After saying goodbye to Hongdou, the two headed into the courtyard.
They found Senior Brother Ye Shiyuan waiting outside Xu An's door, seemingly with something to tell them.
Seeing them return, Ye Shiyuan spoke up. "Finished with everything?"
"Yeah, Senior Brother. I'm exhausted!" Xu An couldn't help complaining. "And Senior Sister and Junior Sister exploited me for labor-the unpaid kind!"
"Hahaha, looks like it was a good thing I didn't go. Thanks for all your hard work. Master told me you both have great potential for spell arts. That's very good.
"I thought you both had quite an aptitude when we first met. Looks like I wasn't wrong."
Belle said bashfully, "You're too kind, Senior Brother. Ehehe."
Xu An, meanwhile, said, "Of course. Hehe (.-`ω´-)."
This guy really wasn't modest at all.
Ye Shiyuan said, "Not at all. I'm just telling the truth.
"Oh, right, there's something else I need to tell you. Master came looking for you two earlier. She said to go see her tonight... I think she wants to help regulate your breathing and meridians."
Xu An raised his hand to indicate he had something to say. "Senior Brother, I'll pass. I don't need it anymore. Junior Sister can go on her own. I have other things to do."
"Well... Junior Sister had better tell Master herself when the time comes. As for Master, that'll depend on what she says," Ye Shiyuan said after some thought.
"Mhm, don't worry~ Belle will tell Master for me, won't you?" Xu An winked at Belle as he spoke.
"Mhm (.-`ω´-). Treat me to something tasty and I'll agree," Belle said, blinking.
"One meal at the Yin Tea House. Nothing more," Xu An said, looking pained.
"That's more like it."
"Haha, all right. You've just come out of the Hollow, so go get something to eat first. Junior Brother Yinhu prepared some dishes for you. Go take a break."
"Great! I was just getting hungry." Belle smiled happily.
"I figured. Let's hurry and eat, or Junior Brother Xu might finish everything," Ye Shiyuan said with a smile.
Belle looked around. Xu An, who had still been talking beside them a second ago, had already vanished.
"Holy crap, he's fast!" Belle thought. All that speed, and he uses it to race for food.
That evil Xu An.
But she wasn't slow herself, and she dashed toward the dining table.
Senior Brother Yinhu had prepared a lavish spread to welcome them... There was a wide variety of dishes, from soup dumplings to all sorts of stir-fries.
"Mmm~ This tastes so good!" Belle exclaimed.
She couldn't help taking several more bites. It looked like her weight-loss plan would have to wait.
Xu An quickly finished eating, then grabbed a lunch box, packed up plenty of dishes, and took off on his sword.
Before long, he was back at Senior Sister Ye Shunguang's residence.
(*^▽^*) "Senior Sister? Senior Sister! I'm here to see you!" Xu An called excitedly.
"Senior Sister?" Xu An knocked on the door.
It took a while before the door opened (#-.-).
Dressed in a nightgown, Ye Shunguang rubbed her eyes and looked at the person before her. Once she recognized Xu An, she perked up.
"Oh, Junior Brother? Come in~" Ye Shunguang's voice was a little soft and sweet.
Xu An thought it had the coquettish quality of someone who had just woken up.
"Did you just wake up, Senior Sister?" Xu An asked, a little puzzled.
"Hehe, I took a nap at noon, then accidentally slept until now~" As she spoke, she grew embarrassed herself and lowered her head.
"Haha, you must have been tired, Senior Sister (◍•ᴗ•◍). A little more sleep is good." Xu An smiled.
"Here, Senior Brother Yinhu made this. I thought, since you're here in seclusion on your own, you must not have had his cooking in ages. I can travel really fast, so I brought some for you to try," Xu An explained, holding out the lunch box.
"You didn't have to go to all this trouble, Junior Brother, coming all this way just to bring me food." Despite her words, Ye Shunguang couldn't hide the smile at the corners of her mouth.
"Try it, Senior Sister. Good thing I got here fast, or it would have gone cold. Eat it while it's hot. It won't taste as good cold," Xu An urged.
"Okay!" Ye Shunguang said, then began eating at a leisurely pace.
With one hand braced on the table and the other supporting his cheek, Xu An watched Ye Shunguang eat in a daze.
Xu An simply stayed there quietly without speaking.
"What is it, Xu... Xiao An?" Seemingly remembering something, Ye Shunguang, who had been about to call him Junior Brother Xu, suddenly changed her form of address.
"Nothing (*＾ー＾). Just keep eating, Senior Sister. Don't mind me," Xu An said.
"You keep looking at me..." Ye Shunguang said, a little embarrassed.
Although she remembered him looking at her like this last time too, it still seemed a little embarrassing to have it happen again, 〃∀〃.
"You look like a feast for the eyes, Senior Sister," Xu An remarked.
Caught off guard, Ye Shunguang started coughing.
"OAO, sorry, Senior Sister. I shouldn't have said that." As Xu An spoke, he rubbed Ye Shunguang's back and passed her some water.
"Cough, cough... I'm fine... cough." Ye Shunguang's cheeks were flushed, though whether it was from choking or something else was unclear.
After that, Xu An behaved himself. He stopped talking and staring at Ye Shunguang, instead studying the room's furnishings again.
Not much had changed since his last visit, though he hadn't stayed long then and hadn't examined it closely.
There's a different little Bangboo on the shelf. Looks like Senior Sister sneaked down the mountain to have fun again today. Probably around Lumina Square. Next time I get a chance, I should try my luck there and see if I can run into her.
There's another diary on the table with a pink cover, right on top. Looks like that should be the newest one.
Xu An resisted his slight urge to read it. After suppressing it, he turned away and stopped looking.
"Do you keep a diary, Senior Sister?" Xu An suddenly asked.
Ye Shunguang froze at his question, then said, "Umm, my memory isn't very good, so I write down some important things to avoid forgetting them."
Xu An nodded and said nothing more.
The atmosphere between them seemed to have suddenly grown a little heavy, and Xu An felt stifled.
"Keep eating, Senior Sister. Sitting indoors feels a little stuffy. I'm going out for some air."
Xu An went into the courtyard and looked at the enormous maple tree there.
Even with the sword case Master gave her helping suppress the Qingming Sword, Senior Sister still suffers memory loss as a side effect. Sigh, I wonder if I'll be able to resolve this hidden danger later. But she should still remember me, so it looks like the effects aren't too severe for now.
I've already saved up over forty thousand attribute points.
When a single attribute passes ten thousand, the corresponding ability undergoes a qualitative change. When my mental attribute passed ten thousand before, I opened up my sea of consciousness, and my memories of the past became even clearer.
Ultimately, Senior Sister's memory loss is probably a side effect of the Qingming Sword. But since I can make my memories clearer by increasing my mental abilities, she must be able to as well. I just don't know what method could strengthen her mental power. Or perhaps training?
"Junior Brother?" A somewhat puzzled voice came from behind him.