No moon or stars, the wind and rain are tossing and swaying.
Tomorrow morning, they would arrive at the Dragon Clan. The Spirit Boat was sailing on the sea, and Jiang Huai was stealthily tiptoeing his way to Chu Xianning’s room.
He wasn’t going to be foolish enough to ask if he could sneak into Chu Xianning’s room to sleep tonight during the day. Instead, he chose to take advantage of the dark and stormy night to quietly arrive at Chu Xianning’s door. If Chu Xianning hadn’t locked the door, it would undoubtedly mean she tacitly allowed him to sneak in.
They hadn’t slept together yesterday, and both had suffered from insomnia. Perhaps tonight…
Jiang Huai arrived at Chu Xianning’s door with great joy, but the moment his fingertips gently pushed the door, he suddenly realized.
The door was locked.
Jiang Huai, who was full of anticipation, was instantly drained of all his strength. He had no choice but to creep away from the door. For his sleepless night, he decided to go to the deck to gaze at the sea.
Rain was falling on the sea, and only a faint light illuminated the deck. The world was shrouded in darkness, and he was enveloped by the wind and rain. Jiang Huai sat on the long bench by the railing. Actually, he didn’t feel too disappointed this time. Perhaps Chu Xianning’s words held some truth. If they couldn’t sleep together this time, when they did sleep together in the following days, it would likely feel even more sweet.
He sat there quietly for a long time until he heard faint footsteps behind him. Jiang Huai’s ears perked up. He thought it might be Chu Xianning, who was also suffering from insomnia, but when he turned around, he saw Jiang Zhi’s face. A sense of disappointment quietly welled up in his eyes.
Jiang Zhi noticed the disappointment but didn’t say much. She walked over to the bench and looked at the empty seat beside Jiang Huai. She didn’t sit down immediately, but waited for Jiang Huai to ask, “Why are you out here too, Elder Sister?”
“I couldn’t sleep, so I came out for a walk.”
“Elder Sister, would you like to sit for a while?”
Jiang Zhi gently agreed and sat down on the bench beside him.
In the night, Jiang Zhi was wearing a dark silver sling nightgown. The hem of the nightgown was very short, and the slit was high. A large expanse of tender white flesh was exposed on her chest. The nightgown looked unusually seductive on her, yet her expression was one of cold detachment.
Yet, when she went mad, she could be as alluring and charming as a siren. Usually, she spoke playfully with Jiang Huai, but when she was alone, her expression was cold and aloof.
“It seems you’re quite disappointed that it wasn’t me who arrived.”
“No, I’m not,” Jiang Huai shook his head and glanced at Jiang Zhi.
She was a prime example of a well-endowed woman with a slender build. Although her waist looked so slender it could be held in one hand, her chest was exceptionally full, like an inverted jade bowl. Her shoulders, however, were slender. Her dark hair cascaded over her shoulders, allowing Jiang Huai to only see her profile.
Jiang Huai looked at her cheeks and suddenly thought of something interesting.
Whether it was Jiang Zhi, Chu Xianning, or Luo Yueguan, they all made Jiang Huai feel a faint sense of detachment from this world. At first, Jiang Huai couldn’t understand where this sense of detachment came from. Gradually, he understood. It was because they had lived for too long and seen too many of the world’s ways that they appeared slightly detached.
Jiang Huai sometimes wondered if attaining immortality might be a terrifying thing for some people. The threshold for desires would constantly be raised. The longer one lived, the less joy one could perceive, inevitably becoming more and more void. Therefore, many who cultivated for a long time would develop inner demons.
The root of solving inner demons was to find one’s own path.
Luo Yueguan’s inner demon was likely similar. In her long cultivation, she had grown weary of this world. Furthermore, due to her past experiences, she had come to resent the world and herself, which quietly gave rise to her inner demon. However, she had improved significantly compared to the past these days. She had already begun to forgive the world and herself, indicating that everything was moving in a positive direction.
But the thought of the Dragon Clan declaring war on the Human Clan soon after made Jiang Huai’s mood inevitably heavy.
He cast his gaze back to the boundless sea in the distance. Jiang Zhi’s body was not too far or too close. This woman was strange. Sometimes, it felt like nothing was wrong with her being intimate with you and doing bad things together, and sometimes she seemed to despise you, maintaining a faint distance. But this was not because she was playing hard to get; it was her natural disposition.
Jiang Huai didn’t believe he could tame Jiang Zhi, who was like a kitten. Cats could be tamed, but only if you were their master and held the power of life and death over them. Right now, he was just a small fry whom Jiang Zhi could crush with a single finger. He should probably stop dreaming such dreams.
Light rain fell, and the sea breeze was cool.
“Speaking of which, I have some questions for you, Elder Sister.”
“Go ahead,” Jiang Zhi replied, though her voice was indifferent.
