Chapter 183: Formations (extra)
Extra.
About how Li Yuilan taught Xie Qing formations.
The events take place in Li Yuilan’s estate, after her rescue.
===
It was a peaceful morning. Xie Qing opened his eyes after a long meditation and stood up, stretching his neck. He was in the garden. His appearance attracted a lot of attention from the servants of the estate. Due to his heavy wound, he had to walk around shirtless, which caused the maids to stare at him hungrily. Although he had gotten used to it by now.
Despite the time that had passed, his recovery hadn’t progressed much.
“Good morning. Although meditation helps with recovery, you shouldn’t push yourself too hard.” A gentle female voice sounded.
Xie Qing turned around and smiled gently, seeing Li Yuilan. With her elegant gait and light summer white dress that reached her ankles, she looked indescribably beautiful. Her pink hair was tied into a neat braid that fell onto her chest. Li Yuilan’s appearance contained refined beauty and tenderness.
“Good morning. Meditation helps me deal with the pain and distract myself. Besides, the pain isn’t that strong, don’t worry.” Xie Qing reassured her, speaking confidently.
“Really?”
Li Yuilan still looked worried, but Xie Qing’s words did make her feel a little better. The guilt over Xie Qing’s wound still weighed on her young heart. Such concern touched even the young man who considered himself quite stoic and not overly emotional.
There was nothing to do. Lu Yin had left for a while, and Li Yuilan and Xie Qing were in no hurry to go outside. So they decided to take a walk in the garden, away from the servants’ gaze. They were smart enough to leave them alone.
Xie Qing was silent for a while. He was a little embarrassed because he didn’t know what topic to bring up. Cultivation? Too banal… Alchemy? Well, Li Yuilan wasn’t very knowledgeable about it. Formations? Perfect!
“Li Yuilan, I heard that the Starry Stream Sect recently developed new formations for spiritual items…” Xie Qing began.
“Oh, that’s right. I also participated in the development, but most of the work was done by the Master. This formation will create a barrier that can serve both protective and comforting roles.” Li Yuilan shyly smiled and happily told him everything: “They will soon be on sale. I reserved ten spots and will definitely give you one!”
“I’ll shamelessly accept your kindness,” Xie Qing replied with an awkward smile and asked, “Do you need anything? I would like to repay you for this favor. I feel uncomfortable accepting but not giving anything in return…”
“Hmm, I don’t know…”
Li Yuilan looked puzzled. It seemed she didn’t need anything at the moment. Nevertheless, Xie Qing was glad to help her. He didn’t want to take advantage of her kindness.
The girl pressed her index finger to her lip, making a thoughtful sound, and seemed to be seriously considering it. However, in the end, she apologized, saying: “Sorry. I don’t even know what I need. Probably nothing.”
“Really? How about some spiritual items? Jewelry?”
“Um, listen, we’re friends, and you don’t have to try to repay me for anything.” Li Yuilan waved her hands and chuckled: “Although, if you agree to help me with formations, I don’t mind.”
“Of course,” Xie Qing replied without hesitation.
“Then let’s go. I’ll teach you at the same time!” Li Yuilan excitedly said, grabbing the young man’s hand and pulling him along.
“Alright.”
—
Crack.
“…”
“…”
Xie Qing’s eyes twitched every time he looked at the wooden token in his left hand. His right hand held something like a needle, with special symbols engraved on the tip. This tool was used to engrave formations on items. Xie Qing asked Li Yuilan to teach him, but…
“This is already the third token…”
Xie Qing hung his head. Even though he was quite patient and diligent, failures still greatly disappointed him.
“D-don’t worry! Everyone has their weaknesses. I couldn’t do it at first either!” Li Yuilan comforted him.
“Really? And which attempt did you succeed on?”
“The second…”
“…”
Xie Qing began to doubt his life. Although he shouldn’t be talented in everything, this still disappointed him a little.
Li Yuilan smiled awkwardly. On one hand, she was happy to have surpassed Xie Qing in something, but on the other, she felt uncomfortable seeing him suffer.
“Although I find this a little cute,” the girl thought, watching Xie Qing’s determined expression.
