"Subway Station"

Not long after the two left, Xia Fan suddenly heard a rustling sound from beyond the windowsill.

A rat? A wild cat?

No... the noise was far too loud. This was the second floor, and the heart of the Villa. Nothing strange should have been able to appear here.

Xia Fan immediately went on alert. He moved sideways toward the window, quietly lifted the latch, pushed open the casement, and readied the Flowing Light Spell in his hand.

Then he saw a pair of large, furry ears.

Lowering his gaze, he found Li squatting on the windowsill, crunching away at a scallion pancake in her hands. Seeing Xia Fan appear, she was not surprised in the slightest. She raised the pancake. "Want some?"

Xia Fan froze for a moment before he could not help laughing. "What are you doing here?"

As he spoke, he took a bite from the pancake as well.

"I snuck out." A sly smile likewise rose on Li's face. "The Venerable told me to accompany her the whole way, but she never said I couldn't move about freely while she was asleep."

"If you don't like staying with her, you can simply refuse," Xia Fan said.

In truth, he had not agreed on the spot to Venerable Shengtian's final request. Instead, he had left the choice to Li herself, saying, "A deal cannot be premised on forcing Li against her will." Somewhat unexpectedly, the Venerable had shown no displeasure. If anything, she had seemed rather appreciative.

"It's not that I dislike her," Li let out a long breath. "Honestly, she may seem cold, but she's actually quite considerate deep down. But after not seeing you for so long, I wanted to see you too." She raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you didn't want to see