Useful Enough

"Yang-Yang!" the mother paled. "Don't speak such nonsense!" She bowed to me and then to Bai Ye, fear overwhelming her face. "I-I am so sorry. Please forgive him for being so rude, he's too frightened to think straight."

It took me a moment to remember that most commoners felt uneasy in the presence of cultivators—naturally so, since what we could do with the bare flip of a hand was too formidable to those without the power. The woman must be worried that we'd be offended by her son's bold request and do something to harm him. "Oh, he is the opposite of rude." I reassured her with a smile and patted the boy's back to calm him down. "I can see how frightened he is though, poor thing."

"Please trust us, we are only here to help." Bai Ye spoke next, seeing the uncertainty in the woman's eyes. "Has the village elder notified Mount Hua of what happened?"