Showdown

A few hours later, master and disciple found the Snow Demon Sky Ape in a gourd-shaped valley.

Watching it devour another magical beast, the Yellow Springs Demon Saint sounded surprised.

"How did you know there'd be a Snow Demon Sky Ape around here, kid?"

"Teacher, we can talk about that later. Right now, I want to find out whether there's Earth Core Body Tempering Milk beneath its cave."

The Yellow Springs Demon Saint blinked.

"Oh. All right, we'll talk later."

With that, he flickered into the Snow Demon Sky Ape's cave, taking Wu Bai with him without a sound.

They moved aside the barrier the ape had put up and descended.

With no interest in the underground scenery, they quickly reached the space above a slab of green stone.

A jade shard cut through the outer layer of stalactite, revealing a mass of thick emerald-green liquid.

"So this is Earth Core Body Tempering Milk?"

"That's right. It's an exceptionally rare treasure, and only fine jade vessels can hold it."

As he spoke, Wu Bai collected ninety percent of the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.

Seeing him stop, the Yellow Springs Demon Saint smiled and nodded. "Good. You know to leave some behind."

"I just want a steady supply. Otherwise, once I use it up, I'll have to search the whole continent for more."

Wu Bai pursed his lips, then collected all the diluted Earth Core Body Tempering Milk below before slipping away without a sound.

They made no noise the entire time. Perhaps magical beasts really did have keen instincts.

If the Snow Demon Sky Ape had caught master and disciple, there was no question who would have died.

Surely eating its fill of meat was better than dying and having its Magic Core taken?

After returning to the academy, Wu Bai laid his cards on the table with his teacher.

"I once had a dream..."

Wu Bai had considered many times whether to tell his teacher how events would unfold on the Dou Qi Continent.

Until now, he had never been able to decide.

But a few hours earlier, he had suddenly figured it out.

With the two of them so closely connected, what could Wu Bai possibly hide from his teacher?

He could keep concealing things, racking his brain for plausible excuses for his actions, perhaps even letting his caution hold him back.

Or he could simply use a "dream" to tell his teacher everything.

After all, their interests were the same. The stronger Wu Bai became, the stronger the Yellow Springs Demon Saint became. That close bond was another reason Wu Bai was willing to come clean.

"...And that was the dream."

"Oh."

"That's it? Just 'oh'?"

"You foresaw the future. What's so strange about that?"

The Yellow Springs Demon Saint smiled and shook his head, then pointed at himself.

"Look at me. I'd been dead for ten thousand years, and you brought me back. Compared to that, dreaming about the future is perfectly normal."

"..."

Wu Bai fell silent. His teacher had a point!

The Yellow Springs Demon Saint had been dead for ten thousand years. His ashes were probably long gone, yet Wu Bai had revived him with a fragment of an inheritance stele. How could anyone explain that?

Compared to that, foreseeing the future seemed much more ordinary.

A little over a month later.

Wu Bai heard from some Inner Academy students that the Outer Academy students' training season was about to begin.

So he packed his things and left the Inner Academy.

He was still an Outer Academy student. The elders had merely made an exception to let him train in the Inner Academy.

After more than eight months apart, Wu Bai's longing for Han Yue had grown steadily stronger.

At first, during the first month or two, he had hardly felt it.

But as time went on, he found himself alone in the Inner Academy, waiting for the heat inside him to subside, with no long legs to caress and no bright silver hair to admire...

The contrast made Wu Bai realize that he missed Han Yue a little.

As time passed, every quiet moment deepened that longing...

Wu Bai unconsciously quickened his pace as he left the Flight Management Center.

Back on the academy grounds, he glanced up at the sky.

The sun slanted westward. Dusk was near.

Leaning against a familiar tree, Wu Bai watched the graceful figure not far away leading a group of girls through combat drills, and a faint smile touched his lips.

Dusk brought a cool evening breeze.

The day's training was over, and students walked off in twos and threes, chatting and laughing.

"Behind you to the left. Third tree."

His teacher's voice sounded in his mind. Wu Bai spun around, his gaze landing on the tree.

He narrowed his eyes and extended soul perception comparable to that of a sixth-tier Alchemist. He soon sensed something amiss.

Someone powerful seemed to be there.

"A Dou Huang expert?"

"Yes. A Nine-Star Dou Emperor, female. Unless I'm mistaken, she's the personal guard of that Gu Clan girl you mentioned. No need to guess—the girl herself is coming over."

As master and disciple spoke, a girl with an air of innocence approached, accompanied by several boys and girls about her age.

Wu Bai did nothing but turn his head back.

"You must be Senior Wu Bai. Sister Xiao Yu told Xun'er that you're the best Alchemist at Jia Nan Academy."

Gu Xun'er wore a faint, courteous smile.

"You're quite remarkable yourself."

Wu Bai nodded slightly and withdrew his perception from the tree.

Seeing that he had no wish to talk further, and that her guard was free to move again, Gu Xun'er said goodbye.

A dozen or so seconds later, Wu Bai straightened and waved to the lovely figure approaching him.

A cool, clean scent filled his nose as he drew the girl's soft, supple body into his arms.

"Yue'er."

"Xiao Bai."

The girls nearby tactfully left the two alone, dispersing without a sound.

They held each other for a long while before slowly stirring, as though coming back to life from stone.

Before meeting, they had both had so much to say. But now that they were together, neither knew where to begin. Only by holding each other could they share what was in their hearts.

They walked familiar paths past familiar trees. The eight months apart felt like a dream, and the two of them were back where they had been before.

In Wu Bai's room, Han Yue busied herself making his bed and straightening his blankets, like a young wife.

Leaning by the window, Wu Bai looked over every corner. There wasn't a speck of dust.

A little later, they sat on the bed. Wu Bai pulled Han Yue's legs onto his lap so he could stroke them.

Han Yue's face grew hot, but she soon relaxed. Looking at the young man before her, she noticed how much he had changed.

Most obviously, he had grown taller. He had once been about her height, but now he stood a good bit taller.

His eyes were brighter than before, and he seemed more confident.

And there was more...

Of course, much remained the same. He still loved stroking her legs, and his eyes still lingered on her silver hair.