The last second of her eighteenth birthday was spent in Qin Zhihua's arms.
Afterward, the Young Madam, who had gone a full twenty-eight hours, forty-three minutes, and five seconds outside of combat without a single snuggle, properly recharged her energy as well.
And when the master of the house is enjoying a delicious late-night snack, the guest can't very well be left out in the cold.
So besides Su Ling'er, who poured the tea and served the water, Miss Grace was invited to the table too. (Tea: refers to a woman as fresh and lovely as green tea. Pour: used interchangeably with "pound".)
The supper atmosphere was fairly harmonious. Su Ling'er and the other two diners had built up a certain tacit understanding over many rounds of cooperation.
Lady Zhihua was someone Miss Grace acknowledged. Lady Zhihua, for her part, wanted to try adapting to the life the Young Madam so loved, and Miss Grace was a relatively easy place to start, so she tacitly allowed the guest to share the lovely evening.
True, at the start of the meal everyone was silent. Miss Grace would stop her chopsticks whenever Lady Zhihua reached for a dish, and Lady Zhihua would stare straight ahead whenever Miss Grace sipped her soup. But thanks to the Young Madam's improvised song-and-dance performance, the mood finally warmed up, and host and guests all had a wonderful time, cozy and merry.
After the meal, Lady Zhihua's cultivation base had advanced another big step, which was nothing to marvel at.
But Miss Grace had untied the knot in her heart.
What happened back in Folded Space D-07 had been a great mountain pressing on Miss Grace's heart. Li Fei's forgiveness had made the mountain collapse with a roar, yet the broken ruins left behind still lodged like a lump in her chest.
Those ruins came from Qin Zhihua. After all, they were friends who had fought side by side and survived life and death together in Viranean. And whether in perilous danger or back in the city, Lady Zhihua had behaved almost flawlessly, which made the interloper feel guilty.
Besides, in Miss Grace's view, it was she who had personally pushed an angel into the abyss, an angel who had trusted her and who was desperately fighting a witch's wicked instincts. The angel had fallen deeper and deeper, and what should have been a happy romance had grown… tangled.
So the guilt had weighed on the icy girl's heart all along. Now, at last, Lady Zhihua had expressed her forgiveness through action.
The ruins in her heart vanished like smoke. Grace felt as though a veil had lifted and the clouds had parted to let the sun through. Even her thoughts turned light and clear, and leaping inspiration, like burning firewood, drove her forward on the Transcendent path.
She had only just stepped into Sequence 7, yet the gates of advanced Transcendent knowledge swung silently open, and dazzling light burst forth.
A triple blessing, basically.
Of course, Li "Supreme Cauldron" Fei knew nothing about any of this.
…
The morning ran busy and orderly. The War Academy guest instructor, the Magic Academy special admit, and the apothecary shop manager tidied up and dressed with quiet footsteps, ate a little breakfast in the living room, then bid everyone a friendly farewell.
Isn't this pretty good, too?
Qin Zhihua paused at the door for a moment, let out a barely perceptible sigh, then stepped into the bright sunlight and walked toward the War Academy.
Today was her trial day. If all went well, Sequence 4 would be within arm's reach.
…
Those who had to work had gone to work, but those who should have gone to school hadn't gone to school at all.
Grace returned to the bedroom and sat quietly beside Li Fei, hugging her knees.
A rich scent of tea filled the room. It streamed ceaselessly into Miss Grace's nose, slid down her throat into her heart, dissolved into her blood, and finally gathered on the back of her hand.
On that smooth, porcelain-white hand sat a small brand, identical in shape to the black-and-red longbow. It was one of the rewards she had earned after completing the Legacy trial in Remish. It could seal her Legacy armament within the brand and transform her in an instant whenever needed.
The Legacy armament consisted of a black-and-red longbow and a square black metal cube. The cube could turn to liquid and wrap her whole body, forming a seamless bodysuit for combat.
