A night of intimate conversation inside the secret attic completely dissolved the barrier between Xia Kong and Ya Fei. They had reached that special kind of relationship where they knew all about each other's depths and lengths, and Ya Fei almost felt like she had been molded entirely by Xia Kong's shape.
Morning light pierced the wooden window of the attic, casting a faint golden glow across the room. Xia Kong gathered up the scattered implements and equipment from the floor, directly igniting and burning a few severely worn items tainted with turbid aura, leaving not a trace behind.
On the bed, Ya Fei slowly awakened from her deep sleep. With even the slightest shift of her body, a wave of soreness and fatigue coursed through her muscles and bones. The heart-to-heart talk that lasted all night indeed consumed a vast amount of physical and mental energy, leaving her unable to recover her wits even now.
Seeing this, Xia Kong raised a hand to retrieve a plump, glistening Tier 3 Blueberry and handed it to her.
"Eat this blueberry, it can quickly restore your body, and the fatigue should vanish shortly."
Ya Fei lifted her gaze toward him, lazy amusement dancing in the depths of her eyes as the corners of her lips curved upward slightly. "Little Brother Xia Kong still knows how to pity and care for his elder sister, but why were you so reckless last night, hurting her time and time again?"
Thinking back on it, he really did feel somewhat ashamed for momentarily overlooking the vast gap in physical strength between their mortal bodies.
"Ahahaha~ Elder Sister was too enchanting last night, and this younger brother lost his way for a moment, failing to measure his strength. I hope you'll forgive me."
Xia Kong sat on the edge of the bed, his gaze falling once more upon Ya Fei's flawless, jade-like skin that seemed as though a breath could break it, a playful smile hanging on the corners of his mouth. "Still, I promise you that with the experience of last night's first time, the next time will definitely be very gentle. Would Elder Sister like to experience it right now?"
How could Ya Fei fail to understand Xia Kong's hint? It was just that this was her first time as well, and her body truly could not take much more, causing her to shake her head repeatedly in refusal. "Stop thinking about such nonsense! We still have serious business to handle today! Besides, the news of Lei Le's demise will reach the Mittel Imperial Capital headquarters before long, and elders will inevitably come to demand accountability by then. Since Elder Hai's return will still take quite some time, we need to make other plans!"
Following a whole night of heartfelt, profound communication, Ya Fei had already sorted out Xia Kong's purpose in returning to Wutan City ahead of schedule. Combined with the characteristic of the spiritual Farm Space continuously yielding special spiritual plants, a complete scheme for acquiring magic cores and circulating resources had already begun to take rudimentary form in her mind.
Seeing that Ya Fei's heart was entirely occupied with the external situation, Xia Kong felt a twinge of regret, yet he did not continue to pester her. He returned to Ya Fei's room at the auction house and fetched a brand-new set of dresses for her.
The medicinal efficacy of the Tier 3 Blueberry truly lived up to its legendary reputation. Within the briefest moment of putting on her clothes, a warm medicinal force flowed slowly through her limbs and bones, wiping away the soreness and fatigue across Ya Fei's entire body in an instant, and she was already able to walk down from the bed freely. Someone without experience truly would not have been able to tell today's Ya Fei apart from the one of the previous night.
He methodically harvested a batch of matured Tier 1 crops and sold them for recycling, then tilled the soil and sowed seeds once more, covering it with a fresh round of Tier 1 spiritual plants to properly tend to the farm's daily chores.
Once all of this was done, he brought Ya Fei out of the Farm Space together.
By now the sky had brightened completely, and morning light bathed the entire courtyard. Maid Xiao Qin had already prepared a lavish breakfast, and Xiao Yi Xian sat quietly by the dining table waiting, though her state of mind today was exceptionally distracted and her expression shifted uncertainly.
At times her cheeks flushed crimson and her slender body stiffened as she recalled the ambiguous scenes of the two alone last night; at times she puffed out her cheeks, looking as vexed as a sulking little dolphin with a heart full of sourness; and at times the depths of her gaze grew dim and dejected, feeling as though everything in the world had lost its flavor.
Xiao Qin stood to the side completely bewildered. Watching Xiao Yi Xian's unpredictable expression, she wanted to offer words of comfort, yet she did not know where to begin, so she could only stand silently at the side and worry in vain.
