Chen Hao reached out and ruffled her hair again.
"Don't think too far ahead. Eat first."
Xiao Yue finally found her chance. She bounded over and bumped her head against Chen Hao's leg, her tail wagging so hard her entire rear end swayed. Three Blue Birds landed on Chen Hao's shoulder and rubbed his ear with its beak.
Yang Wanqing's voice came from the living room. "Master... should I add some char siu to the roast goose? And those rice noodles... do you want those too?"
Xiao Yue circled Chen Hao's legs. Three Blue Birds preened on his shoulder. An evening breeze drifted in from the balcony.
Chen Siyao stood off to one side.
She took two steps toward the living room, then looked back.
"Bro. That thing about spending less time gaming... tell her that too. She nearly failed her last class quiz."
Chen Hao said nothing and headed into the living room.
Inside, Yang Wanqing held up her phone with a bright smile, Xiao Yue circled at his feet, and Three Blue Birds wheeled overhead. Pengcheng's night seeped through the floor-to-ceiling windows, neon mingling with starlight.
Chen Siyao leaned against the doorframe.
Tianwu's words still lingered in her mind. Thousands of years from now.
She looked at the figure in the living room, where Yang Wanqing was tugging him over to look at the takeout menu.
Thousands of years.
That was enough. Enough for me to grow stronger.
Dawn came early in Pengcheng.
By the time the first ray of light slipped through the balcony's floor-to-ceiling windows, Chen Hao had already been sitting cross-legged on the balcony floor for three hours.
He wasn't cultivating. Just sitting.
"Bro... time to get up!"
The bedroom door swung open. Chen Siyao stood in the doorway, holding two slices of toast and