Ye Chen hesitated for a moment, then looked up at Yun Yun with a serious expression.
"Teacher… may I keep that painting?"
Yun Yun blinked, caught off guard by the sudden request. "You want the portrait? Why?"
There was a pause. Ye Chen lowered his gaze, his voice soft and sincere. "Lately, I've been feeling a bit… unsettled when I cultivate. At first, I couldn't figure out why. But then I realized
it's because I've gotten too used to your presence. Every time I trained, you were always nearby, guiding me, watching over me."
He paused, then continued earnestly, "Now that you're busy with sect affairs and no longer around as much… I feel this strange emptiness. It's hard to focus. But I understand you're the leader of Misty Cloud Sect. You have responsibilities."
His eyes lifted to meet hers again. "That's why… if I had your portrait in my room, even if you're not there in person, it would feel like you're still watching over me.
Maybe then I'd be able to focus properly again."
Yun Yun's heart trembled at his words.
She had never imagined her presence could mean so much to him.
To be relied upon not just as a master, but as a steady pillar in his life that was something she hadn't expected.
For a long moment, she remained silent, her elegant features unreadable. Then, a faint warmth bloomed in her eyes.
"If that's how you truly feel… then take it."
Ye Chen's expression brightened. He stood up immediately and stepped forward, gently rolling up the portrait with careful hands, as though afraid of damaging it.
"Thank you, Teacher."
He bowed respectfully before her, a mixture of reverence and gratitude in his gesture.
"I'll take my leave now."
He turned and walked toward the door, but just as he reached it, his steps slowed.
Though he didn't intend to, his gaze flicked back and once again, he caught a glimpse of Yun Yun's seated figure.
Her robes fluttered gently, her calm, composed aura exuding the quiet dignity of a true cultivator, and yet there was a softness about her that tugged at his heart.
His heartbeat quickened.
This… is dangerous.
Without daring to linger any longer, he turned swiftly and strode out the door.
Behind him, Yun Yun remained seated, a trace of amusement playing at the corners of her lips.
"Ye Chen, this child…" she murmured, shaking her head gently. "Always in such a rush."
She rose and walked slowly to the door, watching it close with a soft thud.
Then she reached up and gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, her eyes thoughtful.
---
Back in his own quarters, Ye Chen finally let out a long breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
He leaned back against the wall, one hand pressed to his chest.
"Teacher… really is the leader of a great sect," he muttered to himself, a faint smile curving his lips. "Even her fragrance lingers in the air… haunting and unforgettable."
Ye Chen walked over to the table in the center of the room and unrolled the portrait carefully.
Then, beside it, he laid out several sparkling magic cores each brimming with fierce elemental energy.
"Alright," he said softly, "with Teacher watching over me now… I'll definitely be able to concentrate."
He stepped onto the bed and carefully hung the painting just above the headboard.
The portrait depicted Yun Yun in her full Sect Master attire elegant, noble, and poised, her long black hair cascading like a waterfall, her eyes calm yet piercing, just like the real her.
For a while, he simply stood there and gazed at it.
His lips curled into a faint smile.
There was a kind of peace in having her image here like an anchor to his restless spirit.
But soon, his expression grew more focused. His gaze shifted toward the magic cores on the table.
Of course, the portrait wasn't the only reason he had returned here.
Those third-tier magic cores hadn't been requested to make pills.
No he never had any intention of asking Liu Ling for help.
That arrogant alchemist had always disliked him, and their conflict had only grown deeper after Ye Chen became close to Nalan Yanran.
If he went to Liu Ling now, he'd be mocked at best or worse, sabotaged.
Instead, Ye Chen had something else in mind.
He reached into his robes and pulled out an old, faintly glowing jade scroll the cultivation method he had obtained in secret: the Swallowing Origin Technique.
A high-tier technique known for its terrifying ability to devour raw elemental energy directly from spirit stones, natural elements… and most dangerously, from magic cores.
"A third-tier magic core should be enough to test it out," he murmured to himself, settling down cross-legged on the bed.
He took a deep breath, placed one of the cores in front of him, and slowly circulated the technique.
A dark, swirling current of spiritual power surged from his palms, wrapping around the core like a snake coiling around its prey.
The core trembled in response, as if resisting but soon, the power within began to leak out, drawn by an irresistible force.
The room was instantly filled with a violent aura. The core's pure elemental energy raged like a storm, wild and unstable.
Any ordinary cultivator even a Dou Wang would think twice before attempting something so reckless. The backlash from absorbing such raw energy could rupture meridians or even shatter one's dantian.
But Ye Chen wasn't ordinary.
With the Swallowing Origin Technique in hand and the Ancient Yang Physique hidden within his body he had the strength to tame the storm.
He closed his eyes.
The energy surged into him, burning like fire through his veins.
His breathing slowed.
His consciousness narrowed.
Pain flared… then gradually settled.
He could feel the core's energy dispersing, breaking apart, and merging with his own qi.
His foundation grew stronger.
This… is only the beginning.
From this moment forward, Ye Chen's cultivation would enter a new realm.
And with his teacher's watchful gaze above him if only in portrait he would press forward, no longer afraid of the path ahead.
.....
My New fanfic - Zhu xian ( Jade dynasty) Reborn: Tenfold Sword Genius
If you guys haven't read all , maybe you can take a peek at them, who knows you might like them.