"Really?"
As soon as she heard this, Qi Miaomiao, with newfound strength, instantly jumped up. She tossed her hair back, revealing an excited face, and stared intently at Wan Yunting, who had just sat up. However, her eyes darkened, her delicate body swayed, and she collapsed…
"Miaomiao…"
Seeing this, Wan Yunting quickly caught the falling Qi Miaomiao. He anxiously grabbed her wrist to check her pulse. Fortunately, it was just low blood sugar, a symptom that appeared after standing up too quickly, but she was fine…
Recovering her strength, Qi Miaomiao lay in Wan Yunting's arms, her large almond eyes sparkling and fixed on the man. Emotionally stirred, she spoke with weak excitement, "Brother Yunting, you… you truly accept me?"
Holding her, Wan Yunting gently pinched her delicate nose and smiled, "Silly girl, you're not allowed to do this again, understood? Your senior sister was worried sick."
Qi Miaomiao looked bashful and pouted, "So, Senior Sister agrees too?"
"Otherwise?"
Wan Yunting shot her a look and said, "Your Senior Sister was worried you might not cope, so she asked me to take you, you mischievous girl."
This time, Qi Miaomiao was happy. She giggled foolishly, "I knew Brother Yunting and Senior Sister cared about me…"
As she spoke, the girl suddenly sat up and planted a kiss on Wan Yunting. He was momentarily stunned, not expecting such a move from her. His hands, no longer still, cupped Qi Miaomiao's cheeks. Her cherry-like lips pouted, and he kissed her back fiercely, causing Qi Miaomiao's cheeks to flush red, revealing a shy and adorable look…
This mischievous girl, Wan Yunting guessed, had done it on purpose…
Meanwhile, outside the cave dwelling, by the hot spring pool, Lu Xiaodie was chatting with Zheng Rong. After practicing cultivation with Wan Yunting through dual cultivation the previous night, Zheng Rong had finally broken through from the late stage of Wu Dao Hua Jin to the early stage of Dan Jin. This earned her an envious glance from Duan Yingying.
Chen Qiuyun was already sitting quietly on the other side, reading a manual of charming arts. Gu Luotang sat on the other side, washing clothes. Upon hearing of Zheng Rong's breakthrough in martial arts, she also smiled and said, "Senior Sister Zheng, congratulations on your breakthrough."
Zheng Rong's expression was a little awkward. She turned her head to look at Gu Luotang and nodded sheepishly, saying, "Luotang, thank you."
Gu Luotang smiled, knowing why she was thanking her, and didn't press the matter further.
Just then, Wan Yunting emerged with Qi Miaomiao. The girl, holding empty bowls and chopsticks, ran happily towards Gu Luotang, "Senior Sister…"
"Miaomiao, you're okay now…"
Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong watched Qi Miaomiao regain her vitality and teased her with smiles, "It still takes Brother Yunting to sort things out."
Qi Miaomiao glanced at Wan Yunting, who was looking her way, and pouted shyly at Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong, "Sister Lu, Sister Zheng, you're teasing me again…"
Gu Luotang took the empty bowls and chopsticks from her as she finished her porridge, stood up, and smiled, "Don't do this again in the future."
"Mhm, mhm, I'll listen to Senior Sister. I'll help you wash clothes…"
Qi Miaomiao happily rolled up her sleeves and began helping Gu Luotang wash clothes…
"Luotang, please serve me a bowl of porridge…"
Wan Yunting, who had arrived, ignored the girl and walked towards Gu Luotang. The woman smiled and nodded, taking his bowl to serve him porridge. She looked at him with gentle, bright eyes and asked, "Do you want to take a bath?"
"No need. I'll be going back in to cultivate soon. Just one more day, and my internal injuries will be healed," Wan Yunting said with a smile as he ate.
"That's wonderful."
Upon hearing that the man's internal injuries were about to heal, Gu Luotang's worries eased.
After finishing his porridge, Wan Yunting proceeded to instruct Lu Xiaodie, Zheng Rong, and Duan Yingying in swordsmanship. He saw Chen Qiuyun sitting quietly on a rock nearby, meditating and cultivating. As an unparalleled prodigy in martial arts, she had basically grasped the methods of cultivating charming arts and could now understand the contents of the charming arts manual without Wan Yunting's guidance.
Wan Yunting entered the secret chamber again for closed-door cultivation. If he didn't come out himself, no woman was allowed to disturb him.
Therefore, the six women – Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao, Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong, Duan Yingying and Chen Qiuyun – were active outside, practicing their skills, catching wild rabbits for fun, and chatting about women's topics. Laughter echoed in the valley from time to time…
Time flowed by, and it was already evening. Seeing that the man had not finished cultivating, the six women solved their dinner problem themselves and then sat together on the rocks that served as benches by the hot spring pool, admiring the starry sky outside the valley's canopy…
"It's so beautiful, Senior Sister, quickly pass me the camera…"
Looking at the starry canopy outside the circular valley, with a silver moon hanging high, its reflection shimmered on the calm, misty hot spring pool, creating beautiful ripples. The sight delighted the women. Qi Miaomiao grabbed the camera and started taking pictures…
"I suddenly realized that we've been very fulfilling these past few days without using our phones," Lu Xiaodie turned to Gu Luotang and Zheng Rong and smiled.
"Yes."
Gu Luotang tilted her head, her bright eyes gazing at the scenery in the canopy. She smiled gently, "I think it would be quite good to live here forever with the one you love, ignoring worldly disputes."
"Indeed…"
Zheng Rong nodded in agreement, but Duan Yingying broke the illusion, "It's unrealistic. If it's just for a short stay like us, it's fine. But to live here a lifetime, I couldn't stand it."
Qi Miaomiao turned to look at her, saying, "It's rare that we agree on this."
