Today was another day filled with anticipation for a chance encounter!
Ye Chi walked toward Tingyun Marsh with a blade of foxtail grass dangling from his mouth, his footsteps considerably lighter and more cheerful than usual.
The afternoons in the Insect Valley were unbearably hot and humid. He hummed an off-key little tune as he strolled along, and from a distance, he saw someone emerging through the main gate.
The person was dressed entirely in black. Walking against the light, he emerged from the gate as the corners of his robe fluttered gently in the breeze. The fabric carried the faint, soothing fragrance of sandalwood. His amber-colored eyes gazed straight ahead as he passed Ye Chi without so much as a glance.
Ye Chi couldn’t help rolling his eyes inwardly.
He was certain that Xiao Jihan had seen him.
Master, you old geezer! You see your own disciple and don’t even bother to greet him?!
Are you really my biological master? We barely ever run into each other, and this is how you treat me when we finally meet?!
Out of every ten times Ye Chi saw Xiao Jihan, at least eight of those encounters took place at Tingyun Marsh.
Who knew what had brought his usually aloof and busy master here this time?
Probably to harass his beloved Senior Brother Shen again!
Pah! What a pathetic bootlicker!
He failed to notice that, in calling someone else a bootlicker, he had inadvertently insulted himself as well.
Ye Chi watched as his master disappeared into the distance. Then he turned around and angrily kicked a stone lying on the ground.
What a damn useless rock! Why are you blocking my way?!
The stone struck a tree trunk, bounced back, and hit Ye Chi squarely on the ankle. He cursed, then limped forward with an increasingly unpleasant expression.
Upon reaching Tingyun Marsh, Ye Chi headed straight for the spiritual plant garden and placed the medicinal powder outside Lord Siqing’s bamboo tower.
He was just about to turn around and head back when a Tingyun Marsh disciple, drenched in sweat from head to toe, stopped him.
The man was carrying a bundle of formation flags in his arms. The moment he saw Ye Chi, his eyes lit up as though he had encountered his savior.
“Senior Brother Ye! Just in time! There’s a crack in the barrier over at the western corner. I need to hurry to the storehouse and collect materials to repair the formation. Could you keep watch over it for me first and make sure the crack doesn’t spread?”
Ye Chi agreed without the slightest hesitation. They were all one big family, after all. There was no need to stand on ceremony between family members! Anything that concerned Tingyun Marsh concerned Ye Chi as well. That was a matter of principle.
When he arrived at the location, he found that the barrier had indeed cracked, and miasma was already seeping through the opening.
Fortunately, it wasn’t a serious problem. Ye Chi picked up the writing brush from the desk, dipped it into the cinnabar ink, and crouched down to carefully repair the formation inscriptions on the ground.
It was nearing dusk. The twilight was beautiful, and the mist that gathered over the Insect Valley had yet to spread completely across the area. Orange-colored rays of sunset still lingered along the distant horizon.
Before long, only one section of the formation inscriptions remained unfinished. Ye Chi lifted his head and rolled his stiff, aching neck to loosen it up. His peripheral vision happened to drift toward the left, and he froze on the spot.
The window on the second floor of the bamboo tower stood wide open. From where he was sitting, he had a perfect view of—
Shen Zhuoqing, dressed in a long, bamboo-green brocade robe, turning the pages of a book on the low table with his jade-white hands. His lips moved silently as he read, and the sleeves of his robe had slipped downward, revealing a section of his wrist. It was as white as the jade hairpin tucked into his hair.
Ye Chi was openly, shamelessly staring at him. His brush had stopped in midair, and a drop of cinnabar ink slid down its tip before falling onto the formation.
Shen Zhuoqing seemed to notice something. He raised his head and looked in Ye Chi’s direction.
Ye Chi hurriedly snatched his gaze away. Moving his arms and legs in an awkward, uncoordinated fashion, he shuffled half a foot farther away, ducked behind some medicinal herbs, and concealed his aura. Then, through the gaps between the leaves, he attempted to continue his peeping.
The spiritual dog in the garden noticed Ye Chi’s suspicious behavior and barked several times.
Da Huang!! What the hell are you doing?!
Ye Chi felt as though all the blood in his body was rushing straight to the top of his head. His face turned bright red, and he hurriedly gestured at Da Huang, trying to silence the mood-killing dog.
Unfortunately, his movements were far too exaggerated. His arm slammed into a stone pillar, producing a loud, muffled thud.
He bared his teeth and endured the pain without making a sound, silently praying that Shen Zhuoqing hadn’t heard it.
Then, the sound of a door opening came from the bamboo tower.
Ye Chi turned his head in despair, only to find himself meeting Shen Zhuoqing’s gaze directly.
AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!
Ye Chi screamed soundlessly inside his head. His mind went completely blank. Once he finally managed to react, he hurriedly picked up the brush that had somehow fallen to the ground and resumed drawing the formation inscriptions.
The lines came out crooked and wobbly.
