530: A Proposal?
Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue knew nothing of the entanglement between the two elders on Mount Mingxia. After leaving, they went directly back to Purple Cloud Peak. So many events had transpired in one night that by the time they returned, it could hardly be called the middle of the night—dawn was approaching. Looking at the time, it wasn't long before they would need to depart again for the outer barrier.
Despite a sleepless night, neither was tired, especially Jiang Mo who was full of energy after her breakthrough.
Yun Qingyue, ever rational, calculated the time and said to Jiang Mo: "It's still early. To prevent any problems, you should complete today's challenges as soon as possible. This benefits your cultivation, so don't delay again."
Jiang Mo had been lost in various thoughts along the way and hadn't expected her Senior Sister's first concern to be this. She was momentarily stunned, then grabbed Yun Qingyue's hand: "Ah Yue, don't you... have anything else you want to say?"
Meeting her gaze, Yun Qingyue guessed what she wanted to discuss and raised her hand to caress Jiang Mo's face: "Say what?"
With the cool palm against her cheek and her senses filled with the other's presence, Jiang Mo's face began to heat up unconsciously. She felt somewhat shy and guilty, her golden eyes darting left and right, avoiding direct eye contact. After quite some time, she finally seemed to gather her courage and suddenly pressed her hand over Yun Qingyue's: "About becoming Dao partners—I was impulsive and didn't get a chance to discuss it with you..."
Yun Qingyue had already discerned why Jiang Mo felt guilty. Although she had indeed acted on her own, Yun Qingyue truly didn't mind. However, seeing the little tiger's pitiful, expectant expression, she couldn't help but feel a mischievous impulse.
Her clear, glaze-like phoenix eyes blinked, and Yun Qingyue said coolly: "Indeed, you should have consulted me, but you've already announced it to everyone. Now you come to me with this—do you think that by acting first and reporting afterward, I cannot refuse?"
Hearing these words, Jiang Mo was completely dumbfounded. Since her Senior Sister had always given her the impression of being reliable and upright, it never occurred to her that the other might be deliberately teasing her. Her mind was filled with the thought, "So Senior Sister might still refuse?" But thinking about it, it seemed reasonable—cultivators were more free-spirited than ordinary people. Even ordinary people could come together and part ways; cultivators weren't necessarily bound by a simple declaration of "like."
The more she thought about it, the more the little tiger felt a chill in her heart, looking at Yun Qingyue as if struck by lightning. She suddenly tightened her grip on her Senior Sister's hand and stammered: "S-so, Ah Yue, are you rejecting me?"
Yun Qingyue was serious most of the time, but precisely because she rarely joked, she had thoroughly frightened the tiger. Yun Qingyue herself hadn't expected such a strong reaction from Jiang Mo. She froze momentarily, her expression softening: "Not exactly, but you should have at least told me first, and you should have consulted with the elders."
Hearing this, the heavy stone in Jiang Mo's heart finally landed, and a layer of cold sweat belatedly broke out on her forehead. She exhaled a long breath, not blaming her Senior Sister for deliberately scaring her, because she had indeed been rash.
Her previous thought had been correct—she needed to make up for the proposal as soon as possible!
Jiang Mo's thoughts raced, but her actions weren't hesitant. She hurriedly apologized with the utmost sincerity.
Yun Qingyue hadn't been particularly angry to begin with; she'd just been caught off guard by the little tiger. Seeing her obediently admit her mistake, she naturally chose to forgive her. She thought the matter was settled, but just as she relaxed, Jiang Mo suddenly stepped back and lowered herself. Almost instinctively, Yun Qingyue exerted force with her hand and pulled her up: "What are you doing?"
Jiang Mo hadn't expected to be pulled up and was momentarily confused, then stuttered: "Just, pro-proposing."
As she spoke, she opened her palm to reveal a storage ring—this was the most beautiful ring she could find after searching her entire space. Though it didn't look like a proposal ring by any means, it would have to do. Simultaneously, she had transferred almost all her possessions into it, making it seem more sincere.
Yun Qingyue was completely puzzled, looking at the ring and then at Jiang Mo: "Proposing?"
Clearly, the customs of their two worlds differed. Yun Qingyue couldn't understand Jiang Mo's actions and hadn't accepted the ring she offered. But Jiang Mo wasn't surprised by this. While carefully taking Yun Qingyue's hand, she explained simply.
"This is a custom from the mortal world. I present you with a ring to propose, and if you agree, you accept it and let me place it on your finger." After explaining so concisely, she looked expectantly at Yun Qingyue, her gaze full of hope. But in fact, she had already cunningly positioned the ring at Yun Qingyue's fingertip, ready to slip it on at the slightest nod.
Despite her extensive travels, Yun Qingyue had never heard of such a custom. However, given the vastness of the cultivation world and the breadth of mortal territories, she couldn't be expected to know everything. She didn't doubt Jiang Mo's explanation and swept her gaze over the ring, using her divine sense to explore its contents.
