At cockcrow, a thin sliver of grayish-blue had just broken across the horizon. The night mist lingering in the mountains had not yet dispersed, but the moment the morning sun touched it, it vanished without a trace.
When Bai Qingxue pushed open the courtyard door, the wooden hinge let out a dry creak, startling a dozing sparrow on the corner of the eaves.
Stepping over the threshold, she looked up and saw Ning Qinghan.
Ning Qinghan was already standing at the bottom of the stone steps.
She had changed out of her old dark blue Daoist robe. Though it was the same color, this one was freshly washed and starched, looking much crisper. Her cuffs were tied tight with cloth strips, making her wrists look exceptionally slender.
Her long hair was not loosely tied up as usual but bound high in a ponytail. Its ends fell between her shoulder blades, swaying gently as the morning wind toyed with them.
Ning Qinghan stood somewhat crookedly at the bottom of the steps, her weight resting on her left foot, her right shoulder sagging slightly, her body angled in a way that suggested she was ready to start walking at any moment.
The hem of her Daoist robe fell just above her ankles, revealing a pair of bare feet stepping on the stone slabs wet with morning dew. A few grains of fine sand clung to her soles, but she didn't seem to care in the slightest.
Truth be told, though Ning Qinghan's feet were bare all day, they remained remarkably fair. Stepping on the stone slabs now, they actually looked a few shades whiter than the stone itself.
The morning light shone from behind Ning Qinghan, casting a very faint golden trim over her bare ankles.
Her shadow, stretched long by the rising sun, slanted across the stone-paved path, extending all the way to Bai Qingxue's feet.
“Shall we?” Ning Qinghan lifted her chin, her voice still carrying a trace of sleep-induced raspiness.
However, rather than a question, it felt more like she was hurrying her along.
Bai Qingxue walked past her without answering.
As she brushed past, the hem of her robe swept against Ning Qinghan's cuff, carrying a very faint scent of soapberry.
The scent was very clean, like clothes freshly washed the night before and hung out under the moonlight, still carrying the dampness of the night dew.
Her gaze lingered on Ning Qinghan's bare ankles for a brief moment before shifting away, her steps already heading toward the mountain gate.
Ning Qinghan stood in place for a breath, watching Bai Qingxue's back gradually fade into an outline in the morning mist before stepping forward to follow.
When the two of them passed through the mountain gate, the morning mist was thick and heavy.
The mist rose in wisps, carrying the scent of soil and decaying leaves, wrapping around the entire mountain peak.
At this moment, the withered grass on both sides of the stone steps was covered with dew, hanging quietly, only to be brushed by the hems of their robes, sending the droplets cascading down with a soft rustling sound.
Bai Qingxue walked in front.
Ning Qinghan followed behind her.
At first, Ning Qinghan lagged half a step behind.
After walking for about the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, Ning Qinghan quickened her pace by a few steps, walking side by side with Bai Qingxue.
As they walked side by side, Ning Qinghan tilted her head and glanced at Bai Qingxue's profile.
The morning light spilled through a gap in the mountain ridge, slanting across Bai Qingxue's face.
Those pale amber eyes looked straight ahead, her eyelashes casting a faint shadow on her cheekbones, completely motionless.
Her lips were pursed into a straight line, making it truly impossible to discern her emotions.
Ning Qinghan stared at that shadow and that line for a few breaths, unable to tell if she was daydreaming or lost in thought, so she simply continued to follow her step by step.
“Do you usually travel like this?” Ning Qinghan suddenly asked.
“Like what?”
“Without saying a single word.”
Bai Qingxue did not reply.
Ning Qinghan waited for a few breaths, and when she didn't get a reply, she didn't get annoyed either. She just clasped her hands behind her back, looked up at the sky, and drawled:
“Say something, Bai Qingxue...”
“This is so boring.”
As Ning Qinghan spoke, her tone dragged out, her final words dropping in a way that sounded like she was whining, yet also complaining.
As she spoke, she kicked a small pebble on the road with her bare toes. The pebble rolled far away, hit another stone, bounced once, and disappeared into the grass by the roadside.
She didn't have any stubborn insistence on getting a response; she just spoke her mind, letting her words scatter in the morning wind, not caring whether anyone replied or not.
With that, Ning Qinghan turned her head and looked into the distance.
The outline of Xueji Peak was gradually being swallowed by the mountain terrain, and its perpetual snow-white peak had already shrunk to a thin line on the horizon, long out of sight.
In this way, they walked for most of the day.
The morning mist dispersed, the sun rose high into the sky, and then gradually began its descent toward the west.
