Just as Lu Xiaochan was about to punch the door hard, it suddenly opened, and his punch landed on Shu Wuxi instead.
Shu Wuxi immediately grabbed Lu Xiaochan’s wrist, looking at him with eyes somewhat different from usual.
“Where do you want to go?”
“My senior brother is here! I’m going to see him! He must think you’re not treating me well, I need to explain to him!”
To Lu Xiaochan, this was perfectly reasonable.
Before he could run past Shu Wuxi, he was pulled back.
“You’ll stay right here.”
“But I want to see my senior brother!”
Lu Xiaochan looked up into Shu Wuxi’s eyes. They had the same shape as before, yet somehow different.
That gentle tenderness seemed to have been drowned by endless obsession, losing its previous clarity and brightness.
Lu Xiaochan instinctively stepped back, but Shu Wuxi still held his hand, pulling him back into his embrace with one tug.
His arms locked tightly, not allowing even the slightest movement.
Lu Xiaochan felt like his bones were about to crack from the tight embrace, and the more he struggled, the tighter it became.
Wherever Lu Xiaochan went, Shu Wuxi was by his side.
“Sword Master… I need to pee…”
“Mm.”
Lu Xiaochan held his belt and looked at Shu Wuxi, finding that the other was still staring at him intently.
“I really need to pee…” Lu Xiaochan emphasized again.
“Mm.” Shu Wuxi still showed no intention of looking away or turning around.
“I can’t go with you watching…” Lu Xiaochan was almost crying.
They remained at this impasse, Lu Xiaochan holding his belt, Shu Wuxi watching him.
“I won’t run away…”
Shu Wuxi remained motionless.
In the end, Lu Xiaochan gave in.
At night, Lu Xiaochan was locked in Shu Wuxi’s embrace while sleeping.
Out of curiosity, he looked up at Shu Wuxi and found that the other hadn’t fallen asleep at all, but was watching him with burning eyes.
Lu Xiaochan felt his whole body heat up from that gaze and quickly lowered his head.
This wasn’t right, this really wasn’t right.
What was wrong with Shu Wuxi?
Lu Xiaochan knew he couldn’t figure out the answer, but he also knew that if he didn’t return to Tailing Pavilion soon, Kunwu definitely wouldn’t let it go. He would certainly try every possible way to bring him back.
But if that happened, the rift between Tailing Pavilion and Shu Wuxi would only grow larger, and no one could resolve it.
What should he do…
That night, Lu Xiaochan had a dream where he entered the Sword Intent Pavilion of Wuyi Jingtian.
He met the Sword Spirit, who complained that Lu Xiaochan hadn’t come to play for a long time. Lu Xiaochan told him about his troubles.
The Sword Spirit burst out laughing. “Lu Xiaochan, aren’t you stupid!”
“Me? How am I stupid?”
“What’s in your medicine gourd?” The Sword Spirit tapped Lu Xiaochan’s gourd at his waist.
“This? Oh! My ‘Wine Colliding Immortal’! You want me to give it to the Sword Master to drink?”
Lu Xiaochan’s face lit up – how could he have missed such an obvious solution!
“Exactly! Once he’s drunk, won’t you be able to leave?”
“Thank you! You’re smarter than me this time!”
“But don’t mention me to the Sword Master, or he’ll definitely destroy me if he finds out!” The Sword Spirit looked terrified.
“Don’t worry, am I the kind of person who lacks loyalty?”
“But if you manage to leave this time, make sure to return soon. With the Sword Master’s abilities, he might cause quite an uproar!”
“I understand! I don’t want to leave him for too long either! I just don’t know why he won’t let me return to Tailing Pavilion!”
Lu Xiaochan frowned, realizing that there were many times when he didn’t understand what Shu Wuxi was thinking.
When he couldn’t figure it out, his head hurt and he felt impatient.
But if Shu Wuxi explained it to him, his heart would soften with tenderness and reluctance to leave.
“Besides fearing you won’t return, what other reason could there be? If you’re really curious about what the Sword Master is thinking, just put the ‘Mirror Flower Water Moon’ in front of him, and you’ll see!” The Sword Spirit said with a mischievous smile.
Lu Xiaochan smiled too.
Well then, Shu Wuxi, let me see what you think about every day.
He kept smiling in his dream until he woke up laughing.
When he opened his eyes, he met Shu Wuxi’s gaze.
It was deep and heavy, like a starless dark night, endless.
“What did you dream about? You were smiling all the time,” Shu Wuxi asked.
Though Lu Xiaochan felt guilty, the little plan in his heart made him excited. “I was thinking about you!”
Shu Wuxi raised his hand and patted Lu Xiaochan’s head.
“No, no, no! Don’t pat there! My hair has finally grown back, don’t pat it away again!”
The next morning, Shu Wuxi served jade paste made from the juice of the “Fengtian” immortal tree.
Lu Xiaochan pretended to open the osmanthus honey jar that Kunwu had sent earlier and poured it over the jade paste.
“It tastes better with some honey!”
Actually, there was quite a bit of “Wine Colliding Immortal” mixed into the osmanthus honey.
Lu Xiaochan picked up a piece and held it to Shu Wuxi’s lips, saying expectantly: “Take a bite! Taste the osmanthus honey!”
Shu Wuxi lowered his gaze and opened his mouth, taking a bite of the jade paste.
