Editor: Sahloknir
Peng Lai sect.
The incense burner let out a white smoke that gradually dispersed in the palace. Zhou Zhengping took away his hand from Jiang Yinghe and shifted his whisk. He sighed, “Your injuries are due to forcefully circulating energy through your meridians. Although you received spiritual energy from others, your foundation is still damaged.”
Yan Caiwei added on from beside him, “That agrees with what I found when I checked. Jiang-shidi is of a higher realm than me, so healing this injury will mostly be up to himself.”
Jiang Yinghe nodded and retracted his wrist back under his sleeve. “It appears worse than it actually is.”
Yun Buxiu who was there the entire time snorted. “No it looks exactly as bad as it is. What else do you call blocked meridian circulation and damage to your foundation? If an injury like yours persists, how will you endure your next tribulation?”
Jiang Yinghe slowly took a sip of tea. “It will be fine. Besides, who knows when my next tribulation will take place?”
“It’s because we don’t know that we have to be more careful.” said Yun Buxiu, “I heard Yan-shijie’s disciples talking about how you and those bastard…”
He was planning to say those ‘bastard disciples’, but a terrifying and inexplicable fear arose in his mind; he had been harmed by them before. It was hair-raising enough to make him take a pause. He could only look disappointedly at Jiang Yinghe, before continuing, “…those disciples. You—you four did that?”
Jiang Yinghe: “…It’s not what you’re thinking.”
“Even one is one too many.” Xiao Yun-shidi took a deep breath as he spoke from his heart. “Abbot Chan Qing has already said you will have a test of mentality related to romance. In the worst case you could lose your soul. Jiang-shixiong…”
Yan Caiwei stopped him with a tug on his sleeve. She cleared her throat. “The situation really was different from what Xiao Yun-shidi is thinking. The three of them were merely replenishing your Jiang-shixiong’s energy reserves so he could suppress the underhanded method used by a demonic cultivator. Their intentions were pure.”
Yun Buxiu snatched back his sleeve and began to pace in front of the others. He said impatiently, “In the end, I still think that Jiang-shixiong should stay in Peng Lai to recuperate.”
Jiang Yinghe drank some more tea to ease his throat before putting the cup down. “There’s no need. I will be able to take good care of myself. There’s still no solution for Jun-er’s hand, so I have asked someone to inquire about it at Yao Wang valley. Chang Ye also needs a saber to be commissioned …After cultivating for so long, my injury will heal in the blink of an eye.”
He continued with a raised brow. “Isn’t a Hollowed Cave demonic cultivator being eliminated by Huanhan and I a good thing for the world?”
It’s like catching a serial killer on Earth. Not only is it a good deed, there would also be awards and praise aplomb. Jiang Yinghe had been secretly happy in his heart for a long time, but he received only concern about his injuries from these sect siblings of his.
“It is a good thing,” Zhou Zhengping said steadily, “but it’s not worth you becoming injured over. Since you say that your disciple was helping you recover from the underhanded methods of that demonic cultivator, what exactly did he do?”
Jiang Yinghe was too embarrassed to explain the effects of the Seven Days of Joy or whatever it was. He tried to calm down and said, “It’s a type of illusion to confuse the mind.”
Zhou Zhengping nodded and didn’t think more of it. Then he saw Yan Caiwei who was listening in from beside him choke on her tea. She glanced up at Jiang Yinghe before putting down her cup.
She wiped her mouth and helped to explain. “Yes…it’s a type of illusion. You all know that the He Huan Sect specialises in illusions. Why don’t we immediately let Jiang-shidi return to his residence to recuperate?”
Neither Zhou Zhengping nor Xiao Yun-shidi voiced any disagreement. Jiang Yinghe slightly relaxed and nodded to Yan-shijie as he departed Peng Lai’s main palace.
Only when that figure in white had left their sights did Zhou Zhengping follow up. “What kind of illusion was it?”
Yan Caiwei replied helplessly, “An illusion of affection.”
Yun Buxiu who had calmed down angrily lifted his eyes at those words. “And his disciples still surrounded him?!”
Xiao Yun-shidi looked up to Jiang Yinghe as a role model and was very partial towards him. He spat out his grievances and rose to leave, muttering, “I have to ask those juniors if they have impure intentions towards their Shizun. No one is going to touch him on my watch while that test of mentality is still—”
He paused as that bone-deep sense of danger rose up again. At the same time, Yan Caiwei called out to him.
