After that cold night on the rooftop, Gu Xun'er spent a long time thinking.
Not sulking. Not spiraling.
Just… thinking.
And when morning came, she quietly returned to being herself. Calm. Poised. Gentle when she wanted to be, and sharp when she had to.
She didn't mention the auction again. Didn't ask about Ya Fei. She simply appeared in the training courtyard like always—wooden blade in hand, brows knit in focus.
Xiao Ranyu blinked the first time she showed up again.
"You're not busy anymore?" he asked, half-joking.
"No," she said, not looking at him. "You're just unbearably dense to look at sometimes."
He grinned. "So, normal day?"
"Normal day," she said—and that was that.
---
From that day forward, things slipped back into motion.
Xiao Ranyu spent time with Xun'er every day—training, bickering, talking about street vendor and there absurd prices.
But he didn't stop seeing Ya Fei either.
When he wasn't being dragged into sparring drills, he'd stroll down to the Miteer Auction House, sneak into the VIP balcony, and casually toss sarcastic remarks at Ya Fei in the middle of live bids.
Sometimes he went shopping with Gu Xun'er.
Sometimes with Ya Fei.
And sometimes—heaven help him—with both.
Xun'er had a habit of "coincidentally" tagging along more and more often. She never said it outright, but she always showed up just as they were heading out the gate.
What surprised him most wasn't that they went to shopping with him together.
It was that… they got along.
Slowly.
Naturally.
What began as cautious civility became small talk. Then shared smirks. Then the occasional exchange of inside jokes—usually at his expense.
One day, as they haggled over hairpins at a market stall, he blinked in mild confusion as the two of them walked ahead of him, giggling about something he didn't catch.
> "Huh," he thought. "Women's bonds are scary. And fast. And mysterious."
"Must be a gender-based thing or something."
He never suspected it had anything to do with him.
He just assumed women worked that way.
---
In the background, his own path drifted quietly forward.
Over the past two year, he hadn't pushed his cultivation hard. Not after hitting a bottleneck.
But where his Dou Qi paused… his soul advanced.
Unseen. Unhurried.
From the peak of the Mortal Realm, his soul had now stepped into the Spiritual Realm—calm and stable. That alone was a treasure, rare among prodigies.
> "I won't have to worry about soul power again until I'm nearly a peak 8-tier, 9-color alchemist," he mused one night, staring at the moon.
"Good. Saves me trouble."
Even without effort, his talent carried him forward.
By now, he stood at the Dou King realm—without any fanfare, without any announcements. He could break through to 5th-tier alchemist if he chose. But he didn't feel rushed.
He still had time in Wu Tan City… just a little.
Because soon, his training journey would begin.
His true path—beyond this city, beyond this comfort—was drawing near.
---
In the quiet in-between, Gu Xun'er and Ya Fei found themselves more thoughtful than usual.
When Ranyu laughed beside them, they both smiled.
When he bickered with a merchant, they both watched.
When he leaned too close to the flame play and nearly set his sleeve on fire, they both laughed in sync—and exchanged a glance.
They didn't talk about it.
Not yet.
But something stirred in both their hearts.
It wasn't love. Not clearly. Not quite.
It was something quieter, more elusive.
A presence that had always been there, but had never been named.
> "What is this?" Gu Xun'er wondered, one day watching him joke with a child selling candy sticks. "Why do I feel like… something's about to change?"
> Ya Fei, watching him trace calligraphy in the dust of her private study, caught herself staring too long. "He's still that irritating little fox…" she thought. "So why does the room feel emptier when he leaves?"
Neither of them had answers.
Not yet.
But the days were growing shorter.
And change was coming.
They could feel it.
Even if they didn't know why.
---
Xiao Ranyu was thirteen now.
The Xiao Clan's annual strength test was approaching fast—a grand event where clansmen gathered, status was reaffirmed, and future prodigies were praised.
But Ranyu had never cared for it.
He skipped it every year. With good reason.
> "Why show off now," he once said, "when I plan to stun the whole continent later?"
But this year… was different.
Because this year marked the turning of a great wheel.
Soon after the test, Yao Lao would awaken—his third brother's legendary turning point.
And not long after that, Xiao Yan would leave for his journey—where fate would bring him to the Little Doctor Fairy, and later, to that mysterious cave where even Yun Yun's path would shift.
A thousand threads would begin weaving.