“Is it good?” Lu Xiaochan stretched his neck to ask.
“Mm.” Shu Wuxi’s expression remained mild.
“Then have another bite! Eat it all! It’s sweetest when you eat it all at once!”
Shu Wuxi looked at Lu Xiaochan, his gaze very deep, making Lu Xiaochan feel guilty.
But Lu Xiaochan didn’t withdraw. “My arm is getting tired! Have another bite!”
Shu Wuxi finally lowered his head again and bit off most of the jade paste.
Lu Xiaochan stared intently at Shu Wuxi’s throat, watching the movement of his Adam’s apple to make sure he had swallowed the jade paste, then thought secretly, why hasn’t he fallen yet?
“Xiaochan, why do you keep staring at my neck?”
“Because it looks good.” Lu Xiaochan answered without thinking.
Because it really did look good!
Long but not thin, rather… quite manly.
At this point, Shu Wuxi picked up a piece of jade paste and held it to Lu Xiaochan’s lips. “You eat too.”
Shu Wuxi knew he liked sweet things and specially chose the piece with the most osmanthus honey.
“This is the sweetest piece, Brother Wuxi should eat it!” Lu Xiaochan quickly declined.
But Shu Wuxi’s hand remained in the air, showing no intention of lowering it.
Lu Xiaochan didn’t open his mouth for a long time, just kept smiling and pushing away Shu Wuxi’s hand.
No joke, with such a big bite, I’ll pass out immediately!
Shu Wuxi’s originally somewhat gentle gaze grew colder and heavier.
“Why won’t you eat.”
Lu Xiaochan could barely keep smiling.
His Wine Colliding Immortal was supposed to work faster on those with higher cultivation, so why was Shu Wuxi still sitting there motionless?
“Xiaochan.” Shu Wuxi called his name again, though still softly, it fell heavily on Lu Xiaochan’s heart, almost making him unable to breathe.
He had to eat it now!
Shu Wuxi wasn’t stupid.
Lu Xiaochan had to turn his face, tucking his loose hair behind his ear, moving extremely slowly toward that piece of jade paste.
It’s over! It’s over!
Lu Xiaochan closed his eyes and opened his mouth, but just as he was about to bite down, the chopsticks suddenly dropped.
With a “thud,” Shu Wuxi collapsed onto the table.
Lu Xiaochan stared at him blankly for a long while before finally letting out a breath.
“Right, right, right! Mirror Flower Water Moon!”
Lu Xiaochan ran frantically to get a Mirror Flower Water Moon scroll and opened it in front of Shu Wuxi.
“Let me see what you’re thinking! Why won’t you let me greet senior brother!”
Lines slowly appeared on the scroll, connecting to form Lu Xiaochan’s image.
“Eh? Why is it me?”
But it was him lying on a couch with loose clothes.
He was lying on his side, eyes slightly open, a strand of hair trailing along his cheek and disappearing between his lips.
His collar was open, showing half of his left collarbone in shadow, half clearly visible.
Lu Xiaochan felt hot and tugged at his own collar, never knowing that this was how he appeared in Shu Wuxi’s mind… feeling inexplicably restless.
Shu Wuxi’s figure appeared in the scroll, coming to the side of the Lu Xiaochan in the painting.
What happened next made Lu Xiaochan greatly startled. He backed away and fell sitting on the table.
The scenes were intense and powerful, beyond what ordinary people could endure.
The Shu Wuxi in the scroll was completely frenzied, refusing any rejection, absolutely dominating.
If what was shown in the scroll actually happened, Lu Xiaochan knew he definitely wouldn’t survive!
He gasped and ran out without thinking.
What was this?
Didn’t Kunwu say that all past Sword Masters of Wuyi Jingtian were free of evil thoughts?
But the Shu Wuxi in the scroll was like he had been possessed!
Lu Xiaochan decided to take a risk and use the Return to Origin Umbrella to float across the Sword Sea.
But before he could reach the treasury storing Wuyi Jingtian’s magical artifacts, he heard Shu Wuxi’s voice.
“Xiaochan, where did you go?”
Cold with a hint of cruelty, as if wanting to crush Lu Xiaochan and swallow him whole.
Lu Xiaochan was so scared he pressed against the wall, not daring to even breathe loudly.
“Are you playing hide and seek with me?”
Shu Wuxi’s voice became gentler, as if coaxing Lu Xiaochan to come out.
But Lu Xiaochan heard in this gentle voice a madness that was about to burst through its limits.
He pressed his back against the wall, regretting that he had eaten too much lately! If his belly were smaller, it wouldn’t be so noticeable!
Lu Xiaochan moved carefully bit by bit, trying to quietly reach the end of this corridor.
At the other end was Shu Wuxi’s tall figure. He seemed to be turning his face aside, not having seen Lu Xiaochan at this end.
But Lu Xiaochan knew that with Shu Wuxi’s “spirit discernment” ability, no matter where he hid, as long as he was still in Wuyi Jingtian, Shu Wuxi could easily find him.
Lu Xiaochan was covered in cold sweat. He moved another half step toward the end, then looked in Shu Wuxi’s direction, but Shu Wuxi’s figure was gone.
He let out a breath, thinking Shu Wuxi must have gone around that corner.
“Xiaochan, you really like playing hide and seek, don’t you?”
Shu Wuxi’s voice softly sounded beside his ear, with a slight hint of teasing.