Storage equipment was an extremely personal item, so out of ten storage items with owners, all ten would bear their masters' imprints. However, this storage ring was an exception—Jiang Mo had erased her imprint before presenting it, making its contents clear to see: spirit stones, magical treasures, ores, spiritual herbs, and so on. While not exceptionally abundant, it was definitely Jiang Mo's entire fortune.
Yun Qingyue understood this perfectly well, and also knew why the esteemed divine beast was so short of wealth—because all the good things had already been used on her. She was moved, pressed her lips together, and took out a storage ring of her own.
Jiang Mo had been waiting to put the ring on Yun Qingyue's finger, but hadn't expected her to produce a ring as well, leaving her momentarily stunned.
Yun Qingyue, however, had her reasoning: "This ring contains your entire fortune. By giving me this ring, you're entrusting everything to me. That being the case, I should naturally reciprocate—this ring contains all that I possess."
First Jiang Mo was stunned, then her face instantly flushed red—she had given the ring to her Senior Sister as a proposal, and the contents were merely a token of sincerity. Though not much now, she could supplement it in the future. But now, before her Senior Sister had even accepted her ring, she had reciprocated with a ring of her own, similarly entrusting her entire fortune. So was she... was she also proposing to Jiang Mo?
The little tiger's face and ears reddened, her heart pounded like a drum, her eyes sparkled brilliantly.
Then, taking advantage of the little tiger's distraction, Yun Qingyue grasped Jiang Mo's hand, her fingertips holding the ring as she gently pushed it onto the other's middle finger, capturing the tiger. Jiang Mo finally came to her senses and, suppressing her emotional turmoil, hurriedly placed her ring on Yun Qingyue's finger as well.
The two storage rings weren't a matching pair, but with their hands together, Jiang Mo thought they looked perfectly compatible.
Suddenly, Jiang Mo bent down to kiss Yun Qingyue's fingertip, giggling foolishly.
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From the moment she captured her Senior Sister with the ring, the smile never left Jiang Mo's face. Yun Qingyue herself valued ceremony, and the exchange of rings signified their engagement, filling her heart with joy.
Early in the morning, they had some leisure time, and even doing nothing, just looking at each other felt sweet.
Amid their happiness, Jiang Mo suddenly remembered the two gifts they had received and took the opportunity to look at them. She led Yun Qingyue to sit on the bed's edge, setting out the two gifts: "It's still unknown when we'll truly marry and become Dao partners, yet we've already received two gifts. The Sect Leader's gift is understandable, but I wonder why Fei Yuan suddenly thought to give us a gift?"
At the mention of Fei Yuan, Yun Qingyue couldn't help but think of her sect of origin, and her gaze toward that gift instantly became somewhat peculiar. She promptly pressed her hand down when she saw Jiang Mo about to open it: "Let's look at the Sect Leader Uncle's gift first, shall we?"
Jiang Mo paused at the pressure but didn't refuse, shifting her hand to pick up the Sect Leader's gift instead.
The gift was contained in an exquisite red brocade box. Had it not been for her impromptu announcement today, Jiang Mo would have suspected this was a gift the Sect Leader had prepared in advance. After opening the lid, this feeling intensified—within the bright red brocade box lay two pieces of shimmering paired heart jade, clearly a matching set. These items were perfect as wedding gifts, but they didn't seem like something Sect Leader Qingxiao would carry with him.
While Jiang Mo inwardly criticized yet was delighted, Yun Qingyue recognized their value even better. She took out the two pieces of heart jade, keeping one and passing the other to Jiang Mo: "These are heart jades. They can be worn or refined."
Seeing her Senior Sister's knowledgeable demeanor, Jiang Mo accepted one piece and asked: "What purpose do they serve?"
Yun Qingyue explained: "These are a pair of magical treasures passed down from ancient times. When worn by two people, if one faces danger, the other receives a warning." Such treasures were common and not particularly rare, but what made these special was: "If both people refine the jade pendants, when one is injured, the other can share the burden... and in times of peril, they live together and die together."
The final words were so weighty that Yun Qingyue's tone grew solemn, her gaze fixed steadily on Jiang Mo—the phrase "live together, die together" carried tremendous weight. Few would willingly bind their lives to another, especially considering how easily people's hearts change. Additionally, if the two people's cultivation levels were similar, that was acceptable, but if there was a disparity, the weaker one would inevitably become a weakness and a burden.
For these reasons, though this pair of jade pendants had been passed down since ancient times and had many owners, few had truly refined them. Currently, Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue were of unequal strength, and the tiger cub was still young in age but had boundless potential. Would she be willing to bind her future to another so early?
Yun Qingyue's eyes flickered slightly as she inwardly wondered why Sect Leader Qingxiao would give such a gift.
After hearing her explanation, Jiang Mo was delighted and said without hesitation: "How wonderful! Let's refine these heart jades right away."
Yun Qingyue wasn't as decisive as her and hurriedly stopped her: "Don't rush, wait a moment." After stopping her, she paused briefly before continuing: "Ah Mo, you know my cultivation is inferior to yours. With the great battle imminent, if we refine these jade pendants now, I might become a burden to you. Why don't we wait until after the battle..."
Hearing this, Jiang Mo frowned and interrupted: "But after the battle, what use would these jades have?"