Return to Tianyun Plateau, Gift Yun Ling

"...Drip, drip, a drop of life's vinegar, slice, slice, a few pieces of time's ginger, the beauty of worldly fireworks is like a dish, attracting immortals to taste it again and again..."

Xian He hummed a tune as he headed to the kitchen.

The kitchen was in the southeast corner of the backyard, adjacent to the east wing room, separated from the main gate by a decorative screen wall.

He pushed the door open and entered.

The room wasn't large, with only a dirt stove. Lifting the lid of the pot on it revealed a large black cauldron.

He put the lid back on and looked around the rest of the kitchen.

Besides the stove and the cauldron, a pile of firewood was stacked inside. The shelves held various seasonings, including oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and other condiments.

He lifted the lid of the water vat and glanced inside; it was empty.

Without hesitation, Xian He picked up the wooden bucket next to the vat and went to the small river to fetch water.

As a Martial Artist of the Two-star Azure Obsidian, he possessed two hundred jin of strength in one arm, making it effortless to carry the bucket with one hand.

If he didn't fetch water now, the task would fall to Yun Ling once she moved in.

Xian He doted on Yun Ling too much to ever let her fetch water herself.

After finishing this, Xian He left the courtyard, closed the main gate, and with a thought, returned to his humble thatched hut.

The moon still hung in the pitch-black night sky like a white pear blossom, peacefully blooming.

Xian He had spent about half an hour in the Inner World, while only about five seconds had passed in the Real World.

"Store!" Xian He softly commanded, putting the Mountain River Society Diagram, which had fallen to the ground, into his Soul Sea.

The Soul Sea was where Spirit Masters stored their Soul Power, located at the back of the head.

Everyone had a Soul Sea, but few could become Spirit Masters, and the Sky Fortune Tribe had none at all.

Cultivating Soul Power was extremely difficult, and even more so without a cultivation method.

Xian He's cultivation of physical strength was already slow, let alone Soul Power. Even if he wanted to try, there was no one to teach him.

He entered his house and went to the bedroom.

Xian He pulled off the black cloth covering the Purple Smoke Stone and sat on the edge of the bed, gently poking Yun Ling's rosy cheeks.

Traces of tears still lingered on her face, making her look like a little calico cat.

"What are you doing?! I was sleeping so soundly!" Yun Ling impatiently opened her watery blue eyes and glared at the annoying person.

Yun Ling scolded coquettishly with a hint of grievance, "You're like a dog, never getting enough?!"

"I have a gift for you." Xian He smiled faintly and reached into his embrace.

Yun Ling misunderstood!

He wasn't calling her up to play games again.

Yun Ling turned her head and buried it under the covers, saying in a muffled voice, "I don't want it, you keep it yourself!"

Seeing Xian He reaching into his embrace, she thought he was going to unbutton something.

What kind of gift required unbuttoning? The only thing she could possibly want was that.

"I'm not tricking you into playing a game, I really have something good for you. Just give me some face and get up to take a look." Xian He patted Yun Ling's little bottom through the blanket.

Yun Ling's delicate body trembled, and she quickly turned around, presenting her backside to the wall.

"What is this?" Yun Ling saw Xian He holding a large, red, peculiar fruit in his right hand, about the size of the ceramic water jar in their home.

Yun Ling lifted the blanket and, enduring the pain, sat up.

"Something delicious!" Xian He replied with a smile.

Upon hearing it was delicious, Yun Ling's eyes immediately lit up with excitement.

Most of the fruits on the Tianyun Plateau were poisonous. Only a few were edible, and they were either extremely sour, incredibly bitter, or intensely spicy.

The fruit in Xian He's hand was different from those. Not only was it large, but it also emitted a sweet and sour aroma that made one's mouth water.

"Don't rush, wipe your hands first." Xian He grabbed Yun Ling's delicate wrist and used a pre-prepared wet towel to clean her small hands.

"This kind of fruit is called a pomegranate. Tear open the outer skin and eat the flesh inside."

Seeing Yun Ling hugging the large pomegranate, unsure where to start, Xian He helped her tear open a piece of the skin.

As the skin was peeled back, translucent, ruby-like arils were revealed, and a sweet and sour fragrance spread out.

Yun Ling swallowed hard, her appetite whetted.

But she didn't immediately grab it and start eating. Instead, she held the arils up to Xian He and said sincerely, "You eat."

"Don't worry, it's not poisonous. I've already tried it," Xian He said with a half-joking smile.

He was deeply touched. Yun Ling was still the same as when she was little, always saving the best food for him.

Hearing this, Yun Ling could no longer resist the temptation and began to eat ravenously.

"Mmm... this fruit is too delicious! I've never eaten anything so wonderful."

She had only had a bowl of Wood Powder Porridge for dinner, and after all that strenuous activity, it had been completely digested.

She didn't want to keep playing games with Xian He, partly because she was hungry.

Silently watching Yun Ling eat heartily, Xian He's heart ached faintly. He secretly vowed, "Yun Ling, I will never let you suffer again."

Yun Ling stopped after eating just a little over half of the Crystal Pomegranate.

"Are you full?" Xian He used a damp towel to wipe the fruit juice from her small face.

Yun Ling shook her head, then nodded again, and said, "I want to save this half for Old Man. This is such delicious food, he must have never eaten it before. By the way, where did you pick this fruit?"

"No need to save it, you finish it all." Xian He stroked Yun Ling's soft golden hair and continued, "After you're done eating, I'll take you to pick new ones for our dad."