Uh... Su Ji... Don't look...

Two days passed in a flash.

During these two days, Su Ji was restless, and his progress in repairing his Dao Foundation had slowed down significantly.

He couldn't help but constantly recall that fleeting glimpse he had caught.

It made him completely unable to find any peace.

This afternoon, he was sitting cross-legged on his bed, fretting over his cracked Glazed Dao Foundation, when his door was knocked on with a tap, tap, tap.

Su Ji got up and opened the door.

Standing outside was none other than Su Jiu, whom he hadn't seen for two days.

Her beautiful and elegant face looked even more fair and translucent under the afternoon sun.

"Senior Brother."

Su Jiu's gaze was a bit erratic, not daring to meet Su Ji's eyes.

"I need to consolidate my cultivation these next couple of days. Could you... lend me some spirit stones?"

Her voice was very soft, carrying a trace of imperceptible embarrassment.

Su Ji was taken aback and instinctively asked in return, "Didn't I give you half last time? Is it still not enough? Consolidating cultivation requires..."

He stopped abruptly midway through his sentence.

A thought exploded in his mind like a flash of lightning.

Su Ji's brow twitched violently, but he quickly controlled his expression.

He picked up his previous sentence as fast as he could, his tone carrying a bit of exaggerated surprise. "You need that many spirit stones?"

Su Jiu lowered her eyes a bit more.

"Just lend me some. Once I finish consolidating my cultivation, I'll go out to look for some cultivation resources and pay you back double, Senior Brother."

Looking at her like this, Su Ji felt a myriad of mixed emotions in his heart.

He was almost certain that this was the omen.

But he still wanted to confirm it one last time.

Su Ji immediately put on a forthright expression and waved his hand grandly.

"Ah, Junior Sister, you're treating me like an outsider by saying that."

"With the relationship between us two, what's there to talk about borrowing?"

As he spoke, he leaned in closer and lowered his voice.

"How much do you need? Just give your Senior Brother a number."

Su Jiu didn't seem to expect him to be so straightforward. She looked up and cast him a somewhat surprised glance.

"One hundred and fifty top-grade spirit stones."

Su Ji's heart suddenly twitched.

Although he hadn't carefully calculated how much of his fortune was left, he estimated it was around one hundred and fifty stones.

This little fox was trying to squeeze him dry!

Seeing Su Ji fall silent, Su Jiu didn't find it strange.

After all, this was not a small sum.

Given Su Ji's greedy and lustful nature, it would be weird if he agreed so readily.

Unless...

Su Jiu's cheeks grew slightly hot.

Unless she sacrificed some of her physical charm, perhaps it would be possible.

But was she that kind of fox?

Obviously not.

She bit her lip and was just about to say that she would think of another way.

But Su Ji suddenly spoke.

"Alright."

Just one word, clean and decisive.

Su Jiu was completely stunned.

She looked at Su Ji in disbelief, as if trying to find some clue on his face.

Yet Su Ji's face was completely calm, even carrying a bit of the heroic spirit of "Junior Sister, you underestimate me too much."

But Su Ji's heart was bleeding.

He finally understood why he had appeared so sneakily outside Su Jiu's window in the vision from Prying into Heaven's Mandate.

Damn curiosity!

It had trapped him, Su Ji, into being unrighteous and disloyal!

Su Ji slowly took out a bulging storage bag from his robes.

His face was full of heartache, but he forced himself to hand it over.

"Here."

"Junior Sister, you must spend it sparingly. It's not easy for your Senior Brother to earn spirit stones..."

Su Jiu took the bag of spirit stones; it felt heavy in her hand.

Looking at Su Ji's feigned generosity, a warm current surged in her heart, and her previous embarrassment vanished into thin air.

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

She thanked him solemnly and turned to return to her own courtyard.

"Ah, wait!"

Su Ji stopped her again.

Su Jiu turned back, somewhat puzzled.

"Does Junior Sister need Senior Brother to help guard your Dao while you consolidate your cultivation?"

Su Jiu's cheeks suddenly flushed red, and she shot Su Ji an annoyed glare.

"I don't need it."

After saying that, she quickly left without looking back. Her retreating figure looked somewhat like she was fleeing in panic.

Watching her disappearing figure, Su Ji let out a long sigh.

He just felt a wave of dullness.

Never mind, never mind.

Just consider it... a bit of an early investment for his Junior Sister's safety.

Su Ji comforted himself like this, then turned around, closed the door, and began to ponder a very serious question.

When the time came, from which angle should he look to see more clearly?

...

Two hours passed in the blink of an eye.