And Ranyu knew—it was time for him to start moving too.
---
So, in the quiet corners of the Xiao estate, Xiao Ranyu began preparing.
Nothing flashy.
Just a discreet bag. One or two sealed scroll of Map. A few alchemical materials he had stashed over the past year and bunch of spices for barbeque.
He moved with quiet confidence.
Until someone noticed.
---
Gu Xun'er had come looking for him with her usual grace—ready to drag him into training or nag him over missed meals.
But what she saw made her pause.
There he was, half-kneeling beside a satchel, carefully tying down a scroll of maps. His usually smug expression was focused, thoughtful.
Serious.
> "...What are you doing?" she asked, voice low.
Ranyu didn't look up at first. "Packing."
"For what?"
He exhaled, still arranging jade bottles.
> "I'm leaving soon. Time to begin training."
Silence.
When he finally glanced up, she was standing stiff, her eyes wide. She wasn't angry. Not exactly. Just... stunned.
> "You're leaving... alone?"
He stood and stretched his arms casually. "Can't go around without training right?."
Her throat tightened. She looked at him, a storm of thoughts swirling behind her eyes. Words gathered—but caught in her chest.
He turned, lifting his pack.
> "I'll be in my courtyard if you—"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Because in the next moment, her arms wrapped around him from behind, firm and trembling.
Xiao Ranyu froze.
"Xun'er?"
> "Don't go," she whispered.
He turned slightly, caught off guard.
> "You—"
> "I like you, idiot," she blurted. "I've liked you for a long time. And if I don't say it now, I might never get the chance near future."
Ranyu blinked, stunned. Then a crooked grin broke across his face.
> "So dramatic," he teased. "You make it sound like I'm off to die on a mountaintop."
She tightened her grip. "I mean it."
He softened, gently prying her arms loose so he could face her properly.
> "I know."
> "So?"
> "So... I accept," he said with a chuckle, scratching the back of his head. "Though I should probably apologize for that whole multiple wives thing... I was just thinking out loud. It's not like I planned it."
She narrowed her eyes, cheeks still flushed. "You better not have planned it."
He held up both hands. "No plans. Just... curiosity and poor timing."
They stood there a long while, side by side under the magnolia tree—neither moving, both knowing something between them had finally clicked into place.
As he turned to leave, Gu Xun'er crossed her arms and warned, "And don't go chasing trouble with random women."
Xiao Ranyu scoffed. "Hey, I'm not some fool who forgets how to walk just because a pretty girl passes by."
She rolled her eyes. "Mm-hm. I'll believe that when I see it."
---
Later That Day – Miteer Auction House
Xiao Ranyu dropped by the auction house to buy some traveling clothes. He kept things low-key, as always, but the moment he stepped into the private lounge, Ya Fei was already waiting.
She wore her usual crimson today, draped with elegance, sipping tea by the window like she hadn't already been watching the door for half an hour.
> "So. You're really going," she said, not looking at him.
Ranyu blinked. "Xun'er told you?"
Ya Fei sipped her tea. "You think she wouldn't? She didn't say much, but... she said enough."
He looked sheepish. "I was going to tell you."
"You didn't need to," she said softly. "I already knew. You've had that restless look in your eyes for weeks."
She set her cup down and walked over to him, holding out a storage ring.
> "These are travel robes. Light, durable, stitched with fire-resistant thread. You'll need them."
Ranyu took it, eyes widening slightly. "You made these?"
"Had them made," she corrected, then smiled faintly. "I don't sew."
There was a beat of silence.
> "Just be careful," she said, voice unusually quiet. "You may be clever, but the world's not kind to clever boys."
Ranyu smirked. "I'll manage. Besides… I've got two terrifying sisters watching my back, right?"
She looked at him, half-amused, half-something else.
"Just remember what I said the first time we met."
> "What, the part where you called me a brat in training pants?"
"No," she said, stepping closer.
> "The part where I didn't throw you out."
He blinked.
Then smiled.
"I'll remember."
---
As night fell over Wu Tan City, Xiao Ranyu returned home—his heart a little heavier, a little fuller.
Two hearts had revealed themselves.
And yet, neither tried to stop him.
Because both believed…
> He was meant for something greater.
And they'd wait.
Even if it hurt.
Even if it meant walking behind, not beside—for now.
The path had opened.
And Xiao Ranyu… was finally ready to walk it.