Master, don't tease me, you can't handle three of them.

The next morning.

Xiao Jingshu opened its eyes and found itself being held tightly in Han Luo's arms. It happily squinted its eyes and wagged its tail.

Being held by Master feels so good~

However, Xiao Jingshu remembered the task Jingshu had given him, and became somewhat dejected.

After a long while, Xiao Jingshu called out softly, "Master, I need to use the restroom. Please move your arm away."

That's right, Jing Shu couldn't pry Han Luo's arm off. Every time he got up, Han Luo would only let go of him after she had naturally woken up.

Han Luo, still half asleep, moved her arm away from Xiao Jingshu, rubbed Xiao Jingshu's furry ears, and then reluctantly let him get off the bed.

Xiao Jingshu took out some clothes from her storage ring, put them on, glanced at Han Luo reluctantly, and then turned and left.

After returning to Jing Shu's room, Xiao Jing Shu's body began to grow larger, and his fox tail and ears disappeared.

Jing Shu slowly opened his eyes, looking at his familiar yet unfamiliar self in the mirror, a vague emotion flashing in his eyes.

He was seventeen when he reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment. Looking back at himself then, and then at himself now…

Forget it, let's not watch it anymore.

Jing Shu turned his head away, revealing his arms and legs in his previous clothes, making him look incredibly comical.

The nascent soul within the ancient jade, unusually, did not mock him; it seemed to have recalled something unpleasant, and its face darkened.

(Xiao Jing says: Focus on your cultivation, please do not disturb)

"Knock—knock—"

"Junior brother? Are you alright?" Shi Chuan asked from outside the door. He had just seen Jing Shu leave his master's room and was still worried, so he decided to come and check on him.

Jing Shu opened the door.

Shi Chuan was shocked when he saw Jing Shu. He had just seen him so small, how did he suddenly grow so big? He was as tall as him!

"Junior brother, what happened to you?" Shi Chuan couldn't help but ask.

Jing Shu shook his head. "I don't know either. I suddenly felt my body getting hot, and then it turned into this."

"Senior brother, do you have any spare clothes?"

Shi Chuan quickly took out a set of clothes from his storage ring. "I've never worn this before, here you go."

Jing Shu took the clothes and went to the inner room to change them.

"Senior brother, how's it going in Sanhe Town?"

“After bringing you back, I told the person in charge of this mission about the situation. They found the remaining two bodies in that house, and since the murderer is dead, the mission is over. The other four can return to the sect today,” Shi Chuan said truthfully.

Jing Shu recalled the mission; even if they hadn't intervened, the matter would have ended there. Yu Miao'er would still have activated the magic array, and eventually all traces would have disappeared.

However, the rabbit that inexplicably approached Gu Meng, and the person who taught Yu Miao'er the magic array, are still unknown.

Jing Shu hates doing tasks; they're all troublesome.

"Junior brother, should we go see our master again? His body has suddenly become like this, could there be any hidden dangers?" Shi Chuan asked worriedly.

“I didn’t feel any discomfort; it must be the effect of that demon core,” Jing Shu explained.

"It's good that you're alright." Shi Chuan thought of his junior sister. "She was very worried about you, but you've been unconscious and your body has become like that. So I didn't let her go to find you."

"Okay, I understand." Jing Shu nodded to indicate that he understood. "Then I'll go see Meng'er. Senior Brother, would you like to come along?"

"No, I promised my junior sister I'd bring her some crispy duck from the town to the west. It'll be sold out if I wait too long." Shi Chuan got up and left.

Jing Shu got up to go see Meng'er.

"Aren't you going to the toilet? Aren't you planning to go back after you're done?" the Nascent Soul suddenly asked.

Jing Shu paused for a moment, then continued walking towards Gu Meng's room.

Gu Meng was lying in bed, having a sweet dream. Jing Shu helplessly picked up the blanket that had been kicked to the floor and reached out to pinch Gu Meng's nose.

Hmm... Gu Meng frowned, trying to avoid Jing Shu's hand.

"Lazybones, time to get up."

Who? Who's calling me? Gu Meng tried to open her eyes a crack, wanting to see who was disturbing her peaceful sleep so early in the morning.

In his hazy dream, Gu Meng saw a tall figure. Was it his senior brother? The voice sounded off... It sounded a bit like his senior brother's...

Huh?! Gu Meng suddenly sat up, all sleepiness gone.

"You are... Senior Brother?!" Gu Meng stared in disbelief. She couldn't believe that the broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted, and incredibly handsome man before her was her senior brother. But those familiar features, and that unique way of waking him up, made it undeniable that he was her senior brother.

"Senior brother, how did you suddenly grow so tall? Senior brother said you fainted, I was so worried, and then you grew this tall while carrying me!" Gu Meng stood up from the bed, hands on her hips, and questioned.

When Shi Chuan returned with the two of them, Gu Meng was still asleep. Despite the noise, she slept soundly until dawn. When she woke up, she learned that Jing Shu had been in trouble. She wanted to go see him, but her senior brother stopped her, causing her to miss a meal the previous day. Thinking this, Gu Meng's stomach began to rumble in protest.

Jing Shu smiled slightly and poked Gu Meng's forehead with his index finger. Gu Meng plopped back down on the bed.

"Are you hungry? Hurry up and get dressed, your senior brother will take you to make some xiaolongbao (soup dumplings)."

Gu Meng's eyes lit up instantly. She mercifully forgave Jing Shu's behavior and quickly got dressed before following Jing Shu to the small kitchen.

Before long, the small kitchen table was filled with all kinds of breakfast items.

Gu Meng ate one small steamed bun at a time, and also picked up a freshly baked beef pancake with her chopsticks.

"Senior brother has made so many delicious dishes today."

As Jing Shu ladled out the freshly cooked sweet fermented rice balls, he replied, "My senior brother has gone down the mountain. Meng'er will accompany me to deliver breakfast to Master soon."

Gu Meng was puzzled. Usually, her senior brother would bring her breakfast by himself. Why was he making so much delicious food today, and why did she have to go with him?

"Oh! I see!" Gu Meng suddenly realized, "Master was very serious when he spoke with Senior Brother in the jade slip last time. You made Master angry and haven't made up with him yet. So you want to use Meng'er as a shield, is that it?"

Jing Shu froze completely. Oh no, he'd completely forgotten about it.

Gu Meng, who was standing to the side, thought she had guessed correctly and continued to say smugly, "Hmph, as long as Senior Brother agrees to make me candied hawthorns, I will go with Senior Brother."

Jing Shu packed up the food box. "You don't need to come with me."

"what?"

"I can go by myself. You can wash the dishes yourself after you finish eating." With that, Jing Shu left without a second thought.

Gu Meng sat there blankly, watching Jing Shu leave. Was her expectation too high? Ugh~ her candied hawthorns~

Jing Shu originally intended to bring Gu Meng along to avoid awkwardness, but this was on the premise that he had forgotten that he had angered his master.

"Or you can let me out and I'll handle it?" the Nascent Soul suggested.

You? Forget it. Jing Shu and they were all connected in their senses and emotions, so he naturally knew that the Nascent Soul was preoccupied with "getting revenge."

If we let him out, Jing Shu will be close to being expelled from his master's school.