Geng Xinghe lowered his head in silence.
Chi Changye grew even more exasperated. “With you acting like this, how can I ever feel at ease.”
“Master, rest assured. It will never happen again.”
“No person or matter will ever cause me to lose my sanity again.”
The boy bowed once more, lifting his face to reveal an expression of earnest, pitiful sincerity. “I simply… could not hold back in that moment. Prince Huai slaughtered my entire clan and brought ruin upon the innocent. It was because of Lin Zixiang… that I was provoked into losing my senses.”
Geng Xinghe spoke with a voice thick with tears, “Master, if you deem my crimes unforgivable, Geng Chen is willing to die to atone for my sins.”
Gazing down at the kneeling youth before him, Chi Changye’s heart suddenly softened.
The azure-clad immortal fell silent as well.
He was naturally unaccustomed to interacting with others and struggled to fully comprehend human emotions.
Before bringing Geng Xinghe back to Peak Chiyue, he wouldn’t even have bothered to consider whether vengeance ought to have limits.
What did the grievances and hatreds of the mortal world matter to him?
Yet now, he found himself thinking that Geng Xinghe’s words made a certain kind of sense.
Not a single old or young soul from either the Geng or Lin families had been left alive; why on earth should the victims be expected to forgive the children of their tormentors?
Master and disciple fell into a strange, heavy silence.
After a long while, Chi Changye sighed. “Very well. You may rise.”
Geng Xinghe dared not move.
He knew how catastrophic the disaster he had brought about truly was, and dragging his master down with him was his greatest sin.
Noticing that the boy remained on his knees, Chi Changye suddenly lost his patience. “Are you getting up or not? If you refuse to get up, then get out!”
The anger of Immortal Lord Yaoguang flared up for no discernible reason, and he turned as if to leave.
When had he, Chi Changye, ever been subjected to such agonizing grievance? He had already told the boy to stand, what more could he possibly want?
Did he expect him to drop to his knees and beg him?
In a panic, Geng Xinghe reached out to clutch the hem of Chi Changye’s robes. “Master, I truly know I was wrong. Please forgive me.”
Irritated, Chi Changye felt an urge to thrash this stubbornly kneeling, rebellious disciple soundly.
He had already told him to stand up, how else was he supposed to forgive him?
Should he kiss him, hug him, and lift him up in the air?
What a wretched creature. Having committed such monstrous atrocities, what kind of forgiveness was he still expecting?
Chi Changye raised a foot and kicked Geng Xinghe squarely in the shoulder.
Immortal Lord Yaoguang was no ordinary mortal; had he applied his full strength, Geng Xinghe would likely have been embedded deep into the rock face, impossible to pry out.
Yet Geng Xinghe merely stumbled backward and fell to the ground.
Lifting his face, the boy bit his lip as he gazed up at Chi Changye, unshed tears shimmering within his eyes. “Has Master’s anger subsided?”
With a cold expression and an unyielding tone, Chi Changye retorted, “What do you think?”
Geng Xinghe promptly returned to his kneeling posture, keeping his spine straight and rigid. “I beg Master to punish me. Until Master’s anger is appeased, Geng Chen dares not stand.”
“You.”
Chi Changye wanted to curse, but the words withered on his tongue, replaced by a cold sneer. “Threatening me?”
“Geng Chen would not dare. This disciple knows his crime is grave and asks only for a severe punishment from Master,” Geng Xinghe choked out, lowering himself into the very dust as he pleaded with Chi Changye.
Though Chi Changye’s immortal core was forged of raw wood and stone, he still possessed a mortal heart of flesh.
He was neither skilled in demeaning or torturing others, nor could he bear to witness the pitiful, sorrowful entreaties of another human being.
When the person making those pleas was the disciple into whom he had poured his own painstaking efforts, such soft-heartedness proved doubly impossible to suppress.
Bending down, Chi Changye grabbed the boy and hauled him up by brute force—an action that appeared rough, though he carefully avoided applying any brutal strength. “Since you know your error, I sentence you to descend into the mortal realm and chant scriptures to guide and deliver the three hundred and odd souls of the Prince Huai estate.”
“Master!” The boy snapped his head up in stunned disbelief, staring at Chi Changye with sheer horror, entirely unable to believe his master would demand such a cruel penance of him.
To personally guide and deliver the souls of the very enemies who had murdered his parents, he might as well never have sought vengeance at all!
