Chapter 25 The Abyss

Chu Xuyun’s swordsmanship was deadly to demonic cultivators, and Yu Xiao, who bore demonic aura, was no exception.

The murderous edge of the sword was just a hair’s breadth away from piercing Yu Xiao’s heart.

Only when Chu Xuyun withdrew the sword, his gaze indifferent as he looked at Yu Xiao and stepped aside to make way, did he signal for Yu Xiao to come out.

Yu Xiao wanted to move but only then realized that his limbs were so stiff he couldn’t move.

“I… I can’t move,” Yu Xiao said with extreme embarrassment, extending his hand under Chu Xuyun’s puzzled gaze, “Pull me up.”

He had come to demand an explanation from Chu Xuyun, yet here he was, losing face in front of him.

Chu Xuyun looked at him helplessly, and after a long moment, he finally extended his hand as if granting a great favor.

Just as their hands were about to touch, a voice suddenly came from outside the door,

“Immortal Monarch, the Sect Master is here to visit and is waiting outside.”

Chu Xuyun quickly withdrew his hand, causing Yu Xiao to fall forward empty-handed.

“You…” Yu Xiao hadn’t even reacted before Chu Xuyun pressed his head down and shoved him under the desk.

Then, Chu Xuyun sat down at the desk.

In the cramped space, Yu Xiao was forced to kneel between Chu Xuyun’s legs.

Never in his life had he felt such humiliation. If he were an ordinary man, he naturally wouldn’t feel anything, but Yu Xiao had a penchant for men.

This position made him extremely uncomfortable, and Yu Xiao couldn’t understand Chu Xuyun’s actions.

If he didn’t want the Sect Master to find him, he could have just said so!

Why hide him? Besides, the Sect Master’s cultivation was high enough to sense the demonic aura on him.

The next moment, Chu Xuyun transferred a layer of spiritual energy onto him, concealing his demonic aura, and then made a stern shushing gesture.

Yu Xiao: …

Immediately, the Sect Master entered.

“I heard you plan to keep that child with the demonic parasite in the sect?”

The conversation was precisely about Yu Xiao.

Chu Xuyun didn’t answer, which only angered the Sect Master more.

“So, you are determined to keep him? If he is controlled by the demonic parasite and commits great wrongs in the future, it will be a burden neither you nor I can bear.”

Chu Xuyun remained silent.

But Yu Xiao couldn’t hold back any longer.

He wanted to get out and refute the Sect Master’s words, but as soon as his head emerged, a cold hand pressed it back down firmly.

“This is my final advice to you, Chu Xuyun. Your heart is too soft. One day, you will suffer for it.”

Chu Xuyun’s soft heart?

Yu Xiao, with his head held down, didn’t see it.

The faint scent of bamboo emanated from the hem of Chu Xuyun’s robe, without a single crease, neat and orderly, just like Chu Xuyun himself.

Yu Xiao felt as if he were completely enveloped by that bamboo fragrance, his nostrils filled only with Chu Xuyun’s scent, making him entirely uncomfortable.

Chu Xuyun was not his type.

Too cold, untrustworthy, always going back on his words.

The person he liked would at least have a better temperament.

“Just listen to me. If you merely want to save his life, then don’t teach him magic. With the demonic parasite in him, practicing magic will easily lead to deviation. Just make him an ordinary outer disciple.”

Why hasn’t the Sect Master left yet? Is he never going to finish?

Yu Xiao clenched his fists, wanting to know if Chu Xuyun thought the same, which was why he had never agreed to take him as a disciple.

However, Chu Xuyun still didn’t speak, only quietly pushed Yu Xiao’s head further under the desk.

Yu Xiao: …

This is enough. There’s only so much space under here; where else does he want to push him?

Is he so unpresentable, or does Chu Xuyun dislike him being too close? It was clearly Chu Xuyun who brought him back.

The more Chu Xuyun didn’t want him to get close, the more Yu Xiao wanted to get closer.

When Chu Xuyun was about to press him down again, Yu Xiao swiftly grabbed his wrist.

Chu Xuyun visibly tensed, wanting to pull back his hand, but Yu Xiao suddenly slipped his hand into Chu Xuyun’s sleeve along his wrist.

He was freezing cold.

Chu Xuyun reversed his grip, trying to withdraw Yu Xiao’s mischievous hand from an angle the Sect Master couldn’t see. Just then, the Sect Master looked over, “What are you doing?”

Chu Xuyun froze completely, letting Yu Xiao’s revengeful hand remain in his sleeve like a cold snake coiling around his arm.

Seeing he didn’t answer, the Sect Master became even angrier, “Did you hear a single word I said?”

After a moment, Chu Xuyun, trembling, lifted an ancient book with his other hand.

He meant that he was reading.

