’ had a peculiar cadence, his comedic timing was surprisingly clever; and though the tales in his puppet show were infuriating, the sense of anticipation he sparked—the eagerness for what new trick he would unveil next, the longing for the continuation of that maddening puppet show—infused her dull, monotonous days with… color, for the very first time?

Unconsciously, Mu Qingli’s ‘observation’ grew more earnest, more deeply invested.

She began to wonder what other novelties this man, who consistently delivered unexpected ‘surprises,’ could conjure.

How great a ripple could he create in the stagnant waters of her own life?

Her gaze intensified, almost scorching holes into him.

Consequently, in the courtyard, Lin Mo—

was drenched in sweat!

He was filled with dread, for despite racking his brains to please her, her gaze seemed to grow increasingly terrifying.

That look… it was as if she wanted to flay him alive!

Had his previous performances backfired?

Were his ‘silly short skits’ not silly enough?

Not entertaining enough?

‘That couldn’t be right,’ he thought.

‘These were internet ‘poisons’ from Blue Star, addictive from the very first watch! For people in this cultivation world, akin to ancient folk, these should be devastatingly effective!’

Lin Mo plunged into deep anxiety and self-doubt, knowing that if he continued to provoke Mu Qingli’s anger, his life would surely be forfeit sooner or later!

Just as Lin Mo was consumed by anxiety, a sweet voice suddenly rang out from not far away.

“Sister Wan’er~ I’ve come to see you!”

Lin Mo followed the sound with his gaze, only to find it was Liu Ruyan!

At that moment, she was already clad in the Xuan Nv Sect’s Taoist robe, a purple-dominant mermaid dress, her hair tied in a ponytail.

She bounced towards him, clutching something, an utterly adorable sight.

Suddenly, an exceptionally clever idea sparked in Lin Mo’s mind.

‘If he had a friend within the sect, wouldn’t that alleviate Mu Qingli’s suspicions about him trying to ‘escape’?’

‘After all, with a close friend, even the most arduous circumstances could become somewhat more bearable.’

‘Just like back in the Qiu family, without Yang Po Po, he would undoubtedly have suffered immensely.’

Therefore, Lin Mo immediately stood up, pinched his throat, and, using a feminine voice, sweetly replied to Liu Ruyan: “Sister Ruyan, you’re here~ I’ve missed you terribly!”

No sooner had his words faded than a sudden sound of something shattering echoed.

Clearly, it was the sound made by Mu Qingli, who stood directly behind him, having crushed the windowpane to splinters.

Lin Mo was startled, but upon seeing the person accompanying Liu Ruyan — Grand Elder Qing You — he instantly understood.

No wonder Mu Qingli was so enraged; why had she come too?

Mu Qingli’s gaze was icy, and a furious inferno raged within her heart.

‘You dare to show such a smile to another woman?’ she roared inwardly.