Just at that moment, Xia Kong and Ya Fei walked out of the room side by side.
Both of them looked spirited and ruddy-faced, their entire bearings relaxed and clear, clearly the picture of someone who had rested exceptionally well and enjoyed a deeply comforting night.
Could it be that she had just let her imagination run wild too much last night? Nothing had happened between them last night, and it was just like her usual interactions with Xia Kong-merely ambiguous teasing, all thunder and no rain?
Under Xiao Yi Xian's direct and burning gaze, an inexplicable trace of guilt welled up in the depths of Xia Kong's heart.
He forcibly suppressed the strangeness in his heart, feigned composure as he stepped forward, and lightly flicked his finger against Xiao Yi Xian's smooth forehead with a crisp rap.
"What are you staring at? Eat properly!"
"Ow! It hurts! Why did you suddenly flick me!"
Xiao Yi Xian clutched her slightly red forehead, pouting her small mouth in grievance, though the entanglement and jealousy in the depths of her eyes were largely washed away by this bit of playful bantering.
Ya Fei stood to the side, watching the youthful and amusing interaction between the two with a helpless, bright smile, her curved brows brimming with gentle teasing.
The morning atmosphere, which had originally carried a subtle hint of delicacy, instantly grew warm and harmonious, and the breakfast was consumed with ease and pleasure.
Once the meal concluded, Ya Fei took Xiao Qin and departed first, hurrying back to the Mittel Auction House to handle subsequent complex matters. Before leaving, she took away all of Xia Kong's gold coin cards to prepare for the official launch of the magic core acquisition plan.
The courtyard grew briefly quiet.
Xia Kong stood up and stretched his muscles. A warm current flowed slowly through his body, and his Dou Qi cultivation, nourished by the spiritual plants and consolidated by the night's stillness, advanced bit by bit, already showing a tendency to break through to the Nine-Star rank.
With nothing weighing on his hands at the moment, he intended to fulfill his original promise by taking Xiao Yi Xian for a proper stroll around Wutan City to appreciate the earthly charm and scenery of this border town.
The first stop of their outing was the old, dilapidated courtyard where Xia Kong had lived for over a decade.
He gently pushed open the mottled, decrepit wooden door, and a desolate, bleak aura rushed toward them. Weeds grew rampantly throughout the courtyard and dust covered everything. Inside the house, tables and chairs were tilted and askew, coated in a thick layer of grime, while a faint moldy smell lingered in the air.
Careful calculation revealed that he had already left this place for over a year, so it was only natural that the unattended old residence had deteriorated to such a state.
Xia Kong walked slowly toward the room he used to inhabit in the backyard, only to unexpectedly discover that it was much cleaner and tidier than the rest of the place, clearly bearing traces of having been inhabited and tended to by someone.
Moreover, thanks to his formidable Soul Power that far surpassed ordinary people's, Xia Kong clearly perceived several living presences with mixed and miscellaneous auras hidden inside the room.
This aroused a sliver of interest within him.
Could it be that after Aoba Kui's demise, members of the Ao Ba Family still held a grudge against him, deliberately sending people to station themselves here and stake it out year-round in search of an opportunity for revenge?
Carrying a hint of doubt, Xia Kong raised a hand and pushed open the room door.
Yet the scene inside was completely different from what he had anticipated.
There were no fierce guards from the Ao Ba Family inside, only a few ragged, sallow-faced young beggars curled up in the corner of the room, looking at Xia Kong and Xiao Yi Xian standing at the doorway with faces full of fear and timidity.
Looking at those tender, panicked faces, a thought stirred in Xia Kong's mind, and he instantly understood the cause and effect.
His expression remained calm, and his gaze swept lightly over the few of them without asking questions or driving them away. After a moment of silence, he simply turned around and strode away.
Watching this group of pitiful, homeless youths of wretched background, Xiao Yi Xian felt a gentle stirring of softness in her heart, giving rise to a trace of compassion. She raised a hand to retrieve a few glistening gold coins from her Storage Ring, gently placing them upon the stone steps at the doorway before quickly stepping forward to closely follow Xia Kong's footsteps.
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