Yu Yi was completely captivated by the dazzling sights of Yinzhou City, forgetting all about her shadow trailing behind.
The streets were bustling with people, crowded with passersby. Unlike in Rounan County, there was no clear divide between ordinary folks and cultivators here. Though one could still discern some obvious differences in their auras, the overall scene of them standing together was unexpectedly harmonious.
Yu Yi and Crane Senior Brother, who had been quite eye-catching in Rounan County, were nothing out of the ordinary here, as there were many cultivators with spirit beasts in the city.
To prevent Crane Senior Brother from getting separated, Yu Yi plucked one of his feathers. The spiritual energy in the feather connected with the spirit beast contract on the crane's foot, allowing them to know each other's location.
They wandered from one end of the main street to the other, like country bumpkins indulging in revenge spending after being cooped up for too long.
Yu Yi bought herself some fashionable accessories and clothes, as well as some cosmetics. For Crane Senior Brother, she purchased fragrant soap and pills for feather care. Afterward, the pair went on an eating spree.
Only when their bellies were round and full did they sit down to rest on a stone bench under a willow tree by the river.
By then, the sun was setting, and today's sunset was particularly brilliant. The golden light reflected off the water's surface, shimmering and dancing, then cast upon Yu Yi's eyes. It made her smiling eyes even more radiant than spring sunshine, with a beauty that was hard to look away from.
Xue Chenjing noticed a group of young men at the end of the bridge frequently glancing her way. He overheard them jokingly pushing one of their companions, urging, "Go on, go on! The beauty is right there, how can you hesitate? If you miss this chance, who knows when you'll get another?"
"That's right, if you don't dare, Brother Liang, then I'll go myself."
As the blushing young man gathered his courage and stepped off the bridge, Xue Chenjing deliberately bumped his shoulder, pushing past him to quickly walk up to Yu Yi, coming to a stop in front of her.
From the corner of his eye, he saw the young man hesitate and stop in his tracks, and he couldn't help but curl his lips in a smug smile.
Yu Yi was busy sorting through her day's spoils, reorganizing and repacking them. When she came across some useless items bought in the heat of the moment, she would slightly furrow her brow and mutter about wasting money.
However, the joy in her eyes would quickly overshadow this momentary regret. She'd turn to Crane Senior Brother, wink, and say, "Oh well, I was happy when I bought them anyway."
The crane beside her was bobbing its head, a squid tentacle in its beak, clearly also very content.
Xue Chenjing watched the stupid bird gobbling down the squid and felt a phantom pain.
When Yu Yi was in a good mood, even the ever-present Xue Chenjing seemed more tolerable to her.
Before he could speak, she stuffed a candied haw stick in his mouth and said, "Here, go eat this with Crane Senior Brother over there. I need to do some accounting now, don't disturb me."
Xue Chenjing froze with the candied haw stick in his mouth, his expression changing several times. He glanced at the group of dejected young men returning to the bridge, then finally took the stick and sat down to eat it.
He bit into one of the haws, crunching through the sugar coating. The sour fruit inside made him hiss, his eyelid twitching. He glared angrily at the person engrossed in her calculations.
Damn it, he should have known something was up when Yu Yi only ate one haw after carrying this stick around all day. So this was why - it tasted awful!
He should have known she wouldn't be so nice to him!
Xue Chenjing raised his hand, about to fling away the tooth-achingly sour thing, when the system spoke in his ear: "Master! This is the first thing the female lead has ever given you. She'll be hurt if you throw it away."
Xue Chenjing's motion halted, his grip on the candied haw stick tightening. After an intense internal struggle, he reluctantly lowered his hand.
He stared at the candied haws for a moment before raising them to his mouth again.
When Yu Yi finished her calculations and looked up from her deflated purse, she saw Xue Chenjing staring at the candied haw stick with a deeply aggrieved expression, as if the confection had committed some terrible offense against him.