“Come back.” Yan-shijie knocked on the table. “Your shixiong is missing his passion root so there’s no need to worry.”
Xiao Yun-shidi was able to gradually calm down at the reminder. He later said, “Even if he doesn’t have a passion root, he cares so much for his disciples. Wouldn’t it break his heart to learn that some, if not all of them, are secretly interested in him?”
“That’s a problem that they will have to solve themselves.” Yan Caiwei said. “Everyone’s journey to immortality is different. Maybe Jiang-shidi must experience something like this so that he can grow stronger from it.”
Yun Buxiu was just about to argue with her when Zhangmen-shixiong spoke.
“That’s enough.” Zhou Zhengping said. “People’s fortunes are their own. Jiang-shidi was never one to believe in fate, so he wouldn’t believe in a relationship being his end. He trusts in the ability of men to conquer the heavens, so let us put our trust in him.”
Qing Jing Peak, White Crane Jade Manor.
The crane spirits had been waiting for their master to return for a long time, so it took a while before they were satisfied with how much Jiang Yinghe petted them and let him through.
Everything was still the same inside. The cold jade walls continued to give off a refreshingly cool aura. Jiang Yinghe immediately spotted Chang Ye who was reaching for a book on the shelves.
The bookshelf didn’t contain anything related to cultivation, just old records of Peng Lai and some stories from the cultivation world.
Chang Ye was wearing a red outfit with darker flowers embroidered on the edges. There was a string of jade beads at his waist that lightly swayed as he moved.
Jiang Yinghe stared for a moment before realizing how tall he had grown. He was no longer the youth that used to squirm into his arms. Although Chang Ye still had a youthful appearance and childish personality, his body resembled that of a young adult. Only half of his hair was tied up and the other half was free to scatter on his shoulder.
Jiang Yinghe stood there a while longer as he thought back to many years ago when he found him encased in ice. What hurt the most about people that used to be young and helpless wasn’t their vulnerability, but their gradual road to independence.
Chang Ye seemed to notice someone behind him as he took out a book. He turned to reveal half of his exquisite features.
The originally calm eyes lit up once they saw that Jiang Yinghe had returned, revealing an unbridled joy.
“Shizun!” He bounded over and dove into his arms like he always did. Just when he was about to continue acting spoiled, the other person tapped on his shoulder.
“Chang Ye,” Jiang Yinghe said softly, “you can’t continue acting like this or you won’t grow up properly.”
Chang Ye disagreed and said in a small, wronged voice, “Does Shizun not want to dote on Ye-er anymore?”
Jiang Yinghe knew he would react like this and sighed. He reached over and flicked his forehead. “Why are you thinking all day about how to stick to me instead of cultivating?”
Chang Ye reached up to cover where his forehead had been hit, then quickly showed the book he had just taken out to Jiang Yinghe. He asked curiously, “Shizun, what is this?”
Jiang Yinghe casually glanced down only to freeze.
A column of simplified Chinese was on the cover, written by him. It read—
‘How to Care for Sows After Birth’
Jiang Yinghe: “…”
If he remembered correctly, this was from when he just started cultivating and was not about pigs. Tong Guiyu had shoved this little yellow book into his personal dimension. He thought the cover was too vulgar so he wrapped it in a new one …He probably didn’t throw it away then because the Jiang Yinghe in the past was still a virgin and was still interested in stuff like that.
In fact, he was still a virgin now.
The bookshelf of his residence was filled with so many old books that he had long lost track of them all. He looked at the innocent expression on his youngest disciple’s face and felt a deep sense of shame blossom in his heart. He thought about what to say before speaking in what he hoped was a nonchalant tone, “It’s a guide to caring for devil beasts and of no use to you. Leave it here.”
Chang Ye considered the words ‘caring for devil beasts’ in his head before sweeping his gaze down to the overly simplified characters on the cover. He hesitantly said, “Shizun likes to…raise devil beasts?”
Jiang Yinghe did have several cranes in his front yard, although they were spirit beasts, they were technically also a type of devil beast. After some thought, he replied, “I like to raise obedient and cute ones.”
Chang Ye blinked and scuttled over. “I’m good at being obedient and cute, so will Shizun raise me?”
