Mission completed... wait, what?

Xie Qing raised an eyebrow in surprise when he saw Xu Mei's face turning red—it looked exactly like Lian Xin's face. He was left speechless.

"Is she just drunk, right? Yeah, her face must be red because of alcohol, or maybe she choked on something."

He couldn't believe for a moment that this woman was in love with him. Xie Qing couldn't even imagine that Xu Mei, a crazy woman, would show affection to a man!

However, his Master's reaction was suspicious. She started rolling her eyes, avoiding prolonged eye contact, and her face remained red.

"What? Was I right, Master?" Suddenly, Xie Qing began to speak, getting up from his seat and approaching her.

"W-what are you doing? Sit down..."

"Hehe."

Xie Qing laughed cheerfully when he saw his Master's panicking expression. Now she looked quite cute and resembled an innocent girl in love. Xu Mei's appearance struck some chords in Xie Qing's mind.

"I'll still die if I don't complete the task, so I'll try my luck," he thought.

Meanwhile, Xu Mei's mind was in chaos. She felt heat on her face, and her heart was pounding. Xie Qing's handsome face was too close, making her breath catch.

"Foolish disciple... what are you doing?" she murmured with a soft and stuttering voice as if she were a weak maiden facing a hungry wolf. Her hand gently rested on Xie Qing's chest, and she lightly pushed him away. "Step away from your master. I'm still mad at you."

Xie Qing was left speechless, seeing his Master in such a fragile state. Suddenly, it felt like the North became the South, and the West turned into the East.

"She... is so beautiful," Xie Qing thought and involuntarily reached for her face. "Oh..."

"W-what are you doing... st-stop."

With a blushing face, Xu Mei tried to push him away, but her body didn't obey her owner. Her push was more of a formality, and she closed her eyes, feeling Xie Qing's slightly cold fingers on her cheek.

"Ah... what a strange feeling."

Xu Mei opened her eyes, with teardrops visible, and she looked at Xie Qing's red face as if he couldn't believe what was happening. However, his fingers were gently caressing her cheek, and Xu Mei felt a shiver through her entire body.

His touch was incredible—she felt protected, though with her strength only a few could leave a scratch on her.

"Ugh... st-stop, step back."

Initially, her voice was breathless, but after gathering enough air, Xu Mei finally pushed Xie Qing back. She stood up so abruptly that the chair shook and rushed out of the room, leaving a stunned Xie Qing, who was staring at his right hand as if it contained the power of the Dark Dragon.

"I can't believe it... did I behave so boldly with my master?"

But after some contemplation, he turned pale.

"Fuck, she'll really kill me!"

Ding!

[Mission Completed!]

"Huh?"

***

Somewhere in the mountains, not far from the Heavenly Sword sect, there was a village under the mountain called Jingsha, where ordinary mortals lived. It was just a regular working evening.

However, soon the village trembled, and the residents started panicking. They thought that the immortals, to whom the territory within a radius of 4000 li belonged, were angry with them. 

But after twenty minutes, the shaking stopped. Mortals could only tremble in fear, hoping that the immortal's anger had been appeased.

And then, in the depths of the mountain range, one of the peaks lost its summit. There were no cities or villages nearby, so Xu Mei was calm. She sat on the mountain, whose peak was precisely cut, creating a flat platform. Her face was red, and her body periodically trembled.

"How embarrassing! What a shame!"

Every time Xu Mei closed her eyes, she recalled the scene of Xie Qing's gentle fingers touching her delicate, snowy-white cheeks. And most importantly, she didn't resist at all. It was terrible!

"Why does my heart beat so fast?" Xu Mei wondered, coming to her senses thanks to the cold air. She felt like she was sick because she couldn't explain the accelerated heartbeat with any other method.

"I need to find out the reason, or it could become an obstacle to my cultivation."

Xu Mei summoned her flying sword, stepped on the blade, and flew back to the sect.

***

Xie Qing, having narrowly escaped the clutches of death, was now in his room, rubbing his hands quite satisfied, like a raccoon from internet memes. He smiled brightly and looked content.

"Darn, now I can cultivate properly!" he thought, and his smile widened, almost reaching his ears.

[Reward: random talent (x1), random physique (x1)]

[Accept?]

"What a silly question! Of course, accept!" shouted Xie Qing, sitting in a lotus position.

Suddenly, the panel in front of him lit up, and soon Xie Qing felt a pleasant coolness in his body as if the heat of summer had eaten ice cream.

"Hm? So... did anything change?"

Xie Qing was embarrassed because he didn't feel any changes, but this confusion lasted until his first breath.

"W-what?"

After the first breath, an overwhelming amount of Qi entered his body, instantly propelling him to the 5th stage of Enlightenment! It was amazing!

Xie Qing looked at his hand in shock, feeling it stronger than usual. With one breath, he raised his cultivation by two levels, which was nonsense!

"D-darn, Qi keeps flowing into my body without stopping. I need to start purifying it, or it will affect my cultivation!" Xie Qing darkened, realizing the crucial problem.

Immediately, Xie Qing closed his eyes and focused on purifying the Qi from impurities, not forgetting to concentrate on his spiritual veins.

A single cold sweatdrop rolled down Xie Qing's forehead. His body was tense because it couldn't cope with the incoming Qi. The cultivation technique was too weak!

***

"Elder Xu, there are no issues with your health. The same goes for your Qi."

"What? Are you sure about that, Elder Qin?"

At the moment, Xu Mei was in the Medicine Pavilion. She was on the top floor, where the quarters of the head of the Medicine Pavilion, Qin Zhui, were located. Qin Zhui was a top-class healer.

Xu Mei sought her help, suspecting that she was unwell, but after examination, Qin Zhui found nothing.

"Well, believe it or not, but it's true."

Elder Qin shrugged and withdrew her hand from Xu Mei's abdomen, which was exposed for examination. Qin Zhui was a beautiful woman with chestnut hair and brown eyes, fair skin, and a sharp face.

"Then... what could be the cause of my issue? Lately, I can't concentrate properly on cultivation," Xu Mei said with concern, furrowing her beautiful brows.

"Psychological state also has a significant impact. Perhaps you've been emotional in recent days, causing your Qi to become disorderly, and your blood to boil. It's normal for cultivators who have just started their journey, but... um..."

"..."

Xu Mei fell silent and helplessly rubbed her forehead, sighing heavily. She understood what Elder Qin wanted to convey to her.

Losing control of her emotions, causing her Qi to become chaotic. It was a mistake of a beginner, an inexperienced one at that! In simpler terms, Xu Mei made a very foolish mistake.

"I-I... lost control of my Qi because of emotions?"