Chapter 17: Senior Sister Is Too Honest

I had braced myself for an immediate, world-shattering Glacial Heaven Shattering Strike or an ear-piercing scream that would wake half the mountain.

Instead, Su Wan’er merely turned her head toward me through the rising steam. Her large, phoenix eyes held no rage, no embarrassment, and no shock. She looked at me quietly under the silvery moonlight, water dripping slowly from her carved jawline down into the pale swell of her chest, her expression surprisingly calm.

"If you’re not afraid of catching a cold, come down," she murmured softly, her voice barely louder than the trickling spring water.

Hearing her agree so easily, I certainly wasn’t going to play the hypocrite and refuse.

I kicked off my boots, unfastened my outer robes, and stripped down without hesitation. Stepping down the submerged stone steps, I sank into the hot, mineral-rich thermal pool. The warm water embraced my skin, washing away the evening chill as I drifted over to sit beside her on the smooth, submerged stone bench.

The fragrant scent of blooming spirit blossoms and the faint trace of wild jasmine radiating from her damp skin filled the air. Overhead, the round, silvery moon bathed the entire courtyard in tranquil luminescence. For once in thirty years, I didn’t toss out a shameless joke, nor did I reach out to pinch her waist. Looking at the soft, quiet look on her face, I knew this wasn’t the time for games.

We sat in comfortable silence for a long time, watching the silver ripples dance across the surface of the pool.

Eventually, Wan’er lifted a hand, letting the thermal water spill between her fingers.

"I still remember Master’s final words before his lifespan ran out," she said quietly, her gaze fixed on the reflection of the moon. "He didn’t care about the sect’s treasury, he didn’t care about the Council’s schemes, and he didn’t even care about his own legacy. All he worried about was you. Even as his Golden Core cracked and his soul dissolved into the void, he kept whispering that you were too stubborn, too solitary, and that you would end up chewed alive by the sect elders the moment he was gone."

She turned her head to look at me, a faint, tender smile gracing her lips.

"When Master closed his eyes, I inherited that worry," she whispered, her eyes shining with unshed emotion. "For last three years, every time I sat on that cold throne in the grand hall, all I could think about was how to shield your mountain from Zhao Cang and the Council. But seeing you today... seeing you break through that terrible bottleneck, watching you finally step into Late-Stage Core Formation, and seeing you take in a disciple to share your life with, it feels like an anchor has been lifted from my chest."

She reached across the water, her warm, wet fingers gently brushing against my shoulder.

"Master can finally rest in peace in the netherworld, Lu Chen. Knowing that you’re improving, that you have a secure standing in the sect, and that you won’t spend your remaining years rotting in cold isolation... you have no idea what a massive burden that takes off my heart."

Her words hit me straight in the chest, carrying a raw, protective affection that made my heart ache.

I forced a faint chuckle, trying to keep the mood light as I scratched my cheek. "Senior Sister, if you had told me all these sentimental things years ago, I would have ground my teeth to powder and broken through to Late-Stage Core Formation a whole decade sooner."

"mph! Don’t try to fool me, you brat," Wan’er snorted softly, rolling her eyes, though the warmth in her gaze never wavered. "I am not an idiot like those blind fools on the Council. I know exactly how hard you’ve worked over the years. I watched you cultivate through the freezing winter nights until your meridians bled. I watched you study every scrap of ancient technique in the archives while other elders slept. You worked harder than anyone I have ever seen in this sect, even if the rest of the world refused to believe it because your Spiritual Root held you back."

She pulled her hand back, wrapping her arms loosely beneath her bosom, letting out a soft, misty sigh into the cool air.

"I knew it was never your lack of effort, Lu Chen," she whispered, looking straight into my eyes with utter sincerity. "That’s why... in this entire sect, you are the person I admire the most."

Hearing the proud, untouchable Sect Master confess her admiration so openly and without a single shred of defense, I was completely caught off guard. For a man who took pride in being endlessly shameless and quick-witted, I found myself thoroughly flustered.

"Aiya, Senior Sister," I coughed lightly, feeling a sudden heat rising up my neck that had nothing to do with the hot spring. "If you praise me like that so openly while sitting completely naked beside me, this humble junior brother might just let his baser instincts get the better of him."

Wan’er parted her lips, about to fire back a biting retort, but the words suddenly froze in her throat.

Her eyelashes fluttered, and her pupils dilated as an abrupt, violent resonance echoed through her dantian. The spiritual pressure around her fluctuated wildly, shifting from gentle warmth into a sudden, razor-sharp chill.

Without uttering another word, she immediately crossed her long, pale legs into a lotus position upon the submerged stone bench, closing her eyes and sinking into a deep, meditative state.

A sudden breakthrough epiphany?!

The surrounding world seemed to halt.

The thermal pool beneath us began to hiss and bubble as icy, azure mist surged around Wan’er. She was actively circulating her core manual, the ancient Nine Heavens Frost Phoenix Scripture. Above our heads, the ambient heaven-and-earth spiritual qi within ten miles of Heavenly Sovereign Peak turned into a visible, howling vortex, plunging toward her crown like a collapsing whirlpool.

She was actually breaking through while being completely naked beside me.