After becoming a Taoist partner with my senior sister, my master changed

back kitchen.

The crackling sound of burning wood mixed with the crisp sound of pots and pans colliding with each other felt a bit more peaceful than the undercurrent at the dinner table.

Qiu added firewood very gently, occasionally glancing at Lin Chuan's busy back, then quickly lowering his head. His cheeks turned slightly red from the fire, and even his breathing became lighter.

"Are you still used to Qiu staying by my side?"

Lin Chuan asked casually while stirring the food in the pot.

"Autumn?"

Seeing that Qiu didn't respond, he called out again softly.

"what?!"

Qiu suddenly came back to his senses and hurriedly looked up at Lin Chuan, his eyes full of embarrassment and self-blame: "Slave... I was a little distracted just now, please punish me, sir."

"..."

Lin Chuan's mouth twitched, and he looked at Qiu helplessly. He slowed down his tone and asked again: "Are you still used to Qiu staying by my side?"

"I'm used to it." Qiu nodded quickly.

"Why did you lie? Are you afraid I'd let you leave?"

Lin Chuan stopped flipping the spatula and turned sideways to look directly at Qiu.

After spending these days together, Lin Chuan gradually discovered that although Qiu was willing to live in peace with others, there always seemed to be an invisible barrier between them, making it difficult for him to truly integrate into the group.

Most of the time, she stayed quiet like a transparent person. If no one took the initiative to talk to her, she would remain silent, as if the hustle and bustle around her had nothing to do with her.

This kind of silence was different from Ran's. When everyone was sitting around chatting and joking with each other, even if she didn't often respond, a gentle smile would appear between her eyebrows, silently enjoying the harmonious atmosphere, as if she was a part of it.

Autumn seems to be separated by an invisible wall. Even when in the midst of a bustling crowd, there is always a sense of alienation and restraint in his eyes, as if he is just a passerby. He even breathes lightly, for fear of disturbing everything around him.

"..."

Qiu lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes casting a small shadow under his eyelids. He was silent for a moment, and then he said in a barely audible voice, "No, sir, you're overthinking it."

"..."

"Qiu is the most important person to me, just like them. It's Qiu Mo who should think too much."

Lin Chuan looked at Qiu's drooping eyebrows, with an unquestionable seriousness on his face.

"it is good."

Qiu responded softly, still with her eyes lowered. Her long eyelashes hid the complex emotions in her eyes. Only her slightly red ears revealed the turmoil in her heart at the moment.

"The food is ready, let's go back."

"it is good."

……

After dinner, Lin Chuan led everyone back to the outside world and continued to negotiate merger matters with various major forces.

After several days of negotiation, when everyone reached a consensus again, they dispersed and went back to prepare for related matters.

As the major powers left one after another, and the Cangsheng Holy Land remained silent about the ceremony, some, through the barrier, vaguely saw the attic in the distant mountains gradually disappearing. Amidst all these unusual events, a rumor quietly began to grow.

Luoguan City, Xianjia Teahouse.

"Speaking of the battle between Master Xu Feng of the Qingluan Holy Land and the Master of Siqin Tower, it was truly a raging battle! Sword energy swept through, turning everything into dust; the sound of the zither filled the air, like a ghost demanding their life. They fought like this for three days and three nights, and guess what the outcome was?"

The storyteller slapped the wake-up stick and his voice suddenly rose: "Master Xu Feng, who had never been defeated in his life and was the best swordsman in the Qingluan Continent, ended up leaving in the middle of the night like a lost dog..."

"Crack!"

A crisp shattering sound suddenly rang out, instantly drowning out the storyteller's voice and silencing the surrounding discussions.

"Hey, this young man."

The teahouse owner hurried forward, looked at the handsome man in front of him, who looked almost like a woman, and asked cautiously, "Is there something we can't serve you that has made you so angry?"

"Does the storyteller in your teahouse have any basis for what he said?"

The man in white asked, his voice cold and with a barely perceptible chill.

"Sir, you..."

The teahouse owner looked helplessly at the man in white who was faintly drunk, and said in a pleading tone, "It's really not easy to run a small business these days. Please don't come to our teahouse to cause trouble. How about this, I'll treat you to the tea, and you don't have to pay for the broken tea sets. You..."

Before the teahouse owner could finish his words, the man in white took out a handful of spirit stones from the storage space and placed them on the table.

"Oh, sir, that's too much!" The teahouse owner waved his hands quickly.

"Answer my questions, and these are all yours." The man in white said coldly.

"This……"

The teahouse owner looked at the man in white before him. Although he was puzzled that someone would take a storyteller seriously these days, he explained, "Most of the stories a storyteller tells are just hearsay. They're just hearsay, with no real evidence. The listeners just want to have fun."

"Who first spread this rumor?" the man in white asked, his eyes sharp as a blade.

"..."

"If you've had too much to drink, shall I send someone to take you to the next inn to rest?"

