Chapter 116: My "Aunt Flo" Has Arrived

Yan Chixia, Bai Xiaoyue, Tu Xiaomeng, and Song Taer all nodded in agreement upon hearing this.

“Yes, Master! We will remember your teachings!”

As they spoke, everyone finished their breakfast and then busied themselves with their respective tasks.

Bai Xiaoyue, Tu Xiaomeng, and Song Taer each returned to their own rooms, immersing themselves wholeheartedly in their cultivation.

Qingxu Zhenren flew swiftly into his secret cave dwelling.

Yan Chixia continued instructing She Meier in the art of Paper Painting Talismans.

Learning the Paper Painting Talisman Technique proved to be a struggle for She Meier, and teaching her was equally taxing for Yan Chixia, for she was exceedingly slow to grasp the method. Several times, Yan Chixia considered advising her to give up. Yet each time the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back, unwilling to wound her pride given his fondness for her.

At that moment, She Meier sat before the desk, gazing at the talisman paper laid out—a butterfly design Yan Chixia had drawn for her—yet she hesitated to pick up the brush. Yan Chixia, standing nearby and growing somewhat anxious, could no longer hold back and urged her:

“What’s wrong, She Meier? You’re supposed to start now. Why are you dawdling instead of taking the talisman paper and brush? I’ve done the sample for you; why don’t you quickly copy it?”

“I…” She Meier wanted to say she no longer wished to learn, but fearing she might lose the precious time spent with Yan Chixia, she cunningly replied, “I suddenly have a stomachache! Yan Chixia, let me rest a moment. I’ll draw once the pain subsides, okay?”

“Oh?” Yan Chixia responded skeptically, “She Meier, you seemed fine just a moment ago. How come your stomach suddenly hurts?”

“Well…” She Meier blushed, “That’s my secret, Yan Chixia. Please don’t ask.”

“Heh heh…” Yan Chixia chuckled, “You? A secret? What kind of secret? Don’t tell me it’s one of those ‘never to be spoken’ secrets? If it’s not, then do tell me.”

“I…” She Meier wasn’t sure how to answer, but steeling herself, she said, “My… monthly visitor has come, so my stomach hurts.”

“What?” Yan Chixia almost burst out laughing. “She Meier, you can’t even lie properly! You don’t even know who your mother is—where would you get a monthly visitor from? Your monthly visitor? Where is it? Why haven’t I seen it?”

“Oh, Yan Chixia, what do you know?” She Meier laughed through tears. “The monthly visitor is a physiological secret… You wouldn’t see it. Whether you believe me or not, it comes once a month, and when it does, my stomach aches from time to time.”

“Oh, I see now,” Yan Chixia suddenly understood. “Given that, it’s understandable. She Meier, does your stomach still hurt?”

“Yes, it’s still aching faintly.” She Meier’s cheeks flushed with shyness. “Yan Chixia, how about… you rub my stomach? That would make me feel much better… Hey, why are you staring like that? Scary! Haha, I’m joking with you, don’t take it seriously! Hmph, you blockhead, you don’t know how to cherish a lady! Fine, no rubbing then. Yan Chixia, this is a ‘special time’ for me. How about you keep me company and chat to distract me?”

“That’s doable,” Yan Chixia nodded. “She Meier, I want to ask you something…”

She Meier blinked.

“What question?”

Yan Chixia said, “She Meier, since your monthly visitor came, I suddenly thought of your ‘mother’—I remember when we first met, you said you were gathering herbs for your mother… At that time, a dark, horned beast was fiercely chasing you… Now I want to know, was that beast just a trick you played?”

“Oh!” She Meier’s face turned crimson. “Yan Chixia, your memory is impressive—you still remember something from eight hundred years ago! Haha, you’re right. That beast was indeed a little trick of mine. Actually, it wouldn’t harm anyone because it’s an illusion called a ‘Phantom,’ created by a wandering magician using magic as a sort of talisman, only usable once. A few years ago, I passed through a small town and saw such Phantoms being sold at the market. I thought it was fun and bought one to keep in my Storage Ring. I didn’t expect to end up using it on you.”

“Ah, what a waste to squander a perfectly good Phantom,” Yan Chixia teased. “Also, She Meier, that night when you lay on my bed trying to… you know…”

“Hey!” Before Yan Chixia could finish, She Meier blushed furiously and interrupted, “Yan Chixia, why do you say such terrible things? What do you mean by me trying to ‘assault’ you? I was just showing my affection, trying to connect with you, okay? ‘Connecting’—that’s the deepening of friendship because I like you very much. Don’t you get it?”

“Heh heh, maybe so,” Yan Chixia chuckled. “She Meier, you don’t have to defend yourself… That’s not the point. The point is: I want to know about the wisp of white smoke you blew into my face that night. I smelled a very peculiar fragrance, and then I felt weak all over. She Meier, tell me, what was that smoke?”

“Oh, Yan Chixia, why do you always bring up the worst topics?” She Meier’s face was scarlet. “That was my self-defense weapon, ‘Soft Bone Powder’—specifically used against ‘wolfish men’…”

“Hahaha…” Yan Chixia laughed heartily. “Interesting! She Meier, your nerve has really grown thick! You clearly had designs on me, yet you claimed it was to fend off ‘wolfish men’… That’s quite the self-justification!”

“Yan Chixia, you…” She Meier was so angry she didn’t know what to say, so she huffed, “You blockhead, so stubborn… I’m not talking to you anymore!”

“What’s that? Out of arguments, She Meier?” Yan Chixia smiled. “You can’t ignore me. I haven’t finished asking yet.”

“You…” She Meier glared at Yan Chixia’s ever-charming smile, her heart fluttering with affection, itching to give him a quick kiss. Her anger melted away as she said, “Yan Chixia, you win. I can’t beat you, I concede. Handsome guy, ask whatever you want! I promise to tell you everything I know.”

“That’s more like it!” Yan Chixia said cheerfully. “She Meier, I’m very curious about your ‘Soft Bone Powder’… Did you buy it on the black market, or did you make it yourself?”