“Good morning, Young Master. What palm technique are you practicing? It doesn’t look like the Ding Family Palm Technique.”
Luo Yao’s voice was clear and sudden, giving Ding Nan a start.
She wasn’t wearing her servant’s uniform today.
Instead, she had changed into a sky-blue silk dress.
An osmanthus jade hairpin made of silver sat in her hair, pearl earrings hung from her ears, and her cherry-pink lips shimmered with a moist glow.
She hadn’t changed much, merely swapping her clothes for a beautiful silk dress, donning some jewelry, and applying a light touch of makeup.
These subtle touches acted like accents, making Luo Yao’s already lovely face appear even more adorable.
Ding Nan was drenched in sweat.
Thinking back to the affectionate Luo Yao from last night and looking at the Luo Yao before him now, how could he not see her intentions?
Even worse, Ding Nan was a sucker for this kind of thing, and his heart hammered against his ribs.
Luo Yao had grown up by his side.
No matter how beautiful she was, he should have been used to it.
Since she rarely used makeup, he had long grown accustomed to her presence.
But today, those small decorations and the different colors stimulated his brain, forcing his entire attention onto her.
It was as if she intended to let the pure, sibling-like affection they shared ferment into romance, striking at his logic and forcing him to abandon his reserve.
“Let’s go together.”
The memory of her leaning in close the previous night repeatedly struck his mind like an elbow to the ribs.
“Good… good morning, Luo Yao,” Ding Nan greeted her stiffly.
He didn’t answer her question, instead asking about the soup tureen and two clay pots on the tray she held.
“What are we eating today?”
Luo Yao placed the tray on the stone table in the courtyard.
“Shiitake chicken and turtle shell soup.”
“Huh? We’re eating this well first thing in the morning?”
“Yes. The ingredients prepared yesterday weren’t all used up, so I used them for breakfast today.”
“Is that so?”
Ding Nan was skeptical.
‘Why didn’t I see any turtle shell soup at the banquet last night? Besides, is turtle shell soup really something you prepare for a wedding feast?’
“Please, Young Master.”
“Hold on, I’ll eat in a moment.”
“Young Master, eat your breakfast.”
Luo Yao smiled, but Ding Nan didn’t feel any warmth in it.
He silently sat down at the stone table.
He noticed that there were two pairs of chopsticks, two soup spoons, and two ceramic bowls on the tray.
Usually, there was only one of each.
While Ding Nan was dazed, Luo Yao grabbed a solid, drum-shaped stone stool with both hands and pulled it right up against him.
“Luo… Luo Yao?!”
Ding Nan couldn’t help but shout.
She was too close; her entire body was practically pressed against his.
“Young Master, I haven’t eaten breakfast either,” Luo Yao said firmly.
“Uh…”
Ding Nan tried to stand up, only to find that Luo Yao was deathly gripping his clothes.
The scent of perfume from her hair wafted into his mind, teasing his nerves.
Her scent was different today—it was the faint aroma of lilies.
While lilies looked like plants that should emit a ghostly, subtle scent, they were actually quite potent.
Once smelled, the fragrance was difficult to forget.
This scent was vastly different from the gardenia fragrance she usually preferred.
“Lady Luo Yao?”
Ding Nan held his sleeve and looked at her from the side.
“Yes?”
Luo Yao chuckled softly, the veins on her delicate hands bulging slightly.
“No… it’s nothing.”
Luo Yao served him his rice and opened the clay pot.
The aroma of the chicken and mushrooms was mouth-watering.
‘I’ll just treat it as a rare meal together,’ Ding Nan thought, trying to calm his restless heart.
Fortunately, Luo Yao didn’t make any more bold moves while they ate.
However, she would occasionally brush against his body or look at him with misty eyes.
Her cheeks were flushed pink and her posture was soft, making her look like a kitten waiting for its master to pet it.
The young girl’s devotion forced Ding Nan to suppress his own exploding teenage heart.
Luckily, Ji Lanruo’s power was formidable.
Whenever he thought of her strength, Ding Nan was able to calm down.
He liked Luo Yao.
Having grown up together, they naturally shared deep feelings.
It was precisely because he liked her that he couldn’t make a move.
‘I shouldn’t use Luo Yao’s life to test the limits of a Tribulation Transcendence Stage powerhouse.’
He and Luo Yao were simply not meant to be.
After breakfast, Luo Yao didn’t linger.
She packed up the dishes and left.
Ding Nan once again practiced the cultivation methods and martial techniques he had learned inside the Jade Tablet.
The Flowing Cloud Manual was the foundational method of the Xishan Sect.
It used palm techniques to represent its form and intent, emphasizing that flowing clouds are formless and the Great Dao is without gender.
Although it had patterns and moves, it lacked the specific strikes to be called a martial technique on its own.
However, it was compatible with any other martial skill.
The Sunset Sword Technique followed the essence of the Flowing Cloud Palm — the dawn and dusk shine together, and the clouds and sunset share one color.
If one cultivated the Sunset Sword Technique to the Great Success Stage, an observer wouldn’t be able to tell where the sword came from or where it was going.
In the cultivation world where Ding Nan lived, methods, techniques, and divine abilities didn’t have strictly defined hierarchical levels.
Instead, people used simple classifications like unrated, third-rate, second-rate, and first-rate.
First-rate techniques had distinct characteristics and no weaknesses.
Second-rate techniques had both characteristics and weaknesses.
Third-rate techniques had some characteristics but far more weaknesses.
Unrated techniques were common goods, entirely mediocre and similar to the “radio gymnastics” everyone learned in Ding Nan’s previous life.
The Flowing Cloud Manual and the Sunset Sword Technique were first-rate techniques.
To Ding Nan, the Flowing Cloud Manual felt like the Tao Te Ching.
Studying it wasn’t like learning information; it felt like opening his mind.
As for the Sunset Sword Technique, it spoke for itself.
Ding Nan had never seen a sword style that used such arrogant names as the “Sword-Breaking Form.”
After a single night of dreaming, he hadn’t learned the entirety of either manual.
The Flowing Cloud Manual consisted of four parts: Form, Momentum, Intent, and Change.
The Sunset Sword Technique had sixteen forms in total.
Ding Nan had only learned the opening of the Form section and the first three forms of the sword technique.
Yet, despite only learning the basics, he made rapid progress this morning.
His understanding of swordsmanship reached a new level, and things he hadn’t understood before were suddenly clear.
This was a first-rate sect providing a first-rate manual, personally taught by the founder of the Xishan Sect.
Thanks to the Flowing Cloud Manual and his years of constant training, Ding Nan was able to instantly recover his [8th Stage Body Tempering Realm] this morning once the Jade Tablet stopped absorbing his Spiritual Qi.
If he had relied on the Ding Family Heirloom Method, it likely would have taken at least three months to reopen all the meridians in his body.
Ding Nan’s heart leaped with joy.
He rubbed his chin and muttered to himself, “Plus, being able to learn about Ji Lanruo in advance through the Jade Tablet allows me to plan for the future. This is fantastic.”
He practiced in the courtyard for a while longer before drawing water to bathe and entering the world of the Jade Tablet again.
The moment Ding Nan fell asleep, Luo Yao appeared by his bedside.
She lowered her head, her gaze deep as she stared at the unconscious Ding Nan, and untied the silk ribbon at her waist.