Chapter 273: Joy, Sorrow

In the early hours before dawn, a fish-belly white hue began to spread across the horizon.

Inside the master bedroom of the Lu residence, on the large bed, Jiangjiang Ruyi quietly opened her eyes.

She gazed at the ceiling with a hint of confusion.

This place is...

Oh, this is Lu Ran's home.

A faint blush rose upon Jiangjiang Ruyi's fair complexion.

She turned her head slightly and saw the person beside her.

In her eyes was a face sleeping soundly.

By her ears was his long, rhythmic breathing, giving a profound sense of security.

With a trace of shyness and a trace of joy in her eyes, Jiangjiang Ruyi quietly gazed at that detestable fellow.

As she watched, memories surfaced in her eyes, recalling every drop and detail of their journey together.

At the start of high school, the first meeting between a young boy and girl, the names written on paper.

Under the setting sun, the two walked home together, the lingering glow stretching their shadows long.

By the Wu Lie River, she secretly followed him, discovering his secret base for the first time.

On the rooftop terrace, the two prepared for the martial arts examination, amidst flashes of blades and shadows of swords;

Then, panting heavily, they leaned against the railing, watching the rushing waters of the Wu Lie River, speaking laughable words about wanting to change the world.

"Meow~"

This sudden cat meow woke Jiangjiang Ruyi from her reverie.

She pressed her lips together, but ultimately could not resist; leaning forward slightly, she gently pressed a kiss onto Lu Ran's lips.

Finally.

"Mm," Lu Ran, sleeping sweetly, emitted a muffled nasal sound.

Jiangjiang Ruyi's heart tightened, and she dared not move a muscle.

After a few seconds, realizing he had not woken, she finally let out a sigh of relief.

Jiangjiang Ruyi quietly sat up and lazily rubbed her long hair.

The slightly disordered master bedroom, with clothes scattered on the floor, all proclaimed what had transpired.

Jiangjiang Ruyi's lazy demeanor vanished instantly, her cheeks becoming even redder.

She extended her long legs to the edge of the bed, her fair feet tapping the ground as she searched for her slippers.

"Meow~" Separated by only a door, Little Li Hua looked up at the doorknob, seemingly recalling its special skill.

Just as it was about to execute its plan, the bedroom door suddenly opened.

"Click."

The female owner, wearing an oversized white short-sleeved shirt that didn't quite fit, walked out of the bedroom and looked down at the little creature.

"Shh." Jiangjiang Ruyi carefully closed the door, raised a slender finger, and pressed it against her lips.

"Meow?" Little Li Hua tilted its head, its round eyes filled with immense confusion.

Jiangjiang Ruyi bent down, reached out, lifted Little Li Hua into her arms, stroked its small head, and walked slowly toward the bathroom.

It was not until more than half an hour later that Lu Ran, in the master bedroom, groggily opened his eyes.

"Uh..."

Lu Ran also took a while to recover before realizing where he was.

He reached out to the side, but grasped only empty air, with only a faint scent of jasmine lingering in his nose.

Memories gradually surfaced.

This battle had commenced yesterday afternoon.

First like this, then like that.

Then this and that...

Both were cultivators with incredibly powerful physical constitutions and vigorous young people; naturally, they had frolicked for a long time before finally ceasing their activities.

What Lu Ran hadn't expected was that this sleep had lasted until dawn?

"Good heavens~" Lu Ran sat up, realizing the gravity of the situation.

Where is Jiang Ruyi?

Has she woken up?

She actually woke up before me?

Lu Ran scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Hmm... this matter is the fault of the Lady Lady Yanzhi Men!

During this most recent trial, the two had been killing continuously within Lady Lady Yanzhi Village.

Jiangjiang Ruyi merely had to move her hands and flick her Bai Yu token.

Lu Ran, however, had to shuttle back and forth, slashing with dual blades; after a single battle, his physical exertion was obviously much greater!

A full half-month of trial left Lu Ran physically and mentally exhausted, which was why he slept straight through until now.

