Li Yundong sat stunned in his seat, lost in thought. Behind him, Ziyuan, as if sensing his inner musings, couldn't help but glance at him, a flicker of deep contemplation in her eyes.

She thought to herself: This man hasn't even endured his own Heavenly Tribulation yet, and he’s already worrying about others. Truly a man predisposed to cherishing the fairer sex; in this, he is rather like the Master.

Seeing Ziyuan remain silent, Li Yundong paused for a moment before picking up their previous thread. "Frankly, I thought you would keep pushing me to learn spells without pause, but I didn't expect you to send me back to school. I confess I don't quite understand why, now that I've begun cultivation, I still need to return to an academic setting."

Ziyuan reached beside Li Yundong’s ear, running her fingers through his overly long hair. With a crisp snip, she cut a section and said, "Cultivation is divided into two paths: worldly immersion and otherworldly detachment. Some cultivators spend their entire lives in detachment, while others remain immersed in the world. There is no inherent superiority between the two, yet both paths inevitably leave behind some form of regret or deficiency."

"Those who cultivate solely in detachment, while shielded from the dust and clamor of the mortal realm, possessing pure essence and formidable strength, have rarely had their Dao hearts truly tested or forged. Should they encounter a cultivator with an equally staunch will but comparable power, they will almost certainly be defeated."

Li Yundong listened, utterly absorbed, and couldn't help but ask, "Why is that?"

Ziyuan stopped her work, her expression suddenly serious. "You must remember this: a cultivator's duel is not simply won by the one with the higher power level. If it were, you would already be nothing more than a pile of dry bones on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Wu Hao and Lü Fengping possessed cultivation far superior to yours; their defeat stemmed from their insufficient resolve—they lacked the unwavering spirit and composure you displayed in the face of sudden danger!"

Li Yundong experienced a moment of realization. "Oh, I understand what you mean. This mental fortitude—can it be termed the Dao heart? That during a confrontation, one must tightly guard the Dao heart, lest it be broken by the opponent?"

Ziyuan smiled faintly. "That is one way to put it."

Li Yundong chuckled. "I see. Please continue."

Ziyuan resumed, "Spending one's entire life in detachment is not necessarily good, and similarly, a lifetime spent in worldly immersion is not necessarily beneficial either."

Like a diligent and eager student, Li Yundong pressed further, "Why is that? Isn't it better to temper one's heart in the crucible of the mundane world until it is forged like unyielding steel?"

Ziyuan sighed softly. "The Han dynasty literary master Jia Yi, in his lament for Qu Yuan, once wrote: 'Heaven and Earth as the furnace, Creation as the artisan; Yin and Yang as the charcoal, the myriad things as the copper.' You can discern the difficulty of worldly immersion cultivation from this very passage."

Li Yundong felt as if he were brushing against some profound truth, yet it remained hazy, indistinct, and intangible. He said, "Tell me. I am listening."

Ziyuan clarified, "This statement perfectly illustrates the challenges of worldly cultivation. Consider this: Heaven and Earth act as a great furnace. Everything in this world—all the myriad things—are like copper tools within that furnace, being scorched and baked. You must understand that if copper remains in such a heat for too long, under the influence of Creation, it will melt and be recast into new forms! And Yin and Yang refer to our very essence—if we are the charcoal, we cannot escape the fate of being burned and refined by that intense heat."

Li Yundong gasped, his eyes brightening. "I get it now! You mean that if one immerses oneself too deeply in the mortal world, one risks being burdened or fundamentally altered by worldly affairs, thereby hindering one's own cultivation."

Ziyuan nodded in approval. "Your interpretation is spot on. This principle is akin to the fundamental requirements of cultivation: resources, companions, favorable location, and tools. If you lack money, worrying constantly about firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar—how can you possibly find the stillness required to cultivate?"

"Likewise, if you remain in a company or environment rife with backstabbing and scheming all day long, how can you progress? Cultivation is not about leaping out of this world to observe it from a detached, superior vantage point. It is about placing yourself within it, transforming yourself into the finest metal, to be tempered and forged into the best instrument within the great furnace of Heaven and Earth."