The Sect Master took a deep breath, “Stop reading for now. Let me tell you again: you mustn’t teach that child any spells. Otherwise, he will surely turn against you one day.”

Chu Xuyun’s body trembled again.

The “snake” was “biting” him.

Yu Xiao gently pinched Chu Xuyun, reminding him that he was still there and that if he didn’t want to be discovered, he shouldn’t agree with the Sect Master.

Under Yu Xiao’s completely non-threatening intimidation, Chu Xuyun shook his head.

“You… you’re driving me mad.” The Sect Master looked like he wanted to pinch the bridge of his nose, “Have you considered that if he causes trouble in the future, the disgrace will fall on you as well? Think carefully. Have my words ever harmed you?”

Chu Xuyun lowered his eyes, looking under the desk—two blazing hot eyes were staring straight at him, as if daring him to say anything inappropriate and they would pounce and devour him.

“I was curious about what you were looking at just now. Are you really just reading a book?” As the Sect Master spoke, noticing the approaching footsteps, Chu Xuyun quickly retracted his gaze, using his foot to push Yu Xiao further into the corner beneath the desk, then lifted the book again.

In an instant, Yu Xiao felt like his internal organs had been displaced. Most crucially, that foot was pressing in the wrong place…

He struggled to push Chu Xuyun’s boot away, but this time, Chu Xuyun gave him no chance to escape. Yu Xiao, unable to bear it any longer, was about to speak, only to find he couldn’t make a sound.

Chu Xuyun had somehow rendered his voice mute!

What kind of righteous Immortal Monarch was this? He was clearly a cold-blooded bastard.

That boot was pressing right between Yu Xiao’s legs, making him break out in a cold sweat.

One more press and his life might as well have ended at thirteen.

Fortunately, Chu Xuyun wasn’t that cruel. Once Yu Xiao behaved, he no longer pressed down so hard, but that damn boot still didn’t move from that spot.

Yu Xiao accepted his fate.

The Sect Master ranted for a full half hour, and without receiving a response from Chu Xuyun, finally left in exasperation.

The hall door opened and closed. Only then did Chu Xuyun look down at Yu Xiao, whose ears were already bright red.

He reached out and gently touched Yu Xiao’s forehead as if checking if he was ill.

Yu Xiao swiftly shook off his hand and crawled out from under the desk.

Without looking at Chu Xuyun, he headed for the exit. Just as he was about to leave the hall, a hand lightly pressed on his shoulder. He turned around warily.

In front of him was a wooden training sword.

Yu Xiao hesitated for a moment, his fingertips curling, then slowly relaxed along with his tangled heart. He took the wooden sword and then fled from Chu Xuyun’s hall.

He didn’t dislike Chu Xuyun, but he didn’t like him either.

To put it bluntly, he found Chu Xuyun to be a strange person, strange enough to be somewhat special.

Clearly, Chu Xuyun could have left him in the demonic domain to fend for himself, but he insisted on bringing him back against all opposition.

Clearly, he could have taught him spells as promised, but suddenly avoided him and left him hanging.

Clearly, he could have listened to the Sect Master and sent him away. He didn’t have to hide him, just hand him over openly.

Yet, Chu Xuyun still chose to hide him, even enduring his unrestrained touch.

Yu Xiao suddenly really wanted to know, what kind of person was Chu Xuyun?

At that time, he didn’t realize that his curiosity about the abyss was the first step toward falling into it.

*

On the second day after their marriage, a rare cool rain fell in the demonic domain, dispelling the continuous heat of recent days.

With summer approaching, the change of seasons brought frequent rain, and the night had turned cold. Having been tormented all night, Chu Xuyun indeed caught a cold the next morning.

Since he began cultivating, this was the first time he had truly fallen ill, feeling dizzy, feverish, and too weak to even get out of bed. Of course, some other reasons were also involved.

Yu Xiao was extremely guilty. The carefully prepared meals Chu Xuyun could no longer eat.

To make matters worse, Yu Xiao had never been ill himself, and the demonic palace had no medicine for common ailments. He had to send some demonic cultivators to the mortal realm to seek medical advice.

“Yu Xiao, it’s so hot.” Chu Xuyun, half-closed eyes, nestled in the soft quilt with a wet towel on his forehead.

Yu Xiao reached to remove the towel, already warmed by Chu Xuyun’s body heat.

He was deeply distressed, speaking softly, “Hold on a bit longer. The doctor will be here soon.”

At this rate, would Ah Xu die?

Being mortal was too troublesome. Anyway, now that Ah Xu was bound to him, he might as well remove the binding rope and restore Ah Xu’s powers. Perhaps he would recover immediately.

