"Teacher, we only just saw each other a little while ago. How come you changed clothes? These look really nice, though. I don't think I've ever seen you wear them before."
The peaceful, leisurely scene was suddenly interrupted by a little head popping up, followed by a stream of excited chatter. A helpless look crossed Li Yilin's face.
"Kid, why are you climbing up here again? Can't you use the front door?"
"But I wanted to see you sooner, Teacher. It was faster to jump up here." Si Yao blinked and answered as if it were only natural.
From Li Yilin's angle, all he could see was her little head, her hands resting on the railing, and half of her white wings spread out behind her.
"Besides, with my strength, climbing onto a terrace less than ten meters high is nothing. There's no danger." Thinking Li Yilin was just worried about her safety, Si Yao seemed intent on proving there really was no danger. She pushed down hard with both hands and nimbly stood on the railing.
The broad wings on her back not only failed to hinder her movements, but made her look even more graceful.
Under Li Yilin's helpless gaze, she planted her hands on her hips and stood on the railing, looking down at him with a proud expression, as if to say, See? There's no danger at all.
Li Yilin:----
Was this really about safety?
This was the palace where her teacher lived. She was his student, his junior, and here she was climbing all over the place. What kind of behavior was that?
Fortunately, Si Yao still remembered who she was and knew not to go too far. She quickly hopped down from the railing and walked over to Li Yilin, then obediently bowed.
Once she had finished, she went right back to her mischievous self. "Teacher, Sister Shuang Yue said you wanted to see me. Is there something you need me to do?"
Li Yilin rubbed his brow, hesitating.
Si Yao was so mischievous. Would it really be a good idea to take her to meet Gui Jiao without warning?
After all, it would be their first time meeting.
But if he really went to Cloud Sea Planet, it would take at least a year before he returned. Ever since she had become his student, she had never been away from him for so long. Would she be scared?
At that moment, he seemed to have forgotten that his student was already a Planetary Level Fighter, and was twenty years old. If not for the Star Feather Race's long period of development, which meant she was still in her youth, and the fact that she still looked so childlike, she would already have been an adult.
While Li Yilin was lost in thought, Si Yao, who had been standing obediently in front of him, gave a sly little glance around. Her eyes suddenly lit up, and a mischievous smile tugged at her lips as she looked at Li Yilin. Then, she quietly inched forward, inch by inch----
By the time Li Yilin came back to his senses, she had already circled around behind him. She held a flower she'd picked from somewhere, its layered blue-purple petals resembling a rose, and was poised to put it on his head.
Li Yilin:----
Having a student like this really was his good fortune!
Putting a flower on her teacher—she really had the nerve to do it.
He'd spoiled her rotten!
Seeing that Li Yilin had caught her, Si Yao didn't hesitate. She swiftly raised her hand and tucked the flower behind his ear, then grabbed his arm, trying to play it off.
"Teacher, what were you thinking about just now?" She pouted, looking aggrieved. "You were ignoring A-Yao. A-Yao was so bored."
Li Yilin narrowed his eyes slightly. He didn't bother taking the flower off. It was only a flower. He raised his hand and tapped her between the brows. "So now you're accusing me first?"
Si Yao covered her forehead and blinked, still looking completely innocent.
Li Yilin gave a soft snort and glanced at her. "I was wondering whether I should take you with me when I go to Cloud Sea Planet."
"Cloud Sea Planet?" Si Yao's eyes widened slightly. Of course she knew about Cloud Sea Planet. It was one of the top hundred most important planets within the Black Dragon Mountain Empire, and she had heard its owner was a member of one of the Sixteen Families—the Cloud Sea Family.
With a World Lord Level planet master, Cloud Sea Planet was definitely more prosperous than Qiu Dragon Planet.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help feeling a little eager to go.
But that wasn't the main point.
"Teacher, why did you suddenly decide to go to Cloud Sea Planet?" It was quite a distance from Qiu Dragon Planet. Even aboard an E-Grade Spaceship, traveling through the Dark Universe at ten times the speed of light would take at least three months.
It wasn't that Li Yilin couldn't afford an F-Grade Spaceship. It was just that F-Grade Spaceships were so expensive that even Domain Lords couldn't own one. Even if they could, they wouldn't dare bring it out.
Besides, a spaceship of that class could only be purchased by someone with enough strength and status. It was a restricted item, not something you could buy just because you had money.
