Ling Tian hadn't had to wait long before Hua Min'er came bounding over to him, hopping with delight. She moved as lightly as a swallow dancing in someone's palm, as gracefully as a butterfly flitting among flowers.
"Big Brother Ling Tian, are you all better?" Hua Min'er asked as she looked at him with concern.
"Mm, I'm fine now." Ling Tian felt a warmth in his heart and spoke softly. As he said it, he waved an arm to show Hua Min'er he really was all right.
"Pfft." Hua Min'er giggled, then added, "Look at you, acting like a silly fool. What are you doing?"
"Heh heh." Ling Tian gave an awkward laugh, then glanced at the people gathered around them and scratched his head, even more embarrassed.
"All right, silly brother. I'll take you somewhere. With so many people watching, it's mortifying." Hua Min'er's cheeks colored slightly. She took Ling Tian's hand and trotted off, and he let her lead him.
Before long, they reached the back of Qingdie Peak. A sheer cliff rose there, imposing and majestic. Not far below its summit was a broad ledge jutting out from the rock, a secluded spot. Dense old vines covered the cliff face, growing lush and green like coiling dragons. Unfamiliar little fruits dotted their lengths. Strange flowers and plants grew all around the ledge, and countless butterflies danced among them. A small waterfall hung from the rocks, its waters murmuring as they streamed down. It was a veritable paradise on earth.
When Hua Min'er arrived, she said nothing. She released Ling Tian's hand, then made several quick leaps, climbing down the long vines and landing on the ledge. Light and nimble, she seemed to dance like a flying butterfly. Then she looked back at Ling Tian with a bright smile, her meaning clear.
Ling Tian chuckled. With a light tap of his feet, he sprang out like a soaring hawk and plunged downward. Just before reaching the ground, he reached out with his right hand and caught a vine. His body spun and circled down, afterimages flickering around him. He moved with indescribable ease and grace, and Hua Min'er couldn't help staring, entranced.
"Big Brother Ling Tian, your movement technique is so graceful and free! It's much better than mine." Hua Min'er gazed at him with admiration. She had thought her own movements were nimble and charming, and had wanted to show off in front of him. She hadn't expected his technique to be so much more impressive.
"Heh heh, Min'er, do you like it?" Ling Tian smiled proudly. Suddenly, all the hardships he had endured while practicing this technique felt worthwhile.
"Mm, I like it."
"Then I'll teach you."
"Wonderful!"
The exchange was brief and natural, as if they had rehearsed it countless times.
Ling Tian got right to it and began teaching Hua Min'er the movement technique. First, he demonstrated it once. Then he came to stand in front of her and explained its characteristics, requirements, and some of the tricks he had learned through experience.
Hua Min'er was clever as ice and snow. She quickly understood everything Ling Tian told her, and soon she could put it all together. Before long, she grew so excited that she began practicing on the ledge. Her figure leaped and darted across the small clearing. Soon, afterimages shimmered all around her. She was truly like a butterfly, like a swallow, and Ling Tian nodded in satisfaction and praised her.
"Whew, Big Brother Ling Tian, this movement technique is amazing! I can even make afterimages now. Hee hee." Hua Min'er was overjoyed.
After practicing for half an hour, Hua Min'er grew a little tired. She let out a breath and came over to Ling Tian, brimming with delight, oblivious to the sheen of sweat covering her.
"Look at you, drenched in sweat, and you didn't even notice." Ling Tian watched Hua Min'er with mild reproach as he spoke, then wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"Hee hee, the technique is so pretty. I just got carried away playing with it for a while." Hua Min'er smiled and didn't shy away, letting Ling Tian wipe her sweat. Her cheeks were already flushed from practicing, and now they turned an even deeper red.
"You..." Ling Tian gazed at the utterly bashful Hua Min'er, and couldn't help being captivated.
"Big Brother Ling Tian, am I completely useless? When you were injured last time, all I could do was stand there and watch. I couldn't do anything." Hua Min'er's expression suddenly changed, and she spoke to Ling Tian dejectedly.
"How could that be?" Ling Tian felt a faint ache in his heart. He looked at Hua Min'er tenderly and comforted her. "You've only just begun cultivating. You've already done very well to get this far. Besides, Huang Se was very strong. It was only natural you couldn't beat her. I couldn't beat her either, could I?"
"Big Brother Ling Tian, I know you're just trying to comfort me. But I'll cultivate hard, and when the time comes, I'll definitely be able to help you." Hua Min'er was clever as ice and snow; how could she not know Ling Tian was comforting her? Still, she didn't lose heart. She spoke to him slowly and firmly, one word at a time.
"Mm, I believe in you." Ling Tian looked at Hua Min'er's determined expression and encouraged her.
"Big Brother Ling Tian, what's the movement technique you just showed me called? It feels like it would suit girls even better." Hua Min'er couldn't help wondering. The technique was light and nimble, full of variation; when a girl performed it, it seemed even more ghostly.
"Heh heh, it's the Illusory God Phantom Shadow Movement Technique. My mother taught it to me. You're not going to tease me for learning a technique meant for girls, are you?" Ling Tian looked at Hua Min'er with a hint of mischief.
"Of course not. You look so graceful and free when you perform it. There's not a trace of feminine softness about it. I bet you've already changed the technique to suit yourself and mastered it completely." Hua Min'er spoke to herself, but wondered inwardly why she had never heard that Big Brother Ling Tian had a mother. Lingyun was only his adoptive father. She didn't voice the question, though.
"As long as you like it, Min'er." Ling Tian smiled faintly and looked around. Suddenly, two butterflies dancing and circling around one another caught his eye. He couldn't help praising them. "Those butterflies are beautiful."