It seemed that he had not given up and started engraving again. Li Yuilan gently smiled and guided him. It took Xie Qing more than ten attempts to finally make a simple storage and release Qi engraving. His expression looked soft as he gazed at his creation. Although the system gave this item an “Ordinary” rating, Xie Qing was satisfied.
“Well done. You tried hard,” Li Yuilan said with a delighted expression, clapping her hands.
“You know, this is a little awkward… It’s like you’re comforting a child…”
“Hee-hee.”
Xie Qing twisted his mouth and shook his head, laughing. Li Yuilan smiled brightly and laughed, looking very cute. After a few minutes, Li Yuilan began teaching him new formations and engraving methods. Although Xie Qing found it difficult, he was attentive and diligent.
Li Yuilan found him very charming and couldn’t help but smile tenderly.
“It seems there are things you’re weak in too,” the girl said, voicing her thoughts.
“Really? Well, that’s natural. Although I’ve become a bit arrogant, I used to struggle with cultivation,” Xie Qing replied honestly, a little surprised: “For example, even after joining the sect, I couldn’t cultivate properly. I had a hard time even with the most basic Dao techniques.”
“No way. You’re lying!”
“No, it’s true.”
Xie Qing smiled faintly. Although he still didn’t know and was wary of the System, it was the one that helped him become who he is now. The first task still lingered in his mind. In just one day, his life drastically changed.
Li Yuilan was touched. Xie Qing, by telling her this, was clearly showing his trust. So she couldn’t help but be happy.
“A-and… Does L-Lu Yin know about this?” Li Yuilan asked with some nervousness.
“Hmm?” Xie Qing didn’t understand why she was so curious, but still answered: “No. I haven’t told many people about this. Maybe only my mother and Master know.”
“Really?”
Li Yuilan felt better for some reason, and her mood improved. She even started humming a little tune. Xie Qing had some thoughts, but he decided to keep quiet and focus on engraving first.
Crack.
“I-it’s okay, calm down…”
—
Xie Qing sighed heavily. Finally, after twenty damn attempts, he created his first decent item. It was the same token, with an engraving that imitated a basic Sword Dao skill. When activated with Qi, the token sent an attack in the shape of a crescent towards the enemy. Xie Qing used his Sword Aura, so the item turned out quite good.
“Excellent. You did very well!” Li Yuilan gave her approval with a smile.
“Yes!”
Xie Qing smiled, and the gloominess on his face disappeared. Formations were very difficult, especially engraving them. However, he gradually improved and made fewer mistakes. And it seemed that these two ignored the small pile of broken and cracked wooden tokens.
“Thank you. You really explain things well. If it were someone else, the cultivation world would have to destroy all the trees for me to make an engraving,” Xie Qing said with a laugh.
“All the trees? Good thing it’s me teaching you,” Li Yuilan giggled, accepting his compliment.
—
As night approached, it was probably time to go to sleep. However, Xie Qing was faced with an unusual request.
“Can you… um… stay in my room tonight? Just for tonight, okay?”
“Really? No problem…”
Xie Qing nodded. Upon hearing his words, Li Yuilan beamed and smiled so brightly that her smile could blind even those wearing sunglasses. Seeing such a sweet and radiant smile, Xie Qing couldn’t help but want to protect her. The power of cuteness was truly frightening.
The girl sat on the bed and patted the blanket, clearly inviting Xie Qing to sit next to her. Xie Qing wasn’t one to be shy, so seeing Li Yuilan asking for it herself, he shrugged and sat down next to her. Only then did the girl nod in satisfaction. She took his hand and leaned against his shoulder.
“Please… Can this be considered my reward?” She whispered softly, sounding very anxious.
“Of course.”
The young man smiled gently and did not refuse. Only then did Li Yuilan sigh in relief and close her eyes. After a few minutes, her gentle snores could be heard. Xie Qing looked out the window and smiled carefreely. The bright moonlight disappeared second by second behind the clouds. It was getting a bit chilly.
Despite this, the feeling of the girl’s warm breath on his shoulder (Xie Qing was wearing a loose white robe) was enough to warm him. Tomorrow, a new day would arrive.
