Ruan Se jerked away from Lai Li’an’s embrace as if she had been burned, stumbling back several steps.

Her face was as red as it could possibly be, and her lips trembled. She wanted to explain, but she didn’t know where to start.

“Fe-Fellow Daoist Su! Let me explain!” Her voice was shaking. “It’s not what you think! I tripped while I was getting water, and it splashed all over Senior, and then I… I fell too, and then… and then…”

The more she spoke, the more confused she became. In her haste, she eventually lost track of what she was even saying.

Su Wan’er said nothing. She simply stared at Ruan Se’s flushed face and her Master’s soaked robes. Finally, her gaze settled on Ruan Se’s face.

It was a face she had never seen before, exquisite, beautiful, and cold, more stunning than any woman she had ever encountered.

Su Wan’er’s fingers subconsciously gripped the bedding.

Her eyes grew even redder, but she bit her lip, desperately trying to keep her tears from falling.

Lai Li’an looked down at his soaked robes, then back and forth between the two of them.

He suddenly felt that this situation was even more troublesome than facing an ambush.

At the very least, he could blast those people with talismans. In this situation, what could he use to blast his way out?

Lai Li’an took a deep breath, slowly climbed to his feet, and walked over to the low couch. He leaned over and looked at Su Wan’er.

“You’re awake?”

Su Wan’er looked at her master’s face. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Her lips moved slightly as if she wanted to say something.

Lai Li’an reached out to feel her forehead, then squeezed her fingers, as if checking her physical condition.

“Your pulse has stabilized.” He straightened up. “Ruan Se, go pour a cup of water.”

As if granted a great reprieve, Ruan Se turned and ran. She nearly tripped over the threshold again as she fled the room, stumbling slightly before hurriedly regaining her balance and vanishing from sight.

The room fell silent, leaving only the two of them.

Su Wan’er looked at her master’s soaked robes, her eyes reddening a bit more.

“Honored Master…” her voice was very soft, “Are you… going to abandon me?”

Lai Li’an was stunned for a moment and turned to look at her.

Su Wan’er bit her lip, her gaze flickering as she avoided eye contact. “Has your disciple been unconscious for a long time? I can’t help with anything and I’m always a burden to Honored Master… Now that Honored Master has people who are more powerful, more beautiful, and better at alchemy by your side… do you feel that your disciple is… useless…?”

The tears in her eyes finally rolled down uncontrollably, sliding down her cheeks and dripping onto the bedding, soaking into a small, dark patch.

Looking at Su Wan’er’s aggrieved expression, Lai Li’an suddenly found it a bit funny, yet he also felt a twinge of heartache.

This girl had been unconscious for a month, yet the first thing she did upon waking up wasn’t to worry about her own health, but rather to worry that her Honored Master would be snatched away.

He sighed and reached out to pat Su Wan’er on the head.

“What on earth is going through your head all day long?”

Su Wan’er was startled by the pat and looked up, gazing at her Honored Master through tear-filled eyes.

“You are this Venerable’s disciple,” Lai Li’an said, enunciating every single word clearly. “Once this Venerable has taken you in, I will not abandon you. What do people who are more powerful, more beautiful, or better at alchemy have to do with me?”

He paused, withdrew his hand, and stood with his hands behind his back.

“Recover well. Once your injuries are healed, continue your cultivation. This Venerable has plenty of things for you to do; just don’t complain about being tired when the time comes. Also, remember to properly thank Fellow Daoist Ruan. It was she who saved you.”

Su Wan’er blinked, and teardrops rolled down from her eyelashes. She lowered her head and messily wiped the tear stains from her face with her sleeve. When she looked up again, the rims of her eyes were still red, but the corners of her mouth had already curved into a small arc.

“Mm, I still have to help Honored Master take the top spot at the Alchemy Conference.”

Uh… should I tell her that the conference is already over?

At this moment, Ruan Se stood at the door holding a cup of water, hesitating over whether to enter.

Hearing the words Senior had spoken, her fingers tightened slightly, causing the water in the cup to ripple in tiny circles.

However, she did not linger at the door for long. Taking a deep breath, she carried the cup of water and walked inside.

“Fellow Daoist Su, water.”

She handed the water cup to Su Wan’er, her gaze flickering away, not daring to look at her.

Su Wan’er took the cup and took a sip, but her gaze remained fixed on Ruan Se’s face.

Ruan Se felt uneasy under that gaze. She took two steps back, her hands hanging formally in front of her.

“Fellow Daoist Ruan.”

Su Wan’er spoke, her voice abnormally calm.

Ruan Se’s shoulders stiffened slightly.

“This past while… you’ve worked hard.” Su Wan’er’s tone was so calm that it made Ruan Se feel even more uneasy. “I heard from Honored Master that it was you who saved me and looked after me for so long…”

She paused, placed the cup on the small table by the couch, and looked up, staring straight at Ruan Se.

“Thank you.”

Ruan Se was taken aback and hurriedly waved her hands. “Fellow Daoist Su, you’re overstating it! It was all Senior’s doing. I was only… only assisting from the side. Senior’s alchemy techniques are what’s truly remarkable; I was merely…”

“Fellow Daoist Ruan.”

Su Wan’er interrupted her, but the light in her eyes made Ruan Se feel that something was not quite right.