Li Yundong grasped the analogy immediately. "So, the school is the best location between Heaven and Earth for this purpose. It lacks the intense scheming and filth of other places, maintaining a relative purity and quiet, while offering abundant resources for study, ample time, and freedom of movement. Therefore..."

Ziyuan cut him off with a smile before he could finish. "Therefore, the ivory tower is good for practice." She paused, a sudden thought sparking in her mind, and laughed again. "Oh, yes, someone familiar to you will be joining your school as a freshman this year."

Li Yundong immediately grew curious. "A freshman? Someone familiar? I know them? Who is it?"

Before Ziyuan could answer, the sound of keys turning in the lock echoed through the door. Ziyuan instantly laughed and turned toward the entrance.

Li Yundong turned as well, looking toward the doorway.

As their eyes met the entryway, they saw Ruan Hongling stepping in, carrying several plastic bags filled with fresh vegetables, fruits, and daily necessities. She froze upon seeing Li Yundong and Ziyuan, then broke into a wide, joyful smile. But that joy instantly soured into alarm when she noticed Ziyuan leaning intimately close to Li Yundong. She demanded with a mixture of suspicion and shock, "What—what are you two doing?"

Ziyuan knew her junior disciple intimately and shot Hongling a sharp, exasperated look. "What do you think we're doing?"

Ruan Hongling finally noticed the scattering of hair around Li Yundong’s feet and grimaced. "I just cleaned this room! How did it get this messy again?"

Although Li Yundong and Ruan Hongling had always been at odds—especially after a massive argument right before he left—two months had softened the sharp edges of their resentment. While he couldn't greet her with an overly warm smile, normal conversation was possible.

"You cleaned this room?" Li Yundong couldn't help but ask.

"Did you clean it, perhaps?" Ruan Hongling scoffed. Li Yundong might let things go, but she still held a grudge!

Li Yundong then noticed that the windowpanes and glass in the room had been replaced; they no longer let in drafts like before. He sighed with genuine gratitude. "Thank you. I haven't been back in two months, and there isn't even any dust."

Ruan Hongling snorted, turning her head away, and replied coolly, "As long as some people don't mind my meddling, then it’s nothing."

Li Yundong offered a wry smile: Why was this girl so vindictive?

Ziyuan turned and shot Ruan Hongling a stern look. Ruan Hongling just stuck out her tongue in a playful grimace before carrying the bags into the kitchen. "I figured you two would be back these few days, so I bought groceries. Li Yundong, even though you’re annoying, you cook quite well. Why don't you make a few dishes later, and I might condescend to grace your meal as a reward for your gratitude!"

Li Yundong couldn't help but laugh. "You should be a merchant; you never lose out, profiting while pretending to be put out!"

Ziyuan also chuckled. "Don't mind her; she’s just a child. Her heart isn't bad, just a little headstrong."

Ruan Hongling poked her head out from the kitchen to protest loudly, "I'm not a child anymore! I'm a university student!"

Ziyuan teased, "Not for another few days, you won't be!"

Li Yundong turned to her. "You’re going to university? Which one?"

Ziyuan was in the process of trimming his hair, and just as the scissors were about to descend, Li Yundong sharply turned his face. She narrowly missed cutting a gaping notch into his head. Ziyuan instantly grew annoyed, lightly tapping the top of his head. "Turn your head back!"

Li Yundong immediately complied, turning straight ahead, his eyes fixed forward.

Ruan Hongling let out a muffled snicker and teased, "Hey, going soft already, adopting the 'henpecked husband' role?"

That single sentence sent a faint flush across Ziyuan’s cheeks. She glared angrily at Ruan Hongling.

Li Yundong began coughing awkwardly, looking embarrassed and flustered, afraid to speak or move for a long moment.

Though Ziyuan didn't abandon the half-finished haircut because of the comment, her movements became stiff and unnatural. Once she was finally done, she threw down the scissors and said, "Go look for yourself." Then, she fled into the kitchen to scold Ruan Hongling.

Li Yundong, too distracted by Ruan Hongling’s jab to check the mirror immediately, sat still for a while before finally heading to his bedroom to face the full-length mirror.

