The next day at the hour of Mao, as dawn was just beginning to break, Xian Yuzhu forced himself to rise with the help of Yuan Shun. After offering a round of friendly mental greetings to Huo Yan, he stepped into the teleportation array, drowsily facing the hazy morning light.
He arrived at the same spot as yesterday on the fifth floor of the Library Pavilion. Huo Yan was already seated there. In contrast to Yuzhu’s half-asleep appearance, Huo Yan was impeccably dressed, his handsome face showing no signs of fatigue. Had Xian Yuzhu not known how busy the sect affairs were, or that the Head Disciple was constantly on the move, he would have suspected the man of slacking off during his shifts. Otherwise, why was Yuzhu so tired he could not even count the floor tiles beneath his feet while the other man did not even blink?
Huo Yan felt that resentful, indignant gaze but did not move. He simply turned a page of his book and said, “Come here.”
Xian Yuzhu knew without being told that since they were the only two present, the command was meant for him. He did not act reserved; he walked over, plopped down, and reached out toward Huo Yan. “Give it to me!”
Huo Yan paused slightly and gave him an indifferent glance. He then took the Lingshuang Whip Technique from under his book and placed it in Xian Yuzhu’s hand. “Ten pages.”
Huo Yan stood up and spoke in a low voice. “Memorize yesterday’s portions thoroughly as well. I will test you after the disciples’ morning exercises. For every mistake, you will wake up an hour earlier tomorrow.”
He was well aware of Xian Yuzhu’s talent. Learning ten pages in half an hour was child’s play for him. Surprisingly, given his temperament, Xian Yuzhu did not argue. When Huo Yan specified ten pages, he obeyed quietly and even waved goodbye. Even the habitually calm Huo Yan could not help but feel a flicker of surprise.
However, he soon understood. Xian Yuzhu’s sudden obedience was certainly not out of sincerity. There were likely two reasons: first, he truly liked this manual and feared it would be given to someone else if he angered Huo Yan; second, he was plotting some scheme to catch Huo Yan off guard.
At this thought, Huo Yan stopped in his tracks and glanced back. In his peripheral vision, he saw the petite figure with legs crossed, studying the book, occasionally yawning and wiping his face with his sleeve.
Fine. In truth, Huo Yan was more concerned that Xian Yuzhu might stop trying to harm him. The more foolish and wicked things Yuzhu did, and the more people he offended, the more leverage Huo Yan held over him. In the end, no matter how reluctant Yuzhu was, he would have to obey and wag his tail for affection. In this game, who was the hunter and who was the prey had been decided from the very beginning.
Xie Shurong was anxious. Today was his third day living on Huo Yan’s peak. During these three days, his legs had nearly given out from walking, yet he had not seen Huo Yan a second time. What angered him most was not Huo Yan’s elusive nature, but the fact that he had not gained even 1% of the luck value!
Huo Yan’s refusal to acknowledge him as his fiancé left Xie Shurong severely restricted. Beyond being neglected within the Yuxian Sect, the most critical issue was that the Fate-Changing System required 2% luck value to implant a spiritual root in him. Xie Shurong knew well that a mortal in the cultivation world was no different from an ant. Without cultivation, even a child at the Qi Refining stage could kill him.
The system said coldly, “I warned you that the protagonist is meticulous. Your act of playing the victim might be useless at the start.”
Xie Shurong could not argue. He lacked the inner disciple token of the Yuxian Sect and could not even get near Huo Yan’s courtyard. Curse that Huo Yan; he must have issued some order, as the inner disciples on the peak avoided him as if he were a plague, leaving his acting skills with no audience.
At noon, there was a loud banging on his door. An inner disciple from the Life Peak placed a food box at the entrance and said indifferently, “Hey, time to eat.” His attitude was far from respectful, bordering on resentment. Previously, he had been responsible for delivering food to the Young Sect Master. Once this person arrived, the elders reassigned him to this task, claiming they were short-staffed.
