A Peaceful Day

Lin Yuan woke up early. After taking a quick bath, he gently gave Xiao Hu his bath too. Then he went to the market and returned with twenty bottles of spiritual milk and a full sack of dried fruits—over a hundred kilograms. He patiently sliced the dried fruits into small pieces for Qingxue, arranging them into neat piles.

As they were eating, Xiao Hu said, "Brother, I want a horse."

Qingxue chimed in right after, "I want one too!"

Lin Yuan smiled and took out his sect token, calling Lady Yuexian. Not long after, she appeared, holding a large basket of fried chicken.

"I brought something for you," she said.

Lin Yuan broke the chicken into smaller pieces so Xiao Hu and Qingxue could eat comfortably in their beast forms. Yuexian then presented a few mysterious boxes, but Qingxue wrinkled her nose. "I don't like them."

Without comment, Lady Yuexian led Lin Yuan to the Moonmist Hall. "Take a quick shower. Within two minutes."

Lin Yuan said "So first".

She gave a soft smile. "I'm always clean."

Afterwards, she guided him to a quiet spiritual pool and began teaching him how to swim.

"You don't even flinch," she observed. "Aren't you in pain?"

"I'm used to pain," Lin Yuan replied calmly. "I've had great healing powers since I was a child. I could eat high-grade healing pills even back then."

"Why?" she asked gently.

"My stepmother trained me." His voice was quiet. "She made sure I wouldn't break easily."

Lady Yuexian's expression darkened. *What kind of woman does that to a child?* She felt a twinge of pity in her heart.

"You know," she said, "Most girls your age can only can take about ten mid-grade healing pills in a day. Yesterday, you took 160—and now you're fully healed."

For the next eight hours, she guided Lin Yuan's cultivation through gentle use of her Qi. During that time, Lin Yuan consumed another 156 mid-grade healing pills and drank large quantities of spiritual water from his gourd.

When they finished, Lin Yuan said, "I want to buy horses .Can you help me transport them?"

"Of course."

They visited the market together. First, they bought thirty steaks for thirty ordinary spirit stones, then walked toward the beast market.

Suddenly, Lady Mingyan's voice echoed in Lin Yuan's mind: **"Buy horses numbered 21, 33, and 47. They're all rare spiritual breeds."**

He followed her advice, purchasing the three young foals for three high-grade spirit stones.

Back at the resting grounds, Xiao Hu and Qingxue both pointed at the same white horse.

"I want that one!" they said in unison.

"Stop fighting," Lin Yuan chuckled. "I'll get another white horse."

Qingxue folded her arms. "I don't need one. I'm faster than all of you anyway."

Xiao Hu raised his nose. "When my horse grows up, it'll become a unicorn! It'll run faster than wind, even without wings!"

Lin Yuan laughed and said, "Let's just enjoy our steaks first."

They sat down together under the evening sky, eating freshly grilled steaks while the horses grazed nearby. After a while, Xiao Hu looked up at the stars.

"I miss my mother," he whispered.

Qingxue put a hand on his shoulder. "You have to grow up. Ordinary beast cubs your age live on their own."

"You talk like you're older than me," Xiao Hu frowned.

"I am!"

"No, you're not!"

The argument grew louder until Lin Yuan interrupted, "Enough. Look at the horses—they're not even siblings, but they're staying peacefully together. So should we."

The children fell quiet.

Moments later, the three of them lay on the soft grass, watching the horses graze under the starlit sky.

One by one, they drifted off to sleep.