Chapter 383: Not Hee Hee

Jiangjiang Ruyi finally succeeded in her breakthrough; it was on the night of the fifth day of the first lunar month.

That night, a gentle evening breeze blew, and stars dotted the sky.

"Whoosh!!"

Suddenly, a gust of wind surged within Lady Luo Sister Xian Pavilion, shattering the original tranquility.

Lu Ran sat on a long bench inside the pavilion, one hand shielding his face as he peered through his fingers at the fairy in the center.

Her robes fluttered, and her long hair streamed in the wind.

And there was that noble, aloof aura that made one feel ashamed by comparison.

A line of poetry surfaced in his mind:

"Drifting as if standing apart from the world, transforming into a feather and ascending to immortality."

Lu Ran was very well-behaved, sitting quietly and waiting for his girlfriend, my lord, to adjust her state.

Of course, if she chose to stand in the pavilion for another entire night, Lu Ran would accompany her.

When admitting a mistake, one must have the proper attitude.

Lu Ran could stand at attention even in Lord Bei Feng City, let alone before his fiancée?

After an unknown amount of time, just as Lu Ran's thoughts began to drift, Fairy Jiang slowly opened her eyes and turned to look.

Lu Ran immediately snapped back to attention, their four eyes meeting.

"What are you thinking about?" Fairy Jiang asked softly.

Lu Ran's expression became slightly unnatural, and he shook his head.

Although their relationship was intimate, at this moment, Lu Ran felt his answer might offend her.

"Hmm?" Jiangjiang Ruyi refused to let it go.

Lu Ran looked at the aloof fairy, hesitated for a moment, then finally gritted his teeth and stamped his foot:

"You."

Jiangjiang Ruyi shot Lu Ran a reproachful glance: "Smooth talker."

She took a few steps forward, reached the pavilion pillar, and gazed into the distance.

With her back to Lu Ran, the corners of her lips curved up slightly.

Mm, that's the answer I like.

A bright moon hung in the sky, and the stars shone brilliantly.

Under the night sky, Erhai Lake sparkled with rippling waves, a breathtaking sight.

"I am standing right beside you; is there still a need to think?" Her faint words, carried by the evening breeze, entered Lu Ran's ears.

"Oh, then I won't think."

Lu Ran leaned his upper body back, resting against the pavilion pillar, looking at that slender silhouette.

Jiangjiang Ruyi's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Consequently, even the gentle evening breeze grew a bit colder.

"I will think!" Lu Ran declared decisively.

Women are truly strange creatures.

Where is the logic in that?

Jiangjiang Ruyi: "."

Having a powerful level of cultivation had one downside: it made it inconvenient for her to hide her emotions.

Especially since she had just broken through at this moment; the special period had not yet passed, and her connection with heaven and earth remained relatively tight.

This also caused the atmosphere within the pavilion to fluctuate along with her moods.

"I have surpassed you by another small rank," Jiangjiang Ruyi said softly.

"I'm close too," Lu Ran said with a strange expression, adding, "Very close, very close."

"Hehe~" Jiangjiang Ruyi couldn't help but laugh.

Her laughter made the evening breeze feel much lighter.

Lu Ran's deliberate imitation of that tone reminded her of that young master in the red scarf.

"Really very close," Lu Ran said very seriously.

"These past two days, I've neglected Yutang and the others; tomorrow, let's take them out for some fun."

"They went down the mountain yesterday," Lu Ran replied. "Great Da Da Mengyan needs to go repair the Zhan Ye Dao, and Young Master Deng and Bai Manni went with her."

Jiangjiang Ruyi nodded gently, leaned her body, resting her shoulder against the pavilion pillar, and chewed over a term in her mouth:

"Great Da Da Mengyan."

Lu Ran advised, "Don't be angry with her; she didn't know what I was planning and was completely unaware of everything.

She went to the appointment generously, even proudly marching toward death.

It was I who forcibly interfered with her fate; it was I who ruined the scheme."

Jiangjiang Ruyi remained silent, offering no response.

Lu Ran said, "In the future, she will be a powerful asset to us, our most loyal comrade-in-arms."

Hearing this, Jiangjiang Ruyi merely gave a faint "Mm."

Lu Ran thought for a moment, then changed the subject: "On the fifteenth of this month, my mother will set aside one evening to return home and celebrate Little Jiang Qiao Yuanxi's birthday.

Will you return to Jingcheng with me?"

Jiangjiang Ruyi nodded gently: "Alright."

