The warmth of body heat traveled from his fingertips, and Nan Shan froze for a moment.
Before she had time to react, Ji Yue had already let go.
“When did you suddenly become enlightened?” he asked.
A trace of unease flashed across Nan Shan’s face.
She cleared her throat and vaguely explained, “Well… it was like a stroke of luck, a sudden flash of inspiration. Enlightenment is sometimes just a momentary thing. When the time is right, it just happens naturally.”
Ji Yue frowned slightly.
His intuition told him it wasn’t that simple.
Just as he was about to ask further, Shou Xin suddenly rushed over.
“Nan Shan! Is it true you found a way to cultivate even without a spirit bone?!”
“Yeah, why?”
Nan Shan replied smugly but cautiously.
“Don’t tell me you’re jealous even about this?”
“I can’t be bothered to be jealous!”
Shou Xin scoffed.
“I’m just happy for the Immortal Lord. Finally, he doesn’t have to waste time on you or constantly endure your bad temper.”
Nan Shan looked at Ji Yue awkwardly upon hearing this.
“You make it sound like I’m always bullying him. I’m not that terrible!”
“How are you not terrible? Didn’t you just lose your temper with him before going into seclusion?”
The seven-year-old clearly didn’t understand what moderation meant and insisted on making her admit it.
Nan Shan stiffened.
“I didn’t!”
“Liar!”
Shou Xin snapped, then turned to Ji Yue for confirmation.
“Immortal Lord, didn’t she lose her temper with you before?”
Nan Shan felt a pang of guilt but still looked at Ji Yue.
Ji Yue’s eyes were gentle as he softly asked, “Are you hungry?”
Both Nan Shan and Shou Xin were stunned.
Then Nan Shan quickly caught on and clutched her stomach.
“Oh no, I’m so hungry. I haven’t eaten in forever—I’m starving.”
Though annoyed by the lie, Shou Xin still cared.
Hearing this, he immediately ran off to the kitchen.
Nan Shan continued to hold her stomach until he was out of sight, then burst into laughter.
“This kid’s still as gullible as ever…”
Nan Shan laughed so hard her eyes teared up.
In the haze, she met Ji Yue’s gaze, and her smile quickly faded.
She stood upright and proper.
After a moment, she cautiously asked, “Am I really that bad-tempered with you?”
Ji Yue pretended to think for a moment, then smiled under her nervous gaze.
“Doesn’t really count as losing your temper.”
“Then what is it?”
Nan Shan asked without thinking.
Ji Yue considered, then replied, “Being spoiled?”
Nan Shan paused, her cheeks warming slightly.
She coughed and was about to deny it when Ji Yue asked, “So, how exactly are you cultivating now?”
“W-What?”
Nan Shan didn’t expect the topic to come back around, so she widened her eyes and played dumb.
Ji Yue remained puzzled.
“The fact remains—you’re missing a spirit bone and your spiritual power can’t circulate. What method are you using to make it flow again?”
“…It’s a secret from the heavens. I’m not telling you my cultivation technique.”
Nan Shan said firmly. Seeing that he still intended to ask more, she turned and fled to the kitchen.
Ji Yue had no choice but to drop it.
Having escaped Ji Yue’s questioning, Nan Shan let out a quiet sigh of relief.
After eating, she continued studying a few jade scrolls in her hands.
Ever since she found a way to cultivate, she truly began to appreciate the benefits of being born with a spirit bone.
The scrolls she previously couldn’t grasp now came naturally, and the spiritual energy she could never sense before flowed easily.
She was like a dry sponge, soaking up every drop of water that came her way.
She began asking Ji Yue for more advanced techniques, hiding away in her room to train day and night.
Because of her rapid progress, she could go without food or drink for a long time, though she still needed to sleep.
Only after sleeping did she feel aligned again.
With her focus on cultivation, what once felt like long days now seemed to pass quickly.
Another night approached.
More experienced now, Nan Shan didn’t bring food to Shou Xin’s room this time.
Instead, she went to ask Ji Yue for two high-level jade scrolls.
“Those ghosts are too noisy. I couldn’t sleep anyway, so I figured I’d just train all night—wait, why do you look so worn out?”
Nan Shan changed the subject mid-sentence, unable to hold back.
The Ji Yue before her looked pale and haggard, no different than before sunset the last time they met.
Faced with her concern, Ji Yue didn’t respond—he simply stared at her face.
She’d been hiding in her room for days.
Ji Yue had come by several times but never saw her.
Now that they were face-to-face again, something in his usual smile faded.
The atmosphere grew heavy.
Nan Shan moistened her lips and cautiously asked:
“What’s wrong?”
Ji Yue was silent for a moment, then asked quietly, “What method are you using to cultivate?”
“Didn’t I already say? It’s a heavenly secret—I can’t…”
“Why does your face show signs of a short life?”
Ji Yue interrupted.
Nan Shan froze.
“What? What do you mean ‘signs of a short life’?”
“You don’t even know what that is?”
Shou Xin appeared out of nowhere, hearing only part of the conversation and chimed in confidently, “It just means a short lifespan! So if someone has that kind of face—”
Before he could finish, Ji Yue grabbed Nan Shan’s wrist, and in a flash, they appeared on the shoulder of the temple’s statue.
There were more worshippers today than ever before.
The incense smoke was so thick it stung the eyes.
