“Ahem, Senior Brother, you and Auntie take your time chatting. I’ll go change my clothes first.”
Gantang glanced at Lu Qiancha’s expression, which looked like she was about to explode, quickly coughed twice to find an excuse, then slipped out of the room on tiptoe.
“Sigh, my little junior sister is still so troublesome…”
Lu Qiancha stared at the hastily fleeing back, shaking her head with a mix of amusement and frustration, then turned to Xun Xue with a slight apologetic smile: “Sorry for making you witness this embarrassment.”
“It’s nothing, I don’t mind. Actually, it’s quite entertaining.”
Xun Xue’s eyes curved in a gentle smile, sweet and soft, yet her gaze seemed to drift through a haze of faint mist. “Having such a lively and playful friend by one’s side… is truly a blessing.”
In that tender tone, there was clearly a hint of melancholy long sealed away by time.
Lu Qiancha keenly caught that fleeting trace of sadness but did not press further.
Everyone carries their own past—regrets, memories, heavy and locked deep in their hearts. Perhaps in Xun Xue’s long life, there had once been a similar presence, now only remaining as a memory.
At the end of the day,
she was just a “stranger daughter” who had known Xun Xue for only a few days. Sharing deep feelings without a close bond would only breed annoyance.
Lu Qiancha quietly stepped aside, retreating silently to the worn straw mat in the corner, wanting to give her some undisturbed space.
But just as she moved—
Xun Xue suddenly snapped back to attention, pouted like a stern parent, and in a flash appeared before her: “No—definitely! No staying up late!”
“Wait—”
Before Lu Qiancha could protest, Xun Xue’s slender but unyielding hand grabbed the back of her collar. The next moment, Lu Qiancha was lifted onto the stiff straw bed like a kitten caught by the scruff of its neck.
“Xun—”
Lu Qiancha tried to struggle and explain but was stopped by Xun Xue’s mock-angry glare, forcing her to sigh in resignation:
“Ahem, Mother, I used a lot of spiritual power earlier pretending. If I start replenishing it tomorrow, it might be a bit too late.”
“Hmph, no means no.”
Xun Xue withdrew her arm and smoothly wrapped Lu Qiancha into an embrace from behind, her chin resting lightly on her head, her tone imbued with an undeniable intimacy.
“Staying up late harms the spirit and damages the skin. If I catch you staying up late, I’ll spank your bottom.”
The warm breath brushed against her ear, delivering a half-serious, half-joking threat.
The mention of spanking immediately silenced Lu Qiancha. Elder Wan Shuang’s eight hundred lashes had left a rather deep psychological scar…
“Be good, sleep well. Train during the day tomorrow.”
Xun Xue cooed to Lu Qiancha like comforting a child. As she spoke, her fluffy, soft blue tail—like a top-tier fox fur—rolled over to curl gently into Lu Qiancha’s arms.
“Here, hold it while you sleep. It’s so warm~”
“D…”
Lu Qiancha was equally helpless in her heart. She had no choice but to close her eyes and drift into sleep, welcoming the arrival of the next day.
***
The next morning. The morning dew had yet to dry, clouds and mist swirling atop Tianquan Peak.
Xuanya hadn’t been this happy in seven or eight years. She walked briskly, sleeves fluttering in the wind, humming an unfamiliar half-verse of Ni Shang Yin, her face radiant with uncontainable joy.
Passing by Lu Qiancha’s straw hut, she paused slightly, calling inside with a smile: “Gan Cha? Are you cultivating?”
Inside, the figure on the bed twitched sharply! Lu Qiancha nearly tumbled out of Xun Xue’s arms in shock.
At the critical moment,
she suppressed her pounding heart, swiftly adjusting her voice with spiritual power to mimic Lu Qiancha’s deep tone, and called out the door:
“Replying to Shifu, disciple is resting today, nurturing the spirit quietly, will resume cultivation tomorrow.”
After speaking, she immediately slipped out of Xun Xue’s embrace, preparing to disguise herself and open the door for Shifu.
