56 Would he be taller?

Xiao Hei sighed deeply as she helped her mistress pack her things. The other handmaids were gossiping excitedly about the prospect of returning home, but Xiao Hei was not like them. Instead, she was plagued with the dense cloud of gloom and a heavy reminder of the upcoming war.

She couldn't pinpoint the exact origins of the anxiety that ate away at her stomach. Was it because she was worried about her older brother's safety? Or was it because she was yearning for the man she left behind in Haishang Province?

War had always promised its arrival at her doorsteps since years ago but she had thought there was time. And that time and come and gone, like a lunar flower that bloomed and wilted in a single night. She felt like she was finally waking up from a long, pleasant dream. Should she have turned away from this dream instead and spent the years preparing for this day? Because why…

Why hadn't her brother sent word for her? Did he not know about what was going on the cultivators' world…? That couldn't be. He had other spies, aside from her.

Xiao Hei sighed, packing away the last of Chen Anyue's hairpieces.

"Xiao Hei!" The Young Miss called from the entrance of the room.

This was just a day, like all other days. Xiao Hei was trying very hard to remind herself. "Yes, Young Miss?" She looked up and forced a smile.

"Ah, you don't look so well, how are you feeling?" Her kind mistress came to her and touched her forehead with the back of her hand. Xiao Hei wanted to tell her that she couldn't get sick so easily.

But instead, she forced her smile even wider until it turned into an ugly grin, "Please don't worry about Xiao Hei. Xiao Hei is just a little sad and a little scared. But everything is packed away and ready to go whenever the Young Miss and Young Master wish to leave."

Chen Anyue sighed then nodded, "Thank you. You've worked very hard."

No she really hadn't.

But before she could say anything more, Chen Anyue dusted her hands on her thighs and glanced around. "You've made quick work of this place," she noted, "there's still a bit more time. Why don't you say go and say your goodbyes before we leave?"

Xiao Hei nodded.

She didn't really have friends that she cared about at Wangyun Peak. There were a few beautiful men that she liked to imagine together but that was about it. But they had no love for her and she only cared about them in her fantasies. But still, Xiao Hei left and went to say farewell, not to the people but to the manor.

It was far from her favorite place. Most of the time she had spent there had been during cold chilly months and Xiao Hei preferred the heat.

But she didn't dislike it either. She didn't dislike the way the rooms were organized neatly and how the Heaven Sword Sect favored designs that were elegant and sleek. She didn't mind the muted decorations or the white-clad disciples often seen training in the court.

It was different from her home and stole her away from memories she wished to forget.

And now those memories were returning to haunt her.

She wondered just how long she could hide her secret.

The one where she knew the location of the Ten Thousand Eternal Star Bead.

And just who would kill her first? The cultivators or her very own brother?

…

Liu Sumeng had been busy participating in one chaotic war council after the other. But sometimes he would still make time to meet Yuan Xuelan in the late evening where they would go over techniques and practice steps.

They would practice late into the evening and Yuan Xuelan always felt guilty for stealing Liu Sumeng's time. He felt even more guilty at the end of the night, where he would remind the Ivory Sword Saint with as much venom as he could muster, "I haven't forgiven you."

"I know." The Ivory Sword Saint would answer.

And Yuan Xuelan always felt the need to bite his own tongue off.

Because it was a lie.

A lie that he conjured to use as an excuse to keep the Ivory Sword Saint away and his turbulent heart safe. He wasn't really sure if it was even working but Yuan Xuelan needed the added reassurance of his efforts. Just in case.

And despite it all. Despite cruel words and the occasional contrived cold shoulder, he was still there in the forest at the fall of evening. There was no promise that Liu Sumeng wasn't caught up in important affairs but Yuan Xuelan waited there like a fool.

Because tonight would be his last night.

He sighed against the cold and rubbed his fingers in the mist of his breath. It wasn't nearly as cold in Reling even in these months. That was at least one thing he could look forward to. New Years' celebrations were always a little awkward for him at the Ascending Dawn Sect. He never quite got along well with Chen Jiang or even Chen Leike.

Yuan Xuelan growled at the thought but pushed it behind his mind. He would worry about that when it came. And plus, even if his own relationship with the brothers was tense, at least Chen Anyue will be happy to reunite with her family again.

Surely she would be happy, right?

Yuan Xuelan watched the sky fade into fiery colors through the branches and tried to imagine warmth but failed. He hopped and shuffled on his feet, hating that the cold only seemed to bother him when he was alone and not when he was with Liu Sumeng.

He wondered just how long he'd wait in the cold before giving up and returning. Dread unfolded in his heart when he realized that he didn't mind waiting the entire night just to glimmer at a chance to encounter Liu Sumeng.

He would wait.

And thus he did, watching how vibrant hues turn to muted ones as reds sank into purple and then into blue. Twilight was not dark at first but slowly, the stars and the moon made themselves known. The air too, became colder. It would be better had he just gone back indoors.

But Yuan Xuelan was stubborn and strolled around the clearing in a circle before finally giving up and pulled out a talisman with a spell on it to keep him warm. Just when he was about to activate it, a warm voice hummed behind him with a secret chuckle, "Did you wait long?"

Yuan Xuelan scowled to hide his surprise, "Why do you have to sneak up on people like that?"

"I'm sorry."

He rolled his eyes, "Don't be." He stole a look and privately committed the details of Liu Sumeng's face in his mind. He also couldn't help but notice that they were roughly the same height. Hadn't he been shorter when he first came to Wangyun Peak? Had he really grown so fast?