Originally the longbow had a spirit, while the combat suit was a dead object. But as the rolling tea fragrance poured into it, the cold, lifeless black metal somehow gained vitality. It looked like a puddle of melted poison, extending countless thin black tendrils that waved at random like flying snakes.
Hm?
Grace raised the back of her hand and stared at the brand, doubt in her sky-blue eyes. She vaguely sensed that something was gestating inside it, but when she focused to observe, the armament sealed within showed nothing unusual.
Just then, the Young Madam stirring awake drew all of Miss Grace's attention.
And once her gaze moved away, the black metal block in the brand slowly pushed out a single tentacle, then abruptly retracted it.
…
A different kind of feeling.
After waking, Li Fei still felt languid all over and refused to get up. She rolled over, wrapped an arm around Miss Grace's soft, slender waist, rested her head on those cool, firm thighs, and emptied her mind to enjoy five minutes of lap pillow time.
Group dinners were nothing new to Li Fei. But dinners and dinners were different.
Dinner with the two noble ladies Consort Xiang and Consort Hui, for example. Everyone could sip juice and peel lobsters, tangled up with each other like knotted hair. The Golden Tangerine Tavern's team-building outings were much the same.
Last night's dinner, however, was one fish eaten many ways. Several cooks, focused and patient, prepared the same live mermaid. You slapped the tail to firm up the flesh, I marinated the lips to let the flavor soak in, and every so often we flipped her over and switched places, savoring her again and again, until a single top-grade ingredient yielded a dazzling array of flavors.
Fish is what I desire, and bear's paw is also what I desire. If I can't have both, then that just proves my Art of Tea isn't good enough…
Her drifting thoughts gradually gathered. Li Fei propped herself up and pinched Miss Grace's tender little face for a kiss.
"I'm going to have breakfast. Let's head out together in a bit."
"Mm."
Faced with the affectionate, sweet morning ritual, Miss Poker Face responded in kind.
One from you, one from me, and naturally things got out of hand. The Young Madam's wake-up time slipped later by a good while.
She put on her robe and stood, but didn't head straight for the living room. Instead she found an empty room to open her blind boxes.
She had received a pile of living gifts yesterday, and now it was time to unwrap and see what was inside. Surely some of those generous rich ladies wouldn't disappoint Miss Top Courtesan.
First up was the fourth tier: gifts bought with funds pooled by the big fan clubs.
These included solo-fan hangouts like [Fei-bao Pant-Pant] and [Fierce Belly Strikes], as well as couple-shipper groups like the [Three Mage-Girls Cuddle Research Institute] and the [Twin Special Admits Power Station]. Those keen on this trendy stuff were mostly students, and the time Spell Encyclopedia Lady had won the most fans was, of course, when she took the championship at the exchange tournament.
To the young people of both academies, the three little mage-girls, two freshmen among them, had been dark horses nobody believed in. Yet they had fought their way through round after round, soaring all the way, and finally pulled off a miracle and seized the crown. It was simply too thrilling… And judging by Teacher Annie's ever-rising novel sales, the people of the Enros Continent loved a power fantasy too, hehe.
Li Fei sat cross-legged and unhurriedly opened the gift box from [Li Fei's Sole Officially Designated Fan Club]. It was fairly heavy, but unfortunately there was nothing very valuable inside.
Snacks, drinks, greeting cards, flowers… Only a small amount of jewelry was worth any money. Li Fei clicked her tongue and pushed it all aside.
She could feel everyone's affection, but so sorry, your idol is a very materialistic woman…
Her movements turned rough. In a clatter she tore open several big boxes. Most held unremarkable stuff, but some of it was quite interesting.
Some picture albums, for instance.
Most of the albums were wholesome, but the [Fei-bao Pant-Pant] and [Fierce Belly Strikes] fan clubs deserved to be called out by name, because the albums they sent could only be viewed by adult women.