It was already approaching evening.

Su Ji sat on his bed as if there were nails under his buttocks; he couldn't sit still no matter what.

According to his memory, it was just about this time.

Su Ji took a deep breath.

No, if this thought wasn't smoothed out, he wouldn't even be able to repair his Dao Foundation.

What kind of person was he, Su Ji?

One who repays kindness and is always ready to help others for a just cause!

When his Junior Sister was in trouble, how could he just stand by and watch?

Besides, when cultivators explored the profound gateways of their own blessed lands, their minds were the most relaxed, and they were most prone to making mistakes.

Especially someone with little experience like Su Jiu. What if she suffered from cultivation deviation?

Both emotionally and reasonably, he should go and guard her Dao.

Yes, guard her Dao.

Su Ji found an incredibly glorious and righteous reason for his actions, and the slight awkwardness in his heart vanished instantly.

He stood up, straightened his robes, restored his calm and indifferent expression, and pushed the door open to leave.

He was now very familiar with the way to Su Jiu's courtyard.

This time, he didn't dare to climb the wall and take the back door.

You know, because he had taken the back door so many times, Su Jiu was already used to him taking the back door.

Only by taking the front door this time could he catch her off guard.

Su Ji moved silently, without disturbing even a single leaf.

He stealthily crept right under Su Jiu's window.

Su Ji held his breath and listened carefully.

It was completely quiet inside the room.

He cautiously poked his head out and looked toward the window.

Poke a hole in the window?

No, that would be too obvious and hard to explain afterward.

He rolled his eyes and noticed that the wooden latch on the window didn't seem to be tightly fastened, leaving a nearly imperceptible gap.

Su Ji felt a burst of joy in his heart. He extended his finger, wrapped it in spirit energy, and extremely slowly pushed the gap open just a tiny bit more.

His field of vision gradually unfolded before his eyes.

Then, Su Ji was stunned.

This wasn't right.

It was completely different from the scene in Prying into Heaven's Mandate.

The large, soft bed in the room was completely empty.

Su Jiu... wasn't on the bed?

Not good!

Could he have arrived too late?

Su Ji's gaze quickly swept across the room, finally locking onto the tea table in the center.

Su Jiu was standing right there.

With her back to the window, she was dressed in entirely white clothes, her long hair flowing down like a waterfall.

She looked eagerly poised to try something at the corner of the table.

That wasn't all.

What made Su Ji's pupils shrink sharply was that on the tea table lay the two broken halves of the Lustrous Spear!

When did she pick up this piece of junk and bring it back?

Just as Su Ji was filled with confusion.

Su Jiu moved.

As if she had made up her mind, she gently bit her lower lip with her pearly white teeth and slowly reached out her hand, moving toward that broken half of the spear shaft.

Her fingertips trembled slightly as they touched the cold body of the spear.

A murmur, as faint as a mosquito's buzz, escaped from her lips.

"Su Ji..."

Oh no!

Junior Sister is in danger!

Su Jiu wasn't a spear cultivator at all. If she touched such a fierce weapon, what if she got hurt?

What a sin!

What a sin!

How could he, Su Ji, just stand by and watch such a tragedy unfold?

Su Ji puffed out his cheeks, forcefully smoothing away the inappropriate expression on his face.

A moment later...

To use a common phrase from novels: Su Ji's eyes were now a picture of pure clarity, devoid of the slightest trace of wicked thoughts.

He turned around and retreated to the entrance of the courtyard.

Then, he stopped concealing his presence!

Taking large strides to the door, he raised his hand and pushed it open.

"Creak—"

The wooden door let out a long, drawn-out groan.

"Junior Sister, I just gave it some careful thought..."

Su Ji's voice, laced with just the right touch of urgency, rang out in the room.

Then, the moment he laid eyes on Su Jiu by the table, he flawlessly switched to a look of utter astonishment.

His words came to an abrupt halt.

His voice caught in his throat, stuck halfway.

His acting was masterful, completely seamless and natural.

By the table, Su Jiu whipped around like a startled deer.

When she saw Su Ji at the doorway, her entire body froze.

She was still gripping the broken half of the spear in her hand. The captivating blush on her face had yet to fade, and her eyes were brimming with panic and bewilderment.

The air seemed to freeze in that very moment.

At a visible rate, Su Jiu's cheeks went from pink to deathly pale, and then flushed into a crimson so deep it looked as if it could bleed.

She opened her mouth, seemingly wanting to explain something, but could not utter a single word.

In the end, her myriad of emotions culminated in a single tearful whimper.

"Wu~ Su Ji... don't look..."