Drip… drip…
Water droplets fell from the tips of his hair, leaving damp marks on the wooden floor at Ye Anping’s feet.
Not having had time to put on his clothes, he was only wrapped in a bath towel, his wet hair, not yet tied up, hung on his forehead, looking a little disheveled.
However, because his naturally handsome face was now flushed from his own exertion, he exuded a sensual aura, like the male protagonist in an erotic illustration facing a fairy.
Si Xuanji was truly angry this time.
She hated liars, and Ye Anping had lied to her before.
He had personally promised her that he would not interfere in the affairs of the Donghuang Xing Tian Division, but he had secretly gone behind her back in the end.
Although he had returned safely now, who would compensate her for the half-year of worry and sleepless nights?
Si Xuanji had been thinking that this time Ye Anping returned, she would teach him a good lesson to make him remember, but now, looking at Ye Anping standing by the bed with a shy expression.
More than teaching him a lesson, there was a desire in her heart that was difficult to express.
Her fair jade feet at the foot of the bed curled slightly, her toes tensing and flexing.
Little Tiger, who had been fasting for half a year, had a bit of drool trickling from the corner of her lips, dampening the velvet mask…
“You’ve already shared so many spring nights with my elder sister, why are you still so shy? Like an inexperienced young boy, blushing at the sight of a girl lying in bed…”
“Isn’t this just accommodating your preferences…”
Ye Anping replied in his heart, glancing at Si Xuanji’s restless feet, he deliberately took a deep breath and replied:
“I’m just too surprised. I didn’t expect Young Mistress Xuanji to be in my room…”
Si Xuanji sat up, stretched out her arms, and swung her legs off the bed, pouting, “Young Master Ye, this humble woman detests people who tell lies. Last time, you personally told me you wouldn’t get involved in Donghuang affairs, but what happened? You lied to me, making me worry for half a year. How will you compensate this humble woman?”
“Uh… there were reasons, but I guarantee that the Donghuang affairs will absolutely not involve the Xuan Xing Sect.”
“Hmph~”
Si Xuanji pouted slightly, crossed her arms, and turned her head away, seemingly unhappy, but she didn’t say much more. Then she simply stood up and walked towards the door with her bare feet, “You’ve been traveling for so long. Get some good rest now that you’re back. I’ll come to find you in a few days.”
“… …”
Looking at Si Xuanji leave so abruptly, Ye Anping felt a bit surprised.
According to his guess, Si Xuanji should be quite angry. Why did she leave after just a couple of sentences?
When things are out of the ordinary, there must be a ghost…
Ye Anping pondered, watching Si Xuanji walk towards the door. But just as she was about to push open the door and leave, she suddenly lifted her skirt. Since it was a two-piece dress like a qipao, lifting it directly revealed the damp velvet mask.
Whoa!
Ye Anping immediately understood. This was a signal for him to take the initiative.
He couldn’t help but sigh in his heart: It’s like accompanying a ruler is like accompanying a tiger.
Then, after thinking for a moment, he simply stepped forward and took Si Xuanji by the shoulder:
“Young Mistress Xuanji…”
Si Xuanji felt a burst of secret joy. She still wanted to maintain the persona of a pure and chivalrous Xuanji in front of Ye Anping, and she definitely couldn’t directly express her desire for intimacy.
So, she put on a very impatient expression.
Her Yin-yang eyes showed a hint of displeasure, she narrowed them slightly, looked at Ye Anping, who was holding her shoulder, and retorted, “What?”
“Uh, Young Mistress Xuanji, I…”
Ye Anping deliberately slowed his tone, trying his best to appear like a young man of loose morals, unable to control himself due to Si Xuanji’s beauty. After hesitating for a moment, he simply bent his knees slightly and picked Si Xuanji up.
Lips met.
“Peck…”
“Young Master Ye! What… what are you doing?!”
Si Xuanji waved her hands slightly to push Ye Anping’s chest, but this gentle force made Ye Anping even more convinced that this was Si Xuanji’s wish.
After all, if she truly didn’t want to, she would have pushed him out of the room herself.
Ye Anping thought for a moment. According to the persona he was playing, he should be impatient and nonchalant. So he simply replied, “Miss Xuanji… who told you to get into my bed? I can’t stand this…”
“You… you’re forcing me! You… you bad guy!”
“Heh…”
Allowing Si Xuanji to hit his chest with her small fists, Ye Anping had a slight wicked smile on his face as he carried her towards the bed in the room.
However, although he was smiling, Ye Anping was praying in his heart, hoping that his Yang energy replenishment would come sooner.
This way, at least he would have the capital to appease Si Xuanji. The appetite of a Void Realm cultivator was huge…
“Young Master Ye, you’re actually a villain who bullies the weak! I really misjudged you!”
Ye Anping wanted to say: It’s clearly you who are moving right now…
But he held back and said with a smile, “Who told Miss Xuanji to be so beautiful… Yin-yang jade eyes, exquisite and lovable~”
“No amount of sweet talk can appease me! This young woman is really angry this time…”
… …
Chirping and twittering sounds echoed from the room, gradually dispelling the desolation of the Three-Bay House.
