Zhang Xiao withdrew from the Golden Book and Jade Register. Stroking its cold metal cover, he looked around the training ground where he had shed so much sweat and waved goodbye to the room. After all, a powerful recluse still lived in the Room of Requirement:
"I'm going to take a break for a while. Thank you for keeping me company all this time."
With a creak, the training dummy's wooden hand began moving on its own, as though waving goodbye.
Zhang Xiao froze, then smiled. He gave the room another formal Daoist bow, flicked his robes, and left with a spring in his step.
His dad was right. It was time to slow down and enjoy the scenery along the way...
Wasn't it just taking it easy? Nobody knew more about taking it easy than me!
Back in the dormitory, Bird Sis was still asleep on his bed. Zhang Xiao watched her quietly.
The Zhang Chengdao in the Golden Book and Jade Register was only a memory, after all. There were many things he couldn't see, but Zhang Xiao knew them perfectly well.
Bird Sis had probably sensed his impatience too, hadn't she? His eagerness to undergo talisman investiture, to cultivate, to grow stronger.
It was precisely because of his impatience, combined with his unstable foundations, that Bird Sis hadn't explained anything to him. Instead, she had poured all her strength into steadying his mind.
As though sensing something, Bird Sis's crest feathers quivered, and she opened her eyes. When she saw Zhang Xiao, she struggled to stand, preened her feathers, and gave him a soft call.
Zhang Xiao picked up Azure Luan and gently stroked her slightly dulled feathers.
"Senior Azure Luan, thank you."
Azure Luan tilted her head, seeming to understand something. She pulled another small