Xuan Mei expected awkwardness.
Instead, Orion led her through the Radiant Daybreak Sect as though nothing unusual had happened.
They descended from the main peak toward a quieter region of the sect where flowering trees surrounded a small lake.
Golden petals drifted across the water.
The sun was beginning its slow descent toward the western mountains.
“This is Dawnflower Lake.”
Orion gestured toward a pavilion beside the shore.
“It’s usually quiet around this hour.”
Xuan Mei looked around.
“It is beautiful.”
“My grandmother liked it here.”
Xuan Mei’s expression softened.
“Senior Lyra?”
“You’ve heard about her?”
“My grandfather speaks of her often.”
Orion laughed.
“Then you’ve probably heard a more impressive version than I did.”
“Why?”
“My grandfather’s favorite stories mostly involve her beating him in arguments.”
Xuan Mei stopped.
“Your grandfather admits that?”
“Not intentionally.”
She stared at Orion for a moment.
Then laughed.
It was quiet, but genuine.
Orion smiled.
She should do that more often.
They entered the pavilion.
For a few moments neither spoke.
Orion leaned against the railing.
Xuan Mei stood across from him.
Finally, he said,
“You don’t have to marry me.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
“That was direct.”
“I’ve had eighteen years to think about it.”
“You knew I was coming?”
“Not today.”
Orion looked across the lake.
“But eventually?
Sure.”
He shrugged.
“You’re a disciple of a supreme sect.
Apparently an extremely talented one.
I’m a man who spent his afternoon repairing an irrigation formation because somebody attacked it with farming equipment.”
“In his defense, he apparently stopped the strange noise.”
Orion slowly turned toward her.
Xuan Mei’s expression remained perfectly composed.
He stared.
Then laughed.
“Alright.
I wasn’t expecting that.”
The corner of her mouth lifted.
Orion continued.
“The point is, I understand the difference between our circumstances.”
“And?”
“And I won’t use a promise made before either of us was born to trap you.”
Xuan Mei was silent.
Something in her expression changed.
Not dramatically.
But the distance in her gaze diminished.
“My grandfather told me you might say something like that.”
Orion raised an eyebrow.
“He knows me?”
“No.”
“Then that’s mildly unsettling.”
“He knew your grandmother.”
“Ah.”
Xuan Mei moved to the railing beside him.
“She apparently had a similar personality.”
Orion looked out over the lake.
“That’s probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”
For several heartbeats, there was only the sound of water.
Then Xuan Mei spoke.
“I am not in love with you.”
Orion nearly choked.
“Still direct.”
“You started it.”
“Fair.”
She turned slightly toward him.
“I think we should be honest with each other.”
“I agree.”
“I came because I intend to honor the engagement.”
Orion’s smile faded.
“Xuan Mei—”
“Listen first.”
He stopped.
“I do not believe honoring it means walking into a marriage with a stranger.”
She continued.
“My grandfather made a promise.
I respect him enough to take that promise seriously.”
Her silver eyes met Orion’s.
“But ultimately, the life involved is mine.”
Orion nodded.
“As yours is yours.”
“Exactly.”
Xuan Mei folded her hands behind her back.
“So I proposed a compromise.”
“To who?”
“My grandfather.”
“And?”
“I will get to know you.”
Orion blinked.
“If we are compatible, the engagement remains.”
“And if we’re not?”
“We end it ourselves.”
There was no guilt in her voice.
No threat.
Just certainty.
Orion considered it.
“That sounds suspiciously reasonable.”
“My sect dislikes it.”
“There it is.”
Xuan Mei sighed.
Orion grinned.
“Sorry.”
“No, you’re correct.”
She turned toward the lake again.
“The elders believe allowing the engagement to continue damages the sect’s reputation.”
“Because I can’t cultivate.”
“Yes.”
No hesitation.
Orion appreciated that.
She wasn’t trying to protect his feelings with meaningless words.