Xie Shurong forced a fake smile. “Thank you.” The disciple rolled his eyes and left.
Clang!
Once the disciple was far enough away, Xie Shurong slammed the door shut from the inside. “I have had enough!” Looking at the steamed buns and pickles in the dish, he threw the food box violently onto the floor.
Huo Yan’s mountain was exceptionally sparse. Since the disciples practiced Bigu, the kitchen was purely for show, and they relied entirely on the Life Peak. The three meals delivered to Xie Shurong each day consisted only of a single bun and a bowl of pickles, not even a bowl of porridge. If he wanted better ingredients, he either had to catch them himself or trade spiritual stones.
Xie Shurong was unaccustomed to such a life. Looking at the unappetizing meal, he felt only disgust. His face turned pale with rage, his chest heaving. In his previous nine worlds, he had lived in luxury. Once one tastes such sweetness, one is no longer willing to endure hardship. He had long forgotten the version of himself from the modern world who fought for scraps, or the days of hunger and hiding.
“Do not worry. An opportunity will always arise,” the system remarked. It lacked emotion, offering only cold lectures in response to his anger.
“An opportunity?” Xie Shurong bent down to pick up a bun from the box. Suppressing the urge to vomit, he tore off a piece and forced himself to swallow it, his eyes flashing with malice. “Heh, I hope so.”
As the system predicted, the opportunity arrived quickly. Xian Yuzhu had been forced to study by Huo Yan for eight days, and he had learned more than half of the Lingshuang Whip Technique. By the ninth day, having woken up early for several days in a row, Xian Yuzhu insisted on taking a day off.
Initially, Huo Yan was not going to grant it, but Xian Yuzhu started a scene. Through their time together, Yuzhu realized that while Huo Yan seemed completely unyielding, he was actually susceptible to a soft approach. Xian Yuzhu suppressed his annoyance and called him “Senior Brother” with a feigned sweetness, leaning against Huo Yan’s leg like a small animal.
Ultimately, Huo Yan granted him only one day of rest, with the requirement that he must not neglect his cultivation. In fifteen days, he expected Xian Yuzhu to break through to the Great Circle of the Golden Core stage. For the sake of the holiday and the chance to find Xie Shurong, Xian Yuzhu reluctantly agreed.
“With my talent, what can I not achieve? Do not underestimate me!” Xian Yuzhu snapped. He felt a rare bit of guilt, but there was no time to dwell on it. Whether he could actually do it was a problem for later; his priority was to get close to Huo Yan’s mortal fiancé.
Huo Yan seemed to see through his guilty thoughts. After staring at him in silence for a moment, he said coldly, “Do not break your word, Yuzhu. You must do what you promised me.”
Finally, Huo Yan reached out and patted the top of Yuzhu’s fluffy head, much like stroking a captive animal. Despite the seemingly warm interaction, Xian Yuzhu reacted as if he had been shocked. He slapped the hand away and leaped back.
“Do not touch my head!” Yuzhu covered the top of his head, his peach-blossom eyes glaring at the tall man. “You are trying to keep me from growing taller, aren’t you! I hate you!” With that, he ran off.
Huo Yan remained in place, looking at the back of his hand which had turned red from being slapped. He said nothing, but the emotions in his eyes were dark and unreadable.
Grow taller? That would never happen. No one had told Yuzhu the cruel truth: a cultivator’s height stops increasing permanently once they reach the Golden Core stage.
Huo Yan had been taller and stronger than average since his youth because a trace of the ancient Demon God’s bloodline flowed through his veins. This bloodline, though diluted over generations, did not hinder his cultivation; it only made his features more profound and his physical body more powerful. As for the pure human Yuzhu, he would always remain this small and delicate. If he wanted to bite Huo Yan’s chin in retaliation, Huo Yan would have to lift him up until his feet could not even touch the ground.
Huo Yan had already placed Xie Shurong under surveillance. Unsurprisingly, he would catch a certain foolish little junior brother walking right into his trap tomorrow night.