Cultivating Immortality by Raising a Cat (GL) Chapter 74

Before it was said, Lin Mianmian had not felt it. But once it was said, Little Rice Ball and Senior Sister Yuan really were quite alike in their awkwardness.
It was the kind of awkwardness that hid the need to be noticed under a calm and breezy surface. Then, when someone really noticed them, they would turn away a little, as if the other person had come close on their own and made them unused to it, so they had to keep some distance and reserve.
But if one dared to ignore the little emotion they had “accidentally” revealed and not pay attention, that would be even worse. They would be so angry they could jump up and smash the point they wanted noticed straight into the person’s face.
Of course, after being noticed, there would be the next round of strangely proud awkwardness, pretending that they actually did not care that much.
Simply put, it was like they dug a pit. If you jumped in, they would hum and say you were foolish. If you did not jump, they would angrily say they had worked so hard to dig that pit and how dare you not jump. Then they would kick you in, hum twice, and still say you were foolish.
There was a kind of intelligence gap on the food chain…
Now Lin Mianmian was not too sure whether, facing Yuan Zhaoyang’s question, she should nod and say that Yuan Zhaoyang really was quite like the little calico, or shake her head and apologize for comparing her with a cat.
Fortunately, although Yuan Zhaoyang had asked the question, for some reason, she did not wait for Lin Mianmian, who froze for a moment, to answer. She changed the topic on her own.
As soon as that question slipped out, Yuan Zhaoyang secretly regretted it. Why had she brought up the calico cat for no reason? She clearly knew Lin Mianmian was someone who thought too much, yet she still could not control all those strange questions bubbling up in her heart. She hurriedly turned the topic away.
Speaking of the Great Lecture Hall course list attached to the disciple plate, the course arrangements recorded on it were never final and certain. Whether it was a cultivator adding a class on a sudden whim, or canceling because something delayed them, the course list would change in real time. So if one wanted to attend classes, it was very necessary to check the course list now and then.
Compared with cultivators suddenly adding classes, classes being canceled happened even more often.
Most of the cultivators teaching at the Great Lecture Hall were guest elders hired by the Five Elements Sect from outside. They received Five Elements Sect resources and had to teach a set number of classes within a set period of time.
But cultivators’ teaching time was not so easy to control precisely. Setting aside important matters like cultivating, gaining sudden inspiration, and entering seclusion to go a step further, even ordinary things such as refining pills, refining artifacts, harvesting flowers and herbs, or rushing to secret realms could cause classes to be delayed. Sometimes, a delay was not only a matter of a few days.
So, generally, teaching cultivators would choose a slightly freer stretch of time, then connect classes from morning to night and finish all the courses they needed to teach for that period in one go. After that, they would be busy with their own cultivation until the next period arrived. Even with such arrangements, special situations were still hard to avoid.
Of course, during this time, cultivators could also add classes on their own to receive extra payment from the Five Elements Sect. Only, whether those added classes could start on time was another matter.
Yuan Zhaoyang slowly introduced the Great Lecture Hall’s special habit of classes often being delayed or canceled. Beside her, Lin Mianmian listened and secretly clicked her tongue.
At first glance, the Great Lecture Hall had some similarity to schools before the apocalypse. But in those schools, how could there be teachers frequently skipping class?
Yuan Zhaoyang brought up this matter mainly to remind Lin Mianmian that even if she picked classes from the course list in advance, she had to remember to check whether the course list changed. Otherwise, not only might she make an empty trip, she might also waste the chance to attend other courses.
But while Lin Mianmian listened, she could not help thinking one layer deeper.
By logic, since wandering cultivators had agreed to the Five Elements Sect’s conditions and come to teach, the Five Elements Sect should also have requirements and restrictions for them. Although cultivators should indeed treat cultivation as the root, and when cultivation conflicted with class time, choosing cultivation was only natural, these time conflicts were not impossible to avoid…
So, the Five Elements Sect’s restrictions on wandering cultivators should be quite loose. Lin Mianmian just did not know whether this was the Five Elements Sect’s friendliness toward wandering cultivators, or whether the loss of the sect’s middle-rank strength made the Five Elements Sect need to rely more on wandering cultivators, and therefore unable to bind them too tightly.
