On the first day of Ren Suo and Gu Yueyan's deep sleep, it was Christmas.

At noon, Lin Xianyu and Ren Xingmei came to visit Ren Suo's House.

They lifted Ren Suo and Gu Yueyan from their beds, placed them in chairs, and pushed them out to the balcony to sunbathe. Although they didn't know if it would work, since the two had suddenly fallen asleep at night, perhaps some sunlight could wake them.

This was a reasonable deduction, though it did seem a bit like sun-drying salted fish.

However, leaving them to air out on the balcony could lead to unpredictable situations. It would be troublesome if it rained and no one was there to bring them in, so someone had to be watching them to try this method.

Lin Xianyu and Ren Xingmei volunteered for this duty, coming over at noon to help sun the two sleeping salted fish, Ren Suo and Gu Yueyan.

Compared to the slightly worried Ren Xingmei, Lin Xianyu appeared quite relaxed. Lying barefoot on the couch, playing with her phone, her legs were tightly clamped around a plush toy on the sofa. She said, "Remember to bring them back in after fifteen minutes of sunbathing and let them rest for five minutes. Don't let them wake up only to find they've gotten a tan..."

Ren Xingmei turned to look at the languid Lin Xianyu and opened her mouth as if wanting to say something, but then chose not to.

Seeing this, Lin Xianyu chuckled. "Are you wondering why I'm not worried about them?"

"That's not what I meant..."

"If worrying was useful, I could start crying right now to show you." Lin Xianyu stretched languidly, sat up cross-legged, and said, "I don't know Healing Magic, nor have I studied medicine, so my worrying is pointless."

"But Little Star, if you really want to help them, I do have a suggestion." Lin Xianyu swiped a few times on her phone and turned it to show Ren Xingmei. "You could pray to the Three Gods; maybe a Priest will descend to save Big Brother Ren and the class leader."

"Oh, right!" Ren Xingmei was taken aback. She herself was an example of someone who had been healed by Priest Zhao Zili. However, due to her exceptional nine-year compulsory education, her approach to any problem was to rely on scientific methods, not to pin her hopes on deities.

"Don't get your hopes too high, though." Lin Xianyu lay back down and said, "Priests don't often descend to the mortal realm. Even if one did come to heal Big Brother Ren and the class leader, there's no guarantee of success. I don't believe Big Brother Ren and the class leader are ill; it's more like they've been affected by something special."

"In the whole academy, only Big Brother Ren and the class leader suddenly fell into a deep sleep. If the class leader's Spells weren't light-based, I'd have thought..."

Lin Xianyu suddenly stopped talking. Ren Xingmei asked, "Thought what?"

"It's nothing."

After all, Ren Xingmei is Ren Suo's sister, Lin Xianyu thought, swallowing the words, I thought the class leader used a cheat to drag Big Brother Ren into a Little Black Room for some 'special training.'

Lin Xianyu changed the subject. "Speaking of which, I dreamed about Big Brother Ren and the class leader last night."

Ren Xingmei asked, "Really? What do you remember?"

"Well... I just remember seeing the class leader and Big Brother Ren, and also that I seemed to be naked..." Lin Xianyu tilted her head in thought, then asked, "What about you? Did you dream about Big Brother Ren?"

Ren Xingmei shook her head. "No, I didn't dream about my brother. It would be great if I could..."

"Why do you want to dream about him?" Lin Xianyu asked.

Ren Xingmei was taken aback. "I want to see him."

Lin Xianyu crossed her arms. "But Little Star, Big Brother Ren is right in front of you, basking in the sun. You can see him anytime."

Ren Xingmei blinked. "But... but he's not awake..."

"Just because he's asleep doesn't mean he's not Big Brother Ren anymore? Not only is he asleep, but no matter what happens, he won't wake up."

Suddenly, Lin Xianyu put down her phone, walked over to the balcony, and with effort, lifted Gu Yueyan onto the couch. Then she buried her head in Gu Yueyan's chest, muttering, "The class leader is so comfortable to hug~"

Ren Xingmei watched in surprise as Lin Xianyu embraced Gu Yueyan like a doll. Then she glanced at Ren Suo sunbathing and quickly shook her head. "No, we can't... They might be in danger right now; we shouldn't..."

"I believe Big Brother Ren and the class leader definitely wouldn't want us to worry about them too much," Lin Xianyu stated with conviction. As she spoke, she even lay down on Gu Yueyan's thighs. "If they knew we relieved our worries by hugging them, they would certainly be willing... Wow, looking at the class leader's chest from this angle is really lewd!"

You clearly just want to take advantage of the fact that they can't wake up!

You're having way too much fun with this!

Watching Lin Xianyu lift her phone to take a picture, Ren Xingmei glanced at Ren Suo again, her eyes flickering with a hint of struggle.

No!

I came here to take care of this idiot!

