Dual Cultivation

"S-Su Yin! How could you say such a thing to my Master?! Apologize right now!" Bai Lihua said to her with a frown.

"But it's true… I can smell my Brother's scent on him…" she said.

"You—!"

"It's fine." Su Yang casually waved his hand and spoke, "You really love your Brother, Su Yang, don't you?"

"I love him very much!" Su Yin quickly nodded.

"Well, I happen to be a very good friend of Su Yang, and since you are his little sister, if he cannot solve something for you, you come to me for help." Su Yang said.

"There's nothing in this world that my Brother cannot solve." Su Yin said with a confident smile.

"If you say so…" Su Yang smiled behind his mask.

"Anyway, let's talk more privately, shall we?" He then turned to look at Bai Lihua, who nodded.

Sometime later, Su Yang entered Bai Lihua's room.

"Although it's nothing fancy, please have some tea." Bai Lihua said as she poured him some tea.

However, Su Yang did not immediately drink the tea and only silently stared at it.

Bai Lihua wondered if there was something wrong with the tea, but when she realized that he was still wearing his mask, she quickly apologized, "I-I'm sorry, Master. I forgot that you can't drink tea while wearing your mask…"

"No, it's fine. I can take off my mask." Su Yang suddenly said.

"Eh? Really?" Bai Lihua looked at him with wide eyes, as she did not expect him to reveal his face so soon.

"You are my disciple now, so there's no longer any reason for me to hide my face." Su Yang said as he reached for his mask.

*Gulp*

Bai Lihua swallowed nervously as she watched Su Yang's fingers approach the mask, her heart filled with anticipation.

A moment later, Su Yang removed the mask and showed her his face.

"Y-You are?! S-Su Yang?!" Bai Lihua exclaimed in a shocked voice after seeing his face.

However, although his face resembled Su Yang's facial features, it was also different at the same time, as his face appeared more mature and handsome than Su Yang.

"I know what you are thinking, but I am not Su Yang." Su Yang said with a smile on his face. "We happen to look the same, but I can assure you that we are two different individuals."

"Is that even possible…?" Bai Lihua continued to stare at him with wide eyes. "I find it harder to believe that you are not Su Yang than everything you've shown me so far…"

"Hahaha… Trust me, I was as surprised as you are now when I first saw Su Yang and the resemblance we have." Su Yang continued to act as though he was a different person despite having almost the same face.

If it were anybody else in Su Yang's shoes right now, they would surely not be able to convince even an idiot that he was not Su Yang.

"..."

"Are you telling me the truth?" Bai Lihua narrowed her eyes at him, clearly still suspicious of him.

"Of course. What would I gain by lying to you?" he calmly sipped on the tea.

"I see…" Bai Lihua nodded a moment later, and she continued, "I'm sorry for doubting you, Master, but it's simply too hard to believe such coincidences…"

"I understand your position, so there's no need to feel guilty."

"..."

Bai Lihua continued to stare at Su Yang's face even many moments later, seemingly in a daze.

"So? Why did you wish to speak with me?" Su Yang asked her after many moments of silence.

"Oh, right!" Bai Lihua quickly snapped out of her daze and said, "Well, I originally wanted to speak to you about buying some Earth Advancement Pills, but now that I am your disciple, it means I can concoct them myself, right?"

Su Yang nodded, "Indeed, I plan on sharing the recipe for the Earth Spirit Realm to all three of you, but it'll take at least a few years of training before you can actually concoct it."

"I-I see…" Bai Lihua showed a disappointed face after hearing his words.

"Well, if you need Earth Advancement Pills, I have some with me right now. You can take it since I have no use for it." Su Yang then retrieved a few bottles of Earth Advancement Pills and placed it on the table.

"T-Thank you, Master!" Bai Lihua's eyes flickered with excitement after seeing the thirty or so pills on the table. This is the most Earth Advancement Pill she has seen at once to date.

"There's no need to thank me. It is also a Master's responsibility to help out their disciple whenever they can." Su Yang said with a smile, causing Bai Lihua to blush.

'Damn it! Even though he looks like Su Yang, he's incredibly handsome and totally my type! Would Su Yang also look like this in ten or twenty years from now? That would be problematic for me for many reasons!' Bai Lihua pondered to herself, feeling as though her heart was beating through her chest.

"Well, if you have nothing else for me, I shall take my leave." Su Yang said as he stood up and covered his face with the mask again.

"You're already leaving, Master? You just got here…" Bai Lihua said, seemingly reluctant to see him go.

"I would stay here longer if I could, but unfortunately, there are matters I must attend to. I will stay here longer for my next visit when I start your lecture, so you should study the three techniques I gave you."

"I understand… Then at least let me escort you to the exit."

Su Yang nodded, he followed her until they were outside of the Sect.

"Please have a safe trip, Master." Bai Lihua bowed to him.

"I will see you again next month." Su Yang nodded and took flight, before disappearing into the distance shortly after.

"..."

Bai Lihua remained standing outside the Sect even many minutes after Su Yang had left, seemingly dazed.

"Haaa… what should I do? I have never felt like this before…" Bai Lihua sighed, and she moved her hands to her chest, feeling its strong throbbing.

"But I am his disciple, and I doubt he would find any interest in a woman like me…"

One could say Bai Lihua has fallen for the mature Su Yang at first glance, but because of their Master and Disciple relationship, such feelings could only be described as a burden to her.

Meanwhile, after returning to the Profound Blossom Sect, Su Yang knocked on Xie Xingfang's door.

"Hello, Su Yang. How may I help you?" Xie Xingfang greeted him at the door.

"They are going to be here in a few days," he said.

"They…? Who?" Xie Xingfang tilted her head in a puzzled manner.

"Who else but the people coming from the Holy Central Continent."

"!!!"

Xie Xingfang's eyes widened with shock.

"What?! The Moonlight Blades actually managed to reach the Holy Central Continent and somehow convinced the people there to help them?! Impossible!" Xie Wang appeared out of thin air while shouting loudly.

"Are you certain about this information, Su Yang?" Xie Xingfang asked him.

He nodded and said, "I have a friend who can sense people from a very long distance, and she told me a few days ago that they were approaching this place."

"A few days ago?! Why did you wait until now to tell us something so important?!" Xie Wang exclaimed in a slightly angered voice.

Su Yang shook his head before looking at them with a serious expression, "Are you scared, old man?"

"W-What…?!"

Xie Wang was speechless.

"In case you forgot where you are at right now, take a look around you." Su Yang pointed at the sky, and he continued, "As long as you remain inside this formation, no harm will come to you or Xing'er."

"..."

After a moment of silence, Xie Xingfang spoke, "While that may be true, what about the people outside of this formation? As a member of the Xie Family, I have a responsibility to protect our citizens. What if the expert coming starts killing the innocent and causing havoc in the Eastern Continent while I hide inside this formation like a turtle? I'd rather sacrifice myself than to let innocent people suffer because of me."

"Xing'er…" Xie Wang looked at her with a painful expression.

Meanwhile, Su Yang showed a gentle smile on his face.

"You are truly a kind woman, Xing'er — too kind, in fact. However, if you weren't like this, I wouldn't be doing so much for you." He said to her, and he continued, "You can leave the expert to me. I won't let him harm even a single tree on this land, let alone an innocent person."

"Su Yang… what are you going to do?" Xie Xingfang asked him with a worried expression.

"There's still a few days before they reach the Continent, and I will be there waiting for them when they do." He calmly responded.