Bright moonlight streamed slowly through the window, illuminating the room. Bathed in the moonlight, the beauty was leisurely removing her clothes as she sat at the edge of the bed. Situ Xue gently bit down on a wooden hairpin, twisting her long hair up from her shoulders into a bun.
“Senior Sister… Senior Sister…”
“It’s getting late. Cherish the time you have to sleep now. In the future, you’ll have to meditate instead…”
Meng Li was already completely entranced by the sight. With such a stunning beauty undressing right before her eyes, how could Meng Li possibly not enjoy herself a little? Situ Xue only thought of Meng Li as a shy little Junior Sister.
Completely unaware that the “little Junior Sister” she had in mind had, at this very moment, already mentally savored every inch of her undressing body, from head to toe. Meng Li’s face flushed slightly as she turned her head, trying to steady her heart.
“I can’t… this scene is way too lewd. I… I can’t hold back!”
Struggling, Meng Li sat up from the bed, desperately trying to escape this gentle trap, afraid she would succumb to it entirely. Situ Xue turned around, seeing Meng Li, who had just been on the bed, now shrinking against the wall.
She put down the wooden hairpin and slowly walked over, assuming her little Junior Sister was simply being shy. Meng Li, however, knew that all she wanted right now was to fiercely pull Situ Xue into her arms and lavish her with affection.
“Can’t do it, gotta hold back, otherwise…”
Just as Meng Li was still wallowing in regret over her impure thoughts, a gentle force lifted her up. Right now, Meng Li was like a doll, casually tossed onto the bed by that force.
“You and I are disciples under the same Shizun, yet you’re still so shy. It will cause major problems in your cultivation later…”
“It’s not that, I… this is…”
“If you want to be able to get up tomorrow, then don’t waste time…”
Just as Meng Li wanted to explain, Situ Xue walked over and directly pressed a finger to Meng Li’s lips. Meng Li felt the warmth of this Senior Sister once more.
“Leave tomorrow’s matters for tomorrow…”
And so, the night’s moonlight seemed exceptionally tranquil. Situ Xue lay defenselessly at the edge of the bed, breathing evenly, making one feel an extraordinary gentleness. Yet, in this very room, Meng Li was sleepless.
Meng Li felt the soft rhythm of Situ Xue’s breathing beside her. Her originally tightly shut eyes slowly opened, like the calm after a heavy rain, her gaze appearing exceptionally pure.
“I… why did I do such a thing… I’m truly beyond redemption…”
Meng Li looked at her right hand, her face full of disbelief as she felt the lingering warmth on her fingertips. If the earlier closeness was due to their proximity, Meng Li ultimately hadn’t been able to suppress the wicked thoughts in her heart.
“But it was so soft~”
By now it was deep into the night, but Meng Li had no desire to sleep. She slowly got out of bed, her movements soft and careful, terrified that a single misstep would wake Situ Xue.
“Since I can’t sleep, now is the time for exploring. I remember Jade Candle Peak should have quite a few treasures~”
Meng Li gently pushed the door open and cautiously peered outside. She turned her head to look back at the bed. Seeing Situ Xue showed no signs of stirring, she crept tiptoe out the door.
After stepping outside, she glanced at the magic array before her. Meng Li couldn’t help but hold her breath, slowly closing the door. She planned to activate the array based on the hints Situ Xue had given her from her memories.
“I remember the game mentioned the password… it should be Zi, Chou, Xin, Yin…”
As the array emitted a crisp sound, Meng Li felt the scene before her eyes rapidly change. When she came to her senses again, she had already appeared halfway down the mountain.
“As expected of a cultivation game, it even has teleportation~”
What Meng Li didn’t know was that the moment she closed the door, Situ Xue, whose eyes had been closed in sleep, suddenly opened them wide. She slowly sat up from the bed, glancing at the empty space beside her.
“This Junior Sister… it seems I understand her far too little…”
Situ Xue reached out her fingertip and touched the slightly warm bed. With a gentle tug, the wooden hairpin was pulled from her hair and tossed onto a nearby table. Her hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall of black.
Situ Xue didn’t mind. She simply formed a hand seal, and in an instant, both her clothes and hair were perfectly arranged. She opened the door, looked at the already-entered password, and pushed through the magic array, stepping out slowly.
“How is it that my Junior Sister knows my password…”
Meng Li was slowly walking along the mid-mountain path. However, after just a few steps, she stumbled right into another magic array. Before she could even react, a blinding light enveloped her.
As the light faded, Meng Li felt nothing but dizziness. When she regained her senses, there was no special array in sight, only a simple room.
“What is this place? Why set up so many arrays on a single peak? How do I get out…”
As Meng Li fumbled around, looking at the building before her, it began to seem more and more familiar. Suddenly, it hit her—a place that could only be entered through an array, located mid-mountain, with the words “Alchemy Pavilion” inscribed above the door.
“Second Senior Sister’s pill refining spot!”
Meng Li never dreamed she’d stumble upon this place so easily. After all, in the game, this was a secret Situ Xue would only tell you after you’d raised her affection to a certain point in the mid-game.