I can't be as heartless as Xianyu!

I just hope this idiot wakes up soon...

"Teacher Dong's nap will be over in just fifteen minutes. She'll move Big Brother Ren and the class leader to her place in the afternoon, and then she'll take care of them while continuing her Cultivation."

No sooner had Lin Xianyu finished speaking than—BANG! Ren Xingmei picked up Ren Suo, dashed into the master bedroom as if in a hundred-meter sprint, and promptly closed the door behind her.

Lin Xianyu blinked, finally realizing why Teacher Dong had been so unwilling to let Sister Qiao take care of Big Brother Ren last night.

Facing such an accommodating Big Brother Ren, even Little Star couldn't resist, let alone Sister Qiao. Even if he's asleep, there are still plenty of ways to have fun.

Only someone as staunchly devoted to pure love as Teacher Dong could remain Immovable as a Mountain. Even if Teacher Dong couldn't help herself, she would probably just do something very innocent like holding hands, kissing, and sleeping.

If Big Brother Ren fell into Sister Qiao's hands...

Lin Xianyu wasn't suggesting that Sister Qiao would perform any peculiar acts on the sleeping Ren Suo; after all, with Ren Suo unresponsive, it limited Sister Qiao's options. Even if Sister Qiao played a little more intensely than Teacher Dong, it would probably only be a matter of whether Ren Suo was dressed or not.

She just felt that if Sister Qiao got her hands on Ren Suo, regardless of whether he ever woke up, the rest of them would probably never see those two again in this lifetime...

SIGH.

Lin Xianyu decided to stop overthinking and turned her head to play on her phone, resting on Gu Yueyan's thighs.

Ten minutes later, Ren Xingmei Moved Ren Suo out. Thankfully, they were both First Transformation Cultivators, which allowed them to easily move two adults.

Lin Xianyu looked at Ren Xingmei. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes were smiling, and her face clearly read 'satisfied.' She chuckled. "Not so worried anymore, right?"

"Mhm." Ren Xingmei had now completely let down her guard. After all, Ren Suo is my brother; it wasn't as if I couldn't do... 'this and that' with him even if Ren Suo were awake! It's just that I'm usually too shy to make such requests and only dare to play games with Ren Suo...

"Does this make you more confident about their awakening?" Lin Xianyu said. "Not satisfied with doing 'this and that' while they're asleep, you hope to continue doing 'this and that' when they wake up... Worrying is unnecessary. All we need to do is wait and hold onto Hope!"

Although Lin Xianyu's reasoning felt rather twisted, Ren Xingmei was the beneficiary this time and thus nodded vigorously.

When Dong Chengling Teleported over, she saw Gu Yueyan and Ren Suo sitting neatly on chairs, while Ren Xingmei and Lin Xianyu were waiting in the living room.

"Thank you for your hard work." Dong Chengling nodded and took charge of Ren Suo and Gu Yueyan. Just then, Lin Xianyu suddenly asked, "Teacher Bai doesn't know about this, does he?"

"...He doesn't know. I requested leave for Muyi, and if Suo still hasn't awakened in a few days, I'll request leave for him too."

Yep, Teacher Dong definitely didn't tell Teacher Bai, Lin Xianyu thought. If Teacher Bai knew, Teacher Dong wouldn't dare leave Big Brother Ren on campus.

Lin Xianyu and Ren Xingmei left, and Dong Chengling Moved Ren Suo and Gu Yueyan to her house.

Dong Chengling checked the time; she still had one and a half hours before her afternoon classes.

Time was limited, but Dong Chengling was best at making flexible use of time.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with small steps; great rivers and seas are formed by tiny streams. All success comes from the accumulation of persistent effort, drop by drop.

Dong Chengling secured Ren Suo in place, took a gentle breath, cleared her mind, and began to activate her Qi Cyclone.

Spatial Magic: Eternal Spiritual Energy Coordinates · Human Enchantment. The first experiment begins!

. . .

Gu Yueyan knew she was dreaming.

It was a blank world, empty above, below, and all around. But when she felt its vast emptiness, Dong Chengling's dining table appeared in front of her.

Gu Yueyan took a seat, and a sumptuous meal appeared on the table, along with familiar people: Dong Chengling, Qiao Muyi, Lin Xianyu, Ren Xingmei, Qin Lian, Zhao Huo, Bai Ji...

However, they all had a hazy presence, as if the wind could blow them away at any moment, and they were all sitting motionless in their chairs. Only Ren Suo, who was sitting opposite her, asleep and slumped over the dining table, gave Gu Yueyan an inexplicable sense of stability when she saw him.

Just as Ren Suo had described, Gu Yueyan quickly grasped her abilities in this dream: to twist the world, identities, and relationships. As long as she had enough "share," she could do anything.

Gu Yueyan had already decided what identities to arrange for herself and Ren Suo.

What concerned her now was something else.

