In the mundane world, myriad sorrows abound, yet a single satisfying meal can dispel a thousand worries.

For Jiang An’an, as long as her elder brother remained by her side, no trouble could withstand the solace of a delicious repast.

For Jiang Wang, to witness her devour her meal with a glistening mouth and a carefree, hearty laugh was the greatest reward. No matter the trials or tribulations he faced, they all became worthwhile in that instant.

In this boundless, expansive world, they were each other’s sole kin.

“An’an.”

Jiang Wang gazed at her for a moment before speaking. “Brother must leave now. This journey may also keep me busy for a long time.”

Jiang An’an, her small hand gripping her chopsticks, pulling at the strands of noodles, felt her spirits plummet instantly. “Will you come see me at the New Year?”

“Of course,” Jiang Wang gently ruffled her hair. “We promised, remember? Brother will miss you too.”

“Then, be careful on your journey,” Jiang An’an murmured softly.

“Now, when Brother walks the path, it’s others who must be careful,” Jiang Wang boasted deliberately. “Brother is a notorious fierce god and evil spirit!”

“Hmph.” Jiang An’an wrinkled her little nose, glanced at Jiang Wang, then turned back to her meal.

She continued to eat her noodles.

“Oh, come on, give me a smile,” Jiang Wang teased her.

Jiang An’an pouted, utterly uncooperative.

“Smile, little chubby dumpling,” Jiang Wang’s voice rose and fell playfully.

“You’re the only one who’s fat!” Jiang An’an put down her chopsticks and lunged at Jiang Wang, baring her teeth and brandishing her claws.

They wrestled playfully for a while.

“Time to go,” Jiang Wang said finally.

Jiang An’an sat back down, picking up her chopsticks once more.

“Mmm,” she mumbled.

Jiang Wang said no more, turned, and left the room, gently closing the door behind him.

Little Jiang An’an did not watch his retreating back; she simply sat there obediently, slowly eating her noodles.

She was very good, she did not cry.

Only.

“The New Year has just begun, yet I already look forward to New Year’s Eve.”

He hadn’t gone far from Jiang An’an’s room when he bumped directly into Ye Qingyu.

“Fellow Daoist Ye, I was just looking for you!” Jiang Wang said, delighted.

Ye Qingyu blinked, suppressing the exquisite pavilion she was about to produce. “What do you need me for?”

Jiang Wang confidently produced a brocade box from his storage ring and handed it over. “Take a look.”

This box had previously contained fried crispy bamboo cakes. He’d thought it looked rather presentable, so he had tidied it up and used it to store this item.

“What is this?”

Ye Qingyu’s eyes held a hint of laughter as she took the brocade box and opened it.

Inside lay a pearl, a blend of sky blue and silken cloud white, only about a third the size of a fist, exquisitely beautiful.

The amusement in her eyes spread, coloring the corners of her mouth.

As the daughter of Ye Lingxiao, the only princess of Cloud Country, what rare treasures had she not seen?

Yet, Jiang Wang’s gift still brought her considerable pleasure.

“This is a Natural Law Artifact, a Fixed Wind Pearl, which I obtained from a secret realm.”

Jiang Wang completely omitted the perilous process of acquiring the Fixed Wind Pearl, saying with some embarrassment, “An’an has consumed so many resources from the Lingxiao Pavilion, for which I am truly grateful. I offer this Fixed Wind Pearl as repayment. Please, Fellow Daoist Ye, do not find it inadequate.”

Ye Qingyu’s smile suddenly vanished. With a ‘pa’, she closed the box and returned it to Jiang Wang’s hand. “An’an is a direct disciple of my Lingxiao Pavilion. It is the Lingxiao Pavilion’s duty to cultivate its own disciples, and no repayment is needed. Fellow Daoist Jiang, please take it back.”

“Fellow Daoist Ye, that’s not what I meant.” Jiang Wang held the box, still unsure where he had gone wrong. He said somewhat anxiously, “I wasn’t saying the Lingxiao Pavilion needs repayment. I was expressing my gratitude, yes, gratitude.”

“No need for politeness,” Ye Qingyu offered a distant, polite smile. “The Lingxiao Pavilion lacks nothing.”

“I wasn’t saying the Lingxiao Pavilion lacks this,” Jiang Wang, completely devoid of his usual quick-wittedness and boldness in battle, said somewhat dejectedly. “My words are clumsy, I just wanted to give you this pearl to thank you.”

