Before dawn, Su Xuan suddenly sat up in bed.
Judging by the time, it was probably around six or seven in the morning by modern standards.
“This system schedule is way too healthy…”
He rubbed his still-groggy head and grumbled.
Sure enough, the system prompt followed immediately.
[Daily Hint One!]
[Today, the Numerous Wonders Pill can be sold at the Spiritual Herb Pavilion for three times its usual price. Host, do not miss this opportunity!]
[Daily Hint Two!]
[After spending time with Lu Zhiyi, Lin Zhiwei is feeling down and shows signs of attempting to leave. Host, please handle this properly.]
Su Xuan stared at the two system hints, stunned for a moment.
Compared to previous days, today’s hints were brief and seemingly ordinary, yet the information hidden behind them was far from simple.
Take the first one, for example. The Spiritual Herb Pavilion was different from the Diligent Cultivation Hall. It specialized in buying and selling pills and also provided insights on pill refinement and sold pill formulas.
Unlike the Diligent Cultivation Hall, which stacked piles of cheap books to encourage people to try their luck, the Spiritual Herb Pavilion strictly matched prices to value. It was known for being fair and honest, with an excellent reputation.
For a place like that to suddenly raise prices—something unusual must be happening.
Su Xuan pondered briefly. It was probably related to the disturbance at the marketplace last night.
He would investigate when he got there.
The second hint left him even more puzzled.
Wasn’t everything fine yesterday morning? He had just taken Lu Zhiyi out to eat all afternoon.
What was going on with Lin Zhiwei?
Had the two girls argued, or was Lin Zhiwei just acting strange again?
Still, the hint had come in time. Given Lin Zhiwei’s attitude toward him, he absolutely could not let her leave right now. He needed to stabilize her.
Knock, knock, knock.
Just as Su Xuan made up his mind, someone knocked on the door.
“Come in!”
He looked toward the door as he spoke.
After he finished speaking, Lin Zhiwei carefully pushed the door open and walked over to him, her expression heavy with worry.
“Master, I have something I’d like to discuss with you.”
Su Xuan did not answer right away. Instead, he carefully examined his eldest disciple.
Her head was slightly lowered, her face pale and weary. Her hands were tucked into her sleeves, clearly burdened with thoughts.
She looked nothing like her usual cold and capable self.
“Zhiwei, what’s wrong?”
Seeing her like this, Su Xuan softened his voice.
“I’ve rested enough these past two days. I plan to visit the marketplace. I want to find some work.”
She voiced her idea.
“What? Are you afraid I can’t afford to support you?”
Having just seen the system hint that she intended to leave, Su Xuan grew alert and deliberately teased her.
“No, it’s not that. I just… I’ve reached a bottleneck. I want to buy a sword so I can practice.”
Lin Zhiwei shook her head and gave the excuse she had prepared.
Naturally, it wasn’t really about cultivation.
She had spent the entire night staring at the moon, thinking for a long time.
With her personality and way of handling things, staying by her master’s and junior sister’s side would probably only bring them trouble. It would be better to find an excuse and slowly distance herself from them.
After all…
Her master did not seem to like her much, and her junior sister no longer needed her protection.
“Because of sword practice?”
Su Xuan looked at Lin Zhiwei’s dejected expression and began to understand—at least from his perspective.
Yesterday, Lu Zhiyi had suddenly broken through to the second layer of Qi Refinement, almost catching up to him. Perhaps Lin Zhiwei, unable to break through and now surpassed by her junior sister, felt frustrated and wanted to venture out on her own.
He did not know Lin Zhiwei’s actual progress, so he came to what he believed was a “reasonable” conclusion.
Based on his painful lessons from the game, he absolutely could not let Lin Zhiwei leave.
“Zhiwei, what you need to do right now is focus on your cultivation. Don’t overthink things.”
Su Xuan looked at her gently.
“I’ll handle whatever happens outside. As for a sword, I’ll buy you the best one.”
“You must believe in your own talent, and you must believe in my guidance. I will train both of you properly.”
As he spoke, he stood up and gently placed his hand on her head, rubbing it.
This time, Lin Zhiwei did not dodge. Her body trembled slightly, clearly unused to such a gesture.
Feeling the warmth beneath his palm, Su Xuan felt secretly pleased.
A Lin Zhiwei this docile and conflicted was rare.
It seemed the sword manual and his subtle misdirection had truly worked. Even someone as talented as Lin Zhiwei had begun doubting herself.
Could he use the same tactic on Lu Zhiyi as well?
She was being watched now. He could not allow any more accidents.
A plan quietly formed in his mind.
Lin Zhiwei felt her master’s hand on her head and slowly narrowed her eyes, her heart in turmoil.
Rationally, she felt embarrassed—goosebumps even rose on her skin. Yet her body instinctively wanted to lean into the touch. It felt strangely comforting.
Moreover…
Recalling Su Xuan’s words, she wondered if her master actually cared about her.
But before, he had clearly been wary of her.
Why did he change so suddenly?
She was confused.
After a while, something felt off. Her master had stopped speaking, yet his hand continued moving, and his breathing had grown heavier.
A strange feeling rose in her chest. Suddenly startled, she quickly stepped back.
“Then… then I won’t go look for work. I’ll go cook.”
With that, she hurried out of the room.
Su Xuan snapped back to his senses, his face awkward.
Perhaps without the pressure of life and death, he had unconsciously taken a closer look at his eldest disciple just now—and his gaze had lingered.
In the two or three years that had passed, Lin Zhiwei was no longer the naive girl from the original host’s memories. She had blossomed into a young woman.
She now reached his chest in height, her figure full and well-developed. A faint fragrance lingered around her, subtly alluring.
Just now, he had only patted her head. If their relationship improved in the future, would he have the chance to hold her in his arms and…
So early in the morning, his thoughts began to wander.
After a moment, he shook his head hard and forced himself to clear his mind.
He splashed cold water on his face, suppressing the inappropriate thoughts rising within him.
Judging by Lin Zhiwei’s reaction, he would not be holding her anytime soon. For now, he needed to handle important matters first.
After thinking it over, Su Xuan changed into clean clothes, tucked away the Numerous Wonders Pills he had refined yesterday, and left the house, heading toward the Spiritual Herb Pavilion in the inner marketplace.
***
Lin Zhiwei crouched in front of the stove, feeding pieces of firewood into the flames. The firelight reflected on her face, making it flush red.
She recalled Su Xuan’s expression and gaze earlier, and her face grew even hotter.
During her time wandering, she had seen plenty of such looks. She knew exactly what they meant.
‘Master… could he possibly have feelings for me?’
The more she thought about his behavior, the more certain she became.
If he truly had such intentions, then everything made sense.
No wonder he had suddenly become kinder.
No wonder he insisted on keeping them by his side.
“So that’s what he was planning… Then I…”
She glanced at Lu Zhiyi, who was still sleeping soundly behind her, and bit her lip, calculating something in her heart.