[Host: Mei Lingling's Favor increased by 10 points.]
Xuanyan glanced at the translucent panel and couldn't help the small, satisfied grin that tugged at his lips. His gaze lifted almost immediately—because his attention had already wandered back to Mei Lingling.
She was walking ahead toward her spiritual cave now with bit more enthusiasm, her pace quicker than before, carrying a barely restrained eagerness. Each step made her robes sway, , his mind was occupied with the way her hips was moving in a perfect hypnotic rhythm making it jiggle a little every time she move.
"…Perfect curve," Xuanyan muttered under his breath.
And that skin—smooth, luminous, like polished jade kissed by moonlight. A jade beauty without debate .
He exhaled slowly.
He was absolutely going to die here.
But gods help him—
If this was the view on the way down, he'd die smiling, eyes wide open.
Mei Lingling suddenly turned, almost bumping into him, and grabbed his hand again—firmly, confidently, as if his hand had always been hers.
"Brother Xuanyan…" she whispered while blushing...
There it was again—that faint hitch in her voice, breath just a little unsteady, betraying more than her composed posture ever would. Her steps resumed, steady yet eager, tugging him along as if afraid that if she slowed down, she might lose her nerve.
Her fingers tightened around his.
He didn't waste this opportunity.
Xuanyan's hand brushed across her backside, "accidentally," then smoothly slid to her waist.
She flinched—barely.
A subtle tremor ran through her, one her expression tried to hide, but her body betrayed instantly.
Her waist was impossibly slender beneath his palm, warm and soft enough that his fingers sank in with the slightest pressure. Not fragile—dangerously inviting. The kind of softness that made restraint feel like a bad decision.
If her waist was this soft…How soft will her breast be then ?
And Mei Lingling felt it.
All of it.
Her heart thumped like she had swallowed a furnace.
She, who never let anyone touch her casually—who had proudly rejected a dozen outer-sect admirers—was letting this junior brother knead her waist like dough.
And worse… of it she didn't hate it.
In truth, her thoughts had already slipped into forbidden territory. She could almost feel his hand tracing the shape of her body—confident, possessive, claiming her inch by inch in a way that made her breath falter.
Heat bloomed across her cheeks.
Her steps turned light, unreal.
By the time they reached her cave, she felt as though she were floating—untethered, dizzy, and far too aware of the hand she still hadn't asked him to remove.
The cave itself was unimpressive—two rooms, nothing more.
But he barely noticed, because his gaze was back on her curves the moment she turned around.
Inside, the air felt different—richer with spiritual energy, faintly cool, faintly fragrant. It carried the hush of a place meant for quiet cultivation… and quieter secrets.
Mei Lingling shifted, and because they were still far too close, their faces drew dangerously near.
Too near.
Her lips—full, soft, touched with a faint sheen—caught the light. For an instant, they looked almost unreal, looked like a dessert waiting to be claimed.
She held his gaze for a heartbeat too long.
Then another
Heat rushed to her cheeks, blooming fast and unmistakable. She lowered her head at once, lashes fluttering as if ashamed of the thought she hadn't managed to hide
A soft cough escaped her
She straightened, drew a slow breath, and forcibly calmed herself, a practiced mental technique smoothing the chaos in her ches
"Sh-should… should we begin?" she asked, voice quieter than she intende
"Yes," Xuanyan replied simply
He reluctantly removed his hand from her waist—pausing a second longer than necessary.
She noticed.
She absolutely noticed.
""Sister Lingling," he said calmly, as if nothing dangerous had just passed between them, "what I can offer is simple. A small amount of spiritual energy—completely pure. No impurities at all."
Her breath caught.
Pure spiritual energy , energy refined to such perfection that even elders rarely touched it. Something found only in top-grade spirit stones… or ancient realms long lost to time.
She was already imagining her breakthrough, her eyes trembled with restrained excitement her gratitude swelled like a tide.
My junior brother… helping me like this…
Her fingers curled slowly at her side, as if anchoring herself to the resolve forming in her chest.
I won't let him be sad
I won't let him be hurt again
She lifted her gaze, quiet determination settling behind the blush that still lingered on her cheek
I swear it
She walked toward the alchemy chamber and returned moments later, cradling two jade bottles and a small, delicately carved wooden box.
