Teacher by day, Farmer by passion

A full day had passed.

Finally, Ace emerged from the system space, his expression unreadable, save for the faint twitch of irritation at the corner of his mouth.

"I really have to punish Lily for that tea," he muttered, rubbing his temple as he made his way to the Sect Master's private chambers.

Stripping off his outer robes, he stepped into the bathing chamber. Steam curled gently in the air.

The marble tub gleamed, filled to the brim with warm, soul-infused water. With a soft sigh, he eased himself in.

Peace. At last.

Or so he thought.

"Master! It's urgent!" a voice rang from beyond the door.

Ace groaned inwardly, grabbed a towel, and wrapped it around himself before stepping out of the bath.

"Come in," he called, already bracing himself.

The door slammed open. Elder Akha stumbled in, breathless, face pale.

Ace blinked.

"Wait… what's with your hair?"

She reached up sheepishly. "Oh! It's a wig," she muttered, tugging it into place.

"You can keep it on if it makes you comfortable," Ace replied, rubbing his eyes. "Now, what's the issue?"

"Right, thank you," she mumbled, adjusting the wig again. "Master, it's about Grand Elder Lily and Elder Mati. They've disappeared."

Ace raised an eyebrow. "Disappeared?"

Elder Akha took in a deep breath before continuing, "At first, I thought it was just one of their usual squabbles. But last night, Lily launched a full-on sneak attack on Mati's chambers!"

"They've been fighting non-stop since then—and now they've vanished. Poof. Mid-battle."

Ace exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing.

"…Remind me, weren't you supposed to be on break?"

"But—but Master! Lily is sooo irresponsible!" she wailed.

Ace massaged his temple. "Hah… That part's true."

He paused, then waved her off. "I'll punish them both personally later. For now, leave them be. I need to finish my bath."

"But Master… are you sure they'll be okay?"

Ace's tone shifted, just slightly. Calmer. Certain. "Yes. They'll fight. But I'm a hundred percent sure one of them will come back dragging the injured one behind them."

Akha didn't argue further. With a reluctant bow, she left.

Ace stepped back into the tub with a sigh of resignation. The water welcomed him like a long-lost friend.

With a flick of his fingers, the translucent blue screen of his system interface bloomed into view.

He quickly typed a message and sent it off.

[To: Lily]

You and Mati. Come back this instant.

Closing the chat window, he navigated to the disciple status screen.

[Host's Second Disciple:

Status — Healthy, Alive.]

Ace let out a breath. "At least he's still alive…"

The screen vanished, the bath resumed, and for a brief moment… silence returned.

"Is Liu Mei still alive?"

Ace murmured to himself as he leaned back in the bath, raising a hand to open the system screen once more.

A flick, and it bloomed into existence, the familiar blue interface humming softly in front of him.

[Host's First Disciple]

Status: Healthy, Alive

Rank: Peak Legend Rank

Talent: Heavenly Talent

Soul Bonds: White Fur, Black Dragon, Little Aoki

Ace chuckled to himself. "Haha, still only three beasts. Hmph. At least she hasn't bonded with a spirit chicken or something."

But then a thought struck him.

He swiped the tab and selected the second disciple.

[Host's Second Disciple]

Status: Alive, Healthy

When he tried to scroll for more—

[Other Information: Unavailable]

His smile vanished.

Ace sat up, the water sloshing gently around him. A long pause.

Then he stood.

Calmly, deliberately, he stepped out of the tub, grabbed his robe, and dressed.

The carefree air he'd worn like a second skin drained away, replaced with cold focus.

Something wasn't right.

He exited his chambers, intending to take a walk and clear his thoughts or act, if needed.

But just as the door opened..

FWOOOOOSH!

A brilliant streak of light slammed into the courtyard like a divine meteor.

Tiles cracked. Wind howled.

Before the dust even settled—

FWOMP!

A second streak landed beside it, darker, wilder, trailing chaotic energy like a thundercloud with legs.

And then… there they stood.

Elder Mati, glowing faintly with residual energy, her forehead catching the moonlight like a polished jewel.

And beside her, Lily, in her frilly maid dress, hair ruffled, one shoe missing, a smug grin plastered across her face like she'd just won a petty argument and a war at the same time.

Ace stared at them in silence.

"…Seriously?" he said, deadpan.

Lily with a smile said, "Reporting back, Master! Your strongest combatant have returned!"

Mati simply crossed her arms, looking deeply, thoroughly done.

Ace closed his eyes for a beat, inhaled slowly…

"Alright. Which one of you started it?"

They both pointed at each other immediately.

Ace stared at the two of them. He didn't blink. He didn't speak. He just stared a calm, expressionless, soul-piercing gaze.

Eventually, Elder Mati broke.

She sighed, shoulders slumping just slightly. "Grand Elder Lily launched a sneak attack on me."

"What!" Lily snapped. "That's because you fed me a drink that made my body go into heat!"

Ace's eye twitched. He turned slowly to Mati.

"…It was you?"

Mati gave him a wounded look, soft and pitiful, like a betrayed cat. "Master… are you siding with her now?"

Ace closed his eyes. He exhaled.

"…Alright. Both of you, detention."

"Deten—what?" Lily recoiled.

"Lily, from now on, you'll listen to everything Elder Akha says."

Lily gaped. "Hey! I'm the Grand Elder! How can I work under a regular Elder?"

"I'll promote Akha. She's now Grand Elder Akha."

"…Then that's fine," Lily said instantly, spinning on her heel.

"Go tell her she's now Grand Elder Akha and that you'll be under her care for the next few months, until the war ends."

Lily saluted with one hand, skirt fluttering as she flew off like an excited bird. "Yes, Master~!"

Ace watched her vanish into the distance, then turned to Mati.

A moment passed.

Then, with genuine confusion, he asked, "Where… did you even find the courage to go toe-to-toe with Lily?"

Mati blinked. "You mean, you're not angry?"

"No, I just—" Ace rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I've seen you run from insects before. And yet you fought Lily. Lily. Whose sneeze can probably vaporize mountains."

Mati's expression darkened slightly, then she muttered under her breath, "...she stepped on the herb i was raising."

"Ah."

Ace nodded slowly.