“The Wind Resonant Sect has many enemies,” Xuan Mei said.
“My master worries they will use you against me.”
“Also reasonable.”
Xuan Mei looked at him.
“You agree with them quite often for someone they dislike.”
“Someone being unpleasant doesn’t automatically make them wrong.”
That earned him another long look.
Orion shrugged.
“They’re worried about you.
I can’t exactly hate them for that.”
Xuan Mei’s expression softened.
Then—
[Ding.]
Orion froze.
His heart stopped.
Not literally.
Probably.
A translucent golden screen appeared before his eyes.
[Conditions satisfied.]
[First qualified bond candidate encountered.]
[Initializing Binding System…]
Orion stared.
For eighteen years.
Eighteen.
Years.
Nothing.
He had said “System” enough times as a child to permanently damage his dignity.
Now?
Now it appeared while he was talking to a woman?
[Binding System initialized.]
[Purpose: Establish genuine bonds and support the growth, happiness, and protection of bonded companions.]
[Forced emotional manipulation will not generate Affection.]
[Artificial, coerced, or false affection will not be recognized.]
Orion’s surprise slowly became interest.
Another window appeared.
[Potential Bond Detected]
[Name: Xuan Mei]
[Affection: 15%]
[Relationship: Marriage Candidate / Acquaintance]
[Minimum Affection Required for Binding: 10%]
[Eligible.]
[Bind Xuan Mei?]
Orion stared at the number.
Fifteen percent.
That’s… actually better than I expected.
“Orion?”
He blinked.
Xuan Mei was looking at him.
“Sorry.”
“Are you alright?”
“Yes.”
He hesitated.
“I just remembered something.”
She waited.
Orion couldn’t exactly say I just discovered an invisible celestial interface measuring how much you like me.
“I’m glad you came.”
That was true.
Xuan Mei seemed briefly surprised.
Then she smiled.
“So am I.”
The number changed.
[Affection: 16%]
Orion nearly laughed.
It actually updates in real time.
He focused on the floating prompt.
Bind.
[Ding.]
[Binding Successful.]
[First Bond Established: Xuan Mei.]
[Initial Bond Reward generated.]
[Reward: Rao’s Immortal Body — Divine Tier]
[Reward: Solar Absorption Cultivation Art — Divine Tier]
Orion forgot how to breathe.
Divine Tier?
He had spent his entire life in Ikaros.
He understood exactly what those words meant.
The Radiant Daybreak Sect’s most valuable cultivation technique was Earth Tier.
He had once heard his grandfather mention that the Wind Resonant Sect possessed several Heaven Tier inheritances.
Divine Tier was the sort of thing found in ancient myths.
[Rewards stored.]
[Claim when prepared.]
Then another sound rang through his mind.
[Ding.]
[Requirement fulfilled.]
[One Bond established.]
[Initializing Daily Sign-In System…]
Orion’s expression became blank.
A second system?
[Daily Sign-In System initialized.]
[All generated rewards are restricted to bonded companions.]
[Rewards may strengthen cultivation, improve compatibility, repair foundations, provide equipment, assist emotional development, or fulfill needs of bonded companions.]
[Milestone Sign-Ins:]
[7 Days — Enhanced Reward]
[30 Days — Grand Reward]
[365 Days — Divine Reward]
[First Daily Sign-In available.]
Orion stared at the screens.
He had gone eighteen years without a golden finger.
Apparently the heavens had been saving up.
“Orion?”
Xuan Mei stepped closer.
He realized she was now standing directly in front of him.
“You’re pale.”
“I’m having a strange day.”
She glanced at his muddy clothes.
“I assumed that part was obvious.”
He laughed despite himself.
Xuan Mei watched him.
“Are you certain you’re alright?”
There was genuine concern in her voice.
Sixteen percent.
Barely anything.
Yet somehow Orion found himself appreciating it more than he should have.
