Chapter 58: Practicing Kung Fu to an unknown destination.

The morning sunlight streamed through the window, warmly bathing the room. Xie Qiyang stood by the bed, leisurely dressing, radiating vitality as if fully recharged.

In contrast, Li Tianxing, on the bed, was wrapped tightly in a blanket, only his eyes visible, his expression a mix of grievance and complex emotions, like a virtuous man wronged by a bully.

Xie Qiyang glanced at him, tsking impatiently, “What’s with the coy act? Is there any part of you I haven’t seen?”

With a mischievous glint, she reached to tug at the blanket he clutched.

“Whoa!” Li Tianxing yelped dramatically, wrapping himself tighter.

“You… how can you be so shameless in broad daylight!”

“Heh heh heh~” Xie Qiyang drawled, a sly grin spreading, “Little lady, why so shy? Let me check if you’re developing properly…”

Creak—

Before she finished, the door swung open.

Ye Zhuxian stood frozen in the doorway. Xie Qiyang’s hand was still on the blanket, Li Tianxing huddled at the head of the bed.

Three pairs of eyes, six gazes, collided with a snap in the air.

The room froze for three seconds.

Ye Zhuxian’s smile turned excessively “kind” and “understanding.” She slowly began closing the door, her tone dripping with consideration.

“Ahem, seems I came at a bad time, huh? Carry on, carry on! Young folks, full of energy—good thing! I’ll come back later, later…”

The door shut gently but swiftly, leaving dead silence in the room.

Xie Qiyang’s hand hung in midair, her grin frozen. She instinctively wanted to chase after and explain but stopped mid-step.

Explain? How? Say, “Grandma, you misunderstood, we were just morning training”? They were… kind of doing something shady. Explaining would only make it worse.

She turned to the bed. Li Tianxing had buried his head in the blanket, muffled giggles escaping as his shoulders shook.

Xie Qiyang’s temple twitched. She stomped over, poking him through the blanket. “Hey, what’s so funny?!”

The laughter paused, then Li Tianxing’s muffled voice, brimming with amusement, came through, “N-nothing, really, just… remembered something happy! Pfft…”

He couldn’t hold back another snicker.

Creak—

The door cracked open again. Ye Zhuxian peeked in, her eyes darting between them, landing on Li Tianxing’s blanket cocoon. She spoke earnestly.

“So… you two… done already? Tianxing, listen to Grandma—your stamina… I’ll get you some tonics later. Youngsters need to pace themselves for sustainability.”

Li Tianxing seemed about to pop out and protest, but Ye Zhuxian waved him off.

“Alright, alright, I’m here for business! Those holy land and imperial clan brats are bashing each other bloody in the Nether Ancient Realm, taking heavy losses. Now they’re grabbing cannon fodder everywhere! This is our chance to sneak in and fish in troubled waters.”

She gestured grandly, her eyes gleaming, then pulled out a storage bag, dumping a pile of items onto the floor— a small mountain of treasures.

“Here, these are for you. This jade pendant perfectly hides your cultivation and special physique—don’t blow your cover. This soft armor can save your life; don’t mind its looks. And this…”

She carefully lifted a plain-looking paper. “It’s sealed with a Saint’s sword intent, massively powerful. Don’t hesitate to use it—there’s plenty. Strike first if it’s life-or-death; who knows what nastier tricks the enemy might pull?”

She clapped her hands, eyeing the glittering pile. “That’s everything—I’ve gone all in! If you lovebirds want to… ahem, ‘deepen your cultivation exchange,’ go ahead. Your ‘training’ method is quite… ‘efficient,’ not a waste of time. Meet tomorrow at the usual spot.”

Ye Zhuxian turned to leave but paused, pulling two items from her robe: a rustic gourd and a bulging sack.

She shoved the gourd into Li Tianxing’s hands, who quickly tucked them under the blanket. Glancing at Xie Qiyang, she whispered, “This treasure gourd took a lot to ‘borrow’ from Old Man Chen! It’ll… ahem, help you ‘tame’ certain ‘little vixens’!”

The “little vixen” sat cross-legged on the bed, tilting her head, all innocence and confusion.

Then, Ye Zhuxian handed the sack to Xie Qiyang with a wink. “This has some auxiliary techniques and notes for your ‘cultivation.’ Study them on the road. But…”

She pointed at Xie Qiyang, tone firm, “Little girl, take it slow, step by step. Stick to ‘literary duels’ if you must. And Tianxing, no ‘brandishing weapons’ at Ningshuang for a day.”

With a meaningful smile, Ye Zhuxian slipped out like a breeze, leaving two people with wildly different expressions and a pile of glowing gear.

Xie Qiyang curiously opened the sack. Besides technique manuals, it was stuffed with clothes.

She pulled out the most peculiar one, with minimal fabric, staring in bewilderment. “What… is this?”

“You dummy, it’s clothing,” Li Tianxing said, rummaging in the sack and pulling out a quaint booklet to read.

“Clothing?” Xie Qiyang was stunned. She’d seen plenty of risqué games in her past life, but none had heroines in this.

This, this, this…

“Wife, let’s practice this one?”

“What? Let me see… Wearing this, both parties must remain still, focusing their minds, channeling Solar and Lunar energies to form a Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram. Once mastered, it balances offense and defense, with a binding effect.”

“Huh? Just cultivation, so why wear such… indecent clothes…” Xie Qiyang’s face flushed as she imagined herself in it.

“No choice. Mastering the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram requires perfect mental sync, free of distractions, first visualizing its outline before channeling Solar and Lunar energies…”

“Think about it—how much time do we spend actually cultivating when we’re together?”

“Wearing it trains your mental clarity, to stay unshaken even if mountains collapse.”

His words left her speechless. Noticing Li Tianxing’s haggard face, she felt a pang of guilt.

“Fine…”

…

“Wife… you’re so beautiful…”

“Hm? Didn’t you say we’d…”

“Let’s talk about it later…”