Yes,

It's all the fault of the Lady Lady Yanzhi Men~

Contented, Lu Ran got out of bed, finding only his shorts and no short-sleeved shirt.

He put on his shorts, walked out of the master bedroom, and followed the sounds to the front of the kitchen.

"Meow~" Little Li Hua was on the dining table, working hard on a small plate of luncheon meat.

Jiangjiang Ruyi stood at the counter, seemingly cutting meat.

On her, Lu Ran found his short-sleeved shirt; her long, jet-black hair was still damp, as if she had just bathed.

The oversized shirt concealed her denim hot pants, creating an illusion.

Below the hem, those long, fair legs truly left Lu Ran stunned.

No!

Is this something I'm allowed to see?

Oh, right, she's my girlfriend, so it's fine.

"Finally awake?" Jiangjiang Ruyi turned her head to look, catching sight of Lu Ran's silly expression.

Lu Ran: "."

What kind of thing is that to say!

"Go put on a top," Jiangjiang Ruyi said, turning away.

"I prepared a bathrobe for you; it's hanging in the bathroom," Lu Ran said.

"I saw it, and a new toothbrush too." Jiangjiang Ruyi's expression turned slightly odd. "When did you prepare these?"

So, this detestable fellow had planned it all along?

Lu Ran shrugged. "Around midnight, I woke up hungry and went to get them for you while I was at it."

Jiangjiang Ruyi laughed and shot Lu Ran a playful glare. "Let me cook some dishes; wait a moment."

Lu Ran stepped forward. "My knife skills are good; let me do it."

"You go put on some clothes fir—" Jiangjiang Ruyi closed her eyes, encircled by Lu Ran's arms, letting him have his way.

She could no longer remember how many times her words had been interrupted.

He seemed to enjoy doing this.

After a long while, Jiangjiang Ruyi gently pushed Lu Ran away, breathing lightly, and whispered, "Go quickly."

"Mm." Lu Ran pressed his lips together, walked out of the kitchen fully satisfied.

Jiangjiang Ruyi turned around, propped her hands on the counter, and let out a long sigh, calming her violently pounding heart.

Such a scene seemed almost too beautiful.

And that was precisely the problem.

The true nature of this world was not like this.

All living beings suffer misery; it is not a beautiful place.

After repeatedly confirming that all of this was truly happening, Jiangjiang Ruyi could not help but worry about the future.

As the saying goes: when things reach an extreme, they reverse; when fortune peaks, disaster is born.

This world never conceals its cruel face.

Will it tolerate us?

"Jiang Ruyi?" Behind her, Lu Ran's voice sounded once more.

"Mm?" Jiangjiang Ruyi instantly came to her senses and turned to look.

There stood Lu Ran, fresh from his bath, wearing a clean and crisp white T-shirt, his smile bright and sunny, positioned right behind her.

"What's wrong?" Lu Ran's smile faded as he sensed something amiss.

His face showed some concern as he glanced at the beef on the cutting board, still uncut. "Zoned out for so long?"

"I..."

"Mm?"

"I, I'm fine." Jiangjiang Ruyi lowered her head slightly, not wishing to say anything that would spoil the mood.

Yet the sorrow in her heart simply could not be hidden, no matter what.

Thinking that before long, Lu Ran would have to leave again to journey to the distant southwest for his pilgrimage, Jiangjiang Ruyi felt a pang of sadness.

Jiangjiang Ruyi realized she had changed.

In the past, she had been calm and composed.

Now, she was plagued by gains and losses, her thoughts in complete disarray.

"What about waiting for my knife skills?"

Lu Ran took the knife from her hand, trying to liven up the atmosphere by approaching from another angle to ask the reason.

Lu Ran had not expected, however, that Jiangjiang Ruyi would suddenly embrace him.

"What is really wrong?" Lu Ran's voice was gentle as he lightly stroked her back with one hand.

Lu Ran expected even less that two words would tumble from Jiangjiang Ruyi's mouth:

"Bad person."

Lu Ran: "."

Under Lu Ran's persistent questioning, Jiangjiang Ruyi avoided the main point and touched only on the periphery, saying she was merely sad thinking about their impending separation.

