In the humid, sticky vapor, Lu Yin slowly let out a warm breath: “…It’s… Su Li, huh.”
His face was flushed crimson, and if one listened closely, even his voice bore a faint tremble.
Looking at his Master in such a state, Su Li felt an itch in his throat and forced out a question: “Master, what are you doing?”
Lu Yin gritted his teeth. “Just… looking at the scenery.”
Su Li sneered inwardly: How could anyone look at the scenery in such a strange posture?
The person behind him was using some unknown concealment trick—their silhouette was hazy and completely unclear. But Su Li knew:
That person was right there. Whichever of the two Dao companions it was, they were intentionally peeking through the crack in the window with a playful, mocking gaze, watching him.
Perhaps those large hands were currently resting on Master’s waist, pinning him firmly against the window frame while only his upper body leaned outside, swaying unsteadily.
A fine, continuous drizzle fell, pattering against Lu Yin’s eyelashes before sliding down their long, ink-black length all the way to his fingers gripping the window frame—knuckles turned icy white from the sheer exertion of holding on.
Yet the person behind him laughed softly, leaning in close to his ear to whisper scorching words: “Feel it carefully. This rainwater is stemless water, exceedingly pure, and immensely beneficial to your cultivation…”
At the same time, a suffocatingly intense spiritual aura wrapped tightly around Lu Yin. On the ankle forced onto tip-toe, silver bells chimed in a chaotic, frantic frenzy.
The extreme, searing spiritual aura tangled with the cool stemless water, weaving a contradictory yet starkly vivid sensory experience. Lu Yin could only half-close his eyes, letting a trembling cloud of white mist escape his lips.
In front of his obedient disciple, he strained to maintain his usual composure—tottering precariously on the brink, yet not daring to utter a single sound.
Su Li wanted to say more, but he saw Lu Yin rest his weight on the window frame, slightly tilting his neck as a brief, choked ‘nngh’ escaped his lips. On skin as pale as fresh snow, the small mole near his lips flushed a bright, feverish red.
In the very next second, as if yanked back into the room by some immense force, the window frame closed with a sharp thud.
Silence restored.
In this quiet sound of falling rain, only a thread-thin chime of bells continued to ring out—as though mocking him in triumph, tearing apart Su Li’s very soul.
A passing disciple happened to walk by and looked in surprise at Su Li, who stood still as a stone statue: “Senior Brother? The elders are calling for you to attend a meeting… The people from the other two sects are all there.”
Su Li snapped out of his daze as if waking from a dream: “What? Are both the Master of Red Blood Lake and the Medical Immortal there?”
The disciple shrank his neck, unable to fathom why he was so agitated: “Yes.”
Su Li clenched his fists tightly, his gaze sharp as a blade: If it isn’t those two dog men, could there be a third, unknown figure standing behind Master?
To be able to move so freely on their Linghua Sect’s airship—who could it possibly be?!
Perhaps Su Li had grown far too obsessed with the thought. Having spent the entire day pondering it, he found himself utterly unable to settle his mind even after returning to his cabin.
Perhaps I’m just overthinking it. Perhaps there is no third person at all, and Master was simply cultivating in the stemless water.
I’m being far too sensitive.
With those thoughts comforting him, Su Li finally drifted into a deep sleep.
Yet, from the sword wound on his chest—the one left by the demon cultivator—a faint, ominous red light began to seep out once more.
Su Li fell into a dream.
He returned to his Master’s room—the scene inside the cabin from earlier that day. He vaguely saw a tall figure clad in black pinning Lu Yin against the window, his tone laced with playful mockery: “Did your disciple see everything?”
The hair near Lu Yin’s temples was soaked with moist mist, clinging to his snowy-white cheek in a delicate, ink-wash contrast of black and white. He voiced his displeasure: “Master, did you do that on purpose, fully knowing he was downstairs?! That is far too much!”
Su Li was struck with sheer shock: What did he just call him? Master? Could this be… Daoist Venerable Xuanming?!
No, impossible!
How could there be anything between them?!
They are master and disciple!
Within the murky dimness, the face of that black-robed figure remained shrouded in obscurity, save for the faint, silver-white hair framing his temples—a distinct trait belonging to Grandmaster Xuanming…
He let out a low chuckle, though his voice held no genuine mirth: “I told you that brat possesses wild ambition, yet you never believed me. Can’t you see the way that little wolf looks at you?” Saying so, his wide black sleeve shifted slightly. Between his long, sharp fingers, arcs of lightning burst forth—and in a single instant, shattered the neat jade collar button at Lu Yin’s neck.
Su Li’s pupils shrank violently, his mind buzzing in chaos: Discovered…? Did Grandmaster discover my treasonous desires toward Master?!
The conversation inside the room continued. Lu Yin said anxiously: “Wait, just because feelings blossomed between us as master and disciple, you cannot suspect that all master-disciple bonds are—mmph!”
Abruptly, the man’s large hand pinched Lu Yin’s throat. The touch was gentle, yet it carried subtle arcs of lightning that instantly paralyzed Lu Yin’s throat, leaving him unable to form coherent words.
