Starting My Cultivation With Time Management

By the end of the month, Shi Liuli’s condition still showed no signs of improvement; instead, it seemed to have worsened.

When she was learning the art of sword-casting, she was as diligent and hardworking as Xu Yinglian; when practicing with swordsmanship and magic artifacts, she was as brave and fearless as An Zhisu.

This made Luo Yan sometimes even doubt if Shi Liuli had been possessed by someone else... asking Ah Jing to scan her carefully, yet the result was negative, the soul inside her body was still the same.

But thinking like this just made it all the more heartbreaking, didn’t it?

Luo Yan then secretly resolved in his heart to bring a smile back to Miss Shi’s face!

As for exactly how to do it, Luo Yan currently had no clue, but he believed that with his sunny disposition and optimistic spirit, he would surely be able to transform Miss Shi with an overflowing positive energy.

If there was still no effect, wasn’t there an old saying: Time is the best medicine.

All in all, because of worrying about Shi Liuli’s mental state, Luo Yan couldn’t just comfortably reload his previous save and walk away.

He could only stay by her side every day, telling her witty remarks, trying to make her laugh.

However, the jokes that once brought peals of laughter from Miss Shi now at best could only coax a faint smile from her—it was more like a polite smile to comfort Luo Yan than being genuinely amused.

This fake happiness couldn’t deceive Luo Yan, the professional spy.

At a glance, he deemed it false mirth!

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

Luo Yan was frustrated because he didn’t know how to help her; reading the previous save... of course, that was impossible.

Fortunately, the Wan Xiang Immortal finally returned from outside and could preside over the ceremony for the two to become Daoist Companions.

Ironically, the marriage affair between Luo Yan and Shi Liuli was no secret; Elder Shi Ding hadn’t deliberately concealed it before his death. Initially, everyone thought it was Luo Yan who had aimed too high in aspiring to marry Miss Shi.

Who was Miss Shi? Elder Shi Ding’s only beloved daughter, the jewel in the palm, becoming her Daoist Companion was like inheriting half of the Heavenly Craft Workshop—after all, almost all the resources of the Heavenly Craft Workshop were at Miss Shi’s beck and call.

Even after Luo Yan became the heir, many from Penglai felt it was only because of his relationship with Miss Shi that Elder Shi Ding looked at him with newfound respect.

Now that Luo Yan had secured a ranking in the White Jade Capital’s competition and formed a Second Grade Golden Core, the public opinion inside Yuqing View finally reversed, becoming that Elder Shi Ding had wisely acknowledged his true worth in life, and that Shi Liuli was fortunate to have found such an ideal husband.

Some even privately remarked that Miss Shi was previously guarded by Elder Shi Ding. After her father’s untimely death, she immediately had the protection of a Second Grade Golden Core husband; the transition was seamless with constant care, a stroke of luck that others envied.

Shi Liuli turned a deaf ear to these comments; Luo Yan, afraid that she would care, went over to comfort her several times, and each time she reassured him with "You don’t have to worry about me," showing a considerate attitude that was truly heart-wrenching.

The day of the ceremony finally arrived, following the same familiar process, identical to the wedding of Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian.

The only difference was that Xu Yinglian’s side had many elders, while Shi Liuli was now an orphan... Thinking this made it even more sorrowful.

After the ceremony, the two moved in together.

Luo Yan drank a bit at the wedding feast, mainly because having formed a Second Grade Golden Core, everyone saw him as a future high-ranking candidate of Penglai, hence they rushed to toast him and get familiar.

After returning to their room, he poured himself some tea to rinse his mouth.

Shi Liuli removed her phoenix crown and made the bed. Then she suddenly turned to him and asked,

"Tonight... do you want to do it?"

"Pfft!" Luo Yan directly sprayed out the tea he held in his mouth, "Do... do what?"

"Have children," Shi Liuli said softly.

"This..." Luo Yan chuckled dryly, choosing his words carefully, "For cultivators, preserving Yuan Yang and Yuan Yin is more beneficial to future cultivation."

This was a blatant lie, mainly because he was bound to run away sooner or later. If he took Shi Liuli’s Yuan Yin and even had children before running away, how would that be different from certain races of people?

There are things a gentleman does and does not do! Luo Yan was unwilling to do so!

"Oh." Shi Liuli sat on the edge of the bed, seemingly a bit disappointed by his expression.

Luo Yan studied her carefully, thinking to himself that this young lady seemed somewhat love-starved?

Could it be a transfer of affection? Does she see me as her emotional pillar now?

Also remembering the kindness of Elder Shi Ding, Luo Yan’s heart softened. He went over to sit beside Shi Liuli, wrapping her shoulders in his arms, and said gently,

"Don’t overthink it. I just don’t want you to covet momentary joy, only to hinder your progress in cultivation."

"What momentary joy..." Shi Liuli didn’t know what to say, so she just turned her back, distancing herself, "You should rest early, husband. Liuli is going into meditative concentration."

"Alright then." Luo Yan pretended to be clueless about the romantic atmosphere, positioning himself in the Five Hearts Facing the Sky pose, and began to meditate right next to Shi Liuli’s body.

Shi Liuli stared at him, and suddenly, tears fell silently.

She reached out with her sleeve to wipe the tears, but the more she wiped, the more tears came. This continued until Luo Yan himself was startled out of his meditative state by her sobbing. Seeing Miss Shi crying a mess, he quickly embraced her with concern,

"What’s wrong, Liuli? Are you thinking of your master?"

"I, I don’t know," Shi Liuli kept wiping her tears, "I, I..."

She stuttered for quite a while before finally saying in a dispirited tone,

"After my father left, I suddenly realized that the carefree, happy life I had for so many years was just like flowers in the mirror, the moon in the water... that it could collapse and disappear at any moment..."

"Luo Yan, I’m scared... I’m afraid that one day, when I come to my senses, I will find myself completely alone."

She said, choked with sobs, hugging Luo Yan tightly.

Luo Yan could only hug her back, thinking whether this was the moment to make a promise to "always be by your side"?

Wait a minute, that’s impossible to do!

Making a vow to Long Hu was to maintain a devoted facade for synchronization value, a necessity to keep his identity.

If he also made a vow to Shi Liuli, wouldn’t that make him an utter scoundrel who decides to lie just to make a girl happy?

"Luo Yan!" Shi Liuli pleaded softly, her voice filled with tears, "You’ll stay with me forever, right? You won’t leave me like father did..."

Seeing her eyes swollen red, brimming with tears, pitiful with a pear-blossom rain, trembling slightly in fear, she looked at him with such desperate hope, like a small animal about to be abandoned, that Luo Yan found himself overwhelmed. He closed his eyes, clenched his teeth, steeled his heart, and resignedly said,

"Liuli! Don’t worry, I won’t leave you..."

No sooner had his words faded than Shi Liuli, with tears still on her face, kissed him.