Daily quest completed.
The ashtray Luo Qingchuan had prepared sat on the windowsill. He stubbed out the burnt cigarette butt and smiled. “I’m done smoking.”
“Really done?” Su Yingsnow eyed him suspiciously, her clear eyes searching his face.
Luo Qingchuan shook his head with a laugh. “Just a spur-of-the-moment thing.”
“I heard Dad say some people smoke to escape pain,” Su Yingsnow murmured, biting her lip. “Is something bothering you?”
“Seriously, I’m done! This is the last cigarette of my life!” Luo Qingchuan pleaded with a smile.
The girl finally seemed to believe him.
“Then why did you suddenly come out here to smoke one?” Resting her arms on the balcony railing, Su Yingsnow let the damp post-rain breeze tousle her hair. Strands clung to her porcelain cheeks—cool, dreamlike, breathtakingly serene.
She was the type who needed answers. Without them, her mind would circle endlessly.
Luo Qingchuan thought she truly resembled an adorable kitty, big eyes earnestly trying to pierce the mist.
Now, those eyes held a hint of hurt. “Did I upset you?”
Luo Qingchuan shook his head. “No.”
“But why?” Su Yingsnow glared, eyes glistening. “Dad used to lock himself in his room to smoke! Eventually, he and Mom slept apart!”
Luo Qingchuan fell silent, then spoke softly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know it troubled you this much.”
“I don’t hate it!” She turned away, voice softer than the wind. “The smoky room… I didn’t feel disgust. I felt pity. Like he was punishing himself.”
Beside her, Luo Qingchuan gazed up at the thin clouds brushed with holy golden light. “It won’t happen again. Never.”
Truth was, tar and nicotine barely affected cultivators. Yet seeing Su Yingsnow worry made *him* feel like the fragile porcelain—precious, easily lost.
“So why did you start?” she asked quietly.
“Hmm… just an unconscious habit. Like how some prefer sleeping naked?”
Su Yingsnow’s cheeks flushed. “I have something else to say.”
“Mm.”
Luo Qingchuan noticed her brief silence.
She’d been thinking of the glowing screen.
Then—
She smiled. The expression felt gentle, like a mountain stream trickling over smooth stones. “Your phone lit up. A message.”
“Oh? From who?” he asked casually.
Su Yingsnow tilted her head, lips curving. “Don’t ask me. I didn’t look.”
“I’ll check. Maybe my brother’s calling me home again.”
He walked lightly toward the door.
Su Yingsnow bit her lip, gaze drifting back to the balcony. Guilt and confusion tangled in her chest.
On the sofa earlier, she’d resisted touching his phone. But she’d waited deliberately to tell him now.
A soft laugh escaped her. “Am I overthinking… starting to dislike myself?”
But…
“I’m just so curious,” she whispered into the breeze, cheek resting on her shoulder, lost in thought.
…
Sure enough—Chen Yanyu.
Luo Qingchuan felt a flicker of guilt. Last night, under Su Yingsnow’s “coercion,” he’d replied.
He knew he should’ve chatted freely. Chen Yanyu was likely lonely… or perhaps she genuinely wanted to share her day, and he was the only name on her list.
A vague reply would hurt her.
But who could resist Su Yingsnow’s alluring, enchanting presence in bed?
He read Chen Yanyu’s message.
Sent from a high floor of the Falling Immortal Hotel: a rain-dampened street view, vehicles flowing, wet asphalt gleaming under soft light.
Chen Yanyu: “The city’s beautiful even in daylight!”
Luo Qingchuan: “Day or night—it’s beautiful because the mortal world is.”
*Ding dong.*
Chen Yanyu: “When can we watch a movie?”
Chen Yanyu: “I want sweet wine! Luo Qingchuan, Luo Qingchuan—can you take me somewhere like that?”
Luo Qingchuan smiled as he typed: “Still in school. Let’s wait for holidays.”
Chen Yanyu: “Mm!”
Chen Yanyu: “I understand! I’ll wait!”
His expression stilled for a heartbeat.
He calmly pocketed the phone.
What’s to fear?
We spent one night. Nothing happened.
Besides…
Would the innocent Chen Yanyu slowly grasp the weight of “liking” someone?
This wasn’t a feeling born from a wall-pinning moment.
She didn’t know yet—mistaking your first close friend of the opposite sex for love was a common mistake.
Luo Qingchuan didn’t believe she liked him. He only regretted that inappropriate touch.
Later… would she strike him down with the dragon clan’s lightning arts? *That* was his real fear.
He walked to the door, tucked an umbrella into his spatial storage, and called calmly, “Xiao Xue, let’s go.”
Outside, the post-rain streets glittered under morning light.
Crystal raindrops slid slowly down leaves and potted plants. A calico cat darted past, dodging puddles, then paused to lick its damp little paw pads.
“A kitty!” Su Yingsnow whispered, voice tiny with delight.
Her gaze followed the cat until it vanished, then returned to him.
“Do you like kitties?”
“Of course.”
“Saying that just for me? You seem good at sweet-talking girls.”
“I wanted a cat too,” Luo Qingchuan smiled. “But I was too busy to care for one.”
“Kitties aren’t lonely. They’re strong,” Su Yingsnow said gently. “It’s *people* who fear *they’re* lonely. I learned that after Doudou came home.”
“Doudou?”
“My cat. Plump and round—like a little bean.”
Luo Qingchuan asked softly, “What were you thinking up there? I truly won’t smoke again.”
Su Yingsnow shook her head, stepping closer. Her whisper was barely audible:
“Just… I disliked myself for a little while.”
…
Stepping out of the hotel, Chen Yanyu stood alone, unsure where to go.
“Transfer procedures and Pathseeker Class certification… so slow. How many more days?” She’d been thrilled learning she and Luo Qingchuan attended the same school.
“Hmm… the mortal world isn’t as fun as I imagined.”
The silver-haired girl sighed, scanning the bustling city.
Beautiful, yet hollow. Though that first glimpse had made her heart leap, every cell cheering—
Perhaps true beauty wasn’t the scenery itself…
But the instant urge to share it with someone.