To be fair, she wasn't wrong in her interpretation of his expression. At that moment, Xue Chenjing was recalling the vendor who sold the candied haws, planning to track him down and finish off the wretched swindler after nightfall.
He had never eaten such sour candied haws before.
Yu Yi's gaze fell on the stick in his hand. Each haw had been bitten into, leaving only the sour fruit inside. Those haws were truly acidic; Yu Yi's mouth watered just remembering the taste.
"If you don't want to eat it, just throw it away," Yu Yi said.
Xue Chenjing looked up, his eyes bright as if he'd received a great blessing. He asked excitedly, "I can really throw it away? You won't be upset?"
Yu Yi was baffled. "...It's just a stick of unpleasant candied haws. Why would I be upset?"
Before she finished speaking, Xue Chenjing had already stood up eagerly. A flash of white light appeared in his hand, pulverizing the remaining haws into powder, which he scattered on the riverbank. He acted as if afraid she might change her mind.
Even a dog wouldn't eat that awful stuff.
Yinzhou City was bustling and prosperous, with far too many novel things to see. The prices were also much higher than in the remote Rounan County. After their extravagant spending spree, Yu Yi and Crane Senior Brother found their purses significantly lighter. The money they had left was barely enough for a night's stay at an inn.
As for Xue Chenjing, that fellow had plenty of money. He eagerly followed behind Yu Yi, beating her to it and paying for three upper-class rooms - that's right, he even got a separate room for Crane Senior Brother.
Yu Yi clutched her empty purse, thought for a moment, then accepted his eager offer. After all, she couldn't play the role of plot-unlocking tool for nothing.
The upper-class rooms in the city inn were far more comfortable than those in Rounan County, with impeccable service. After a long journey, Yu Yi could finally rest properly.
She enjoyed a relaxing bath filled with flower petals, dried her hair with spiritual energy, then sat at the dressing table and took out the facial mask she had bought earlier that day.
The peach-colored mask was beautiful, with a faint rose fragrance. It melted into a fine essence when rubbed between her palms.
Yu Yi applied it evenly to her face and body, then combed her hair smooth with scented water and tied it back with a ribbon. Fragrant all over, she crawled into the soft bed and soon drifted off to sleep.
In the room next door, separated by just a wall, a candle still burned.
With the new stage of his mission beginning, Xue Chenjing sat at the table with a furrowed brow, pondering how to quickly improve Yu Yi's opinion of him.
The system consoled its host: "Master, there's no need to worry so much. The female lead has already accepted you. Spending time together day and night, you're bound to develop feelings eventually. Her current fondness for you has already increased to 12% - that's a good sign!"
Snap-
The veins on the back of Xue Chenjing's hand bulged as he snapped the writing brush in half with one hand. The broken end of the brush, with its sharp splinters, pierced deep into his palm. "That's for Xue Mingyuan, not for me."
System: "..." But what difference does that make? Aren't you the same person?
However, the system didn't dare voice this thought. If it did, its host would surely fly into a rage.
Xue Chenjing tossed aside the broken brush and pulled the oil lamp closer. He bent over the flame, opening his palm to pick out the splinters embedded in his flesh.
These splinters were like Yu Yi's growing fondness for Xue Mingyuan, lodged in his flesh. They might not be fatal, but they caused him pain, making his whole body ache.
He had to pluck them out one by one.
Unable to sleep, Xue Chenjing dipped his fingertip in tea and drew a small magical array on the table, about the size of a palm. He let the blood from his splintered palm drip into the array, which lit up with a faint glow. Several fist-sized demon spirits bubbled up from within, like tiny transparent jellyfish.
The demon spirits frolicked around his fingers as Xue Chenjing absently played with them.
Perhaps because his mind was full of thoughts about the person next door, one of the demon spirits, following his subconscious desire, squeezed out through a crack in the window and then in through another.
The demon spirit drifted into the dim room, undulating through the air as if swimming in water, its slender tendrils waving softly.
It pushed aside the hanging bed curtains and floated into the bed.
