Light and Shadow.

Lin Yuan woke early, as always.

The crisp morning air kissed his cheeks. After a quick bath, he gently washed Xiao Hu in a shallow tub of warm water. The little black tiger purred, eyes half-closed, as Lin Yuan dried him with a soft towel—fluffing his fur into a small, black cloud.

Qingxue snored softly under a blanket, like a bird trapped inside a flute. Lin Yuan smiled, then slipped out to the inner market. He returned with twenty bottles of spiritual milk and over a hundred kilograms of dried fruit.

He sliced the fruit into neat little piles, careful not to wake them.

But Xiao Hu stirred, blinking sleepily.

"Brother… I want a horse."

From beneath the covers, Qingxue's voice chimed in:

"Me too!"

Lin Yuan sighed and chuckled.

"Do you even know how to ride?"

"No," they said in unison.

He replied with a gentle grin,

"Then let's buy a baby horse. When it grows up, we'll ride together. It'll trust us by then."

Just then, a soft flash of moonlight shimmered through the window. Lady Yuexian arrived, her robes glowing faintly. In her hands, a basket of steaming fried chicken.

"I brought breakfast."

Lin Yuan bowed lightly.

"You're too kind."

He carefully tore the chicken into strips for Xiao Hu and Qingxue, who had resumed their beast forms. Yuexian watched in silence, eyes soft with something warmer than approval. Afterward, she handed him a sealed jade scroll.It contains some information why it's important train physical body in immortal cultivation.

"Training time. Now."

---

They walked in silence to Moonmist Hall.

The Sect Leader handed him a clean dress.

"You'll need to bathe in the outer spring first," she said. "Then change into these."

Lin Yuan nodded, took the clothes, and stepped into the spring once more . When he returned, freshly bathed, she led him into the Moonlight Pool. The place was serene and glowing, perfumed with something sweet and cool. "Why does it smell so nice?" Lin Yuan asked, curious.

Yuexian looked slightly embarrassed.

"Well… many elders bathe here, and each uses her own perfume. Over time, the mix left a beautiful scent. You're the first male to enter. If anyone finds out… they'll think you came to peek. So never reveal your gender."

"I'll be careful," he promised.

Moonlight pooled like mist across the surface, thick and luminous as liquid crystal. The air shimmered with yin-rich purity. Those who meditated here found their souls cleared, their meridians soothed.

Yuexian helped guide his Qi through the freezing current. Lin Yuan's muscles tensed—but he didn't flinch.

"You don't even react," she whispered. "Doesn't it hurt?"

"I'm used to it."

She paused.

"Why?"

"My stepmother raised me that way," he said. "She believed pain makes you stronger."

Yuexian's expression darkened, but she said nothing. Instead, she pressed more Taiyin Qi into his meridians.

That day, Lin Yuan consumed 156 mid-grade healing pills.

She stared at him, unreadable.

"…What are you? A bottomless well?"

Where does he even get these pills? she wondered. Is he the son of a legendary pill master? I should not ask private things. Maybe he wants to hide his past. Sect leader ask,"Do you know your grand parents? "

Lin Yuan say, "I don't remember my grandparents but I remember some old people in our village. I call them grand father or grand mother. "

---

Later, Lin Yuan brought Xiao Hu and Qingxue to the beast market.

A voice echoed from the pendant at his chest—Lady Mingyan's sealed soul:

> "Buy horses number 21, 33, and 47. Spirit breeds. Ancient bloodlines. Rare temperaments."

He obeyed, spending three high-grade spirit stones.

Of course, Xiao Hu and Qingxue immediately fought over the same snow-white horse.

"I want that one!"

"No, I do!"

"We'll get another," Lin Yuan said, rubbing his temples. "Today, you ride together."

"I don't need one," Qingxue said, lifting her chin. "I can fly."

"My horse will grow a horn!" Xiao Hu declared. "Faster than lightning!"

They laughed all the way home, munching on grilled steaks while the horses grazed peacefully in the moonlight.

That night, under the soul trees, Xiao Hu curled up beside Lin Yuan and whispered,

"I miss my mother."

Qingxue wrapped a wing around his shoulder.

"Most cubs are already alone by our age. Families don't last long."

"You're not older than me."

"Yes, I am!"

"No, you're not!"

"Enough," Lin Yuan said with a tired smile. "Even our horses don't fight. So let's not either."

---

The days drifted by like clouds over water.

Each morning: cultivation. Painful. Quiet. Endless. Yuexian watched him—not as a master, but as something closer. Gentler.

Ten days later, she handed him a pouch.