Li Fei idly flipped through the unspeakable pages, her expression growing more and more serious, and finally snapped the book shut in a huff.
This little? Who's it supposed to be enough for?
If the Irena fan club next door found out, they'd think this Palace's fan club didn't have enough artists. Next time, pay attention and send more.
Muttering to herself, Li Fei flung the pure-love, wholesome albums far away, then solemnly put away the rest, planning to critique them thoroughly when she had time.
Incidentally, quite a few albums and greeting cards bore the same signatures. Some artists wrote things like "Fei-bao and Miss Lilith are real, I'm shipping them till I die" in their cards, then turned around and mailed Li Fei an album titled "Two Special Admits Snuggling in the Lounge While the Blonde Twintail Loser Heroine Weeps Silently at the Door"…
After the fan clubs came the hostess sisters' gifts, classified as the third tier.
A box of high-quality Serpent-woman scales!
A set of pantyhose in three colors!
A pair of diamond-chip earrings!
…
A smile gradually spread across Li Fei's face. Clearly, the gifts from her sisters were very practical and exactly to her liking.
As a hostess, she naturally had to change outfits all the time, and the more jewelry and accessories the better. Her sisters were all generous, had good taste, and doted on Fei-bao, so the dresses and accessories they chose with care were never bad, and Miss Top Courtesan couldn't put them down.
Of course, what she liked best were the Serpent-woman scales, which were consumables just like cheap stockings.
Li Fei couldn't live without Serpent-woman scales, just as humans can't live without air and Lady Zhihua can't give up her Dream-Shattering Blade.
And the very best scales came from Daisha and Aurora. One set had been shed from the owner's own body, and Li Fei could tell by feel, having handled them plenty. The other was an exquisitely packaged food box, labeled [Sequence 4 Serpent-woman Scales, Nine-Piece Pack], net weight 50 grams.
Sequence 4, wow!
Materials of this grade went for around a hundred thousand per standard unit. Casting Abyssal Lava once with the Blood Demon Scripture, for instance, burned Transcendent blood essence worth a hundred thousand gold coins, and Blazing Sun-grade equipment of the same tier started at a million.
Fifty grams of Serpent-woman scales came to about half a unit, easily worth at least two villas for Miss Philanthropist! In Loxibrook, you'd even have to queue and book ahead to buy them!
In fact, what Li Fei usually ate was only Sequence 8 grade. She only parted with Sequence 7 grade when the aftereffects of her soul damage flared up badly.
As for what Lady Daisha had given her after she stayed over at her place, she'd barely touched any of it. The little witch had noticed that whenever she mixed an ascension potion, tangerine juice and Serpent-woman scales were both indispensable ingredients. That meant Lady Daisha's scales were a key to the gate of Sequence 4 and couldn't be squandered carelessly.
Now she had two more portions, so she could at least taste some on holidays and festivals…
Li Fei put the scales away with great care, her gaze as reverent and her hands as gentle as when she folded the high-quality pantyhose.
Before long the sisters' boxes were all opened. Overall, Miss Top Courtesan was quite satisfied, though the Water Elemental Witch and the Dwarf Witch deserved to be called out by name.
What the two of them had sent were functional toys, which could even be infused with mana to adjust temperature, frequency, and so on.
But snuggling? How could it rely on external objects?
As a staunch fundamentalist, Li Fei trusted only her own hands and eloquence and refused to use any props.
Of course, Miss Tail didn't count as an external object.
Anyway, in Li Fei's eyes, those two gifts were no different from cilantro, or from blue-bottle toilet cleaner packaged as cola. Their only destination was the sewer or the trash can.
"Phew…"
Li Fei wiped nonexistent sweat from her brow and went on opening boxes. This time it was the second tier.
Irena: one spell notebook.
Beatrice: [Spell Scroll: Tier 4: Mass Acceleration].
Fufu: a shed unicorn horn. Since it fell off before adulthood, it was only Sequence 5 grade material.
