Elder Ling, What Did You Find Out?

Someone was there?

Xiao Yan's grip on his sword tightened slightly. His eyes instinctively began to turn toward the woods, only for a word from the patriarch to stop him.

"Keep practicing as usual."

Bodhi blew aside the floating leaves in his cup, his expression leisurely.

"The little girl down the mountain was worried about you. She merely sent someone to check."

Xiao Yan froze, and Xun'er's face immediately surfaced in his mind.

Ling Ying, the man by her side?

He had been so caught up in his excitement that he had forgotten about the Dou Emperor hidden in the Xiao Clan. At the thought, he glanced at the sword in his hand again, his heart beating uneasily. Had the man already seen those last few sword strikes?

"Master, can he see you?"

"What do you think?"

Bodhi raised his eyes to him.

Xiao Yan immediately felt that he had asked a stupid question.

If someone who could teach the Great Sage Equal to Heaven couldn't even hide from a Dou Emperor, why bother hiding from that monkey? He might as well change trades and sell tea.

The youth gave an awkward chuckle and raised his sword again, though his lips still moved discreetly.

"Then what is he seeing right now?"

Bodhi said:

"A boy who refuses to sleep and insists on coming into the mountains to torment rocks."

Xiao Yan: "..."

That did sound fair enough.

But he was clearly practicing an immortal's sword arts. How did his master make it sound no different from a village child poking an anthill with a stick?

Seeing that he still wanted to ask more, Bodhi lightly tapped his cup with its lid and said with a smile:

"This visitor means no harm. I've lent him a few ordinary sights to look at. Just practice. There's no need to worry."

At those words, the last of Xiao Yan's concerns faded. Following the method in the Origin Returning Sword Manual, he slowly fed Dou Qi into the sword's edge.

A clear gleam swept past, and a corner of the rock fell silently to the ground.

This time, the moss beside it merely stirred.

Bodhi nodded.

"That strike was steadier than the last."

The corners of Xiao Yan's mouth immediately lifted, but he had no idea that Ling Ying had already moved to a third vantage point in the woods.

From this side, the youth still stood alone beneath the moonlight, raising and lowering the sword in his hand. Occasionally, he stopped and lowered his head in thought, as though puzzling over an unfamiliar movement.

Ling Ying narrowed his eyes and watched closely for a while.

He had never seen the sword before, and the style differed considerably from the Dou Techniques commonly used by the Xiao Clan. Still, he could not determine its origins from a few opening movements alone. The Xiao Clan had plenty of books; it was entirely possible that the youth had dug up a sword art few people practiced.

What truly caught his attention was Xiao Yan's aura.

He was still a One-Star Dou Zhe, his cultivation unchanged, but his breathing was deeper and more sustained than it had been a few days ago, and his shoulders and back were much steadier when he stood.

At the very least, he showed no signs of injury or of anything going wrong from forcing his cultivation.

Ling Ying inspected the surroundings once more. Insects chirped as usual in the woods, and the mountain breeze passed through the branches and leaves. There was no second presence nearby.

After a while, Xiao Yan finally put away his sword.

He rubbed his wrist, bent down to pick up the soft cloth, carefully wrapped the blade, and headed back along the mountain path.

Ling Ying did not reveal himself. He followed at a distance around two bends, only slipping away soundlessly after seeing the youth enter his courtyard.

He did not know that, after he turned away, a figure in flowing robes reappeared beside Xiao Yan.

The youth glanced toward the woods and asked quietly:

"He's gone?"

Bodhi nodded slightly.

Only then did Xiao Yan breathe a sigh of relief. He opened the door, went inside, and gently laid the sword on the table.

He had not noticed it while practicing, but now that he had stopped, the aching in his arms and legs caught up with him all at once. He sat down in a chair and suddenly remembered the particularly decisive "No" he had given Xun'er when turning her down.

No wonder she had thought something was wrong with him.

If anyone else had seen him touching his ring one moment and cradling a branch the next, so distracted that he could barely focus even while eating, not calling a physician to examine him was already a courtesy.

