The daily task was complete.

On the windowsill sat an ashtray Luo Qingchuan had prepared. He stubbed out the finished cigarette and smiled. “I’m done smoking.”

“Really done?”
Su Yingxue’s clear eyes studied him with suspicion.

Luo Qingchuan shook his head and smiled. “It was just on a whim.”

“I heard from my dad that some people smoke to escape pain,”
Su Yingxue bit her lip. “Are you hiding something?”

“I’m really not smoking anymore. That was the last one of my life!” Luo Qingchuan grinned like he was begging for mercy.

The girl finally started to believe him a little.

“Then why did you suddenly come out and smoke?”

Su Yingxue leaned her arms against the balcony railing. The damp breeze after the rain tousled her hair, brushing against her fair, jade-like cheeks—beautiful in a cold, dreamy way.

She just liked to get to the bottom of things. Just needed to know the answer, or else her mind would keep spinning, endlessly wondering.

Luo Qingchuan felt Su Yingxue really was like a cute cat, with those big eyes that seemed desperate to see through the fog.

Right now, those eyes looked a little wronged. “Did I do something to upset you?”

Luo Qingchuan shook his head. “No.”

“Then why?” Su Yingxue stared at him with reddening eyes. “My dad used to lock himself in a room and smoke all by himself! In the end, he and my mom started sleeping in separate rooms!”

Luo Qingchuan was silent for a moment, then spoke with guilt, “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you hated it so much.”

“I don’t hate it!”
Su Yingxue bit her lip and looked away.

Her voice was softer than the wind. “That room was filled with smoke. I didn’t find it disgusting. I just felt so sorry for him. Like… like he was punishing himself.”

Luo Qingchuan stood beside her, looking up with her at the clouds lightly dusted with holy golden light.

“I won’t do it again. Never again.”

In truth, tar and nicotine didn’t pose much harm to someone walking the path of cultivation.

But having Su Yingxue worry like this—it made Luo Qingchuan feel like he was the fragile porcelain one, the one she could easily lose.

“Then why did you smoke before?” she asked curiously.

“Hmm… just a habit I picked up without noticing. Like how some people like sleeping naked?”

Su Yingxue’s pretty face flushed. “I have something else I want to talk about.”

“Mm.”

Luo Qingchuan saw her fall silent for a moment.

She was thinking about that glowing screen.

Then—

Su Yingxue smiled at him. That smile looked soft to the eye, like a gentle mountain spring flowing through the heart.

“Your phone lit up. Someone messaged you.”

“Oh? Who was it?”

Luo Qingchuan asked casually.

Su Yingxue tilted her head at him, lips curling slightly. “Don’t ask me. I didn’t look.”

Luo Qingchuan nodded. “Then I’ll go check. Maybe it’s my gege telling me to come stay at home again.”

He walked lightly and naturally.

Su Yingxue bit her lip and looked back out over the balcony, her mood tangled with guilt and confusion.

Back on the sofa, she had resisted the urge to check Luo Qingchuan’s phone.

But she had deliberately waited until now to tell him.

She gave a soft smile and muttered to herself, “Maybe I was too scared. Starting to hate myself for it.”

But…

“I really was curious,” Su Yingxue whispered into the breeze, leaning her head against her shoulder, lost in thought.

…… …… ……

It was indeed Chen Yanyu.

Luo Qingchuan actually felt a little guilty. Last night, under Su Yingxue’s ‘pressure,’ he had finally sent a reply to Chen Yanyu.

Truthfully, in his heart, if he were going to reply, he would rather just have a proper conversation with her. He figured maybe Chen Yanyu was lonely. Or maybe…

Maybe she just wanted to share her day with someone—but there was only one person on her friend list.

Luo Qingchuan always felt that a half-hearted reply would only end up hurting her more.

But Su Yingxue’s alluring pose on the bed… who could possibly resist that?

He looked at the message from Chen Yanyu.

It was taken from a high floor of the Luoxian Hotel—a bird’s-eye view of the city, with traffic flowing below and wet roads glistening with a clear reflection.

Chen Yanyu: [The city looks beautiful during the day too!]

Luo Qingchuan: [Day or night, it’s always beautiful. Because the human world is beautiful.]

Ding-dong.

Chen Yanyu: [When are we going to the movies!]
Chen Yanyu: [I want some sweet wine. Luo Qingchuan, Luo Qingchuan, take me to a place like that again!]

Luo Qingchuan thought for a moment, then replied with a smile: [I still have school. Let’s wait for the holidays.]

Chen Yanyu: [Mhm mhm!]
Chen Yanyu: [Got it! I’ll wait!]

Luo Qingchuan’s expression went blank for a second.

Then he calmly put away his phone.

What was there to be afraid of?

They only spent a night together. He and she were clean.

Besides…

Luo Qingchuan thought, maybe this naive little guniang would slowly come to understand the weight of what it means to like someone.

It wasn’t some emotion that came just from a dramatic wall-pinch scene.

She didn’t know yet—yes, she didn’t understand at all. Mistaking her first close male friend for a romantic partner was a mistake many made.

Luo Qingchuan didn’t think Chen Yanyu liked him. He just regretted putting his hands on her like a creep.

One day, when she realized it, would she blast him with dragon tribe thunder magic?

That’s what scared Luo Qingchuan more than anything.

He walked to the door, picked up an umbrella, and stored it in his space. Then turned and called out calmly, “Xiaoxue, let’s go.”

The two of them left the house together.

Luo Qingchuan found that the streets after the rain really were beautiful. Under the morning light, it felt like everything was sparkling.

The leaves by the roadside trees, the potted plants on the walls—crystal-clear droplets of rain slid down their surfaces. A calico cat darted past the two of them, gracefully avoiding puddles, then stopped to lick its damp little paw.

“It’s a cat!” Su Yingxue whispered in delight, keeping her voice soft so she wouldn’t scare it off.

She watched it with joy until it walked off in the distance. Then she turned to Luo Qingchuan.

“Do you like cats?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“You’re not just saying that for my sake, right? You always seem like you know how to say the exact thing girls want to hear.”

“I wanted to raise one too,”
Luo Qingchuan chuckled. “But I was always too busy, and I didn’t have time to take care of it. So I gave up on the idea.”

“Cats aren’t afraid of loneliness. They’re very strong.” Su Yingxue smiled gently. “The ones scared of cats being lonely… are people. I only realized that after Douzi came home.”

“Douzi?”

“My cat. All fat and round, like a little bean.”

Luo Qingchuan asked, “What were you thinking about up there just now? I really won’t smoke anymore.”

Su Yingxue shook her head and moved a little closer to him. Her voice was soft and quiet.

“It’s just… I hated myself a little. For a bit.”

…… …… ……

Outside the hotel, Chen Yanyu suddenly didn’t know where to go.

“Why are the transfer procedures and Seeking Dao class verification taking so long? Still a few more days…”

She had been so excited when she found out she and Luo Qingchuan were attending the same school.

“The human world isn’t as fun as I thought…”

The silver-haired girl sighed, casually watching the bustling city.

It really was beautiful—but also left her feeling empty. When she first laid eyes on it, her heart had felt so light, so joyful. Every cell in her body had been cheering.

Maybe the most beautiful thing wasn’t witnessing a breathtaking view.

But that feeling in the first moment—when you saw it, and instantly wanted to share it with someone.
…