Teacher Annie: a Full Moon-grade healing potion.
Teacher Melodia: [Spell Scroll: Tier 5: Summon Succubus (Melodia Edition)].
Lady Kalida: a set of priceless jewelry.
Sister Ling'er: one lingzhi mushroom.
…
With most of the boxes opened, Li Fei tidied the room a little, cleared a wide stretch of bed, rubbed her hands together, and wore an eager look.
But she held back. She even summoned a green-skinned Children of the Jungle, cast a Fortune Spell on herself, and chopped the poor thing into motes of light with a hand blade.
The ceremony was as grand as a gacha pull.
The earlier gifts mostly belonged to the "daily life" category. There was no shortage of precious jewelry, Serpent-woman scales, and luxury pantyhose, and the two Spell Scrolls and the Full Moon-grade healing potion couldn't be ignored either, but overall their usefulness was limited.
What came next was the main event.
The remaining gifts all came from ladies who were close to her and very rich, very close to her and rich, or very close to her and very rich, and so were filed under the [First Tier].
Why wasn't Teacher Annie counted among them?
Well, yes, but sorry, she's a materialistic girl after all… A bestselling author's royalties were certainly considerable, but next to a Transcendent's, they still fell a bit short.
Even Miss Grace, the lowest in Sequence rank, had recently gained a new Legacy fortune, which would surely bring Li Fei a pleasant surprise.
Oh, right!
Li Fei suddenly slapped her forehead.
Why not put Lady Zhihua's gift in the second tier too?
She had only just stepped into Sequence 5, she was busy preparing the resources needed to advance to Sequence 4, she had to brew all sorts of commonly used potions for the Young Madam, including the [Potent Luck Potion], and she still had to gather the materials for [Goddess of Fortune's Smile]… Her private savings must have been drained dry.
Gomen ne, Sister Zhihua. I do love you, but who told you to pick a materialistic girl as your fiancée… hehe.
Li Fei selectively ignored the fact that she had apologized three times in under half an hour, and gently lifted the lid of Lady Zhihua's gift box.
…
Inside the War Academy, an angel in a silver battle skirt bathed in the sunlight, white wings spread, radiating wisps of a high-Sequence aura, holy and lofty, too majestic to look at directly.
A sword-wielding woman stood before the angel, her white dress like snow, her beauty unmatched.
Though both her frame and her aura seemed small, the swordswoman remained calm and composed, her clear eyes reflecting the charming tear mole on the angel's cheek, as if a god were facing off against an immortal.
The angel lowered her gaze and struck with a single slash, and another hazy sword aura rose from below, inverted.
Clang!
The black-haired woman in white stumbled back several steps. Cracks split the hem of her dress, and the sword in her hand trembled without pause.
"Your True Qi is special, and powerful too."
The angel's silver hair fell like a waterfall, and divine patterns flowed in her golden eyes. "Stronger than I was back then. You pass."
"You flatter me, Lady Chloe."
Qin Zhihua wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, her tone still gentle as water.
"Sign the contract. You should have advanced to Sequence 4 long ago."
Chloe held out a spell contract.
"Gomen ne… I know, but…"
Suddenly, Qin Zhihua heard faint, delirious murmurs. She frowned at once and pressed a hand to her lower abdomen.
"What's wrong?"
Sensing the new instructor's abruptly disordered breathing, Chloe's eyes burst with divine light, making the tear mole on her face gleam.
To her surprise, Qin Zhihua's condition didn't worsen. Instead, the paths her True Qi traveled became more complex and refined, interweaving into a mysterious pattern like stars scattered across the sky.
After a moment, the riotous True Qi settled, and it had grown purer and more vast.
Faced with this baffling phenomenon, the Vice Dean was silent for only a few seconds. Then she withdrew the spell contract and took out another one, of the highest grade.
Because the angel realized that if the new female instructor before her could sustain this miraculous state,
then her Innate Talent might well rival that of her own [friend].
____
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