“I want to know how you see the world after reaching this level of cultivation?”
Jiang Huai was always a bit lost when it came to cultivation. The closer cultivators got to becoming immortals, the more they resembled gods. But if everything in the world was within their grasp, they would lose their desires. After losing their desires, what difference would they have from walking corpses?
“I see all beings as ants, devoid of interest,” Jiang Zhi replied plainly.
Her answer was similar to what Jiang Huai had expected. Jiang Huai continued, “Then, do you have any plans for the future?”
“When you can cleave the heavenly gate with your sword and Ascend to the Upper Realm, go find my master who left me here.”
“And then?”
Jiang Zhi suddenly seemed lost in thought.
She turned her head and looked at Jiang Huai. Her pale purple eyes were now deep and dark.
She had never considered, what then?
What would she say when she saw her master again? During the centuries her master had remained in this realm, apart from being slightly indifferent to her, she had never treated her poorly. Her master had given her everything countless cultivators dreamed of, allowing her to look down upon the mortal world. How could she resent her master?
If her master hadn’t saved her from her plight back then, she would have long been a rotten corpse. Perhaps when she truly met her master and he stood before her, let alone hatred, she might not even have the courage to say more than half a word.
So, what then?
Perhaps she would become Jiang Huai’s cauldron. As a holy body for him, she could refine too many Spirit Medicines that he would have to spend a long time refining, and she could accumulate a great deal of Spiritual Qi for Jiang Huai in their daily lives, then transfer it to him through Dual Cultivation. This was the fate her master had arranged for her.
She had no intention of resisting or struggling.
Jiang Zhi knew very well that no one in this world could resist her master. And deep down, she didn’t feel she had any other desires. She didn’t crave so-called freedom. Perhaps at that time, she would obediently become a cauldron and let Jiang Huai take whatever he wanted, and it wouldn’t matter.
She wasn’t afraid of how cruel or tyrannical Jiang Huai might become after gaining power. She was only afraid of being neglected and abandoned again.
“It’s none of your business,” Jiang Zhi replied indifferently. These were things she couldn’t tell Jiang Huai yet, so she calmly retorted, “And you?”
“Me?” Jiang Huai thought for a moment. “I’ll just cultivate normally. Even if I can cleave the heavenly gate with my sword, I won’t go to the Upper Realm. The people I love and who love me are all in this realm. It’s good to stay here. Later, I’ll figure out a way to gather all the loved ones around me and have lively days every day. Thinking about it seems nice.”
The two exchanged glances but said nothing more.
They simultaneously turned their gazes back to the distant sea. It was pitch black, and they couldn’t see anything.
Then, in the darkness, he seemed to hear a slight sound. When he came to his senses, Jiang Zhi’s body was suddenly much closer to him. They were clearly some distance apart before, but now she was so close.
Jiang Huai hesitated for a moment, then gently embraced Jiang Zhi.
Her waist was very slender, and even through her dress, he could feel its graceful softness. After just a moment, Jiang Zhi merely hesitated before resting her head on his shoulder.
A strange atmosphere.
Fortunately, Jiang Huai was used to Jiang Zhi’s strangeness. He didn’t understand why Jiang Zhi had suddenly moved closer, but he continued to hold her gently without moving, nor did he fidget. After a while, seeing that she seemed drowsy, Jiang Huai softly asked, “Should I carry Elder Sister back to her room to sleep?”
“No.”
“Hm?”
“I want to feel the wind.”
Leaning against him like this, she would inevitably sleep restlessly. Jiang Huai hesitated, then gently shifted her body, letting her slide down so her head could rest on his lap. The bench was long enough for Jiang Zhi to rest her entire body. Jiang Huai lowered his head and looked at Jiang Zhi’s slightly open eyes, saying, “Will sleeping like this be more comfortable?”
“You’re really good at feigning this kind of gentlemanly tenderness to coax women,” Jiang Zhi closed her eyes, her voice laced with a hint of laziness.
Jiang Huai felt like crying and laughing at the same time but didn’t rush to refute.
He had always felt that being a gentle person was not a bad thing. If one achieved nothing, being gentle to this world and releasing their kindness might be drowned out by most of the malice. But if one was somewhat useful and earned the respect of others, being gentle to others would always be met with gentleness in return.
Jiang Zhi soon fell asleep on Jiang Huai’s lap. Jiang Huai didn’t rush to get up but sat there quietly, gazing at the boundless sea in the distance. The rain on the sea began to fall harder. He couldn’t recall how much time had passed. Was it two hours? Or three hours later, the world was now caught in a downpour. The moment thunder roared, Jiang Huai quickly reached out to cover Jiang Zhi’s ears.
