Wang Yanran stayed for only an hour before leaving. After all, she was well aware that she had been coming over to absorb spiritual energy far too often and didn’t want Ye Chuan to grow annoyed with her. So, she always maintained a careful balance of distance and propriety.
Her next task was to handle matters related to the pharmaceutical company for Ye Chuan—since their preliminary agreement still required many details to be ironed out. Wang Yanran didn’t want to trouble or burden Ye Chuan with these, choosing instead to take care of them quietly herself.
If not for her status as the eldest daughter of the Wang family, people might have mistaken her for Ye Chuan’s personal secretary or assistant.
She was practically his most capable right-hand woman.
"Chuan, I should head back soon too. I still need to buy groceries later," Luo Xi said. After all, she couldn’t just stay cooped up at Ye Chuan’s place every day. As much as she wanted to cling to him, she still had to go home occasionally to help her mother with chores.
"I don’t want to leave," Luo Xi pouted.
"It’s just a short walk," Ye Chuan chuckled.
His home wasn’t far from Luo Xi’s—in a way, they were practically neighbors within the same residential complex.
"Such a straight man."
"My heart is always with you."
"Player."
"Get lost." Ye Chuan lifted his foot and gave Luo Xi’s backside a light kick. She stuck out her tongue playfully, let out a small huff, and then scampered off.
"I’m telling Mom you hit me!"
"Go ahead, see if I care." Watching her ponytail bounce as she ran, Ye Chuan couldn’t help but shake his head.
After Luo Xi left, the room grew quieter, with only the sound from the TV filling the space.
Ye Chuan glanced over and noticed Bai Qianshuang still sitting on the sofa, hugging a pillow to her chest and resting her chin on top of it.
Sensing his gaze, Bai Qianshuang’s aura shifted slightly, though her eyes remained fixed on the television.
Ye Chuan sat down beside her. "Is this show good?"
"Mhm."
"That’s the male lead?"
"Mhm."
"Should we practice some Daoist techniques together?"
"Mhm."
Bai Qianshuang froze for a few seconds, as if snapping out of a daze, and tightened her grip on the pillow. "Daoist techniques… what kind?"
"Dual cultivation."
Bai Qianshuang fell silent, burying half of her delicate face into the pillow. Ye Chuan could see her ears turning pink, though he had no idea what was going through her mind.
After a long pause, she finally let out a soft, "Mhm."
"So… how do we do it?" Seeing her actually agree, Ye Chuan couldn’t resist teasing her further.
"The method of harmonizing yin and yang," Bai Qianshuang explained. "We must press our palms together and remove our clothing to avoid obstructing the flow of spiritual energy."
"Once our energies merge, our cultivation speed will increase significantly."
Now it was Ye Chuan’s turn to be stunned. "That’s… it?"
"Mhm." Bai Qianshuang nodded lightly.
"Then why are you blushing? Because of the clothes?"
Bai Qianshuang averted her eyes—clearly, that was the answer.
"I think your sect’s version of dual cultivation is a bit off," Ye Chuan declared.
Bai Qianshuang’s beautiful eyes flickered with confusion. She tilted her head slightly, causing her straight bangs to shift.
Off?
How so?
Though she had never formally studied dual cultivation, Bai Qianshuang had heard her senior sisters explain it before, and the general idea matched what she had just described.
Now that she was a Nascent Soul-stage cultivator with exceptional comprehension, she saw no issue with it.
"Ye Chuan, there is no mistake," she said.
"Wrong! Dead wrong!" Ye Chuan immediately countered. "Qianshuang, have you seen the yin-yang fish? The black and white ones in the Taiji symbol?"
"Naturally…" Bai Qianshuang nodded.
"What are they doing?"
"This…" Bai Qianshuang pondered before answering, "The white yang fish represents yang energy, embodying ascent, warmth, and upward motion. The black yin fish represents yin energy, embodying descent, coolness, and downward motion. This illustrates how all things in the world contain opposing yet complementary forces—such as heaven and earth, day and night, male and female."
"Blah blah blah, I’m asking what the two fish are doing."
Bai Qianshuang hesitated for a few seconds. "Symbolizing the endless cycle of the universe?"
"Wrong! Dead wrong!" Ye Chuan pulled out his phone and pointed at the Taiji diagram. "Look at their shapes—aren’t they pressed together?"