Jiang Yinghe gave him a look. He took that little yellow book from his hands and said, “Haven’t I been raising you already? You weren’t this brave when I first took you in that year.”
He remembered the incident where he was poisoned by the Seven Days of Joy as he spoke. “When that demonic cultivator… Were you scared then?”
If he had asked this question to Li Huanhan or Qin Jun, they would’ve denied it with their next breath. Only Chang Ye would hesitate slightly before admitting, “A little bit.”
He wasn’t scared of that demonic cultivator but of Shizun getting hurt inside and him being unable to arrive until it was too late.
Jiang Yinghe warmly replied, “It’s okay to be scared. You won’t need to be anymore when you get stronger because you can protect the ones you love. Before then, you will be safe under Shizun and your Shixiongs’ wings.”
He rubbed his little disciple’s hair to comfort him while placing the book further away. He didn’t expect that momentary distraction was enough for his little disciple to pounce on him and send them both down.
The two of them were standing near the bed, so it didn’t hurt even if they fell. But Jiang Yinghe still felt Chang Ye’s hand cushioning his head. That hand was slender and soft, with only a thin layer of calluses from holding a sword.
The other person’s untied hair drifted down to mingle with Jiang Yinghe’s own inky locks.
Chang Ye’s eyes were bright. His protective seal glowed intermittently. The half of his face that was shown was a devastating beauty, while the other ruined half was covered by a black mask depicting a vicious beast.
“I want to protect Shizun as well.” Chang Ye hugged him from above. His head was buried in the nook of his Shizun’s shoulder, and he spoke in a gloomy voice. “Please don’t treat me like I’m still a child, Shizun. I’m actually…”
He suddenly paused and looked up to take in Jiang Yinghe’s visage.
Actually what? Hasn’t he always protected him from the shadows? Right, he’s not like the other two. He just wants, just wants to face him…
The voice in Chang Ye’s heart grew quieter. All his emotions were like a tightly wound string struggling to contain the magnitude of his lies.
His erratic heartbeat, the warmly flushed tips of his ears and the uncontrollable feelings in his heart… All of it seemed to betray his gradually twisted intentions.
His emotions reached a breaking point as they snapped one by one.
Chang Ye came even closer as he heard Jiang Yinghe’s warm laugh.
“You act so childishly but also want me to not treat you like one?” Jiang Yinghe didn’t notice anything was wrong since his little disciple has always been this shamelessly spoiled. Embracing each other on the bed wasn’t anything too taboo. “Then I’ll be waiting for you to grow up.”
Before he could finish, he found his wrist caught by Chang Ye, who said seriously, “When I grow up, will Shizun be willing to stay under Ye-er’s wings?”
Jiang Yinghe was touched by this display of piety, but he had to refuse. “The path to the Dao is difficult. I am already at the peak and treading in unknown territory. There is no need for someone of the younger generation to pave the road for me.”
Chang Ye looked at Jiang Yinghe with a sincere look in his eyes. There seemed to be no trace of romantic interest in that innocent gaze.
Only he knew he was caught in an inferno.
He lifted a hand to play around with the hair beside Jiang Yinghe’s ear. “Shizun, I’ve remembered some things from my past.”
Jiang Yinghe listened attentively.
“When I completed my golden core a few days ago, some indistinct memories came into focus.” Chang Ye said quietly. “All I could remember was darkness, blood, and an endless slaughter, like the only way to survive was to kill… The kind of things best forgotten.”
He rested his head on Jiang Yinghe’s shoulder and closed his eyes.
“I’ve never met someone like Shizun, who treats the whole world with kindness.”
Jiang Yinghe never knew his youngest disciple thought so highly of him. His words were just too pitiful to bear!
He was just an ordinary guy trying to slowly find his way home. He didn’t bring them along purely out of the goodness of his heart.
“There are many people like that where I grew up.” Jiang Yinghe looked at him with a soft look in his eyes. “They were willing to be righteous and helpful and to make the world a better place.”
Jiang Yinghe poured out another bowl of chicken soup according to the education curriculum in his heart. He really felt like his style of teaching could easily raise upstanding pillars of society. He added another phrase.
“Chang Ye1his name means ‘long night’ is too harsh a name.” He said, “But it doesn’t matter because the moon will accompany you through the night.”
Chang Ye didn’t speak but tightened his arms around Jiang Yinghe’s waist. “…I want Shizun to accompany me.”
