Chi Yao's heart beat even faster, her fingertips trembling as they brushed against the mirror's surface.
Shen Yu's figure, like his face, was flawless—perfect beyond a single fault.
His frame was tall and slender, and against the backdrop of his white robe, he might have appeared somewhat thin.
But Chi Yao knew all too well that the body hidden beneath Shen Yu's clothing was undoubtedly lean and powerful.
Otherwise, a frail body could never have unleashed those explosively forceful moves during sword practice.
While watching Shen Yu practice his swordplay lately, Chi Yao had often wondered what his waist and abdomen looked like beneath his clothes.
She had even fantasized that when she eventually imprisoned Shen Yu, she would unwrap the answer layer by layer, like opening a gift.
But now, without needing to imprison him, the answer was about to be revealed ahead of schedule.
In the mirror, Shen Yu stood by the pool, his outer robe already removed, those slender hands slowly moving toward his sash.
Chi Yao's gaze followed involuntarily, watching as Shen Yu undid his sash bit by bit.
The moment the last hidden clasp came undone, Chi Yao's breathing slowed, and she felt as if time itself had slowed with it—Shen Yu's movements seemed to stretch out endlessly before her eyes.
As the sash slipped away, the front of Shen Yu's robe fell open.
His delicate collarbones and firm abdominal muscles were laid bare before Chi Yao's eyes.
Her breath caught for a moment, followed by the thunderous pounding of her own heartbeat.
She saw it.
She had truly seen her senior brother's body.
Chi Yao's guess had been right—beneath Shen Yu's slender waist was taut muscle, every inch perfectly proportioned, and in that half-concealed state, all the more tantalizing.
Chi Yao's gaze grew more eager, her heartbeat echoing in her ears, deafening.
But Shen Yu's hands kept moving. First he shed his middle garment, then his inner shirt, and finally…
Chi Yao's hands trembled even harder, that shivering thrill of excitement spreading through her entire body in an instant.
She stared nervously at the mirror, her gaze drifting downward uncontrollably.
But at that moment, Shen Yu moved.
The instant his clothes dropped, Shen Yu took a step toward the pool, and the mist rising from the water instantly shrouded most of his body, leaving only his firm chest faintly visible.
Yet the mist was not satisfied with that—it continued to spread, and Shen Yu's figure was gradually swallowed by the fog until he vanished completely.
So close.
She had been just a hair's breadth away from seeing her senior brother completely bare.
Chi Yao stared at that thick cloud of mist, a trace of disappointment flashing through her eyes. But as she lowered her gaze, she caught sight of the clothes scattered by the pool's edge.
A flicker of movement stirred in Chi Yao's dimming eyes.
In the past, Shen Yu had always worn that white robe immaculately, never leaving any room for others' imagination—and even in the privacy of his own chambers, he remained the same.
It seemed that whether before others or behind closed doors, he was always impeccably put together; even the arrangement of his chambers was entirely neat and orderly, without a single trace of disorder.
Yet now these garments lay scattered carelessly by the pool, looking utterly out of place—it was hard to imagine this being Shen Yu's doing.
In Chi Yao's view, with his temperament, Shen Yu would surely fold his clothes neatly even when bathing; he would never let them lie scattered in disarray by the water's edge.
But reality told her that Shen Yu had his casual moments in private too.
This discovery left Chi Yao secretly thrilled.
She had glimpsed the most private side of Shen Yu—something only the closest of people could ever know.
And now she had seen it.
The excitement of this peeking reached its peak in that moment, and Chi Yao felt her entire body trembling.
But just then, the sound of water suddenly reached her ears.
Chi Yao instinctively shifted her gaze toward the pool.
The mist over the water seemed to have thinned, and Shen Yu's blurred figure faintly emerged within it.
Chi Yao's pupils dilated slightly as she stared fixedly at that patch of mist, and only when Shen Yu's figure gradually came into focus did she confirm she wasn't seeing things.
The mist had truly dispersed.
Chi Yao's eyes lit up once more as Shen Yu's cool, handsome face appeared before her again.
But soon, Chi Yao was left utterly stunned.
Shen Yu was leaning against the edge of the pool, the water rising just past his chest, leaving only his collarbone—dotted with water droplets—clearly visible to Chi Yao.
Chi Yao's breath caught for a moment, then her gaze continued upward, landing on Shen Yu's face.
To her surprise, although Shen Yu had only just entered the water, his long black hair was already soaked, and even his face was dotted with droplets.
Some slid down his cheeks; others clung to his lashes.
At that very moment, Shen Yu's lashes quivered, and then he slowly opened his eyes.
Chi Yao found herself meeting directly those misty eyes of his.
Perhaps because of the steam, the corners of Shen Yu's eyes were faintly flushed, lending an entirely different allure to that austere, ascetic face of his.
Chi Yao's heart, which had just barely calmed, trembled violently once more.
Though she knew Shen Yu couldn't see her, she still had the illusion that he was looking right at her.
She kept feeling that his eyes weren't as calm as usual—there seemed to be something clinging, lingering in them.
As if he were… deliberately seducing her…
The moment this thought surfaced in Chi Yao's mind, a droplet of water slid from Shen Yu's lashes.
Her gaze instinctively followed it downward.
The droplet slid all the way down, finally tracing along Shen Yu's neck and over his prominent Adam's apple.
Just as Chi Yao's gaze settled on that protrusion, his Adam's apple suddenly bobbed.
The sight struck Chi Yao so hard that she stared blankly at Shen Yu, completely forgetting to react.
