The drizzle of the night washed everything to a serene quietness.

The Phoenix Clan's carriage stopped on an island reef in the Northern Sea, heading towards the Northern Border Pass, having not taken a break for two consecutive days.

Even if the cultivators could endure it, the spirit beasts pulling the phoenix carriage could not withstand this mistreatment.

The island reef was not small, after all, it was the territory of the Phoenix Clan, and there were quite a few members of the Sea Tribe living here. They all kept their distance, not daring to approach this dragon-like convoy.

Su Bei slowly opened his eyes, examining his internal condition, a faint bitter smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

The current state of his body was quite interesting. It was as if the entire Golden Core was a bowl full of water, unable to absorb even a bit more spiritual energy. In other words, he had reached a certain bottleneck, which could not be overcome through spontaneous cultivation alone.

The ten years of longevity seemed like a death warrant. To stay alive, he had to draw the essence from the sword, forcibly raising his cultivation limit to gain a chance for longevity.

"Mahayana, huh..."

There was a long way to go from the Mid Stage Tribulation Passing to Mahayana.

Without the Three Divisions of Freedom, everything was uncertain. The only hope was that after absorbing the Sword of Divine Discretion's energy, he could break into the Late Stage Tribulation-Crossing and live a bit longer.

The women inside the carriage seemed to have gone somewhere; Su Bei yawned, strapped the sword scabbard back onto his back, and prepared to go out for some fresh air.

Standing on the beach with a crown on his head, he saw coconut palms and banana trees, and upon closer inspection, dewdrops were rolling on the tips of banana leaves, about to fall but not quite.

Without the Sword Maiden following behind him with the sword box, it felt like something was missing.

This reef island had cities built by the water, not only inhabited by the Sea Tribe but also attracting many human cultivators, as the Twenty-One Provinces were rather unstable now, prompting them to flee to the relatively peaceful Northern Sea.

Compared to the Twenty-One Provinces, the local architecture had more exotic characteristics, with seagulls and swallows flitting among the branches, their calls crisp and sweet.

Su Bei glanced around for a while, when suddenly his spiritual sense was triggered, and he frowned:

"Hm?"

"Why is Ruoching here?"

Ever since getting separated from these female disciples at the Jinzu Court on Mount A'Zu, he hadn't known their whereabouts, but he didn't expect to encounter them in this vast Northern Sea.

Neatening his garments, Su Bei followed the direction indicated by his spiritual sense.

"Caw—"

The waves rolled onto the beach, and the seabirds called cheerfully, as he pinpointed his disciple's exact location. Not far away, there was a faint rustling in a thicket, as if someone was stirring the leaves.

Instinctively, Su Bei gazed towards the sound.

In that thicket full of banana leaves, a graceful woman with her back to him was squatting down, slowly untying her plain white belt. Black, sheer silken stockings were rolled halfway off her fair jade-like legs, bunched up at the knee.

The rolled-down stocking formed a ring resembling two pale bangles clasping her plump, fair thighs, exposing her upper leg's fair skin. The slender calves beneath, encased in stockings, were proportionately firm, emitting an enticing sheen...

Her slightly upturned, plump hips were alluring, as she waved her delicate hands behind her, shooing away pesky mosquitoes while relieving herself...

Clearly, Xiao Ruoching hadn't realized her master was behind her, as she hummed an unknown little tune in pleasure amidst the "trickling" of water...

Su Bei pursed his lips slightly, about to avert his gaze, when suddenly there was a 'slap'!

She suddenly swatted backward, sending a bold 'mosquito' to its doom.

Then the fair area contracted briefly inward, creating ripples after her quick hand withdrew—impressive elasticity...

Afterward, Xiao Ruoching tidied her belt, muttering to herself:

"Finally made it here, but I wonder if Master is in the carriage..."

"..."

Throughout this journey, accompanied by fellow sisters no less, exhaustion was overwhelming. Fortunately, holding Ao Feng, the Northern Sea's third prince, as a hostage, and pretending to be his maid allowed them to exit Jinzu Court without incident and head to the vast Northern Sea by dragon boat.

Along the way, they encountered many fights between phoenixes and dragons for unknown reasons.