His heart thumped against his ribs. Would Yuan Xuelan be taller the next time they met? The thought excited him much more than it should. "I want to go over what we learned last time. Since, you know, I'll be leaving tomorrow morning."

Liu Sumeng nodded. His expression was frustratingly unreadable. "Okay. Let's start from the beginning."

Yuan Xuelan drew his blade and began the routine that Liu Sumeng taught him. It felt a lot easier now, with the Ivory Sword Saint's guidance instead of Xu Hexian's odd and vague explanations.

"The sword is an extension of your limbs. It is not a weapon." Liu Sumeng had explained, "It is as much a part of you as your very own hand."

Yuan Xuelan had despised that explanation at first because it made no sense. But he was slowly coming to understand. An awareness was creeping into his mind and he felt how the blade was balanced when he rotated his shoulders. He could anticipate the amount of power focused on the tip and understood that if he just swerved his wrist, the power would melt into the edge for a cut. Like wind that dragged and pulled, he was the master of his own body and his sword.

"Stop." The Ivory Sword Saint commanded him and Yuan Xuelan was snapped out of his trance. "Much better now," he hummed, "But your hips are not always aligned with the rotation. The movement should begin from your extremities and extend all the from one end of your body to the other. Up and down. Side to side."

"My what." He blinked at Liu Sumeng dumbly, only realizing belatedly that he sounded crass and unrefined.

But Liu Sumeng didn't seem to mind and explained, "Your fingers and your toes. Here." He walked around Yuan Xuelan and stood behind him.

Yuan Xuelan held his breath. Liu Sumeng was always short with words and sometimes didn't explain things in full. But he was still an excellent teacher. The things that he had trouble expressing would always be shown instead, whether it be through demonstration or…

Liu Sumeng's index and middle finger tapped Yuan Xuelan's own. "This," he explained, ignoring the shiver that pulsed through Yuan Xuelan's being, "is where the movement begins."

He then cupped Yuan Xuelan's hand and around the hilt of his sword and guided him into the following stance. "The pull begins here, and…" he let go of Yuan Xuelan's hand and traced a line down his forearm and snaked around his bicep. From his shoulder to the shoulder blade. Yuan Xuelan tensed to prevent himself from laughing because he swore that the Ivory Sword Saint knew that his flank was ticklish. "And down this way." the hand traveled all the way down his waist and for a moment Yuan Xuelan's mind exploded into an unthinking white, fearing that Liu Sumeng might draw a line all the way down to his hips and thighs…

But Liu Sumeng stopped. His hand rested upon Yuan Xuelan's hip, "All the way to your toes. Do you understand?"

"Uh."

"...Xuelan?"

"Y-yeah," he shook his head like a dog and Liu Sumeng gave him a strange look. "Yeah, I understand!" He groaned out. He didn't need Liu Sumeng to show him again in the same way as he did, because, at that point, he would really die!

"Then. Again, from the beginning."

Yuan Xuelan had heard rumors of the Ivory Sword Saint being a scary and severe teacher but he was surprisingly patient. The younger cultivator nodded and began the steps once more from the beginning.

He would end up doing it another ten times before the Ivory Sword Saint was satisfied. And by then he had collapsed in the snow, the icy white flakes welcome upon his sweating skin. Liu Sumeng was looming above him and had a gentle expression upon his face. And even if he wanted to, Yuan Xuelan couldn't look away.

"You'll catch a cold like that."

"Who are you? My mom?" And despite the rude words, he still took Liu Sumeng's outstretched hand and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. It was well into the night now, with the moon large and low in the sky. It was now the time the head back to the manor. But Yuan Xuelan was hesitant. There was something he wanted to ask, but he was feeling oddly shy, the words stuck in his throat and made him restless on his feet.

Sensing his hesitance, Liu Sumeng also paused and observed him, which only made Yuan Xuelan more anxious. "What's wrong?"

Now or never, Yuan Xuelan told himself. After all tonight was his final chance, "Can…you show me again? From beginning to end?" Yuan Xuelan wanted to bite off his own tongue after those words left his mouth.

Argh! Why did he sound so awkward? Did he catch Liu Sumeng's disease? But Liu Sumeng only smiled at him and replied, "You can ask me any time."

Yuan Xuelan did not know how he looked when he performed sword arts but he knew for a fact that he could not hold a candle to the Ivory Sword Saint's grace and beauty. Below the moonlight, his imagination ran away and Yuan Xuelan fantasized himself to be the goddess that descended the Heavens just to watch Liu Sumeng dance.

The edge of his blade sang as it cut through the air and his robes flew in perfect crescent arcs. All the difficult steps were met with an ease and calm akin to a trickling stream upon a mountaintop, in no rush to get anywhere, as effortless as a crane taking flight.

So that was how it was supposed to be. Yuan Xuelan never thought himself as particularly interested in martial arts but he could watch Liu Sumeng for an eternity and never grow tired.

"Did you get that?" Liu Sumeng said when he was finally done. His ebony hair fell around his face without a single strand misplaced. His sword slid back into its sheath and Yuan Xuelan had to remember that he was expected to respond.

"Oh. Yeah. I did." He said.

"Good. It's late now. Let us return."

Yuan Xuelan didn't particularly want to. But he had run out of excuses and complaints and the cold was becoming a little unbearable. So he followed the Ivory Sword Saint back to the manor, his mind still stuck on the sword that danced below the twinkling stars and the goddess who watched, enchanted.