The shopkeeper's tone was tentative and cautious in his persuasion.

"..."

The man in white withdrew his gaze, with no expression on his face. He slowly stood up and walked straight out the door.

"It's really strange that there are such people in the world."

The teahouse owner put away the spirit stones on the table, shook his head helplessly, and looked at the storyteller who was still talking incessantly.

"Lin Chuan and the Siqin Tower Master had offended Master Xu Feng. How could the Qingluan Holy Land let this go? They immediately joined forces with other forces to besiege the fifth holy land. Now that the siege is over, all the major forces have left, and the fifth holy land..."

……

Linchuan Palace.

"I was wondering why I hadn't seen you recently. I asked the host and found out that you turned into a phoenix and flew away."

A woman in a green dress stood in front of the hall, looking at Qiu who was carefully wiping the windows inside, with a hint of humor in her tone.

Qiu looked up at the newcomer and was slightly startled. Then he stopped what he was doing and walked quickly to Chun, a look of joy on his face. "Senior Sister, why are you here?"

"Why? Now that you've become a phoenix and have a noble status, you don't want to recognize me, your poor senior sister who wears coarse cloth?" Chun's lips curved into a mischievous smile.

"What are you talking about, Senior Sister? I..."

Qiu's face turned slightly red. She had just said half of her words when she saw Chun take out a wooden box from the storage space, containing a box of exquisite pastries and several different snacks.

"My silly junior sister is one year older now. May you be in good health every year."

Chun smiled and handed the thing in his hand forward, his eyes full of tenderness when he looked at Qiu.

"Sister..."

Qiu's eyes were slightly red and there was a hint of sob in his voice.

"Still the same as when I was little, so sentimental."

Chun shook his head helplessly and pushed the things in his hand towards her again: "Eat the cakes while they're hot. The things in the wooden box are my birthday presents for you."

"Senior sister, come with me to the side hall and we'll eat together."

Qiu took the cakes and the wooden box, and pulled Chun towards the side hall.

"I won't go,"

Chun patted her hand gently, his tone apologetic. "I've been so busy lately that it's hard to spare this little time to celebrate your birthday. I have to go back to work soon. I'll just stay here with you for a while and just chat."

"..."

Qiu looked back at the main hall behind him and was about to speak, but Chun spoke first.

"The master is not here, and as a servant, it is against the rules for me to go in without permission."

Haru chuckled and shook his head, his gaze falling on the stone steps in front of the hall, "It's just as well if I just stay outside and talk with you for a while."

"The young master has gone into seclusion to practice. When he comes out, I will explain to him. Nothing will happen." Qiu pursed his lips and said softly.

"Okay, rules are rules, obey."

Chun pulled Qiu to sit on the stone steps in front of the hall without saying anything, and said softly, "Isn't it nice to rest and talk here?"

"..."

Qiu looked at the stone steps under his feet, his eyes slightly dazed. In a trance, the scene before him overlapped with a scene from many years ago.

At that time, she had not yet entered Siqin Tower. Although Chun was already in the tower, she was always busy with various tasks.

It was also her birthday. She sat on the stone steps of the old house and waited for a long time, so long that she thought Chun would not have time to come, but finally she saw that familiar figure hurriedly coming with a lunch box.

That day, Chun had a pleasant scent of powder on her body, but her sensitive nose still caught a faint smell of blood.

It was that time when she held Chun's arm and begged him, saying countless times "I'm not afraid" and "I can help my senior sister", and finally made Chun, who was always hard-mouthed but soft-hearted, give in and take her into the gate of Siqin Building.

Thinking about it now, it seems like a lifetime ago, yet it seems like just yesterday.

"The cakes will get cold if you don't eat them now."

Chun smiled and pushed her arm, pointing at the food box with his fingertips, with a hint of urging in his tone.

"No hurry, I want to see the birthday present that my senior sister gave me first."

Qiu came back to his senses from his memories, a faint smile spread across his lips, and he reached out to pick up the wooden box on his lap.

Chun's expression changed slightly, but he didn't raise his hand to stop her. He just said in a softer voice, "Once you open it, you must accept it."

Qiu paused for a moment, then slowly opened the wooden box without saying anything. "Is this... the Flame Spirit Flower?"

Looking at the fire-attributed divine object in the wooden box, with faint flames burning all over its body and petals as clear as glass, her pupils suddenly shrank and her breath missed a beat.

"It's just something I picked up during my last mission."

Chun spoke lightly, as if discussing an ordinary matter, casually picking up a piece of cake and handing it over. "I've been so busy lately, how can I have the time to refine this? It's just sitting there anyway, so I might as well give it to you as a birthday present."

"..."

Chun didn't take the cake, but handed the Flame Spirit Flower back to her. "Sister, just keep it and refine it yourself. I... have the support of the young master, so I have no shortage of resources. If I want something from the Five Elements, I can just ask a question."

"You, I don't know you, sir, but I don't know you, either."

……