Ye Qingyu felt a slight softening in her heart, but her mouth still said, “Your words are clumsy? I’ve seen you argue with people; you’re quite formidable. Didn’t you make Jiao Xiong jump with rage?”

“That’s different.”

“How is it different?”

“I don’t care about them, I don’t need to mind their moods. My words just aren’t clumsy.”

Ye Qingyu lifted her chin slightly. “Is that so?”

“It’s true, Fellow Daoist Ye.” Jiang Wang clasped his hands in a pleading gesture. “If I said anything wrong, I apologize. Please don’t be angry.”

Ye Qingyu had already calmed down, but for some reason, she found Jiang Wang like this strangely interesting. Compared to his sharp, exposed side, he was much cuter.

“Who apologizes while wearing a mask, hiding their head and showing their tail?” she said deliberately.

“This…” Jiang Wang hesitated.

“If you don’t want to take it off, then don’t,” Ye Qingyu said. “It doesn’t matter, I won’t force you.”

Even if Jiang Wang was dull, he knew that “it doesn’t matter” here did not truly mean it didn’t matter.

He gritted his teeth and took off his Mountain Ghost mask, revealing a face with dark circles under his eyes.

The left half of his face was still slightly swollen.

“Pfft!”

Ye Qingyu burst out laughing, but quickly restrained herself. “Sorry, I shouldn’t laugh.”

Jiang Wang was helpless. “It’s alright, you can laugh.”

Ye Qingyu wasn’t a person who laughed often, but Jiang Wang at this moment was simply too comical.

To think of him in Chi Yun Mountain, cleaving Jiao Xiong, slaying Chi Yue, defeating Yun You Weng, and threatening Dou Mian – how majestic was that?

He had heard his father say that on New Year’s Eve, he had rushed to New An City overnight, killed the Zhuang Country’s vice minister Dong A, and then escaped from under the hands of Zhuang Gao Xian and Du Ru Hui. If this were to spread, his name would surely shake the world. Who wouldn’t praise him as a heaven’s proud son?

Yet now, he was in this bruised and swollen state, looking like a pig’s head. The contrast between the two was simply too vast, making it impossible not to laugh.

Ye Qingyu covered her mouth and laughed for a while, then said, “How did you get like this?”

Seeing him in this state, Jiang Wang also felt a sense of self-deprecation. He said in a muffled voice, “An old monk hit me.”

“Which old monk was so excessive?” Ye Qingyu asked.

Jiang Wang sighed. “This appearance won’t recover anytime soon.”

He didn’t want to say more about Bitter Awareness, because it would involve being chased by the Zhuang Country’s monarch and ministers, and he had promised Ye Lingxiao he would absolutely not involve Ye Qingyu in his troubles.

So he handed the box back. “So, can you accept my apology now?”

Jiang Wang thought that the Fixed Wind Pearl wasn’t a gift, but a repayment of a debt, a promised repayment.

However, the reaction of the Cloud Top Immortal Palace within the Five Mansions Sea had made him forget these things.

He had long guessed that within the Lingxiao Pavilion were things needed for the Cloud Top Immortal Palace’s revival, very likely similar to the Spirit Empty Hall. Whether it was called Lingxiao Pavilion or Yunxiao Pavilion, at least at this moment, the reaction of the Cloud Top Immortal Palace indicated its importance.

Jiang Wang took a deep breath and said, “I cannot accept it.”

He did indeed want it, but he simply couldn’t bring himself to ask Ye Qingyu for it for any reason other than repayment. He was unwilling to take it for free.

Ye Qingyu blinked, her smile beginning to fade. “Even a gift from a friend, you won’t accept?”

Jiang Wang pursed his lips, but still accepted it.

He would remember this favor, no need for many words of promise.

The small, exquisite pavilion, as soon as it reached his hand, flashed with clear light and directly entered the Five Mansions Sea, landing among the ruins of the Cloud Top Immortal Palace.

The plump and chubby white cloud boy leaped out, cheering, “It’s here!”

“I truly need it greatly,” Jiang Wang said amidst the changes within the Cloud Top Immortal Palace within his body. “But I don’t know how to thank you?”

“My father said you are An’an’s brother, not an outsider.”

Ye Qingyu shook the box in her hand, her eyes curved into crescents. “Between friends, reciprocity is key!”