“Don’t you think it is unfortunate for others to gaze upon my true appearance? It worries me that people may perish at the sight of my face due to how handsome I am.” Mu Liufeng smiled at Ling Chuxi as he adjusted his feathery bangs and flipped his silky hair with a few flicks of his wrist while speaking.
Ling Chuxi was rendered speechless.
“Master, should you die one day, there can only be one reason for it,” spat Ling Chuxi condescendingly.
“Really? What reason might that be? Crushed by the weight of my perfection?” There was a visible lilt in the allure of Mu Liufeng’s eyes as he responded in a teasing manner.
“More like the weight of your vanity,” retorted Ling Chuxi plainly.
Mu Liufeng narrowed his beguiling eyes. “You wicked disciple!” Ling Chuxi couldn’t help but notice that his eyes were colored with an unspeakable charm even as he glared petulantly at her. It wasn’t intentional. Mu Liufeng didn’t need to put in any effort to display such charm—it came to him naturally.
“All right, master. That’s enough for now. If there is nothing else to discuss, just wait till I’ve made the mask and I will give it to you then. Since the materials needed are hard to find and I will have to attend training once the term starts, I will only work on it in my spare time,” explained Ling Chuxi in an effort to get Mu Liufeng off her back regarding the masks.
“Fine. When you’ve finished, give it to me as soon as possible,” instructed Mu Liufeng in a worried tone before taking his leave.
Once Mu Liufeng left, Ling Chuxi entered her room and sprawled out on her bed. She smiled. Being Mu Liufeng’s disciple wasn’t a bad thing at all. She was already enjoying the perks of it by being assigned to this single room! Ling Chuxi chuckled as she thought of what took place earlier. When they arrived at the accommodation, Mu Liufeng had marched up to the teacher in charge of room allocation and made but one demand, “Choose. Do you want to die, or do you want to give my disciple a single room?”
Under the sheer domination of Mu Liufeng’s murderous gaze, the teacher had agreed to allocate Ling Chuxi to a single room with trembling hands.
“Little White, believe me when I say that one day, I will become very strong. Even stronger than Mu Liufeng.” She pulled Little White close to her as she lazed on the bed and voiced her thoughts aloud with a smile. Though she spoke softly, her voice contained an amount of unprecedented determination. Only the strong were given any respect in this world. If one desired to live without having to rely on others, the only way was to become strong by oneself. One day, she would be able to stand at the world’s peak and observe the rest of the world from the incredible height she’d ascended to! One day, she’d achieve this for sure!
As Little White listened to Ling Chuxi speak, it squinted and rested a paw gently upon her head.
Ling Chuxi let out a small laugh. “Are you agreeing with me Little White? This is why I like you the most.”
Little White’s human-like reactions greatly amused Ling Chuxi and she happily cuddled the tiny fox as though it were a plush toy and planted a little kiss on its small face.
Ling Chuxi didn’t notice that this made Little White freeze.
That afternoon, Ling Yichen came looking for Ling Chuxi. Regarding the matter of Ling Chuxi passing the entrance examination with Mu Liufeng as her examiner, Ling Yichen felt it was an expected yet unexpected outcome. However, regarding the matter of Mu Liufeng taking on Ling Chuxi as his disciple—even he didn’t see that coming. No one could have.
“Congratulations on passing the examination, Chuxi.” A warm smile spread across Ling Yichen’s composed face. “It’s great news.”
“Ha, thanks. Why don’t you congratulate me in a more practical manner? Like, say, with roasted meat from the stall at the entrance of the academy,” replied Ling Chuxi cheekily without as much courtesy.
Observing Ling Chuxi’s bright grin, Ling Yichen felt the tension and stress seep out of him inexplicably.
So it was that Ling Yichen treated Ling Chuxi to a dinner of roasted meat in celebration of her passing the entrance examination under such difficult circumstances. After the meal, Ling Chuxi placed a hand on her full belly in satisfaction as she carried Little White using her other hand. Ling Yichen bid goodnight to Ling Chuxi and gazed after her retreating figure till it had disappeared from his sight before he started walking back to his own accommodation.
In the depth of night when all was quiet, Ling Chuxi was submerged in a profound slumber. Little White was supposed to be lying next to her by her pillow, but the fox was nowhere to be found.
Instead, a tall and slender figure stood by her bed. The figure’s familiar violet eyes danced with the hint of a smile as they admired Ling Chuxi’s sleeping frame.