"Oh, those are Flying Wing Butterflies. They're a pair from the moment they're born, and they stay together from the beginning of their lives to the end." Hua Min'er followed Ling Tian's gaze. She looked at the pair of butterflies with some envy, then gazed at Ling Tian.
"Flying Wing Butterflies... Could the name come from 'though I have no wings like the colorful phoenix, our hearts are linked'?" Ling Tian murmured, looking at Hua Min'er with the same expression. A deep affection rose in his heart.
"Mm, yes. It means flying side by side." Hua Min'er said softly.
In truth, neither of them spoke the line that followed: "Our hearts are linked, and we understand each other without a word."
Because they understood each other without a word, they knew that some things were more beautiful left unsaid.
"Min'er, you said you wanted to cultivate hard. I've recently mastered a formation that can speed up cultivation. Would you like to learn it?" Ling Tian changed the subject, then looked at Hua Min'er teasingly.
"Hmph. Big Brother Ling Tian, you're picking on me. You know I'll learn it, so why even ask?" Hua Min'er pouted and pretended to be cross. She looked both pouty and indignant, with a charm all her own.
"Heh heh, I'm not!" Ling Tian gave an awkward laugh, then began teaching Hua Min'er the Spirit Gathering Formation.
That day, they studied formations and movement techniques together. In between, Ling Tian treated Hua Min'er to candied hawthorns. She ate the sweet-and-sour treats with delight, then asked Ling Tian for several more skewers, but even those weren't enough to satisfy her. Ling Tian happily told her how candied hawthorns were made, and Hua Min'er declared that one day she'd buy hundreds of skewers and store them away. They both laughed until their mouths could hardly close. Laughter and cheerful chatter never stopped on the back of Qingdie Peak that day. Later, they came to call the place their very own "secret base."
They chatted until night gradually fell, then parted reluctantly, promising to meet again soon. After turning back countless times to look at each other, they finally went their separate ways.
Beautiful times always seemed to fly by. Ling Tian knew that better than anyone.
And so they spent a year playing and laughing together. Ling Tian often visited Qingdie Peak, and before long he was familiar with nearly every female disciple there. Whenever he arrived, the disciples knew exactly why he had come and would all drag Hua Min'er over to see him. Both Hua Min'er and Ling Tian could only laugh helplessly.
Throughout that year, they went on dates, parted, and cultivated. They were together almost all the time, except when they slept at night. Their feelings grew ever closer through all that time together. Before long, they had no secrets from each other and often shared little gestures of affection, though they never did anything improper.
Ling Tian told Hua Min'er amusing stories about how his father had trained him as a child, often making her giggle. She felt that Senior Lingyun was far too devious. But she was also very interested in Lingyun's training methods, and sometimes asked Ling Tian to teach them to her. Ling Tian held nothing back and taught her everything he knew.
Ling Tian had also asked Hua Min'er why she had come to Qingyun Mountain. Hua Min'er only said that monsters had killed all her family; she didn't say much else. Whenever Ling Tian casually asked about the details, her expression grew gloomy, so he hurriedly changed the subject. Before long, he couldn't bring himself to ask again.
Hua Min'er often took Ling Tian to the other peaks to learn their various arts. Ling Tian never refused; he eagerly went along to visit and study at each peak. The peak masters were all very kind to them. Whatever Hua Min'er wanted to learn, they taught her everything without holding anything back. Ling Tian also learned a great deal along the way. He benefited especially from discussing formations with Yuan Ming, the master of Qingming Peak.
Ling Tian knew the principles behind formations, but he had rarely set one up or put his knowledge to the test. Yuan Ming had extensive experience arranging formations, making him the perfect person to compare notes with. At first, Yuan Ming patiently taught Hua Min'er. Later, however, Ling Tian caught his attention, and the two began discussing formations. Under Lingyun's guidance, Ling Tian had developed some unique insights of his own. Some of his knowledge of formations often left Yuan Ming so excited that he marveled at Lingyun's boundless scholarship. The two felt as if they had met too late in life, and became friends despite their difference in age. When they discussed formations together, they often got so absorbed that they forgot everything else. Sometimes, when they were especially caught up, they even forgot Hua Min'er was there, making her pout in indignation. Later, Ling Tian had to take her on a wild spree in Qingyun Town for several days before she let it go.
Hua Min'er and Ling Tian astonished quite a few people in Qingyun Town. Hua Min'er wanted everything she saw. Once, when she spotted a vendor selling candied hawthorns, she bought every skewer he had and still wasn't satisfied. She even paid him in advance to make more overnight. The Qingdie Peak disciples assigned to protect the two of them could only laugh helplessly, sighing that the pair were such children. They played for several days and only reluctantly left after the disciples of Qingdie Peak persuaded them to go. Even then, they only agreed to leave after promising the two that they would return to Qingyun Town for another visit soon.
During this time, Ye Feidie passed the Qing Ling Sword Canon on to Hua Min'er. Her cultivation advanced at a truly astonishing pace. In just one short year, she rose from the twenty-fourth level of Qi Refining to the thirty-sixth level of Qi Condensation, and she could break through into the Qi Solidification Stage at any moment. Her master, Ye Feidie, indulged her so much that the other disciples of Qingdie Peak were envious, even jealous. She never restricted Hua Min'er's activities and did her best to fulfill her every request. She even encouraged her to spend time with Ling Tian. By now, everyone on Qingdie Peak knew about this perfect pair, and many people envied them.
That year was the happiest of Ling Tian's life.
Happiness, just because they were together.
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