“Can I ask you a question?”

Ruan Se’s heart suddenly raced. She had a premonition of what the question would be, but she couldn’t refuse.

“…Go ahead and ask.”

“Your feelings for my Master…”

“What are they?”

The room fell silent for a moment.

Lai Li’an was wringing the water from his cuffs. Hearing this, his hand paused subconsciously, but he did not look back. He continued wringing the water, pretending he hadn’t heard a thing.

Ruan Se’s face flushed crimson. Her lips trembled as she said, “I merely admire Senior’s attainment in the Alchemy Dao…”

But as the words left her mouth, they felt wrong, because she knew they were a lie.

Her feelings for Senior seemed to have become a little different. Exactly when had it started?

She couldn’t say for sure, but the feeling certainly existed, and it was growing stronger and stronger.

Ruan Se lowered her head, her hands clutching her skirt tightly.

“So it’s just that…”

Su Wan’er looked at those flickering eyes, and her heart sank bit by bit.

During the days she was unconscious, many things must have happened between Master and Ruan Se.

So many that she had no time to participate, so many that she could not make up for them.

Su Wan’er’s eyes began to redden again. She bit her lip, desperately trying to keep her tears from falling.

She told herself she couldn’t cry, that she couldn’t cry like a spoiled child who knew no better.

But she couldn’t help it. That feeling was as if your most cherished possession had been stolen away, yet you couldn’t scream, couldn’t shout, and couldn’t snatch it back, because the person who took it was someone to whom you were also indebted.

Su Wan’er’s tears finally fell after all, silently, one by one onto the bedding, spreading into small, dark patches of dampness.

Seeing Su Wan’er’s tears, Ruan Se panicked.

“Fellow Daoist Su! Please don’t cry!” She rushed forward, wanting to help wipe away Su Wan’er’s tears, but she pulled her hand back halfway, at a loss for what to do. “Senior and I really have nothing between us! I really just tripped earlier! I… I…”

The more she spoke, the more frantic she became, and the more frantic she became, the more flustered she grew, until she was on the verge of tears herself.

Listening to the voices of the two girls behind him, Lai Li’an let out a silent sigh.

What a mess this was.

He turned around to see the two girls: one weeping like a rain-drenched pear blossom, the other flushed red with anxiety.

Lai Li’an remained silent for a moment before finally speaking.

“Both of you, stop crying.”

Both girls looked up at him simultaneously.

“Ruan Se, you head out first.”

Ruan Se hurriedly turned and ran out of the room. This time, she remembered to lift her feet high as she crossed the threshold, and did not trip again.

Silence returned to the room, leaving only the sound of Su Wan’er’s soft sobbing.

Lai Li’an walked to the couch and looked down at her.

The young girl kept her head bowed as teardrops fell one by one. Her shoulders trembled slightly; she looked like a pitiful little kitten drenched by the rain.

He sighed and sat down at the edge of the couch.

“What are you crying for?”

Su Wan’er sniffled, her voice muffled. “This disciple isn’t crying.”

“Your tears are falling all over the bedding, yet you still say you aren’t crying.”

Su Wan’er fell silent. She only buried her head even lower, the tips of her ears turning red.

Looking at her like this, Lai Li’an suddenly felt a sense of helplessness.

This girl had been unconscious for a month, and the moment she woke up, she was jealous. She was jealous but didn’t dare say it; once she said it, she started crying; and once she started crying, she wouldn’t admit to it.

This was the first time he had encountered such a situation, and he had no idea how to handle it.

“Wan’er.”

Su Wan’er’s shoulders gave a slight shudder.

“This Venerable has a question for you.”

Su Wan’er lifted her head, looking at her Honored Master through tear-blurred eyes.

“What kind of person do you think this Venerable is?”

Su Wan’er was taken aback; she didn’t know how to answer.

“This Venerable is used to making decisions for you,” Lai Li’an said in a flat tone. “Even before you woke up, this Venerable made a few decisions on your behalf.”

Su Wan’er stared at him blankly.

“Ruan Se saved your life, and this Venerable has repaid that debt on your behalf. I taught her alchemy and helped her take first place; consider her favor returned.” His voice was steady and unhurried. “From now on, neither of you owes the other anything. You are simply friends.”

Su Wan’er’s lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to say something.

“As for anything else,” Lai Li’an stood up, “you are overthinking it.”

His tone remained flat, yet it brought Su Wan’er an immense sense of peace.

“You are this Venerable’s disciple, and she is this Venerable’s friend. It is as simple as that.”

Having said his piece, he turned toward the door. As he reached the threshold, his pace faltered for a moment, and he glanced back at Su Wan’er.

“Rest well. Tomorrow, you resume your cultivation.”

With that, he stepped out of the room.

Su Wan’er sat on the couch, staring blankly as her master’s silhouette disappeared through the doorway.

Then, she lowered her head and blinked back the last of her tears.

She wiped her face with her sleeve, trying her best to make her red, swollen eyes look normal again.

Since Master said she would resume cultivation tomorrow, then she would cultivate.

She had to become stronger, strong enough that her master wouldn’t need to stand in front of her, and strong enough to stand by his side.

As for Ruan Se…

A flicker passed through Su Wan’er’s gaze. She was the one who came first; she would not yield her master to anyone else.