The scenery on both sides of the mountain path changed from dense forest to low shrubs, and then from shrubs to exposed rocks. The vegetation became sparse, and the terrain gradually opened up.
The mountain wind was no longer blocked by the tree canopy, blowing straight over, carrying a dry scent.
The dirt road had been baked by the sun for most of the day, its surface retaining a layer of warmth.
Stepping on it, Ning Qinghan's bare feet felt the temperature seep into her skin bit by bit, shifting from warm to slightly hot, and then to a just-right warmth.
Her soles were already covered with a thin layer of dust, making the exposed skin on her insteps look even whiter. That whiteness carried a very faint pink tint from walking for most of the day, like newly melted snow in early spring.
The two of them crossed a range of hills and turned a mountain bend, and their vision suddenly opened up.
Before them lay a valley. It wasn't very large, but because of the steep mountains surrounding it, it felt cozy and secluded.
A stream cut across the center of the valley, its waters falling from a high place, crashing against the rocks and breaking into white foam before gathering downstream, where they became gentle and clear.
The sound of the water was clear and continuous, like someone constantly plucking stringed instruments in the distance.
The stones by the stream were covered with a thin layer of green moss, washed smooth and shiny by the current.
The sunlight fell obliquely from a gap in the mountain ridge, illuminating the water like shattered gold. Light spots danced on the moss and rocks, flickering, making one's eyes narrow slightly.
Seeing this, Bai Qingxue stopped.
She walked to the upper reaches of the stream, squatted down, and scooped up a handful of water with both hands.
The water was crystal clear. In her palm, she could see the lines of her fingers magnified and slightly distorted by the liquid.
She splashed the water on her face. The stream water slid down her cheeks, gathering at her jaw and dripping onto her lapel, soaking into a few small, dark spots.
Water droplets dripped from her silver-white hair, spreading a small dark patch on the stone surface.
Nearby, Ning Qinghan did not squat down.
She stood a few steps downstream, looking down at the stream water for a moment.
The current was shallow and clear, allowing her to see the bottom at a glance. The sunlight shone through the water, casting swaying water patterns on the sand.
Looking at this clear water.
Ning Qinghan's toes dipped in first. The moment they touched the water, her toes curled slightly, as if showing a bit of polite acknowledgment to the sudden chill.
But she did not stop, instead slowly lowering her entire foot, letting the water submerge her instep, ankle, and finally her calf bit by bit.
The hem of Ning Qinghan's Daoist robe soaked in the water, the dark blue fabric turning ink-black and clinging heavily to her calf, outlining its shape.
The coolness gradually rose along her skin, like something cold and soft gently licking her.
The pebbles at the bottom of the stream were slippery, covered with a layer of moss polished extremely fine by the current. Stepping on them, they sank slightly and then bounced back.
That sensation made Ning Qinghan's toes open and close slightly at the bottom of the water, as if testing the texture of the stream bed, or as if relishing the feeling of being wrapped by the current and pebbles at the same time.
The slight weariness from walking the mountain road all day was washed away by the stream water, dispersing in wisps like ink dropping into clear water.
Then she stepped both feet directly into the stream.
Ning Qinghan's bare soles had stepped on soil, crushed stones, and gravel heated by the sun. Stepping into the cool stream now, the chill was exceptionally vivid, like drinking a whole bowl of mountain spring water in one gulp after a scorching day, making her narrow her eyes in comfort.
The sunlight penetrated the water, casting the outline of Ning Qinghan's instep clearly and distinctly.
It had to be said that Ning Qinghan's feet were exceptionally beautiful.
Her feet were slender yet rounded, her arches well-proportioned, her lines smooth and natural, and her toes were also rounded and neat.
In the flowing light of the water, those feet looked like carefully polished warm jade, gentle and transparent, every inch of skin becoming even more delicate as it was soaked in the stream.
The thin dust clinging to her soles along the way was washed clean by the current, revealing her original whiteness.
Ning Qinghan stood there like that, letting the stream water flow over her feet, bending down to scoop up a handful of water to pour on her instep.
Water leaked through her fingers, landing on her skin and breaking into tiny droplets. They rolled a few times, merged into a stream, and slid down along the curve of her arch, falling back into the water.
Ning Qinghan scooped another handful.
Only, this time she poured it slower. The water poured down from her palm, spreading a thin film of water on her instep, making the color of her skin look even whiter, with a pale pink from the cold peeking through, like the color of flower buds that had just popped up on the branches in early spring.