But Jiang Zhi still woke up because of it. Seeing Jiang Huai’s instinctive gesture to shield her from the thunder, she was suddenly stunned for a moment. Lightning flashed in her eyes in the distance, and the world around them was filled with heavy rain. The raindrops did not fall near them. She slowly sat up and moved closer, embracing Jiang Huai’s neck. Her face drew near, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
But just as she was about to kiss him, Jiang Huai dodged and pretended to be asleep, saying, “Why did Elder Sister suddenly get so close?”
“You won’t let me kiss you?”
“No, we’re not kissing, right?”
Jiang Zhi suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of absurdity. They had done many things more intimate than kissing, yet now, when she wanted to kiss Jiang Huai, he dodged. Perhaps she could easily force Jiang Huai to submit with her strength, but even if she did, he would still be unwilling in his heart.
“Why not?”
“This… kissing is more interesting with someone you like… Isn’t it defiling Elder Sister for me to kiss you? It’s not worth it, not worth it.”
“What if I insist?”
“No,” Jiang Huai tried to make his voice sound a bit firmer.
Although he had accepted being punished and humiliated by Jiang Zhi, being forced to kiss, rub against her, and have his lips bumped by hers many times, he had accepted it all. But kissing, no.
Even though Jiang Huai knew very well that if this mad woman insisted on kissing him, he wouldn’t be able to resist. At best, it would be like being bitten by a dog, hmph!
Jiang Zhi’s hand was still around Jiang Huai’s neck. She stared at him intently, her face no longer bearing the slightly threatening playfulness. Her eyes seemed to have become somewhat watery, with a misty haze blurring her pupils. It was as if with every blink of her eyelashes, tiny water droplets would quietly settle on them.
“Haven’t we done enough shameful things together?”
“No, not few.”
“You could do those things, and you weren’t that resistant, but kissing is out of the question?”
“It’s not really possible.” Jiang Huai looked into Jiang Zhi’s eyes. This time, he took a step back and mumbled, “If Elder Sister wants me to kiss other places properly, that’s fine. I will obediently comply.”
“I refuse.” Jiang Zhi reached out and hooked Jiang Huai’s chin. An indescribable anger suddenly surged within her. In an instant, all sorts of violent thoughts flooded her mind. She had countless ways to force Jiang Huai to submit, even to force him to swallow her saliva. As she contemplated these various thoughts, her body suddenly stiffened.
Because Jiang Huai quietly reached out and gently held her body. His movements were very light, and he even patted her back softly, murmuring like he was coaxing a child, “Why are you suddenly crying, Elder Sister?”
“I’m not crying!” Even as she said this, Jiang Zhi’s voice trembled instinctively, as if with a hint of a sob.
“Okay, okay, not crying, not crying.” Jiang Huai looked at her face, hesitated for a moment, then leaned closer and lightly pecked her cheek. It was fragrant, soft, elastic, and smooth.
A moment later, he extended his fingertip and gently wiped away the tear stains on her cheek, softly saying, “There’s still some time before dawn. Does Elder Sister want to sleep a little longer?”
Jiang Zhi looked at his face, at his eyes. She knew clearly that perhaps everything about the man before her was just a pretense, a mask to coax her into submission and prevent her from revealing her violent side. But the chaotic thoughts in her heart seemed to have quietly calmed down. She slightly turned her face and glanced at Jiang Huai.
He had just kissed her right cheek, so Jiang Huai also lightly pecked her left cheek, softly saying, “Alright, alright, sleep well. I’ll wake you when the Spirit Boat arrives.”
Jiang Zhi’s body slipped down again, adjusting her sleeping position. Her head rested on his lap once more, her breathing gradually becoming even as she fell into a deep sleep.
When the sun rose on the sea, sunlight shone down, falling on Jiang Zhi’s skin. Jiang Huai lowered his head slightly, gazing at the expanse of white and tender skin revealed beneath her nightgown. His sight traced her slender, fair legs, each line of which was flawlessly perfect. He let out a soft sigh in his heart and raised his hand slightly above Jiang Zhi’s eyes, shielding her face from the light.
Another hour passed. Jiang Huai occasionally looked at the sea and occasionally at the sleeping Jiang Zhi. Fortunately, he now possessed Spiritual Qi, so even staying up all night wouldn’t cause him any fatigue.
Jiang Zhi slowly opened her eyes and looked at the palm hovering above her cheek. After a moment of silence, she slapped the hand away and stood up from Jiang Huai’s lap. Her eyes swept over him with a cold gaze, and then she said nothing more, returning to her room to change.
As expected, women are creatures whose moods change faster than flipping a book.
The coldness in her eyes was vivid in Jiang Huai’s memory, but fortunately, Jiang Huai didn’t care.
They were about to arrive at the Dragon Clan soon. Jiang Huai quickly got up, needing to prepare his master’s beloved breakfast.
