49 Chapter 49

Chapter 49: Their New Home // Meal

Wide, spacious, and... spectacular. These were the words that described the interior of the cave.

Contrary to their initial thoughts, the insides of the caves were bright due to the bright white glowing stalactites hanging from the ceiling of the cave.

That unique stone or crystal could also be seen around the cave, completely lighting up the spacious interior of the cave.

Zed felt like he was standing inside a huge dome the size of two basketball courts.

In the middle of the cave was a large lake that reflected the ceiling, imitating the scenery of the starry night skies.

"This is..."

"Woah..."

The group was mesmerized by the ambience of their new environment. 

After some time, they were eventually satisfied and proceeded to explore the deeper parts of the cave.

There was another pathway that shortly descended downwards. Going that way, They arrived before a hallway with doors placed on both the left and right.

It was a short hallway and there were only ten doors, five on the left and five on the right.

All of them were made of finely cut stone and the group assumed that they led into personal rooms or bed chambers since one of the rooms had a platecard that said, [Han Qiuyue]

All the other rooms had a blank platecard, and when they tried opening them, they found out that all of the doors were unlocked.

Inspecting the rooms, they all had the same minimalist design. A space focused on secluded training where there was nothing but one tiny source of light, a small pond with a bamboo outlet from the wall, and a small well where they figured would be the place to defecate.

To be honest, Zed thought they were more like prisons rather than an accommodation for the prestigious disciples.

There was no bed, no furniture- nothing but a wide open and empty space for self training.

But, nonetheless, this was their new home now, and he ought to adapt quickly.

Besides, Meixiang and the others didn't complain when they saw the condition of their rooms.

Thinking back to how cultivators lived their lives, Zed remembered that most cultivators lived in seclusion when reinforcing their cultivation stage.

They would only leave once their cultivation was finished, had some matters or duties to attend to, or had to conduct a spar against their fellow cultivators, but other than that, they would only be living in seclusion.

If they wanted to train their martial arts, they could simply do so inside their room since their new rooms offered enough space for that.

Only after inspecting all the rooms did Zed notice that Meixiang and the others had yet to choose their room.

"...What's wrong? They're all the same anyways, why bother thinking hard about which room to take?" Zed asked.

Meixiang, Jingfei, and Lan'er wordlessly stared at him.

Not receiving a reply, Zed didn't think too much of it and decided to take the room directly in front of their senior sister, which was the room furthest to the right.

Meixiang and the other two girls glanced at each other before dashing full throttle towards the room next to Zed's.

Zed had already entered his room so he did not notice the commotion the three girls made outside in the hallways.

Lan'er was holding onto the knob while Meixiang was grabbing on Lan'er's back. At the same time, Jingfei was trying to pry the door open.

"I- I'm his little sister! I should have the rights to the room next to him!"

"What are you talking about? I am Zixin's best friend, it should naturally be me!"

"...I'm his little sister too."

-

Tok. Tok. Tok.

Someone knocked on the stone door of the room and from within the darkness of the room, An apparition rose from the corner of the walls. It soon manifested into a youth who had an extremely handsome face.

His long ink-black hair freely fell to his back, well defined muscles that were covered by his jade-white skin.

His eyes had a piercing gaze that most people would consider unsettling, but some would find it charming.

Emerging from the darkness, he sighed.

"As expected... The Darkness element is too... peculiar."

Zed did not expect that he would need to hold his breath during the duration of the spell, Intermediate level Dark Magic: [Intra].

And moving amongst the shadows was harder than it looked. He felt like he was trying to learn how to swim inside a small pool while hopping into the next pool without touching the land.

Tok! Tok! Tok!

"Brother, it's time for dinner!"

"Already?" Zed was slightly surprised after hearing Lan'er's voice from outside his room.

As a cultivator, his physical body no longer had the weakness of a normal mortal's body. Instead, they could use Qi to satiate their body's needs such as nutrients and energy.

It is precisely because of this that most cultivators would cultivate rather than eat or sleep.

And yet, despite not needing to eat, Zed and his sisters would still gather and eat three meals per day.

"Coming!"

Zed fixed his robes, washed his face by the small water source, and then went out of his room.

