When Li Fei awoke again, the ice-blue healing net had been completely consumed. At some point, a canopy had been set up over the bed, a soft lotus green, very simple and clean.
Li Fei felt her body was lighter than before. As she slowly sat up, a sharp, itchy sensation spread across her back as if it were about to split open. She reached back and scratched hard, pulling away a handful of skin as thin and soft as silk. Startled, she shrieked and flung the skin away. The snow-white skin fell to the ground and vanished in an instant.
Panicked, she threw off the covers and realized she wasn’t wearing any clothes. Terrified, she grabbed the new red and white disciple’s robe from the bedside, retreated into the depths of the canopy, and hastily dressed.
Was she shedding skin again?! Could this be the molting that Ri Yan had mentioned? If she kept shedding like this, what would she become in the end? A completely different person?
Hurriedly tying her belt, Li Fei grabbed the bronze mirror from the bedside table. Seeing her reflection, she breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, it was still her original nose and face, though perhaps a shade paler.
She rarely examined herself so closely in the mirror. Now, scrutinizing every detail, she realized she looked quite different from the little charcoal she had been when she first descended the mountain. Perhaps it was because her skin had become much paler, or maybe it was more than just the color change.
Her face had once been a mirror image of her master’s, looking at herself was like seeing her master. But now, the shadow of her master on her face was slowly fading. Her features hadn’t changed, even the old scar on her eyebrow remained, yet somehow she looked less and less like her master.
Suddenly, the door opened, and a lizard demoness covered in green scales entered with a basin of water, her voice tinged with surprise, “You’re awake so soon?”
Seeing it was the demoness, Li Fei relaxed again. Thank goodness, it seemed the one who had undressed her was the demoness. If it had been the gentlemen or an old man like Mr. Zuo Qiu, she couldn’t imagine how embarrassed she would be.
The lizard demoness gently lifted the canopy, seeing Li Fei huddled in the corner with the mirror in hand, she chuckled, “Little girls do love their beauty. The first thing you do upon waking is look in the mirror. Don’t worry, you’re still pretty and smell nice too.”
She helped Li Fei out of bed, wiped her face, and then began to comb and style her hair. Just as she finished, the door opened again, and Mr. Zuo Qiu and Hu Jiaping entered. Seeing her awake, both wore expressions of joy.
“Awake? Do you feel any discomfort?” Mr. Zuo Qiu touched her head, looking relieved. “To recover so quickly from such severe injuries, your physical condition is quite good.”
Li Fei quickly replied, “I’m all better, completely fine, thank you.”
Mr. Zuo Qiu smiled, “The physical injuries may be healed, but the mental strain and depleted Yuan Power won’t recover so easily. Rest well today, and we’ll talk about cultivation tomorrow.”
He was busy with other matters and left after a few words. Hu Jiaping came over and tapped her lightly on the head, sighing, “Girl, this time you had a brush with death.”
Seeing the shadows under his eyes, likely from worry and lack of sleep, Li Fei felt touched. Despite his carefree demeanor, this gentleman was truly kind.
“Sir, did we pass the test?” This was her biggest concern now.
He laughed, “You all passed. Yours was the first group to pass the test. Not just you, all sixteen passed this time, which is quite rare. Usually, these tests eliminate more than half.”
That everyone passed was indeed great news. Seeing his relaxed expression, Li Fei couldn’t help but smile, “Sir, you must be relieved too, no need to struggle with group assignments.”
He pinched her cheek, finding it quite pleasant, and couldn’t resist pinching a few more times, saying, “You were too careless. Let this be a lesson: never let your guard down until the very end. Next time, don’t be so negligent.”
He was right; they had been careless, failing to ensure the tiger jiao was truly dead. Fortunately, this was just a test. If they were this careless in the future, they wouldn’t survive.
Li Fei nodded, “You’re right, sir. I’ll remember.” But could he stop pinching her cheeks?
Hu Jiaping patted her and pulled a thin, thread-bound book from his robe, speaking gently, “You’ve been asleep for five days. The new cultivation has already begun. Take this book and catch up at your own pace. No need to rush, rest today. Your friends are waiting anxiously outside.”
Five days?! No wonder she felt sore all over after getting up. Lying down for so long was bound to be tiring.
Li Fei saw the book had no title on the cover. Opening it, she found it was written by Hu Jiaping himself, explaining the new cultivation details thoroughly. Who knew he could be so meticulous?
Hu Jiaping opened the door, and sure enough, several children were waiting outside. It was Bai Li Geling and the others. As soon as he stepped out, Ji Tongzhou was the most anxious, repeatedly asking, “Sir, how is she? Is she awake?”
Hu Jiaping gently pushed Li Fei out, winking, “Alright, alright, you’ve been nagging in my ear every day. Here she is, little brats, go enjoy yourselves!” With that, he disappeared in a flash.
Seeing Li Fei standing at the door with a smile, her clothes awkwardly worn, looking thinner than before, likely due to her recent recovery, her skin was particularly pale. The usual boyish roughness was greatly reduced, and she finally looked like a delicate and pretty little girl.
Bai Li Geling was the first to rush over, hugging her tightly, almost in tears, “Li Fei! Li Fei! You scared me to death! When I woke up and saw you covered in blood, they said you might not survive!”
