The news about Nie Li exposing the Scarlet Sunburst Pattern as plagiarized work by the Sacred Family's First House Master spread throughout Glory City like wildfire.
Rumors circulated that when the current House Master of the Sacred Family, Shen Hong, expressed his desire to pay a visit to the Snow Wind Family, he was turned away by the City Lord.
Because of this, any marriage talks between Ye Ziyun and Shen Yue immediately fell through before they could even begin.
Naturally, Nie Li, the one responsible for exposing the Sacred Family's wrongdoing, felt extremely proud of himself, knowing that he had at least prevented one of the tragedies from his previous life.
In his previous life, Ye Ziyun had been Shen Yue's betrothed, and the two had almost gotten married if not for the destruction of Glory City.
Besides that, another incident occurred the day after Nie Li exposed the Sacred Family scandal.
After class, Nie Li and Shen Yue got into a confrontation over a girl. Apparently, Shen Yue had caught Nie Li talking to Ye Ziyun, which made him jealous and prompted him to pick a fight with Nie Li.
Witnesses said it was a brief confrontation, with Shen Yue attempting to overwhelm Nie Li using his soul force.
However, it backfired spectacularly.
Shen Yue ended up falling on his butt, trembling, and wetting his pants once again, the second time in a single week.
Naturally, this outcome dragged the Sacred Family's reputation even further down.
As a direct descendant of the current House Master, Shen Yue had put on an embarrassing display, tarnishing the image of both his father and the Sacred Family as a whole.
While all these interesting events were taking place, Xue Hui, on the other hand, kept himself busy.
During the day, he trained Jing Ya, Mei Lin, and Yue Ling in their cultivation, while helping Xiao Ning'er with her training at night.
Xue Hui took a hands-on approach to their training because of the complexity of the cultivation techniques he had imparted to them.
Any Supreme cultivation technique required a deep understanding of the fundamentals and a solid foundation at the beginning of one's training.
After all, rapid cultivation only felt rewarding in the early stages. Once cultivators reached a certain realm, those who had neglected their foundations would inevitably regret it.
It was a trap that many cultivators could easily fall into.
Thus, Xue Hui made it his mission to personally guide each of them through their foundation-building stage, ensuring that they wouldn't ruin their potential.
This was also why Xue Hui and Xiao Ning'er could often be seen walking together as they headed toward the Hunting Grounds.
Unlike her usual clothing, Xiao Ning'er's current attire could only be described as a mixture of cute and elegant, a stark contrast to the plain-colored outfits she normally wore.
Glancing sideways, Xiao Ning'er's cheeks grew crimson as she watched Xue Hui savor the frozen delight they had bought while strolling through the streets toward the Hunting Grounds.
The sight of the two walking together naturally attracted the attention of the people around them, who wondered about the identities of this lovely pair.
They were simply pleasing to look at.
Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui were both exceptionally attractive. One was the goddess of the younger generation, while the other was a strikingly handsome young man.
Ignoring the glances around them, the two continued walking at a relaxed pace, occasionally stopping to sightsee or purchase something that caught their attention.
'It's almost like we're on a date.'
With that thought, Xiao Ning'er gently bit her lower lip as a flutter stirred in her stomach.
They had been spending time together for almost a week now, and every time, Xiao Ning'er tried her best not to misunderstand Xue Hui's actions.
But she was finding that increasingly difficult.
Xue Hui was simply a delight to be around. He always helped her improve herself while making sure she didn't push herself too hard like before.
They would also sit together and talk about all sorts of things, allowing Xiao Ning'er to gradually learn more about him.
One thing she had noticed during their time together, which she found amusing, was that Xue Hui was almost like a sheltered person.
Xiao Ning'er came from a noble family, meaning she had been sheltered to some extent for most of her life.
Even so, she was at least familiar with some of the simpler things found around Glory City, such as the frozen delight they had just tried.
So it surprised her to discover that Xue Hui knew surprisingly little about the things one could stumble upon in the streets.
It was strange.
Xue Hui was incredibly knowledgeable about cultivation, medicine, and inscription patterns, yet something as simple as street food was something he had never tried before.
Xiao Ning'er found that endearing.
Somehow, it was also reassuring.