Lu Ran followed up, "Before going home, I must first make a trip to the Qian Tangjiang and visit the Bamboo Sea once."

Jiangjiang Ruyi was quite surprised: "The Bamboo Sea?"

"Going to see an old friend. Do you want to come?"

"When?"

"In these next couple of days. How about the day after tomorrow?"

Jiangjiang Ruyi said softly, "The day after tomorrow is the seventh day; it's your birthday."

"I don't even—" Lu Ran stopped mid-sentence, his heart stirring slightly. "You want to celebrate my birthday?"

"Every time, you spend it with little Jiang Qiao Yuanxi." Jiangjiang Ruyi's tone revealed no specific emotion.

Lu Ran, however, smiled: "Taking care of your own boyfriend yourself, is that it?"

Jiangjiang Ruyi finally deigned to glance at Lu Ran.

She turned her head to look, seeing Lu Ran's brilliant smile under the moonlight.

It clashed with the night, yet possessed an extraordinary power to infect others.

Both were great beings of Jiang Jing, both were individuals blessed by the gods.

Lu Ran's influence on his surroundings and atmosphere was naturally not poor; it was just that, all along, he had been particularly reserved.

The evening breeze brushed across his face, his shirt collar swaying gently with the wind.

In this moment, Jiangjiang Ruyi seemed to return to the midsummer season of her high school days.

She saw that youth standing before the window.

The bright sunshine, the clean shirt and face, and those clear eyes.

Jiangjiang Ruyi suddenly understood what Lu Ran had meant just now when he said he "missed" her.

So much time had passed, yet he truly hadn't changed at all.

Jiangjiang Ruyi turned her head away, no longer looking at Lu Ran.

And with that single glance away, the clear sky vanished; she was back at the Lady Luo Sister Xian Pavilion under the night.

She steadied her mind and said softly, "What birthday gift do you want?"

Leaning the back of his head against the pavilion pillar, Lu Ran pondered seriously for a moment: "Accompany me on a stroll through the Bamboo Sea."

"Pick another; I was going to accompany you there anyway."

"Then... stay with me in the Bamboo Sea for two extra days?"

Jiangjiang Ruyi smiled, turned around, clasped her hands before her chest, and leaned her body diagonally against the pavilion pillar:

"Is there nothing else you want?"

"I already have everything." Lu Ran reached out his hand toward her.

Jiangjiang Ruyi looked at Lu Ran with an expression both amused and helpless.

Such brazen exaggeration.

Or perhaps, he was just that easy to satisfy?

Lu Ran stubbornly beckoned with his hand until the warm, fragrant, soft jade entered his embrace.

He took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of her hair.

Under the moonlight, the Lady Luo Sister Xian Pavilion returned to silence; bursts of insect chirping made Xianshan seem even more secluded.

In his arms, the lofty Jiangjiang Xianzi gradually shed her cold exterior.

No longer a great being of the mortal world,

she had transformed back into a gentle and lovely young girl.

After a long while, Lu Ran lifted her horizontally into his arms and walked toward the Lady Luo Sister Xian Residence.

Jiangjiang Ruyi's face grew redder and redder, as if she knew what bad thoughts he had conceived.

A night of greedy pleasure.

The stars and moon shifted.

The next day, Lu Ran and the others had booked their tickets.

Without Si Si Xianxian's choice once again surprised Lu Ran; she actually intended to stay behind in the mountains.

It seemed she had already become completely immersed in this paradise, unable to extricate herself.

A few months ago, Lu Ran would still have worried whether leaving Sister Sister Xian'er alone without supervision might cause some trouble.

But now things were different.

Jiangjiang Ruyi had also indicated that Sister Sister Xian'er would be fine on her own, so Lu Ran did not insist further.

On the seventh day, around noon, the trio of Lu, Jiang, and Jiang Qiao landed in Anji City, Qian Tangjiang Province.

The three, fully disguised, met the tall young man who had come to pick them up in the airport arrival hall—Hao Tian.

"Shh!"

Lu Ran stepped forward and, before Hao Tian could react, issued a command for silence first.

"Ah?" Only then did Hao Tian realize.

The young man before him wearing a bucket hat and a mask was Brother Lu, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.

Hao Tian had been thinking of shaking hands, but Lu Ran went straight for a hug, his palms slapping Hao Tian's back with a *pa-pa* sound.

"Brother Hao! Long time no see!" Lu Ran smiled. "Troubling you to pick us up at the airport is really embarrassing."

