Jiang Zhou spoke haltingly, pausing after every few words, yet he insisted on talking about Ji Yunlang’s parents.
Ji Yunlang stood frozen in place, asking for the fifth time, “Have you hugged me enough?”
Jiang Zhou said, “Your mother really gave me a lot of clothes.”
Ji Yunlang: “Oh.”
“So,” the hand that had been resting complacently on his back slid down to his waist, “I will give them to you too. Will you wear them?”
Ji Yunlang: “What do you think?”
“If you wear them, I’ll let go.”
Ji Yunlang ignored him.
“If you don’t wear them, I’ll bite you.”
Ji Yunlang detested being threatened the most, sneering, “Go ahead and bite.”
This time it was Jiang Zhou’s turn to fall silent. After a long while, he finally released his grip.
Straightening his collar, which had been creased from the embrace, Ji Yunlang heard him ask, “What are your plans?”
Ji Yunlang walked forward. “My wife is out there all alone while carrying a child. What do you think my plans are?”
Jiang Zhou: “You want to find him?”
Ji Yunlang: “What does it have to do with you?”
“Your business is my business,” Jiang Zhou walked parallel alongside him. “Your wife is also my.”
Ji Yunlang kicked him.
Jiang Zhou seemed to be suffering from some sort of ailment today; he could barely articulate his thoughts, forced to squeeze words out one by one, yet he stubbornly insisted on talking. He finally pieced together a complete sentence to ask Ji Yunlang: Your wife ran away while carrying a child; do you think you will find him first, or will he give birth to the child first?
Ji Yunlang was at the end of his patience. Although he hadn’t heard the man utter many words along the way, he felt an intolerable annoyance, as if he had been subjected to a noisy lecture all night.
Just as Jiang Zhou was preparing to piece together a second sentence, Ji Yunlang finally fished a few snacks out of his Qiankun bag.
He first pulled out a bunch of grapes. The moment Jiang Zhou opened his mouth to speak, Ji Yunlang stuffed a grape inside.
Jiang Zhou: “Really.”
Chew, chew, chew.
Jiang Zhou: “Sweet.”
Chew, chew, chew.
Jiang Zhou: “Just like you.”
Swallow.
Then, Jiang Zhou waited for Ji Yunlang to continue feeding him.
Ji Yunlang stuffed the remaining bunch entirely into his mouth.
He must be sick. Infuriating.
Once the grapes were gone, Ji Yunlang pulled out a tangerine, peeling it as he walked with the intention of stuffing the peel into the man’s mouth.
Jiang Zhou refused to eat the peel, fixing his gaze on the half-peeled tangerine instead.
Ji Yunlang didn’t give him a single segment. While eating it himself, he fed the little snakes, birds, and rabbits along the path. When only the last segment remained, Jiang Zhou finally found an opportunity to snatch it right from his lips.
That segment had already brushed against Ji Yunlang’s lips. By snatching it like this, Jiang Zhou’s face came too close, causing their breaths to mingle for a fleeting moment. When he straightened his back after eating the tangerine, he happened to lock eyes with the two gleaming longswords that had suddenly appeared in Ji Yunlang’s hands.
Jiang Zhou immediately leaped onto the nearest tree. Ji Yunlang’s swords followed closely behind, aiming fiercely at his backside.
Jiang Zhou jumped again.
The swords pursued.
Jiang Zhou fled, the swords chased, and Ji Yunlang pursued after them, leaving behind only two receding figures fading into the distance.
Husheng popped out from a nearby bush, standing on the spot they had just occupied. Squinting his eyes to observe the two tiny silhouettes disappearing ahead, he patted the little snake on his shoulder and said, “Let’s go, let’s keep up.”
The little snake was completely translucent and white, its tiny internal skeleton fully visible. At this moment, it was wriggling excitedly on his shoulder, extending its tender red tongue to lick his face.
Not long ago, after Ji Yunlang left, Husheng felt worse the more he thought about it. Unable to stay put, he wanted to slip out again.
Seeing his disobedience, the Bone Dragon roared at him. Husheng sat flat on the ground and began to cry, saying to the Bone Dragon, “You’ve changed! You’ve never roared at me so loudly before! Why don’t you just eat me instead?!”