Duan Yingying rolled her almond eyes at her disdainfully, "Who said we agree?"
Qi Miaomiao retorted unhappily, "Hey, is there any need for that?"
"Alright,"
Gu Luotang pulled Qi Miaomiao and said to Duan Yingying with a smile, "You're right, this is just my fantasy."
Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong smiled, but Lu Xiaodie added, "Luotang, this is not just a fantasy. You know that Senior Kang Guangling and his wife spent their remaining years in this valley. Look at the cave dwellings they excavated, with the hot spring pool and such beautiful scenery. This is a life of immortals!"
Gu Luotang nodded with a smile. She yearned for such a life, to live a life of mutual support with her beloved, isolated from the world. Perhaps this was also the life that most people longed for.
However, for people like Qi Miaomiao and Duan Yingying, they couldn't imagine being confined to the valley, unable to go out into the world. If they stayed for a month, it would be fine, but if they stayed for a year, Qi Miaomiao and Duan Yingying would die of boredom, even with Wan Yunting by their side.
Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong fell somewhere between Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao and Duan Yingying!
Gu Luotang had a serene personality and was not good at dealing with people. She was like an otherworldly fairy who disdained worldly affairs. Her yearning for an isolated life was normal, and it was a kind of pure beauty.
But Qi Miaomiao and Duan Yingying had lively and cheerful personalities. If these two mischievous spirits and little sprites were confined to one place, they would feel uneasy and bored from loneliness.
Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong, as sisters, were more normal. If, as Gu Luotang said, they could spend their lives here with their beloved, they could do it. Even if they were to make a name for themselves in the outside world, Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong could completely carve out their own path.
"By the way, Sister Qiuyun, what do you think?"
Gu Luotang turned her head and looked at Chen Qiuyun, who was sitting not far away. At that moment, she was holding an ancient leisure book and reading under the dim moonlight. She then turned her face slightly. With her naturally charming bone structure, her phoenix eyes flickered back, causing Lu Xiaodie, Zheng Rong, and the other women to tremble in their hearts…
Chen Qiuyun put down the book in her hand, looked up at the dreamlike starry sky of the valley, and said indifferently, "Like you, I yearn for a life of seclusion."
Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong were not too surprised by Chen Qiuyun's answer and smiled, "It seems you two have the same personality…"
"Why hasn't Brother Yunting come out yet?"
Immediately, Qi Miaomiao changed the subject, prompting Lu Xiaodie to tease her, "Miaomiao, could it be you can't wait?"
Knowing what she meant, Qi Miaomiao's face instantly turned red. She pushed Lu Xiaodie with her small hand, "Sister Lu, what are you saying? How could I…"
"Hehe, still saying no? You've asked Brother Wan when he'll come out more than ten times today," Lu Xiaodie teased with a smile.
Zheng Rong and Gu Luotang all laughed. Qi Miaomiao's face was flushed red, and she pouted coquettishly, "I'm just worried if Brother Yunting is cultivating inside, if he's hungry…"
"Haha…"
Her words made all the women burst into laughter. Although unspoken, they all knew…
At this moment, Wan Yunting was in the secret chamber, sitting cross-legged on the ice bed, immersed in cultivation. Cold air emanating from the ice bed could be seen forming streams, swirling around Wan Yunting like a miniature tornado…
His bare chest showed the circulation of qi within his acupoints and meridians. His heartbeats pounded rhythmically, like a drum echoing in the sealed secret chamber.
"Hoo…"
After an unknown amount of time, Wan Yunting, with blood surging throughout his body, exhaled a long breath of turbid air after channeling all his internal energy back to his dantian. He opened his eyes, which emitted two beams of dark green light, and a smile involuntarily curved his lips. He touched his chest with his hand, "Finally healed."
After a full day of cultivation and healing, with the peculiar efficacy of the ice bed, Wan Yunting's internal injuries, previously inflicted by the Divine Eye Master God, were now completely healed.
Moreover, his internal energy had also recovered to its peak state. After breaking through to the Wu Dao Gang Jin realm, the Qi Dan in his dantian had transformed into an ocean. If his internal energy were to be identified by color, it would be dark green, a change he discovered after consuming the blood of the intelligent snake.
Simultaneously, Wan Yunting's body and senses had surpassed those of mortals, reaching another level beyond the Dan Jin realm. Although he was currently in the early stage of Wai Gang in the Gang Jin realm, Wan Yunting's next goal was to evolve his body to the peak of the late stage of Wai Gang!
Seeing that it was already two in the morning, knowing that the women outside had already fallen asleep, Wan Yunting gently pushed open the stone door. He looked at the corner of the bedroom, where Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao were sleeping on the mattress. Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong, Chen Qiuyun and Duan Yingying were sleeping in the living room outside the cave dwelling.
"Brother Yunting…"
Gu Luotang, who was sleeping beside Qi Miaomiao, heard the sound of Wan Yunting pushing open the stone door. She turned her head to look. Wan Yunting shushed her, asking her to be quiet so as not to wake Miaomiao.
Gu Luotang nodded, slowly got up, and walked over to look at the man. She whispered, "Are you hungry? I'll get you something to eat."
Looking at Gu Luotang in her sheer, gauze-like Hanfu sleep robe, her hair cascading down, Wan Yunting gently tidied it for her and smiled, nodding. He walked out with her. The two tiptoed out of the cave dwelling. Gu Luotang said, "You sit for a while, and I'll heat up some food for you…"
"No need."
Unexpectedly, Wan Yunting pulled Gu Luotang back. He directly pulled her into his embrace, causing the woman's bright eyes to widen in surprise. Seeing the man's wicked smile and his wandering hands, he could no longer hold back and directly sealed Gu Luotang's alluring, moist, cherry lips…