Chapter 36 - Spring Fruits
"Oof..."
The sword in young Luo Hongyu's hand was sent flying high and landed straight on the ground.
She clutched her hand and stared blankly in the direction where the sword had fallen.
The grapevines on the grapevine trellis had already climbed all over the entire frame and had borne grapes for five years.
This year, Luo Hongyu was fifteen years old.
Luo Hongyu, dressed in cyan-white sword attire, sat down dejectedly by the pond. Under the gentle sunlight, her delicate and pretty face shone brightly through the gaps in the light.
"Luo He, how on earth do you practice the sword, to be so formidable..."
"Tell me, did Senior Sister Gu secretly give you special lessons?"
"Of course not."
Luo He helped Luo Hongyu retrieve the sword and sheathe it; afterwards, he also sat down beside Luo Hongyu.
As soon as he sat down, Luo Hongyu, without any ceremony, turned on her side and lay down, falling straight into Luo He's embrace.
She raised her head; she couldn't see the glaring sun, she could only see the beautiful eyes of the person who was blocking the sunlight for her.
"Help me pick a bunch of grapes."
"Here."
Sword qi flashed, and a bunch of crystal-clear purple fruits immediately appeared in Luo Hongyu's hand.
She hummed a little tune, slowly peeled off the outer skin, and watched the translucent pulp refract under the sunlight.
Afterwards, she teasingly brushed the grape past Luo He's lips. After Luo He slanted a glance at her, she laughed and pulled her hand back.
She had already gotten used to interacting with him like this.
For these nine years, they had practically eaten and lived together; every blade of grass and every tree on Still Water Peak bore traces of the two of them.
In the beginning, Luo Hongyu actually didn't like this wild kid whom Senior Sister Gu had picked up from outside.
Her subconscious heart was actually a little shy with strangers; she always felt there were some parts of herself she didn't want others to see.
But very quickly, Luo Hongyu changed her attitude.
Although it was somewhat inappropriate, Luo Hongyu from time to time would feel that this person before her, ah, was simply as if born for her.
He could always accurately capture her emotions; he would pop out from some unknown nook or cranny when she needed him most.
Previously, Luo Hongyu thought only she herself knew how delicate and sensitive her inner heart was.
Her mother's early passing, her father's long-term absence during her journey of growing up—if Luo He hadn't always been accompanying her, she estimated she would have long since grown tired of Still Water Peak.
Now, she was living very happily.
Except that people often thought her cultivation and innate talent were not worthy of the current title of Sword Sect Young Master.
She actually didn't care about being any Sword Sect Young Master, but she cared more about another matter...
She felt that as Luo He became stronger and stronger, he was getting further and further away from her.
"Luo He."
"Mm?"
"Will you become a very formidable great cultivator in the future?"
The young Luo Hongyu's speaking voice was very clear and crisp, carrying a young girl's unique charming coyness.
Her question was naive and romantic, her thoughts simple and unparalleled—this was a sight completely impossible to see in the previous Luo Hongyu.
Luo He's expression did not change; the smile on his face was the same as it had been for years.
"If I want to, I probably will."
"Mmm..."
This answer made the young girl fall into distress.
"How about you become the Sword Sect Young Master... Alas..."
"Don't talk nonsense."
Luo Hongyu's head was lightly tapped.
"What's not good about it? Anyway, whether it's Senior Sister Gu, or the other senior brothers and senior sisters..."
"They all think very highly of you."
Her voice became lower and lower as she spoke, her brows furrowing more and more.
In the end, it directly turned into her muttering and mumbling to herself.
Luo He looked at her and suddenly covered her eyes with his hand.
"Eh, what are you doing..."
"I'll tell you about a person."
"You tell me."
Luo Hongyu let his hand cover her eyes.
"I used to know a very formidable sword cultivator; she was a genius."
"At twenty-two, she stepped into the Golden Core stage, shocking the world, and became the young cultivator with the fastest cultivation progress in several hundred years."
"Golden Core at twenty-two? I'm fifteen and still at Qi Refining... Wait, when did you meet such a formidable person?"
"Knew her before."
"...A woman?"
"Mm."
"Her name is Luo Hongyu."
"......"
Luo Hongyu was silent for a moment, then fiercely pinched Luo He's arm.
"Are you tricking me?"
"No."
Luo He's tone unchanged, continued to speak.
"If nothing unexpected happens, Luo Hongyu will step into the Spirit Transformation Realm within a hundred years. And among both the Immortal and Demonic factions in the world, the number of existing cultivators at the Spirit Transformation level is already below a hundred."
"People all believe she will create another brilliant and grand prosperous immortal era; perhaps even break through Spirit Transformation, step into Ascension, and set foot on the long steps to immortality."
Luo Hongyu was made to laugh by this string of nonsense from him. She tapped Luo He's palm with her finger, picked up his conversational thread, and continued to speak with great interest:
"Really? Is Luo Hongyu that formidable?"
"Mm.”
"Then this Luo Hongyu, does she have a little attendant by her side?"
"That's right."
"That little attendant's name, is it Luo He?"
"Guessed correctly."
"Feh, annoying ghost!"
Luo Hongyu suddenly flung Luo He's hand away, jumped up from his embrace, and made a face at Luo He.
"If that Luo Hongyu is really so formidable, then her little attendant must definitely be an unlucky fellow."
"He'd have to slave away for her like a beast of burden, be bullied to death, hmph."
Luo He smiled.
"You're right."
"Luo Hongyu indeed really dislikes the little attendant; he's bullied to death by her."
"......"
Luo Hongyu looked for a good while but couldn't figure out what Luo He meant by saying this.
Was he teasing her? But it didn't seem like it. How could she possibly dislike Luo He...
Forget it, never mind. Anyway, Luo Hongyu had already sensed the little attendant's painstaking good intentions.
The melancholy in Luo Hongyu's heart was swept clean by this bout of playful teasing. She revealed a smile, pointed at Luo He, and said loudly:
"Since the Luo Hongyu you speak of is so formidable, then I'll become that for you to see."
"Luo He, you remember this: one day, my swordsmanship and cultivation will both surpass yours, and then I'll make you call me 'Elder Sister' with utter conviction!"
Luo He looked at her and didn't speak.
"Alright, I won't fool around with you anymore. I'm going to work hard to become your elder sister!"
"......"
Luo Hongyu walked away with cheerful steps; Luo He still sat quietly in place.
His gentle and tranquil aura from just now, and the peaceful smile on his face, seemed to flow away with river water, gradually disappearing.
"Luo Hongyu's true heart is still to be strong and to strive. Even if your dreamscape has done its best to grind away her fangs and claws to confuse me, this point will not change."
"So, she actually really looks forward to me encouraging her to progress."
Luo He spoke towards an empty direction.
"Well then, it looks like you've chosen correctly again."
Huoxin's voice also sounded at the right moment.
Her tone no longer carried the same confrontational meaning as it did nine years ago; now, the atmosphere of their conversation was like that of a pair of old friends who had known each other for a long time.
They were now like they were playing a game, a life simulation game.
Luo He had to, within the exclusive script fabricated from their memories, make the correct choices that conformed to their subconscious and current situation; only then could the script continue.
Otherwise, it would be overturned and restarted.
And up until now, Luo He had not yet experienced a single NG.
Currently, he had already succeeded halfway.
Luo Hongyu's twenty-fourth year would be the time of the Immortal Ascension Assembly.
Once there, this dreamscape would also end. That is to say, he still had another nine years to go.