Chapter 18 This disciple has been by your side for years…

This was the first time that Xiao Yezi, in her spirit form, had undergone acupuncture and fumigation in the bamboo house.

When he heard Si Yao tell him to take off his clothes, his eyes hesitated for a moment.

Three days ago, Xiao Yezi learned from Yan Ao that he had spent a night with Si Yao.

Xiao Yezi was quite shocked by this. He could believe everything else, but this matter stirred up a ripple in his heart.

In his eyes, Si Yao was beautiful, but she was only his high and mighty master, whom he could not overstep.

He would never have imagined that such a thing had happened between them.

It's unimaginable.

The bright sunlight streaming through the window made Si Yao, dressed in a red dress, appear to have a radiant glow on her skin.

Xiao Yezi looked at her, momentarily lost in thought.

"Xiao Yezi, what's wrong? Are you being difficult again?"

Upon hearing Si Yao's words, Xiao Yezi quickly lowered his head, avoiding her gaze. However, he eventually took off his shirt and sat down on the wooden couch with his head down.

As usual, Si Yao performed acupuncture on him very carefully.

Her fingertips naturally touched Xiao Yezi's shoulder, and she gently inserted a needle. Xiao Yezi took a deep breath.

Seeing that he was more nervous than usual, Si Yao couldn't help but ask, "Did you use too much force this time?"

Xiao Yezi didn't look at her, she just shook her head.

Si Yao asked again, "Does it really not hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt."

After Xiao Yezi finished speaking, she closed her eyes, her brows furrowed slightly, unlike her previous calm and composed demeanor when receiving acupuncture.

Si Yao didn't pay much attention and continued to administer the acupuncture with focused concentration.

After the acupuncture session ended, Si Yao floated lightly out of the bamboo house, and Xiao Yezi slowly opened his eyes.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Yezi doesn't know how long this period of acupuncture and fumigation to strengthen her constitution will last.

However, Yan Ao also said that Si Yao used only the best medicinal materials, and that in the long run, it would be of great benefit to Xiao Yezi's body.

In the days that followed, Xiao Yezi continued her cultivation according to the plan Si Yao had devised.

Since Yu Ke lost to Si Yao, she has not appeared in the sect for a long time.

It is said that Yu Ke has gone into seclusion and it is unknown when she will emerge.

Fubuki-in finally got to live a truly peaceful life.

As time went by, Xiao Yezi stayed at the Hehuan Sect for five years.

Five years have passed in the blink of an eye. In everyone's eyes, Xiao Yezi is just a seventeen-year-old boy.

In these five years, he has already reached the Foundation Establishment stage, making him the fastest young disciple to achieve Foundation Establishment in the sect's history.

Sect Master Yan Yu and several elders were surprised, but more than anything, they were impressed that they hadn't misjudged him back then—Xiao Yezi was indeed a gem with exceptional talent.

However, in the Hehuan Sect, even the most intelligent disciples can only reach the ninth level of Qi Refining before adulthood. To reach a higher level, most disciples find a cultivation partner during their adulthood, and their cultivation level only improves after that.

But Xiao Yezi is not even eighteen years old, so how did he manage to cultivate to the Foundation Establishment stage?

Not only were the sect leaders and elders puzzled, but even Qianxi, who usually disliked getting involved in excitement, was curious.

One day, Qianxi came to Chuixue Courtyard and drank tea with Siyao under the locust tree in the courtyard.

Xiao Yezi sat in meditation not far away. After Qian Xi withdrew her gaze from him, she slowly asked Si Yao, "Your disciple reached the Foundation Establishment stage in just five years. What method did you use?"

Si Yao lay back in her chair, her expression relaxed yet tinged with pride. "As you know, apart from the acupuncture, fumigation, and medicinal baths used to strengthen the body during the first two years of Qi Refining, it's just the usual Qi Refining cultivation method."

Qianxi seemed to believe it but not quite. "Although I know all this, I always feel that your disciple's cultivation speed is incredibly fast. Even the old sect leader, who was exceptionally talented back then, didn't make this kind of progress."

Si Yao sipped her tea slowly, her eyes slightly narrowed. "My disciple is a genius. The younger generation surpasses the older, and perhaps his final cultivation level will even surpass that of the old sect leader."

Qianxi seemed thoughtful. "Really? I still think it's too fast. You wouldn't be with him..."

She hesitated, then turned her head away. "What do I have for him?"

Qianxi said, "You wouldn't have made a move on Xiaoyezi, would you? If you weren't using our sect's dual cultivation method, how could your cultivation level have improved so quickly?"

Si Yao spat out a mouthful of tea instantly, her eyes widening in shock. "You...you...you Qian Xi, how could you think of me like this? Xiao Yezi isn't even an adult yet, how could I be cultivating with him?"

Her voice rose a few decibels, and Xiao Yezi, who was meditating not far away, twitched slightly between his brows.

Qianxi looked Siyao up and down and said, "Who knows about you? Don't you usually like to look at those erotic books in our sect?"

At this point, Qianxi turned her gaze to Xiao Yezi in the distance, "Moreover, over the years, your disciple has gradually grown up. Now he is taller and his face is more handsome than before. He is only three to five months away from adulthood. How is he any different from an adult man now?"