At that moment, Xuanya chuckled softly and said, “Resting is good. I must also continue my secluded cultivation.”
“This time you did well. I suppose it was your antidote that saved Senior Sister Shangguan Yunzhu on Zaohua Peak, truly bringing honor to Tianquan Peak.”
Xuanya’s tone shifted, then she admonished, “But do not become complacent. Minor, unorthodox methods are no substitute for the true Dao!”
“Remember, the foundation is fundamental, and the Dao realm is the core. Do not recklessly delve deeper into poison techniques.”
“Disciple understands,” Lu Qiancha responded solemnly. Before she finished, the tip of her tail was seized again by Xun Xue, who gleefully rubbed it.
Xuanya nodded with approval and earnestly reminded her, “You just broke through to Spirit Severing, but your realm is not yet stable.”
“Do not rush to push to the next stage! Cultivation is a long voyage, only steady progress and cautious steps can overcome the great thresholds.”
“You should rest now. I’m heading into seclusion.” As Xuanya finished, she suddenly remembered something: “Gantang has been worried and worn out for you these past few days. Comfort her well.”
“Yes,” Lu Qiancha replied, though a slight tremor seeped into her voice as Xun Xue intensified her tail massage.
Xuanya did not notice the subtle change, only feeling her instructions were complete. She hummed a lighter tune, a gentle breeze through willows, and returned to her quiet chamber.
Soon after, several arrays suppressing sound and aura quietly illuminated around the distant straw hut.
After confirming Xuanya had left, Lu Qiancha immediately turned back, pouting as she shouted at Xun Xue, “Stop playing with my tail!!” She struggled to pull her precious tail free from those mischievous hands. “You have one too! Why do you always play with mine?”
“Hmph~”
Xun Xue smugly lifted her own equally beautiful blue tail and wagged it in boastful display. “Little Qiancha, you just don’t get it~ Your own tail can’t compare to playing with someone else’s!”
Unyielding, Xun Xue’s fingers didn’t stop but massaged even more vigorously, a sly fox-like smile curving her lips.
“Ugh… l-let go…”
Lu Qiancha stretched out her little paws, using all her strength to push away the offending hand, her face turning red.
“No way, Mommy just learned a new massage technique, and only our daughter gets to enjoy it.”
Xun Xue blinked playfully.
“What massage technique?” Alarm bells rang in Lu Qiancha’s heart, an ominous premonition rising.
“Hmph, you’ll know soon enough.”
Xun Xue smiled mischievously as her fingertips began to shimmer faintly with silver immortal light, swift as the wind!
Shh! Shh! Shh!
They precisely struck several hidden acupoints along Lu Qiancha’s tail!
“Eh?! Wait!”
Lu Qiancha suddenly felt a strange tingling, like electric shocks shooting up her tailbone.
Before she could react—when the third thread of immortal energy hit the point—her entire body went limp, as if all her bones had been drained, and she helplessly collapsed into Xun Xue’s warm embrace.
“Uh… w-what is this…”
An indescribable wave of comfortable warmth flowed from the stimulated acupoints, gently yet forcefully spreading through every meridian, washing away days of fatigue and stagnation.
Lu Qiancha felt as if she were soaked in warm milk, dazed and light as a feather.
“Ugh… so comfortable…”
She hummed unconsciously, like a cat tickled in a spot it loved.
“See? See? Isn’t it nice? I begged that old witch at home for this technique for ages before she taught me.”
Xun Xue’s pride soared as her fingers danced faster, flowing like clouds and water, silver light weaving into a delicate net.
She was determined to give this first ‘customer’ an unparalleled experience!
Lu Qiancha was completely lost. Limp in Xun Xue’s arms, her face buried against her chest, utterly indulging in this secret, top-tier wolf clan massage.
The last bit of her consciousness struggled, shouting: “Don’t sink into this wicked softness!”
But her body betrayed her: “Mmm… never mind… I’ll just become a silly little fool who only knows comfort…”
The resolve to resist was utterly drowned by wave after wave of supreme pleasure… the light of reason quickly extinguishing.