River froze as Pearl ran away. It wasn't because her reaction was amusing, or unexpected. It also wasn't because he was a fan of marinating in that smell. No, it was because he started getting feedback for his oath, and it was far greater than what he'd been getting lately.
River's mind raced as he tried to explain why that was happening. It did not take him long to figure it out. He'd promised to improve her life, and while making her life more enjoyable and fun was one interpretation of that, helping her improve her cultivation was another, much more literal interpretation as well.
After all, as her cultivation rose, her life expectancy, her power, her capabilities, her prospects, and more, all changed, and for the better. It also contributed towards her happiness for obvious reasons.
The reason he was getting some feedback for her improvement in cultivation was because half the points she had used to improve her cultivation had come from him.
