Xiao Qinghe hesitated, but the readers in the system could no longer contain themselves. Messages flooded the screen.
[What are you hesitating for? Hurry! Sleep! With her!
If not now, when? Do you want to stay a weakling forever?]
Xiao Qinghe's lips twitched violently. He looked at Xie Jun. "If you don't mind, junior brother..."
"If you don't mind, senior brother, neither do I." Xie Jun covered her lips with a loosely clenched fist and coughed softly. Aside from the faint redness at the tips of her ears, she looked perfectly composed.
If Xie Jun, who had a severe phobia of men, could endure sharing a bed with him to advance her cultivation, what did he have to agonize over?
"Then shall we... get started?" Xiao Qinghe lay down.
The tips of Xie Jun's ears grew redder. She slowly lay down on her side facing him, her gaze darting about as though she dared not meet his eyes.
A trace of awkwardness hung in the air.
To conceal his embarrassment, Xiao Qinghe quickly closed his eyes and focused on his breathing.
A surging force poured into his body with each exchange of breath.
The sensation was utterly addictive. Xiao Qinghe lost all sense of time and never even noticed when he drifted off to sleep.
The night was still.
A faint fragrance drifted through the air.
Xie Jun, who had been avoiding his gaze, slowly raised her eyes and fixed them on his face.
As she watched him, her dark eyes gradually grew dreamy.
"Senior brother..." she murmured.
Xiao Qinghe slept peacefully, oblivious.
Moonlight slanted down across his face, bathing his gentle, handsome features in a faint glow that captivated her.
He was the only person in all the world who treated her well without conditions, who would willingly give his life for her.
He was her only light.
Why did some people already have everything, yet still covet her light?
First her master, then her junior sister. Would there be others in the future?
"Senior brother, can't it be just me?" Xie Jun murmured to herself. A hint of madness crept into her dreamy gaze as she leaned forward, drawing closer and closer to the sleeping man.
Clouds obscured the moon.
The scene vanished beneath the veil of night.
Only when the sun rose above the mountain did Xiao Qinghe slowly awaken. His senses felt sharper, and power seemed to flow through his body.
The Dual Cultivation Manual hadn't lied!
Delighted, Xiao Qinghe was about to draw his sword and practice eight or ten rounds, but the moment he raised his arm, soreness and tingling swept through his body. It felt as though someone had beaten him black and blue in his sleep.
"Hiss..." Xiao Qinghe grimaced. Yet Xie Jun looked utterly refreshed, a baffling contrast to his own condition. "Junior brother, did you notice anything strange about your body after last night's cultivation?"
Xie Jun paused while dressing and turned around, her expression unchanged. "What sort of strange?"
"I ache all over. It's as if someone sucked away my vital essence while I was asleep."
Xie Jun fell silent.
"Do you feel anything like that?"
"...No." Xie Jun lowered her eyes. "I'm going to spar with Master!"
She took off like a shot, all but fleeing.
Xiao Qinghe suspected nothing. He merely assumed that his cultivation was too low and forcing himself to practice dual cultivation all night had been too much, leaving him aching all over.
The price was rather steep. He just wondered whether it had been worth it.
Xiao Qinghe found a deserted patch of dense forest. Holding his sword, he silently recited the formula and channeled his energy into the blade.
A dim light shimmered along the sword, and he swept it through the air.
Whoosh!
The sword light flashed, fierce and chilling, and cleaved an old tree clean in half.
Holy shit!
One night of dual cultivation had done more than three years of grueling practice!
From this day forward, he, Xiao Qinghe, would no longer be a talentless weakling!
Thrilled, Xiao Qinghe swung his sword, sending flashes of sword light through the air.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Old trees snapped throughout the forest. Dead branches and fallen leaves flew everywhere, startling a flock of birds into flight.
"Ow! Which blind idiot did that? Show yourself!" Zhao Guangyi's pained shout rang out.
Xiao Qinghe pushed off with his toes and flew up into a tree.
By the time Zhao Guangyi stormed over, looking murderous, all he found was a scene of devastation. Xiao Qinghe was nowhere to be seen.
"Damn it! You coward! You dare do it but won't own up? What kind of hero hides?"