"Yes, they are interdependent," Bai Qianshuang conceded.
"If the yin-yang fish are pressed together, shouldn’t we be too?" Ye Chuan delivered this "lesson" with utmost seriousness.
Bai Qianshuang fell into deep thought.
Though something felt off about his logic, she couldn’t deny that his reasoning made sense.
Yin and yang were inherently interdependent. If they were truly practicing dual cultivation, merely pressing their palms together might not be enough.
"What should I do?" Bai Qianshuang asked Ye Chuan.
She had nearly forgotten that he was the novice in cultivation.
"We should be pressed together." Ye Chuan patted his thigh. "Come, sit in my lap."
Bai Qianshuang’s fingers trembled slightly as she glanced around. "Here?"
"Is there a problem?"
"For cultivation, a private room would be more appropriate."
"We’re not starting yet—just getting familiar with the process."
Bai Qianshuang slowly stood up and then settled onto Ye Chuan’s lap.
Her body was rigid, and she couldn’t bring herself to look at him.
"Relax." Ye Chuan gave her thigh a light pat.
The touch made her flinch, only making her tenser.
Ye Chuan wrapped an arm around Bai Qianshuang’s slender waist but didn’t push further, simply holding her while they watched TV.
Gradually, Bai Qianshuang relaxed, though confusion flickered in her eyes.
What… was he doing?
Was he not going to do anything?
Why was he just holding her?
Yet the warmth of his hand through her clothes stirred an indescribable feeling in her.
"Alright."
Suddenly, Ye Chuan released her. Bai Qianshuang turned to him. "That’s it?"
"You were too tense. Cultivation requires a calm and balanced mind. If you’re stiff as a board, how can we make progress?"
This…
After a moment’s reflection, Bai Qianshuang realized he was right.
Ye Chuan truly intended to cultivate.
Once she understood, Bai Qianshuang steadied her emotions. Her expression returned to its usual impassive state as she adjusted her position to face Ye Chuan directly.
Ye Chuan closed his eyes.
Bai Qianshuang blinked, her gaze unconsciously drifting to his lips.
What was he… expecting?
Did he want her to kiss him?
Memories of their last kiss surfaced in her mind. After a few seconds of hesitation, she slowly leaned in, lowering her head bit by bit.
ial death, also known as "shè sǐ" in Chinese, generally refers to... well, never mind, it's not important. My name is Ye Cheng, and I'm about to experience social death firsthand. ... 【Host, your mission is to confess your love to the young lady of the Dongfang family, the current student council president, in a way that will be unforgettable for everyone at the freshman ceremony!】 【Host, assist the girl with a sprained ankle in front of you to reach the infirmary, and fulfill the wicked thoughts in your heart!】 【Host, act on your desires and punish the arrogant young lady before you mercilessly!】 【Host, follow your instincts—abandon shameful surrender, begging, or groveling, and ruthlessly criticize the domineering, ill-mannered young lady in front of you!】 【Host...】 Ye Cheng: "Here, here, you take this host role—I quit!" Wait, why is the girl with a sprained ankle the daughter of a mafia boss? And what kind of punishment method is this for the arrogant young lady? Also, who the heck said anything about wicked thoughts in my heart? Come out here, let’s settle this one-on-one!!! ... The haughty student council president, the scheming mafia princess, the fragile yandere young lady, the airheaded maid-in-waiting, the mixed-blood loli/...
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
orn and Humiliation】【Forced Love】 In his past life, Lin Ran was betrayed and murdered by his girlfriend and family, while the yandere female aristocrat, who had treated him as a mere plaything, avenged him by doing in his enemies. Upon seeing the yandere female aristocrat lying in the same coffin, ready to die with him, Lin Ran realized how profoundly mistaken he had been. Reborn, he abandoned the fickle campus beauty and wholeheartedly embraced the yandere female aristocrat's arms. "Ran! If I dig out your eyes and turn them into a specimen, you'll only be able to look at me!" Lin Ran: "Darling, kiss me!" "Ran! If I break your legs, you won't run away anymore, right?" Lin Ran: "Love, hold me tight!" "Ran! If..." Lin Ran: "Hush now! Love me more!" Luo Yao: ... Seeing his scumbag dad: "Take him out!" Seeing his stepmother: "Get rid of her!" Seeing his brother: "Eliminate him!" Seeing his white moonlight: "Send that to Southeast Asia!"
