54: Is this the grand gift you were talking about?

Miaoyin Pavilion was located on another peak famed for its beautiful scenery, separate from Purple Mist Peak.

Purple Mist Peak was also within the bounds of Dream Bamboo Peak. Dream Bamboo Peak was an extremely vast mountain range; the whole was called Dream Bamboo Peak, but upon this great mountain, there were several other smaller peaks, and Purple Mist Peak was one of them.

When Lu Yu arrived at the pavilion building at dusk, he found it indeed lived up to its name. Faint, soft, and pleasant sounds of string and wind instruments could be heard. The building was surrounded by exotic flowers and rare herbs that emitted a hazy, faint glow in the night, creating an atmosphere... quite alluring.

The door was not closed.

Lu Yu walked inside. The interior was exquisitely and lavishly decorated. Warm-toned luminous pearls emitted a soft light, and the air was filled with a sweet yet not cloying floral fragrance.

Li Miaoer was reclining on a soft couch piled with thick rugs, idly playing with a jade flute. Her pale purple gauzy robe hung loosely, revealing a section of snow-white calf and bare feet.

Her cat ears drooped lazily, and her tail swished idly against the side of the couch.

Seeing Lu Yu, her eyes lit up. She casually tossed the jade flute aside and floated over.

"Junior Martial Brother~~~ You finally came! I thought you had a new favorite and forgot your old flame!"

She deliberately drew out her words, leaning close to Lu Yu's face, looking up at him with a sweet, orchid-scented breath.

Lu Yu stood helplessly in place, letting Li Miaoer cling to his arm. He could clearly feel the soft sensation of those two mounds pressing against his arm.

It even made his own heart wander into improper thoughts.

"Fifth Senior Sister is teasing me again. I wonder what this grand gift you mentioned is..."

"What's the rush?"

Li Miaoer shot him a sidelong glance and reached out to grab his sleeve.

"Come sit."

Lu Yu was pulled by her to sit on the edge of the soft couch.

Li Miaoer sat down right next to him, so close he could smell her unique, sweet scent carrying hints of milk and flowers.

"The gift... is far away in the horizon, yet right before your eyes!"

Li Miaoer blinked, and suddenly her entire aura changed. Her figure rapidly shrank and transformed within the soft halo of light!

In the blink of an eye, where was the peerless beauty on the couch? Only a creature with a pale pink body, ears and tail-tips tinged with a faint pink glow, and eyes like beautiful glazed gemstones remained... a Jiuli Heavenly Cat!

In her cat form, Li Miaoer was only the size of a normal kitten. She leaped lightly onto Lu Yu's lap, then, familiar with the routine, burrowed into his embrace, found the most comfortable position, curled up, and even contentedly rubbed her head against Lu Yu's chest.

"Meow~"

She let out a coquettish meow, her tail curling around to rest on Lu Yu's wrist.

Lu Yu: "..."

This is the grand gift you mentioned?

Turning yourself into a cat for me to pet?

He looked down at the furry, warm little creature in his arms, momentarily speechless.

It had to be said, Fifth Senior Sister's true form was indeed illegally cute.

Especially when those glazed cat eyes looked over, filled with undisguised dependence and... a hint of slyness.

"Fifth Senior Sister, you are..."

Lu Yu reached out and stroked her smooth, satin-like fur.

"Meow~"

Li Miaoer narrowed her eyes comfortably, a purring sound rumbling in her throat.

"Tired from cultivating... It's most comfortable to curl up in Junior Martial Brother's embrace in my true form. And..."

She lifted her little head, her cat eyes shimmering with watery light: "Sleeping in your arms is very warm, perfect for cultivation. You have abundant Yang Qi; rubbing against you is even healthier. This is an exclusive benefit I'm giving you, something others beg for but can't get!"

She spoke with righteous confidence, as if it were truly for the sake of cultivation.

But Lu Yu always felt this girl simply wanted a comfortable human-shaped heater and a Luck charging station.

However... the feeling of petting a cat was indeed nice.

Especially when the cat in his arms had such a special identity.

Lu Yu couldn't be bothered to expose her. He simply relaxed, leaning back against the couch, idly and gently stroking her smooth fur.

Over the years, Fifth Senior Sister had transformed into her true form and curled up in his embrace many times.