Several junior brothers beside him tried to soothe him. "Senior Brother Zhao, let it go. They probably came to practice their swordsmanship just like us and hurt you by accident."
Their words had barely faded when something shot through the air and struck Zhao Guangyi's forehead.
"Who's there?" Zhao Guangyi's expression shifted. His forehead immediately swelled and reddened, while something landed on the ground with a soft tap.
It was a sharp pebble.
Half reclining in a fork of the tree, Xiao Qinghe concealed himself among the thick foliage. He toyed with a few pebbles, cast Zhao Guangyi a sidelong glance, and snorted.
That sword strike back then had put him through no end of suffering. Even now, it had left him with a hideous scar.
Every glance at it made his heart sink. But he had been outmatched and powerless to retaliate.
Even though Zhao Guangyi had never sincerely apologized, he had been forced to swallow his resentment.
But things were different now. He, Xiao Qinghe, had finally turned the tables!
Xiao Qinghe felt wonderfully refreshed. Watching Zhao Guangyi stamp his feet and curse, he flicked another pebble at him.
Smack!
A direct hit.
The pebble flew straight into Zhao Guangyi's mouth.
Zhao Guangyi clutched his throat and coughed violently, his face turning blue. He could no longer even curse.
The junior brothers looked horrified and scanned their surroundings warily, but they could not tell who had attacked. Flustered, they urged, "Senior Brother Zhao, their cultivation is probably higher than any of ours. Let's leave for now..."
Boring, Xiao Qinghe thought. In a flash, he headed back to his quarters.
Having experienced the delights of being a martial arts expert for the first time, Xiao Qinghe was eager for more.
When Xie Jun returned from sparring with their master, he stripped off his outer robe, lay down on the bed, and patted the space beside him in an enthusiastic invitation. "Junior brother, this precious time won't last. Let's hurry and practice dual cultivation!"
With a little more practice, maybe I could show off at the Heroes' Conference too!
Xie Jun looked over, and her breath caught.
The gentle, handsome man lay on his side on the bed, his dark hair spilling loose, looking soft and languid. He wore nothing but thin inner robes, through which his slender figure was faintly visible.
His crossed collar hung loose, the smooth silk draping softly to reveal half his collarbone and a patch of snow-white skin beneath it.
Xiao Qinghe was usually dignified and refined, rarely losing his composure. This beguiling side of him was something she had never seen.
Only now did he stir her heart without even knowing it.
Xie Jun silently congratulated herself on having the foresight to establish rules with her senior brother: he could practice dual cultivation with her alone.
This sight was hers alone to see.
As though bewitched, Xie Jun stepped forward and involuntarily reached toward his exposed chest.
Xiao Qinghe felt that her gaze looked a little dangerous. "Junior brother?"
Xie Jun abruptly came to her senses and inwardly cursed herself for losing her head. Almost desperately trying to cover it up, she straightened Xiao Qinghe's collar and looked away, not daring to meet his eyes.
Her senior brother's mind was free of impure thoughts, his gaze clear. It only made the thoughts in her own heart seem all the more shameful.
Meanwhile, in the system Xie Jun could not see, the readers flooded the screen.
[Facepalm! This is the most cowardly top I've ever seen, bar none!
He's already lying down! What are you waiting for? Go on the attack!
You'll never get yourself a wife if you're this timid!]
Here they go again.
Who knew what dimension these system readers came from? The things that excited them were bizarre, and they kept spouting terms he could not make sense of.
For the umpteenth time, Xiao Qinghe regretted that the system had no internet connection. Otherwise, a few taps and a quick search on Qiandu or Bihu would spare him this predicament: understanding every word individually, yet having no idea what they meant together.
Since he could not figure it out, he simply put it aside.
Cultivation mattered most right now.
There was still some time before the Heroes' Conference. If he practiced diligently, perhaps he could secure a good ranking and earn a magical treasure as a prize.
Brimming with enthusiasm, Xiao Qinghe edged closer to Xie Jun, his eyes bright with anticipation.
To Xie Jun, it looked entirely different.
Xie Jun's throat bobbed as she unconsciously swallowed, inwardly lamenting her predicament.
This was going to be a long night.
Before you continue