“A mere ‘thank you’ is not enough.”
Xie Ciyou fell silent after hearing those words, placing the jade box back onto the table.
“Aren’t we forming the contract?” Shi Qing asked.
“Forming the contract requires extracting the Immortal Sect Order. We will do it after you have reconstructed your bones and meridians.”
“Oh.” Keeping Zhong Ling’s news in mind, Shi Qing asked again, “What new information did Zhong Ling bring? Can the Immortal Venerable tell me?”
Xie Ciyou walked toward the desk, where a butterfly-shaped piece of white jade rested. He infused it with spiritual power, and the jade transformed into a life-like butterfly with golden light flowing through its fluttering wings.
The golden light emanating from the butterfly formed a line of text that hovered clearly in the air. From where he stood, Shi Qing could see it perfectly.
The message read: Lu Zhui, son of the former Sect Leader of the Qingyun Sect, is participating in this Immortal Sect Grand Competition as a loose cultivator.
He actually dares to show up? Shi Qing’s eyes darkened, but only for a fleeting second before returning to normal.
“Back then, the Qingyun Sect Leader, Lu Changfeng, suddenly took his son and left the sect. They have been missing for over thirty years. The Qingyun Sect never announced what happened back then, yet he appears now, at this specific juncture.”
Xie Ciyou looked at Shi Qing. “Did you hear any intel regarding him while you were at the Qingyun Sect?”
“I’m not sure,” Shi Qing answered almost instantly, then added, “I joined the sect late. They had already left long ago, and I never heard anyone mention them.”
He didn’t plan on speaking further. Lu Changfeng’s reason for leaving the Qingyun Sect had nothing to do with demonic energy, and as for their situation after leaving, he truly didn’t know. However, the way Xie Ciyou stared at him—as if scrutinizing his every thought—made him feel inexplicably guilty.
Xie Ciyou’s fingers stopped moving. He said flatly, “Is that so? When they left the Qingyun Sect, it was during the period when Shi Shuangyu was heavily injured. After they left, Shi Shuangyu went to the Qingyan Sect with Gu Yan and never returned to the sect again.”
Xie Ciyou spoke with certainty, appearing to remember this timeline very clearly. It was unclear whether the quiet disappearance of the Qingyun Sect Leader had left a deep impression on him, or if it was the latter event.
Shi Qing felt a bit tired from standing, so he sat sideways on the soft couch, averting his gaze. “Is that so? I hadn’t joined the sect yet. Has the Immortal Venerable discovered any other news?”
At that time, the war between immortals and demons was fierce. As the leader of the Immortal Alliance, Xie Ciyou had disciples directly under the Alliance stationed at every sect to promptly detect any demonic possessions. As for internal sect affairs unrelated to demonic energy, the Alliance never interfered.
Xie Ciyou paused. “No. I was tied down by certain matters at the time. By the time I rushed back, several months had passed.”
Shi Qing hadn’t had much contact with Xie Ciyou in the past. He was always either training with Gu Yan or helping to eliminate demons. He didn’t know what Xie Ciyou was doing back then.
For some reason, even though Xie Ciyou’s expression remained indifferent as he spoke, Shi Qing detected a hint of loneliness.
Shi Qing’s tone softened slightly. “The disappearance of Lu Changfeng and Lu Zhui was long ago. Their sudden appearance is indeed suspicious. If the enemy did this intentionally, it seems almost too obvious.”
“Perhaps they are just chess pieces placed openly on the board? Should we eliminate them now?”
Xie Ciyou replied, “No. Without chess pieces, how can one play the game?”
“True. If the enemy uses Lu Zhui as a piece, then the Immortal Venerable might as well use me as one. I am willing to go through fire and water for you, to give my all until my last breath…”
“Come here.” Xie Ciyou interrupted Shi Qing’s “heartfelt” speech.
Shi Qing blanked for a moment, then obediently got off the couch and walked to the desk, puzzled.
“Stretch out your hand. I will check the status of the Immortal Sect Order in your body.”
Shi Qing reached out. His gaze fell on Xie Ciyou’s hand resting on his wrist—the fingers were long, the knuckles well-defined. The sensation of those hands gripping his chin earlier suddenly resurfaced.
Shi Qing blurted out, “Does the Immortal Venerable truly not remember being dazed earlier?”