If it was the latter…
Lin Mianmian shook her head, unable to think deeper. In the end, she was only the lowest-level little disciple in the Five Elements Sect right now. Even if she thought more, she could not do more. What a person could change was always only the small crises that their strength could affect. The Five Elements Sect’s current situation was far beyond her power.
While Yuan Zhaoyang introduced the Great Lecture Hall’s teaching style, her hands were not idle either. Her divine sense worked with several sets of hand seals and landed on her own disciple plate. The course list changed instantly.
At Yuan Zhaoyang’s request, Lin Mianmian used divine sense to observe the course list again. With the earlier episode of soothing Yuan Zhaoyang’s little temper, this time Lin Mianmian instantly saw the point Yuan Zhaoyang wanted noticed.
Only…
“Senior Sister Yuan, are you also going to finish all your classes for this period in one go before entering seclusion?” Lin Mianmian looked over the course list carefully again and again. This was exactly the kind Yuan Zhaoyang had just mentioned, starting class early in the morning, teaching all day, ending at midnight, and coming again tomorrow.
“I finished the required number of classes for this period long ago.” Yuan Zhaoyang raised her chin. “I have taught so many classes that even if I did not teach for three or five years, I still would not use them up.”
Tsk. Look at that proud face…
It was so much like Little Rice Ball when she had just learned to use cat litter. When Lin Mianmian went to scoop it, Rice Ball would raise her head and step over Lin Mianmian’s foot.
Lin Mianmian steadied her mind and pulled back her thoughts, which had nearly gone down a crooked road and never returned. She murmured, “Then Senior Sister, this is…”
She faintly had a guess in her heart, but she did not dare confirm that in Yuan Zhaoyang’s heart, she truly held a position more important than entering seclusion to form her core.
For cultivators, cultivation and advancement were the most important things, weren’t they?
Yuan Zhaoyang did not answer. She even stopped looking at Lin Mianmian. Her gaze shifted slightly, falling vaguely into the distance.
Tsk. Look at that calm and breezy face…
“Many thanks, Senior Sister…” Lin Mianmian lowered her head, cupped her hands, and saluted.
“What thank you? Did I not say to stop always thanking me!” Yuan Zhaoyang had not expected Lin Mianmian to be so solemn all of a sudden. She quickly shifted two steps aside, avoiding Lin Mianmian’s salute.
Life was truly difficult. If Lin Mianmian could not see Yuan Zhaoyang’s thoughtfulness, Yuan Zhaoyang would definitely be unhappy. But if Lin Mianmian saw her good intention and thanked her, Yuan Zhaoyang exploded again…
Facing Yuan Zhaoyang, who seemed somewhat embarrassed into anger, her almond eyes slightly widened, Lin Mianmian felt not the slightest fear.
Truly alike, this bluffing appearance…
“Senior Sister is right,” Lin Mianmian obediently said. But thinking again of how Yuan Zhaoyang looked now, like fur had bristled, the corners of Lin Mianmian’s mouth could not help lifting slightly.
One moment earlier, this bad person had respectfully and solemnly saluted, pulling open the distance between them. The next moment, she was like a soft cake person, smiling gently and sweetly.
Yuan Zhaoyang could no longer stay angry. But she still had to keep her momentum.
“Hmph!” Yuan Zhaoyang turned and walked in another direction.
Lin Mianmian naturally followed. But after only two steps, she saw Yuan Zhaoyang, who seemed angry and as if she would never pay attention to anyone again, look back at her. Then Yuan Zhaoyang quickly turned her head back and continued walking very fast.
