Chapter 52.2

A few of them sat together in a bamboo pavilion, sharing snacks and pastries. The younger disciples chattered away, telling Xue Ming how Yan Yuhe had been strict and impartial in the Tai Xu Sect, valuing nothing more than his sword. They said that even those who grew up with him were treated no differently than strangers if they didn’t meet his standards. Their stories were meant to highlight the special treatment Yan Yuhe gave Xue Ming. Though some parts were exaggerated, Xue Ming enjoyed hearing them and felt delighted. She played with the younger disciples until late at night before heading back. Carrying a small basket of pastries, she walked lightly, humming a tune as she returned to her residence. Upon entering, she saw Yan Yuhe standing under the eaves, his black robe blending into the night. There were no lights, and she couldn’t tell what he was doing.

Xue Ming closed the courtyard door behind her and asked, “Did you just get back?”

Yan Yuhe’s gaze fell on her, and he replied softly, “I was waiting for you to return.”

“I was playing with your junior brothers and sisters in the bamboo forest. I didn’t go far. You could have called, and I would have heard you.” Xue Ming walked towards him, shaking the small basket in her hand with a smile. “Your junior brother brought me these pastries. They’re delicious. I saved a few for you. Would you like to try some?”

Yan Yuhe pondered momentarily before asking, “Which junior brother?”

“Liu Mengyuan,” Xue Ming said with a cheerful smile as she entered the house. “That kid is quite amusing. He said he knew his fortune-telling was accurate, so he deliberately did it slowly when you punished him to copy scriptures, waiting for you to retract the punishment. By the way, your junior brothers and sisters are all quite good-looking. Does the Tai Xu Sect select disciples based on their appearance? They’re all so pretty.”

As soon as she finished speaking, her arm was suddenly grabbed. Xue Ming was taken aback and turned to look at Yan Yuhe, who was facing away from the moon, his expression obscured by the light behind him. The originally plain brows and eyes appeared somewhat gloomy in the shadows.

“What’s wrong? Are you in a bad mood?” Xue Ming asked with concern. “I was just joking earlier. I know your Tai Xu Sect is impressive and only takes in disciples based on talent. I just meant to say that you all are quite handsome.”

“Who is handsome?” Yan Yuhe’s voice was low, his dark eyes fixed on her. “Compared to me?”

Xue Ming couldn’t help but laugh upon hearing this. She didn’t expect Yan Yuhe to be so petty about this matter, so she stepped forward to give him a hug and coaxed, “Of course, you look the best. How could they compare to you?”

Yan Yuhe’s mood visibly softened, and he wrapped his arms around her in return, lowering his head to lean close to her ear, gently breathing, “I haven’t given you any yang energy for several days.”

Xue Ming felt the warmth of his breath on her ear, the heat tingling at the base of her ear, making it a bit itchy. Instinctively, she shrank her neck and replied softly, “Okay.”

Yan Yuhe took the pastries from her arm as she entered, saying they would save them for tomorrow. She didn’t pay much attention, turning to go inside to take a bath, unaware that Yan Yuhe had tossed the small basket into the yard behind her. When the door closed, it also cut off the sound of the basket hitting the ground. A few pieces of shattered astry lay quietly under the moonlight,

Xue Ming had just finished her bath and hadn’t even had time to put on her clothes when Yan Yuhe carried her to the bed. Today’s kiss felt somewhat fervent; Yan Yuhe held her close, leaving red fingerprints on her snow-white skin, and pecking kisses marked her neck and collarbone.

Xue Ming lay down, relaxing her body, feeling the dry, warm palms wandering over her limbs. After several days without receiving yang energy, her body slowly returned to a cold state. Previously, the yin energy absorbed at the last array was too much. Even though Yan Yuhai had been transferring yang energy into her body for the past two months, he still couldn’t completely expel the yin energy within her. If she let her guard down for even a moment, her condition would start to decline.