“I’m alright.”
His expression became more serious.
“And I agree.”
“With what?”
“Your proposal.”
He held out his hand.
Xuan Mei looked down at it.
“Let’s get to know each other.”
She raised her gaze.
“No promises except honesty.”
Xuan Mei considered him.
Then placed her hand in his.
Her fingers were cool.
“Honesty.”
[Ding.]
[Affection: 17%]
Orion smiled.
This might be dangerous.
Not because of the systems.
Not because of cultivation.
Because he suspected he might actually enjoy trying to make that number rise.
⸻
Orion waited until nightfall before returning to his residence.
He locked the door.
Closed the windows.
Checked under his bed.
Then paused.
“Why did I check under the bed?”
Nobody answered.
“Right.”
Old transmigrator habits died hard.
Orion sat cross-legged on his cultivation mat.
A somewhat ironic possession for someone incapable of cultivation, but his mother had bought it years ago and Orion had never had the heart to remove it.
He opened the system interface.
[First Bond Rewards Available.]
[Rao’s Immortal Body.]
[Solar Absorption Cultivation Art.]
His fingers trembled.
For eighteen years, Orion had accepted that cultivation simply wasn’t part of his life.
He had made peace with it.
Mostly.
He watched disciples younger than him fly through the sky.
He watched his childhood friends disappear into secluded cultivation for months at a time.
He watched the people he loved grow stronger while knowing that, unless something changed, he would grow old long before them.
Orion had learned not to resent them.
But wanting something and resenting someone for having it were different things.
He had wanted this.
Desperately.
Orion closed his eyes.
Claim rewards.
The world exploded into gold.
Heat flooded every inch of his body.
Orion’s back arched.
He expected pain.
Instead—
Warmth.
Vast.
Endless.
Like standing beneath the summer sun after spending an entire lifetime underground.
Something opened inside him.
No.
Not something.
Everything.
Meridians that had once been invisible even to his grandfather’s spiritual sense emerged throughout his body.
Golden pathways spread through flesh and bone.
His blood heated.
His heartbeat became thunder.
Deep within his abdomen, a tiny golden point appeared.
A sun.
Small enough to be mistaken for a spark.
Yet Orion somehow understood instinctively that it possessed terrifying potential.
Knowledge entered his mind.
[Solar Absorption Cultivation Art.]
Absorb sunlight.
Refine solar Essence.
Temper flesh.
Strengthen meridians.
Create an internal sun capable of becoming an inexhaustible source of power.
Orion opened his eyes.
Golden light flashed across his irises.
For the first time in eighteen years—
He could feel Essence.
Everywhere.
Tiny particles drifted throughout his room like invisible stars.
Orion laughed.
Quietly at first.
Then louder.
He covered his face with both hands.
“You couldn’t have shown up seventeen years ago?”
The Binding System provided no response.
“Eight?”
Nothing.
“Ten?”
Silence.
Orion sighed.
“Fine.”
He opened the second interface.
[Daily Sign-In Available.]
Orion hesitated.
The rewards couldn’t be used by him.
Only Xuan Mei.
He smiled.
“Sign in.”
[Ding.]
[Daily Sign-In successful.]
[Reward Obtained: Moonwell Essence Pearl.]
[Moonwell Essence Pearl]
[Grade: Earth-Tier Superior]
[Effect: Purifies lunar Essence, nourishes Yin meridians, and significantly improves cultivation efficiency for cultivators possessing moon-aligned physiques.]
[Restriction: May only be gifted to bonded companion Xuan Mei.]
Orion stared at the pearl that appeared within the system inventory.
Then laughed again.
He had known Xuan Mei for less than a day.
Apparently he was already collecting gifts for her.
Outside his window, the horizon was dark.
But Orion could feel it.
Far beyond the mountains.
Beyond the night.
The sun was still there.
And for the first time since arriving in Ikaros—
Orion Atlas could reach toward it.