Orion’s third match would not occur until the following afternoon.
Tournament healers insisted on a mandatory recovery period after the injuries from his second fight.
Orion had intended to cultivate.
Xuan Mei had forbidden it.
Cassian agreed.
Yue Ling agreed.
Rowan agreed.
Orion discovered that democracy was terrible when everyone voted against him.
So instead—
He went shopping.
The Concordant Peaks marketplace had expanded dramatically for the tournament.
Temporary stalls filled entire streets.
Cultivators shouted about treasures.
Merchants displayed spirit herbs beneath protective formations.
Weapon smiths demonstrated blades.
Pill sellers promised breakthroughs, improved longevity, flawless skin, stronger bones, better eyesight, and apparently one particularly enthusiastic man’s medicine could improve “marital harmony.”
Orion walked faster past that stall.
The merchant called after him.
“Young hero!
Your future wives will thank you!”
Orion almost tripped.
Chen Rui laughed so hard he had to lean against a wall.
“I hate this place.”
“No, you don’t.”
“I hate you.”
“Also false.”
Orion continued through the crowd.
He had a purpose.
For two months, the Daily Sign-In System had provided things for Xuan Mei.
Rare resources.
Useful items.
Treasures Orion himself could never have obtained.
And that bothered him.
Not because the gifts were bad.
But because none of them had been chosen.
The system generated them.
Orion handed them over.
He wanted—
Something else.
Something from him.
“What are we looking for?”
Chen Rui asked.
“A gift.”
“For Xuan Mei.”
“Obviously.”
Orion glanced at him.
“What does that mean?”
“You’ve walked past six weapon stalls without stopping.”
“Maybe I don’t need a weapon.”
“You always need another weapon.”
“That sounds unhealthy.”
“It’s cultivation.”
“Same thing.”
They passed jewelry stalls.
Orion slowed.
Chen Rui noticed.
“Oh.”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“You said that like something.”
“I’ve just realized this is romantic.”
Orion kept walking.
“Go away.”
“No.”
“I can outrun you.”
“You’re injured.”
“Excellent point.”
⸻
They searched for nearly an hour.
Orion rejected everything.
Too extravagant.
Too generic.
Too obviously expensive.
Too cheaply made.
A necklace with a moon pendant caught his attention briefly.
Then he put it down.
Xuan Mei was more than her physique.
He didn’t want to buy something just because it had a moon on it.
Eventually—
They reached a small stall near the edge of the marketplace.
No grand formation.
No shouting merchant.
An elderly woman sat quietly behind rows of handmade ornaments.
Most possessed little cultivation value.
Some were barely artifacts at all.
Orion stopped.
A bracelet rested near the corner.
Simple.
Elegant.
Thin links of pale silver joined alternating pieces of golden sunstone and white moonjade.
At the center were two small charms.
A sun.
And a crescent moon.
Not separate.
Interlocked.
Orion picked it up.
The sun fit into the moon’s curve without covering it.
Neither dominated the other.
They simply—
Fit.
“How much?”
The old woman looked up.
“For you?”
“That’s usually how buying things works.”
She smiled.
“Thirty low-grade spirit stones.”
Chen Rui nearly choked.
“Thirty?”
Orion looked over.
“Too much?”
“That’s barely an artifact.”
The old woman glared.
“It possesses a warmth-preservation formation and a calming formation.”
Chen Rui lowered his voice.
“Thirty is still robbery.”
Orion looked at the bracelet.
The system did not appear.
No appraisal window.
No reward notification.
No special compatibility message.
Good.
“I’ll take it.”
Chen Rui stared.
“You negotiate worse than Xuan Mei said.”
Orion handed over the stones.
The old woman accepted them.
Then looked at him more carefully.
“Young man.”
“The bracelet is meant for two people.”
Orion paused.
“What?”
She reached beneath the stall.
A second bracelet appeared.
Similar.
But reversed.
Mostly golden links, with smaller sections of moonjade.
The center possessed the same intertwined sun and crescent.
“A paired set.”
Orion stared.
Chen Rui slowly began smiling.
Orion pointed at him.
“Don’t.”
“I haven’t said anything.”
“Your face has.”
The old woman laughed.
“Sixty stones for both.”
Chen Rui looked scandalized.
“She doubled the price!”
“That’s generally what happens when the quantity doubles.”
“You’re hopeless.”
Orion bought both.
⸻
Xuan Mei found him at Dawnflower Lake.
Not the real Dawnflower Lake.
The Concordant Peaks possessed a smaller artificial lake near the guest residences.
Orion had begun calling it Fake Dawnflower Lake.
Xuan Mei hated the name.
Therefore it remained.
She approached as sunset painted the water gold.
“You disappeared.”
“I went exploring.”
“Injured.”
“Walking isn’t combat.”
“With you, I’m becoming uncertain.”
Orion smiled.
She sat beside him.
“How do you feel?”
“Better.”
“Truth.”
“Sore.”
“Good.”
“Why is everyone happy when I’m suffering?”
Xuan Mei ignored him.
Orion reached into his robe.
“I got you something.”
Her expression immediately became suspicious.
“Orion.”
“It’s not a Heaven-tier treasure.”
She relaxed.
Slightly.
“It’s not even a particularly good Earth-tier treasure.”
More relaxation.
“Honestly, Chen Rui called it overpriced.”
Now she looked curious.
Orion handed her the small box.
Xuan Mei opened it.
The bracelet rested inside.
She became still.
Orion suddenly felt absurdly nervous.
Which was ridiculous.
