Breaking the silence, Lan Yulan asked, "Who are you?"
Han Cai responded, "I'm a disciple from the Spirit Pill Department."
Lan Yulan inquired further, "Where are my friends?"
"They are being transported out of the array with other disciples," Han Cai replied.
"Do I know you from somewhere?" Lan Yulan asked.
"Maybe. I attended the guest banquet," Han Cai said.
"What's your name?" Lan Yulan pressed.
"Yan Cai. And yours?" Han Cai asked.
"Lan Yulan," she answered. "Did the elder of your department create this array?"
"Do you like it?" Han Cai asked, evading the question.
Lan Yulan nodded and said, "It's dark but unique. It's different from any array I've ever seen."
"If you like it, you can visit anytime. I'll make sure to show you around," Han Cai offered. He snapped his fingers and the desert scenery instantly transformed. Now they were sitting on a mountain, surrounded by the beauty of blue mountains and lush valleys.
Lan Yulan was taken aback at first, but she quickly grew to admire the view. "I didn't know that the Outer sect could be this beautiful, too," she said.
Han Cai replied, "It is, but now that you're here, it's even more beautiful."
Startled by his candid compliment, Lan Yulan turned to look at him. However, Han Cai had already risen and was walking away. "Now that you're free from the array, if you fly east, you'll find your friends at the entrance," he said, before taking off into the sky.
Lan Yulan watched the back of this mysterious Outer sect disciple, who had the ability to fly, for a long time. The ability to fly indicated that he was at the Core Formation stage, yet when she tried to sense his cultivation, the boy seemed to be only at the Foundation Establishment stage.
When Lan Yulan returned to the entrance, she found the Holy Daughter and her friends waiting for her.
"Yulan, where were you? They said the array would keep us for a day, but it expelled us in just a few hours," Holy Daughter Lan Yanmei inquired.
"The disciples... they seem different," Yulan replied, with a frown on her face.
"What disciples?" Yanmei questioned.
"Didn't the disciples bring you out?" Yulan asked.
"No, we were directly kicked out from the array," Wei Biyu responded.
Yulan's frown deepened. Then she remembered what Han Cai had said at the end and a smile broke out involuntarily on her face.
"Yulan, what happened?" Yanmei probed, curious at her sudden change of expression.
Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Yulan replied, "No, nothing. We should go back to the Inner sect."
Upon returning from his conversation with Lan Yulan, Han Cai retreated to his abode to meditate. The girl had stirred his Dao Heart, and he was unsure why he felt so drawn to her. It felt as if the heavens themselves conspired to unite them. Han Cai didn't typically entertain such notions, but he found himself captivated by her charm.
To regain his equilibrium, he meditated on awakening his Dao of Chad, anxious not to mishandle the situation. After a period of serene meditation, he felt recentered, his infatuation with Lan Yulan under control.
However, before he could even enjoy his newfound tranquility, Blacky informed him that Lan Yulan was waiting outside the array again. Han Cai sighed and took flight to greet her. When he arrived, he saw Lan Yulan alone, elegantly dressed in a white gown and sitting on a dune with a bonfire blazing in front of her.
Against the backdrop of the vast grey desert and the dark sky, she looked like a living painting. Han Cai's heart stirred once more. He descended and landed on the same dune, conjuring a cushion with a wave of his hand before taking a seat beside her. He looked at her, silently.
"What did you mean when you said the view was more beautiful because I was here?" Lan Yulan broke the silence.
Han Cai shrugged. "Because... I find you exceptionally beautiful." His directness brought a blush to Lan Yulan's cheeks.
"Do you say this to every female disciple you meet?" she asked.
Han Cai replied, "The Holy Daughter was with you, but no one escorted her. I chose to escort you. What does that say?"
Lan Yulan swiftly changed the topic. "You're only at the Foundation Establishment stage, and yet you can fly. Why?"
"Because I'm talented and I learned a flying technique," he responded.
"Or is it because you're hiding your cultivation?" Lan Yulan countered.
"I have nothing to hide from the girl I like," Han Cai reassured her. Lan Yulan seemed taken aback by his direct approach.
"You're too young," she responded.
"I'm not. We might be around the same age. How old are you?" Han Cai asked, immediately regretting his question. It wasn't gentlemanly to ask a lady her age.
To his relief, Lan Yulan didn't seem to mind. "I reached the Ascension Realm three hundred years ago," she replied.
Han Cai blurted out in surprise, "Holy Shit, a grandma is going to be my girlfriend!" Realizing his tactless comment, he hastily added, "My bad, I didn't mean it that way. I reached the Qi Condensation stage seven hundred years ago."
Lan Yulan smiled, not buying it. "You're lying."
"What makes you think that?" Han Cai asked, feigning innocence.
Lan Yulan merely pouted.
"Regardless, age is just a number. It shouldn't come between lovers, should it?" he countered smoothly.
Lan Yulan didn't respond, and Han Cai found himself feeling surprisingly proud. The conversation had shifted in a promising direction, and he wondered if this meant that he might have a chance with the girl who had so captured his interest. In layman's terms, he was expecting to get laid.
Then, he frowned. Was he being a jerk? This girl liked him, yet he was entertaining obscene thoughts. But he reassured himself, thinking that he had been saving his Yang energy for three lives now. With the opportunity finally at hand, he naturally entertained certain thoughts. Han Cai pledged to himself that after releasing his Yang, he would take responsibility for her and care for her well.
Before he could ruminate further, Lan Yulan rose to her feet and said, "I should go."
Han Cai sighed. "Bloody hell, I'm going to get blue-balled tonight."
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