Was she checking whether Lin Mianmian had followed? She clearly cared, yet had to act as if she was not playing together anymore…
Lin Mianmian smiled and shook her head. Then, before Yuan Zhaoyang looked back again, she obediently hid the smile.
Lin Mianmian knew that ever since they met in Yingxian City, Yuan Zhaoyang and A-Bai had treated her very differently.
If A-Bai could barely be counted as cherishing her because they both liked eating good food, then Yuan Zhaoyang’s kindness truly came without reason. If one really used Yuan Zhaoyang’s word “affinity” to explain it, Lin Mianmian also could not fully believe it.
When a cultivator met a junior they had affinity with, whether they gave a little guidance or gifted some small things, it made sense. But the things Yuan Zhaoyang gave were either extremely precious liquid medicine, specially refined magic artifacts, or soups and food she personally made. Now, she had even added several days of classes in a row. How could the energy and time spent in all this be explained by affinity alone?
Only, Lin Mianmian could not feel even the slightest malice from them… only full goodwill.
If before today, Lin Mianmian’s impression of Yuan Zhaoyang had been a senior who often reached out to her with friendly help, then after the two spent time alone today, that impression had become a senior with a little temper, a little awkwardness, and a little… cuteness.
From the first floating, immortal-like image, to later careful completeness, to now friendly yet proud awkwardness, the more Lin Mianmian interacted with Yuan Zhaoyang, the more she seemed to see a different Yuan Zhaoyang. Fortunately, this difference was not annoying at all. It even… made her feel somewhat nostalgic.
Nostalgic for this kind of caring that said, “I did not care about you at all.”
Lin Mianmian rubbed her forehead. This was probably a cat owner’s masochistic aftereffect?
Yuan Zhaoyang, walking ahead, had no idea where Lin Mianmian’s wandering thoughts had floated. She was now sunk in deep regret.
What happened to silent repayment? What happened to helping like rain seeping into things without a sound? Why did she keep wanting to find a little sense of existence from that white sugar cake? Was there something wrong with her, always unable to hold back from seeking attention?
Actually, Yuan Zhaoyang was not completely unclear.
Over the past more than half a year, this person… had held Yuan Zhaoyang in her palm, protected her, and loved her. From whether she had eaten enough to whether her waste looked all right, to exaggerate a little, from the tip of her ears to the end of her tail, there had not been a single hair this person did not care about.
Even though Yuan Zhaoyang had had another purpose, even though she felt guilty, habit was truly a most terrifying thing.
Even more terrifying was that after she got used to it, everything ended.
This person was walking beside her. But there was no longer that gentle, water-like gaze from before. There was no longer the active meowing at every moment, finding topics even when there were none and speaking nonsense. There was no longer that special attention, that special…
It was normal. This was all normal.
But even though Yuan Zhaoyang knew it, she still could not help wanting to receive a little attention. Those attentions that had spread overflowing without the slightest effort during the days of Little Rice Ball now required more reasonable setup and preparation before she could obtain even a little.
This should not be what she pursued. Yuan Zhaoyang knew that.
Pulling away required a process of adjustment. After she finished teaching these classes and entered seclusion, things would get better. Yuan Zhaoyang told herself this.
The classes Yuan Zhaoyang added ranged from cultivation history and basic knowledge, to the circulation, storage, and tempering of spiritual energy, then meridian expansion and tempering, divine sense cultivation and use, and the movement of spiritual energy during spellcasting. They were all the most basic courses, and they were exactly what Lin Mianmian needed right now.
The classes would begin that afternoon and connect one after another. They would last a full five days before stopping.
It was not that Yuan Zhaoyang was unwilling to spend more time teaching Lin Mianmian more before entering seclusion. It was truly that Lin Mianmian had only just drawn spiritual energy into her body. It was not good to bite off more than she could chew. This was exactly the time to build a solid foundation. Only after learning the basics firmly could they talk about the future.
With the courses arranged so tightly, Lin Mianmian’s original plan to figure out the cultivation world’s ingredients naturally had to move back.