As he spoke, he rolled up his sleeves, shoving his arms toward the Bone Dragon’s mouth while ranting, “Eat! Eat me! If you eat me clean, I won’t go out anymore!”
He cried so hard he could barely catch his breath. Flustered by his tears, the Bone Dragon hurriedly extended its tail to comfort him.
Husheng said, “I want to go out.”
The Bone Dragon turned its head away, pretending not to hear, its tail gently tapping his head.
Husheng repeated loudly, “I want to go out!”
The Bone Dragon firmly feigned ignorance, closing its eyes and mouth, shutting off all its senses to let him throw his tantrum.
Instead, its tail never stopped tapping Husheng’s head and wiping away his tears. Finally, with a sharp snap, the tail detached from the Bone Dragon, transforming into a tiny translucent bone snake that perched on Husheng’s shoulder.
Husheng cried out in shock, “You!”
The little snake gestured for him to be quiet. The tip of its head pointed at the Bone Dragon, who was playing dead with closed eyes, and then pointed toward the entrance of the Myriad Beast Bone Palace.
Husheng understood. Carrying the little snake, he took off at an absolute sprint, escaping the palace before the Bone Dragon could restore its senses.
Coincidentally, all the guards at the exit had inexplicably vanished today, even though they were clearly present when Ji Yunlang brought him back.
However, Husheng couldn’t care less. If he didn’t hurry, he wouldn’t be able to keep up with Ji Yunlang.
Ji Yunlang chased him for a distance before suddenly realizing something was amiss. If he wants to run, just let him run. This is the perfect opportunity to ditch him.
Thus, he halted his steps, sheathed his swords, turned around, and naturally walked in a different direction.
Before he could take two steps, his head was patted, and a tangerine was stuffed into his hand.
“You ran so fast,” Ji Yunlang stared at the tangerine, which still had green leaves attached. “Did you go rob someone’s orchard?”
Jiang Zhou: “Wild.”
Ji Yunlang threw the tangerine back at him. “Why are you so annoying? I am going to look for my three-months-pregnant wife. Why are you constantly following me?”
Jiang Zhou: “To protect you.”
“I don’t need it.”
Without another word, Jiang Zhou suddenly drew his blade. Before Ji Yunlang could react, his hands were twisted behind his back and pinned against the nearest tree. With one hand securing both of Ji Yunlang’s wrists and the other holding the blade, the edge hovered precariously over his back neck, barely brushing against his skin.
The movement was smooth and flawless, showing he had calculated this in his mind for quite some time.
Ji Yunlang’s face pressed against the rough, hard bark of the tree. Taking a deep breath, he moved his wrists, which were pinched to the point of pain, and asked, “What is the meaning of this now?”
“I can,” Jiang Zhou hooked his finger around the silver chain on his wrist while holding him down, “protect you.”
He added, “For your mother’s sake.”
Ji Yunlang remained silent. A powerful, destructive, and furious spiritual light surged from his palms, only to be extinguished one by one. Every time Jiang Zhou pressed down, he gave a light scratch to his palm, saying:
“Stop struggling,”
“now.”
“Be good and listen.”
“I like you, I won’t hurt,”
“you.”
“I”
Ji Yunlang: “Shut up!”
Infuriating, infuriating, infuriating.
Ji Yunlang could not calm his roiling emotions. It was only today that he realized how incredibly annoying it was to deal with an unliked, rogue pursuer.
If that’s the case, Jiang Zhou must have had a miserable time in the past. Being locked by the Spiritual Lock Chain, subjected to various forms of bullying every day without daring to refuse, forced to swallow his anger and accommodate his whims… Could it be that Jiang Zhou’s behavior in the past was entirely an act? In truth, Master wasn’t comfortable at all; he was displeased and didn’t want it. He loathed it to death, yet he still had to pretend to be entirely enraptured just to make me happy.
No wonder Jiang Zhou never liked to cry out. His master cared so much about his dignity; even if his body could be deceived, he couldn’t deceive his own voice.
Jiang Zhou must have been lying to him all along.
Bastard.
