“Master, this Dragon and Phoenix Harmonizing Art is truly abstruse and difficult to grasp. I feel like there are still so many things I don’t understand.”
“Don’t worry, disciple. Master will guide you through the cultivation a few more times, so you can truly comprehend the essence of this technique.”
“Thank you, Master!”
Time slips by unnoticed in cultivation; spring is already deep, and a single moment of spring night is worth a thousand pieces of gold.
Inside the wooden hut, a lesson on the Dragon and Phoenix Harmonizing Art had just ended.
Faced with Limuqun’s tireless pursuit of the Dao, Luozhilan responded with her profound understanding of the art’s mysteries, meeting his longing for the Dao.
Sigh!
If only I, Limuqun, had known that such a wondrous technique existed in this world, would I have had to toil so bitterly to reach this point?
As he sighed endlessly, enjoying the soft warmth in his embrace—
“Knock, knock, knock.”
A flurry of urgent knocking suddenly mingled with the interwoven breaths in the hut.
And with it came a clear yet anxious call from a young girl:
“Li Senior Brother, Li Senior Brother, is that you?”
“I saw a light inside. Have you come back?”
Outside the door, the girl’s voice rang out abruptly, startling Limuqun from the gentle embrace. He jolted upright out of Luozhilan’s arms.
Th-this voice…?
Jiang Shimei!
In an instant, his heart for the Dao wilted away, replaced entirely by a rush of nerves and panic.
He looked fearfully at Luozhilan on the bed, seemed to think of something, then lowered his voice and asked through gritted teeth, “Master, you sensed her coming long ago, didn’t you?”
With the divine sense of a Golden Core Realm cultivator, unless under special circumstances, every movement of any living being nearby could be perceived.
For Jiang Wan’er to visit so suddenly, how could Luozhilan possibly not notice?
Yet Luozhilan seemed completely unconcerned about the knocking, even reaching out to lazily stifle a yawn as she replied slowly,
“I suppose so. I didn’t really pay much attention just now. By the time I sensed her, she was already at the edge of Congealed Fat Peak.”
“Then why didn’t you warn me earlier!”
“Why panic? So what if she finds out?”
Luozhilan’s face was full of disdain, as if she didn’t take Jiang Wan’er seriously at all.
“Panic? She’s the Sect’s Saintess! If she finds out, how will the two of us ever show our faces in the Cloud Expanse Sect again?”
Compared to Luozhilan’s calm, Limuqun was utterly frantic.
He scrambled to dress himself as he anxiously urged the still-relaxed Luozhilan,
“Master, hurry and traverse the Void back to Congealed Fat Peak. Once I’ve dealt with her, we can continue passing on the Dao. Please, I’m begging you!”
As he hurried Luozhilan to leave, Jiang Wan’er, hearing no reply, now called out with a hint of doubt,
“Li Senior Brother, is that you? Or…”
As if some frightening scene crossed her mind, the girl’s slender body trembled, and she pressed against the wooden door, about to push her way in.
“I don’t care anymore. No matter who it is, I’m coming in!”
“Hey, wait, wait!” Limuqun didn’t even have time to pull up his trousers before darting to press against the shuddering door, calling out, “Yes, it’s me, Jiang Shimei! It’s so late at night—what brings you here?”
While soothing Jiang Wan’er, he shot a fierce glare at the unhurried Luozhilan, eyes full of accusation for not leaving yet.
“Tsk, tsk. So quick to disown people after putting your pants back on,” Luozhilan pursed her lips and muttered to herself.
Just then, Jiang Wan’er’s voice drifted in through the door, tinged with sobs, “Stupid Senior Brother, where have you been lately? I’ve come by so many times and never found you. Do you know… Wan’er missed you so much…”
As she spoke, Jiang Wan’er suddenly clapped her hand over her mouth, muffling her words with “mmm, mmm.”
“Uh, Jiang Shimei.”