He fully realized it only now—Jiang Yinghe was the brightly shining moon beside him, while he was just a star lost in the vast night sky. He didn’t just want to protect him, and it wasn’t just a desire to repay him. He wanted to accompany him and be by his side for thousands of years to come.
For the rest of their lives.
I wish that I was a star, and you were the moon.
__
Jiang Yinghe tested the progression of his cultivation until nightfall. Only then did he let his youngest disciple go rest.
It was only later that night that Jiang Yinghe realized that Chang Ye’s progress bar shot forward by a huge margin. But his cultivation level didn’t change? He couldn’t figure out what was going on.
He sat on his bed contemplating the factors that might affect the progress bar like ‘mental health’ or ‘master-disciple relationship’. After thinking it over, it’s likely that the two aforementioned things could be affecting it.
Especially that second one… Huh? The already good relationship between him and his disciples can improve even further? To what end? Are they going to make a blood oath and become a family?
Jiang Yinghe’s thoughts veered further off track in a humorous direction. He suddenly remembered that little yellow book on the nightstand.
He picked it up and absentmindedly flipped open the present he once got from Tong Guiyu.
He sucked in a quick breath and immediately slapped it shut.
…He had flipped to a page with pictures.
It was too much excitement for this thousand-year bachelor.
Jiang Yinghe took a deep breath and began reading from the first page. He slowly relaxed after a few more pages.
He didn’t seem to react to it at all, so why did he chase Tong Guiyu around with Wangchen and cut off half his hair back then? It seems that even a thousand years of no action still counted as a kind of experience. A book like this wasn’t enough to affect him!
Strangely satisfied, Jiang Yinghe put aside the book and prepared to go to bed.
The night was well underway when the crane spirits resting at the entrance were startled awake by a series of footsteps. They looked up to see a dark shadow enter the manor.
Only Jiang Yinghe and his three disciples could freely enter the White Crane Jade Manor, so the cranes decided not to wake their master and drifted back off into dreamland.
That person’s body gave off a slightly cool air. He waited until it dispersed before approaching the bed. He stood there for a very long time.
Long enough that he thought he might turn into a statue.
Before he came, his heart felt like it was on fire. It was only able to calm down when he saw Shizun’s face.
The other person was just too beautiful even when sleeping. His loose black hair was spread across the bedding and his skin was as white as frost. Even his breathing was slow and steady.
He only sat by his side for a while when he noticed that Jiang Yinghe was slightly frowning in his sleep as if he was somewhat uncomfortable.
Jiang Yinghe really did feel some discomfort.
The things that he dreamt about were…just too shameless to put into words! Jiang Yinghe has always thought of himself as a good teacher and a righteous cultivator, but who would’ve thought that his mind would wander to such strange places when asleep?
In his dream, a very good looking man was on top of him unbuttoning his shirt before asking him in a low voice, “How many people do you like? Do you like men?” There were two other men whose hands also travelled over his sensitive body.
How—how many? Even now he couldn’t wrap his head around it, not to mention inside the dream.
What do you mean by ‘how many do you like’? This kind of thing was only supposed to happen when two people have feelings for each other, right? Let’s not even talk about how the genders were off, even the number of participants was wrong in the end!
He knew that he was dreaming, but strangely, he couldn’t wake up. The remnants of the Seven Days of Joy in his body began to smoulder.
Then what seemed like a cool hand brushed against his forehead, bringing with it a refreshing wave of energy that allowed him to startle awake and reflect on what his life has come to.
There was nobody around, as if the hand that woke him up was just another part of his dream. Jiang Yinghe pinched the bridge of his nose. The number of people at the end of his dream and the things they were… All he did was take one look at that book before bed! Wasn’t this progression way too quick?!
He was unable to calm down for quite a while. He reflected on why he suddenly dreamt about that sort of thing. Then his thoughts shifted to his never-tested preferences,
Although his head had cooled, his body had not.
Jiang Yinghe silently shifted his gaze that held a trace of sorrow. The remnants of the Seven Days of Joy seemed to be fanning the flames that were cooking his body from within.
His mind was about to spin itself out of his head. He could only give up and reluctantly untie his snow white sleeping robe.
It seems that every pure virgin had to rely on their five-fingered friend in the end.
But Jiang Yinghe was completely inexperienced and unable to complete his task even after quite a while. Eventually he just flopped into bed and ignored it, hoping the problem would go away.