“I will soothe the Immortal Sect Order one last time, and the rejection reaction should be resolved,” Xie Ciyou said calmly.
“Oh.” Shi Qing nodded obediently and withdrew his hand.
Then, Xie Ciyou unexpectedly dropped this question: “What did I do while I was dazed?”
Actually, it wasn’t much. It was just that the “out-of-his-mind” Xie Ciyou seemed quite dissatisfied with him, and then… and then tried to pin him to the couch to hit him?
Shi Qing suddenly felt a bit muddled. When he was pinned to the couch by Xie Ciyou earlier, his mind had gone blank. Thinking back now, he only remembered the slightly cool touch of those knuckles and the tiny mole at the end of Xie Ciyou’s right eyebrow.
What was Xie Ciyou trying to do then? It didn’t really seem like he was going to hit him. Was he going to bite him?
“Speak.” Xie Ciyou watched him with interest. Even though Xie Ciyou was sitting and Shi Qing was standing, he felt like the other man was a cunning cat, playing with him like a mouse in his palm.
Shi Qing snapped out of his trance and quickly said, “It’s nothing, not important. It’s good that the Immortal Venerable is fine.”
He was just a bit suspicious about whether Xie Ciyou had really been dazed, but there was no reason for Xie Ciyou to lie to him. He was probably just being paranoid.
Xie Ciyou scrutinized Shi Qing’s slightly panicked and evasive expression, his brow lowering slightly before he said, “I have begun refining the Life-Giving Creation Pill. You can take it in three days. By then, you should be able to successfully form your Core.”
Shi Qing nodded and said sincerely once more, “Thank you, Immortal Venerable.”
“You’ve said ‘thank you’ many times,” Xie Ciyou noted.
It was true. It seemed that besides repeating his thanks, there wasn’t much else he could do right now. Although Xie Ciyou had his own principles and reasons for his actions, Shi Qing truly owed him a great debt. Just saying “thanks” was indeed insufficient.
As Shi Qing was thinking this, a cold voice sounded in his ear.
“There are very few people in this world who can owe me a favor.” Shi Qing looked up, startled. Xie Ciyou had stood up at some point and, without warning, leaned across the desk toward him, his eyes filled with an unreadable emotion. “A mere ‘thank you’ is not enough.”
Xie Ciyou’s face was inches away. Every single one of his long lashes casting shadows under his eyes was visible. He just looked at him quietly, his eyes so deep they seemed capable of pulling one’s soul inside.
The candlelight in the hall flickered restlessly. Shi Qing silently took a step back and hurriedly declared his loyalty. “I… I will definitely do my best for the Immortal Venerable during the Grand Competition!”
“…”
Shi Qing was “sent back” to his room by Xie Ciyou. To be more precise, it was more like Xie Ciyou had grown impatient and “thrown” him back into the room in a slight huff.
“Immortal Venerable, Immortal Venerable, wait a moment.” Shi Qing clung to the door, standing inside the room while Xie Ciyou stood outside.
“There’s still some time before the Grand Competition. I might have to bother the Immortal Venerable for a while longer. I can’t keep occupying your room. How about I pack up a bit and move out for you?”
“No need.” As he spoke, Xie Ciyou pried Shi Qing’s hand off the door, preparing to close it.
“Wait.” Shi Qing struggled a bit, then remembered Xie Ciyou’s injury. He glanced at his chest and silently withdrew his strength. “The Immortal Venerable is still injured; where will you stay?”
Xie Ciyou looked at him without speaking.
“It’s not very convenient for me to stay here, is it? This is the Immortal Venerable’s room, after all. If there are things I shouldn’t see or touch, wouldn’t it be better if you put them away first?”
Xie Ciyou paused before saying, “There is nothing in this room that you cannot see or touch.”
How is that possible? There didn’t seem to be many items, but there were surely plenty of Xie Ciyou’s private belongings.
“Immortal Venerable, how can you say that? It’s not like I can touch your childhood training clothes, right?” As soon as he said it, he regretted it. He only wanted to point out that the statement was incorrect, but the example he chose seemed a bit perverted.