Realizing from her rambling that Jiang Wan’er’s emotions were unstable and she might barge in at any moment, Limuqun shot Luozhilan another pleading look, then hurriedly comforted, “I went to explore a Mystic Realm recently, so I only just returned to the sect.”
“Mystic Realm?” Jiang Wan’er’s muffled sobs ceased, curiosity and concern replacing them.
“That must have been dangerous, right?”
“It was fine, just—hiss!”
A chill suddenly crept up from below, and Limuqun turned to fling off Luozhilan’s wandering jade hand.
“Master! What are you doing?! Can’t you see I’m talking to her?”
“It doesn’t affect you. You talk, I’ll check if your ailment has recovered,” Luozhilan pressed up behind him, whispering into his ear with breath like orchids.
“You—!”
Limuqun wanted to stop her from causing trouble, but Jiang Wan’er’s anxious, worried voice and renewed knocking sounded from outside, “Stupid Senior Brother, what’s wrong? Are you not feeling well? Let Wan’er come in!”
Her concern warmed Limuqun’s heart.
He quickly replied, “Jiang Shimei, you worry too much! I’m not unwell. It’s just—hiss!”
“Hm? Just what?” Jiang Wan’er sounded puzzled.
“Stupid Senior Brother, you’re acting so weird tonight.”
“N-nothing, just a slight mishap during cultivation earlier, a bit of Yin-Yang Imbalance is all.”
“Is that so?” For once, Jiang Wan’er’s voice carried a thread of doubt.
“Y-yes! Would Senior Brother ever lie to you?” Limuqun desperately tried to push Luozhilan off, but the more he struggled, the more excited she seemed, clinging to him even tighter.
“…Alright, then.” Jiang Wan’er nodded, half-believing, half-doubting, but happily added, “Then, Stupid Senior Brother, I’m coming in now!”
“No, you can’t!”
Feeling Luozhilan’s body pressed against him, Jiang Wan’er’s words struck Limuqun like thunder, making his hair stand on end as he anxiously refused.
“Eh? Why not?”
“Could it be… Stupid Senior Brother, are you hiding something from Wan’er…?”
Perhaps women really do have a sixth sense.
The string of strange happenings made Jiang Wan’er furrow her brows, suspicion brewing.
Sensing he was standing at a life-or-death crossroads, Limuqun mustered all his wits and hurriedly explained,
“No, it’s just… just…”
“Just now, I was cultivating a technique that requires me to be completely unclothed. Yes, I’m not wearing anything right now. Since men and women shouldn’t see each other in such a state, it’s not appropriate for you to come in.”
“Ah?” Jiang Wan’er’s puzzled voice came through the door.
“What kind of technique makes you take off all your clothes to cultivate?”
“An ancient art called the Dragon and Phoenix Harmonizing Art. I obtained it during my last Mystic Realm expedition, and it’s specifically for treating my Yin-Yang Imbalance. You probably haven’t heard of it.”
His words, half true and half false, were actually quite believable.
“Alright, then,” Jiang Wan’er said with a nod, clearly accepting the explanation.
Yet for some reason, even as she tried to reassure herself that there was a good reason for her Stupid Senior Brother to refuse her tonight, a faint sense of resentment and grievance welled up inside her.
It felt as if she’d lovingly tended a spiritual herb for years, eagerly awaiting the day to consume it—only to find someone else had already picked it.
Jiang Wan’er couldn’t quite pinpoint the source of this emotion, but sadness overtook her as she leaned against the wooden door, sighing softly,
“Senior Brother, I guess I came at the wrong time today.”
That’s right, Jiang Shimei, you truly have some self-awareness!
Limuqun secretly breathed a sigh of relief, just about to explain further, when suddenly a force pressed on the back of his head, shoving his entire face into a Dao Fruit that had been born of the Dao itself.
“Mmm! Mmm!”
He struggled to cry out, but with his mouth sealed, he could only make muffled noises.
At the same time, the culprit, Luozhilan, smiled faintly, using her spiritual power to mimic Limuqun’s voice and called out to Jiang Wan’er outside the door,
“No, Jiang Shimei, you came at just the right time.”