Seeing him fall silent, Jiang Zhou sheathed his blade first, fearing he might cut him. Worried that keeping his wrists twisted for too long would cause discomfort, he relaxed his grip to release one hand, holding only a single wrist as he asked, “Have you thought it through?”
Ji Yunlang asked, “Where is the tangerine?”
Jiang Zhou looked back; it had rolled onto the ground. A trace of black mist drifted from his body, scooping it up and placing it into Ji Yunlang’s palm.
Feeling the sand and dirt clinging to it, Ji Yunlang said, “It’s dirty. I’m not eating it.”
Jiang Zhou: “It has skin.”
Ji Yunlang let go, letting it roll back onto the ground. “Not eating.”
Jiang Zhou released him completely, gazing into the distance, and went to pluck a fresh one for him.
He didn’t keep Ji Yunlang waiting long, and Ji Yunlang didn’t run away again either. Turning around to lean against the tree, spiritual light seeped from Ji Yunlang’s fingertips as he wiped the silver chain that had just been touched.
When Jiang Zhou returned with a fresh one, Ji Yunlang still refused to eat it, tossing it into his personal Qiankun bag to let it vanish without a trace.
Seeing his Qiankun bag, Jiang Zhou remembered that he had recently bought a lot of new clothes, just waiting for Ji Yunlang to change into them.
There was a city nearby where they could lodge, and Ji Yunlang was clearly heading in that direction.
Jiang Zhou asked, “Are you tired?”
Ji Yunlang ignored him.
Coincidentally, Jiang Zhou found himself unable to speak further as well, silently following beside him.
The five major major sects had tricked Ji Yunlang into going to Penglai Island for a reason.
Perhaps they had discovered a method to close the Bafang Region through Ji Yunlang, or perhaps they had unearthed his background. In short, Ji Yunlang’s journey this time was akin to walking into a tiger’s den; the five major sects undoubtedly had numerous schemes waiting for him.
The safest approach was to watch over Ji Yunlang and prevent him from going. But if he didn’t go, Jiang Zhou wouldn’t be able to counter their moves, leaving him unable to uncover the true objectives of the five major sects.
In that case, let Ji Yunlang go. Penglai Island was a paradise detached from the mortal world with pleasant scenery; he could treat it as a leisure trip. With him following along, nothing could go wrong.
Entering the city and walking down the street with Ji Yunlang, Jiang Zhou’s mind drifted back to the first time he came to the Immortal Region.
He had forgotten which city they entered, but Jiang Shishui and Yun Zhengyue had held his hands, one on each side. At that time, he wasn’t even as tall as their waists. He had looked left and right, deeply marveled by the scenery of the Immortal Region and the prosperity of the marketplace.
Passersby mistook them for a family of three. Someone whispered secretly to a friend nearby, “Like I said, you need to find someone good-looking to marry. Look at their features with the parents having such a solid foundation, how could the child they bear be anything less than stunning?”
Jiang Zhou frowned. Seeing the way they whispered while looking askance, he thought they were hurling insults. With a flick of his foot, he launched a stone that cracked open one of their heads.
Later, they had to pay a substantial amount of compensation. Yun Zhengyue had held him down, apologizing continuously, while the injured man clutched his head. Seeing Jiang Zhou’s defiant and silent expression, the man’s subsiding anger flared up again. “This child of yours is no longer a toddler. How can he let his mother apologize for his mistakes while he doesn’t even know how to utter an apology himself?”
“This…” Yun Zhengyue knelt down, touching his shoulder, but Jiang Zhou turned his head away indifferently.
The man’s fury grew hotter. Dragging a chair over, he sat right in front of them, blocking their path and declaring that if the child didn’t apologize today, this matter wouldn’t end.
Jiang Shishui coughed twice from the side. Kneeling down, he forcefully turned Jiang Zhou’s shoulders to force him face-to-face, speaking with a voice drenched in deep sorrow: “My dear son, your father knows this world is a bit cruel to a mute child like you. But when you do something wrong, you must acknowledge it. You are small right now, so your parents can protect you. What about when you grow up? You must learn to live on your own eventually. Go on, apologize to this gentleman, ask if he can forgive you, and request him to let us leave.”
The man on the chair could no longer sit still, a flash of awkwardness crossing his face. “A m-mute child.”