"10,000 lower-grade spirit stones. Your body has formed a true Spiritual Body," she said. "You're now like an ordinary inner disciple. For a mortal, this is almost impossible. Some manage it in ten days with rare fruits—but you did it with moonlight alone."

Then she added,

"I have other duties now. Your body can absorb Qi on its own. Practice alone."

Yinluo, his bathmother, emerged from the pocket dimension.

"Living in that space feels like a prison," she said. "I'll help you now. I was once a Holy Maiden of the Taiyin Sect—before I married your father. I'll tell you the rest when you're older. When you marry."

Lin Yuan smiled faintly.

"What's the point? I could forget it at any moment."

She didn't answer. Just guided him in silence—calm, steady, maternal.

She used Taiyin Qi to cleanse his meridians, reinforce his cultivation path, and strengthen every muscle in his body.

While others received a thousand high-grade spirit stones, Lin Yuan received a thousand mid-grade and a hundred high-grade stones. Yet somehow… it was enough.

---

One morning, Yinluo said,

"You may reveal that Xiao Hu and Qingxue are demons. Humans treat demons as pets—it's not uncommon. But you must still keep your own identity hidden."

That afternoon, Yuexian arrived—only to find three children playing in the dirt.

She raised a brow.

"Who are they?"

Lin Yuan said without hesitation,

"Xiao Hu and Qingxue. In human form. I trust you now."

"Do you?" she asked softly.

"Not completely."

She smiled.

"Good. I like honest children.I believe one day you will tell me everything."

She gifted Qingxue a beautiful princess dress.

"So cute."

Xiao Hu pouted.

"What about me?"

"Do you want a princess dress too?"

"NO! I want a sword!"

She laughed and tossed him a flying blade and protective amulet.

"Happy now?"

"Yeah."

Finally, she placed a high-grade formation spell over their home. A protective dome of silent silver light.

---

A peaceful week followed.

Yuexian cooked porridge, read ancient poetry aloud to Qingxue, and combed Xiao Hu's hair while he napped.

But one evening she warned Lin Yuan:

"Be careful. Moonmist Hall is ancient. If an ancestor appears… stay silent."

Sure enough, while cultivating alone by the spiritual pool, a woman emerged.

Long silver robes. Eyes like frozen stars.

"Why are you in my pool?" she asked.

Lin Yuan stepped back respectfully.

She trained him. Eight hours a day. Six days.

He bought another 1,000 soul fruits from the market, using ten high-grade spirit stones.

On the seventh day, she asked him:

"Who's your father?"

"Dead," he replied. "I don't remember his name or even his face."

"Your mother?"

"I can't say. It's a secret."

She smiled slyly.

"I helped you for free. I didn't ask anything. I won't tell anyone. Is it Qingxuan? I treat her like my daughter. You can call me grandmother."

"She's my master. Nothing more."

"Liar."

Then she said,

"Let me help you. It will hurt. But your body will evolve into a Treasure Body. Are you ready?"

Lin Yuan nodded.

The training that followed was brutal. He consumed high-grade healing pills just to survive.

Moments later, Yuexian arrived.

"Ancestor…"

She ask, "Why a disciple are here? "

"She's my grand-disciple. Lin Yue. I brought her here to cleanse her body. She won't return."

Ancestor say, "Follow the sect rule properly of we would choose another sect leader. "

Yuexian bowed.

"Understood."

The ancestor narrowed her eyes.

"She's brave. Why didn't you tell me about her mother?"

"I don't know," Yuexian said. "She was picked up by my disciples."

---

That night, Yuexian cooked soup herself, wiped Xiao Hu's muddy paws, and tucked Qingxue into bed.

The next morning, she led Lin Yuan to a secret place.

"This is Moonlight Hall. My private cultivation room. It draws pure moonlight. You won't need to activate the formation."

She gave him a basket of fasting pills.

"You'll suffer. But your Treasure Body—maybe even your semi-divine potential—will awaken. No pain, no gain."

After she left, Lady An appeared.

"I like this place," she said. "It will help you more than you know."

Ten days. No food. Just soul fruit, fasting pills, healing medicine—and pure moonlight.

---

On the tenth day, Yuexian returned. Her eyes gleamed with pride.

"You've come far," she said. "Now it's time for the Sect Competition."

Lin Yuan blinked.

"…Do I have to fight girls?"

She chuckled.

"No. Games."

"…Games?"

"Jump rope. Painting. Candy picking. Dress-making. Smashing pots."

Lin Yuan's eye twitched.

"I've never painted a flower in my life."

She grinned.

"Good. You'll learn."

Let me know if you want this split into chapters or layered with more comedy, poetic reflection, or deeper mm