Yun Bei Fen and Mei Chao Bing leisurely walked through the forest. Or, well, Mei Chao Bing walked leisurely. Yun Bei Fen walked next to him at first but then he felt that it wasn’t too appropriate. He slowed down his steps until he walked half a step behind Mei Chao Bing.

This should be alright, shouldn’t it? He glanced up at him but … now he couldn’t even see his face. Ah, his senior martial brother was still very handsome! The way his black hair fell down that straight back …

In the front, Mei Chao Bing’s lips twitched. This little bunny … What was he thinking about? It felt as if he was trying to strip him with his gaze … He glanced over the shoulder and found Yun Bei Fen stare at him with big eyes. The little bunny was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn’t even notice that the person in question had turned to him.

Mei Chao Bing smiled and looked back to the front, simply continuing forward. Whatever Yun Bei Fen did, it was good. He just wanted to spend time with him, after all.

Yun Bei Fen finally managed to shake himself out of his reverie. He hastened his steps and arrived next to Mei Chao Bing again. His gaze instinctively raised to his senior martial brother’s profile and followed those straight lines. Ah, senior martial brother Mei was really very handsome … He was so … so …

Yun Bei Fen blinked. "Eh? Senior martial brother Mei, is everything alright? Your face suddenly got red."

Mei Chao Bing’s lips twitched. What was he supposed to say to that?

Yun Bei Fen misinterpreted that movement though. He stepped closer and grabbed his arm with a worried look in his eyes. "Senior martial brother … Did you hurt yourself when we fell and didn’t dare to say it because you were afraid I’d be worried? So you’ve been forcing yourself all this time?"

"Ah?" This time Mei Chao Bing couldn’t help but turn to him and raise his brows. "That … That’s not it."

"You don’t need to pretend in front of me, really! Just tell me where it hurts! I can … I can take care of you!"

Mei Chao Bing stopped walking and reached over, patting Yun Bei Fen’s head. "You’re so cute. But I’m alright. Didn’t I already say so?"

"Yes …" Yun Bei Fen pursed his lips. "But is it really true? You were unconscious for so long …"

"It’s really true." He reached out and cupped Yun Bei Fen’s cheek. "Have you forgotten that we’re cultivators? And my realm is much higher than yours. Such a fall can’t hurt me at all. So you can stop worrying. If anything, I should be worried about you."

Yun Bei Fen’s cheeks flushed red and he looked to the ground. "You don’t need to worry about me. I’m alright. I’m … I’m very strong! I just had a breakthrough before I came out of my seclusion!" He looked back up and smiled brightly.

"Oh. My Fen’er is very strong indeed." Mei Chao Bing grinned and rubbed Yun Bei Fen’s cheeks. It really was too funny to have someone of his level worry about the well-being of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.

"Mn! So if anything happens, I’ll be able to help you!" Yun Bei Fen hugged his senior martial brother’s arm and pulled him down the path again. "I might not be able to fly yet but other than that, I can do everything else!"

"Show me."

"Mn?" Yun Bei Fen froze and stared up at Mei Chao Bing. What did he mean 'show me'?

Mei Chao Bing laughed at his dazed expression and pulled him along. "You’ve been in secluded cultivation for a long time, haven’t you? You haven’t even left the sect for a single mission, have you?"

"Uh … Well …"

"Did you ever get the opportunity to use your spiritual energy?"

"No …"

"Then it’s time you try." He took out his sword, stepped onto the blade and pulled Yun Bei Fen with him. Together, they flashed down the path and then deeper into the woods.

Yun Bei Fen clung to Mei Chao Bing and pressed his eyes shut. He had nothing against flying fast but … Why were they flying so fast in a forest?! There were trees everywhere! What if they crashed against one of them? They had already fallen down once! This time they weren’t as high up but it would still hurt! Not that he had been the one to get hurt the last time …

Mei Chao Bing finally slowed down and leaped from the sword. "You can open your eyes now."

Yun Bei Fen shook his head and continued to press himself against Mei Chao Bing. He definitely wouldn’t let go!

"We’ve already landed so you don’t need to be afraid anymore."

Yun Bei Fen tentatively cracked one eye open and glanced around. They were … not whooshing through the forest anymore. Instead, it seemed they were … His eyes flew open and he looked in all directions. Where was this? This was … this was beautiful!

Mei Chao Bing had brought them to a clearing. The trees stood around it in an almost perfectly shaped circle and no path disrupted the lush grass to their feet. The sunlight spilled down through the leaves of the overhanging branches, dotting the ground with specks of warmth and illuminating the colorful flowers. No breeze blew, making everything seem still as if this place had been frozen in time.

Yun Bei Fen didn’t dare to say anything else. He only looked around and his death grip on Mei Chao Bing’s robe slowly loosened. How come a place such as this existed? It was so … peaceful.

Yun Bei Fen looked back up at Mei Chao Bing and beamed at him. He didn’t dare to break the silence, so he reached up and encircled his neck, tiptoeing to give him a kiss. His eyes slowly fell shut, their breath intermingled and … something tugged at the back of his robe.

Yun Bei Fen’s eyes opened in surprise but before he could look behind him, he was pulled out of Mei Chao Bing’s arms and dragged to the ground. Tears sprang to his eyes and he tried to turn to the side to take in a breath but something held him down on the ground. Eh? Eh?! Just what was happening here?!

He looked to Mei Chao Bing in a panic, quietly pleading for help.

His senior martial brother’s lips twitched. "Fen’er. Since you’re such a strong cultivator, you shouldn’t have any trouble dealing with such a small plant spirit. I’ll wait over there until you’ve finished." With that, he turned around and sat down below a big tree as if he didn’t care about Yun Bei Fen’s plight at all.