Wen Zui was running. Yun Qi leaned against his shoulder with his eyes narrowed, his gaze full of amusement.
The System appeared with a “ding” and began circling around Yun Qi.
“Host! The male lead of this Dragon Awe Tian story cannot eat this elixir right now! He will die!”
“Who said this was for him to eat?” Yun Qi flicked his tongue nonchalantly. He had no intention of entertaining the System further and turned his attention to Wen Zui instead. “Find a hotel with a bathtub. I will guide you through the process of drawing Qi into your body.”
The man beneath him braked abruptly. The sound of a rapid heartbeat transmitted through his bones to Yun Qi’s inner ear; Yun Qi knew Wen Zui was very excited.
“Alright!”
“Wen Zui, what kind of hotel did you pick?”
The room before them was cramped and narrow, even permeating a faint, inexplicable odor. The bathtub Yun Qi had requested was exceptionally small, barely large enough for an adult man to crouch in with his arms pressed against the ceramic tiles.
“Oh, you are just a snake. Why do you need such a big bathtub? This hotel is cheap; it only cost one hundred yuan.” Wen Zui shrugged indifferently, set down the tripod he was carrying, and ran to fill the tub with water.
“I will give you a wash, okay?” Amidst the splashing water, Wen Zui shouted to coax Yun Qi, though he followed it with a quiet mumble, “You are so hard to please!”
Yun Qi naturally heard him. He let out a soft chuckle and turned to carefully examine the dark gray tripod.
It was roughly the size of a small desk lamp. Perhaps because Boss Mei feared damaging an antique, he had not performed a deep cleaning, only wiping the surface so it would not dirty one’s hands.
A blue light flashed in Yun Qi’s eyes. The dust on the tripod vanished instantly, revealing the shimmering silver body beneath. He tapped it casually with his tail, and three yellow talismans immediately manifested on the surface.
“The light of Heaven and Earth intersects; the Sun and Moon shine in harmony. Reaching upward to the Big Dipper, penetrating downward to the Netherworld. The divine staff breaks the hells, and all beings transcend. Swiftly, by the Emperor’s decree!” ①
As soon as the words were spoken, a thousand layers of air surged within the room. With a muffled bang, a mysterious and fragrant scent instantly filled the entire space.
Yun Qi lowered his head and chanted a spell to place a seal on the room, preventing the spiritual energy from leaking out.
“Yun Qi, are you from the Taoist Sect?” Wen Zui had been observing Yun Qi’s movements the entire time. Seeing that the seal on the elixir was broken, he hurried over and spoke with curiosity.
“Why? Are you no longer calling me a lonely ghost?”
“Oh, Master, why are you so vengeful!” Wen Zui raised his hand to massage Yun Qi’s tail, acting incredibly fawning.
“How could a Grandmaster take a snake as a disciple? Is there some earth shattering story behind this?”
Yun Qi fell into a rare silence for a moment before replying, “When I was born, a celestial phenomenon occurred. My Master saw my extraordinary talent, so he traveled across thousands of mountains and rivers to take me into his sect.”
Wen Zui’s lips twitched as he thought to himself, “That sounds very fake.”
“Alright, take off your clothes.”
“Take, take off my clothes? Why!” Wen Zui suddenly hugged himself, staring at the snake—who had a prior record—with a suspicious gaze.
“In a moment, your body will expel many impurities. It is not impossible to keep your clothes on, but they will be ruined. Can you afford that?” Yun Qi lazily brushed his tail against Wen Zui’s chin, his tone full of teasing.
Wen Zui’s eyes lit up instantly. He impatiently stripped until he was down to his underwear. With a splash, he stepped into the bathtub and squatted down, letting the transparent water rise to his chest.
“Come on!”
A flash of mischief crossed Yun Qi’s eyes. He flew into the bathtub and coiled around Wen Zui’s neck, then used his magic to bring the elixir over.
“A Zui, your body cannot handle this yet. I will refine it and then transfer it to you, alright?”
“Master, you are so kind!” Wen Zui blinked, moved by the gesture.
The elixir, which was originally pitch black, began to peel after Wen Zui spoke, revealing a pale green glow within. Yun Qi’s pupils contracted in shock.
It was actually a Grade Three All Soul Pill! This item possessed pure spiritual energy with no side effects. It was truly a treasure belonging to the male lead in the original book. Even though the tripod had been broken into by force, it had still allowed Wen Zui to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage.
But now?
“Sigh. Unfortunately, the seal on this tripod was destroyed by violence, and only half of the spiritual energy remains. Otherwise, it could have at least brought you to the third level of Qi Refinement.”
“It does not matter! Master, please start!” Wen Zui could not care about anything else now. He was focused entirely on obtaining his ticket to immortality, as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
With a smile in his eyes, Yun Qi took the elixir into his mouth and pressed his forehead against Wen Zui’s.
In an instant, Wen Zui felt waves of warm spiritual energy, like a spring breeze, washing through his entire body. An indescribable sensation of pleasure spread through his limbs, as if a thousand people were massaging him from head to toe simultaneously.
After an unknown amount of time, Wen Zui was the first to open his eyes. What he saw was not the golden pupils of the little snake, but a completely naked Yun Qi, whose skin was as white as snow.
The two of them were squeezed into the narrow bathtub like conjoined twins, head to head and foot to foot. It felt as though their breath could touch each other’s skin, and the person in front of him possessed a truly beautiful face.
Wen Zui’s entire body turned red in an instant. His hands shook uncontrollably, and he reflexively closed his eyes.
This Yun Qi was not wearing clothes again!
However, losing his vision made his sense of touch even more sensitive. The temperature from Yun Qi’s body was constantly transferred to him. When Wen Zui tried to move, he immediately brushed against something he should not have.
“Damn it!”
Before he could react, Yun Qi, who had been leaning tightly against him, suddenly stood up, causing a loud splash.
“Why are you closing your eyes and pretending to sleep? Are you shy?” Yun Qi flicked Wen Zui’s chin playfully, as if teasing a puppy.
“Who! Who is shy!” As if his tail had been stepped on, Wen Zui immediately opened his eyes. A large, pink object swayed in the air, causing him to shiver and close his eyes once more.
They were both men! What on earth was he shy about?
A roaring sound filled his ears. Wen Zui stood up with his eyes closed, lacking any backbone. His red ears twitched, and he leaned against the wall to support himself, insisting, “Why did you tell me to stand up?”
“Turn around.”
Wen Zui did so instinctively, yet he still stubbornly demanded an answer.
“Why!”
A soft laugh came from behind him. “Why don’t you look down?”
Wen Zui looked down and found his entire body covered in a type of black sludge that emitted a foul stench. Before he could react, Yun Qi had already taken the showerhead and started scrubbing his back.
“So filthy.”
Though Yun Qi said it was filthy, black mud fell away wherever his hand passed, revealing Wen Zui’s sun kissed skin. It looked as if it were dipped in honey, radiating a healthy glow.
A crisp slap rang out. Wen Zui turned around in astonishment and collided with Yun Qi’s playful gaze.
Yun Qi held up both hands, handed the showerhead to Wen Zui, and silently stepped back, vanishing from his sight.
Just now, did Yun Qi just slap his butt?
The skin on the left side felt as if it had been harshly polished with sandpaper, stinging with a burning pain. The expression on Wen Zui’s face shifted several times. Finally, he bit his lip, looked down to remove the last piece of cloth on his body, and began to wash seriously.
He was definitely going to give this snake a proper education on boundaries! How could he just touch someone else’s butt so casually?