“If you’re willing to spend your life with me, Junior Sister, I’ll take you to another place…”
It was while saying those words that Situ Xue had slowly held her hand and led her to this Alchemy Pavilion, a place belonging solely to her. The two had even exchanged heartfelt confessions in this hidden spot. But now, she had accidentally stumbled right upon it.
“I only found out later that Situ Xue’s main specialization is the Pill Dao…”
Back then, Meng Li had listened to terrible online guides. Instead of picking the path with money-making potential or stronger combat power, she’d chosen body cultivation. This led to a very frustrating early game, and even by the late game, it wasn’t much use.
“As expected, money is more important in the early stages. If I want to get rich, I need to get on good terms with Second Senior Sister. Talisman cultivators and pill cultivators are both money-makers~”
Having silently set her goal, her hand slipped. The originally tightly shut door of the Alchemy Pavilion now slowly opened. Watching the hidden map’s door swing wide, Meng Li’s eyes immediately lit up.
“Just a quick walk inside shouldn’t hurt, right~”
Looking at the door that had opened on its own, Meng Li thought to herself: the door opened for her; she merely wandered in by accident. So, in a way, she was a victim too. With that in mind, Meng Li stopped hesitating and strode right in.
“What a huge furnace. This must be what Senior Sister usually uses for pill refining. But why are there so many small ones too…”
After walking in, Meng Li hadn’t expected the seemingly small building to contain such a vast interior. The several-meter-tall furnace placed in the center of the room was astonishing enough on its own.
“In the game, it just looked like a flat texture. I can’t believe this thing is real~”
Meng Li walked up and gently tapped it with her hand. Hearing the dull echo, her eyes immediately lit up. She wondered what grade of pill a furnace this massive could produce.
“I really want to know what pill refining feels like~”
Compared to the small refining furnaces around her, this several-meter-tall one made the rest look like little cultivation toys. Meng Li took just a couple of steps when a few separately placed boxes in the distance caught her eye.
“What’s this stuff, placed over here?”
Looking at the exquisitely packaged box, Meng Li touched it with her finger. An icy sensation shot through her fingertip. Startled, Meng Li quickly pulled her hand back. But the box, triggered by the touch as if a mechanism had been activated, slowly slid its lid open.
【Twin Crystal Lotus】
【Golden Quality】
【Age: 260,000 Years】
【Grown in the far north, its body contains astonishing ice-element spiritual power】
“Another Golden Quality. So much good stuff. But what kind of pill is this used for…”
Meng Li felt the name of the herb was extremely familiar, but she couldn’t quite recall it. She decided to close the jade box first. Even after it was closed, the terrifying frost mist it emitted was still chilling.
“If this were the game, I would’ve definitely sneaked it into my backpack. Better put it back~”
Meng Li carefully placed it back in its original spot. Beside it, she noticed the pill formula for the Marrow-Cleansing Pill. Looking at the list of ingredients and the complex procedures written on it, her head immediately began to ache.
“What is all this? So many words. Shouldn’t you just toss the materials into the furnace and combine them…”
After making a round, Meng Li found plenty of good things. But this wasn’t the game. If she activated auto-loot here, she’d probably spend her next life working off the debt to Situ Xue.
“So much good stuff, it makes my eyes water. Supreme-grade Fire Wood Lotus, Twin Life Wood, Cloud-Piercing Grass…~”
After wiping away non-existent drool, she ultimately decided to just feast her eyes and leave it. The shock Ye Qinglian had given her back then was still fresh. Situ Xue was no weaker than that Eldest Senior Sister.
“Just auctioning off one random item here would probably be worth who knows how many Spirit Stones~”
“Things like these are worth a fortune to those who need them, but worthless to those who don’t…”
“So these are all raw herbs. Once refined into pills, wouldn’t they be useful to everyone~”
“And what kind of pill would Junior Sister like?”
“I would like, of course~”
Meng Li started to answer, then suddenly froze mid-sentence. She whipped her head around, only to find Situ Xue, who should have been sound asleep, standing leisurely right behind her, even holding a bundle in her arms.
“Senior Sister! Senior Sister!! Let me explain, I… I…!”
Meng Li’s eyes darted around in a panic. Her mind raced frantically, trying to think of any excuse that could cover this up. But here she was, standing in a place that required a password, having even opened the Alchemy Pavilion door. She looked exactly like a thief caught red-handed.
“If you wanted to sneak out and play, you should have reported it to me first. Besides, I don’t need to sleep…”
“Eh…”
Just as Meng Li thought she’d earned the other’s disgust, Situ Xue simply walked over, flicked Meng Li’s forehead with her finger, and then crouched down, opening the bundle in her arms.
“If you catch a cold from the night air, how will you train tomorrow…”
Seeing how utterly unconcerned Situ Xue was, Meng Li felt completely bewildered. It was as if Situ Xue knew everything she’d done, yet acted like it didn’t matter. This left Meng Li momentarily unsure of how to react.
“Second Senior Sister seems a little too nice to me…”
…………
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