Despite his overwhelming talent in so many areas, there were still things Xue Hui didn't know. That made him feel a little more within her reach.
Xiao Ning'er let out a soft giggle at the thought.
"Something funny?" Xue Hui asked curiously, wiping his mouth with a cloth after finishing his frozen delight.
She shook her head with a smile.
"Nothing. It's just a random thought. So, how about the food? Did you enjoy it?"
Xue Hui's lips curled upward as he nodded.
"Yup. I never knew they sold this kind of frozen delight on the streets. Compared to the ones I tried before that used high-quality ingredients, this one uses demon beast fats and artificial flavoring instead."
Xiao Ning'er covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, her shoulders trembling.
It was funny hearing Xue Hui's assessment.
The childlike wonder in his expression made Xiao Ning'er want to pinch his cheeks.
Holy Orchid Institute, Hunting Grounds.
Eventually, Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui arrived at their destination.
Sitting cross-legged, Xue Hui guided Xiao Ning'er through the process of removing the impurities from her body.
While impurities could be cleansed during cultivation, many still remained within the body and caused blockages in the meridians.
Using a special method to flush out those impurities was what Xue Hui was helping Xiao Ning'er accomplish.
Time passed, and Xiao Ning'er successfully removed nearly eighty-five percent of the impurities from her body.
She immediately felt far more sensitive to the spiritual energy surrounding her, which greatly excited her.
However, the moment she caught a whiff of herself, her excitement vanished.
Impurities were unpleasant.
They felt disgusting to the touch and smelled rancid.
For a maiden like Xiao Ning'er, being covered in that disgusting gunk almost brought her to tears.
"P-Please don't get near me, Xue Hui. I-I smell... Please stay where you are and turn around," Xiao Ning'er said in a panic.
Xue Hui complied and turned away.
He fully understood how uncomfortable it felt to have that gunk sticking to one's body.
He remembered the chaos that had followed after Jing Ya, Mei Lin, and Yue Ling removed the impurities from their bodies.
Compared to them, Xiao Ning'er's reaction was fairly subdued.
Xue Hui lifted his hand.
A deep-blue sphere floated in front of him, and a powerful water-attributed aura spread throughout the forest.
This circular object was one of Xue Hui's Origin Spheres.
Just like the Ten Whiskers Water-Attribute Needles, the Origin of Water contained pure water attributes, allowing Xue Hui to control the element of water to an extraordinary degree.
"Ning'er, I'll help you remove the impurities. Just stay calm and hold your breath for a second."
Hearing Xue Hui's words, Xiao Ning'er nodded and took a deep breath, waiting for him to begin.
In an instant, a stream of water rushed toward Xiao Ning'er, submerging her in a warm, soothing sensation as it washed away all the gunk covering her body.
With a pulling gesture, Xue Hui drew all the water away from Xiao Ning'er, leaving her completely dry without a trace of impurities remaining.
With the source of the disgusting sensation gone, Xiao Ning'er let out a sigh of relief and sent Xue Hui a grateful look.
"T-That was something," Xiao Ning'er exclaimed.
She quickly took out a bottle of perfume from her interspatial ring and sprayed it on herself while Xue Hui continued keeping his gaze turned away.
Night gradually fell, and with their training complete, Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui called it a day and headed out of the Hunting Grounds.
Deep into the night, the moon illuminated the world below, veiling the entire forest in its soft glow.
The two walked in silence, Xiao Ning'er moving with a noticeable skip in her steps as she stole glances at Xue Hui beside her.
Etching every detail of his face into her memory, Xiao Ning'er felt a warm sensation filling her heart.
With her eyes fixed on Xue Hui, she found herself lost in her memories, the engagement, the hopelessness that followed, and her desperation to fight against her fate.
Everything had changed for the better when she met Xue Hui that night.
Lost in her thoughts, Xiao Ning'er failed to notice when they stopped walking.
The two stood in silence, their eyes locked onto each other.
Nervously, Xiao Ning'er reached out and grasped Xue Hui's robe, her fingers brushing against the silky fabric as she tightened her hold.
"Ning'er?"
Confused, Xue Hui tried to ask what was wrong, but Xiao Ning'er remained silent, her expression shifting through a mixture of emotions.
