Lin Xi and Lin Chi, though twin sisters, were quite different. From those few sentences alone, it was clear Lin Xi had received a proper education, while Lin Chi had not. She didn't even understand the idiom "A small lotus bud just begins to show its tip." Perhaps the sisters had different specialties; Lin Xi dealt with humans and demons, while Lin Chi dealt with ghosts.
I wasn't as eloquent as Lin Xi, so I simply comforted Chen Ke with a few words, telling her not to worry and that I wouldn't blame her for this. After all, hadn't she made amends? She had used her disguise technique to change our identities. I was curious to see the true caliber of the Mohe (Khitan) grand army personally led by Long Yue.
When there were five minutes left on the countdown, I activated my Qi Sensing technique, but I hadn't detected them yet. Perhaps they were stuck in traffic.
Five minutes later, Lin Xi received a call from a local Xiabya member, who reported that the Mohe convoy had been spotted and had entered the city of Meihekou, heading straight for us, with an estimated arrival in about ten minutes.
I felt a little nervous. I went to the restroom, and when I returned, I activated my Qi Sensing technique again. Long Yue and the others still hadn't arrived, but surprisingly, I detected that the Whale God had woken up. Could it be that she sensed "danger"?
This was Lin Xi's specialty. I informed Lin Xi, who immediately asked where the Whale God was.
"She hasn't gone anywhere. She's on the first floor of the hotel, probably in the restaurant," I replied. I couldn't see the restaurant from the hotel's floor-to-ceiling windows due to a corner turn in the corridor, but my Qi Sensing technique could reach it.
"Is she coincidentally awake to eat, or did she sense something?" Lin Xi murmured to herself, standing up, ready to return to the hotel to investigate.
I gently took her small hand. "I'll go."
"Why? This is my job," Lin Xi frowned.
"You are too powerful, and you've changed your appearance. I fear the Whale God might become suspicious of your identity. So, it's better I go. I pose no threat to her," I explained.
"That makes sense," Chen Ke nodded. Ya Nan agreed. Lin Xi, despite her harmless, neighborly demeanor, was a formidable Purple Qi expert, already considered among the top-tier practitioners in our eyes.
"Alright," Lin Xi sat back down. "Then be careful. Don't be reckless. Just observe, don't get too deeply involved. Her temper is a bit strange."
I nodded and left the coffee shop, returning to the hotel.
Lin Xi isn't my supervisor; why would I listen to her!
I walked through the connecting corridor to the restaurant. The Whale God was indeed there. The morning buffet was over, so it was order-only. The Whale God sat at the innermost table, frowning as she looked at the menu.
Her aura was too strong, too dark. I had to deactivate my Qi Sensing technique and walk towards her.
As soon as I entered the restaurant, the Whale God noticed me, but only glanced with her peripheral vision, not paying much attention. It wasn't until I sat down opposite her that she looked up, her gaze calm. She tilted her head, looking rather puzzled.
"Do you think I look familiar?" I asked with a smile.
The Whale God nodded.
"I'm your neighbor," I pointed to my face, "I've used a disguise."
The Whale God turned her head to the side, still tilting it as she looked at me, seemingly even more confused.
"Young man," a middle-aged man in a chef's hat called out to me from behind the counter with a smile, "She's an old foreigner. She doesn't understand our language."
Impossible. She visits the mainland often, how could she not understand Chinese?
"Can you understand me?" I asked again.
The Whale God shook her head, then nodded.
"What does that mean?" I scratched my head. "Understand... half?"
The Whale God nodded emphatically. Then, she dipped her finger into the water in her glass and wrote a sentence on the wooden table. It was beautiful, flowing traditional script.
"My return to the human world has been long delayed; my linguistic abilities have nearly faded. Please forgive me."
I understood. She had likely last stayed long-term in the human world during the late Qing Dynasty or the Republican era, which would explain this somewhat archaic and half-classical speech style. Nowadays, people speak Mandarin and use simplified characters. Coupled with her spending over a hundred years in the sea, with no one to converse with her in Chinese, her language skills had regressed.
"You're quite candid," I said with a smile. "You've directly told me that you 'long delayed your return to the human world.' Do you perhaps suspect that I already know your identity?"
The words I used were old-fashioned, so she should be able to understand at least seventy percent.
Indeed, she understood. And she even spoke, albeit in a very low voice: "I... I am the great fish of the North Sea."