Jiang Shishui sighed despondently, remaining silent.
The man waved his hand, saying to forget it and let them go. Jiang and Yun immediately pulled him along to leave. Jiang Zhou pursed his lips tightly, his fists clenched, shouting toward the back of the man who had just turned around: “S-sor”
The word “ry” failed to come out, the sound trapped at the edge of his lips, refusing to surface. Hearing the voice, the man had already turned around, and with the entire street of people watching, Jiang Zhou was on the verge of tears from the suppression.
Ultimately, he couldn’t force it out. The memory of those searching eyes made him feel incredibly humiliated and miserable.
Following that incident, his face remained dark throughout the entire journey, ignoring whoever spoke to him. The joy of his first visit to the Immortal Region was completely washed away.
Jiang Shishui and Yun Zhengyue began to bicker, each believing the other had failed to be a proper parent, causing the child misery on his first trip out.
Folding his arms and leaning against the wall, Jiang Shishui knit his brows impatiently. “I’ve never been a father before; how am I supposed to know how to raise a child?”
Yun Zhengyue’s voice was gentle and her speech slow, yet her tone held no ground. “You’ve never been a father, but have I ever been a mother? We’ve only been married for a few years, yet you’ve already become like this, doing nothing but arguing with me whenever trouble arises. If we have our own child in the future, can I truly trust you to raise them?”
Hearing her words, Jiang Shishui froze, coughing unnaturally twice. “We haven’t been married that long; it’s too early to speak of such things.”
Yun Zhengyue also lowered her head, her face flushing crimson in secret.
Jiang Zhou, huddled alone in a corner: “…”
If the two of them ever had a child, Jiang Zhou didn’t know what he would do.
Just as they finished arguing, the two of them held hands. Jiang Zhou’s mood grew even darker. Rushing between them, he severed their joined hands, grabbing one hand on each side for himself.
Later, upon returning to the Bafang Region, Jiang Shishui strictly warned him never to let the other two children know about the trip to the Immortal Region.
Jiang Zhou: “Oh.”
When they arrived home, Hua Jia had just finished killing someone, crouching at the entrance using the blood on his dagger to comb his hair. Seeing him return, he asked, “Where did you go?”
Jiang Zhou ignored him. Hua Jia flung himself over, shaking the blood from his hair all over Jiang Zhou’s face. Jiang Zhou slapped him across the face, slamming his face down into the black sand.
The fight grew progressively brutal until Jiang Shishui heard the commotion and came over to call a halt to them both. Crawling to his feet, Hua Jia spat out a mouthful of black sand. Despite his young age, he possessed an extraordinarily beautiful face, his slightly upturned eyes filled with venomous malice.
He glared at Jiang Zhou. Taking advantage of Jiang Shishui’s temporary distraction, Jiang Zhou slapped him again, knocking out one of Hua Jia’s teeth.
Hua Jia laughed, spitting out the broken tooth mixed with sand and blood, then crouched at the entrance to wait for Feng Xun’s return.
Jiang Zhou didn’t go inside either, waiting at the entrance with him.
When Feng Xun returned, Hua Jia wept as he embraced him, presenting his broken tooth and pointing at Jiang Zhou to curse him.
Consequently, Jiang Zhou fought with Feng Xun as well, knocking out one of Feng Xun’s teeth in the process.
Delighted, Hua Jia collected both broken teeth together, burying them beneath the barren-branched tree at the entrance of their home.
Since childhood, Hua Jia possessed three passions: he loved blood, he loved beauty, and he loved Feng Xun.
Later, Jiang Zhou had drained his blood and flayed his beautiful skin. Regrettably, he hadn’t managed to kill Feng Xun to accompany him down below.
We’ve been good friends for so many years, yet I failed to fulfill even this small wish for Hua Jia.
Jiang Zhou felt like vomiting again, even letting out an audible dry heave. Walking ahead of him, Ji Yunlang turned back in surprise and suspicion, stepping to the side. “If you had vomited just now, would you have drenched me entirely?”
Locking eyes with Ji Yunlang’s face, Jiang Zhou felt significantly better, the urge to retch vanishing instantly.
