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Published at 19th of August 2022 05:11:53 AM


Chapter 23

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LangFeng City was bitterly cold all year round. The morning after a snowstorm was even colder. After the night, the courtyard was covered by the accumulated snow. Because of the hazy mist, the mountain in the far distance also looked smudged like watercolor, painting both the heavens and earth with white.

Only Pei QianYue’s figure, and the small patch of blood oozing out next to him, were the only irregular colors within this world. 

—The wound on Pei QianYue’s body was still bleeding out.

The original Demon(妖) Imprisonment Talisman actually didn’t cause too much harm to demons(妖); however after LingXiao Gate’s improvements, it became used in exterminating demons(妖). Direct damage to the primordial soul was already hard to recover from; furthermore Pei QianYue didn’t even bandage his wounds.

He had ignored treatment, and ran over here to kneel in front of Feng Ci’s place.

And to even fucking kneel for an entire night. 

Feng Ci was practically ready to laugh in fury.

“City Master Sir, what are you doing here?” Feng Ci snapped: “This disciple can’t accept such courtesy from the great City Master. What if people see this?”

Pei QianYue stopped coughing, his voice weak and hoarse: “I’ve cleared away everyone in the outer disciples’ courtyard. A barrier was also added around the perimeter. Outsiders can’t enter.”

Feng Ci: “……”

Feng Ci was speechless: “Are you really planning to kneel here long term?”

Not answering, Pei QianYue asked instead: “Is Master still angry?”

Feng Ci sneered internally.

Originally, he had already stopped feeling angry, but who would have expected, as soon as he stepped out the door, he got pissed off by a certain reckless snake hatching again. 

Leaning against the doorframe, Feng Ci smiled: “If I’m still angry, do you plan to kneel here until my anger’s resolved?”

Pei QianYue lowered his head slightly, not answering. However, the answer was already self-evident.

“Now you know to come apologize to me, what were you doing before this?” Seeing him like this, Feng Ci’s anger surged again: “When you were painstakingly plotting to use those lousy schemes on me, did you not consider whether or not I’d be angry?”

“It wasn’t completely to scheme against Master….” Pei QianYue started to explain, but swallowed his words back down again and said quietly: “I was wrong.” 

Feg Ci: “If you know that, then get up and get out.”

Pei QianYue stopped moving again.

Feng Ci only felt like Pei QianYue looked very eye-piercing right now— be it the accumulated snow on his body, his pale white complexion, the blood around him dying the snow red, or the lingering smell of blood in the air.

He turned his gaze, no longer looking at him, and smiled coldly: “Kneel if that’s what you want.” 

Then Feng Ci slammed his door shut with a bang.

The force was so strong, it shook off the pile of snow on the roof.

Pei QianYue kept his head lowered. The corners of his lips curved upwards in an ephemeral arc before the smile quickly became concealed again.

This one kneel…… lasted three days and three nights. 

Pei QianYue knelt in front of the door for three days. Feng Ci was determined to match his obstinance and also stayed inside his room for three days.

At first, it was only to see how long Pei QianYue would persist. Who would have thought this asshole really stayed there motionless, forcibly holding up a body full of injuries and enduring.

Feng Ci felt even more annoyed and distraught.

Originally, it was a good thing that Pei QianYue had driven away all of the outer disciples— No one came to call Feng Ci to do chores or practice magic. For once, he had peace and quiet and could sleep as long as he wanted— Yet Pei QianYue just had to kneel outside. Feng Ci had keen senses. Every time the other breathed feebly and suppressed his coughs quietly; the faint smell of blood in the air— Despite being separated by the door, these were still terrifyingly clear. 

Causing Feng Ci to sleep poorly for an entire three days.

At Feng Ci’s cultivation level, he didn’t really need sleep to recover his strength. Just like eating and drinking, they were already no longer necessary. However, Feng Ci has lived too many years; he was already resenting the days for being too long and boring. If he lost sleep as well, which was such a good way to kill time, he’d be even more lost on what he should be doing.

Therefore, he had always maintained the habit of going to sleep. In addition, he needed to sleep a long time everyday.

For an old man, who had been sleeping the same schedule everyday for a long time, it went without saying how dreadful it was to sleep poorly for three entire days. 

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Although LangFeng City was located in Kunlun, in actuality, it normally wouldn’t snow so frequently. 

Who knows, perhaps even the Heavenly Principles was punishing Pei QianYue. Within these three days, it snowed several times consecutively inside LangFeng City. Each time, the snow storm didn’t last too long, arriving swiftly and hastily. The snow on Pei QianYue’s body melted and accumulated repeatedly.

Feng Ci knew Pei QianYue was doing this on purpose.

This asshole bastard was certain that he wouldn’t be able to bear it, confident that he’d fall for this trick; that’s why Pei QianYue was purposely behaving like this in front of him.

Like the previous few tests, targeting the fact that he was softhearted. 

