Having cultivated myself into an immortal, all I want to do is raise female disciples.

too painful.

Facing an enemy whose cultivation level completely overwhelms them, they launch relentless attacks only to face defeat...

Duan Chenxi felt that this was too painful.

She couldn't understand what the point of such training was. Besides instilling despair in people about the disparity in skill, did it really offer anything?

"what……"

Just as Duan Chenxi was seething with hatred for Yun Ping, Fan Luokui, who was standing next to her, accidentally dropped a few pieces of lean meat she was holding with her chopsticks onto the dining table because her left hand was unsteady.

She stared at the piece of lean meat on the table, her left hand slumped limply, and her shoulder slumped slightly.

The long hours of training have taken a toll on her focus.

However, a pair of chopsticks picked up a few more pieces of meat and put them into the white bowl in front of Fan Luokui.

She looked up and met Jiang Yuetian's indifferent face.

The latter didn't say anything, but silently helped Fan Luokui pick up some food.

Fan Luo Kui hesitated for a moment, gazing at the increasingly overflowing dishes in her rice bowl, and hesitated for half a second—

"Thank you... Senior Brother Jiang."

"No, it's nothing."

Jiang Yuetian replied calmly.

Fan Luokui's lips twitched slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but she didn't speak.

She didn't want to trouble others, especially her senior brother Jiang, with whom she had a relatively ordinary relationship. If anything, she had the deepest connection with Zhang Ruoxue, and she had hardly ever spoken to this cross-dressing senior brother.

However, although the other party always appeared calm and composed, they seemed to have a kind heart that was completely different from their cold appearance.

It was at this moment that Ye Yuchan's voice came out.

"Senior Brother Jiang, could you scoop some of your steamed clams and eggs for me? You have long arms, could you help me out?"

"...Ah, this one?"

Jiang Yuetian glanced at Ye Yuchan, who was equally exhausted but still eating non-stop, and calmly picked up the golden steamed egg in front of him and handed it to Ye Yuchan in the distance.

Thanks!

The girl in the maid outfit smiled with satisfaction, then secretly glanced at Zhang Ruoxue beside her.

She cautiously reached out with her chopsticks, preparing to sneakily steal Zhang Ruoxue's meat when she wasn't looking.

Snapped!

However, Zhang Ruoxue anticipated this move and the two pairs of chopsticks collided.

Zhang Ruoxue swallowed all the food in her mouth, ignoring her greasy lips, and stared coldly at Ye Yuchan, "Yuchan, being too greedy is not a good thing."

"Little Ruoxue, you've eaten so much, just give me one piece!"

"This is not a matter of quantity, it is a matter of ownership."

"Eh... does that mean if I take it, then ownership will belong to me?"

"Only if you can actually snag one."

—A fight is about to break out.

The two people who were enjoying their meal the most seemed to be about to fight over a piece of meat.

Seeing this, Jiang Yuetian sighed and remained silent. He glanced at the meat he had put in his bowl earlier, picked it up without hesitation, and put it into Ye Yuchan's bowl.

Ye Yuchan and Zhang Ruoxue were both taken aback, and they put their chopsticks back at the same time.

Zhang Ruoxue looked at Jiang Yuetian, who had a blank expression, and said helplessly, "Senior Brother Jiang, aren't you just spoiling this guy?!"

Jiang Yuetian tilted her head and asked blankly, "Is there something wrong with this?"

"No, no, no, this guy is clearly pushing his luck..."

Jiang Yuetian was still puzzled: "But fulfilling my junior sister's request is what I, as her senior brother, should do, right?"

Zhang Ruoxue: "..."

This strange sense of responsibility and Fan Luokui's rigid etiquette seem to have something in common.

However, Ye Yuchan eventually returned the piece of meat to Jiang Yuetian. No matter what, she was a person who cared about her reputation, and she was still a little unaccustomed to Jiang Yuetian being so nice to her.

However, these events did indeed liven up the atmosphere at the dinner table.

Jiang Yuetian, who originally had little interaction with the junior sisters, suddenly became the subject of discussion. The four students from Yuntian Academy got together, chatting and laughing, which was quite nice.

—The sight of the students enjoying themselves was naturally what Yunping most wanted to see.

He had been worried that Jiang Yuetian's expressionless face, which made it difficult for him to express his true feelings, would not be able to integrate into the group. In fact, Xiao Jiang is a very gentle person, and he would definitely be a male protagonist in a comic book.