Letting out a shaky breath, Xiao Ning'er spoke in a soft, trembling voice, keeping her gaze fixed on Xue Hui so he could clearly see the emotions on her face.
"I-I never thanked you for helping me that night, Xue Hui... and for continuing to do so."
She paused, biting her lip as she stepped closer.
"Sometimes, I wake up in a panic, thinking that what happened that night was nothing but a dream."
Lowering her head, her hands began to tremble.
"I-I was afraid. Ever since I got engaged, I felt like there was a chain wrapped around my neck, and it kept getting tighter as the days passed."
Xiao Ning'er closed the remaining distance between them, resting her forehead against Xue Hui's chest.
"Then you showed up. You healed me and gave me a path to escape."
Xiao Ning'er looked up, their faces only inches apart.
"I remembered you. You're that boy riding the white beast. I remembered that day because it was also the day my life began to crumble. Then I saw you, and for some reason, I wished for you to save me."
Tears welled up in Xiao Ning'er's eyes, her lips trembling as her grip on Xue Hui's clothes tightened like a lifeline.
"I just never imagined that you would actually appear and save me."
With her emotions running high, Xiao Ning'er rose onto her tiptoes and pressed a brief kiss to Xue Hui's cheek.
"Thank you, Xue Hui."
Surprised by her actions, Xue Hui stood frozen in shock, his hands instinctively moving to Xiao Ning'er's waist to steady her.
The two remained still.
Above them, a drifting cloud briefly covered the moon, casting the forest into momentary darkness except for the single spot where they stood, as if even the moon couldn't bear to miss the sight.
At the same time, hidden deep within another part of the forest...
A group of girls crouched among the bushes, all dressed in black to better conceal themselves as they spied on the pair.
Chen Linlin, Jing Ya, Mei Lin, and Yue Ling had been following Xue Hui and Xiao Ning'er.
Ever since Xue Hui had bid them farewell to meet with Xiao Ning'er, Mei Lin had convinced everyone to follow him under the pretext of protecting Chen Linlin's position as the first wife.
Mei Lin was worried that Xiao Ning'er was trying to steal Xue Hui away from Chen Linlin.
Chen Linlin found the notion laughable, but when even Jing Ya and Yue Ling agreed with Mei Lin, she decided to follow along.
At first, the four girls found nothing suspicious, since Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui truly were practicing cultivation.
However, as the night deepened, the atmosphere gradually began to shift.
That was when the four girls witnessed Xiao Ning'er pouring out her worries to Xue Hui before eventually gathering the courage to kiss him.
As expected, the girls exploded at the sight.
"Cheating, cheating! The boss is having an affair!" Mei Lin exclaimed accusingly.
Her dumbfounded expression somehow made her look even more comical as she pointed at Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui with trembling fingers.
"Master, why!?" Yue Ling sniffled beside her, the betrayal in her expression making it seem as though Xue Hui had shattered the perfect boyfriend image she had of him.
Jing Ya, the only one among the trio who remained composed, let out a deep sigh.
Unlike the other two, she at least understood that Xiao Ning'er had been the one to initiate the contact.
Judging from Xue Hui's expression, he had clearly been caught off guard.
Worried about Chen Linlin, Jing Ya turned to check how she was handling the situation, only to become confused when she saw Chen Linlin sniffling while biting into her handkerchief.
"Linlin, are you okay!?" Jing Ya asked in confusion, unable to understand what her friend was thinking.
"Xiao Ning'er is so pitiful. I'm glad Hui-hui helped her."
To Jing Ya's surprise, Chen Linlin looked more moved than angry at the sight of another girl kissing her fiancé.
"You heard what they were talking about?" Jing Ya asked.
Chen Linlin simply nodded.
Considering the distance between them and the pair, it should have been impossible for Jing Ya to hear anything, so it surprised her that her friend was capable of such a feat.
Jing Ya's eyes drifted back toward Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui, relieved that there was no fight or anything of the sort.
As long as Chen Linlin was neither hurt nor angry, then Jing Ya had nothing to worry about.
Now, the question on Jing Ya's mind was how Xiao Ning'er and Xue Hui's relationship would progress after tonight.
End of Chapter 45