Yu Xiao thought this and did it. He took out a dagger and lightly cut Chu Xuyun’s wrist, a thin line appearing out of nowhere, which Yu Xiao easily severed with the dagger.

The powers should be back, right? Is he better now?

“Ah Xu, do you feel better?” Yu Xiao quickly asked.

The response was a weak, “Still so hot.”

Still not better?

Yu Xiao immediately panicked, not knowing what to do. At that moment, one of his subordinates rushed in.

He urgently asked, “Has the doctor arrived?”

The subordinate outside the hall trembled, shaking his head and stammering, “Master, the sword immortal is here. We tried our best to stop him, but we couldn’t.”

Ji Lianzhou, what is he doing here? Is he after Ah Xu again?

Yu Xiao’s face darkened. He was about to grab his sword and head out when he suddenly remembered that Ji Lianzhou might have a way to cure the illness.

After calming down for a moment, he said coldly to the subordinate outside, “Let him in.”

Soon, Ji Lianzhou strode into the hall, his long sword on his back still stained with the blood of an unknown subordinate. He glanced coldly at Yu Xiao inside the hall and said indifferently, “The marriage is done. Now that you have vented your anger, it’s time to return Ah Xu.”

Hearing this, Yu Xiao found it laughable.

They were both willing. Ah Xu stayed because he liked him, so why should he return him?

Yu Xiao sneered and said lightly, “It’s a joyous occasion; I won’t argue with you.”

“Fine, I don’t want to waste words with you either. Where is Ah Xu? Let him come out,” Ji Lianzhou said.

Yu Xiao paused slightly, lowering his voice, “He’s sick.”

Ji Lianzhou’s eyes widened in disbelief, “What kind of illness?”

“Fever.”

Despite his reluctance to seek help from Ji Lianzhou, Yu Xiao couldn’t bear to see Chu Xuyun continue to suffer. He averted his eyes and spoke with difficulty, “Can you heal him?”

Ji Lianzhou’s face darkened. For the sake of Chu Xuyun, he didn’t want to argue with Yu Xiao anymore.

“I know a bit.”

After a while,

Ji Lianzhou placed his fingers on Chu Xuyun’s wrist to check his pulse.

The golden chain at the head of the bed was very conspicuous, and the red marks on Chu Xuyun’s arm were even more shocking.

Ji Lianzhou suppressed the urge to stab Yu Xiao with his sword, took a deep breath, withdrew his hand, and said in a low voice, “It’s not a common cold. It should be due to physical weakness and requires several days of treatment. I’ll write down some herbs, and you go get them and brew them.”

Yu Xiao had someone note down the herbs and fetch them. He felt a slight relief and turned to see Chu Xuyun slowly retracting his hand and pulling the quilt higher to cover his head.

Seeing this scene, knowing Chu Xuyun’s nature, Yu Xiao found it a bit amusing.

Doesn’t want to take the medicine?

Ah Xu is acting like a child.

“Ah Xu, if you don’t go back, your disciple might completely lose interest in cultivation,” Ji Lianzhou took the opportunity to bring up the main issue again.

Chu Xuyun buried his head even lower.

He had heard Ji Lianzhou’s words earlier. The sect wanted him back, not necessarily because of the competition. There were many elders; one more or less wouldn’t matter. It was more likely because the sect leader wanted to deal with him.

Going back would mean getting punished, so he wouldn’t go back.

“You don’t want to go back? Do you know what the reward for the competition is this time?” Ji Lianzhou was determined to bring Chu Xuyun back, so he pretended to be profound and said, “The Yuanqing Sacred Water, don’t you want it?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the quilt was slowly pulled down. Chu Xuyun was indeed tempted by Ji Lianzhou’s words, showing a hesitant expression.

Seeing his desire, Yu Xiao, although not knowing what the Yuanqing Sacred Water was, panicked for a moment, “Ah Xu, you don’t have to go back. No matter what it is, I will find it for you.”

Hearing this, Ji Lianzhou couldn’t help but interrupt, “What did you call him?”

“Ah Xu, why?”

“You are the junior; how can you call him that!”

“Madam, are you satisfied?”

“……”

Hearing Yu Xiao’s words, Chu Xuyun’s eyes lit up. He suddenly reached out and gently tugged at Yu Xiao’s clothes.

Yu Xiao immediately understood and leaned down, only to hear Chu Xuyun whisper in his ear, “Yu Xiao, go get the Yuanqing Sacred Water.”

“Okay, I’ll go now.” Yu Xiao made as if to get up but was held back by Chu Xuyun. He quickly said, “Don’t worry, no matter what it is, I will find a way to bring it back for you.”

Chu Xuyun shook his head, and his soft voice sounded in Yu Xiao’s ear again, with a hint of smugness, “I have a way. You pretend to be me and go back to win the competition.”

Yu Xiao: ?