After infiltrating the main characters' group, I became the most beautiful woman in the world.

During the martial arts tournament, Lingzhou City was unusually lively these past few days.

Perhaps the appearance of the Poison Demon earlier caused panic among the people in the city for a moment, but even so, Lingzhou City was still bustling and peaceful tonight, as if the disturbance had never happened.

"Brother Taoist priest, please buy a lamp."

The little girl's voice brought Lin Ci back to reality.

Lin Ci lowered her eyes and saw a little girl with her hair in two buns, holding a stack of lanterns in her hands. Her delicate face was covered with charcoal ash, but her eyes were big and bright, like two black grapes.

She tiptoed and handed him a paper lantern painted with carp playing in the water, her voice soft and sweet: "Taoist brother, buy one, it will look very nice in your home."

His fingertips paused slightly, his gaze falling on the lamp. The paper lamp surface was as thin as a cicada's wing, and the candlelight inside flickered gently, making the fish appear lifelike and ready to take flight.

The unease that had been lingering in my mind was somewhat dispelled by this warm light.

"How much?" he asked, his voice softer than he had expected.

"Three coins." The little girl tilted her head, revealing a pair of shallow dimples. "There will be river lanterns being released tonight. If you're interested, Taoist brother, you can release one too."

"Make a wish, it's very effective!"

Lin Ci took out some loose silver from his sleeve and was about to hand it over when he saw a person smiling at him from the riverbank not far away.

The little girl took the silver and happily called out to others about her lantern, while Lin Ci carried the lantern toward Su Ning.

"Why are you dressed like this today?"

The first thing Lin Ci noticed wasn't Su Ning's face, but her attire; she was dressed in men's clothing today.

Upon hearing this, Su Ning raised her hand to straighten the collar of her moon-white brocade robe, a smile curving at the corners of her eyes. She lowered her voice and leaned closer to him: "What's wrong, Taoist brother? Do you think I don't look good in men's clothing? Or... are you afraid of being recognized and ruining your reputation for being celibate?"

Today, she tied her long hair up with a jade hairpin, with stray hairs falling in front of her forehead. Although Yu Xinglai had disguised her, he had only darkened her complexion to make her face look more approachable.

Su Ning simply changed into men's clothing, which suited her exceptionally well; her face was captivating whether she was a man or a woman.

He wore a dark jade belt around his waist and a pair of black boots with cloud patterns on his feet. He walked with light steps, and he really had a bit of the carefree style of a young master from a noble family.

Lin Ci's heart stirred slightly, and she looked away. "Why are you calling me... Taoist brother?"

Unfortunately, before Lin Ci could finish speaking, the girl in front of him was attracted by the prosperity of Lingzhou City, grabbed his hand, and rushed towards the bustling area.

Su Ning pulled Lin Ci to the front of the crowd, looked up at the performers doing somersaults on stage, her eyes shining like they were filled with starlight.

The men's clothing she wore today had wide sleeves, and when she raised her hand to clap, the hem of her clothes fluttered, making her look just like a spirited young master from a noble family.

Lin Ci was pulled along by her, her fingertips still warm from her palm. She could only helplessly follow her steps, but her gaze involuntarily fell on her profile—the disguise had dimmed her original radiance, but it couldn't suppress the liveliness in her eyes.

Amidst the surrounding noise and commotion, Su Ning had no choice but to pull the person next to her closer and whisper in his ear, "I forgot to ask just now, did your senior uncle give you any trouble?"

Lin Ci shook her head, her voice as clear as the wind in a mountain stream, standing out amidst the commotion, "Even my eldest uncle doesn't keep such a close eye on me."

Actually, no. Xuan Yang Daoist specially sent many disciples to surround his house to prevent him from seeing her again.

Lin Ci will always be able to get out, but he'll just knock out those junior disciples. As for apologizing, he'll deal with that when he gets back.

He then handed her the lantern painted with swimming fish: "Just bought it..."

"Then, Taoist brother, let's go release river lanterns later too." Su Ning took the lantern, her fingertips intentionally or unintentionally brushing against his palm. "As for now... naturally, I'll let you experience the seven emotions and six desires."

Lin Ci had never realized that a title could be so alluring, like a delicate feather gently tickling one's heart, causing ripples to spread across his usually calm and serene mind.

His Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and he was about to speak when Su Ning smiled and grabbed his hand, leading him deeper into the bustling market.