As he watched that familiar figure in bamboo green emerge from the tower, Ye Chi continued forcing himself to maintain the appearance of someone diligently repairing the formation.
He’s coming over.
Why is he coming over?! Does he think I’m some kind of perverted peeping tom? If he really comes over, am I supposed to greet him?
And if he asks what I’m doing, should I just tell him the truth? Should I say, “Senior Brother Shen, you’re simply too beautiful, and I really can’t help myself”?
No, no, no! If I actually said that, my master would probably slap me straight into a pile of cockroaches and bury me alive!
The sound of approaching footsteps grew steadily closer, and Ye Chi’s temples throbbed with every passing second.
In a desperate attempt to conceal his guilt, he lowered his head even further. He had finished repairing the last few strokes of the formation a long time ago, but he continued gripping the brush and repeatedly tracing the exact same section.
Who am I? Why am I here? What am I doing?
A pair of white boots embroidered with gold stopped right in front of him. Silver bamboo leaves had been stitched onto the fabric, yet even at such close range, Ye Chi couldn’t make out a single stitch. Pieces of jade were embedded in the surface of the boots, and a small smear of damp mud clung to the toe.
Ye Chi took a deep breath and raised his head.
Shen Zhuoqing stood right in front of him, the orange light of dusk casting a thin, warm glow over his figure.
At that moment, he was looking down at Ye Chi, a faint smile resting on his lips. “Thank you for your hard work. Where is Junior Brother Li?”
The moment Ye Chi met that face, his nerves went completely haywire. He could barely get his words out.
“H-he… h-he, he went to collect the materials. He… he said he’d be back soon.”
Shen Zhuoqing glanced at the crack in the barrier. “The crack isn’t very deep. If you have other things to attend to, you can head back first. I’ll wait here.”
“N-no, no, I don’t have anything to do…” Ye Chi hurriedly waved his hands, desperately trying to suppress his excitement. “Anyway, there’s nothing much for me to do back there either. I’ll wait here for Junior Brother Li to return. In case something happens, I can still lend a hand.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he realized that he had said far too much. He was now completely incapable of controlling his own mouth.
Does Lord Siqing think I’m annoying?
Ye Chi didn’t dare say anything else.
And so, the two of them sat quietly together in the fading light of dusk.
The evening breeze drifted past, carrying the bitter, refreshing fragrance of medicinal herbs.
Was it the scent of the spiritual plant garden?
Or was it the fragrance of Lord Siqing himself?
Ye Chi felt certain that there must be some kind of hallucinogenic herb growing nearby. Otherwise, why would he feel as though he were drunk, talking complete nonsense without the slightest control over himself?
“Senior Brother Shen, actually… I…”
“Hmm?”
“I’ve liked you… for a very long time! Can I… can I pursue you?”
Yes. At that moment, Ye Chi’s brain had probably been struck by a hoe from the spiritual plant garden, then trampled by a spirit beast out for a springtime stroll.
Only after the words had left his mouth did Ye Chi finally realize what he had done.
He had just confessed his feelings.
Ye Chi was completely numb.
“I-I-I didn’t… Ah, I mean… um…”
His neck had turned bright red. He stammered incoherently for a long time, unable to form a single sensible sentence. Then, looking into Shen Zhuoqing’s eyes, which held that faint, amused smile, he suddenly sprang to his feet and blurted out, “I heard there’s a cockroach infestation next door! I’m going to take a look! Goodbye, Senior Brother!”
With that, he fled.
Shen Zhuoqing seemed to say something behind him, but the wind rushed into Ye Chi’s ears with a loud whoosh, and he couldn’t make out a single word. He kept his head down and sprinted along a shortcut, nearly colliding with Junior Brother Li, who was returning with the repair materials.
He ran all the way to the entrance of the spiritual plant garden. Just as he was preparing to continue fleeing toward Black Mud Marsh, he turned the corner and came face-to-face with a terrifying figure.
Xiao Jihan had somehow returned without Ye Chi noticing. He stood there silently, his gaze deep and inscrutable.
Ye Chi’s legs went weak, and he nearly dropped to his knees.
“M-Master?”
Didn’t he leave eight hundred years ago? Why is he back again?!
And… did he hear my confession just now? How much did he hear?
“The thirty-seventh form of the Seven-Star Formation, the Concealment Formation. Go back and practice it properly. You can’t even hide your presence from a dog. When you go out on missions in the future, are you planning to get your fellow disciples killed?”
Ye Chi remained frozen in a half-kneeling position, burying his face in his palms.
It’s over. Master saw everything. He’d been watching since before I even ran into Da Huang!
“You like him?”
Ye Chi fell silent.
How could he possibly dare to say anything?!
Xiao Jihan suddenly bent down, reached out, and gripped Ye Chi’s chin, forcing him to raise his head.
“What a pity.”
He released Ye Chi and stepped back half a pace, a smile that wasn’t quite a smile playing on his lips.
“Shen Zhuoqing is going to form a cultivation bond with someone. The sect leader will announce it to the entire sect tomorrow.”