As soon as Nan Shan realized where they were, she immediately covered her ears.
Thankfully, Ji Yue was faster, and she didn’t have to hear those ant-like prayers crawling through her mind.
“Why did you bring me here?”
Nan Shan averted her gaze from Ji Yue.
Ji Yue looked unusually stern.
His gaunt face appeared even sharper.
“You heard what Shou Xin just said, didn’t you?”
Nan Shan bit her lower lip in silence.
Ji Yue understood.
“So you know there’s something wrong with your body.”
Nan Shan’s eyes shifted, clearly trying to come up with an excuse.
But Ji Yue didn’t give her a chance—he injected spiritual energy directly into her forehead.
Nan Shan instinctively tried to resist, but the moment she did, a cold and eerie feeling flooded her body.
She shivered and gave up.
Ji Yue’s spiritual energy moved throughout her body.
The longer it stayed, the colder his expression became.
By the time he finished, even his pale cheeks were flushed with anger.
“You actually forced a spirit bone to form using spiritual energy?!”
He snapped.
Nan Shan rubbed her nose.
“You’re checking my body this thoroughly and didn’t even make me undress this time?”
“With your cultivation level now, you don’t need to undress for me to examine you. Don’t try to change the subject. Tell me—why did you do this?”
It was rare to see him this angry, and Nan Shan couldn’t help but laugh.
“Don’t be mad! Isn’t it clever though? Not just anyone would think of replacing a spirit bone with spiritual energy!”
The idea came to her after watching Shou Xin build a small wooden bridge.
Since he could replace a missing beam with bricks, why couldn’t she replace a missing spirit bone with spiritual energy and link the others together?
“Look, isn’t my cultivation improving rapidly now?”
She spread her hands.
But Ji Yue wasn’t buying it.
He looked at her coldly.
“Using spiritual energy to replace a spirit bone—you’re indeed clever. But the spirit bone is like a canal, and spiritual energy is like water. If you use water to replace the canal itself, the higher your cultivation, the more energy flows, and the higher the risk of collapse.”
“This method is like drinking poison to quench thirst. You’ve barely started cultivating and already show signs of a shortened life. Isn’t that enough to warn you?”
“Then what should I do now?”
Nan Shan retorted.
Ji Yue replied, “Immediately stop using this cultivation method. We’ll find another way.”
“But do I still have time?” Nan Shan gave a bitter laugh.
“Immortal Lord, those times my spirit bone was growing painfully—you helped me through them all. You should be even more aware than I am… that I don’t have much time left, right?”
Ji Yue’s expression froze briefly.
“How did you…”
“I was just guessing. But judging by your face, I must’ve guessed right.”
Nan Shan sighed.
“Actually, during this last closed-door cultivation, the spirit bone ached again. I used my own spiritual power to nourish it. The growth did speed up, and I didn’t feel much pain either—it was actually quite easy.”
“After that first growth pain, you helped me through four more times. Each time, you gave me more spiritual power, but it worked less and less. The last time, you nearly drained yourself, didn’t you? And yet my spirit bone still throbbed faintly. That means your spiritual power is no longer enough for me. So I guessed—maybe I’m not like other people born with spirit bones.”
She paused and gave a self-deprecating chuckle.
“I’m indeed different. I’m missing one, after all. So I need much more spiritual power—like a leaky water bag that always needs extra to keep it full for even a moment. You can still help me now, but when the spirit bone grows further and needs even more—can you still help me then?”
“Before that happens, I will find a way for you to nourish the bone on your own.”
Ji Yue said seriously.
“And what if you can’t?”
Nan Shan asked back.
Ji Yue fell silent.
“So right now, if I don’t keep using this method to cultivate, not only will I be unable to break through the barrier and leave Dongyi,” Nan Shan sighed softly, “but next time the growth pain hits…” She paused. “I don’t want to admit it, but the truth is—no one can help me with this. I can only rely on myself.”
Ji Yue stared at her in silence.
Her frail and haggard figure seemed like she could collapse at any moment.
Nan Shan caught the look on his face and couldn’t help but laugh.
“This is my own choice. Don’t look so gloomy. Actually, I should thank you. If you hadn’t discovered I was missing a spirit bone, I’d probably still be dreaming someone could save me. And if that had delayed my cultivation, I might’ve already died during that last retreat. I wouldn’t be standing here talking to you.”
Ji Yue lowered his gaze, then looked at her again after a pause.
His pitch-black eyes gleamed intensely.
“I won’t let you die.”
His tone startled Nan Shan—it sounded like a solemn promise.
Then she quickly recovered.
“Well of course, if I die, who’s going to help you break that invisible wall?”
Ji Yue’s lips curved silently.
He didn’t argue.
Looking at his thin figure, Nan Shan suddenly felt a strange sense of disappointment.
Just a little—but even that little was too much.
She blinked rapidly, trying to chase away that odd emotion.
“Your eyes are uncomfortable?”
Ji Yue asked suddenly.
“Huh… no.” Nan Shan quickly changed the subject.
“Hey, you can read faces, right?”
“Yes.”
“Are you good at it? Better than the Old Patriarch of Kunlun?”
She asked curiously.
Ji Yue paused.
“I rarely leave Dongyi, so I don’t know many from the outside world. But… I should be better than him.”
“That’s impressive!”
Nan Shan exclaimed.
“Then have you ever seen anything from my face?”
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