Water droplets rolled off her skin, splashing back into the stream, breaking into tiny light spots under the sun. They splashed up and fell down, rippling outward in extremely fine circles.
Those ripples quickly dissipated, but new water droplets fell, and new ripples rippled out again, cycling like this, as if it would never stop.
Bai Qingxue stood up straight.
She stood on the bank of the stream, looking down from above.
Her gaze slowly shifted from the water, sweeping past the light, past the moss, and finally landing on Ning Qinghan's feet.
It lingered there for a moment.
Ning Qinghan naturally felt that gaze.
However, Ning Qinghan did not look up. Her hands still hung over the water, her fingertips submerged in the stream, moving slightly, as if playing with the fine sand at the bottom.
The water flowed through her fingers, cool and slippery, carrying a reassuring touch.
Ning Qinghan waited for that gaze to linger a bit longer before unhurriedly turning her head.
“Have you seen enough?”
Ning Qinghan's tone carried a hint of teasing, her final words dragged out a bit long, like the low purr from a cat's throat when stretching.
She tilted her head, her ponytail sliding off her shoulder to hang by her side, the ends of her hair carrying a few water droplets that shimmered brightly under the sun.
“You refused when I offered dual cultivation, yet you look so closely when I'm barefoot.”
Ning Qinghan said, her tone light and airy.
“Bai Qingxue, so you have this kind of preference?”
As her words fell, the stream continued to flow, the gurgling water filling the silence that followed.
Ning Qinghan waited, expecting a dodging gaze, a stiff denial, or for Bai Qingxue to shift her gaze in silence—or at least show a trace of embarrassment at being caught.
The thought of Bai Qingxue showing that kind of embarrassment brought a trace of wicked, petty pleasure to Ning Qinghan's heart.
However, Bai Qingxue did no such thing.
Her gaze did not dodge because of those words, nor did it become any sharper.
It just fell quietly and directly on Ning Qinghan's beautiful feet, just as it had a moment ago.
There was no embarrassment in those pale amber eyes, no panic, as if Bai Qingxue had not heard Ning Qinghan's words at all.
However, Bai Qingxue quickly spoke.
“Why do you always like to go barefoot?”
Hearing this, Ning Qinghan's smile faltered.
That pause was extremely brief, so short that it might have only lasted a blink of an eye.
But in that split second, the teasing smile at the corner of her lips stiffened, and the sparkle in her eyes dimmed for an instant.
Sure enough, Bai Qingxue was a baffling person.
At that thought, Ning Qinghan's toes curled in the water, arching her foot slightly before quickly relaxing again.
The current wrapped around her instep, forming a small whirlpool as it met the slightly raised veins before continuing downstream.
“Why?”
Ning Qinghan tilted her head, her gaze shifting from Bai Qingxue's face to the outline of the distant mountain ridge.
But soon, she pulled her gaze back, letting it rest once more on Bai Qingxue.
Bai Qingxue was still standing there, backlit, her silver-white hair dyed a warm orange by the setting sun.
Her expression remained the same—detached, quiet, waiting.
Ning Qinghan looked at that face and suddenly smiled.
“Take a guess.”
Ning Qinghan's voice dragged out lazily, the end curling up like a cat flicking the tip of its tail.
Speaking of which, Ning Qinghan always seemed to speak with that lazy, teasing tone, deliberately leaving her thoughts unfinished.
It carried a deliberate playfulness of stopping halfway, prompting a touch of annoyance that was impossible to act on because her tone was simply too lighthearted. It was like the dancing light on the stream—impossible to catch, yet too beautiful to want to.
Having said that, Ning Qinghan turned and walked downstream.
She stepped out of the stream onto the bank, her bare feet pressing against the dirt road warmed by the sun. Some fine sand and bits of grass clung to her soles, but she didn't care, simply walking forward step by step.
Ning Qinghan's steps were light, like a cat finally let out of its cage.
At this moment, she seemed completely relaxed, every step falling into her own rhythm.
The wet hem of her Daoist robe was still dripping water, the fabric swaying beside her bare ankles and occasionally brushing against the ground, picking up a few grains of sand.
Bai Qingxue stood by the stream, watching her figure recede into the distance.
Her gaze drifted downward, falling on Ning Qinghan's bare ankles, and on those bare feet stepping through the lingering warmth of the sun.
After a moment's thought, Bai Qingxue still said nothing, simply stepping forward to follow.
The two of them walked downstream along the stream, one behind the other.
The stream gurgled on their right, the sound of water acting like an invisible thread that tied their footsteps together.
One wearing shoes, rustling softly.
One barefoot, quiet and stealthy.
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