Family Banquet

Within North Spring Grotto-Heaven.

Gu Yuanqing lay on the bed, looking at Li Miaoxuan's portrait in the room, the corners of his lips curving into a faint smile.

In the room separated by a single wall, Li Miaoxuan sat cross-legged in meditation, regulating her breath and nurturing her mind.

For her, being able to return to the Qian Yuan Realm before undergoing her tribulation was itself a completion of her state of mind.

With the burdens in her heart resolved, there would be fewer openings for inner demons to exploit when she faced the tribulation.

Early the next morning, gentle sunlight spilled over North Spring Grotto-Heaven.

Gu Yuanqing sat in a chair in the courtyard, drinking clear tea with a book in hand. He was reading a volume he had found in Huntian Cave Mansion on the Falling Star Plain.

Suddenly hearing a faint sound, he turned around to see Li Miaoxuan, dressed in simple white robes and a white skirt, pushing open the door and stepping outside.

The light veil over her face had been removed. Her delicate features, beneath the morning light, resembled flawless jade. Her eyes still carried a touch of coolness, but compared with when she had been in the Lingxu Sect, they had lost some of their sharpness that kept others a thousand miles away and gained a little more gentleness.

Her gaze naturally fell upon Gu Yuanqing and met his raised eyes.

A faint smile surfaced on both their faces, as though they shared an understanding that could only have formed over many years.

Gu Yuanqing set down his book and said, "You're awake?"

"Yes. What are you reading?" Li Miaoxuan gave a slight nod and walked a few light steps closer. Her gaze swept over the tea and book on the stone table,