In the bathtub in the side room, which had not been cleaned yet, the steaming hot water turned cold under the wind and snow of the Xuan Xing Sect winter.
Gu Mingxin’s hand was immersed in the water. It was comfortable at first, but later, as the water turned cold, she tried to climb out of the edge of the bathtub several times but failed. Finally, she sank to the bottom of the cold bathtub and gave up struggling.
Pei Lianxue and Feng Yu Die, who lived in the neighboring Three-Bay House, also came to visit but found that the Three-Bay House seemed to have some kind of restriction. Even their spare door token couldn’t open the door. However, a notice posted at the entrance dispelled their worries.
— “Senior Brother, I need to go into seclusion alone for a period of time. Do not disturb. Senior Sister Xiao has also gone to Moon Spring Peak for seclusion…”
The sun rose and set, the moon rose and set.
Unknowingly, seven days passed.
… …
The deep winter chill had not yet completely dissipated, and the Lingxiao flowers in the Three-Bay House peeked over the wall, filling the air with a faint, delicate fragrance.
A ray of moonlight shone through the window crack, awakening the tightly closed Yin-yang dual-colored eyes.
Si Xuanji slowly woke up. Feeling the breath caressing her face, she slightly tilted her head up. What met her eyes was Ye Anping’s calm and peaceful face.
They were lying on their sides, tightly embracing each other.
Although Ye Anping’s eyes were closed and his breathing was calm, his arm was tightly around her, as if he was afraid she would sneak away.
Her Yin-yang eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a hint of a smile. Si Xuanji shifted her body, creating some space for movement from his embrace, and stretched out her instep, arching her foot slightly.
“Pop~”
She sat up, reached up to touch the cowlick behind her head, and with a sense of satisfaction, she gently played with the little tiger she had raised for a thousand years on her body. Then she pushed open the slightly ajar window by the bed, leaned on the windowsill, propped up her cheeks, and gazed at the stars and moon in the sky.
The two bright stars, Tian Shu and Tian Sha, slowly revolved around the starry point in the center, which shone with a black light, as they passed across the eastern sky curtain, reflecting in those heterochromatic eyes that seemed to contain the vast starry sky.
Si Xuanji sighed faintly, looked back at the sleeping Ye Anping, and fell into deep thought.
She often wondered why so many cultivators were so engrossed in Dual Cultivation.
Just like the Empress of Hantian Kingdom, Sun Juehu, after reaching the Nascent Soul stage, she began to keep many male consorts in the Hantian Imperial Palace, indulging in wine and luxury.
When she had reached the Nascent Soul stage herself, many great families had sent her handsome young men, but at that time, she was solely focused on cultivation and did not pay attention to any of them.
Before entering immortality, she was determined to become a renowned female hero in the martial world.
After entering immortality, she was determined to ascend quickly, live peacefully, and sleep.
For thousands of years, Si Xuanji had never been interested in Dual Cultivation.
Until – she met Ye Anping, a person with the fate of a “Reverse Star.”
When Ye Anping was establishing his core, she had the mindset of “let’s give it a try, he can’t just die like that,” and helped Ye Anping recover his meridians through Dual Cultivation every twelve days.
However, since then, she had deeply understood the truth stated in ancient books.
— Some things in this world, once you’ve had the first experience, it’s hard to stop.
Si Xuanji, now satisfied, suddenly felt a hint of regret, a self-mocking smile on her face:
“Ah… I’m really…”
In the beginning, she simply thought Ye Anping was a pretty good young cultivator, and she kept him at arm’s length, giving him guidance, flirting with him a little, treating him as someone to chat with to pass the time.
But after the matter at Chi Long Mansion, after witnessing Ye Anping’s methods and seeing how Ye Anping, at the Foundation Establishment stage, had influenced tens of thousands of people like Li Feng and Li Longling, she re-examined Ye Anping’s Reverse Star fate, thinking that Ye Anping could become a very important ‘sword’ for her.
Si Xuanji had always felt that Ye Anping was actually a bit more special than an ordinary friend in her heart.
Because of Ye Anping’s aptitude, she hadn’t considered making Ye Anping her Cultivation Partner.
However, these past seven days made her realize that only Ye Anping could receive her tolerance.
Ye Anping had lied to her this time, and she had been planning to teach him a good lesson upon his return, to make him remember and not meddle in such matters again.
But when Ye Anping stood by her bed, that anger in her heart suddenly vanished completely.
Didn’t this mean she was already considering Ye Anping as her Cultivation Partner?
No matter whose fault it was, she couldn’t be petty with Ye Anping.
Si Xuanji felt that no matter what mistake Ye Anping made, she could tolerate it.
Lost in thought, a soft murmur came from behind her.