He finally realized how fearsome He Huan sect could be.
Jiang Yinghe’s mind was muddled like he was half-dreaming. He wanted to circulate energy to speed up the process when he remembered that his foundation was strained.
He was hurt because he forcefully used his foundation to suppress the side effects. He might have managed to cut his opponent into pieces, but the mouthful of blood he coughed up afterwards hurt like hell.
Just as Jiang Yinghe hesitated, the scene from his dreams seemed to reappear. A slightly cold hand landed on his shoulder and a voice quietly said something.
Jiang Yinghe thought to himself, was he watching a drama series in his dreams? Were all of his dreams going to be full of censored content now?
At least there was only one person this time. To be more precise, there was one hand.
The other seemed to hesitate for some reason, but its movements downwards were precise and relieved the hot urgency that Jiang Yinghe felt.
Jiang Yinghe lowered his head and curled up slightly, his breathing becoming erratic. The effects of the poison and the hand’s ministrations built up until the crisis point.
All his stress melted away. The strange feelings that he felt bound together before dispersing.
Moonlight spilled into the manor, shining on his misty eyes and the way his long fingers unconsciously gripped the bedding.
Jiang Yinghe’s mess of thoughts began to slowly organize themselves until he emerged from the sea of pleasure to sense the presence of someone in the darkness.
But he drifted back to sleep before discovering who it was.
__
The next day, Jiang Yinghe immediately destroyed that little yellow book.
Who knew he would react like that! Whether it was because he was inexperienced or because of the poison in his body, it was best to discard such things.
Due to this, Jiang Yinghe even took the initiative to write Tong Guiyu a letter, something he hadn’t done the entire time they’d known each other. He sent one of the cranes to deliver it to He Huan sect.
The light form of Hollowed Cave cultivators was very fast. After enough time to finish two pots of tea, the cries of the cranes could be heard from the entrance. Jiang Yinghe eased the restriction on the doors to see the flamboyantly dressed Tong Guiyu waltz in with a smile on his face.
…He was about to burst with laughter upon finding out that the frigid Jiang Yinghe was faced with such a problem. It was like he came to watch a good show.
Jiang Yinghe was wearing a white, long-sleeved outfit with faint gold embroidering on the trim. His cold fragrance was present and everything seemed normal, so it was impossible to tell that he was troubled by that matter.
There was a pot of tea and a chess set arranged on the jade table. Jiang Yinghe had been playing against himself for a while. He motioned for Tong Guiyu to sit across from him before pouring him a lukewarm cup of tea.
“You implied that we wouldn’t meet for quite some time the last time we saw each other, so why call for me so soon?” Tong Guiyu was wearing a pink robe that was the shade of sakura blossoms in March. He blinked at him with his fox-like eyes. “I can’t wait to hear how our Xuan Wei Xianjun ended up like this.”
Jiang Yinghe gave him a look. “This master helped clean up after you, yet you still have the heart to laugh at me.”
“Hahahaha, I really didn’t want to laugh.” Tong Guiyu rubbed his cheek while laughing. “But whenever I think about the fact that you called me over for this kind of thing I can’t help it. Hahahaha.”
Jiang Yinghe: “…Can you speak like a human?”
Tong Guiyu only wanted to laugh more. He emptied the cup and said, “Fine then. Tell me, how does it feel like to be affected by the Seven Days of Joy?”
Jiang Yinghe expressionessly stared at him. “It’s nothing.”
“Really?” Tong Guiyu had great confidence in the goods that came out of his sect. “Then I guess Xuan Wei Xianjun doesn’t need my help after all.”
Jiang Yinghe gritted his teeth before spitting out, “I do. I have an ice spiritual root, this thing is going to give me heat stroke.”
Tong Guiyu suppressed the urge to burst into laughter again by drinking more tea. “Originally, there was no antidote for this medicine in my sect, plus the formula you were dosed with has been altered by a demonic cultivator…”
He changed the subject once he noticed the frown on Jiang Yinghe’s face. “But I can teach you a method to deal with it.”
Jiang Yinghe nodded. “Tell me.”
“You need to wear this and have a high-level cultivator watch over you during the night.” Tong Guiyu took out a bracelet made of icy blue pearls from his personal dimension and placed it on Jiang Yinghe’s wrist. “This is the only artifact able to disperse arousal in our sect. But there’s a side effect. Once you wear it, you will be unable to circulate your energy and become akin to a mortal.”