"Brother Xuanyan," she said softly, holding them out to him, "please accept these pills. A gift
A faint pride slipped into her voice. "My mother refined them—she's an Outer Sect alchemy elder.
He accepted them without comment
Her smile, gentle and sincere, made the cave feel warmer than befor
"It will take time," she continued, lowering her gaze slightly. "I've already cleansed my spiritual container to ensure a smooth breakthrough. With your help…" She hesitated, then lifted her eyes again. "I might truly reach Stage Seven this time
Hope shimmered there and something deeper , expectation and trust .This was no longer merely cultivation
It was intimacy—quiet, restrained, a bond forming not in haste, but in the steady heat of a slow-burning flame
She moved to the cushion and sat cross-legged, spine straight, hands resting lightly on her knees. Her breathing was calm, measured—yet beneath it ran a current of anticipation she couldn't quite suppress
Xuanyan settled behind her, close enough to feel the warmth radiating from her back
The cave door closed with a soft thud , sound echoed faintly… final.
Just the two of them.
His hand hovered above her back, mere inches from her skin. He could feel the subtle rise and fall of her breathing, the quiet tension coiled beneath her composed exterior.
"Brother Xuanyan…" she whispered, voice low and steady despite the faint tremor beneath it,"I'm ready. Whenever you are."
Xuanyan: (O_o)
He didn't move right away.
Xuanyan's hand remained suspended in the air behind her, close enough that the spiritual energy around it stirred faintly, yet still refusing to make contact. The distance was small—barely the width of a breath—but it might as well have been a chasm.
Mei Lingling noticed immediately.
The hesitation was impossible to miss. Her breathing faltered, just for an instant, before she forced it back into rhythm. She remained perfectly still, afraid that even a slight shift would break whatever fragile balance had settled between them.
The cave felt unnaturally quiet.
She could hear the soft hum of spiritual energy embedded in the stone walls, the faint rustle of her robes as her chest rose and fell, and the steady presence behind her that refused to cross the final distance. Each sound seemed magnified, pressing in on her awareness.
Her heart began to pound harder.
Not from fear—but from waiting. From the unbearable anticipation of something that had not yet happened but already felt inevitable. Her fingers curled lightly against her knees, betraying the composure she was trying so hard to maintain.
Xuanyan could feel it too.
The subtle change in her breathing. The way her aura trembled ever so slightly, like the surface of a lake disturbed by a single drop. He lowered his hand a fraction, slow and deliberate, still stopping short of touching her.
The delay was cruel.
Mei Lingling swallowed, forcing her thoughts into order, reminding herself that she was a cultivator who had endured pain, pressure, and the brink of backlash. Yet this quiet pause, this refusal to move forward or retreat, unsettled her far more than any physical trial.
"Brother Xuanyan…" she whispered again.
Her voice was softer this time, quieter, as if testing whether sound itself would shatter the tension filling the cave. Even as she spoke, she did not turn around, trusting him enough to remain exposed.
He didn't answer immediately.
Instead, his presence drew closer—not touching, not yet—but unmistakably nearer. The warmth at her back deepened, and her senses sharpened until she felt painfully aware of every inch of her own body.
Her cheeks burned.
Her thoughts scattered despite her best efforts. Was he waiting for the right moment, or was he waiting for her? The idea sent a dangerous thrill through her chest, one she quickly tried—and failed—to suppress.
Her qi stirred restlessly within her.
It responded not to a cultivation technique, but to proximity, to awareness, to the unspoken tension binding them together. The sensation left her light-headed, her discipline wavering under something far more intimate than spiritual pressure.
Finally, Xuanyan spoke.
His voice was low and controlled, steady in a way that made her breath hitch despite herself. "Don't move," he said, not as a command born of authority, but as a quiet insistence.
"Yes," she answered at once.
The word left her lips far too quickly, betraying how tightly wound her nerves had become. Only after speaking did she realize she had agreed without hesitation, without question.
And then, in the midst of that suffocating stillness, his system chimed.
The sound was soft, almost intrusive, cutting through the tension like a thin blade. Xuanyan felt it more than he heard it, the
familiar presence asserting itself at the worst possible moment
A translucent panel unfolded before his eyes.
[Side Mission Progress Increased ]
The words lingered for a brief second before shifting
[Mei Lingling's Favor: +5].