"I have a friend on Cloud Sea Planet whom I've never met, and I'd like to go see him." Li Yilin smiled, pinched her soft cheek, then took the flower from his head and tucked it into her little head of hair instead. Only after she gave him a dissatisfied look did he continue.
"And Liu Qing really wants to go out and have some fun, so we might as well make the trip." They'd been on Qiu Dragon Planet for quite a while. A change of scenery would be nice.
Hearing her name, Liu Qing emerged from the Smart Optical Computer and flew toward Li Yilin, wrapping her arms around one of his.
"Master~" she called in a clingy voice. "I just want to go!"
Si Yao's eyes darted about. Without a second thought, she copied the way Liu Qing was hugging Li Yilin's arm and started acting cute too. "Teacher, A-Yao wants to go as well."
A little fairy on his left, and another adorable little fairy on his right. Li Yilin almost couldn't keep the corners of his mouth from curling up, but he kept a straight face and pretended to be stern.
"Why would I take you along?"
"You don't listen, your strength hasn't improved in ages, and you're still so mischievous. All you do all day is wreak havoc among the flowers and plants in the castle." His gaze swept over the purple flower in her hair. Li Yilin snorted and finally added,
"What if I take you along and you embarrass your teacher?"
Si Yao pouted and gave a soft huff. "Teacher only puts me down when it suits you. You're all talk, anyway. You called me over because you were planning to take me along from the start. I don't care—I'm going!"
She had finally figured it out. Grabbing Li Yilin's big hand, she shook it back and forth, her voice so sweet it seemed to drip with honey. "Teacher, Teacher~
"Take A-Yao with you. I'll be really good, and I won't cause any trouble."
"Really?" Li Yilin asked, barely holding his ground through one coaxing plea after another.
"Really, really." Si Yao nodded repeatedly, her expression serious and her tone sincere, as if she was ready to swear an oath if he didn't believe her.
After promising, she gave Li Yilin's hand another shake. The wings behind her fluttered slightly. "Teacher, are you taking me or not?" At some point, her eyes had grown moist. She kept coaxing him in a soft voice, looking utterly pitiful.
"All right, all right." Li Yilin couldn't bear to tease her any longer and nodded again and again. "You're my student. If I don't take you, who will I take?"
At the word student, Si Yao's smile froze for a moment. A flicker of sadness and disappointment crossed her eyes, and her hands paused involuntarily. But she quickly hid it before Li Yilin could look her way.
When Li Yilin turned to her, all he saw was her bright smile. The moisture in her eyes had already vanished.
"I knew you were the best, Teacher!"
One day later.
A discreet black spaceship cut through the void and headed out into space.
Inside the ship, Si Yao leaned curiously over the control console, watching Liu Qing operate it. She had never seen an Intelligent Life pilot a spaceship before.
But after watching for a while, she looked away.
Almost all the operations were done using virtual buttons. As an Intelligent Life, Liu Qing could carry out a series of commands without making a sound. Even a smart autopilot system would still have to ask its owner for instructions.
Bored, Si Yao wandered around the control room, even climbing up to the porthole to look at the scenery outside.
But the same handful of sights kept passing by, and once they entered the Dark Universe, there was nothing to see besides those points of light.
Finally giving up on trying to entertain herself, she sat cross-legged by Li Yilin's feet, leaning against the leg of the chair he was sitting in. She opened her Optical Computer screen and began reading the secret art's instructions.
Li Yilin's student's closeness made him narrow his eyes in pleasure. He patted her little head. "There's a chair. Why sit on the floor?"
"I just want to sit by you, Teacher. It makes me feel safe." Si Yao glanced back at him, her eyes curved like a crescent moon. She was clearly in a good mood.
She smiled at Li Yilin, then lowered her head and continued studying the contents on the screen. Her concentration made it obvious she wasn't putting on an act.
Li Yilin froze for a moment, then withdrew his hand and left her alone.
The Flash Moon Sword Art was dry and abstruse, and covered a wide range of subjects. Cultivating it required immense perseverance. Si Yao might be mischievous, but when it came to cultivation, she had plenty of patience and determination. No matter how exhausted or discouraged she was, she had never once said she wanted to give up.
He knew this, of course, but rarely saw it for himself. Now that he was watching her keep up with her cultivation even aboard the spaceship, he felt proud of her—and couldn't help feeling a little sorry for her, too.
Then he was startled by his own thought.
If a student worked too hard, he worried about her. If she didn't work hard enough, he had a headache.
Did he always have to worry about something?
Before you continue