After realizing that he had entered the realm of Spirit Condensation and concluding his extended practice.
Having unfolded from the full lotus position and stood up, Xu Xin suddenly thought.
'Judging by my extreme hunger, it seems quite some time has passed. How many meals have I missed?'
Just then, he saw fruit baskets. It seemed the Elves had brought them while he was absorbed in his practice.
As he walked toward the fruit baskets, Xu Xin suddenly detected a familiar presence on his bed. The purple-haired girl, Lethe.
Lethe, who had grown to look like a twelve-year-old girl by now, was curled up on the bed like a cat, snoring.
Xu Xin moved quietly so as not to wake Lethe. Employing his Cloud Ladder Lightness Skill, his form flowed like mist and clouds.
Sitting silently in front of the baskets, he slowly began to eat the fruit.
By the time he had devoured all ten baskets of fruit, Xu Xin turned around to see Lethe's body floating up from the bed.
Riding on magical wind, Lethe looked at Xu Xin with her ever-sleepy, languid eyes.
"Lethe. You're awake. Why were you sleeping here?"
"It's because of you, Xu Xin."
"Huh?"
Lethe grumbled.
"I came to visit you for once, but you were sitting and sleeping, so I waited until you finished."
"Oh my. You waited a long time."
"Yes."
Flying to sit opposite Xu Xin, Lethe presented a square board. The jade board, carved from a single large piece of jade with a grid etched into it, was none other than a Weiqi board.
"Since I waited so long, you have to play with me that much. Understand?"
"Yes. Let's do that."
Tak!
Lethe placed an amethyst Weiqi stone on the jade board.
This Weiqi board and stones were all items that Lethe had carved and made herself.
When the old wooden Weiqi board became too worn to serve its purpose, she decided to make new ones filled with her own tastes, creating them very beautifully.
Tak.
Xu Xin placed a transparent Weiqi stone with a clear light on the jade board.
These Weiqi stones were also gifts from Lethe, who had carved gems with magic for him.
Tak!
Tak.
Tak!
Tak.
Moves were exchanged without words for a while. Then Xu Xin suddenly said.
"Lethe. Are you learning magic well from Lady Eve?"
"There's nothing to learn from Eve. I can use magic well on my own. What I'm learning are other things."
Lethe replied indifferently, then asked.
"But Xu Xin, why do you keep calling her Lady Eve? Did Eve ask you to call her that?"
"No. It's just that I've gotten used to addressing her that way."
Xu Xin had no qualms about treating other High Elves casually, but he felt somewhat reluctant to do so with Eve. It was because he was in a position of being dependent on her and causing her trouble.
'I'm a guest forcibly imposing on someone else's home. How could I treat the host so casually and make her uncomfortable?'
Tak!
Tak.
...Tak!
Tak.
...Taak!
Tak.
...Taak!!
Tak.
As the game continued, Lethe spent increasingly longer thinking about her moves. In contrast, Xu Xin placed his moves consistently with a relaxed attitude.
"Hmm... Ah."
Taak!!!
Tak.
"..."
After staring at the Weiqi board for quite some time, Lethe boldly demanded of Xu Xin.
"Give me a handicap move."
Xu Xin just laughed.
"Hehehe."
Lethe demanded again.
"Give me a handicap."
"Hehehe."
"Are you really going to be like this?"
"Hehehe."
"That weird laughter again... If you keep doing this, I'll use that move."
"Hehehehe."
As Xu Xin kept laughing, Lethe finally played her trump card. The magical wind overturned the Weiqi board.
Xu Xin, as if he had expected it, wasn't surprised and deployed Tai Chi Fist.
His two hands, extended from his seated position, gently swept through the air like willow leaves. The scattered Weiqi stones were drawn into his hands.
Cha-cha-cha-cha-chak!
He flipped the overturned Weiqi board back over and restored the Weiqi stones to their original positions.
But one Weiqi stone that should have been placed in the most important position was missing.
As Xu Xin looked around, he suddenly looked at Lethe and saw that the missing Weiqi stone was in her hand.
With an expressionless face, Lethe stuck out her tongue slightly, rode the wind, and flew away to escape.
He smiled at Lethe's mischief and raised his spiritual power.
Just as muscles produce physical strength, spirit produces spiritual power. Xu Xin's spirit, having entered the realm of Spirit Condensation, exhibited spiritual power incomparably more powerful than before.
Using that power to unleash the Wudang Sect's supreme lightness skill, Cloud Ladder Lightness Skill, his speed was reminiscent of a soaring hawk. Leaping like a deer and chasing the wind like weightless mist, his freedom was unbounded.
The purple-haired girl and the black-haired young man chased each other around the spacious quarters. Lethe maintained a tantalizingly close distance, thoroughly teasing Xu Xin.
As they were playing tag like that, Lethe suddenly withdrew her magical wind. As the wind enveloping her body disappeared, her body flew toward the wall due to inertia.
Xu Xin deployed Cloud Ladder Lightness Skill to the extreme. Thus, he caught her body just before she hit the wall.
As he silently gave her a reproachful look, Lethe spoke languidly.
"Don't look at me like that. You should be used to such pranks by now."
"What if I hadn't caught you?"
"If you hadn't caught me, I would have hit the wall and been badly hurt. I would have cried loudly from the pain."
"That would have pained my heart too. Is that what you want?"
Xu Xin sighed and put down Lethe whom he had held in his arms.
Just then, someone entered the quarters. The platinum-haired beauty, Eve.
Glancing briefly at Xu Xin, she said to Lethe.
"Lethe. Follow me."
"Why?"
"There's a place we need to go together. It will be an important experience, so come quickly."
"Are we going to deal with those weak magical beasts again?"
At Lethe's grimace, Eve shook her head.
"No. We're not going to deal with such trivial magical beasts."
"Then what are we going to deal with?"
"Our true nemeses. Titans and Dragons."