The moment he looked, he couldn't help but marvel at Ziyuan's skill. She hadn't cut his hair much shorter, but had trimmed away the messy parts, reshaping it into something flowing and elegant. His entire demeanor had transformed, taking on an ethereal quality.

Li Yundong clicked his tongue in admiration. "A true fairy indeed. Even giving a haircut can achieve such graceful, classical elegance. Impressive, truly impressive!"

He laughed, examining his reflection closely, but then his gaze snagged on the pillow on his bed and the piggy bank beside it.

Li Yundong paused. He noticed the piggy bank was lying on its side—previously, its head (the opening) had been pointing upwards, but now it was facing down.

A flicker of annoyance crossed Li Yundong’s mind: Why was Ruan Hongling messing with my things again?

He resolved inwardly: I must speak to her later and tell her not to touch my belongings.

Thinking this, Li Yundong walked to the bed and picked up the piggy bank. As soon as he lifted it, he found a small piece of paper beneath it.

Curious, Li Yundong picked up the note and glanced at it. Written across it in bold strokes were three characters: I Miss You!

Li Yundong’s eyes widened. His hands trembled with excitement, his chest feeling as if it might explode with joy. He burst out of the bedroom like a madman, roaring through the living room like a phantom, "She came back! The girl came back!"

Ruan Hongling and Ziyuan, who were busy cooking in the kitchen, both poked their heads out, staring at Li Yundong in confusion. They exchanged a glance. Ruan Hongling mumbled, "What's wrong with him?"

Ziyuan shook her head. "I don't know. But that frantic look doesn't seem like the first time he’s acted this way."

Ruan Hongling’s eyes glinted with playful mischief. "Senior Sister, what else have you seen?"

Ziyuan shot her an annoyed look. "Shut up!"

Li Yundong was still dancing wildly in the living room. Catching sight of Ruan Hongling and Ziyuan, he rushed over, shaking the note excitedly in his hand, and shouted, "She came back! She came to see me!"

Ziyuan and Ruan Hongling’s eyes tracked the note as it swung back and forth, up and down, left and right. All they could make out were the three words: I Miss You.

Ruan Hongling asked skeptically, "Who came to see you?"

Li Yundong roared back, his face alight with ecstatic joy, "Su Chan! My girl! She came back to see me!"

Ruan Hongling quickly withdrew her head, adopting a look of dismissive indifference. She wanted to deliver a cutting remark to deflate Li Yundong's high spirits, but seeing his ecstatic state, she hesitated. Yet, she didn't want him to get too boastful, so she couldn't resist saying, "Pfft, who knows if she actually wrote that?"

Li Yundong stated with grave seriousness, "It must be her!"

Ruan Hongling retorted, unconvinced, "How do you know? Maybe it was a burglar who wrote it!"

Li Yundong was in too good a mood to argue. He simply shot Ruan Hongling and Ziyuan a smug look and scoffed, "People who have never been in love wouldn't understand. Hmph. Of course, a fiery woman like you, no matter how pretty, probably couldn't find a boyfriend! You wouldn't understand—this is called unspoken connection! If I know she wrote it, then she wrote it!"

Ruan Hongling was nearly driven mad by his comment: Scoundrel! I haven't not been in love, I just choose not to be! It's not that I can't find someone, it's that I don't want to find someone!

Ziyuan, however, fell into a deep, wistful silence. She watched Li Yundong's uncontrollable euphoria and murmured to herself, bewildered, "It's only three words. Can loving someone bring such overwhelming happiness?"

While one of them was lost in thought and the other was wrestling with frustration, Li Yundong, carefree, dashed onto the balcony. He cupped his hands around his mouth to form a megaphone and leaned out over the railing.

Li Yundong took a deep breath and yelled out, "I miss you too!!!"

His shout soared across the vast, boundless sky, seeming to travel to the ends of the earth, lingering long after it was uttered.

Staring at the distant horizon, the image of the young girl’s face seemed to dance before his eyes. Unconsciously, his vision blurred with tears, and he whispered devotedly, "Little girl, I miss you too..."