However, he has a blank expression and can hardly express his inner feelings properly. But judging from the current situation, Ye Yuchan and others seem to accept Jiang Yuetian's personality.

Of course, most of the discussions revolved around Jiang Yuetian's cross-dressing and skincare issues.

As for cultivation-related issues, they had been tortured by the puppets for a whole day, and the mere mention of cultivation gave them a headache. Who would bother asking about such things for no reason?

In the end, even Duan Chenxi seemed to be pushed to the dinner table. This little girl had actually been hungry all day. If it weren't for her dissatisfaction with Yun Ping and her unwillingness to eat the food he made, she would have already started to eat heartily.

Of course, in the end, she still managed to eat until she was stuffed after a few words from Fan Luokui.

She was really stuffed, her brain was throbbing, and in the end she went back to her room and fell fast asleep.

The moon slowly fell silent.

"Ah~ I'm full, I'm full!"

Ye Yuchan patted her round belly, squinted comfortably, sat on the stone bench, and looked up at the sky.

A sky full of stars surrounded the full moon, and the bright and radiant moonlight caressed everyone's face like flowing water.

"So beautiful..."

Unconsciously, an exclamation of admiration escaped their lips.

Everyone looked up at the serene and beautiful sky, where endless, beautiful starlight shone against the black backdrop.

Jiang Yuetian smiled faintly, his stunning beauty immediately appearing. He softly echoed Ye Yuchan's words, "Yes, it is a very beautiful night sky. The ancient morning stars, located outside the three great celestial domains, can still be seen shining brightly from such a distance. It's truly amazing."

"From this perspective, it's really impressive," Zhang Ruoxue chimed in.

"Do you want it?"

Fan Luokui's words immediately drew everyone's attention to her.

The cherry-haired girl in the red and white shrine maiden's outfit looked at the crowd, paused, and then said meaningfully:

"I've heard that once you reach the level of an immortal, you can traverse the three great heavens and even pluck stars from the sky with your bare hands."

Zhang Ruoxue raised an eyebrow. "So, if we become immortals, we can even do things like plucking stars from the sky?"

"The premise is that we can become immortals."

As Jiang Yuetian spoke, he looked at the young man in white shirt lying in the rocking chair beside him, who was also gazing at the starry sky.

What do you think, teacher?

"I?"

Yunping turned around and smiled faintly.

"So what if we can pluck a star? The so-called ancient stars are nothing more than bright stars. The closer you get, the brighter the light becomes, and the less you can see. What's so interesting about a pure white expanse?"

"If you ask me, the scenery we see right now is the most beautiful. If a true immortal could do that, why would he need to go up and pluck stars?"

Yunping's words silenced everyone.

Jiang Yuetian was stunned for a moment, then looked up at the stunning starry sky once more.

Recalling Yunping's words, she couldn't help but murmur, "Indeed, perhaps some things become more blurry the closer they get."

"I see."

A sudden realization flashed in his purple eyes, as if the problem that had troubled him for so long had finally been solved.

He slowly got up, his mind replaying the scene of his battle with the third puppet during the day.

Is it because we are too close to the state of complete freedom that we are blinded?

"Excuse me, I need to go back to my room first."

A brand new idea came to mind, and after saying those words, Jiang Yuetian hurriedly left.

The three female apprentices, completely bewildered by what had happened, were left staring at each other at the dinner table.

In response, Yunping explained, "It's alright, don't worry about Xiao Jiang, he just thought of something."

“Compared to him, I suggest you all go back and rest, after all…”

"If you fail to destroy the doll before setting off... I'll have some punishment in store for you~"

Punitive measures.

Recalling their past practice of standing on one leg like a rooster, the three female apprentices simultaneously shook their bodies and exchanged weary glances.

They knew that they would have to work incredibly hard for the next few days.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The everyday moments between apprentices.

This is my first time trying to write this type of code, I don't know how well it will turn out QAQ

82. Yin Sha and the Long Road

Several magical swords hang on the wall, which looks as if it has been painted with dark black paint. A silent figure sits at the table with his fingers interlaced.

Dressed in a black robe with a hood obscuring his face, he silently gazed ahead at the figures kneeling on the ground, trembling all over.

A chilling aura emanated from the shadows all around, making the bright white table stand out starkly within the oppressive, dark, and enclosed space.

—Thump, thump, thump.

His right hand, wrapped in countless bandages, tapped rhythmically on the table.