The two carefully snuck out of the Grand Jade Temple, making sure not to alert any of the Head Monks, or any disciples who were in the Martial Training Grounds.

Walking alongside the edge of the sect, they eventually reached the mountain Xuan had pointed at, and after carefully navigating across a snowy path, he found a small opening in the ground.

"This is it," Xuan said plainly. "It might be a little snug, so suck in your tummy."

Of course, Hanbi took it as him calling her fat, but before she could complain, he dropped inside the small opening and began to crawl.

After just a few seconds of crawling, he arrived on the other side, and even after seeing it several times, he was still left amazed.

It wasn’t a very large cave, but it was lit by crystals of every color, giving the entire cave a serene and relaxing glow.

Only a couple of seconds later, Hanbi crawled inside, thankfully not getting stuck on anything.

And when she saw the cave, her reaction was the same as his, one of amazement.

"Cool, right? Training here is pretty fun." Xuan glanced around. "At night, these crystals dim slightly, and when it’s midday, they get even brighter."

"I see..." Hanbi replied dryly. "So what kind of training do you do here?"

"Push-ups, sit-ups... It’s not as fun as you’d imagine." Xuan chuckled. "I try to do 10,000 of each exercise though, otherwise I can’t get a workout in."

"How crude," Hanbi pointed out. "The monks should provide you with... Right, you mentioned you’re not a disciple. So why are you here exactly?"

"I have a challenge going with one of the Head Monks. Can’t really leave before I complete it," Xuan said and sat down on the cushy snow.

He tapped beside him, and without hesitation, Hanbi sat beside him again.

"What about you? Why are you here?" Xuan asked.

Hanbi shrugged. "My father told me to come here. Since he provides me with all my cultivation materials, I didn’t want to refuse his request."

Then, she met his eyes. "Do you think that’s stupid?"

Xuan tilted his head. "Your father giving you free stuff? Not really. If I were a father, I’d spoil my child as well."

"Spoil..." Hanbi mumbled, clenching her fists. "Do you think I’m spoiled?"

"Of course." Xuan nodded right away. "You’re one of the most spoiled people I’ve seen ever since this whole apocalypse went down. And I’ve met my fair share of entitled people, so that’s saying something."

She trembled in anger, but he continued.

"However... Unlike those entitled people, you know you’re entitled. That also means you can do something about it."

Having said that, he stood up and did a few stretches.

"Though I’m not your father or your mentor. If you want to act like a brat around me, be my guest. I don’t care that much."

And finally, Xuan got down and began performing push-ups at an extremely fast rate.

In the meantime, Hanbi curled up into a ball, hiding behind her knees as she watched him silently. It was almost as if her pride wouldn’t allow her to join him.

He saw that from the corner of his eyes, and he was honestly confused why she was here in the first place.

She didn’t seem to have many friends, and asking whether she was spoiled or not was like asking water if it was wet.

In the end, both were stupid questions, but Xuan didn’t call her out on it as he indulged in the moment of peace.

His workout went pretty smoothly, especially because of her fragrant rose perfume. It was a nice smell, definitely better than the sweat he was used to.

So within an hour, he finished his 10,000 push-ups, and as he was about to move onto sit-ups, Hanbi suddenly got down onto the ground as well.

Without wasting a beat, she began doing push-ups at an extremely fast rate, which led him to believe she was trying to compete against him.

So instead of doing the sit-ups, Xuan proceeded to go down on the ground and do push-ups alongside her.

She’s probably going to give up in an hour or two... Well, extra workout is a good workout... Xuan thought and focused.

.

.

.

(15 hours later, the same cave.)

By now, both their bodies were covered in sweat, and Xuan was nearing 300,000 push-ups. He had sped up his pace a little since she was going just as fast.

However, for the first time in those 15 hours, he noticed Hanbi had begun to slow down, and after another thousand push-ups, her arms finally gave out. She slumped forward into the snow, her cloak clinging to her clothes.

Xuan smiled and did five thousand more push-ups before finally stopping. He rolled onto the ground and tapped Hanbi’s back, making her shiver upon his touch.

She turned toward him with red cheeks, and with a flustered look, she ripped her cloak off, tossing it to the other end of the cave and plopping down onto the ground beside him.

Xuan let out a quiet chuckle and scooted closer until he was lying flat on his back as well.

Together, they stared at the glowing crystals that had long since dimmed, and before long, Xuan heard quiet snores coming from beside him.

Turning his head, Xuan found Hanbi curled onto her side, her head resting against his forearm.

He felt warmth well up in his chest from the seemingly random bond he had formed. It wasn’t affection or love, but something closer to friendship.

A faint smile tugged at his lips, and with care, he brushed a loose strand of her white hair back behind her ear.

He considered moving her away, but instead, he shifted just enough for her head to slip from his arm and settle against his chest.

And without another thought, he fell asleep with his right hand gently curled around her waist.

Just like that, two soft snores resounded from within the cave as their figures were lit by the colorful crystals.

But what they didn’t know was that their sudden disappearance would come back to bite them tomorrow.