Du Yue lightly jumped up and landed on Su Wen's lap without a sound. She leaned against him comfortably while munching on the meat, occasionally lifting a piece to his lips and feeding him with a bright, satisfied smile. Su Wen said nothing… he simply accepted whatever she offered, the corners of his mouth lifting faintly.
He took a sip of wine, then held the cup before Du Yue. She drank a small mouthful directly from his hand, her cheeks slowly tinting red from the warmth.
The two of them remained like that… quiet, close, and peaceful… sharing food and wine in the middle of the wilderness, as if the outside world no longer existed.
'I should brew spiritual wine with higher-grade ingredients,' Su Wen noted silently, resting his chin lightly against her shoulder.
The next day, Su Wen walked toward Moon City as faint snow drifted down from the sky.
His eyes looked distant and slightly dark, as if a trace of the void itself hid within them. With every step he took, space rippled subtly beneath his feet, the ground faintly covered in the power of Grade 2 Space Intent.
He was wearing heavy spirit rings all over his body and top of that, had an enchanting beauty on his back who looked like a sack lying on him. Snowflakes reflected gently on her flawless face, giving her an almost unreal glow.
However, the beauty's expression was slightly annoyed.
Above her head floated five small water blobs and five heavy spirit-steel balls, all slowly rotating in midair.
The water blobs continuously froze and melted, shifting back and forth between ice and liquid.
Her task was to keep the five heavy spirit-steel balls suspended while simultaneously using her Soul Sense to control and alter the state of the water blobs.
This was the training Su Wen had designed for her Soul Sense and Snow Intent.
At times, he would make her freeze the water into written words.
At times, he would order her to divide a single blob into countless tiny droplets and then freeze them.
Sometimes, she had to shape the water into small figurines of ice.
Other times, she had to rotate the heavy spirit-steel balls in a circular path while freezing the water into arrow shapes to indicate their direction.
Every task demanded extreme precision, control, and mental focus.
And Du Yue… was being forced to suffer through all of it while clinging to her "heartless" husband's back under the falling snow.
"Wifey, when are you planning to get off my back?" Su Wen asked wearily.
"Husband, my feet are still hurting from all that walking. Can't you just let me hug… cough, I mean, rest on your back?" Du Yue replied sheepishly.
Su Wen pinched the hand wrapped around his shoulder. "Wife, are you taking advantage of me? …Looks like someone needs proper punishment," he said teasingly.
Du Yue immediately put on a pitiful expression while still controlling the steel balls and water blobs. "I thought my husband would always love me, take care of me, never leave me alone… never refuse me… never…"
Su Wen's lips twitched, and he immediately interrupted . "When did my dumb wife become so good at emotional blackmail?"
Still lying lazily on his back, Du Yue said, "Hmph husband… you clearly promised to carry me as a reward before the tribulation."
Su Wen sighed helplessly.
"My foolish wife is truly talented and smart when it comes to being shamelessly clingy."
Du Yue blushed. "Husband, I'm not a dumb wife anymore…" She lifted her chin proudly. "I've already broken through to the Soul Sea realm. It's even higher than yours now. That means I'm smarter than you… hehe."
Su Wen's eyes twitched. "You… you don't suddenly become clever just because your cultivation rose. Hmph. You'll forever be a dumb wife."
'Noo… I can't be left too far behind, otherwise…' he realized inwardly.
Du Yue hugged him even tighter, nearly choking him. "I will always be your dumb wife. And I love hugging my husband the most, so now you have to take responsibility."
Her voice sweet and shameless, leaving Su Wen with no chance to escape.
Su Wen grabbed her hand and gently nipped at her fingers. "Back then, I never imagined that the cute, innocent, and naive girl would turn into such a clingy wife."
Du Yue lowered her head shyly. "Hehe… does Husband not like a clingy wife anymore?"
Su Wen answered righteously, "I love my clingy wife the most!"
Du Yue smiled and whispered softly into his ear, "Are you telling the truth, Husband?"
Her cheek rested against his right shoulder, her warm breath brushing his ear. That gentle voice seemed to melt straight into his mind, yet pierced his heart at the same time.
Su Wen felt his blood boil instantly while a chill ran down his spine. He didn't dare answer carelessly, as if his life were hanging by a thread.
"I love my dumb wife the most… no matter how she is."
Satisfied, Du Yue hugged him even tighter, almost strangling him again.
"We'll reach Moon City soon… you can stop training now," he groaned weakly.
Du Yue didn't notice the faint blush creeping onto his face.
When she finally stopped training, she suddenly felt as if her soul had been drained dry.
'Husband always pushes cultivation to the extreme… I'll take my revenge soon or later. Hmph!' she thought proudly.
Su Wen, with his sack still clinging to his back, stopped a few kilometres from Moon City's gate. He gently tapped a nearby tree, and its trunk silently parted, revealing a narrow pathway that led straight toward his mountain residence.
He set Du Yue down. Though reluctant, she finally climbed off his back.
"Wife, disguise yourself… just to be safe," he instructed.
Du Yue looked confused. "Husband, why? You're with me. You don't have to fear anyone…" She even patted his back like a dependable big sister.
Su Wen's eyes twitched.
"Wife, your Pure Yin Immortal Physique is like a living treasure that countless cultivators would kill to obtain. If your presence is exposed, we'll be endlessly harassed by people with ill intentions."
He added calmly, "Besides, with disguises, we can move freely, gather information about the City Lord and his son, and avoid drawing unnecessary attention."
Du Yue frowned slightly. "Husband, why do we even need to gather information?"
"Aren't we just supposed to go to their mansion, question the guards, walk inside, kill them, take their treasures, and then leave?" she said seriously, as if listing daily chores. "Maybe also burn a few buildings on the way out?"
Su Wen looked at his dumb wife and let out a soft sigh.
"Wife… why does it feel like we're the villains here?"
He continued patiently, "Even though they're scum and deserve to die, we still can't reveal our true identities."
"Although they are trash, they are still affiliated with the Great Eastern Sect. If we kill them openly, we'll be directly provoking that sect, and that will bring us endless trouble in the future."
"And right now, we still don't have enough strength to protect ourselves if someone above the Golden Core realm appears."
"So," he concluded, "we'll change our identities, quietly remove the scum, take what we need, and continue our journey without worrying about the mess left behind."
Du Yue nodded obediently with a silly smile on her face.
But deep in her heart, a proud and quietly domineering thought surfaced.
'Don't worry, husband. With me here… no one in this world can harm you.'
Su Wen watched her idiotic smile with a strange expression. 'I wonder what's going through my dumb wife's head… sigh'.