Walking through the short hallway, he glanced at his senior sister's room before proceeding towards the middle grounds of the cave.

It had been three days since they had been staying in their new homes. Their senior sister had yet to return, nor did their master show himself again.

They wanted to try exploring the forest, but their instincts were telling them that the forest was very dangerous despite its beautiful scenery.

Meixiang, Jingfei, and Lan'er's master, Tang Xiurong, also told them to not venture into the forest because she was also getting a foreboding feeling.

Which is why they simply settled in and remained in seclusion inside their rooms while waiting for their senior sister to return.

Sitting by the clear lake, They made a small campfire where Meixiang and Jingfei were holding a stick, grilling some mushrooms and vegetables.

A fragrant aroma scattered through the air as Meixiang skillfully added spices to the food.

"Smells good." Zed complimented as he took a seat beside Jingfei.

"Mhmm.." Meixiang only nodded while the corner of her lips curved upwards.

Lan'er sat beside Meixiang and spoke.

"Sis Mei, could we spar again after dinner?"

"Sure." Meixiang agreed easily.

Sizzle.. Sizzle..

Meiziang handed her one of the grilled vegetable barbeque sticks and the smell made Lan'er salivate. Jingfei and Zed were no different from Lan'er.

Meixiang made a sweet smile after seeing the eager faces of her family and she calmly declared, "Let's eat."

"""Let's eat!"""

Zed, Jingfei, and Lan'er soon took a bite of their barbeque. 

Jingfei and Lan'er could not help but groan in delight after tasting the exquisite and flavourful flavor of a vegetable piece.

Looking at the adorable and cute reactions of his sisters, Zed wished that he had a camera to record this moment.

'I bet that they would go viral if they made food reaction videos..'

While thinking so, he continued to eat his own barbeque when all of the sudden-

"What are you guys doing?"

"!!!"

Zed almost choked after being surprised by the clear monotone voice speaking from behind him.

"Senior sister!"

The three girls stood and greeted the mature woman behind Zed.

She had a sharp and unfeeling gaze. Flawless jade skin and a beautiful expressionless face. Her silky black hair fell to her back which enchanted her stoic beauty.

Wearing green and white hanfu robes, which were the color pattern of the Cleansing Jade Sect, she had a sect token that said, "Elder".

Zed also stood up and greeted their senior sister.

The latter nodded and acknowledged their greeting before speaking. "I'll ask again. What are the four of you doing here?"

Her voice was so emotionless that the four youths thought they had done something wrong.

But contrary to their thoughts, Han Qiuyue was inquiring about what they were doing since she was simply curious.

Meiziang hesitatingly answered, "H-having dinner?"

"For what reason?"

"U-uhm.."

Han Qiuyue continued, "As cultivators, our bodies no longer need to eat nor sleep. So I ask again, Why are you eating and not cultivating?"

"Well you see, senior sister.." Jingfei explains, "We have been sharing meals since our childhood and we continue to do so out of habit."

"We plan on continuing to do so even in the future."

Confused, Han Qiuyue's brows furrowed slightly. "I do not understand. Why do you continue to waste time doing a worthless practice?"

"It's not a waste of time." Lan'er speaks.

Han Qiuyue looked at Lan'er and the latter smiled as she continued in a confident tone.

"We spend our time with each other"

Her sentimental feelings resonated with what her brother and sisters felt as a sincere smile also appeared on their faces.

"She's correct." Zed supported her answer.

Meixiang and Jingfei nodded in agreement.

"I don't... understand.." Han Qiuyue's voice trailed off while she looked at the expressions of the youths.

Her gaze looked absent minded, making Zed and the others wonder if there was something wrong with her.

After a short silence, Zed asked, "Would you like to join us?"

His question brought Han Qiuyue out of her daze.

"Oh, Uh... I refu-"

"Come on, senior sister! Join us!" Jingfei smiled innocently while clasping Han Qiuyue's hand.

Seeing Jingfei's kind and innocent expression, Han Qiuyue's heart was slightly moved. Jingfei's expression and tone was so welcoming that it would have made Han Qiuyue feel bad if she declined.

Jingfei's large and adorable golden eyes that openly showed her positive expectations, made it hard for Han Qiuyue to refuse and so-

"....For a little bit."