Only when a rush of heat surged from her nose did she frantically stumble back a few steps, hurriedly pulling out a handkerchief to stem the nosebleed.
By the time Chi Yao had finished dealing with herself in a flustered mess and looked up at the mirror again, she happened to catch the tiny curve forming at the corner of Shen Yu's mouth.
Chi Yao's body instantly froze.
Could her senior brother actually see her?
This suspicion made Chi Yao clutch her handkerchief tightly, her palms breaking out in a fine sweat.
But the next moment, there came another splash from the mirror. Chi Yao looked up again to see Shen Yu raising a hand to catch a drifting flower petal.
Chi Yao immediately relaxed, and her gaze toward Shen Yu grew all the more brazen.
Not until the mist rose once more from the pool, gradually veiling Shen Yu's figure, did Chi Yao reluctantly wave her hand and hide the mirror away again.
Perhaps because today's Shen Yu had been too alluring, that night Chi Yao finally dreamed of him again.
Ever since joining the Tianyan Sect, where she could see Shen Yu every day, she had never dreamed of him again.
Although Shen Yu had not entered her dreams for a long time, tonight's Shen Yu was just like before, sitting at the edge of the bed and gently tucking the blanket around her.
The only difference was that this time, Shen Yu actually reached out to caress her cheek, calling her "junior sister" over and over again.
Tonight, Shen Yu lingered in her dream longer than usual, and he said many things by her ear, but Chi Yao couldn't hear them clearly.
Only those repeated calls of "junior sister" kept echoing in her ears even after the dream faded.
Over the next few days, Chi Yao's spying on Shen Yu became even more frequent, though unfortunately she never again saw him bathing.
Still, this unscrupulous spying fascinated her—even when Shen Yu simply sat there quietly, she could watch him for a long time.
In just a few short days, she had already learned his daily routine inside and out.
Shen Yu hardly ever went out; he spent most of his time sitting by the window of his bedchamber reading, and everything he read was dense books on medicinal theory.
He did, however, practice his sword every day.
Perhaps because he had found Chi Yao at the cliff that time, Shen Yu had now moved his sword practice to the area outside his bedchamber.
Little did he know that this spot made it even more convenient for Chi Yao to spy on him.
Chi Yao could directly control the mirror and watch Shen Yu practicing his sword through the bedchamber's long windows—so clearly that she could even make out his expressions—and all without worrying about being discovered.
Chi Yao hadn't left her bedchamber these past few days; each day was spent either cultivating or spying on Shen Yu.
It wasn't until morning lessons came around again that she was finally willing to step out of her bedchamber.
This time it was Zhang Mu's morning lesson again. Although Zhang Mu had already apologized before Shen Yu that day, Chi Yao wasn't sure whether he would continue trying to trip her up.
So this time, she made a point of arriving at the lesson early.
"Young Martial Aunt, what's been going on with you these past few days? I haven't seen hide nor hair of you, and you didn't even respond to the Transmission Talisman I sent. I almost thought something had happened to you."
As soon as Chi Yao entered the school hall, Ji Jiusi hurried over to her.
Only then did Chi Yao finally remember the Transmission Talisman.
After leaving Shen Yu's bedchamber that day, she had been drawn in by the sight of Shen Yu bathing and hadn't had a chance to check the Transmission Talisman.
After that, she became obsessed with spying on Shen Yu every day, and the matter of the Transmission Talisman was completely forgotten.
Seeing Ji Jiusi's worried expression, Chi Yao couldn't help but look apologetic.
"Sorry, I've been cultivating these past few days and forgot about the Transmission Talisman you sent me."
"So that's it." The worry on Ji Jiusi's face was immediately replaced by a smile. "As long as you're all right, Young Martial Aunt. I was just afraid the matter with Senior Brother Zhang had affected you, so I used the Transmission Talisman to ask."
"Don't worry, he hasn't affected me at all."
These past few days, Chi Yao's soul had been utterly captivated by Shen Yu, so naturally she had no mind to think about anything else.
"That's good."
Ji Jiusi's expression relaxed completely, but after saying this, he remained standing in place without leaving, and his gaze toward Chi Yao became hesitant, as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself.
Ji Jiusi was a straightforward person, always speaking candidly in front of Chi Yao—he rarely looked this uneasy. Seeing him so hesitant made Chi Yao a little curious.
"Is there something else, nephew?"
Only after Chi Yao asked did Ji Jiusi, fidgeting awkwardly, finally pull a bracelet out of his Storage Pouch.
"This… I won this at the riddle-guessing stall at the foot of the mountain yesterday, but it's not really suitable for a man like me to wear, so I thought I'd give it to you, Young Martial Aunt. I hope you won't find it beneath you."
Ji Jiusi's expression grew increasingly uneasy, and he hardly dared to meet Chi Yao's gaze. But Chi Yao showed no hesitation at all, taking the bracelet directly from his hand.
"Thank you, I love it."
Chi Yao's words were no mere politeness—she truly did love it.
She had hardly had any friends growing up, and had rarely received gifts.
Especially after seeing so much of the world's wickedness, she could clearly distinguish false affection from genuine sincerity, so she deeply cherished a friend as candid and sincere as Ji Jiusi.
"As long as you like it, Young Martial Aunt!"
Ji Jiusi's eyes immediately lit up, his face full of delight.
But just as Chi Yao was putting on the bracelet, the surroundings suddenly fell silent, and everyone turned to look toward the hall's entrance.
Chi Yao instinctively looked toward the entrance as well, and the moment she raised her head, she saw a figure she never expected.
The person walking in was actually Shen Yu.