Xue Ming instinctively sought warmth, pressing closely against him, her consciousness beginning to sink into desire. Just as she squinted her eyes to feel Yan Yuhe’s gentle kiss, he suddenly pulled away, leaving her feeling cold. She slightly opened her eyes to see Yan Yuhe taking three small red pills from the crystal jar she hadn’t seen in a long time and tossing them into his mouth. Xue Ming was taken aback, immediately frightened into propping herself up, and exclaimed in astonishment, “Why are you eating so many?”

Yan Yuhe lowered his gaze and looked at her momentarily, then leaned down to pin her, kissing her lips. His tongue forcefully pried open her lips and teeth, the pill that had turned to liquid merging with it, intertwining with his tongue. Xue Ming was so frightened that she twisted her head and struggled, but Yan Yuhe held her down, unable to move. With a slight movement of her throat, she swallowed the liquid formed from the pill.

She was afraid and said, “There’s no need to take three…”

Yan Yuhe kissed the corner of her lips, affectionately licking away the drool, and softly replied, “You’ll feel better.”

Xue Ming had taken two last time and felt like she was going to die several times during the process. When she reached the peak, her consciousness was completely unclear, with no thoughts left, just an endless wave of pleasure. This time, she didn’t know what would happen after taking three. She trembled as she pinched Yan Yuhe, pressing her fingers into the hard muscle of his arm, and said, “Do you want me to die in bed?”

Yan Yuhe denied it, “No.”

“What are you talking about? It’s true!” Xue Ming wanted to argue back, but he kissed her lips.

The pill’s effects took hold quickly; before long, Xue Ming felt a warmth spreading throughout her body, like steam rising from boiling water enveloping her.

Yan Yuhe wrapped his arm around her shoulders, casually brushing against her neck. He was tall, with muscles that had smooth lines and distinct texture. His fair skin appeared clean and fresh. He towered over Xue Ming by more than just a little, almost completely overshadowing her. All her physical senses were heightened. After a wave of pleasure, Xue Ming’s legs went weak, and she collapsed back onto the bed, gasping for breath. Her crimson gaze and vibrant red eye corners gave the impression that she was a seductive enchantress who had lost her way in desire.

“Are you comfortable?”

Xue Ming was unable to respond because pleasure washed over her like a wave, each surge more intense than the last, pulling her down as if it wanted to drown her and prevent her from resisting. Tears rolled down from the corners of her eyes, but from the flushed expression on her face, it was clear she had already sunk into bliss from which she could not escape.

Yan Yuhe was already covered in fine sweat, the moisture glistening on his muscular body. His face and ears flushed a deep red, embodying that intoxicating, muddled, yet beautiful look of desire. He picked up Xue Ming and got off the bed, pecking kisses at her ear and chin, finally covering her lips. His tongue slid past her teeth, entangling itself in every corner of her mouth as if he wanted to possess every inch of Xue Ming’s body.

Xue Ming curled up in his arms, trembling without a moment of peace, only able to scratch at him with her nails, leaving long red marks on his skin.

Yan Yuhe let out a long sigh, suddenly pulling her close. His hands wrapped around her back to gather her long hair, which was scattered there. He said to her, “Look behind you.”

Xue Ming pulled a thread of clarity from her hazy consciousness and turned to look behind her, only to discover that a large mirror had been placed there at some point, standing on the ground and reflecting the two of them. The girl and the boy in the mirror had a subtle difference in skin tone, embracing each other in an intimate pose. What caught the eye was Xue Ming’s snow-white, smooth back, but on it was a dark circular pattern filled with intricate designs, along with a circle of incantations she had never seen before.

“It’s a spell that absorbs yin energy,” Yan Chixia replied in her ear. “The more yin energy you have inside you, the darker the color this spell presents.”