Yet intuitively, she felt this matter was definitely connected to Master.

"Cough, cough—"

Just then, a soft cough came from behind, causing Xiao Ruoching's body to freeze. In the next moment, she hastily pulled up her pants without hesitating.

Her eyes gleamed sharply, shouting:

"Who dares! Who is it!?"

But before the words fully left her mouth, she saw Su Bei standing there innocently, a bit awkward:

"Uh, why are you here, disciple? Where's Mo Li and the others?"

Xiao Ruoching's eyes widened immediately, her cheeks puffed out, biting her lip as a blush spread from her ears to her cheeks.

Her long hair danced in the wind as she stepped back, tears of excitement and shame glistening in her eyes:

"M-Master? Why are you here?"

"Wait... why am I here? No, that's not it..."

Finally, realizing this wasn't the time for questions, her small fists clenched, silver teeth biting her red lips, glaring at Su Bei with a hint of threat:

"You... you saw?"

Su Bei, observing his somewhat absent-minded disciple, smiled helplessly:

"Yeah, I saw half of it."

"Which half?!"

Su Bei: "?"

Xiao Ruoching realized the silliness of her question, yet before the person she had longed for, pent-up anger couldn't be mustered:

"Forget whatever half... Master, just forget it!"

"How can I forget? Anyway, what have I not seen of you? It's just a bottom..."

Su Bei spoke with a serious expression, his gaze open and without a hint of guilt.

Xiao Ruoching: "..."

"What about Mo Li and the others? Why haven't I seen them?"

Xiao Ruoching hummed softly, glancing sideways at Su Bei, and leaned closer:

"To find Master quickly, we dispersed after arriving at the Northern Sea."

Then, her words became hesitant, she still extended her delicate little fist and lightly punched Su Bei's shoulder, lowering her head, eyes filled with shyness:

"I know you very well, but you can't peek..."

Su Bei's large hand ruffled her hair, and she squinted her eyes, looking rather content:

"Since you've found your teacher, let's call them over together, just in time to return to the Northern Border Pass."

"I don't want to—"

Xiao Ruoching raised her head with a little stubbornness and looked at Su Bei.

Couldn't let those people interfere with her rare alone time with Master.

"Hmm?"

Su Bei looked at her with a quirky expression:

"Disciple."

"What is it, Master?"

Xiao Ruoching blinked at him.

"Has anyone told you that you are quite pretentious when you act coy? You're giving me goosebumps."

Xiao Ruoching: "..."

No sense of romance.

"Stop messing around and quickly call them over."

"Master has to promise me one condition before I call them."

"What condition?"

Xiao Ruoching immediately snuggled into Su Bei's embrace, carefully feeling the warmth of his clothing, inhaling the scent unique to Master, quietly savoring this moment of tranquility:

"Today, Master belongs only to disciple, okay?"

"Disciple, you're a Dao Integration Cultivator now, you're an adult."

"I don't care."

Even as a Dao Integration, it didn't matter. By his side, she will always be that little girl lying in the sword's flames, looking at the ever-so-gentle Master.

Only next to him, can she let go of a woman's pride

No matter what lifetime, it's always this way.

"Master?"

"Hmm?"

Su Bei touched her hair, helplessly responding.

"Is disciple being a bit unreasonable?"

"Not at all, not in the slightest; it is Master who has treated you unfairly."

"When alone with the disciple, don't add 'them'."

"Master?"

"Disciple, speak."

"Does Master's words from that time still count?"

"They do."

"People say no matter how good something is to eat, you can't eat it for a lifetime; you'll eventually get tired of it."

But he will truly like her, just as he promised her that night.

Su Bei gently said:

"Buns, rice, these are things you eat for a lifetime; it's not about getting tired, but about whether you need them."

"Thank you, Master."

Xiao Ruoching raised her head, earnestly looking at Su Bei, blinking her beautiful eyes.

"Thank you for what?"

Xiao Ruoching leaned towards Su Bei's ear and whispered:

"Thank you, Master, for always willing to tolerate disciple's little whims."

Su Bei chuckled softly, kissed her forehead:

"You're welcome."

...

...