Li Fei quickly moved her limbs, “I’m fine, see? I’m perfectly okay. With so many academy founders around, how could I die so easily?”
She looked up and saw Ye Ye, Bai Li Changyue, Lei Xiuyuan, Ji Tongzhou, and the others all watching her with concern, feeling a warm sense of camaraderie. Having friends was truly wonderful.
“I’m fine now,” she emphasized again, “Thank you for worrying!”
Ji Tongzhou awkwardly said, “Who, who was worried about you… I just came to see if you were awake.”
Bai Li Geling giggled, “This little prince is putting on airs again. Who was the most anxious one earlier, I wonder?”
“Too talkative,” Ji Tongzhou glared at her.
Li Fei laughed, “Thank you. By the way, how did we pass the test in the end?”
Ji Tongzhou replied, “You all fainted, and I was the only one awake. The tiger jiao thrashed around for a while and then died. I brought you all back.”
He hesitated, looking at Li Fei. She was so small and pale, yet she had saved his life. He didn’t know how to feel. In this test, he had been the most useless. Fortunately, Jiang Li Fei was fine now. If she had died saving him, the shadow of his incompetence would have haunted him for life.
“Um… you saved me, thank you,” he whispered, embarrassed enough to turn red, but he didn’t run away like last time.
“No need to be polite,” Li Fei patted his arm like a good buddy, “You brought us back later, didn’t you? We’re even.”
Her boyish, rough gesture surprised him, but then he remembered Jiang Li Fei had always been as rough as a boy. If she suddenly became as elegant and gentle as Lan Ya, it would give people goosebumps.
He smiled and lightly punched her arm, “Still alive, that’s great.”
“Let’s not talk here!” Bai Li Geling cheerfully hugged Li Fei’s arm, “It’s just about dinner time, let’s go to the northern eatery and have a feast! Li Fei finally woke up, let’s have a belated celebration for passing the test!”
The children, all excited, flew on their swords to the northern eatery. They didn’t care if they could finish it all, ordering a table full of dishes. Bai Li Geling eyed the wine jars in the corner, wanting to sneak one to try, but Ye Ye caught her and flicked her forehead several times, “Nonsense! You’re too young to drink. If the teachers find out we stole wine, will you take the blame alone?”
Bai Li Geling protested, “What’s wrong with drinking once in a while? Isn’t it embarrassing for a disciple of the immortal family not to know how to drink?”
Just then, the lizard demoness brought over a wine jar, saying, “This is from Mr. Hu Jiaping, he said you can have one jar to try.”
The children cheered loudly, praising Hu Jiaping as the best teacher ever!
Bai Li Geling tore open the seal, and a sweet aroma wafted out. She sniffed and said, “Is this rice wine? Hmph, rice wine isn’t real wine!”
Ye Ye took the jar from her and poured a cup for each of them. The wine was cloudy and sweet, indeed rice wine. He laughed, “Rice wine is already pushing it. We have cultivation tomorrow, don’t get too carried away. Let’s first toast to Li Fei’s recovery, cheers!”
They all laughed and drank the cup. Most of the children were drinking for the first time, and without eating first, the wine quickly went to their heads. Li Fei, however, remained unfazed. She had traveled with her master for years, having tasted even stronger wines, though only in moderation, as her master never allowed her to drink much.
Ye Ye raised his cup again, “Come on, let’s toast to passing the test! Cheers!”
With two cups down, the atmosphere became lively. Even Bai Li Changyue, who was usually quiet, started chatting with Lei Xiuyuan. Ye Ye and Ji Tongzhou also began talking. One was a former prince of Gaul, the other a current prince of Yue, surprisingly getting along well.
Li Fei picked up a piece of radish, about to eat, when Bai Li Geling suddenly leaned over. Her alcohol tolerance was low, and after two cups of rice wine, her neck was red, her eyes dreamy. She whispered to Li Fei, “Let me tell you, while you were asleep, Ji Tongzhou was like a lost soul. Yesterday, when you hadn’t come out yet, he almost cried…”
“What nonsense are you spouting!” Ji Tongzhou was flustered, pulling her down. It was nothing, but her embellishments made it seem like something! Jiang Li Fei had almost died saving him; if he wasn’t worried, would he still be human?
Bai Li Geling seemed almost drunk, glanced at him, and chuckled, “Little prince, where’s your little princess? Not dining with her in the disciple’s hall this time?”
Ji Tongzhou frowned, “Why bring up Lan Ya? I just had lunch with her. She’s a princess of a vassal state; it’s only proper not to neglect her.”
“Such a high-sounding reason!” Bai Li Geling shook her head, then leaned closer to him, laughing, “Isn’t our Li Fei better than that Lan Ya? She even saved you!”
Why was she comparing Jiang Li Fei to Lan Ya? What was she up to? Ji Tongzhou couldn’t be bothered to respond, drinking in silence.
It was his first time eating and drinking with these commoners. Usually, he was either alone or with Lan Ya. The royal family adhered to the rule of not speaking while eating or sleeping. Initially, he found them noisy, but gradually, he found it extremely interesting. Ye Ye was very talkative and humorous, and Bai Li Geling was lively and playful. The table was filled with laughter and joy, and the dissatisfaction he felt from being saved by Jiang Li Fei slowly faded.
Forget it, let’s indulge for today. Starting tomorrow, he would work even harder on his cultivation.