Evening arrived.
Although he didn’t get to share a bed with his senior sister today, having her quilt was still wonderful.
The night passed in silence, with only the faint sound of the wind outside the window.
Starting the next day, Fang Xuan's life in the valley seemed to settle into a stable rhythm.
In the morning, he was usually woken up by Ning Xian's soft voice.
He would get up, wash, and then begin his daily fixed project—repairing the roof.
He worked very seriously, measuring every bamboo joint repeatedly, with a progress rate that was agonizingly slow.
At first, Ning Xian would watch him for a while, occasionally giving a few pointers, but eventually, she couldn't bear to look anymore.
Perhaps she felt that out of sight meant peace of mind, so she turned to take care of her herb garden, which, though crooked, was stubbornly alive.
She would water them and pull the weeds.
While Fang Xuan procrastinated on the roof, he would steal glances at Ning Xian's focused yet somewhat clumsy movements as she tended to the herbs.
It seemed she really wasn't suited for this kind of work.
When he got tired of repairing the roof, he would wander into the bamboo forest on the back mountain to practice with his little brother.
Or he would use a sharpened bamboo pole to spear fish—a skill that, under Ning Xian's guidance, was becoming increasingly refined.
Occasionally, he could even catch a low-grade beast that happened to stumble into him, improving their meals.
With the constant praise from a certain diner, Ning Xian's cooking skills also seemed to have improved.
The daily four dishes and one soup became a fixed program, and the spiciness steadily increased based on Fang Xuan's feedback.
Fang Xuan would occasionally tease his senior sister, like intentionally spacing out when she explained sword theory, or staring at her while eating until her ears turned red and she looked away.
Most of the time, Ning Xian would give him a slight glare or simply ignore him, but she never truly got angry, let alone punished him.
Fang Xuan had mixed feelings about this.
Where was the great love protagonist? Where was the future calamity who would refine myriad living beings?
He felt like his senior sister was spoiling him more and more; how was he supposed to farm training value like this?
Sometimes he felt she was like a child, quite simple-hearted.
And she truly believed that he, like her, was a simple-minded junior brother.
While being pampered felt good, the system's progress bar was almost stagnant, which made him a bit worried.
The path of actively seeking punishment wasn't working, and the training value from daily interactions was minimal. Was he really going to have to wait until her favorability maxed out, and the day came when she would be willing to step on his chest with her bare feet?
In these peaceful days, the only ripples came from the outside world.
Shen Qingqing still hadn't given up on him. Though she didn't dare come and face trouble herself, she constantly incited other infatuated senior and junior brothers to come and cause trouble.
Today it would be some third senior brother, tomorrow a fifth junior brother, with all sorts of strange reasons like "instructing in sword techniques," "exchanging insights," or "seeking justice for Junior Sister Shen."
Their cultivation ranged from middle-stage Foundation Establishment to the peak of Foundation Establishment.
At first, Fang Xuan found it a bit annoying, but later he became numb to it. It was actually good practice to test his surging spiritual energy and his increasingly mature usage of little brother.
Usually, it was resolved in one move, clean and efficient, with at most an artistic bonus of being shoved into the ground or hung from a tree.
The news of him, as a new disciple, breaking through to the Void Core Realm in such a short time somehow spread across the peaks.
This was just great; now, not only the Sword Peak but even some disciples from other peaks who considered themselves geniuses and felt indignant came to challenge him.
The result was naturally another victim added to the count.
Senior sister would always watch from the side and, while Fang Xuan was away, go and rob them of some spirit stones.
.......
In addition to "extraordinary talent," "ruthless strikes," and "eccentric personality," Fang Xuan's reputation now included the title of Void Core monster.
The area outside the valley courtyard became much quieter.
After all, those without real skill didn't dare come anymore.
Aside from dealing with these flies, Fang Xuan spent most of his time cultivating.
He had completely mastered the first three levels of the nameless cultivation method, and his total spiritual energy had reached a level that would leave cultivators of the same rank speechless.
He tried to combine this vast sea of spiritual energy with the domineering and fierce momentum of the black sword, attempting to condense his own sword intent.
But he failed.
Sword intent was different from sword momentum; it required deeper insight, a purer will, and even a touch of mysterious opportunity.
He spent three days hacking at bamboo, and aside from making a mess of the bamboo forest on the back mountain, he had no clues.
"As expected, it's still hard to manage..."
He shook his numbed wrist and sighed. It seemed this couldn't be rushed.
As for the roof...
After Fang Xuan had diligently "repaired" it for several days, with results limited to piling the collapsed bamboo poles and tiles to one side, Ning Xian finally couldn't take it anymore.
One afternoon, when Fang Xuan returned from his wanderings on the back mountain, he was surprised to find that the roof was fixed!
The newly laid tiles were neat and sturdy, and the broken bamboo beams had been replaced with new ones.
Fang Xuan stood in the courtyard, looking up at the roof that was as good as new—even appearing a bit thicker than before—with complicated emotions.
...Did senior sister do this?
The project he had been dragging out for days, she had finished in a single afternoon?
He pushed open the door to his bamboo hut.
The room had also been simple cleaned; the dust was swept away, and the clutter was organized.
What stunned him even more was that his simple bamboo bed now had a soft new mattress, and the quilt was folded neatly.
Fang Xuan: "......."
.......
"I fixed the roof for you," Ning Xian's cool voice came from behind him.
Fang Xuan turned around and saw her standing at his doorway.
"Alright... senior sister."
Ning Xian nodded, said nothing more, and turned to walk toward her own room.
After two steps, she stopped and turned her head slightly, her cool eyes glancing at Fang Xuan.
Why did she feel... that her junior brother looked a bit unhappy?
It must be because of tomorrow's sect tournament.
According to tradition, the direct disciples and inner elites of each peak must participate; it was an important occasion to demonstrate strength and compete for resources.
Fang Xuan was now famous and a newly ascended Void Core, so he would definitely be in the crosshairs.
Could it be... that the pressure was too great?
Ning Xian's mind raced, and she felt she had found the reason.
She stopped, turned around, and looked at Fang Xuan, who was still standing in the same spot.
"For tomorrow's tournament, just do your best. Don't overthink it."
Fang Xuan: "...?"
He was currently moved by his senior sister silently helping him fix his roof and bed.
Hearing this, he was stunned for a moment before realizing what Ning Xian was talking about.
The sect tournament?
Oh right, there was such a thing.
Shen Chen had mentioned it before, but he hadn't taken it to heart.
Should he... hide his strength?
But how? His Void Core cultivation and that exaggerated spiritual energy were like a firefly in the dark; could they be hidden?
The lowest he could be seen as was a Void Core; if he tried to fake being at the Foundation Establishment, no one would believe it.
Rate on N.U.