The girl's palm was warm, with just the right amount of pressure, making it impossible for him to break free, nor did he want to.

The young Taoist priest, who had been cultivating in seclusion at the Taihang Temple for many years, eventually became tainted by the worldly affairs of life, and even his eyebrows and eyes gained some human touch.

Before he could answer, she gripped his wrist tightly, turned, and plunged into the busier crowd.

They went to the sugar painting stall first. Su Ning pointed to the lifelike sugar rabbit painting, her eyes crinkling into crescents: "I want this!"

The stall owner smiled and handed her the sugar painting, but she immediately stuffed it into Lin Ci's hand: "Little Taoist priest, you try it first."

Lin Ci looked at the crystal-clear sugar strands, hesitated for a moment, and then took a small bite.

The sweetness melted instantly on his tongue, with a hint of caramel aroma—a taste he had never experienced before.

Su Ning stared at his lips, smiling brightly: "Is it sweet?"

He nodded, his voice as soft as the wind: "Sweet."

Next, they went to a dough figurine stall and had the owner sculpt two small figures: one a cool and aloof Taoist priest in a robe, and the other a spirited young girl in men's clothing.

She placed the miniature Taoist statue in his hand, while she played with the miniature statue of a young girl herself: "Look, don't we look like a couple?"

Lin Ci's heart skipped a beat. He gripped the small dough figurine tightly, his fingertips slightly burning.

Seeing the girl's focused gaze, Lin Ci's curled-up hands finally moved.

He took the dough figurine from the girl's hand, then placed the one from his own hand in hers, and whispered, "Now, we're a pair."

He had few cherished possessions. The peach wood sword given to him by his master when he was young, and the sword that had been with him for more than ten years when he was able to wield a sword, was the Shao Gu sword.

That day, he specially chose a very beautiful sword tassel to decorate the sword. The disciples in the temple all liked to decorate their swords.

Lin Ci didn't want his Shao Gu sword to be inferior to others, so he followed their example and tied a tassel to his sword.

It is indeed very beautiful.

But he had given away the sword tassel and the peach wood sword to someone else, and that person was standing in front of him, teaching him about the ways of the world and about human love.

So the dough figurines in his hands also became his new favorite possessions.

Su Ning never expected that the little Taoist priest would become so charming after his enlightenment.

"You've really got a way with words these days." Su Ning held the Taoist clay figure in her hand. The person's eyebrows and eyes were imbued with the lingering glow of the surrounding dim light, making even the snow in the sky seem to melt for a moment.

The surrounding noise seemed to disappear instantly; the singing on the stage, the vendors' shouts, and the laughter of the crowd all became blurred background sounds.

"What does it mean to be able to talk?" Lin Ci asked, puzzled.

Lin Ci rarely spoke to anyone when he was at Taihang Temple, because his fellow disciples were younger than him and therefore held him in awe.

In the eyes of those disciples, Lin Ci was like snow on a high mountain, like the moon in the sky, and the next abbot.

Young Lin Ci followed his master's teachings every day, practicing the secret methods of the temple and diligently honing his swordsmanship. Even when he occasionally caught a glimpse of the disciples' laughter and chatter outside the window, he was always interrupted by his senior uncle.

"Lin Ci, you are the next abbot; you should not be tainted by those desires."

"You'll be a once-in-a-century genius at Taihang Temple, you'll do very well, won't you?"

The eldest disciple was always serious and rarely smiled, and the disciples in the temple were very afraid of him.

Little Lin Ciyu was adorable, with soft cheeks that made you want to pinch them, but her eyes were clear as snow, pressing the laughter and joy outside the window into her heart little by little.

He gripped the peach wood sword tightly and said to his eldest master in a childlike voice, "I will do very well."

"Little Taoist priest?" Su Ning's voice pulled him back to reality. She waved her hand in front of his eyes. "What are you daydreaming about?"

He snapped out of his reverie, looked at the person before him, and answered her question, "I don't know what it means to be able to speak... I just blurt out what's in my heart."

Looking at the dough figurine in her hand, Su Ning could only shake her head. "What a dull-witted Taoist priest."

Lin Ci looked at the faint smile in the girl's eyes. He was just... saying what was on his mind, so why was the person in front of him calling him a fool?

"Would you like some candied hawthorns? Just wait for me here, I'll be right back."

This little Taoist priest is something else! He's a natural flirt! Su Ning is afraid that if she stays any longer, she won't be able to resist devouring him.