"Arggghhhh! Lifen is too stupid!!!" A cry escaped Yulan's mouth as she lay face first on the couch, her legs repeatedly colliding against it in a display of frustration.
"How so?" an inquisitive voice interrupted Yulan's outburst.
"Ahhh…"
Yulan let out a sigh before, with great effort, she turned herself to now lie on her back, exposing a face that currently looked like a dead fish.
Her frustrated gaze landed on Lyra, who was sitting a few meters away on a loveseat. She had been reading a book earlier, but now her eyes were fixed on Yulan with an inquisitive expression.
The airhead beauty brought her hands to cover her visage before speaking, "You know about Lifen's feelings for Mikael?"
"Of course, you already talked about it."
"So she has feelings for Mikael, we're on the same side in this, so WHY is she always squandering the chances to be with the one she likes and actually develop their relationship!!!??" burst out Yulan, now pumped up as she rose to a sitting position, her hands gesturing vividly as she spoke.
Lyra waited a few seconds for her airhead Dao Sister to calm down before replying in her usual composed manner, "I don't think she is 'stupid'."
"In this case why is she acting like that? Does she enjoy making me waste my efforts!?" Yulan asked with an aggrieved tone, her pout twisting her beautiful features.
Lyra gently shook her head, "I think it's because she is a tsundere, as Mikael would call her."
"Tsundeke, what's that?" Yulan tilted her head curiously.
"Tsundere," corrected Lyra before explaining, "A tsundere is someone whose words and actions are sharp, cold, or even hostile on the surface, but underneath it all their true feelings are warm, tender, and full of affection."
"They lash out, they deny, they pout—not because they hate, but because they don't know how to openly show their love. So what you see is coldness, but what they feel is the exact opposite."
"Tsundere…" Yulan seemed uncertain, "I can somewhat see why Lifen would be called a 'tsundere' but…it doesn't really work, she isn't violent or harsh with her words, it's just that she's…not acting on her feelings and doing the opposite, so it doesn't fit?"
Lyra shook her head, "It works, it's just that Lifen is more on the tamer and gentler side of being a tsundere, she doesn't have the violent nor the annoying tendencies, it's simply that she isn't honest with herself or with others."
"Ohhh! In this case Lifen is definitely a tsundere!" Yulan nodded multiple times.
Lyra smiled at Yulan's antics, and from there a conversation between the two Dao Sisters unfolded.
After months of seeing each other occasionally, the two girls had developed a rather friendly relation, and it showed in this exchange as they spoke casually about everything and nothing, or at least it was the case until Lyra suddenly said something shocking, truly shocking—
The purple-haired beauty brought a finger to her lips, "Now that I think about it, Yulan, I never saw you in Mikael's bedroom, did you never spend the night together?"
"Pfff, w-what!?" a startled exclamation escaped the innocent beauty as her face turned bright red.
"T-this, no, b-but, it, we, I, we kissed and hugged, it's already a lot, no!?" she declared, waving her hands before her face with an extremely shy expression.
Lyra tilted her head slightly, "It's… okay, but it's been months since you became a Taoist Couple. Don't you intend to take it a step further and share some intimate moments together?" curiously inquired the intellectual beauty.
"This…" Yulan lowered her gaze to the ground as she began fiddling with the hem of her robes, "Isn't it too soon? I thought the kisses and hugs we shared were already a lot, but going directly to the bedroom…"
Lyra shrugged, "It's really up to you. Mikael won't pressure you—if you don't feel ready, you can wait as long as you need!"
"But… Mikael would prefer to spend the night with me, no?"
Lyra hesitated for a moment, not because she wanted to lie but because she didn't want to put pressure on her new Dao Sister, earlier it had only been her curiosity speaking, but in the end she still chose honesty and gave a small nod.
Yulan paused briefly before lifting her gaze, her black eyes locking with Lyra's purple ones, and in them burned a fire as she suddenly straightened, all pumped up with a strange mix of determination and a dreamy, blushing expression.
"Fufu~ I won't be shy over such a little thing, spending the night together is nothing!" 'Femme Fatale' Yulan declared with pride.
Lyra's eyes widened in surprise, she hadn't expected such a forward answer from the previously shy Yulan, but her surprise was only beginning, as in the next moment Yulan once again spoke,
"I'll go prepare my favorite pajamas!"
"""...."""
A heavy silence fell on the room, which had Yulan lift her chin even higher as she mistook this silence for awe coming from her friend Lyra.
After basking in Lyra's 'awe' Yulan turned on her heels, about to leave and search for her favorite pajamas, but—
"Wait!" Lyra's shocked voice stopped her, causing the innocent beauty to tilt her head as she looked at her friend.
"What do you mean exactly by going to search for your 'favorite pajamas'?"
Yulan looked at Lyra like she had just asked something extremely stupid.
The next moment a light bulb lit up in Yulan's mind as her gaze toward her friend changed and her expression shifted into a smug one.
"Hehehe, turns out Lyra is so naive…"
Yulan's chin rose a little higher, "You don't even know that! Of course I need to bring my pajamas or else how will I cuddle with Mikael?" she declared with a small blush and a dreamy expression.
Slap!
Lyra's hand loudly collided with her forehead as the intellectual beauty gained an expression that seemed to scream "What did I do to deserve that!?"
"Uh?"
Sigh.