This dated back to when he was first rescued by Xie Ciyou. The Qingyun Sect disciple robes he wore during the ambush were already in tatters. Later, Xia Chan prepared some new clothes for him. He didn’t know how wealthy Xia Chan thought he was, but the fabrics were all incredibly luxurious, making him look like some pampered noble scion.
He had taken the liberty of looking through Xie Ciyou’s wardrobe and found only a few old ritual robes that looked like clothes from his youth. He had only ever seen the fifteen-year-old Xie Ciyou, who was still boyish back then, not as composed as he was now.
“You,” Xie Ciyou was taken aback.
“I was just talking nonsense,” Shi Qing said awkwardly.
Unexpectedly, Xie Ciyou replied nonchalantly, “If you want them, I can find them for you.”
?
With that, Xie Ciyou stopped trying to close the door. He pried Shi Qing’s hand off the doorframe and strode inside.
Shi Qing retreated in shock, step by step, as Xie Ciyou followed him in. The door slammed shut behind them with a loud thud.
The glazed lamps in the room lit up, making the person before him look exceptionally dazzling today.
Shi Qing’s waist was pressed against the dining table. With no way to retreat, he silently arched his back, pressing his waist backward to keep Xie Ciyou from getting too close.
Xie Ciyou didn’t push his advantage, however. He only stood slightly against him, with a subtle distance between their bodies—not touching, yet extremely close.
“Do you want them?” Xie Ciyou looked down at him. When he spoke, his breath fanned against the side of Shi Qing’s neck, feeling slightly itchy.
“No, no need.” Shi Qing’s gaze drifted, unable to find a place to land. If the person in front of him weren’t Xie Ciyou, he would truly feel like he was being taken advantage of “again.”
Why “again”?
Shi Qing frowned. In his past life, he had never been this flustered in front of Xie Ciyou. Today, he had been rendered helpless several times, and a sense of unusual irritability rose within him. He said nothing, but that faint scent of blood surfaced again.
Is it still not healed? It was only natural that Xie Ciyou wouldn’t tell him the full extent of the injury.
But the Xie Ciyou before him stopped making things difficult. He stepped back and said, “Rest well.”
Shi Qing chased after Xie Ciyou as he walked toward the door. “Immortal Venerable, why don’t you stay?”
Xie Ciyou’s footsteps paused.
“The Immortal Venerable was injured while finding medicine for me. Is there anything I can do for you?” Shi Qing asked seriously.
He felt that Xie Ciyou was the type of person who wouldn’t speak up even if he were gravely injured. If he stayed by his side, he would at least know if anything went wrong.
Xie Ciyou suddenly turned around. Shi Qing blinked and looked at him sincerely.
He watched as Xie Ciyou approached again and raised his hand. Puzzled, Shi Qing stood still, allowing the hand to get closer and closer until it finally stopped at his brow.
“Just because you owe me a favor, you’d let me stay in your room?”
“This is the Immortal Venerable’s room.” Shi Qing was confused. Besides, cultivators usually didn’t like to sleep. The two of them could just meditate all night, and he could keep an eye on Xie Ciyou’s condition.
“From now on,” Xie Ciyou’s gaze flickered, “do not accept favors from others so easily.”
There were already very few people in the world who could place Shi Qing in their debt.
Xie Ciyou’s expression turned unreadable as he asked, “If someone used a debt of gratitude to make you promise them one thing, would you always agree?”
“As long as it doesn’t violate morality…”
“What if it goes against your heart?” Xie Ciyou interrupted, his cold eyes reflecting the flickering candlelight.
It gave Shi Qing the illusion that Xie Ciyou was desperately hoping for a specific answer.
In his past life, to follow the plot, Shi Qing had indeed done many things against his heart. The biggest one was likely agreeing to the marriage proposal after Gu Yan obtained the Life-Giving Creation Pill for him.
But now that he was no longer controlled by the plot, he was naturally unwilling to go against his heart. So he spoke: “Even then, I would not.”
Xie Ciyou lowered his eyes to hide his emotions, showing only his slightly tensed jaw and tightly pressed lips. After a moment, he said coldly, “I see.”
He left only a final sentence: “Rest early.”
The door opened and slammed shut again. Xie Ciyou’s figure vanished instantly.
Shi Qing was left standing there, completely bewildered. In any case, he had said all he could say and done all he could do. He had fully expressed his concern; his “persona” shouldn’t have crumbled.