He spoke at an unhurried pace: “My good disciple, you wouldn’t believe me when I told you, so I had no choice but to test it out a little… Besides, your natural Ice Spiritual Root—after being drenched in stemless water, look, hasn’t your spiritual power become a bit more refined?”
A thumb bearing a thunder-struck wood ring caressed Lu Yin’s jawline, forcing his mouth slightly open to reveal the numb lips and tongue within. Lu Yin couldn’t help but shudder.
Su Li struggled amidst extreme fury and shock. On one hand, he was terrified that his most secret, buried desires had been exposed so easily; on the other, he was consumed with hatred that this man would treat Master in such a brazenly reckless manner!
Yet in the next second, seeing Master’s trembling demeanor and his soft, wet, flushed lips and tongue, an indescribable yearning surged uncontrollably within him!
How could I see it so clearly! How could I hear it so distinctly!
Immediately after, a low whisper from the man pressed close to Lu Yin’s ear ignited his blood entirely!
He said: “I did not make you use your mouth to catch the stemless water right in front of your disciple—that was already my mercy to you…”
Lu Yin’s pupils contracted sharply. The man, wearing a satisfied smile, pushed open the window frame once again and pinned Lu Yin backward out the window.
Hair as dark as ink cascaded down from his collarbones. This time, it wasn’t just his face—cool rainwater trickled down from his torn collar, soaking all the way to his jade-white shoulders.
No, someone will see!
Lu Yin subconsciously struggled violently. At that moment, Su Li felt as if his vision had merged completely with the man’s. He tightly interlocked his fingers with Lu Yin’s, pinning him down firmly. He heard himself say with malicious delight: “Catch it well. Master intends to use this pure stemless water to brew a pot of fine tea.”
“!!!”
Su Li snapped awake from the dream, his chest heaving uncontrollably!
The scenes from the dream remained vividly etched in his mind; even the tactile sensation on his hands and lips felt extraordinarily real. In the end, he had used Lu Yin’s body to brew tea…
No—he had taken on the identity of his Master and done whatever he pleased to Lu Yin, who acted as the “disciple.”
Why did this happen?
Have I truly gone mad?!
Su Li covered his eyes, the corners of his vision flushed with a wild, crazed red.
Beneath the bed, a dark mist oozed from his wound, coiling its body in triumphant satisfaction.
The next day, when Su Li went to his Master’s room again, he found Master—now dressed in a fresh set of robes—sitting alone by the table in meditation. His spiritual aura was full and rounded, as if it had indeed advanced a step further under the nourishment of the stemless water.
Su Li moved quietly and poured a cup of spiritual tea: “Master, please have some tea.”
At the word “tea,” Lu Yin opened his eyes. A flicker of displeasure seemed to pass through his gaze as he reached out and pushed the teacup slightly farther away.
Su Li felt uneasy: “Master?”
The events in the dream couldn’t possibly be real, right…
The young man with a face like fine jade paused for a moment before speaking:
“It’s nothing. I’m not thirsty… I wish to discuss with you the matter of searching for meteoric iron in the Qingpeng Secret Realm.”
“Meteoric iron?” Su Li let out a sigh of relief before asking, “Meteoric iron from beyond the heavens? If Master needs it, I will certainly retrieve it.”
“It is not for me,” Lu Yin shook his head slightly. “I want you to use the meteoric iron to forge your Natal Sword.”
A Natal Sword… A wave of warmth flowed through Su Li’s heart. Most cultivators forged their own natal treasures—much like Master’s treasure, which was that small Ice Dust Seal—but forging a Natal Sword was exceedingly rare.
A Natal Sword was hard to come by; it required nothing short of heavenly treasures and rare materials. In particular, the sword blank needed to be refined using one’s own spiritual power before it could be forged into a sword again. In other words, it required a two-step refinement process.
Among these, the secret technique for the second refinement process had always been held exclusively by a handful of grandmaster blacksmiths, never leaked to outsiders.
To borrow and read it, one would have to pay a steep price in exchange…
“Master… did you secure the secret technique for the second refinement for me?” Su Li asked.
Lu Yin replied: “You do not need to worry about the refining method. I have my own ways.”
Master admitted it!
For me!
All for me!
A spark of joyful excitement ignited within Su Li’s heart.
Joy, intertwined with guilt, wove a complex tapestry inside his chest, leaving him at a loss for words. He could only gaze deeply at Lu Yin.
Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind, and Su Li hesitated briefly: “It’s just that last time, Grandmaster Xuanming mentioned that I was far too dull and unsuited for the sword.”
“Hmph!” Lu Yin let out a rare humph, expressing his dissatisfaction quite directly. “You were born with a single Gold Spiritual Root; a sword as your natal weapon suits you best.”
“An ordinary sword blank paired with your spiritual root offers you no real benefit. Only meteoric iron from beyond the heavens can render you invincible.”
Am I truly that exceptional in Master’s heart?
Master… Master treats me so well, how could I not be moved? How could my heart not stir?!
Su Li’s expression shifted, practically burning with the urge to confess his feelings to his Master right then and there. Just at that moment, the airship jolted violently!
What happened?
Outside the window, the anxious voices of disciples rang out: “The defensive array suddenly stopped responding!”
“Why did the sky suddenly turn dark?!”
“It’s a solar eclipse! The Heavenly Dog is devouring the sun!”