Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 80 - 79: Yueqiu, Do You Want to Touch the Moon?

The moment Pei Yuhang finished speaking, the sword, which had been flying at a steady pace, suddenly shot vertically upward. It continued to accelerate, creating plumes of vapor cones that trailed behind the hilt.

The silver-haired girl was immediately slammed back by a powerful G-force. She cried out in alarm, all thoughts of her master forgotten, and could only cling desperately to his waist to keep from falling off the Flying Sword.

"Master… I can't… it's too fast…"

'This is so thrilling…'

Qing Yueqiu's panicked cry was shredded by the howling gales, but Pei Yuhang still heard her clearly.

He formed another hand seal, and the Flying Sword slowed its ascent.

Even after feeling the sword slow down, Qing Yueqiu hadn't quite recovered from the vertigo. Her breaths were still heavy and hot between her crimson lips.

She glanced down, only to realize her cold sweat had soaked through the back of her master's robes…

"Hahaha, Yueqiu, you're still as afraid of heights as you were when you were little. I thought you would've gotten over that after learning Sword Control."

Pei Yuhang laughed heartily, ruffling the cascade of his disciple's now-tousled silver hair.

As he stroked her head, Qing Yueqiu subconsciously let out a contented murmur, like a cat's purr.

But this one little pat wasn't enough to dispel her pique… 'It'll take at least three.'

She said with a hint of a pout, "How can you laugh, Master? I got your robes all wet."

"Are they? You're just like my wife. It must be a Water Spirit Root thing… The first time I took her flying on a sword, she was so scared she cried. My robes got a lot wetter than this…"

Pei Yuhang smiled, lost in old memories, but Qing Yueqiu's brow furrowed slightly.

'She didn't want her master to keep bringing up his wife when they were alone.'

'This was a rare moment he was spending with his first disciple… couldn't he focus all of his attention on her, on Yueqiu? He could dote on his wife any other time.'

'No… What am I even thinking? How could I possibly compare myself to his wife…'

'Her brain must have been scrambled by that breakneck flight. Otherwise, why would she be having thoughts about competing with his wife for their master's attention?'

The silver-haired girl collected her thoughts and said with a smile:

"Wow, Master, is your Sword Control really this amazing?"

"Of course. Among Sword Cultivators of the same realm, I, the Cold Sun Sword Immortal, may not be the best at everything, but my speed with Sword Control is second to none."

"Then once my Cultivation surpasses yours, Master, I'll have to ask you to fly with me~ When that day comes, I'll get my revenge for how pathetic I was today!"

"Oh? You want to see your master make a fool of himself? Alright, then. I'll be waiting for the day your Cultivation surpasses mine."

As the master and disciple chatted away, the Flying Sword beneath their feet completed its vertical ascent and arrived above the clouds.

A thick layer of clouds rushed to meet them, and Qing Yueqiu instinctively squeezed her eyes shut.

This was the first time she had ever flown so high, the first time she had ever touched a cloud.

'So clouds aren't fluffy after all. They're just like a cool, damp pocket of air.'

When Qing Yueqiu opened her eyes again, the Flying Sword had leveled out. Her beautiful, crimson eyes widened, as if trying to permanently etch the magnificent scene into her memory.

Bright Moonlight shimmered across a roiling Cloud Sea, making it look like a sparkling ocean. As the night wind blew, the clouds swelled and surged, and the reflected Moonlight twisted and writhed upon their surface like true ocean waves.

"It's beautiful."

Qing Yueqiu murmured. Luminous, her sword, hummed crisply at her waist, seeming to love this place as much as its owner.

Pei Yuhang smiled, seeing his disciple so captivated by the beauty of the moonlit Cloud Sea.

"This is nothing yet. Yueqiu, do you want to touch the moon?"

"Touch the moon?"

Qing Yueqiu repeated, confused, even wondering if she had misheard him.

'The moon is so high in the sky. How could anyone possibly touch it with their bare hands?'

But her master's expression was serious; it didn't look like he was joking.

'In that case, I'll just have to trust him.'

"Yes, I want to touch the moon!" Qing Yueqiu answered with sincerity.

"Good. Then I shall make the moon appear right before your eyes."

Pei Yuhang spread his fingers wide, then made a grasping motion. In an instant, the entire Cloud Sea began to stir.

The abundant water vapor within the Cloud Sea, as vast as any river or lake, began to swirl under Pei Yuhang's control. It converged into a vortex, forming a massive sphere of water a kilometer in diameter.

As Pei Yuhang infused it with pure Extreme Cold Qi, the massive sphere of water rapidly froze solid, transforming into a great ball of ice pockmarked with craters of all sizes.

"Yueqiu, let me borrow Luminous."

"Mm."

Pei Yuhang took the Luminous Shadow Sword and began to channel the full power of his Nascent Soul. He pushed the sword to its limit, drawing in all the Moonlight from several kilometers around.

The intangible Moonlight transformed into a sky full of silvery threads. They streaked across the heavens like a meteor shower, all converging on the massive ice sphere Pei Yuhang had created.

The once-translucent ice sphere blazed with light. Because of its smaller size, its brilliance even surpassed that of the true Moon Star. Anyone looking up from the ground would have witnessed the miracle of two moons vying for splendor in the night sky.

Pei Yuhang took Qing Yueqiu by the hand and landed with her in one of the "craters," from which a frosty mist rose.

"So? I didn't lie to you, did I?

This ball of ice is now filled with the Essence of the Moon. From the ground, someone might even mistake it for the real thing. So it's okay for me to call it a moon, isn't it?~"

Pei Yuhang joked with a smile, though his face had grown a little pale. Clearly, using Luminous to gather the Essence of the Moon from kilometers around had consumed far more Spiritual Qi than he'd imagined.

And this was with his Giant Sun Saint Body, which boasted the largest Spiritual Qi reserves of any Cultivator in his realm. An ordinary Nascent Soul Cultivator would likely have been drained dry and killed by Luminous after such a feat.

'Ah, if I'd known it would cost so much to play a little joke on my disciple, I wouldn't have gone so over the top…'

Suddenly, Pei Yuhang felt a warmth press against his chest. He looked down to see the silver-haired girl burying her face in his embrace.

'Her body is trembling… Is she crying?'

"Master."

"Hm?"

"Can this moon be mine?"

"You like it that much?"

"Mmm-hmm…"

"Then no, I won't give it to you."

Qing Yueqiu looked up in surprise, her eyes rimmed with red. The hurt and confused look on her face was utterly adorable.

A mischievous urge to tease her welled up in Pei Yuhang. He flicked the silver-haired girl's smooth forehead and laughed. "The next time you want to touch the moon, your master can just whip up another one for you."

'Sigh… Since it makes Yueqiu so happy, I guess I'll just have to go through the trouble again in the future.'

'Once my Cultivation is back at the Divinity Transformation realm, using Luminous to craft another moon should be much easier.'