"Alright!" Jingfei's face brightened up as her clear white teeth showed, when she smiled in joy.

Seeing this look on Jingfei's face, even Meixiang and the others were affected by it as they felt a sudden attack of adorableness.

Jingfei's wholehearted smile was truly worth killing for.

All of them, including Han Qiuyue, felt warm and fuzzy inside as each of them took a seat around the campfire.

Fortunately, Meixiang prepared plenty of vegetable barbeque skewers and she wasted no time to grill them.

Once again, a fragrant aroma scattered through the air as Meixiang added seasoning on the vegetable barbeques.

While waiting, Han Qiuyue became slightly impressed by Meixiang's show of expertise.

Soon enough, another set of vegetable barbeque was cooked and Meixiang distributed them.

Zed and the others resumed eating, making enjoyed and satisfied faces.

Seeing their reactions, Han Qiuyue looked at the vegetable barbeque in her hand. It looked simple, but it was very aromatic.

And because of her juniors' reactions, she even began to look forward to the taste.

Putting the stick near her mouth, she slowly took one piece in and-

"!!!"

The taste did not disappoint.

The vegetables that would usually be bitter did not taste like that at all. In fact, due to the crunchy texture of the vegetable, the seasoning was evenly distributed at every chew.

Sweet, sour, and a little bit of spice, each piece made the meal worthwhile to eat.

Han Qiuyue's slow and modest bites soon hastened. Though her face didn't show any changes, her actions showed that she truly enjoyed the meal.

Her change in attitude made Zed and the others stop eating and pay attention to her. A second later, they simply smiled and resumed with eating their meal.

After a fulfilling and heartwarming meal, The four youths and the mature woman sat around the campfire with satisfied expressions on their faces.

Though Han Qiuyue's expression remained the same, her relaxed demeanor expressed that she was plenty satisfied.

After a long silence, Han Qiuyue asked Meixiang. "You are a princess, are you not? How are you able to cook such a great meal?"

Meixiang smiled, as she answered, "Because of certain events in the past, I was forced to flee our country."

Looking at Jingfei, Zed, and Lan'er; She continued, "Fortunately, I had my current family who accompanied me. During those times, I learned how to cook so that my family would always enjoy our meals."

"Besides... it's always rewarding to see your loved one eating the meal you poured your heart on." She said this while secretly glancing at Zed who only smiled at her when their eyes met.

Jingfei and Lan'er rolled their eyes when they saw this. Meanwhile, Han Qiuyue slightly nodded her head while whispering, "I see..."

She looked like she was in deep contemplation, so Meixiang and the others did not bother her.

After some time, Meixiang stood up, fixed her robes and looked towards Lan'er.

"Well then, Shall we start?"

A smile appeared on Lan'er and her competitive spirit ignited.

"Sure!"

With that, the two dashed away from the campfire and stopped after moving a hundred steps away from them.

Once again, their movement brought Han Qiuyue out of her thoughts.

She asked Zed and Jingfei. "What are they doing?" 

"Sparring." Jingfei answered.

Han Qiuyue's head slightly titled. "Sparring?"

The two youths nodded to confirm her statement before looking towards Meixiang and Lan'er.

When Han Qiuyue looked at the other two youths from the distance, she realized that they were already holding their weapons.

Lan'er was standing in her sword stance, holding a one-sided blade sword that was longer than half of her body.

Opposite to her was Meixiang using a standard two bladed sword.

The two of them had different unique stances. Meixiang was standing upright, with her legs fully supporting her foundation. She wielded her sword with both of her arms while pointing it in front of her, making her appear like a solid fortress, ready to take on any kind of attack.

Her stance seemed balanced and solid, with no particular blind spots.

Meanwhile, Lan'er was the complete opposite of Meixiang.

Her legs were lowered and her entire torso was slightly hunched forward, making her look like a predator ready to pounce on her prey.

She held her long one bladed sword with her right hand while her left arm remained in a stationary position in front of her.

One would think that she would be weaker since she wielded her sword with only her right hand, but that would be very wrong assumption.

Han Qiuyu's eyes glinted. 'Two generational monsters huh... This will be an entertaining fight.'

Edited By: WorthyAdversary