Xue Chenjing was caught off guard by the sudden sweet fragrance that assaulted his senses, causing him to sneeze repeatedly. Only then did he realize that a small creature had escaped from his palm.
He immediately wanted to call the spirit back, but when he saw Yu Yi's sleeping face through the spirit's eyes, he hesitated.
While he was here with a head full of worries, tossing and turning, she was sleeping soundly.
Xue Chenjing lightly tapped his fingertip downward, and the spirit obediently descended inside Yu Yi's bed curtains, landing directly on her forehead. The warm temperature transmitted through the spirit to Xue Chenjing's senses, making him narrow his eyes in comfort.
He sneezed again.
She smelled so good, truly so fragrant.
Perhaps stirred by the cool touch on her forehead, Yu Yi let out a soft groan from her nose, mumbling a few sleepy words before giggling foolishly and falling back into deep slumber.
Was she dreaming? Smiling so happily, what kind of dream was it? He desperately wanted to know, wanted to know, wanted to know—
Xue Chenjing restlessly rubbed his fingertips, causing the spirit to roll around on her face. Its slender feelers rose and fell, wanting to invade her consciousness to see. Due to his uncontrollable desire, the oath stele in his mind sea lit up, causing his soul to tremble.
Xue Chenjing let out a muffled groan, raising his hand to press against his temple in discomfort.
Damn it. He irritably glanced at the oath stele in his mind sea. This thing was truly like a dog collar around his neck, but he also knew clearly that if not for this oath stele, Yu Yi would never allow him to stay by her side.
Her defenses were as thick as the walls of Yinzhou City. How could he possibly chip away at them to create an opening?
As the oath stele tore at him, causing turmoil in his mind sea and agitating the magical beasts within, Xue Chenjing became dizzy and lightheaded. He finally gave up on the idea of peeking into her dreams, sneezed again, and rubbed his nose.
Without realizing it, the spirit had rolled into the crook of her neck. The warm, fragrant sensation transmitted to him made Xue Chenjing's fingertips heat up, his mind growing hazier.
He recalled that rainy night in the Cloud Mountain Cabin, the feeling of holding her in his arms—so fragrant and warm.
Xue Chenjing raised his hand to extinguish the lamp, accidentally making too large a gesture. His sleeve knocked over the oil lamp, causing it to fall from the table. Before the tiny flame on the wick could ignite, a tentacle emerged from the void and snuffed it out.
He collapsed onto the bed, pulling up the covers to wrap himself in a bundle. The spirits in the room disappeared one by one. In the other room, that spirit expanded in size until it was as big as a kitten, curling up tightly against her neck.
Xue Chenjing slept more comfortably than ever before, so warm that his face flushed a rosy pink.
After a peaceful night's sleep, Yu Yi woke up early the next day. The sky had not yet brightened, and the interior of the bed curtains was still dim, so she didn't notice the small bundle nestled in the bedding.
She raised her hand to touch her shoulder, unable to clearly remember what strange dream she had last night. She vaguely recalled falling into some kind of infinite survival game, with a monster constantly choking her neck.
That monster looked a lot like Xue Chenjing, haunting her even in her dreams.
Yu Yi shook her head, erasing the monster's image from her mind. Instead of lingering in bed, she got up promptly, washed up, and went out to ask the innkeeper about the cultivation market in Yinzhou City.
She was very interested in this market that she often read about in casual stories and books. It felt similar to the excitement she had as a child, waiting to go to the big market with her mother the next day. Full of anticipation, she woke up very early.
Before dawn, she enthusiastically set out, planning to sell a few spirit swords she didn't need.
When Xue Chenjing finally woke up late in the morning, lazed about in bed for quite a while, and eventually got up to wash and went next door to look for her, she was long gone without a trace.
Even the bed was already cold.
Xue Chenjing lifted the covers to find his spirit curled up in a ball. The lingering sleepiness instantly vanished, leaving him wide awake with anger.
She actually ran off and left me behind again?!