"No problem, no problem, no trouble at all." Hao Tian, overwhelmed by the honor, hurriedly responded.

Behind them, Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi, holding Jiangjiang Ruyi's arm, curiously sized up this young brother.

Hao Tian's eyes were bright and spirited, his posture upright and imposing, fully displaying the demeanor of a martial artist.

Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi nodded inwardly.

As expected of a disciple under the Second-Rank God Dong Ting, he was indeed a dragon among men.

It's just that he's still far from matching my brother~

Lu Ran gave a brief introduction for both parties.

Whether it was Jiangjiang Ruyi or Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi, both had appeared on "Heaven's Pride," so Hao Tian naturally knew them and repeatedly said, "Long admired."

On the way to the parking lot, Hao Tian couldn't help but sigh: "Last time we met, if I recall correctly, Brother Lu was still at Stream Realm, fourth stage?"

"Seems so." Lu Ran nodded with a smile. "Thinking back now, those were truly youthful days."

Hao Tian laughed involuntarily: "Brother Lu is still youthful too; it's only been a year."

Mentioning time, Hao Tian's eyes filled with admiration and his heart with emotion: "In just one year, Brother Lu has advanced to Jiang Jing Realm. Truly..."

Lu Ran sized up Hao Tian and said, "Brother Hao isn't lacking either; you're at Jiang Jing Realm, first stage, right?"

Hao Tian rarely managed to regain some confidence; although he was older than Lu Ran, Jiang Jing Realm was Jiang Jing Realm—he had already left the sequence of ordinary mortals behind.

He had sufficient reason to be proud.

As for that Jiangjiang Ruyi...

Hao Tian felt he might have been short-sighted and misjudged the situation.

Why did he always feel that Brother Lu's girlfriend possessed strength and cultivation superior to Lu Ran's own?

Hao Tian shook his head, completely discarding this unrealistic thought.

Hao Tian drove the three of them toward the western suburbs of Anji City.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Lu Ran asked casually, "How has your sister been lately?"

"Don't mention it." Hao Tian sighed, his face full of helplessness. "Ever since Li Rouyin advanced to Jiang Jing Realm, she doesn't even need to eat anymore."

"Her temperament has also become increasingly difficult to get along with."

"The last two times I went to see her, she closed her doors to all guests; I stood outside You Huang Du without even catching a glimpse of her."

Lu Ran laughed: "You're being quite humble for an older brother."

Suddenly, a small hand reached out from the back seat and tugged Lu Ran's ear.

"Eh?" Stung by pain, Lu Ran could only tilt his head backward.

Pinching Lu Ran's earlobe, Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi spoke with sourness: "How come I didn't know you had another sister?"

"I thought you and Sister Jiang Ruyi were on vacation, but it turns out you came to visit your sister?"

Lu Ran: "..."

Jiangjiang Ruyi watched this scene with a beaming smile, making no move to stop it.

Lu Ran hurriedly explained: "It's Brother Hao's sister, not mine; we're just friends."

Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi remained sour: "What do you need from her? Did you travel all this way specifically for her?"

Lu Ran rolled up his sleeve and shook his wrist, displaying the ancient coin.

Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi asked in confusion: "What's this?"

Lu Ran replied: "This was bestowed upon me by the deity worshipped by Ms. Li Li Rouyin."

Hao Tian suppressed his laughter; had the title "Ms." really come out?

He had thought that after a year apart, Lu Ran, having grown into a famously outstanding talent of Great Xia, would have become even more domineering and forceful in character.

Who would have expected it!

Brother Lu was also completely subdued by his sister!

Hao Tian felt a fierce surge of empathy.

Lu Ran silently confessed his sins, speaking half-truths and half-lies: "With the fifteenth day approaching, I thought that before undertaking great deeds, I should come to have this fragment of a dharma treasure blessed again."

"At least try my luck and boost my combat power as much as possible."

"Is that so?" Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi loosened her grip. "Alright, I misunderstood you!"

Her soft little hand gently rubbed Lu Ran's earlobe as she whispered, "Does it hurt?"

Originally, Hao Tian's face had been full of mirth.

Now, the mirth was gone.

No way!

Hitting, scolding, throwing tantrums, cold violence—you should be directing those at your brother!

Since when does it include apologizing, showing concern, and rubbing ears?

Hao Tian's state of mind was slightly exploding.

How am I supposed to empathize with this anymore?

(End of Chapter)