“No. Guess,” he grabbed Ji Yunlang’s hand to pat his own stomach, “boy or girl?”
Ji Yunlang shook him off.
Sick in the head.
Jiang Zhou was indeed sick, a condition that persisted until they entered the inn.
They booked two rooms, yet he insisted on entering the same room as Ji Yunlang.
Ji Yunlang refused to enter at first, blocking the doorway as he asked, “What are you trying to do?”
Jiang Zhou pulled one, two, three, four, five, six, seven garments out of his Qiankun bag, stuffing them all into Ji Yunlang’s arms. “Wear them.”
Ji Yunlang was going in to bathe and freshen up, after which he would undoubtedly put on those identical red clothes again. Getting Ji Yunlang to willingly change his style was no easy feat. Jiang Zhou had already prepared to use both coercion and enticement; no matter what today, he was determined to see a different version of his disciple.
However, before he could utter a single threat, Ji Yunlang lowered his eyes to look at the clothes in his arms and said, “Fine.”
“?”
Seeing him agree so easily, Jiang Zhou grew suspicious.
Ji Yunlang smiled, his finger pads tracing the fabric of the garments. “Senior is so good to me. Since it’s your kind intention, why would I refuse? Which one does Senior want to see me wear?”
Without a word, Jiang Zhou shoved his shoulders with force, pushing him into the room before slamming the door shut with a heavy thud.
Then, turning around to return to his own room, he placed his broadsword on the table and sat in silence.
His heart felt stifled, utterly blocked.
Ji Yunlang should clearly have been unwilling, only agreeing reluctantly under my threats. That would be the normal reaction.
My little disciple is so defenseless outside, letting just anyone get close to him. Who is he acting obedient for?
At this moment, black mist drifted from his body, rubbing against him frantically in an attempt to make him meow.
Jiang Zhou ignored it, so the black mist began to poke at his lips repeatedly.
Unable to endure it any longer, Jiang Zhou summoned Can Can out, lifting the cat by its tail right before his eyes. Wanting to pounce on him, Can Can flailed in that inverted position, accidentally kicking him squarely in the face.
Jiang Zhou was already feeling uncomfortable, and being kicked like this only made him more displeased. Ruffling all its fur into a mess, he demanded with a piercing gaze: What did you come out for?
Ji Yunlang was right next door, separated only by a wall. With Can Can out, the Spiritual Lock Chain around Jiang Zhou’s neck lost its concealment, and its aura would soon begin to leak out.
If this continued and Ji Yunlang noticed, Jiang Zhou could spend tonight rolling around to his heart’s content on the bed of this inn with his disciple.
Jiang Zhou’s heart leaped for a moment, but then he thought: No, doing this would be pleasant for the moment, but how to escape afterward would be an issue.
If I run away again, Ji Yunlang will be infuriated to death. He will throw away the chain used as a token of love out of sheer anger, and then accept tangerines and clothes from random strange men outside.
At this thought, Jiang Zhou snapped back to reality, intending to press Can Can back inside. Lowering his head to look, where was the cat in his hands?
Looking up again, the window facing him had been opened by a small crack, the cool wind howling inside.
Can Can had actually run out to play at a time like this. A rebellious kitten, an ignorant kitten, a kitten with absolutely no grasp of the bigger picture!
In the adjoining room, steam rose behind the screen. Ji Yunlang was leaning against the bath barrel with his eyes closed when he suddenly sensed something. Snapping his eyes open, he emerged from the water at maximum speed, throwing on a robe before leaping through the window onto the street.
The aura of the Spiritual Lock Chain. Jiang Zhou is nearby.
Deep in the outskirts of the city, Jiang Zhou chased after Can Can for a great distance. The aura of the Spiritual Lock Chain could no longer be suppressed, diffusing outward frantically. Ji Yunlang must have already noticed it; finding him by following the aura was only a matter of time.
Where on earth did Can Can run off to?
An unsettling little cat. Once I catch it, I am definitely shaving off all the fur on its backside.
Suddenly, an ominous premonition surged in his heart. Jiang Zhou halted his steps, swiftly dodging behind a tree to alter his face and clothes. The exact instant he turned to step out, he was pinned against the tree by two furious swords.