Chapter Thirty-Four: Subtle Entanglements

Seeing the two of them remain silent, Luo Chen grew a bit concerned. Tentatively, he asked, “Ellie, did I do something wrong?”

Ellie snapped out of her reverie and replied, “No, Luo Chen, you did very well—better than I expected!”

She had lent him the Moonlit Dagger hoping he would quickly manifest an aura blade, build confidence in martial techniques, and yet his rapid success had taken her completely by surprise.

“However, your spiritual energy input still isn’t stable or balanced enough,” Ellie said, pointing to the aura blade that flickered fitfully, as if it might vanish at any moment. “Try drawing it along the trial stone over there.”

Luo Chen obeyed, dragging the aura blade across the stone. A faint mark was left behind—uneven, jagged, producing a fair amount of debris.

Ellie drew her own sword. With a soft hiss, an aura blade extended from its tip, perfectly steady—like the sword itself had grown longer, almost imperceptible unless one looked closely.

She traced the stone lightly. A deep, clean line appeared, as straight and smooth as if sliced through tofu.

“The more even your spiritual energy flow, the more condensed your aura blade becomes; its lethality increases, and your control over attack range during battle becomes more precise,” Ellie explained. “Even the slightest fluctuation can make it unstable or cause it to dissipate altogether. Luo Chen, you must feel it with your heart, practice again and again until you master that delicate sensation. Then you’ll be able to produce a perfect aura blade.”

For the next two hours, Ellie patiently coached Luo Chen in aura blade techniques. Joanna, though good at maintaining order, had little patience for teaching—she was there to find fault, but found no opportunity, and ended up nothing more than an idle bystander, stewing in frustration all evening.

Even if she wanted to make things difficult for Luo Chen, she needed a reason, but his performance was flawless—what could she do?

At last, the lesson ended. Luo Chen addressed the two of them, “Thank you for your guidance, Ellie, Joanna.”

Though Joanna had contributed nothing but her presence, Luo Chen still thanked her politely.

Ellie replied, “You’re welcome. If you have time, let’s meet here at the trial grounds at this time every evening.”

“Every evening?” Luo Chen was surprised. “Ellie, won’t that take up too much of your precious time?”

Joanna chimed in, “That’s right, Lily. Don’t you need to train yourself?”

She was only required to lead duty on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays—not every night.

“That’s true, Ellie,” Luo Chen added, “I would feel bad imposing on you so much.”

Though Ellie was dedicated to her mentorship, under Luo Chen and Joanna’s insistent requests, they settled on meeting for lessons on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday nights, and all day on Sunday.

After they parted ways, Joanna grumbled all the way back to their dormitory. “Lily, why are you being so enthusiastic? That guy isn’t anything to you, and he’s even hurt you before.”

“Joanna, you know I keep work and personal matters separate,” Ellie replied helplessly. “And for the last time, I don’t think he hurt me!”

“Come on, if that doesn’t count as being hurt, what does? If it weren’t for Kevin, I might not have seen you again. Speaking of which, Kevin’s a decent guy and treats you well. Are you really not interested in him at all?”

Ellie rolled her eyes. “Joanna, I’ve told you, I absolutely will not date anyone during our time at the academy. Besides, I don't have feelings for Kevin. That’s my answer—are you satisfied?”

“If you don’t feel anything for Kevin, then what kind of person could move you? Don’t tell me you’re only interested in someone like Luo Chen—that guy?” Joanna suddenly cried out as a wild guess occurred to her.

“Where is your mind going?” Ellie exclaimed, exasperated. “You’re such a gossip! Would you only be happy if I found a boyfriend and got married right away?”

“No, no, that’s not what I meant,” Joanna quickly hugged her. “Lily, I’d be happiest if you never got married. Or… just marry me instead.”

“Get lost, don’t be disgusting!” Ellie shivered. “If anyone heard you, they’d think we were a couple!”

“So what if we were?” Joanna laughed, clutching Ellie’s hand. “With a girlfriend as wonderful as you, who needs men anyway?”

Ellie was speechless.

——— Separation Line ———

After the lesson, Luo Chen went as usual to the Thunderfall behind the mountain, exhausting the remainder of his energy until he was utterly spent, and then returned to his dorm.

A rich aroma of meat wafted through the air, making his mouth water. That rascal Shi Feng must have whipped up another late-night snack.

Sure enough, in the common room, Shi Feng was enjoying a large pot of meat with several oversized mice. When he spotted Luo Chen, he leered, “Hey, I heard your martial arts instructor Andrew assigned Ellie to tutor you after class!”

Luo Chen stripped off his jacket, emerging in shorts. “Your information’s fast. How’d you hear about that?”

“Come on, your whole martial arts class is talking about it. The entire academy knows. I’m not deaf, you know?”

Luo Chen thought to himself, The campus belle’s influence is truly something else. It’s only been an afternoon, and already it’s headline news.

Shi Feng added, “I also heard Joanna volunteered to tutor you. That woman’s no pushover—she’s pretty fierce. She didn’t give you trouble, did she?”

Luo Chen ladled out a bowl of meat and began to wolf it down, mumbling, “No, it was fine.”

Aside from being a bit harsh, Joanna hadn’t done anything over the line.

“That’s impossible, how strange,” Shi Feng said, puzzled. “People at the academy are even betting on whether you’ll survive more than half a month before Joanna torments you into begging for the tutoring to end.”

Luo Chen groaned, “Seriously? They’re betting on that?”

“Of course! Lots of people have wagered. Listen, no matter how badly she treats you—whips, candle wax, whatever—just stick it out. I’ve put two gold coins on you lasting the full two weeks.”

Luo Chen nearly spat out his soup. “So that’s why you’re rooting for me?”

Shi Feng laughed awkwardly. “Backing my brother is a given, but making a little money on the side doesn’t hurt. Besides, isn’t this why I made you this late-night snack?”

“What’s it called this time?”

“Invincible Artilleryman’s Soup. Drink it, and no matter what kind of woman you’re up against, she’ll both love and fear you. I guarantee you could endure the torment of ten Joannas.”

Hearing such a lewd name, Luo Chen couldn’t help but scold him. “Artilleryman’s Soup? You think I’m going to be wrestling her in bed?”

“Close enough!” Shi Feng chuckled. “For the sake of my bet, have a few more bowls. The great Shi has divined you’ll get through two weeks, but you might suffer a minor mishap…”

[Don’t blame the author for rambling, but this week’s editorial recommendations haven’t helped the click count at all. Right now, the new rankings are all about popularity, so without strong recommendations, authors like me are struggling. Even mighty Huangfu Qi is in limbo on the new book list without recommendations. I’m exhausted, using every excuse—fresh air, pretty girls—soon I’ll be citing how smoothly my morning went! Anyway, I’ll keep hanging in there and thick-skinnedly asking for votes. Here’s hoping for a higher-click recommendation next week!]