Looking at his status, Lin Chen smiled.

  “With my current cultivation and techniques, there’s no one in the same realm who can match me.”

  The words came easily, carried by the smooth, steady flow of power circulating through his body, and the smile on his face only grew.

  Then—

  He paused.

  “…Wait.”

  The smile slowly stiffened.

  Why is he suddenly thinking like those brainless cultivation maniacs? Lin Chen frowned. Did the rapid breakthroughs also come with an ego enhancement pill?

  The smile vanished completely.

  “Damn it,” he muttered. “I almost lost my ability to think rationally.”

  Now he finally understood those so-called geniuses. When cultivation surged smoothly, strength came easily, and breakthroughs followed one after another, it was dangerously easy to start believing oneself invincible. No wonder their egos swelled larger than their dantians.

  Lin Chen shook his head and let out a slow breath.

  Confidence is fine, he reminded himself. But arrogance gets people killed.

  [It’s a good thing your ego didn’t inflate,] Aiva said calmly. [The world is vast. Never forget—there is always someone above you.]

  “I know,” Lin Chen replied, rubbing his temple. “It was just a moment of excitement.”

  [Also, it is the appointed time for the Secret Realm to open. We should make haste.]

  “Thanks, Aiva,” Lin Chen said with a smile. “As always, I can count on you.”

  He stood up and slid the front door open.

  Then froze.

  Standing right in front of his door was his master.

  She stood there a little too stiffly, a faint flush creeping up her face, her gaze shifting ever so slightly—as if she’d been interrupted in the middle of something she absolutely hadn’t intended to be caught doing.

  Lin Chen blinked once.

  'She was definitely spying, It was written all over her face.'

  “Master, you came to pick me up for the Secret Realm, right?” Lin Chen asked. He chose to ignore her strange behavior—this wasn’t even the first time something like this had happened.

  “Ah—yes,” Lan Yaoye replied, coughing lightly. “I came to pick you up.”

  She paused for a moment, then added, as if remembering something important, “But I also brought you a gift.”

  “Gift?” Lin Chen tilted his head, genuinely confused.

  Lan Yaoye waved her hand and took out a neatly folded set of clothes, followed by a sword. The robes were themed in deep blue and dark azure, threaded with subtle golden patterns that shimmered faintly with spiritual light.

  They were clearly no ordinary garments. The sword, meanwhile, was simple in appearance, yet its presence carried a restrained sharpness that made the air around it feel slightly colder.

  “Secret Realms are dangerous places,” Lan Yaoye said calmly. “It wouldn’t do for my disciple to look unprepared.”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Lin Chen looked at the items in her hands, then back at her.

  “…Thank you, Master.”

  “The robe is a high-grade Spirit-rank defensive robe, woven from the silk of a Azure Frost Silkworm known for its toughness. "

  “And the sword,” Lan Yaoye continued, “is a low-grade Illustrious Spirit-rank weapon, forged from the scales of a Flood Dragon.”

  Lin Chen’s eyes widened slightly as he held them.

  These were real treasures.

  Even within a first-rate sect, items of this level were not casually given to disciples. They were usually reserved for core disciples or those who had made great contributions.

  Compared to the weapons in his storage ring, the difference was obvious. The bloody demon sword he had obtained earlier was crude by comparison, and the other sword didn’t even deserve to be mentioned alongside this one.

  There was simply no comparison.

  Lin Chen lowered his gaze to the items in his hands… then slowly looked up at the person who had given them to him.

  His master.

  For a moment, his chest tightened.

  Looking at Lan Yaoye, Lin Chen felt his eyes sting slightly. He had always thought his master was… well, not very bright. Even now, that opinion hadn’t changed much. She really wasn’t intelligent in the conventional sense.

  But her heart,

  Her heart was vast like the ocean, and her kindness was as towering as a mountain.

  And her chest is also quite big—

  …Wait. Something strange got mixed in.

