Chapter 5

The spring air was thick, with morning mist swirling in and out of the forest, and the sunlight turned it into tiny water droplets that clung to everything.

A gust of wind suddenly blew through, and Yu Tao involuntarily shivered. The wind shook the dew, causing it to gather and fall, some of it escaping from the overburdened branches, cascading in disarray onto the training platform.

She pulled her hand back from hovering over the black cat’s head and wiped the water from her palm. “Don’t you like fish?”

Since she placed the fish in front of it, the black cat only glanced at it before turning its head away, curling its paws around its tail, and gently swaying the tip of its soft tail.

It didn’t seem interested in the fish at all.

But… could it be that there are cats who don’t like fish?

Yu Tao furrowed her brows in thought. The cats she’d encountered before would become immobile upon seeing fish, and the moment they caught a whiff of it from far away, they’d rush over, meowing and circling around her legs. None of them had ever been so indifferent, like this one.

…Could it be that this cat has never eaten fish?

After a moment’s thought, Yu Tao took out a small porcelain bowl, carefully picked out the fish bones, and delicately placed the tender fish meat in layers inside the bowl.

Then, with a soft smile, she pushed the white porcelain bowl toward the black cat and spoke in a gentle voice, “This is fish, very tasty. You can try it.”

The black cat remained unmoved, lowering its head and leisurely adjusting its sleeping position.

Now Yu Tao was truly convinced that it wasn’t interested in the fish. She sighed softly, feeling a bit defeated. “Alright, if you don’t like it, I’ll put it away.”

She picked up the small bowl and prepared to place it back in the food box, planning to find out what kind of food cats in the cultivation world liked next time and bring something it might enjoy.

Halfway through, she suddenly felt a resistance.

Yu Tao blinked and looked at the soft, fuzzy cat paw that was pressing against the edge of the bowl.

She gasped in surprise, “…Huh?”

The black cat seemed to suddenly realize what it had done. Its tail twitched upright, and it quickly pulled its paw back, tucking it into the gap between the soft cushion and its body.

Its shallow golden eyes coldly stared at the distant trees, the expression on its face calm and composed.

It seemed as though the act of stopping Yu Tao just now had never occurred to it.

Yu Tao, as if suddenly enlightened, placed the small white bowl back and pushed it toward the cat again. “I know you don’t want to eat this, and you’re not interested in fish at all, but this is just a small token of my feelings. Please bear with me.”

“I’ve already removed the bones for you, so it won’t prick you. Just give me some face, okay? Come on~”

After Yu Tao’s persistent persuasion, the black cat finally gave her a glance. It let out a soft huff.

Yu Tao instantly understood: ‘Since you’ve begged me, I’ll try it.’

She almost couldn’t contain her laughter, but quickly composed herself and nodded. “Mm-hmm!”

Meanwhile, her heart was bubbling with joy.

As expected, this black cat was a tsundere.

The black cat moved lazily and gracefully, taking a small bite of the carefully selected fish meat. Its shallow golden eyes narrowed slightly, as if in a good mood.

However, noticing Yu Tao’s gaze, its eyes turned cold again, and it gave a light hum.

If Yu Tao wasn’t mistaken, the message seemed to be: ‘It’s not that great.’

Yu Tao suppressed the urge to pick it up and give it a pat, smiling with two dimples as she lightly hopped onto the training platform and found a corner to sit down.

What an incredibly cute little cat.

She wondered if it was just her imagination.

The expression of this black cat always reminded her of Senior Brother Yu Li. Despite being a cat, it exuded the same cold and aloof aura.

She smiled and said, “I have something to do today, so I can’t take the fish with me. Could you please finish it for me? Please, please~”

What’s wrong with a little cat having a temper!

It could be spoiled just because it was so cute.

After speaking, she took out the pair of jade bells. Sitting with her knees bent, she lifted her skirt to reveal her delicate ankles, tied the jade bells, and gave them a gentle shake.

The white jade bells rang clearly, producing a soft tinkling sound as they hung loosely at her ankles. The simple red string made her skin appear even whiter, drawing attention.

Shishu Lin Lin said that wearing the jade bells on a daily basis would help clear the spirit platform, allowing her cultivation to progress faster. The water beast’s inner core in the other bell would nourish her body and reduce fatigue.

In short, they were extremely beneficial for both her cultivation and physical health, so it was best for her to wear them close to her at all times and never take them off, even while sleeping.

Originally, Yu Tao had planned to wear them on her hands, but as a sword practitioner, her sword movements were so large that she worried they might get damaged or fall off while practicing.

This was a gift from Senior Brother Yu Li, and she certainly didn’t want anything to happen to them.

Out of the corner of her eye, Yu Tao suddenly noticed the black cat’s gaze. She followed its line of sight, but the black cat had just turned its head away.

Only its ears quivered, and the pink in its ear’s cochlea shook slightly.

Eh? It seems like it’s looking at the bells?

In an instant, Yu Tao figured out the proud little cat’s mindset.

It was definitely interested in the bells, liked the bells, but was pretending not to care.

Yu Tao suddenly remembered that when she lived in Haicheng, she often saw rich young ladies going out with the cats they raised. Those cats would always wear delicate and beautiful gemstone bell collars around their necks.

She looked at the black cat, pursed her lips, and made a decision in her heart.

—

In order to earn enough points, Yu Tao arranged her cultivation time during the day and took on sect tasks at night.