The more Pei QianYue was like this, the more determined Feng Ci felt.

Using the same strategy to control him every time, how can it be that convenient?

There’s no way he’d fall for this.

Feng Ci thought this internally. He also gave up on sleeping and got up. Sitting down cross-legged, he entered static meditation. 

In static meditation, cultivators can completely disconnect from outer world disturbances. It had a calming and focusing effect, lasting as short as a few hours and as long as several days. Let’s just see, who can outlast whom, he or Pei QianYue.

However, when Feng Ci entered static meditation this time, he wasn’t able to calm his heart as expected.

On the contrary, he had another dream.

The moon hung high in the skies. 

A distant and prolonged sound of a bell echoed amidst the mountains and forest. Half-way up the mountain, there was an old Buddhist temple positioned there quietly. Feng Ci stood on top of a high mountain cliff, gazing at that Buddhist temple from afar.

A gust of wind blew the hems of his plain white robes upwards, making the fabric flutter. Under the clear, cold moonlight, he looked like an exiled immortal.

Patience apparent, he quietly counted each toll of the bell from the Buddhist temple, one after another.

“105.” 

“106.”

“107……”

He counted leisurely, the light in his eyes slightly subdued, his voice clear and sharp. This usually calming sound of the bell, however, only made him feel sorrowful at this moment.

An inexplicable sense of tragedy filled Feng Ci’s heart, but he didn’t really understand the origin of this sadness. Before he figured it out, the temple bell rang one last time. 

108 tolls from the bell— ended.

Under the lingering echoes of the bell, Feng Ci jumped up and flew towards the old Buddhist temple.

There was a young monk sweeping the grounds outside of the temple. Feng Ci landed outside of the temple and slowly walked towards it. The little monk was startled by his sudden arrival, but very quickly, the monk recovered.

He put down the broom and walked in front of him. 

The young monk greeted him using a Buddhist gesture and asked courteously: “May I ask for your name, Immortal Master, and why you have come to Hanshan Temple?”

“Is the Abbot present?” Feng Ci asked quietly.

“Yes.” The young monk said: “Would you like me to let him know of your arrival?”

“No need. I can head inside myself.” 

“Sorry.” Feng Ci heard himself say this.

Then, he raised his hand. Under the little monk’s horrified expression, he wrapped his fingers around the other’s neck.

Waves of spirit energy passed through the area of skin contact and entered his body.

…… 

Feng Ci abruptly opened his eyes.

He subconsciously lowered his head and looked towards his hand. The warmth from the skin and flesh just now seemed to still remain on his palm. So realistic, it was frightening. Feng Ci dazed off in a trance for quite a while before realizing where he was right now.

He was still inside the outer disciples’ courtyard of LangFeng City.

A quiet voice could be heard outside, pulling Feng Ci out of the frightening and bizarre dream just now. 

Pei QianYue was still kneeling in front of the door. This voice, however, didn’t come from him.

“…… City Master, it’s already been three days. Besides the LuoHua Gates disciples who have been executed, the other people are still locked up in the dungeons. No one knows how the City Master plans to deal with them. After spending the last few days, trembling in fear and trepidation, several of the elderly seniors have fainted in terror a few times already.”

“Because of the ambush that LangFeng City suffered, there are many buildings and magic arrays inside the sect that were damaged. The Construction Elder wants to allocate funds from you to renovate.”

“The Discipline Elder had been executed by you previously, but you still have not arranged for a new candidate. There is currently no one in charge of the Discipline hall and there has been a backlog of tasks accumulating.” 

“Also the outer disciples that you kicked out… have been temporarily settled in another courtyard. This disciple doesn’t even know how to explain to them why……”

The new arrival chatted onward endlessly, reporting one thing after another. His voice sounded extremely exhausted.

It was Xiao Que.

In these three days, the person who suffered the most was probably him. 

LangFeng City had just encountered an attack. This was the busiest time for internal affairs right now. Yet just look at the City Master. Other than getting rid of a few conspiring rebels at the very start, he didn’t bother with anyone else, throwing aside the entire mess and vanishing without a trace.

…… He didn’t even say clearly how to deal with the rest of the rebel cultivation sects.

In these three days, Xiao Que took command and held down LinXian Terrace on his own, sending away people in search of the City Master batch after batch.

His head was practically about to explode. 

At this moment, the morning skies were gradually lighting up. The wind and snow within the small courtyard was growing in intensity. Pei QianYue looked almost completely buried under the snow. A water mirror floated in midair, reflecting Xiao Que’s haggard face on its surface.

It actually wasn’t any better than Pei QianYue’s own complexion.

However, before he managed to finish reporting everything, what he received in return was only Pei QianYue’s hoarse: “Get lost.”

Xiao Que: “……” 

If this were normal times, Xiao Que definitely would have shut up and gotten lost. However, the LangFeng City the last few days has really been lacking leadership. No need to mention the various tasks within the sect, even outside there were plenty of cultivation sects waiting for Pei QianYue’s reassurance and arrangements.