Yuan Zhaoyang’s first class that afternoon was Cultivation History and Basic Knowledge. From the course name alone, one could tell this should be the most beginner-level class in the Great Lecture Hall.
Lin Mianmian counted. The people who had recently drawn spiritual energy into their bodies were only herself and Meng Tianhe. Oh, Wang Chuanying had to be counted too. Adding those who might not have heard this class before, and those who might soon draw spiritual energy into their bodies, ten people attending this class would be about right.
But to Lin Mianmian’s surprise, when she followed Yuan Zhaoyang and arrived at the classroom by teleportation right on time, the large cave in the belly of the mountain was already nearly half full. A rough sweep, counting the large demon cultivators sitting in the back rows, showed about thirty or forty cultivators had come.
“Junior Sister, sit over here.” A mini deer demon sitting in the front row waved to Lin Mianmian in a friendly way. “We met yesterday at Clear Heart Hall. Do you still remember me?”
That charming low male voice was indeed somewhat familiar.
Lin Mianmian looked at the deer demon before her, who reached only about her knee even counting his antlers, and hesitated. If he was yesterday’s deer, yesterday’s deer had clearly been much, much taller than her…
“Junior Sister does not recognize me?” The mini deer demon turned one hoof, and a small red fruit appeared on it. “Junior Sister was clearly sneaking looks at me yesterday. Today I used the Shrinking Shape Art, and you do not recognize me?”
“Senior… Brother… hello…” Lin Mianmian spoke with difficulty. “I was not sneaking looks at you yesterday, Senior Brother.”
“Mm, you were only sneaking looks at Senior Brother’s… little fruits in my bowl.” The deer demon spoke with a long pause, while holding the little fruit on one hoof and slowly walking on three legs to Lin Mianmian. “Here.”
In the blink of an eye, a fair, slender hand suddenly reached out from the side and took the orange-red fruit from the deer hoof.
Deer demon: “…”
Lin Mianmian: “…”
“Are we still having class? Did you turn into this shape to attend class, or to play?” Yuan Zhaoyang put the fruit into her own storage bag as if nothing had happened. At the same time, she waved her sleeve at the deer demon. In an instant, the mini deer demon rapidly grew and returned to his big deer form.
The deer demon had a crying face. “But Senior Sister, I want to sit in front.”
“You are so big. You can only sit in the back.” Yuan Zhaoyang’s face was expressionless.
The deer demon looked even more like crying. “But Senior Sister, last time you said that as long as I did not block people, I could sit in front.”
“…” Yuan Zhaoyang looked at the deer demon. “Oh. From now on, in my classes, you are not allowed to use the Shrinking Shape Art to become small.”
The deer demon looked like he was crying even harder. “…”
Whoever owned the classroom made the rules. The deer demon, who had failed to fight for his rights, gave Lin Mianmian a friendly smile, tossed two small fruits into Lin Mianmian’s hands, and obediently went to the back row.
Before Lin Mianmian could decide what to do with the fruits in her hands, Yuan Zhaoyang skillfully took them away.
“Do you think that little deer just now was very cute, hm?”
Lin Mianmian only heard Yuan Zhaoyang’s voice sound in her heart. Yuan Zhaoyang’s lips had not moved.
So… as expected, you also feel this question is too foolish to ask out loud, right?
Yuan Zhaoyang quietly looked at Lin Mianmian.
Although he had indeed been a little cute, Lin Mianmian firmly shook her head.
Yuan Zhaoyang nodded with satisfaction and pointed at the front-row seat. “Go sit.”
She had chosen correctly… So Senior Sister cared a lot about that deer demon just now?
Lin Mianmian frowned. Was it not even allowed for other people to think that deer demon was cute?
Suddenly, her heart felt a little strange and not very happy. To make a not very fitting comparison, it was like finally having a friend, only to discover that the friend’s best friend was not oneself…
Hmph.