“When you wear it, you need to have someone you trust support you and purge the residual fragments from your system.” Tong Guiyu said. “Your disciples all seem to be up to the task. You should be cured after about a month.”
Tong Guiyu was still smiling, and there was an implied meaning in his eyes.
Jiang Yinghe didn’t catch it and paused before saying, “This morning Huanhan said that he was going to enter seclusion to prepare for his tribulation. I don’t know where he went, so only Jun-er and Chang Ye are left on Qing Jing Peak.
Tong Guiyu asked, “I heard that your second disciple was forced into becoming a Primordial God Zhenren. Are there any lasting effects?”
Jiang Yinghe shook his head. “None, other than his hand.”
Tong Guiyu blinked his fox-like eyes at that. “Isn’t two people enough? I doubt you can even take one.”
Jiang Yinghe didn’t really understand what he was talking about. His missing passion root caused him to be a bit obtuse when it came to matters like this. He looked up with a dazed expression to see the person in front of him finish his tea and stand.
“I’ll be heading back to He Huan sect then.” He said, “I am the deputy sect master after all. I can’t be slacking off while the sect master’s not there.”
Jiang Yinghe nodded. “Thank you for coming.”
“No need.” Tong Guiyu smiled as he half-jokingly and half-seriously waved his hand. “I should be thanking Xuan Wei Xianjun for getting rid of a big thorn in He Huan’s side.”
Before Jiang Yinghe could reply, the other person bowed deeply to him.
He slightly raised his hand and wanted to stop him, but he ultimately remained silent. Instead, he watched Tong Guiyu stand up and leave. As his figure became indistinct, his last words seemed to still be an outrageous joke—
“We were sect siblings for three hundred years, but it took only one season for him to fall to the temptation of demons. It seems that only the two of us treasure the friendship between cultivators. Is it inevitable that desire must always come before love in our world?”
Jiang Yinghe watched him leave from the open doors and sighed. “All this talk about what came first and what is treasured, doesn’t it all depend on his mood?”
Jiang Yinghe only took a closer look at the pearl bracelet after Tong Guiyu had left.
There were very few artifacts that decreased arousal in He Huan sect. Their cultivators could be divided into two types: ones who practised dual cultivation with anyone to raise their own level and tended to use more underhanded methods, while the other only did it with their lovers which they took multiples of.
The discussion of whether love or desire came first has been a long-standing debate in He Huan sect, because it was related to the tests of mentality they would experience at the higher levels, and the meaning of the Dao.
Tong Guiyu belonged to the latter group. The Hongyan sword in his hands was very hungry for beauties and love, which is why Hun Yuan Xianjun was able to wield it.
Jiang Yinghe recalled the scene that played out here this morning when Li Huanhan requested leave.
His eldest disciple’s black outfit was slightly wrinkled. His mental state didn’t seem quite right, as if he hadn’t slept a wink last night. Even his voice was strange.
Jiang Yinghe has just woken up from that surreal dream of his. Not only did his head hurt, his temper was also short. When he heard that Li Huanhan wanted to leave to undergo his tribulation in a suitable location, he was just the tiniest bit upset.
Because this didn’t seem like the only reason the other person wanted to leave.
If it was just this, why would he pace outside the entrance instead of just coming in? He must be hiding something from me.
Jiang Yinghe was nursing a headache as he wrote that letter to Tong Guiyu inside the manor. He lightly asked, “Have you found a good location?”
“Yes.”
Huanhan’s voice was somewhat hoarse. For some reason, his words were suffused with deep and concealed emotion.
“What kind of place is it?”
The incense burner to the side was burning the book that caused the situation last night. A cold wind blew in from the rest of Qing Jing Peak, bringing the cool morning dew to the corners of his black clothes.
Li Huanhan remained silent for a while before replying, “A place that can allow this disciple to remain calm for the time being.”
Jiang Yinghe slowed down his writing to listen to his next words.
“To be kind and not cruel to ‘him’.” Li Huanhan said. “This disciple fears doing something that might…hurt him.”
Jiang Yinghe immediately realized why he came here.
Of his two disciples that liked to ‘eat the grass that grew near their burrow’2this means ‘to find romance close to home’, Qin Jun was less problematic since he liked girls. Li Huanhan on the other hand was as bent as mosquito incense. He was still young, so staying too long beside the one he liked might lead to unfortunate situations…plus the other person was straight.