“Mmm…”
Ye Anping slowly opened his eyes. Seeing the black and white figure kneeling by the inner side of the bed near the window, squinting at the starry sky, his mind was a little dazed. He had lost all sense of time and didn’t know how long had passed.
He sat up, holding his forehead, and examined Si Xuanji’s expression. Seeing her lost in thought with a pensive look, he hesitated for a moment, then picked up the relatively clean blanket from the bedside and draped it over her shoulders:
“Miss Xuanji…”
Si Xuanji lowered her head to look at her hands, now wrapped in the blanket, and said, “Young Master Ye, you’re truly wicked, bullying and forcing me, a frail woman, like this.”
Ye Anping was silent for a moment, then smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into his embrace, and said, “I think Miss Xuanji, you rather enjoyed it.”
“Hmph~ Nonsense.”
“Heh heh…”
“Laugh!” Si Xuanji pinched Ye Anping’s nose and frowned, “Still laughing! You forced the Young Mistress of Xuan Xing Sect to share your bed multiple times. If I tell this to the Elders, I’ll have you sent to face the wall for thirty to fifty years.”
Ye Anping knew she was joking. He felt that Si Xuanji was in a good mood now. After thinking for a moment, he smiled and retorted, “Young Mistress Xuanji, would you be able to bear it?”
“You know the answer and still ask! Hmph~ You’ve got the benefits and you’re still acting innocent. Your thick skin is getting thicker and thicker.”
“Speaking of which, how many days has it been?”
“Seven days.”
“?”
“Ah?”
“You had an outburst of Yang energy in the middle, don’t you remember?”
Ye Anping truly had no recollection. Hearing this, he quickly lowered his gaze and focused his Spiritual Sense. He found that he had actually skipped two minor realms, reaching the peak of the late Core Formation stage, and was directly stuck at the major bottleneck for Nascent Soul Formation.
The rewards from the Donghuang affair this time were much greater than he had anticipated.
Seeing Ye Anping’s expression, Si Xuanji exhaled a slight breath and said, “What are your plans for Nascent Soul Formation?”
“…Form it.” Ye Anping shrugged slightly and smiled, “When I formed my Core last time, although I received help from True Master Tian Ji to form a Heavenly Dao Golden Core, it wasn’t strictly necessary.”
Si Xuanji’s expression was very serious. She didn’t know how Ye Anping planned to form his Nascent Soul, but Nascent Soul Formation was not the same as Core Formation. Even those with Heavenly Spiritual Roots had perished in large numbers during Nascent Soul Formation.
Moreover, Ye Anping had formed a Heavenly Dao Golden Core. If he chose this path, the tribulations he would face during Nascent Soul Formation would inevitably be the most formidable.
“Do you think Nascent Soul Formation is the same as Core Formation? Don’t think that just because you were lucky during Core Formation, you can…”
Ye Anping placed a finger on Si Xuanji’s lips and smiled, “I never gamble, so I wouldn’t gamble on luck. I have confidence.”
“… …”
Looking at Ye Anping’s expression, Si Xuanji couldn’t help but sigh softly and bite down hard on his index finger.
“Hiss—”
“Miss Xuanji… don’t bite me.”
“Hmph~”
Si Xuanji pouted, humphed, and then looked at the stars in the sky, thinking for a moment. She said, “Young Master Ye, do you remember what I said earlier?”
“I naturally remember everything you said, but I’m not sure which sentence you are referring to.”
“I cannot marry you and become your Cultivation Partner, that sentence.”
Ye Anping was silent for a moment, then nodded and smiled, retorting, “Well… changed your mind?”
“If Young Master Ye achieves Nascent Soul Formation, then I will agree to be your Cultivation Partner.”
Si Xuanji narrowed her eyes and imagined.
After Ye Anping achieved Nascent Soul Formation, he would come before her, see her dressed in the Immortal Robe of the Xuan Xing Sect Master, and see that the ‘young woman’ who had accompanied him for so long was actually the Sect Master of Xuan Xing Sect…
Ye Anping’s expression must have been quite spectacular…
“Heh…”
“?”
Hearing Si Xuanji’s light laugh, Ye Anping also imagined himself going to find Si Xuanji after achieving Nascent Soul Formation, and she would majestically display her Void Returning stage aura to him.
At that time, he would probably have to put on a very spectacular expression to satisfy Si Xuanji…
“…Huu—”
Ye Anping exhaled deeply. He suddenly remembered that Agu’s hand seemed to still be soaking in the bathtub. Having been soaked for seven days, he didn’t know what state it was in. Could it have rotted away…
But after thinking about it, a Blood Fiend Body couldn’t be rotted by water.
For now, he shouldn’t think about anything else and focus on making Si Xuanji happy…
“Miss Xuanji, why don’t you tell me about this star chart? You always said I was a ‘Reverse Star,’ but I couldn’t find it in any books.”
“Mmm…” Si Xuanji pondered for a moment, then raised her hand and pointed to the star with a black glow in the sky curtain, and said, “That star is your fate star…”
… …