Si Yao wiped the tea stains from the corner of her mouth and looked over, finally landing on Xiao Yezi, whose eyes were closed. "Xi Xi, I didn't even realize it until you said it, but my apprentice is getting more and more handsome. But I don't understand what you're trying to say."

"What am I trying to say?" Qianxi, who usually had a stern face, actually chuckled. "What I'm trying to say is, with such a disciple by your side all year round, can you really resist?"

Si Yao glanced at Xiao Yezi again, then hurriedly pinched Qian Xi's arm, "My dear Xi Xi, please speak softly, my apprentice is still there."

Qianxi then lowered her voice and looked at her meaningfully, "You know what our Hehuan Sect is like. If it were Qu Sui, Su He, or even Gong Chen, they would have already been cultivating with a disciple like this."

"Cough cough cough!" Si Yao coughed violently. "That's true, they've followed the sect's rules all these years. They have to wait until their disciples come of age before they can talk about it. So let alone me. You know that my Jade Maiden Scripture can't be cultivated with others before!"

The more she tried to explain, the more curious Qian Xi became. "I almost forgot about this. Five years ago, you were stuck at the Foundation Establishment stage for a long time. How did you then reach the Golden Core stage? Could it be..."

After speaking, Qianxi's gaze inadvertently drifted towards Xiaoyezi.

Si Yao immediately covered Qian Xi's eyes with her hands, "Stop thinking nonsense! How old was he back then? It's definitely not what you think!"

In her panic, Si Yao recalled the events that had occurred with Li Ye that night.

Five years have passed, but those details are still fresh in my memory, as if they happened yesterday.

Fearing that Qianxi would continue to ramble on, and also worried that Xiaoyezi would be extremely embarrassed if he heard it, Siyao dismissed Qianxi with a few words.

Soon, only Si Yao and Xiao Ye Zi remained in the Snowfall Courtyard.

Under the locust tree, Xiao Yezi had already opened his eyes and slowly walked towards Si Yao.

Si Yao lay lazily on the recliner when she heard Xiao Yezi ask, "Master, what were you and Aunt Qianxi talking about just now?"

"It's nothing," Si Yao blurted out, immediately denying it.

"Is that so?" Xiao Yezi stood tall, a faint smile playing on his lips in the wind. "I think I heard you and Aunt Qianxi talking about me."

Thinking of how explicit Qianxi's words had been, Siyao immediately sat up straight and waved her hand, "You must have misheard."

Xiao Yezi said, "I heard you quite clearly. I heard you talking about how other elders would cultivate with their disciples."

Si Yao looked up at Xiao Yezi and saw that he was determined to get the answer, so she slowly stood up, clapped her hands, and put her hands on her hips. "That's right, the Hehuan Sect has always been like this."

As she said this, she glanced at Xiao Yezi again, "Apprentice, why are you bringing this up?"

Xiao Yezi's gaze lingered, then met Si Yao's eyes. "What about Master? Will he be like that too?"

He asked this question five years ago.

At that time, Si Yao did not give a clear answer.

Si Yao, who was under the locust tree, heard these words. Her eyes widened slightly, and then her lips stiffly turned up in a grin. "Does my disciple really want to know that much?"

Xiao Yezi nodded, a hint of anticipation rising in her heart.

He was very curious about Si Yao's next answer.

Si Yao shook her head and sighed, "I don't have the means to do so now. My disciple doesn't cultivate the Jade Yang Scripture. Even if he comes of age, I naturally won't choose to pursue the path of dual cultivation with him."

She spoke very bluntly, yet every word and sentence seemed so passionate that it made Xiao Yezi's breath catch in her throat.

He felt a little embarrassed and worried that Si Yao would find out.

After a pause, she spoke in a seemingly nonchalant tone: "Master, does this mean that when I chose to cultivate the Jade Yang Scripture back then, you would take me as your dual cultivation partner after I came of age in a few months?"

"puff--"

Si Yao, who was drinking tea, eventually lost her composure.

I never expected my apprentice to be so blunt.

She coughed a few times, still grinning, and said in a drawn-out tone, "Perhaps that's possible—after all, my disciple, you're so handsome, I wouldn't want you to end up with someone else—"

Xiao Yezi's eyes darted away; at this moment, he dared not look Si Yao in the eye.

To everyone's surprise, Si Yao had already become shameless. Just like the rumors circulating in the Hehuan Sect, she walked towards Xiao Yezi with a smile and patted his shoulder casually.

"Look at those broad shoulders and narrow waist, such a great proportion! My disciple is strong and healthy. If what you say is true, if you had cultivated the Jade Yang Scripture back then, I would have kept the benefits within the family!"

Xiao Yezi retreated repeatedly, looking terrified. "Master! I need to go practice!"

After saying that, he turned around and swiftly mounted the Soul Extinction Lamp, flying towards the direction of Qingfeng Stream.

Watching Xiao Yezi's departing figure, Si Yao smiled knowingly, shook her head, and muttered to herself, "Trying to compete with your teacher in who can speak more bluntly? You're still too green. Sigh, you really are too young..."

Even so, Si Yao wasn't wrong; when she deliberately "teased" Xiao Yezi, his ears turned bright red.

She touched her chin, her brows furrowed slightly, and asked in bewilderment, "Why are his ears red all of a sudden?"