Chapter 21: Extremely Adorable

She stared at the quiet bamboo house under the night sky for a long moment, unable to collect herself.

What she had just experienced in the dream… was exactly what had happened between her and Yuxiu in their previous life.

Back then, she had known Yuxiu for decades. They were deeply familiar with one another. Otherwise, even in such a physically weakened state, she would never have trusted anyone so completely—letting Yuxiu handle her however she pleased.

If anyone else had dared treat her that way, she would have rather self-destructed to make it clear that some people were never to be provoked.

Looking back now, she could see it all clearly.

Her feelings for Yuxiu at the time weren’t as pure as she liked to believe.

Whether it was the fact that Yuxiu, who had her own burdens, still healed her meridians—or the realization that Yuxiu could never truly fall for her—both drove her absolutely mad.

She was becoming more and more certain that their roles in this life had completely reversed.

In the past, Yuxiu had chosen to stay by her side, and she had been the one constantly pushing her away.

Now, Yuxiu couldn’t wait for her to disappear—yet she just couldn’t help but cling to her.

Thinking back on how she’d taken everything for granted in her past life, she was overwhelmed by regret and frustration.

Why couldn’t she go back and slap her past self seven or eight times—no, ten?!

After sighing deeply several times, she rolled around impatiently on the pillow Yuxiu had used.

She was still in the form of a small sparrow, and because her body was round and chubby, her roll turned into a full spin—right off the pillow and onto the bed.

The moment Yuxiu opened her bedroom door, this was what she saw.

“…?”

As usual, she had been outside the bamboo house absorbing moonlight for cultivation when she sensed a strong emotional fluctuation and came to check.

She hadn’t expected to witness such a scene.

But honestly, it was… adorable.

So adorable that Yuxiu was very tempted to reach out and touch the little puffball.

It had all happened so fast. Lost in her thoughts and never expecting such a thing to occur, she was momentarily frozen.

Flat on her back with her belly facing up and both tiny claws in the air, she looked completely helpless.

Her round black eyes stared blankly at Yuxiu, her face full of innocent bewilderment.

It took her a long moment to realize what had just happened, and then shame and embarrassment crashed over her like a flood, drowning all coherent thought.

What the hell was she doing?! Why did she keep humiliating herself in front of Yuxiu in this life?!

Maybe it was because she’d gotten used to it, but this time, she didn’t even bother trying to cover it up.

The little sparrow tried to flip upright in one clean motion, but failed. She just lay there, sprawled out like a broken doll, her black eyes completely devoid of life.

Whatever. Let it be.

The aura of hopeless despair was so strong that even Yuxiu couldn’t help but smile.

Yuxiu walked to the side of the bed, hesitated briefly, then gently flipped the little sparrow over.

Then, without thinking too much, she lightly stroked the bluish feathers on its back.

“…?!”

She froze.

Then she remembered—she wasn’t even in human form!

She was just a little bird!

There was absolutely nothing shameful about a little bird rolling off a pillow!

In an instant, her entire feathery body lit up with life again.

She leaned into Yuxiu’s palm, rubbing her head against it affectionately, then rolled over on her back again, offering up her belly for more petting.

“……”

This Demon Lord sure switches moods fast.

A little helpless and a little amused, Yuxiu indulged her for a bit under that bright, expectant gaze, and confirmed that nothing was wrong.

She closed her eyes in satisfaction.

Even counting their previous life, the times Yuxiu had willingly touched her were few and far between.

Either it was like in the dream—when she was completely unable to move and Yuxiu had to carry or infuse her with spiritual energy—or it was now, when she’d turned into this fuzzy little sparrow.

The former only happened out of necessity. The latter… seemed to happen involuntarily.

Even before she had clearly recognized her feelings, she had already started “seducing” Yuxiu by deliberately turning into a bird.

Still, even when she lost control, Yuxiu was always careful.

She never petted her for too long. Her touch was always gentle, and she avoided sensitive spots.

Like the golden fluff on her belly—no matter how much she “tempted” her, Yuxiu would only ever brush past it slightly when stroking the feathers near her wings.

As she watched Yuxiu’s hand draw away, she felt reluctant, but also knew when to stop.

With a light hop, she stood up.

Looking out the window at the approaching dawn, she puffed up her chest and spoke proudly:

“You’re about to start sword practice, right?”

“Let me take a look—I can give you some pointers!”

She really had a bit of an obsession with teaching Yuxiu.

And she was a sword cultivator.

While she had never earned the title of Sword Saint like Jiang Hanxing later would, she was undoubtedly considered top-tier among sword cultivators in both the demon and immortal realms.

In their past life, their sword skills had been evenly matched.

But because of Yuxiu’s overwhelming cultivation base, she had never once bested her.

This life, however, was different. Yuxiu was just a small-time sword cultivator in the Foundation Establishment stage—no different from a child in her eyes.

Teaching her now would be easy. And incredibly beneficial for her.

Yuxiu understood that too.

Without hesitation, she bowed politely. “Then I’ll ask for your guidance.”

The little sparrow flitted aside and huffed. “Alright, alright, let’s go.”

***

As a sword cultivator, Yuxiu had built a training field on Daiqiao Peak.
It was the most refined spot on the entire peak.

Every structure and piece of equipment was of the highest quality Yuxiu could afford, showing just how seriously she took her training.

Upon entering the field, Yuxiu summoned her natal spirit sword, Peize.
Peize shimmered with a faint golden-red glow, intimately resonating with its master.
The connection between them was seamless.

Perched atop one of the training dummies, she watched Yuxiu begin her sword practice, eyes locked onto every move.
Judging purely by the swordsmanship, it was hard to believe Yuxiu hadn’t even formed her Golden Core yet.
Her techniques were so sophisticated that many Nascent Soul-level sword cultivators couldn’t compare.

She had confidently thought she’d be able to point out flaws, but the more she watched, the more hesitant she became.
Sure, there were some flaws—but they were minor.
Refinements rather than necessities.
She had plenty of advanced techniques to share, but Yuxiu’s current stage wasn’t suited for them.
Teaching her now would be pointless.

‘…’

She regretted her bold offer.
But more than that, she was puzzled.
If Yuxiu had such talent, why hadn’t she ever made a name for herself in the sword arts?

She didn’t know much about Yuxiu’s past life.
She tilted her little head, trying to recall.
There was a time when Yuxiu had exchanged messages with Huangfu Hanrui, and the other side had expressed regret that Yuxiu never became a “Sword Saint.”
Wait—no. It wasn’t Huangfu Hanrui.
It was He Xiuran.
He was the sword cultivator and had the authority to make that kind of comment.

Her thoughts drifted back to the dream she’d had the night before.
Suddenly, she remembered—

Yuxiu’s meridians had been completely damaged by a deviation in her cultivation!

It wasn’t exactly a secret—especially not to someone who regularly received spiritual energy from her.
She had asked Yuxiu about it once.
Yuxiu had brushed it off, saying she’d had an accident while cultivating when she was younger.
Yuxiu clearly didn’t want to go into detail, so she had dropped it.

But now, watching her swing Peize, she recalled something she had previously overlooked.
Back in Huangshi Town, when they were chasing down those evil cultivators, she had already noticed something was off about Yuxiu’s sword.
It hadn’t matched her memories of the previous life.
She had been so disturbed by that inconsistency, she’d nearly lost control again.

‘…!!!’

She finally remembered.
The reason Yuxiu went into deviation…
It was because her meridians had long been damaged by the conflict between opposing spiritual energies.