Elder Yao glanced at him from the corner of her eye, her lips curving despite herself. "You're too smooth for your own good."
"Am I?" he asked, not looking away this time. "Or are you just too easily convinced?"
She let out a quiet breath, half a laugh, half something else. "You forget I'm your elder."
"I forget nothing," he said simply, his voice low. "But even an elder deserves company once in a while."
That silenced her for a moment. The words shouldn't have sounded like anything more than courtesy — but the warmth in his tone lingered. She turned her gaze away, pretending to study the lanterns instead.
The path ahead curved toward the small stream running through the sect's outer grounds. The moon reflected on its surface, fractured and trembling. Elder Yao slowed her pace, the quiet stretch between them now almost tangible.
"Sometimes I wonder if you say these things just to get under my skin," she murmured.
Lao Xie's voice was soft, edged with amusement. "Would it bother you if I did?"
She exhaled through her nose, shaking her head faintly. "You really have changed but at the same time it feels like you really haven't changed."
Her voice softened as she went on, her eyes tracing the path ahead instead of looking at him. "You know, back then when I used to take care of you, you were just as sweet as you are now. Always trying to please everyone, always smiling even when you were scolded." Her lips curved slightly, amusement mixing with nostalgia. "But once you hit your teens, you turned into a completely different person. I still remember wondering if you hit your head on a stone or something. How did you suddenly become so vulgar, even toward me—your caretaker back then?"
Lao Xie chuckled lowly, not denying it.
Elder Yao sighed through her nose, though her tone softened. "Well… I suppose I understand. The way the sect treated you then—no one could've stayed the same." The teasing faded from her voice as quiet guilt slipped in. "Still, it doesn't mean you can get away with calling me smooth-talking now."
Lao Xie's lips curved faintly, his eyes glinting with something unreadable. "How could I not change," he thought, "when getting you on my side would benefit me so much more now?"
Outwardly, he let a soft smirk form, his tone light and teasing. "Oh? What's this, old hag? Getting sentimental?"
Elder Yao blinked, caught off guard for a moment before narrowing her eyes at him. "See? I just said you were being less vulgar, and there you go again!" Her glare was quick, but it didn't carry any real heat. "Maybe I should teach you a lesson. You're not a kid anymore—you shouldn't be spoiled."
Lao Xie tilted his head, that lazy grin spreading wider. "Teach me a lesson, hm?" he murmured, voice dropping lower as his eyes flicked toward her. "You might find that I'm not so easy to bully anymore."
His qi stirred faintly, brushing through the air between them like an unseen ripple. The pressure was subtle, more teasing than threatening—but enough to make her pause for just a heartbeat.
Elder Yao shot him a quick look, pouting before turning her face away. "Urgh, fine then," she muttered. "You've grown far too smug for your own good."
He only laughed softly, the sound carrying easily under the quiet night.
They kept walking after that, their steps unhurried. The path curved gently along the stream that wound through the outer grounds, its surface shimmering with broken moonlight. They spoke little, but their silence wasn't awkward—it carried an odd comfort, shaped by old familiarity and the soft hum of the night air.
Every now and then, Elder Yao would make a quiet remark about the younger disciples or complain about the sect's elders, and Lao Xie would respond with an easy comment that earned a faint laugh from her. Their pace slowed until it felt as if they were walking simply to keep the moment from ending too soon.
From the far side of the courtyard, beyond a cluster of rocks, a silhouette stood beneath the wavering light of a lantern. The figure's outline was faint while their gaze sharp and fixed on the two who stood by the path.
A quiet, amused voice slipped through the wind. "A night walk with a disciple… how amusing."
The wind carried the whisper away, leaving only the rustle of leaves as the shadow slipped back into the darkness.
And so, the night passed.
The next day.
Morning light spilled through the thin curtains of Lao Xie's hut, soft and pale. He sat cross-legged in silence, his breathing steady as the faint pulse of qi circled through his meridians. The world outside was still half-asleep, the quiet broken only by the distant calls of morning birds.
His eyes opened slowly. For a moment, his thoughts drifted back to the previous night—not sentimentally, but with a quiet trace of curiosity.
Her cultivation has dropped, he mused, his gaze calm and unreadable. "And yet she didn't mention it. Nor did she show a single flaw."
He exhaled softly, a small curve tugging at the corner of his lips. "Does she think it can't be healed? Or is she simply trying to keep me from being bothered?"
His smirk deepened, the warmth in his eyes fading into something sharper, colder. "Still as thoughtful and delicate as ever…"
The faint flicker of qi behind him grew darker, coiling like smoke. His expression was calm, but the shadow that passed across his face was unmistakably villainous.
Just then, a soft chime echoed in the air before him, cutting through the stillness.
A faint shimmer gathered out of nowhere — and in the next instant, a transparent panel blinked into existence before his eyes.
[Cling~]
[Unclaimed Rewards]
There are still unclaimed rewards. Would you like to claim them now?
[YES] / [NO]
Lao Xie blinked, the faint amusement in his eyes breaking into mild confusion.
"Huh? Unclaimed rewards?" he murmured under his breath. "What rewards could I possibly have missed?"
Before he could move, a familiar, emotionless voice resounded within his mind.
"Host, there are still unclaimed rewards. You should check the Mail section before they are automatically removed."
It was the system — calm as ever, but for some reason, he couldn't tell if it was reminding him out of duty or mocking him for forgetting.
He exhaled lightly through his nose, half in disbelief. "So you're nagging me now?"
Still, he reached out toward the flickering [YES] prompt. The moment his finger brushed the air, the panel rippled — and another screen unfolded before him, its golden lines weaving into a new form.