  “Master,” Lin Chen said suddenly, voice sincere, “I love you.”

  He quickly put the treasures into his storage ring and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her.

  Normally, this wouldn’t have been strange. Lan Yaoye hugged him all the time. Sometimes too much. Sometimes with questionable enthusiasm.

  But this time was different.

  For Lan Yaoye, the last fifty days had already left her mind in complete chaos. The conflicted feelings she had been trying—and failing—to suppress hadn’t faded at all. If anything, they had only grown worse.

  And now… this hug.

  Her thoughts exploded.

  “W-WHAAAH—!”

  With a sudden burst of emotion, she lashed out instinctively.

  Bang!

  Lin Chen was sent flying straight back into his house, crashing into the wall with a dull thud.

  “What do you think you’re doing, you stupid disciple?!” Lan Yaoye shouted, her face burning red.

  Lin Chen slid down the wall in a slow, almost cartoonish way, dazed and utterly confused.

  “What… the hell?” he muttered.

  He pushed himself up, staring at her in disbelief.

  “Master, this isn’t even the first time,” he said, genuinely baffled. “You’re usually the one who hugs me. You didn’t react like this before—so why now?”

  Lan Yaoye froze.

  [I’ve detected an increased level of hormones,] Aiva said calmly.

  'Hormones?' Lin Chen asked mentally. 'What kind of hormones?'

  [The type produced when physical desire is aroused.]

  Lin Chen froze.

  'Can you say that in a nicer way?' he complained. 'You’re making my master sound bad'

  [Then let me be direct—she desires you.]

  Lin Chen paused.

  “…That’s more acceptable,” he muttered. “Barely.”

  At least it explained her odd behavior—the lingering looks, the stiffness, the faint tension that hadn’t existed before. What he’d mistaken for irritation finally made sense, though the realization did nothing to ease his discomfort.

  But that only led to another problem.

  Why him?

  He searched his memory, trying to pinpoint what could have caused this. There was no deliberate action, no intimacy, no boundary crossed on his part. Just an accidental moment that should have been insignificant.

  He frowned.

  He was completely clueless about what chain of events had led to this. Not once had it crossed his mind that his master was still single—let alone that accidentally seeing him in that state could leave such a strong impression on her.

  Apparently, it had affected her far more than he imagined.

  “Whatever,” Lan Yaoye said stiffly, turning her head away. “In the future, don’t ever do something like that again. My heart can’t take it.”

  “Okay,” Lin Chen replied simply.

  He honestly didn’t know when he had unlocked this strange route, but one thing was certain—now was not the time to deal with it.

  “I’ll investigate this after the Secret Realm trip,” Lin Chen decided silently.

  For now, he chose to pretend nothing had happened.

  “Then, Master, I’ll come out in a minute after I change into these new clothes,” Lin Chen said, already turning as he closed the door behind him.

  His figure vanished from sight.

  A short minute later, the door opened again. Lin Chen stepped out, now dressed in the new robes.

  Compared to what he had been wearing before, the difference was striking. The fabric fit his frame neatly, the flowing sleeves and embroidered patterns carrying the quiet dignity of a cultivator. With the sword now resting at his waist, his aura felt sharper, more refined.

  Coupled with the effects of recent rejuvenation, he no longer looked merely passable. He looked… presentable. Even above average.

  "Hmm." Lan Yaoye’s gaze swept over him from head to toe before she nodded faintly. There was a flicker of satisfaction in her eyes—an instinctive pride that the man she found herself drawn to at least possessed some charm.

  'No, Yaoye,' she warned herself inwardly. 'He is your disciple. And you are more than ten times his age.'

  She turned away before her thoughts could wander further.

  “Let’s go,” she said calmly. “The others are waiting.”

  Want to read ahead? My Patreon is live with 20 exclusive early chapters you won’t find anywhere else.

  ? Bonus content includes:

  Character illustrations

  Object & artifact illustrations

  ??