He had fought a man three stages above him yesterday.
Buying jewelry should not be more intimidating.
“It’s…”
Xuan Mei touched the interlocked charms.
“The sun and moon.”
“Yeah.”
Her fingers traced the design.
“Is this from your mysterious source?”
Orion shook his head.
“No.”
That mattered enough that she immediately looked up.
“I bought it today.”
“You?”
“With money and everything.”
Xuan Mei smiled.
Orion continued.
“I wanted to give you something I actually chose.”
Her smile faded into something softer.
“Why?”
He looked at the bracelet.
“I don’t know.”
That wasn’t entirely true.
Orion tried again.
“Most things I’ve given you were useful.”
“The pearl.”
“The dew.”
“The fruit.”
“The tea.”
“The aggressively thematic moon cake.”
Xuan Mei blinked.
“The what?”
“Later.”
He smiled.
“This doesn’t really do much.”
“Warming and calming formations.”
“You can tell?”
“Yes.”
“Of course.”
Orion rubbed the back of his neck.
“But I saw it.”
His gaze settled on the charms.
“And I thought of you.”
Xuan Mei said nothing.
Orion suddenly found the lake extremely interesting.
Then—
She held the bracelet toward him.
His heart sank.
“Could you put it on?”
Orion looked up.
“Oh.”
Xuan Mei extended her wrist.
“Unless you changed your mind.”
“No.”
He took it.
Her wrist was slender beneath his fingers.
Orion carefully closed the bracelet.
The sun and moon charms settled against her skin.
Xuan Mei turned her hand.
The sunset reflected from the sunstone.
Silver moonjade caught the light beside it.
“It’s beautiful.”
Orion smiled.
“I’m glad.”
She looked at him.
“Where is yours?”
Orion froze.
“How did you know there was another?”
“The clasp.”
“It’s designed for paired resonance.”
“…I knew that.”
“You absolutely did not.”
Orion sighed and pulled the second bracelet from his pocket.
Xuan Mei held out her hand.
“Give it to me.”
He did.
She took his wrist.
Orion became very still.
Xuan Mei fastened the bracelet around him.
The design was reversed.
More sun than moon.
Yet the same symbols rested at the center.
When she finished, she did not immediately release him.
Her silver eyes met his piercing blue ones.
Tiny stars shimmered inside them.
For several quiet seconds—
Neither spoke.
Then Xuan Mei smiled.
“I like this one more.”
Orion frowned.
“More than what?”
“The Moonheart Cleansing Dew.”
His eyebrows rose.
“That’s a Heaven-tier treasure.”
“I know.”
“The bracelet cost thirty spirit stones.”
“You were robbed.”
“I knew Chen Rui was right.”
Xuan Mei laughed.
Then her expression softened again.
“But you chose it.”
Something tightened warmly inside Orion’s chest.
[Ding.]
[Affection increased.]
[Affection: 45%]
Orion stared.
Six points.
The largest increase since their bond began.
He almost opened the interface.
Almost.
Instead—
He looked at Xuan Mei.
At the bracelet around her wrist.
At the small sun nestled against the moon.
Worth sixty low-grade spirit stones for the pair.
Probably forty if he’d negotiated properly.
Orion smiled.
“Then I’ll consider it money well spent.”
Xuan Mei’s fingers remained loosely around his wrist.
“So will I.”
⸻
Across the marketplace, Lianmo stood before a merchant demonstrating floating spirit stones.
The stones moved without being touched.
The merchant proudly explained a telekinetic formation.
Lianmo watched for approximately ten seconds.
Then said,
“The force vectors are inefficient.”
The merchant froze.
Her fellow disciple groaned.
“Lianmo.”
“What?”
“Please stop insulting merchants.”
“I stated an observation.”
“That’s worse.”
Lianmo turned away.
Her neon-yellow eyes briefly caught sight of two figures beside the distant lake.
Silver hair.
Dirty-blonde hair.
She recognized them.
Xuan Mei.
Orion Atlas.
Both wore matching bracelets.
Lianmo stared for half a second longer than necessary.
Her sectmate followed her gaze.
“Oh.”
Lianmo looked at him.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“You said that strangely.”
“I learned from you.”
Lianmo frowned.
Then continued walking.
She did not understand why two people wearing matching pieces of metal seemed significant.
Yet—
For some reason—
She remembered them.
⸻
The next morning, the tournament board changed.
Orion stood beneath it.
Xuan Mei beside him.
His third opponent appeared.
Orion Atlas — 1st Stage Essence Gathering versus
Jiang Tai — 7th Stage Essence Gathering
Orion stared.
Xuan Mei stared.
Chen Rui stared.
Orion slowly raised the wrist wearing his new bracelet.
“Do you think this has a luck formation?”
“No.”
“Can we add one?”
“No.”
He sighed.
“So much for shopping.”
Xuan Mei’s hand slipped into his.
Orion looked down.
Then toward her.
She squeezed once.
“Seven stages doesn’t mean unbeatable.”
Orion smiled faintly.
“You really believe that?”
Xuan Mei considered him.
“No.”
Orion laughed.
She smiled.
“But I believe you can make him work for it.”
His expression changed.
That—
He believed too.
Orion looked back toward the board.
Seven days ago, merely defeating a Fourth Stage cultivator had nearly put him in the medical pavilion overnight.
Now—
Six minor stages separated him from his next opponent.
He flexed his hand.
The sun and moon charms moved against his wrist.
“Alright.”
His blue eyes narrowed.
“Let’s make him work.”