In the dimly lit meditation chamber, after finishing reading the latest news compilation, Lu Li suddenly settled his mind and began sitting cross-legged to meditate.
Although, thanks to the system’s task rewards for taking on disciples, Lu Li could improve his realm without even cultivating, considering the system’s main quest and that three-month death countdown, Lu Li still felt he should prepare on two fronts—both nurturing his disciples and intensifying his own cultivation.
However, just as Lu Li closed his eyes and began circulating the secret technique of Duanqing Peak, the signature skill
[Supreme Severing Emotion Technique],
he suddenly felt a subtle, almost imperceptible itch on the left side of his cheek.
That sensation… was like the softest down feather of a newborn bird, quietly carried by a breeze from outside, gently brushing against his skin.
“Hm?”
Lu Li’s cultivation was interrupted.
Instinctively, he raised a hand and rubbed the faintly itchy spot on his face with his knuckles.
Oddly enough, when he touched it, there was nothing there.
Frowning slightly, Lu Li glanced up at the ceiling of the peak master’s meditation chamber and muttered softly,
“Hmm? Is the Dust-Avoidance Talisman inside this chamber about to expire?”
“I should clean it up and replace it with a new one later.”
Lu Li didn’t think any further, assuming it was just a lapse in the room’s cleanliness.
What he didn’t know was that what had just touched his cheek wasn’t dust at all.
It was his “obedient disciple” Gu Qingying, who, watching Lu Li’s bewildered and awkward expression, couldn’t help but cover her lips to stifle a giggle as she shrank into the corner.
Seeing that Lu Li hadn’t noticed her, Gu Qingying grew bolder.
She extended her index finger cautiously toward Lu Li’s cheek, but didn’t dare to actually touch it.
Instead, she hovered her fingertip just a hair’s breadth away, feigning a gentle poke.
“Poke~ poke~ Master’s face… looks so soft, both in this life and the last.”
Gu Qingying couldn’t help but smile, her shoulders trembling slightly as she fought hard to hold back any sound, feeling a bit strained.
After a moment of playing “poke the face,” Gu Qingying’s gaze instinctively shifted to Lu Li’s lips.
Immediately, her delicate, pale face blushed as if red ink had been splashed onto fine rice paper.
Clearly, at this moment, an extremely bold thought was quietly surfacing in her mind.
“Oh my… Master’s mouth is really pretty~ and looks delicious too~”
Gu Qingying licked her lips, feeling that her master, quietly meditating on the Supreme Severing Emotion Technique, was like a rare treasure, full of forbidden temptation.
She then leaned in closer to Lu Li, instinctively wanting to press a strong kiss onto his lips.
But then she reconsidered.
With such a bold move, no matter how oblivious her master was, he would surely notice the system’s modification flaw and discover her identity, right?
Thinking this through, Gu Qingying immediately gave up those daring ideas.
After all, compared to boldly kissing her master and then being kicked out for exposure, Gu Qingying clearly preferred to maintain the status quo and stay by his side.
Better to have steady meals now and in the future—she could be practical!
Still, her beloved master was right in front of her.
It was obviously impossible for Gu Qingying to just stand obediently by and not make a move!
Hmm… I need to think of a way to openly and properly kiss Master without him realizing it…
At this thought, Gu Qingying furrowed her brow.
But then, her enchanting face instantly lit up with a joyous smile.
“Ah! Got it! I know what to do!”
She stretched out a slender jade-like finger, gently placed it on her red lips, and slowly, softly stroked back and forth, lingering on that tender little bud before gradually withdrawing.
Then, her finger, glistening with moisture, swiftly moved toward Lu Li’s face and lightly touched his lips, before recoiling as if electrocuted, returning to her own lips to savor the sensation.
“Ah… Master’s taste~”
Meanwhile, Lu Li was fully focused on circulating his cultivation technique on the meditation mat.
But just as he reached a critical point in the technique, he suddenly felt a fleeting, faintly cool, wet sensation on his lips.
It was as if a tiny, icy cold droplet had unexpectedly fallen and landed squarely on his lips.
Lu Li choked abruptly.
His normally steady spiritual energy nearly became disordered because of the sudden disturbance.
He quickly opened his eyes and instinctively raised a hand to wipe his lips.
Sure enough, he felt a faintly fragrant moisture there.
“Hm?”
Lu Li was completely stunned.
Then he suspiciously looked up, his sharp gaze sweeping the crossbeams and tiles of the meditation chamber’s ceiling.
“Hm? Could it be? A leak?”
“Probably. Duanqing Peak has been unattended for years. The master has been traveling outside for a long time. It’s quite normal for the buildings to have aged and deteriorated.”
Lu Li shook his head at the thought, resolving to have the buildings on Duanqing Peak properly repaired another day.
He then glanced out the window at the sky.
“It’s getting late. I still need to supervise that brat Qingkong’s training early tomorrow morning. I’ll stop here for today.”
Lu Li muttered quietly to himself, stood up, stretched his stiff muscles, and turned toward the inner chamber’s bed.
Having spent some energy earlier helping Gu Qingying clear her meridians, Lu Li’s head barely touched the pillow before he fell into a deep sleep.
After Lu Li fell asleep, Gu Qingying—who had skillfully snuck into his room by clinging to the cognition-modifying system—slowly opened her cunning eyes in the dark.
Seeing that Lu Li was asleep, she boldly deactivated the modification barrier and confidently approached his bedside.
“Hehehe~ Master~ Master~”
Gu Qingying tentatively called out as she stood beside the bed.
When Lu Li didn’t respond, she took courage, gently lifted a corner of the blanket, and, light as a feather, like a little cold-sensitive kitten, nimbly slipped into Lu Li’s embrace.
Still young and small, she fit perfectly curled up in his arms.
She then softly pressed her cheek against Lu Li’s broad chest.
Silently feeling the warmth of her master’s embrace and the faint, elegant scent of cedar from him.
“Ah~ Master’s embrace is so warm…”
Gu Qingying closed her eyes contentedly like a kitten who’d found a source of heat, letting out barely audible sighs of satisfaction.
Then, as if resolute, she pressed her body fully against him, hugging the sleeping Lu Li from the front.
She rested her chin lightly on his shoulder, her cheek close to his ear.
In a barely audible voice filled with endless affection and a hint of coquettishness, she whispered.
“Hugged you! Master is mine now!”
“Hehe~ Master, you can’t run away now~”
“It’d be best if we disciples and master could always stay like this… always accompany each other, never part…”
While speaking, Gu Qingying recalled the “gentle” care her master had shown when feeding her pills and the focused attention he’d given while clearing her meridians.
Surrounded by this stolen yet immense happiness, a sweet smile graced her lips.
Then, satisfied, she closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep in her master’s arms.
As for Lu Li, in his slumber he only twitched his brows unconsciously and felt that tonight his bed was exceptionally “warm,” as if a small little stove were snuggled up beside him, making his sleep even deeper.
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