Fang Lian leaned back in the glowing spirit pond, arms resting behind her, gaze locked on the rippling reflection of the ceiling above.
"...I want to stay here forever."
Fang Yuan’s brows knit. "Don’t be stupid," he said calmly, folding his arms.
"If you stay here forever, how are you going to heal others?"
She didn’t answer imdiately.
Then, without looking at him, she whispered, "I don’t need to. They all look down on anyway. Why should I help people who don’t even treat like a person?"
Fang Yuan’s gaze deepened, a flicker of sothing unreadable in his eyes.
He was silent for a long breath.
"...Fang Lian," he said at last, voice lower, gentler. "You’ve taken a wrong turn sowhere."
His words didn’t hold bla, only quiet concern.
"Co here."
Fang Lian blinked up at him, confused.
Her violet eyes shimred, not with defiance, but with sothing quieter... sothing more fragile.
"...Master?" she said softly.
Her lips pressed into a thin line, the spark in her eyes dimming just slightly.
A subtle flinch touched her shoulders, as if she expected to be judged.
Fang Yuan noticed the change, the drop in her posture, the flicker of hurt, quickly masked behind practiced nonchalance.
He hadn’t even said anything yet, but sohow... she already looked like she was bracing herself.
Not for punishnt but for dismissal.
Like she thought he might see her as a liability now.
Just then, a screen blinked silently in Fang Yuan’s vision:
[ Fang Lian’s Faith in you has fallen by 5 points. Currently now at 80. ]
Fang Yuan muttered under his breath, brow arching in mild surprise.
"Huh... so that’s how it works?"
He glanced at the faint system notification still hovering in the air before fading from view.
"So it notifies when a person’s faith rises or falls..." he nodded slowly, piecing it together. "That way I can actually fix things—if I ss up without realizing it."
There was sothing oddly reassuring about that.
A quiet chanism, invisible yet vigilant, helping him understand his people better.
A tool not just for power, but for connection.
"Not bad," he murmured, lips curling faintly. "This might be more useful than I thought."
But then his eyes darted back to Fang Lian.
And his small mont of satisfaction shattered like a popped bubble.
"—Right. Now’s not the ti to be pleased with myself," he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Her trust just dropped. Focus, idiot."
His gaze softened.
This is what matters.
And just like that, his mind cleared.
He stepped toward her and gently placed a hand on her head.
"Lian’er," he said quietly, "do you love your father?"
She nodded, almost reflexively.
Even if Fang Guo had been exiled after his failed coup, he was still her father.
Whatever mistakes he made, he had loved her.
"He was a good father," she said softly. "Even if... he wasn’t a good man."
Fang Yuan didn’t deny it. Cris were cris.
Justice had to be done. But that didn’t erase the bond between parent and child.
His eyes, once calm and detached, now brimd with silent responsibility.
Gone was the aloof cultivator who wandered at his own pace. In that mont, he stood as the pillar of the Fang family—
A leader not just of strength, but of hearts.
And his gaze, steady and unwavering, fell upon her like the judgnt of heaven itself.
"Do you rember why you began cultivating in the first place?"
Fang Lian’s brows knit. She blinked slowly. "...To... help people. To not feel weak."
Fang Yuan sat beside her on the stone, his robes barely brushing the pond’s edge.
She was still subrged, the water catching the soft blue glow of the spirit stones embedded in the cavern walls.
"Where I ca from," he began slowly, "power was everything. Everyone wanted it. And when they got it, most realized it was more than they could handle.
So they used it to control others. Or to run from themselves."
Fang Lian tilted her head, confused. "Where you ca from...?"
She thought he ant the Fang family, or maybe even her father’s revolt.
But the distant look in Fang Yuan’s eyes told her he ant sothing deeper.
"There’s also an old saying," he added with a faint smirk. "With great power cos great responsibility."
Fang Lian giggled. "That sounds fake. You made it up, didn’t you?"
Fang Yuan sighed theatrically, shaking his head. "You brats never appreciate wisdom when it’s passed down."
Then his tone softened again.
"So... tell ," he said with a small smile. "Who’s been bullying you lately?"
She looked up, eyes blinking slowly.
He waited patiently.
Then, she pointed.
Up.
From the jagged ceiling of the cave, a single droplet ford, suspended at the tip of a translucent stalactite like a tear clinging to a trembling lash.
It quivered for a breathless mont...
Then fell.
The droplet sliced through the heavy silence of the chamber, twisting faintly in the dim, ethereal glow of the spirit pond below.
It glided downward, a slow, weightless descent, as if ti itself had chosen to watch.
It struck her forehead with the gentlest tap—like a kiss from the mountain.
Then it began its slow journey...
Sliding down the curve of her brow.
Trailing the slope of her temple.
Weaving a shimring path down her cheek, cool and smooth, reflecting the flickering blue light like a sliver of moonlight.
Her eyes fluttered shut, lashes damp with cave mist.
She didn’t move.
She simply breathed, still, serene, waiting.
And as the droplet reached the edge of her parted lips...
She flicked out her tongue.
Soft. Deliberate. A subtle, almost sensual gesture.
The droplet disappeared with a quiet shlck,
leaving behind only a faint glisten and the echo of sothing unspoken in the air.
Then, in a whisper so soft it barely stirred the air, she spoke:
"Master... do you trust ?"
Fang Yuan looked at her for a mont, eyes calm, searching and gave a gentle nod.
"Of course I do."
A soft giggle escaped her lips, delicate and light.
"Then... may I resolve what’s in my heart on my own?"
Fang Yuan paused.
In that mont, he finally understood.
So that’s what this has all been about...
Still, he nodded once more, slowly.
"Fine. I’ll leave it to you."
[ DING! Your disciple Fang Lian’s Faith has risen above 80. ]
A soft chi echoed in his mind.
And another note appeared beneath it:
[ Maintain Faith above 90 to gain passive Faith Point. ]
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