Pei QianYue didn’t give clear instructions on how to handle the rebel cultivation sects. Xiao Que didn’t dare to release them casually. Therefore, he had no choice but to continue sealing off information and news.

In fact, LingXiao Gates still didn’t know that their Elder Cheng Chao had died.

But if they continued to withhold information, first let’s not talk about how long they could actually keep hiding, even those cultivation sects outside might lose patience and try to rebel as well. 

Xiao Que considered his wording repeatedly and said cautiously: “City Master, why don’t you return first. Once the Saint Sovereign has cooled his temper, you can then……”

Before he finished speaking, the door was violently pulled open.

With a heavy expression, Feng Ci stood in front of the door and said coldly: “Get in here.”

The water mirror dimmed instantly. Xiao Que had cut off communications on the other side. 

Pei QianYue’s fingertips, which were hanging by his side, moved slightly. However, for some reason, they stopped abruptly.

Feng Ci didn’t go out the last few days. It wasn’t until this moment that he discovered Pei QianYue’s complexion looked even more unsightly than a few days ago.

Feng Ci felt irritated looking at it and said angrily: “If you don’t come inside right now, then don’t come inside ever.”

Pei QianYue was covered all over by snow. It was a long time before he finally slowly nodded his head: “Okay.” 

It’s unknown if he had been frozen solid or the movement had tugged on his injury, but when he got up, his figure swayed and almost fell.

The next second, he was caught in a warm and soft embrace.

Feng Ci felt as though he was hugging a block of ice, so cold that his heart twitched involuntarily. Pei QianYue rested his head on Feng Ci’s shoulder. The snow on his body shook off from the movement and instantly melted into water, dripping into Feng Ci’s collar.

Feng Ci subconsciously hugged him a little tighter. As he breathed, he once again caught a whiff of the faint smell of blood. 

“It’s only been a few days of kneeling, and you already can’t even walk?” Shifting his gaze and looking away, Feng Ci scoffed softly: “How are you supposed to be the Leader of some Immortal Alliance like this?”

Pei QianYue’s ice-cold breath puffed over the side of Feng Ci’s neck. His voice was somewhat hoarse, but contained a smile: “Sorry for letting Master see me in such a sorry state.”

As a powerful demon(妖), don’t even mention kneeling in the snow for three days, even if Pei QianYue knelt for 10 days or half a month, his body wouldn’t receive any damage. However, the wounds that he received from the Demon(妖) Imprisonment Talisman still did not healed. In fact, because of the several days of delay in treatment, his life force has become weaker and weaker.

“First let’s make it clear. I’m not being soft hearted.” Feng Ci emphasized, saying: “It’s just that LangFeng City has so many things waiting for you to sort out. If I keep refusing to let you inside, I’m afraid Xiao-Shixiong might come over here and kneel with you.” 

“I’ve placed a barrier outside. He can’t come inside.” Pei QianYue softened his voice: “Master is being soft hearted.”

Feng Ci: “……”

Why did his voice sound a bit smug too?

Feng Ci was so mad, he almost threw this asshole bastard in his arms outside again. 

But before he was able to move, both of Pei QianYue’s arms wrapped around him, hugging him completely.

“Cold.”

The voice spoke against his ear. Low, hoarse, and soft. A direct hit.

Dammit. 

Expression wooden and numb, Feng Ci resigned himself to fate and carried Pei QianYue inside.

However, this physical body of his was really short and skinny. Pei QianYue was a head taller than him. Half cradling and half hugging this person was somewhat difficult. Good thing his room wasn’t too big. The bed was just two steps away from the door.

Feng Ci staggered his way inside while holding Pei QianYue. Bumping into the edge of the bed, the two people fell onto the bedding together.

Feng Ci was pressed down completely into the soft blankets by Pei QianYue. Subconsciously, he gave a push, but then heard the other’s muffled groan. He didn’t know if he had touched the other’s injury or not. 

Feng Ci hastily raised his head: “Are you okay?”

But he didn’t receive an answer.

A dark navy blue spiritual light suddenly flashed inside the room. After the glow dissipated, there was only a pitch-black little snake remaining in Feng Ci’s arms.

Pei QianYue transformed back into his original form. 

When a demon(妖) depletes a lot of spirit energy, or their body was very weak, they’d choose to return back to their original form to save energy and engage in self-recovery.

Feng Ci understood this logic.

But, Pei QianYue clearly knew that Feng Ci was least capable of resisting his original form.

Feng Ci hugged the ice-cold black snake and watched helplessly as the other slowly coiled up and buried its head into his chest. With a gentle brief nuzzle, Pei QianYue stopped moving. 

Feng Ci: “……”

He was definitely doing all of this on purpose, definitely!

The author has something to say:

Xiao Hei: Got him.




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