After pulling up everyone's information at the dining table, Gu Yueyan added a setting to all of them:

They would be unable to meet Ren Suo and Gu Yueyan.

Even though she knew she was just using her own power and doing nothing wrong, even though she knew she was only affecting projections unrelated to reality, and even though she knew this act did not go against her always upheld sense of justice... Gu Yueyan still felt as if she had done something bad.

It's like putting a private lock on a public bike.

But Gu Yueyan didn't give up because of this small psychological barrier. When she realized that all her changes were because of Ren Suo, that her "sickness" was caused by him, she began to feel justified deep inside.

Good kids always need a reason to go bad.

She also wanted to add this setting to Luna, but alas, not even with the power of a deity could she affect Luna. Perhaps the Apostles of the Moon God were immune to each other.

Once finished, Gu Yueyan slowly exited the white dreamscape.

Then she heard a voice calling "Yueyan! Yueyan!" near her ear. When she opened her eyes, she found herself lying on a large bed in a pink, dreamy room filled with stuffed toys.

Ren Suo, in checkered pajamas, was already sitting by the bed waiting for her.

Gu Yueyan looked down at herself. She was wearing a very cute little white rabbit pajama set, much better than the Nurse Outfit from yesterday. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she mumbled, "You're awake?"

"Yes," Ren Suo replied. "So, are we Childhood Sweethearts today?"

"That's right," Gu Yueyan explained. "As Childhood Sweethearts, we can grind experience together, and we can do it anywhere..."

Gu Yueyan was worried that Ren Suo wouldn't be satisfied, but he accepted it quite readily. "Hmm, this character label isn't bad. Let's get started. By the way, shouldn't Childhood Sweetheart nicknames be more intimate?"

When it came to such beneficial things as grinding experience and Cultivation, Ren Suo's standards were surprisingly low, Gu Yueyan realized. He might have hesitated with others, but for bonding partners like her, Ren Suo didn't care at all.

"Then I'll call you... Yueyan? You can just call me by my name?"

Gu Yueyan blinked and shook her head. "No. Everyone else calls you Ren Suo. If I call you Ren Suo too, it feels like I'm no different from them."

Ren Suo asked, "Then what do you want to call me?"

Gu Yueyan opened her mouth but couldn't think of a good nickname. Qiao Muyi called Ren Suo 'Xiao Suo,' and Dong Chengling directly called him 'Suo.' Gu Yueyan didn't have many choices. After all, 'Ren' was the surname; 'Suo' was the name that represented him as a person. She could only work with 'Suo.'

Ren Suo suggested, "Brother Suo?"

Gu Yueyan shook her head. If I call him Brother Suo, it's like admitting I'm not as smart as him.

"Suo Zi?"

Sounds like a mahjong term. No good.

"Suo Ren?"

A bit interesting, but too weird.

"Then you decide, as long as you don't call me Little Suo," Ren Suo smacked his lips. "That's what my parents call me."

Parents... Spouses...

Gu Yueyan blinked, then pursed her lips. "Then I'll call you Mr. Suo, or just 'Brother' directly."

'Mr.' originally carried the meaning of 'husband' but was also an address for men and a respectful term for someone slightly older, which perfectly fits my requirements. 'Brother' is also fine, but not 'Brother Suo.' The former is an affectionate address, whereas the latter sounds like a gang leader's title.

Ren Suo shrugged. "Fine, whatever you like."

Then the two just stared at each other. Ren Suo shook his head and asked, "So, should we do some Childhood Sweetheart activities to grind experience now?"

"Yes, tell me what you want to do." Gu Yueyan's eyes curved into crescents as she sat cross-legged on the bed, hugging a plush toy. "You're my only Childhood Sweetheart."

"So, should I reenact with you what I used to do with my childhood sweetheart?"

"Okay. What did you do with your childhood sweetheart?" Gu Yueyan asked, full of anticipation.

"Heh heh, I'm prepared." Ren Suo chuckled, pulling something from his pocket. "Speaking of Childhood Sweethearts, the first thing to do is, of course—"

"Play a thrilling game of Flying Chess!"

Seeing Ren Suo take out a Flying Chess game, Gu Yueyan wasn't too disappointed.

Ah, that's so like him.

His childhood sweetheart was probably a troublemaker just like him...

But Gu Yueyan wasn't planning to just comply. The reason she arranged this role for herself and Ren Suo was to effortlessly control him.

"I can play Flying Chess with you, but you also have to do one thing with me that Childhood Sweethearts do," Gu Yueyan said slowly and deliberately.

"No problem," Ren Suo readily agreed.

"Then... I haven't brushed my teeth or washed my face yet." Gu Yueyan slightly lifted the plush toy to cover her face, peeking at Ren Suo. Her voice, tinged with anticipation, was soft. "Brother, can you help me brush my teeth and wash my face?"