NOVEL WEB Chapter 145 - Trustworthy
Night fell, and Xiao Yan, Qing Lin, and the mysterious cloaked woman sat around a campfire, eating the provisions Xiao Li had asked them to take before leaving.
Xiao Yan and Qing Lin were engrossed in conversation, with Xiao Yan sharing tales of his travels, and Qing Lin describing her daily life in the Desert Metal Mercenary Company.
As a stranger, the cloaked woman couldn’t join in their discussion and remained silent, sitting in the corner with her brows furrowed tightly beneath the hood.
Her thoughts were still dwelling on the words of Yan Ci, the leader of the Yan Snake Tribe, during their departure. According to her knowledge, Yan Ci was one of the tribal leaders who held a strong aversion to humans. Though he hadn’t reached the point of attacking humans on sight, his attitude toward them was notably hostile.
However, despite this, Yan Ci’s words had given Xiao Li a strong affirmation. It wasn’t just a formality. Moreover, facing the three of them, Yan Ci had no need for pleasantries. This suggested that those words genuinely reflected his thoughts.
Yan Ci sincerely acknowledged Xiao Li.
These thoughts led the cloaked woman to question herself. Could it be that she has been overthinking things? Maybe the dealings between the Xiao Clan and the Yunlan Sect are genuinely unrelated?
If that’s the case, then even if she were to reveal her true identity, it should be fine…
After wavering in her thoughts for a while, the cloaked woman shook her head slightly.
No, it’s not the right time.
At least for now, Xiao Yan is not trustworthy enough.
The identity of the fiancé of the Yunlan Sect’s sect young mistress brings too much uncertainty.
When Xiao Yan faced a Dou Wang ‘Battle King, 6th Level’ powerhouse without a hint of fear, it secretly impressed the cloaked woman. Even though their strengths weren’t vastly different, their mentalities differed significantly. At least, the cloaked woman didn’t possess the courage to stand calmly before a Dou Wang ‘Battle King, 6th Level’ powerhouse like Xiao Yan.
However, despite the admiration, it didn’t prove Xiao Yan’s innocence.
Although Yan Ci praised Xiao Li, ultimately, Xiao Li and Xiao Yan were two different people. Even if Xiao Li had no issues, it didn’t guarantee Xiao Yan’s innocence.
The instances of discord within the same family were too numerous, as the cloaked woman had read in many historical records.
For now, Xiao Yan was not enough to make her reveal her identity.
While the cloaked woman was pondering, Qing Lin, who had been chatting with Xiao Yan, suddenly raised her delicate nose. Her doll-like face instantly became alert as she looked at Xiao Yan and whispered.
“Master Xiao Yan! There are humans!”
“Hmm?!”
Both Xiao Yan and the cloaked woman were surprised. Qing Lin wrinkled her brows slightly, then bent down, placing her ears close to the ground. After a moment, she raised her head again.
“They are not coming towards us; they seem to be passing by our vicinity.”
“…” Xiao Yan lowered his brows, and after a while, he took out the map and handed it to Qing Lin, asking, “Qing Lin, can you see which direction they are heading?”
“Let me see…”
Taking the map, Qing Lin scanned it back and forth before pointing to a small tribe.
“Master Xiao Yan, based on their direction, if they don’t change their route halfway, they should be heading here.”
Xiao Yan leaned in, looking at the spot Qing Lin pointed to on the map. The cloaked woman also approached, her brows furrowed tightly.
“This is– the Mo Snake Tribe?!”
Hearing the cloaked woman’s exclamation, Xiao Yan slightly furrowed his brows, looking at her.
“From your tone, it seems like you are quite familiar with these tribes?”
“Yes, I gathered relevant information before coming here.” The cloaked woman nodded, watching Xiao Yan as she answered, “The snake-people have eight tribes, each led by a Dou Wang ‘Battle King, 6th Level’-level Tribe Leader. We just encountered Yan Ci, the Tribe Leader of the Yan Snake Tribe.”
“I heard nervousness in your voice just now?”
Xiao Yan questioned, and the cloaked woman answered in a slow manner.
“According to the information, the Yan Ci we encountered earlier, although not very friendly towards humans, is generally more rational than emotional,” the cloaked woman said, her beautiful brows furrowed tightly under the hood. “But the leader of the Mo Snake Tribe, Mo Basi, is different. He harbors extreme resentment and hatred towards humans. Anyone appearing in his field of vision is destined not to leave alive. If the Tribe Leader we encountered was not Yan Ci but Mo Basi, we wouldn’t have been let off so easily.”
After hearing the cloaked woman’s explanation, Xiao Yan lowered his head in contemplation.
He understood now why she felt nervous.
If the slave traders from the human side were destabilizing the potential peaceful coexistence between humans and the snake-people, then Mo Basi, the leader of the Mo Snake Tribe, was destabilizing the potential peaceful coexistence from the snake-people’s side.
In other words, for humans and snake-people to coexist peacefully, the Mo Snake Tribe must not be harmed. Otherwise, their already intense aversion to humans would worsen, becoming a significant obstacle on the snake-people’s side, hindering the handshake and peace between the two races.
At this moment, Xiao Yan suddenly recalled something.
The incident where Xiao Li was called by the snake-people was triggered because some tribes of the snake-people were attacked by unknown individuals.
If the people who passed by just now were the culprits behind the attacks on the snake-people’s tribes…
“Let’s go!” Xiao Yan didn’t hesitate anymore. He stood up, extinguished the flames with sand, and said to Qing Lin and the cloaked woman, “We’ll follow them. We need to confirm their intentions and prevent the situation from escalating further!”
“Yes!” Qing Lin nodded vigorously. The reason she stayed in the Tagore Desert was to prevent the tragedy of her parents from happening again. After all the efforts Xiao Li put into improving the relationship between the two races, she couldn’t tolerate it being destroyed by someone else.
The cloaked woman also stood up, her gaze under the hood complex as she looked at Xiao Yan with a serious expression.
Originally, she was considering proposing to follow them, but unexpectedly, Xiao Yan took the initiative.
From Xiao Yan’s face, she could only see genuine concern for the future relationship between humans and the snake-people, without a trace of insincerity.
At this moment, the cloaked woman internally labeled Xiao Yan as trustworthy.
If someone could disguise themselves to this extent, even if she were deceived, she would accept it.
‘Later, when there’s a chance, I’ll confess my true identity to him.’
______________ Translator Note ______________
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