Xue Ming thought that the pattern she had just seen in the mirror looked almost like it had been painted with ink. She hadn’t expected that even after receiving two months’ worth of yang energy from Yan Yuhe, the yin energy in her body was still so dense. It was never discovered before; perhaps my entire back was black at that time…

“But I feel like I’m much better now,” Xue Ming said intermittently.

“Not enough,” Yan Yuhe tightened his embrace, burying his head in her neck. His gaze was heavy, his expression somewhat gloomy, and he repeated, “Not enough.”

He turned a deaf ear and wreaked havoc at will. Xue Ming couldn’t shake off the feelings inside her and began to cry out loud, feeling that if this continued, she might die. Tears streamed down her face as she shouted, “I don’t want this anymore! Wuwuwu…”

Yan Yuhe said nothing, gently kissing her eyes, nose, and lips, trailing kisses to her ears, tenderly and slowly, like unspoken comfort.

Feeling bullied, Xue Ming developed an unprecedented dependence on Yan Yuhe at that moment. After a few cries, she gradually stopped, leaving only soft sobs. Instead, she reached out to wrap her arms around his neck, leaning against him to calm her emotions. After kissing for a while, Xue Ming slowly calmed down and sobbed, saying, “That’s enough, really, it’s enough. Don’t do it again, I might die…”

Yan Yuhe pressed against her back, gently biting her ear and whispering, “No. I’ll give you more yang energy, and you’ll be able to recover soon.”

Xue Ming whimpered softly. Although she said “no” with her mouth, her body showed no signs of struggle or resistance. She lay on the soft carpet, whimpering twice. She felt like a small boat floating on the waves, rocking back and forth, unable to reach the shore. She could only struggle in wave after wave, being endlessly filled with yang energy until there was too much, and she couldn’t hold any more before it finally stopped.

Later, Xue Ming was so exhausted that she felt completely powerless. When she lay on the bed, she felt Yan Yuhe bathe, change her clothes, and feed her water, making her feel a little more awake. She was held in Yan Yuhe’s arms, drank several large gulps of water, and finally licked her moist lips, looking up at him and saying, “Have you finished your work these past few days? I have something to tell you.”

Yan Yuhe put down the water cup, lowered his eyes, and replied in a calm voice, “In a few more days, I’m still busy.”

Xue Ming responded with an “oh” and didn’t ask further questions. She obediently curled up under the blanket and went to sleep. Yan Yuhe turned off the light, got into bed himself, and held her in his arms, but he didn’t close his eyes to sleep. His gaze fell on her peaceful sleeping face and remained there for a long time without moving.

The clouds covered the moon, and the world darkened. The bamboo leaves rustled in the night wind, and the silent night buried countless thoughts.

The following day, Xue Ming woke up. She hadn’t woken up during the day for a long time. Due to her physical discomfort, she had been sleeping during the day and waking up at night, which was very painful for someone who loved the sunlight. Perhaps because of the excessive yang energy transferred the previous day, Xue Ming’s physical condition improved significantly, and she was able to stand in the sunlight. Although it was still somewhat uncomfortable, using an umbrella made it much better and not unbearable.

Xue Ming looked in the mirror and found that her ghost claws had disappeared, her eyes had turned black instead of the previous red, and her face had gained some color. At first glance, her skin was still a bit pale, but it was close to looking normal. She was delighted, and upon seeing that Yan Yuhe was not at home, she decided to go out with an umbrella for a walk. She didn’t go far; she just wandered around the bamboo forest. The bamboo forest during the day was completely different from at night. The bamboo thrived, and the golden sunlight poured in large patches, filling the air with a warm atmosphere.

Xue Ming stood in the wind, listening to the rustling of the bamboo leaves around her, once again marveling at the beauty of being alive. She basked in the sun for a while but didn’t dare stay too long. She walked around a few times in a good mood and then returned to her residence. Previously, it was always so dark that she couldn’t see clearly, but now Xue Ming noticed that many colorful flowers were growing outside the courtyard gate, mixed in with the lush green grass, blooming very brightly.