However, this meant that her rest time was drastically reduced, and she could only sleep for two hours each day.

At first, it wasn’t too bad, but soon the side effects of sleep deprivation started to show. During the morning class, she couldn’t help but feel drowsy, yawning non-stop.

Every day, she had to pinch her own arms to stay awake and pay attention in class.

After class, Shishu Lin Lin stopped her for a conversation and asked, “Yu Tao, have you encountered any difficulties recently? Or are you sick? We can’t ignore health problems, you must go see someone if you’re unwell.”

“I’m not sick, Shishu Lin Lin.”

Yu Tao shook her head and explained, “It’s just that I’ve made an appointment to go to the Qingdeng Peak’s library in three days, but my points are a bit short, so I’ve been taking sect tasks to make up for it.”

In three days… That’s March 28th.

Why does that date sound so familiar…

Lin Lin recalled for a moment and immediately remembered.

Isn’t this the day of a duel mentioned in the “Battle at Qingdeng Peak” post that’s been all over the Spirit Network recently?!

He remembered that someone had spread a rumor saying that the duel participants were Yu Tao and Zhu Mingyu.

At that time, he had thought the person was talking nonsense, wondering how the usually obedient and well-behaved Yu Tao could possibly challenge someone to a duel.

Now, hearing Yu Tao say it, Lin Lin widened his eyes in surprise.

He still couldn’t quite believe it and asked again, “Who is the person you’re going with?”

Yu Tao narrowed her eyes and smiled, “Zhu Mingyu.”

Lin Lin: “……”

It really is you two!!

Lin Lin had been planning to give Zhu Mingyu some psychological guidance, she’d obviously been acting strange lately…

Just then, Lin Lin saw the girl in the blue dress carrying a sword box passing by after class. He waved at her, “Disciple Zhu, come over for a moment, I need to ask you something.”

Zhu Mingyu turned at the sound of his voice, her face bearing dark eye circles, with the skin under her eyes showing a sickly bluish tint. She gave off a gloomy aura, and her eyes were full of red bloodshot veins.

Her voice was hoarse, “Shishu Lin Lin, what’s the matter?”

Lin Lin swallowed and cleared his throat, “Disciple Zhu, have you encountered any difficulties recently… or are you sick?”

Zhu Mingyu smiled, “Thank you for your concern, Shishu Lin Lin, I’m fine.”

Stop smiling, oh no, help!

It’s even scarier when she smiles!!

Lin Lin stared at her with a conflicted expression.

This… this doesn’t look like “fine” at all, no matter how you look at it?!

On Yu Tao’s side, she finally prepared herself mentally, rehearsed her lines in her mind, and forced a smile. She greeted Zhu Mingyu, “Good morning, Zhu. Are you going to eat?”

Zhu Mingyu slowly shifted her gaze to the girl’s face, gritted her teeth, and said each word slowly, “Good… morning, Yu Tao.”

“Eat?”

She let out two cold, eerie laughs, “Only the weak need to eat.”

Yu Tao had seen how exhausted she looked in the morning classes these past few days. Once, she even saw her practicing late at Training Platform.

She knew it—Yu Tao had been secretly training hard during this time!

That’s why these days, Zhu Mingyu hadn’t been getting much sleep, spending all her time practicing sword techniques, not to mention taking time to eat.

If it wasn’t for the compulsory morning class, she wouldn’t even show up for it.

Yu Tao looked at her state with some concern, “But you can’t go without food, your body won’t hold up. Look at you, you’re even swaying when you walk.”

She took out a bright red fruit from her bag and handed it to her, “Here, have this, at least eat something.”

Zhu Mingyu immediately dodged her hand, taking a large step back in defense.

Now that she realized she couldn’t win against her, she resorted to underhanded tactics, huh!

She sneered, “Heh, I won’t be tricked by your little tricks! We’ll see each other in three days!”

Yu Tao was a bit stunned, “…Huh?”

After speaking, Zhu Mingyu turned and walked away, but she turned a bit too sharply and almost stumbled.

Yu Tao almost reached out to help, but Zhu Mingyu, upon seeing her move, quickly ran even faster, disappearing in the blink of an eye into the training hall.

It seemed like she was headed towards the swordsmanship arena.

Yu Tao couldn’t help but sigh, “Zhu Mingyu’s dedication to cultivation really puts me to shame.”

Lin Lin: “…”

He paused to think about where to begin explaining this.

After three seconds, Lin Lin gave up struggling.

Alright, thinking failed, and his head hurt.

No matter how you look at it, this situation is just too strange!

Yu Tao and Zhu Mingyu were among the few who actually paid attention in his morning lessons, and they were always polite, never causing trouble. To him, they were both model students.

Lin Lin was utterly puzzled: Why would Yu Tao actively challenge Zhu Mingyu to a duel?

Just as he was about to ask Yu Tao, he turned around, only to find that she had already disappeared.

The young girl was surprisingly quick on her feet at this moment.

Xuan Yunzi was in seclusion, Senior Brother Jiang Xingjing had left the sect, and Second Brother Hua Lian was unreliable.

After thinking for a moment, Lin Lin opened his contacts on the Liuli Mirror, found the person, and typed a message.

【Your little junior sister has hit her rebellious phase recently and wants to fight someone. Are you going to do anything about it?】

—

Word Count: 2.073