He put down his pen and adjusted his clothes before heading outside to where his eldest disciple stood under the cover of dawn and morning dew. There was a new sword pendant on his blood-red sword, woven in the same fashion as the one on Wangchen.
Jiang Yinghe observed him from a distance and was able to discern a deep sense of restraint from him.
“Then go.”
Jiang Yinghe continued calmly, “But don’t go too far. Peng Lai will be waiting for you, Qing Jing Peak will be waiting for you…”
Li Huanhan stared at his lips as the other person continued warmly.
“…Shizun will also wait for you.”
That was all he needed.
Li Huanhan wanted to say something more, but nothing came out as he met Jiang Yinghe’s clear eyes.
Jiang Yinghe was worried from the bottom of his heart about the upcoming test of his disciple’s heart. His thoughts then shifted to the joys and sorrows of raising children. He returned to working on the letter before sending it off with one of the cranes.
He sighed. There was only one thing left to do.
…Chang Ye was still young and this was the first night. Should he ask Jun-er to come?
This man who had doubts about his orientation had no idea…how his words could be misconstrued.
__
Qin Jun knew immediately when Li Huanhan left.
He saw the heavenly demon make a few hidden hand signs around the White Crane Jade Manor, like he was setting down traps. Then he turned and glared at him before leaving.
Qin Jun licked his teeth. Something was off about that demon, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. Did he discover his sense of kindness and decide to give up on making their Shizun a furnace?
Not just him, Chang Ye probably also knew right away. The three of them existed in a state of mutual distrust. Li Huanhan’s sudden departure, however, was outside of his calculations.
In Qin Jun’s eyes, he had to fight to the end for the things he liked. There was no way he was giving up halfway. Li Huanhan didn’t seem to be giving up—it’s more like he finally could afford to break through to the Primordial God stage. Was he planning to take Shizun back by force if he exposed himself?
That’s the thought that ran through his mind that night when he saw Jiang Yinghe.
He was only wearing a long, white robe, with an icy blue pearl bracelet on his narrow wrist that accentuated his pure white skin.
Qin Jun stared for quite a while as he approached Shizun to help him cleanse his body of the residual medications.
Although Jiang Yinghe explained the situation to him, he was still somewhat embarrassed to see Qin Jun so focused on him. He decided to break up the awkward atmosphere with some small talk. “Huanhan entered seclusion today.”
Qin Jun did not appear surprised. His right hand that was only bones squeezed Jiang Yinghe’s finger. “Chang Ye and I both know this.”
That makes sense. With how close they are, Huanhan must have bid them farewell. Jiang Yinghe nodded as if this was normal before thinking to ask something. “Jun-er, do you know where he went then?”
Even though he did not ask the person in question, he was still quite worried. Jiang Yinghe felt like he had become an old father.
Qin Jun did not reply. He tightened his grip on the finger and began to massage it. He said sourly, “Is Shizun only able to discuss Li-shixiong with this disciple?”
Jiang Yinghe was taken aback as his finger was tightly clenched.
“I only want to talk to Shizun about us.” Qin Jun said, “Shizun wouldn’t be safe wearing this bracelet. Chang Ye shidi is also too childish to help. Why don’t I do it for the entire month?”
“Not sleeping for a month is difficult, even for cultivators.” Jiang Yinghe said.
How can he be tired when he’s clearly in heaven?
Qin Jun remained silent as he started circulating his spiritual energy in the technique taught at Peng Lai to help cleanse the remaining fragments from Jiang Yinghe. The closer he got, the harder it was to resist.
The wraith was acting like he was circling his hoard of treasure. He caught a whiff of the other’s cold fragrance.
Jiang Yinghe couldn’t stay up all night to begin with, plus he felt safe with Jun-er guarding him. He fell asleep after midnight to the sound of the other person’s breathing.
This time, his dreams remained clear of the things that frustrated him before.
Just a hidden kiss that landed on his lips.
Rain: Haha Jiang Yinghe you’re going to regret this so much later. 10k character chapters hurt my soul and my hands. At least Qin Jun is happy ヽ(；▽ ；)ノ
Sahl: Disciples are getting very, um, touchy-feely. I guess Chang Ye is next…hehe!