Lyra let out a deep sigh as she realized she needed to explain some…basic things to Yulan, a sigh that only grew heavier when she caught her friend throwing confused glances at her.
Ten minutes of detailed explanation later—an explanation that left Lyra questioning her life choices—the ordeal ended, leaving in its wake a Yulan redder than any tomato could ever hope to compare.
The innocent, now not-so-innocent beauty crouched on the ground, clutching her head as though it were moments away from smoking.
"Waaahhh, why didn't I know that?" cried Yulan as she clutched her head between her hands, her expression one of utter embarrassment.
Meanwhile, a slightly red-faced Lyra, still flustered from having to explain such…intimate things…to her friend, shook her head as she watched Yulan's 'despair.'
At the same moment, Yulan was still 'despairing' on the ground, her visage the very picture of embarrassment.
Yet in the airhead beauty's heart, a certain curiosity and interest in the subject her friend Lyra had spoken of quietly took root, and before long she found herself wondering how it would feel to do it with Mikael.
Her eyes widened as her expression reddened even further, "Gah, what am I thinking!?" she squealed, her 'despair' only intensifying, but no matter her words or actions it was clear that a dangerous curiosity had been born, but—
Where this would eventually lead her was still to be seen…
***
Meanwhile, at another location in that same moment, Mikael was reviewing his progress over the last months, and the least that could be said…was that he was deeply satisfied with what he had achieved.
In the ten months since he had begun his long Cultivation Session he had brought both Moonpiercer Sword Art and Sword Nurturing Art to Mastery, a breakthrough that had granted him a considerable boost to his battle power.
It was after this that Yulan appeared and confessed, which he accepted, and the rest was history…
After that event he launched himself into the next step of his training, one that he knew would be a time-consuming undertaking, and this endeavor was: 7. Train Foresight of Heaven's Mandate to the 2nd layer.
He knew, he just knew, that it would be both difficult and time-consuming, considering how long it had taken him to reach the 1st layer, and with the 2nd layer's difficulty being even greater it was certain it would take him a long while.
Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, the benefits of bringing his Foresight of Heaven's Mandate to the 2nd layer were far too great to ignore, so he gritted his teeth and threw himself into intense cultivation.
1st year; fortunately, he was proven 'wrong,' as the difficulty of cultivating the 2nd layer of Foresight of Heaven's Mandate wasn't as high as he had expected.
With his comprehension, his Fate Affinity Level 1, and the stacks of pills he consumed, his progress was extremely fast, and in only two 'short' months he was able to reach the 2nd layer.
This allowed his fortune-sensing and calamity-avoiding abilities to take a large leap forward, and while it didn't boost his battle power in any direct way, it was arguably even more important!
After that he directly launched himself into the next step of his training, which was: 8. Research and develop Ferocity Art Mark III from Mark II.
Technically, this part of his cultivation was 'without end,' since Mark III wasn't a fixed goal but simply a better version of Mark II, which meant it could be 1% better in a single category and qualify as Mark III, or it could be ten times better in every category and still bear the same name.
Of course, Mikael wasn't aiming for either of these two extremes—he was aiming for a balanced middle ground.
A balanced middle ground that he kept in mind as he began refining his self-created Cultivation Technique, pouring his efforts into the advancement of his Ferocity Art.
In this way, time rapidly passed amidst relentless, pill-fueled research.
1st year, 2 months: The impurities in Mikael's body had reached a critical threshold so he trained in the Ninefold Impurity-Free Physique Method for some time before successfully completing the fourth transformation, allowing him to smoothly step into the Small Success threshold which greatly boosted his physical prowess.
After that he returned to his Ferocity Art Mark III development, and as the months went by it became sharper and stronger, there were numerous times he could have stopped but he didn't, because he had a strict goal in mind of what he wanted it to become.
1st year, 6 months: After a little more than six months of hard work he had refined the Ferocity Art Mark II to the point it reached the standard he had fixed, and because of that he was finally able to create the Mark III.
These were the messages he received at the moment of its 'finalization,' messages that had appeared only moments ago, which was why Mikael took the time to once again read them.
This is it:
[Ferocity Art Mark II (Low Level Core Formation Art – Stage 2, Mid Level Core Perfection Art – Stage 1) has evolved into: Ferocity Art Mark III (High Level Core Formation Art – Stage 2, Mid Level Core Perfection Art – Stage 1)]
[Ferocity Mark III
Summarized Difference compared to Mark II:
First Stage: No Difference
Second Stage:
– Strain on the Body Increased by 50%
+ Boost of 'Blood Ignition' changed from purely physical to giving a light boost to all parameters while the boost to physical parameters stays identical.
+ Mastery of the temporary increased strength increased by 80%
+ Negative effects caused by the ingestions of vitality based herbs on the body reduced by 30%
Detailed Explanation see below: …..]
Author Note:
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———
A lot of things happened in this chapter(lot is relative but I tried to make it lot because I am really behind on the schedule….)
My goal was to finish Volume 4 by chapters 300 as said previously but when I take a look at my notes and see all the things that still need to happens and considering that chapter 300 is rapidly approaching…
Yeah I don't think, I'll succeed but I will still try to get the closest possible to not stretch out the Volume!
———
Want to read ahead? Unlock advanced chapters on Patreon—just search SDASLUMMY.
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— End of Chapter —