Bodhi glanced at him.

"Figured it out?"

Xiao Yan rubbed his nose.

"I really haven't paid much attention to anyone else these past two days."

"As long as you realize it."

The patriarch set down his teacup, his figure turning into clear light and sinking into the ring.

"Nurture it for another quarter of an hour, then get some rest. Tomorrow has its own lessons."

The light was still burning in Xun'er's courtyard.

When Ling Ying appeared, the girl immediately put down the book in her hands and looked up to ask:

"Elder Ling, how was it?"

"Young Master Xiao Yan was practicing with a sword." Ling Ying recounted everything he had seen, leaving nothing out, from the location on the mountain behind the clan to Xiao Yan's aura.

Xun'er listened intently.

"Was anyone else there?"

"I found no one."

"And his health?"

"His blood and vitality were abundant, and his Dou Qi was steady. He looked even better than before. The cultivation mishap you were worried about should not have occurred, miss."

At that, Xun'er's tense shoulders finally relaxed a little.

Still, Ling Ying could offer no answer as to why Xiao Yan had suddenly begun practicing swordsmanship, or why even his manner of speaking seemed to have changed slightly.

The girl lowered her eyes and thought for a moment before saying softly:

"As long as he's all right."

Ling Ying nodded, then asked whether he should continue keeping an eye on him.

Xun'er looked out the window. After a while, she shook her head. "Not for now. If he really has something he can't talk about, there's no need to keep following him."

She had only been worried about him in the first place. Now that she had confirmed he was in no danger, probing any further would be like chasing him down to demand a secret.

Ling Ying acknowledged her instructions and withdrew into the shadows.

Xun'er picked up her book again, read two lines, then could not help curling her lips as she thought:

So he was rushing back to his room because he was eager to practice with his sword.

One sword has managed to steal Brother Xiao Yan's soul away.

Early the next morning.

Just as Xiao Yan finished his cultivation, two light knocks sounded at the door.

"Brother Xiao Yan, are you awake?"

He rose and opened the door. Xun'er stood in the morning light, holding a food box. When he emerged, her gaze first swept over his face before she smiled.

"The kitchen made some congee. I brought you some on my way."

"Come in and sit."

Xiao Yan hurriedly stepped aside, then shifted the soft cloth spread over the table to one side.

Xun'er noticed the sword wrapped inside it. She did not reach out to touch it, only asking softly:

"Did you gain anything from practicing last night?"

Xiao Yan's movements paused briefly before he smiled.

"Yes, quite a lot."

The girl set out the bowl of congee and looked up at him.

"It seems Brother Xiao Yan really has been very busy lately."

Her tone was gentle, yet Xiao Yan felt his ears grow warm. He took the bowl and, rather than brushing her off as he had the night before, said earnestly:

"I recently came across an opportunity, and I'm trying to learn some new skills. There are a few things I can't explain in detail just yet, but I haven't been deliberately avoiding you."

The probing remarks Xun'er had prepared suddenly became unnecessary. She watched him for a moment, then nodded gently.

"I understand."

Xiao Yan lowered his head to eat. After two mouthfuls, he added:

"I was so excited these past few days that cultivation was all I could think about. I made you worry."

The smile in the girl's eyes finally deepened.

"Then if you run into trouble in the future, don't brush me off by saying you need to cultivate."

"I won't."

Xiao Yan answered earnestly, his gaze happening to land on the medicinal ingredient list at the corner of the table. He picked it up, looked at the unfamiliar names of several ingredients, and suddenly had an idea.

"Xun'er, do you have some time later?"

"Why?"

"Want to go out for a stroll with me?"

The girl was briefly taken aback, then smiled.

"No rush to cultivate today?"

Xiao Yan folded the ingredient list and tucked it into his robes with perfect nonchalance.

"I can pick up a few things while we're out."

Xun'er's gaze followed the sheet of paper. As she watched, a hint of helplessness crept into her smile.

"Brother Xiao Yan."

"Hmm?"

"When you say going out for a stroll, don't tell me you mean browsing medicine shops?"