Understanding the resentment churning within the boy’s heart, Chi Changye explained, “The moment a physical shell perishes, no matter how monstrous the sins committed in the mortal world, they are washed away with death. The underworld will naturally reckon with the sins of their souls.”
He sighed softly before adding, “Before I came to retrieve you, I personally escorted the souls of the Geng family into the underworld. With the protective talismans I inscribed myself, the underworld will surely treat them with care, so you may rest easy.”
Geng Xinghe lowered his gaze. “Thank you, Master.”
“Very well.” Chi Changye pressed a hand against the youth’s shoulder, pausing before continuing, “Xinghe, you need not chant scriptures to absolve their sins. It will suffice simply to guide their souls safely across the threshold into the netherworld.”
Geng Xinghe murmured a quiet, obedient “Mn.”
Chi Changye patted the boy’s back in a gesture of reassurance. “In the future, you must never act so recklessly again.”
“Yes,” the boy answered in a low voice.
A moment later, he raised his head to look at Chi Changye. “Master, your wounds. May I tend to them for you?”
Geng Xinghe gazed at Chi Changye, his eyes instantly turning red. “Master.”
Chi Changye wanted to claim his wounds were already healed.
Yet meeting the tear-filled gaze of the youth, the azure-clad immortal found himself entirely unable to force the words past his lips.
Quietly channeling a sliver of spiritual power, Chi Changye forcibly tore open the wounds that had just begun to knit together, gritting his teeth as he said, “Very well.”
Geng Xinghe followed Chi Changye back into the Lotus Breeze Pavilion.
Chi Changye shed his upper garments, exposing a torso carved with solid muscle and smooth, fluid lines.
Yet that skin, which ought to have been as flawless as jade, was currently marred by a dense web of overlapping injuries oozing fresh blood, looking savage and terrifying.
The moment Geng Xinghe laid eyes upon them, heavy, oversized tears fell from his eyes, striking the floor with a rhythmic patter.
Chi Changye felt a tinge of awkwardness. “Are you going to help or not? If not, get out of my sight.”
Acknowledging the command with a soft word, Geng Xinghe stepped behind Chi Changye. Confronted by the dazzling array of porcelain jars and bottles resting on the table, he looked momentarily bewildered. “Master, which one should I use?”
Reaching out, Chi Changye picked up a specific porcelain vial and handed it over. “Just sprinkle this medicinal powder directly onto the wounds.”
Geng Xinghe accepted the vial, opened it as instructed, and used a cotton gauze pad to scoop up some of the powder, dusting it across Chi Changye’s injuries.
The moment the powder came into contact with the torn flesh, however, the wounds shriveled rapidly as though scorched by a roaring fire.
Though Chi Changye didn’t utter a single sound, the involuntary twitching of his muscles betrayed the agonizing torment he was enduring.
Startled, Geng Xinghe gasped, “Master, this.”
Unfazed, Chi Changye merely asked, “What is it?”
Beads of cold sweat beaded across the azure-clad immortal’s forehead, and his lips drained to an even paler shade, making him resemble a fragile, easily shattered porcelain doll. “The medicinal potency is simply quite fierce, but it is the absolute best remedy for halting bleeding and regenerating flesh.”
“Is this really regeneration? It’s burning away his flesh and blood entirely!” Unable to bear the sight, Geng Xinghe choked out through his tears.
Chi Changye let out a heavy sigh. “What does it matter, never mind. Since you can’t bring yourself to do it, I’ll handle it myself.”
Geng Xinghe shook his head frantically. “No! Master, we cannot use this medicine. Is there anything else.”
The pain was far too cruel; he couldn’t bear to watch his master suffer like this.
Chi Changye’s patience finally ran completely dry. “Get out! Leave this room at once, I don’t need your help, I’ll treat myself!”
Damn it all, I didn’t even care myself, why is this stubborn brat making such a fuss!
Why on earth did I lose my mind and subject myself to this torment all over again!
Geng Xinghe was shoved forcibly out of the bedchamber.
The young immortal slammed the chamber door shut with a violent crash.
Damn it, what a troublesome wretch! I’m going to be driven to an early grave by him.
Chi Changye dug out another pellet designed to stop bleeding, regenerate flesh, and replenish vitality, shoving it straight into his mouth.
He swore to himself that he would never again feel soft-hearted toward a bastard of a disciple!