"Master wants to have a chat with you while I'm away in the secret realm," Lu Xuan cut straight to the point.
Mingyuan gave him the side eye. Then, he noticed the graceful figure standing behind Lu Xuan.
Dressed in a pristine white dress with a veil and thin white gloves, one could only see her sparkling eyes while the rest of her figure was up to one's imagination.
The clothing was a high-quality treasure that shields against divine senses, spying techniques, and wards off divination to some extent.
Bai Rouxi is the granddaughter of an immortal from the higher dimensions.
However, another of her identities was revealed through plot leaks after the novel went on an indefinite hiatus.
This identity was the reason why only Lu Xuan could have invited her out from the Spring Requiem.
Bai Rouxi, formerly known as Rouxi in a previous life, is the reincarnation of Lu Xuan's first original wife.
She used a technique that allowed her to constantly reincarnate, time and time again, era after era, with her Dao protecting her soul and a link of karma between herself and her husband.
This will inevitably lead their lives to intersect at one point in time, in which the Dao seal will unlock, returning both her talent and memories.
Lu Xuan had a reason to suspect that Mingyuan was aware of Rouxi's true identity and hence his earlier hesitation to come and visit.
"Oh? You brought sister-in-law too?"
Lu Xuan smiled. "I wanted to make the introductions before I left for the secret realm. Master wants me to find my own fortunes outside, and he will only act when the old bullies the young."
Mingyuan spared him a glance. "You? Young? How terrifying…"
Although Mingyuan murmured to himself in a soft voice, both Bai Rouxi and Lu Xuan heard him clearly.
The former chuckled and covered her mouth with her hand, and the latter's lips twitched.
Rouxi wasn't anxious bending Lu Xuan had already told her—he suspected Mingyuan already saw through his identity as a reincarnated immortal, though he didn't know which specific identity it was before reincarnation.
"Anyway," Lu Xuan changed the subject and looked Mingyuan in the eye. "I want you to serve… ahem, stay by Rouxi side and protect her from now on. She won't lack for cultivation resources, but Master's time is limited and he might leave to run errands now and then…"
Mingyuan sighed in relief. "So that's it? I thought you wanted me to follow you and face all those abnoxious prodigies and their worthless pride. If it's just to accompany sister-in-law through hardships in the Spring Requiem, I guess I can reluctantly accept this temporary setback…"
Mingyuan slowly got up, his starry blue eyes ever so bright, his short hair caressing the warm wind.
Stretching, he took a professional step right in front of Bai Rouxi, as it was inappropriate to stand behind a brother's wife.
"Don't worry, Boss Lu," Mingyuan slapped his chest. "I'm willing to put my cultivation aside and watch over sister-in-all for you!"
"Hm, the secret realm arc? This is where he meets with the long-forgotten Crown Prince of the Qin Dynasty, right?
That guy will have countless opportunities and endless power buffs just to keep up with the protagonist as an antagonist.
It's useless to try to kill him as another annoying guy will take his place instead."
Mingyuan sighed. The life of a xianxia main character is quite tragic. Even some brat in an orange jumpsuit and a big fox in his belly didn't have it as hard as they did.
Mingyuan asked in his mind, "System, don't you have some live streaming feature for the selected targets? If there is one, just activate it for me."
A chime went off in his mind, as the system started operating. As a system related to fate, such features should have been naturally incorporated.
Mingyuan could only say that whoever designed this system must have been mentally impaired or something.
Then again, live streaming was something from the modern era, though Mingyuan wouldn't believe for a second that similar techniques didn't exist in the immortal world.
Soon, the feature was generated and added to the main character panel. It displayed his current selected target, Lu Xuan (Red), and the two feedback entries, cultivation and comprehension.
By concentrating on Lu Xuan's name, he could watch a God's perspective overview of Lu Xuan and his immediate surroundings.
He could zoom in, zoom-out, and switch perspectives at will.
This was truly miraculous.
Now, he could add some entertainment to his sunbathing time while keeping an eye on Bai Rouxi.
While Mingyuan was lost in thought, something Lu Xuan was used to at this point, the couple exchanged a few words.
A moment later, Lu Xuan left with the outer court and inner court disciples under the guidance of an Elder.
This batch of young cultivators was too important for the sect. Hence, the one who moved out was an Elder from the Arbitration Hall.
This was the second strongest hall after the Council Hall, where the Supreme Elders discuss and decide the general direction of the sect, presided over by the Sect Leader, Vice Leader, and the three Mystery Holders.
When Lu Xuan left, Mingyuan turned to look at Bai Rouxi and said, "Should we go back to your place? Mine isn't that… well…"
Mingyuan turned toward a corner where seven heads piled from the ground up, thinking they were sneaking and hiding well around the corner.
He sighed. "Curiosity, what a terrifying thing to have in this dangerous world…"
Bai Rouxi chuckled, speaking for the first time in a voice so soothing and ethereal to the soul. "Let's head back to Spring Requiem, my sisters miss me already."
"Are you sure?" Mingyuan rubbed the back of his head. "Eh, who knows how many blind young masters will have their eyes on my sister-in-law, that'd be quite the scary crowd to fight off."
"Hold on, this whole situation already feels off! Now that I think about it, don't tell me we're about to kickstart a love triangle story with the heroine? No thanks, I'd rather not cuck a future Dao Lord… too much trouble!"
"You really do space out a lot, huh?" Bai Rouxi tilted her small head, smiled behind the veil, and turned to leave.
"Don't worry, no one dares to cause trouble in the pavilion. If that wasn't enough, my grandpa is always keeping an eye out for me anyway."
Hearing her say this, Mingyuan sighed in relief. "Great, now I'm certain something bad will happen."
Mingyuan decided that working a little harder now can be considered an investment.
He realized that to increase Lu Xuan's trust in him and upgrade from Red Fate to Yellow Fate, he needed to stretch his limbs a bit.
Quiet support from behind the scenes won't generate as much trust as providing active help.
Moreover, he already perfected his Qi Gathering, Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, and Core Formation.
He was just a little shy of achieving Golden Core, equal to a Deacon's position in the outer court.
Don't look down on a Deacon from a top-tier force on the Ashveil Continent.
A Golden Core cultivator can start a sect and pass down their heritage as an orthodoxy anywhere on these vast lands, or start a family and settle down as an ancestor for 1,500 years.
This boost in cultivation happened when the 2x feedback was upgraded to 4x, so what would happen when the Yellow Fate arrived and his feedback reached an 8x multiplier?
Mingyuan was giddy with excitement.
"Let's go, sister-in-law, although protecting a beauty is kinda scary, I can be quite brave when it matters!"