As soon as she finished speaking, Jiangjiang Ruyi regretted it.

She realized she should not have said that either; she ought not to obstruct Lu Ran's steps toward growth.

Thinking back to when she herself had gone to Yumen Pass for her pilgrimage, Lu Ran had rarely sent messages.

It was only from little Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi that Jiangjiang Ruyi learned Lu Ran had feared disturbing her, and worried that talking too much would make her lose focus on her cultivation or desire to return home early.

Thinking of this, Jiangjiang Ruyi felt some self-reproach.

With Lu Ran's comforting, Jiangjiang Ruyi quickly adjusted her state, casting aside all those messy thoughts.

Ten-plus minutes later, the dishes were served.

Stir-fried beef, tomato and egg, and fragrant steamed rice.

Lu Ran was truly hungry; he consumed a full two bowls of rice.

Jiangjiang Ruyi's appetite was also good, which put Lu Ran somewhat at ease.

After the meal, Lu Ran washed the bowls and chopsticks, then escorted Jiangjiang Ruyi home.

Since Jiangjiang Ruyi was in Rain Alley and had the conditions to worship the gods, daily offerings were indispensable.

Lu Ran walked her to her doorstep, offered a few quiet words of concern, and only left after she had closed her door.

Upon returning home, Little Li Hua immediately scampered over.

Seeing that only Lu Ran had returned without the female master of the house, it meowed and ran away.

"You ungrateful little thing!"

With a loud 'Clang!', Lu Ran shut the door and made a grasping motion with his right hand out of thin air.

Accompanied by a surge of energy, a small paper effigy appeared in his hand.

Lady Lady Yanzhi Xie Fa · Paper Effigy!

Lu Ran stared intently at Little Li Hua and shifted his thoughts.

Immediately, the small paper effigy in his hand became intimately connected to Little Li Hua through some unseen force.

At this moment, the small figure in Lu Ran's hand remained unchanged, yet in a certain sense, it had already become the tabby cat.

Little Li Hua was running into the room when its body suddenly froze.

Due to lingering momentum, Little Li Hua's limbs went stiff, and it slid forward on the ground for over a meter.

Lu Ran raised his eyebrows slightly, praising the effect repeatedly in his heart.

Ordinary living beings, whether human or animal, truly did not have the slightest qualification to resist.

"Little Li Hua, your blessing has arrived~"

Lu Ran muttered softly, raising his right hand to carefully examine the palm-sized effigy.

It appeared to be made of white paper, possessing a head, torso, and limbs, yet it had no face.

Lu Ran reached out and gently nudged the paper effigy's left hand, his force light and his movements extremely cautious.

Not far away, the stiffened Little Li Hua suddenly moved its left front leg, swaying it left and right.

"Hmm," Lu Ran nodded inwardly.

As expected, when dealing with ordinary living beings, this method did not suffer from significant "delay."

If it were used against an evil spirit, however, it would not work.

The Xie Fa · Paper Effigy produced extraordinary results, but it also had certain flaws.

If you quickly crush the paper effigy, a powerful enemy would instead break free from control and remain unharmed.

You needed to crush the effigy bit by bit, inch by inch, for the misfortune befalling the paper effigy to be perfectly reenacted upon the powerful enemy.

The root cause lay in the issue of spiritual strength!

Yes, Shi Zhan Ci Fa required not only energy.

The reason the paper effigy could bind itself tightly to the enemy's flesh relied entirely on the caster's spiritual power!

The higher your cultivation realm and spiritual strength, the more tightly the paper effigy would bind to the target.

Similarly, the higher the enemy's spiritual strength, the less easily they could be manipulated.

"Go," Lu Ran shifted his thoughts, and the paper effigy in his hand ceased its intimate connection with Little Li Hua.

Little Li Hua could finally move; it immediately turned its head to look at Lu Ran, clearly aware of who was behind the mischief.

"Meow! Meow-meow~ Meow! Meow!!"

Lu Ran: "."

Asking for some monthly ticket support.

(End of Chapter)