Li Miaoer also completely relaxed. Her purring grew louder, and her eyelids grew heavy.

For a moment, only soft breathing and relaxing purrs remained in the pavilion, the atmosphere unexpectedly turning somewhat cozy.

Lu Yu had also expended mental energy cultivating during the day. In this warm, fragrant environment, listening to the rhythmic purring, drowsiness unknowingly washed over him.

He adjusted his posture to let the cat in his arms sleep more soundly, and slowly closed his own eyes... The night deepened.

Outside Lu Yu's residence pavilion on Dream Bamboo Peak.

A graceful, cool figure carrying a sword arrived quietly.

It was Fourth Senior Sister, Yun Guying.

Her habitually cold and stern face now wore a slight frown, carrying a trace of imperceptible... displeasure?

They had agreed to supervise Junior Martial Brother's sword practice daily to consolidate his foundation in the sword Dao. Yet today, she waited until stars filled the night sky without seeing a trace of him.

She went to his residence. The Restriction was active, and no one answered from inside.

"Where did he run off to?"

Yun Guying murmured to herself, her Divine Sense quietly spreading out, searching within the Sect for Lu Yu's unique spiritual fluctuations, carrying the aura of Supreme Yang and Lightning Tribulation.

Soon, she locked onto the direction of Miaoyin Pavilion on Purple Mist Peak.

That aura... mingled with Li Miaoer's?

Yun Guying's figure moved, transforming into a nearly imperceptible sword light. In an instant, she landed outside Miaoyin Pavilion.

No powerful sound-isolating Restriction was active inside the pavilion, only a simple protective layer.

With her cultivation and Sword Heart Illuminating Clarity, it was easy for her to perceive the situation inside.

When she saw the scene on the soft couch inside the pavilion, even with her icy Heart-Nature, the corner of her mouth couldn't help but twitch slightly.

On the soft couch, Lu Yu lay on the bed, breathing evenly, clearly already asleep.

And curled up tightly in his embrace was a little white cat sleeping sprawled on its back, exposing its soft belly, its tail unconsciously wrapped around Lu Yu's wrist.

Who else could it be but that girl Li Miaoer in her true form?

One human and one cat, sleeping so soundly, so utterly defenseless, so... intimate!

Yun Guying withdrew her Divine Sense and stood silently in place for a few seconds.

She had thought Junior Martial Brother had gone to Cultivate or attend to other serious matters. Who would have thought... he came to sleep at Old Fifth's place?

And sleeping like this?

That bit of unhappiness from being stood up suddenly transformed into an indescribable... speechlessness.

And also a vague, unclear feeling, like the subtle frustration of seeing a sword blank she had meticulously polished suddenly being used as a hugging pillow.

"...Utterly improper."

In the end, she only coldly uttered four words, then turned, sword light flashed, and she vanished into the night, clean and decisive, as if she had never appeared.

However, she also knew that Fifth Junior Sister had practically grown up teasing Junior Martial Brother. Among the several Senior and Junior Sisters, it was mostly Fifth Junior Sister who had ample free time, often following Junior Martial Brother around or curling up in his embrace.

Their relationship was also closer.

Now, seeing the scene of the two sleeping together, she wasn't overly surprised. Fifth Junior Sister had done similar things before.

Among the several martial sisters, Fifth Junior Sister was the closest to Junior Martial Brother.

And given their relationship, even if they became Dao Companions later, she believed no one else would be particularly surprised.

As for whether to increase sword practice tomorrow to punish a certain sleepyhead, that was a matter for tomorrow.

Inside Miaoyin Pavilion, Lu Yu, sleeping soundly, unconsciously smacked his lips. The kitten in his embrace shifted, its paws unconsciously scratching at his lapel.

[Sleeping intimately in the embrace of a male son of destiny. Current automatic cultivation speed: Eighty times!]

Perceiving her rapidly increasing cultivation base while deep asleep, a slight curve appeared at the corner of Li Miaoer's mouth.

Cultivation speed was still fastest in Junior Martial Brother's embrace. The current cultivation speed had reached one hundred times the usual rate!

It was a speed she couldn't experience in the embrace of her other Senior Sisters!

And the warm, sun-like aura in Junior Martial Brother's embrace was truly warm and fragrant.