Shy Big Boy

Another night passed without incident.

The next morning, Xiao Yu woke up early.

He stood in the room and stretched, letting out a long yawn. As much as he felt a little guilty toward Bai Yan… well, truth be told—without her around, he’d fallen asleep surprisingly fast last night.

Xiao Yu patted his cheeks to wake himself up. Just as he relaxed—

A heated argument erupted from outside.

“Brother… how could you do this? Why won’t you let me?!”

“No more talking. I said no—and it’s final!”

With those words, a tall figure strode past the door without looking back.

Bang!

The door slammed shut with such force that the frame trembled violently.

Was that Tie Zhu and Tie Yanran arguing?

Starting the day with drama already?

Xiao Yu frowned in confusion. He crept to the door, cracked it open just a sliver, and peeked out to see what was going on.

Bad timing.

His head had barely poked out when it met a pair of pure, gentle eyes.

“Um… good morning, Yu Gege!”

The owner of those eyes blinked in surprise, then quickly recovered, offering an apologetic smile with her fair face:

“Sorry—I didn’t mean to wake you. Was I too loud? My apologies.”

“No… it’s fine. I just woke up myself.” Xiao Yu’s heart skipped a beat. That sudden “romantic corner encounter” vibe nearly made him jerk back and slam the door shut.

Only quick reflexes saved him from accidentally decapitating himself against the closing door.

After pulling the treacherous door fully open, Xiao Yu straightened his clothes and saw Tie Zhu standing outside.

Different from last night, today she was dressed in elegant feminine attire—a delicate jade-green ruqun. The wide, flowing skirt almost brushed the floor, cinched tightly at the waist to accentuate her slender figure. Her loose sleeves hung gracefully, ending in white silk cuffs draped behind her arms.

Once again, tragically flat beneath that exquisite collarbone.

Her long black hair was loosely tied into a soft chignon, secured with a fresh green hairpin.

Just standing there, she exuded the gentle grace of a Jiangnan beauty—soft as jade, tender as water.

Xiao Yu froze for a moment.

“Well… Yu Gege, would you like breakfast? I made it myself. It’s still warm. Mother and Brother both said my cooking’s pretty good!” She smiled sweetly at his stunned expression.

Is this really a man?

Xiao Yu silently questioned—but kept his voice calm:

“No thanks, I’m not hungry yet. That person who just walked by… was that Tie Yanran? Did you two have a fight?”

“Not exactly. Just a small disagreement. Mainly because Brother doesn’t want me going to Divine Mechanism Peak to practice martial arts. Says it’s ‘against proper customs.’ So stubborn… ugh, it’s really frustrating.”

She sighed, her delicate brows slightly furrowed.

“Practice martial arts? You’re a martial artist, Xiao Zhu?”

“Mhm.” Tie Zhu blushed faintly, nodding. Then, shyly: “And… please don’t call me Xiao Zhu anymore. It sounds… weird. Call me by my style name—Qingyan.”

“Alright!”

Like Tie Zhu wasn’t weirder!

Looking at the girl-who-was-really-a-boy—now Tie Qingyan—more radiant than any flower, Xiao Yu couldn’t help but mutter internally.

And a *martial artist*?

Could the contrast be any sharper? A guy who looked like a delicate anime heroine—petite, fragile—was actually a warrior?

If she punched someone lightly, wouldn’t their ribs shatter?

“But wait,” Xiao Yu continued, “Qingyan, if you’re a martial artist, why didn’t you follow your brother’s path and become a spirit cultivator? Wouldn’t that let you cultivate the Zhengqi Jue?”

As far as Xiao Yu knew, Tie Mansion possessed a unique cultivation technique called *Zhengqi Jue (Righteousness Spirit Art)*. This method allowed one to condense a special form of energy—capable of transforming into sword qi, blade energy, etc.—and greatly enhanced cultivation progress.

But it came with strict requirements: must be male, and must possess a strong sense of justice. The stronger one’s moral conviction, the more powerful the energy became. Conversely, hypocrisy or corruption caused regression.

Xiao Yu had heard whispers of this art outside—it was rumored to belong to a super-clan. Clearly, Tie Mansion had deep ties to them.

So why would Tie Qingyan pass up such a powerful technique to pursue the unrelated martial path?

But Qingyan shook her head gently, offering a simple answer:

“I can’t cultivate it. No matter how hard I try, it just doesn’t work. Maybe I lack the qualification.”

Her expression dimmed briefly, but she quickly brightened again with a kind smile:

“But Brother has mastered it well—he’s already reached the seventh layer! Everyone has their own strengths.

I think my talent lies in martial arts. Don’t let my looks fool you—I’m actually at the *Seventh Martial Realm*.”

She rolled up her sleeve, revealing a porcelain-white arm like lotus root, waving it proudly before Xiao Yu.

Seventh Martial Realm?!

Wait—wasn’t that the Golden Body?!

That strong?!

Xiao Yu nearly dropped his jaw. He himself was only at Keeping Innocence—even that was considered genius-level outside.

On Demon Gathering Island, though, Liu Shicheng was already Golden Core—mind-blowing talent.

Tie Yanran seemed close to that level too.

And now another young martial artist—Golden Body?

Monsters!

Is anyone else even allowed to exist?

Xiao Yu clutched his head, utterly devastated.
Young martial artists and Golden Core cultivators under thirty…

But suddenly, he recalled what Qingyan had said:

“Wait… you train at Divine Mechanism Peak?”

“Yeah! Fan Ge taught me. He says I’ve got great talent—just need more power behind my punches.”

Qingyan nodded, looking troubled.

Training with Fan Hai?

Xiao Yu pictured Fan Hai’s shirt-bursting, explosive training methods—and then glanced at delicate Qingyan.

The mental image was too terrifying to process.

Qingyan seemed in a hurry. She clapped her hands:

“Well, Yu Gege, I’ll leave you now. I’ve got things to do. If you’re not in a rush, you should go talk to Brother. His room is right next door.

You’ve been gone so long—we all missed you. Earlier, I even saw him standing outside your door, hesitating whether to knock. Don’t let his cold act fool you… he’s actually very shy.”

Xiao Yu nodded, smiling slightly. Imagining the masked, fearsome Jade-Faced Demon nervously lingering outside his door was oddly endearing.

Shy boy, huh?

After Qingyan hurried off, Xiao Yu tidied up his guest room. After all, staying at someone else’s home meant keeping things clean.

Once done, he knocked on Tie Yanran’s door.

“Brother Tie, are you in?”

A flurry of movement came from inside—rustling, thumping—then silence for a few seconds before the door finally opened.

“What… is it?”

He still wore the grotesque mask, but his outfit was now casual—softer, looser. The usual “stay away” aura had faded slightly, making him seem more approachable.

“There’s something I wanted to talk about. Thanks again for letting me stay last night.”

Saying this, Xiao Yu craned his neck to peer inside.
“You’re not inviting me in?”

Now that he knew Tie Yanran was one of the kids he’d raised, Xiao Yu felt no fear—only mild unfamiliarity, far better than their first meeting.

Hearing this, Tie Yanran snapped out of a daze and quickly stepped aside.

“Please… come in.”

Xiao Yu took a seat on a chair, glancing around. To his surprise, Tie Yanran’s room had an unexpectedly… *feminine* touch.

From the decor to the bed curtains—even in one corner of the bed, he spotted a cloth doll.

It looked strangely familiar, but Xiao Yu didn’t dwell on it and turned his gaze away.

Tie Yanran picked up a teacup, poured a full cup for Xiao Yu with a tea pot, then sat across from him.