“Shizun!”
Bai Tu was about to open the rice paper when Yun Ye grabbed his wrist in haste.
The hot temperature of the palm was transmitted through the fine skin, and it scorched too much as if it was not a human that held him, but a furnace. Bai Tu shook like a frightened rabbit, almost to the point of hopping up out of the hold. As soon as he loosened his hand, the rice papers he held fell and scattered all over the place.
Before Bai Tu could say anything, Yun Ye cast a spell in one breath, and the fallen rice papers automatically returned to his hand.
Bai Tu wished for the ground to swallow him then and there as the embarrassment took root in his heart.
From the other’s perspective, nothing exactly happened, and he was just shocked by the sudden grip and could not control the innate instinct of his body. But despite how self-suggested it was, he had to admit what happened last night left him a lot of psychological shadows.
No. Leaving it as a “psychological shadow” was an understatement.
Yun Ye did not touch him afterward. But as long as he neared and touched him, it would always remind Bai Tu of the madness of skin-to-skin contact last night. His heart thumped faster against his chest, though he disliked this involuntary movement of his body against his will. Even his breathing became unsteady and breathless.
Fortunately, Yun Ye seemed to have not noticed his abnormality.
The little wolf cub hid the rice paper behind him, leaned toward Bai Tu with his hands still behind his back. He said like a spoiled child, “Shizun, I didn’t write well, and I don’t dare hurt Shizun’s eyes with it. Once this disciple finished his writing, might I be able to give by then?”
Yun Ye inched closer to his master, and Bai Tu felt that it was hard to breathe again as if the oxygen level had just depleted substantially. His throat bobbed up as he swallowed that pool of saliva and moved back a little, seamlessly. “… That’s fine.”
“Shizun is so kind.”
Yun Ye flashed a smile, and his eyes became a pair of crescents with it. He obediently returned to the table, sat adequately, and said no more. Meanwhile, a sigh of relief escaped from Bai Tu’s lips as he fixed his composure and finished the dinner with the other.
There was only more than half a month left by the trial of the introductory disciple to commence. Yun Ye, who had never practiced consistently, practiced his sword drills around the clock under the supervision of Bai Tu to prepare for entering the mysterious realm. Sure, Yun Ye’s cultivation base was limited, but his body’s martial arts pose had always been the best in Tianyan Sect. With this constant hard work, his improvements were visible to one’s naked eye.
In fact, even if Bai Tu decided not to go to the mysterious realm with him, with Yun Ye’s aptitude in martial arts, he could take care of himself without a hitch.
Nevertheless, Bai Tu could not contain the restlessness of his heart.
Therefore, two or three days before the trial ceremony, he left Luoxia Peak.
A thousand miles south of Qingyun mountain, there lay a quiet valley. Enormous mountains surrounded the valley on three sides, and the tall tree canopies covering the area, hiding the sky from sight. Thus, a heavy fog hung typically over the place.
A bright sword light dashed down in front of the valley. Bai Tu hopped from the immortal sword and could not help letting out a yawn.
He was always suboptimal these days.
And just like today, after spending less than two shichen traversing in the sky, he became exhausted.
Perhaps it was because of his cultivation base’s initial wear and tear that had not recovered yet. Bai Tu thought of this with little mental work as he walked toward the middle of the valley. As soon as he neared the area, he saw a tall silhouette of a young man approaching from a distance.
He possessed a handsome appearance. His deep facial features had an exotic tint, and his temperament was calm and elegant. The only offbeat was this whole body seemed to be imbued with Lingran sword intent. The man halted on his steps and bowed to Bai Tu. “I have seen Immortal Lord Zhaohua. My master has been waiting for a long time; please follow me.”
“Many thanks.”
The man led Bai Tu across the valley’s vine bridge, and the scenery at once changed once they passed through.
The thick fog that originally shrouded the valley from sight seemed to be blown away by some mystical wind, revealing a towering jade-carved palace hall in its authentic form.
The man escorted Bai Tu in front of the door of the palace hall and said, “Venerable Immortal, please come in.”
Bai Tu thanked him and was about to knock on the door, but the palace doors suddenly opened on their own, and a chill desolated air swept and nipped at him as a welcome.
He tidied up his ruffled robes and stepped in—calm and unhurried.
The hall inside was dim, and only a faint, flickering firelight on the wall was giving illumination, reflecting the rows of display racks on both sides of the room. All kinds of magical instruments were like glittering jewels delighting in the eyes on the display racks. Although they gave an ethereal feeling, they were strewn across the room haphazardly. Even the floor was littered with many magical instruments, pills, and medicines slanted upside down.
The dense scent of alcohol made Bai Tu furrow, and a languorous voice rang out, “Finally remembered to come and see me?”
The voice came from the innermost depth of the hall; behind the heavy drapery of cloth, a vague silhouette of a person was perceived.
Bai Tu said, insipid, “Long time no see, Shixiong1.”
In the wake of his voice, the figure behind the drapery stood up, drew the curtains, and walked out.
A handsome young man with clear eyes appeared. The man casually donned on an ink-colored Taoist robe that seemed to evoke a languid feeling, with an exquisite flask pinned around his waist.
This person was the sole martial brother of Zhaohua Xianjun, who studied with him under Kunlun Mountain’s Qinghui Xianjun, Xun Yi.
Xun Yi walked in front of Bai Tu and leaned forward, tipsy. He then leaned again, but this time he frowned. “What’s the matter with your face?”
Bai Tu wasted no breath to explain, “Nothing.”
Xun Yi squinted, though he was suspicious, he commented nothing and asked instead, “Come on, why are you looking for me? Is it because of your disciple again?”
Bai Tu: “Tianyan Sect’s Primordial secret realm will be opened in two days. I need some protection for Yun Ye.”
‘As expected,’ Xun Yi gave him an “I knew it” look and kicked a bottle of pills beside his foot with ease. “Is there anything significant you want? Do you have to come to my Borderless Valley?”
Zhaohua Xianjun then replied, “When it comes to condensing pills and refining medicines, only Shixiong has the highest attainments.”
Xun Yi pondered for a moment, crooked his head on the side, smiled, and said, “It’s okay for Shixiong’s matter, but for a stranger?”
“Shixiong….”
“Shixiong is just joking with you.” Xun Yi raised his hand and tapped on Bai Tu’s forehead. “Zhaohua, Zhaohua, since you levitated heavenwards, you, indeed, have been becoming less and less cute.”
Zhaohua Xianjun’s character was not like this when he was young.
At the time when Immortal Lord Zhaohua had just transformed into a human being from being a white rabbit, Xun Yi brought him back to Kunlun Mountain. He recommended, and both paid respect to the Kunlun Xianjun as their master. Immortal Lord Zhaohua practiced hard, but he could not make a breakthrough when he reached the ascension period.
In the end, Zhaohua resolutely broke free from all mundane emotions and complexities, shifted to take the ruthless path of cultivation, and finally soared after a century.
Only that his demeanor had become the same as it was now. Wintry and unsympathetic.
Bai Tu did not want to discuss this matter with him and said instead, “Shixiong, I….”
“I know,” Xun Yi interrupted him while his hand swirled up a pot of wine on the table. He raised his head and smiled at Bai Tu. “Isn’t it the pill to suppress the demon power and increase the cultivation skills? I’ll give it to you.”
As he said this, a breeze suddenly rolled in the hall, and a brocade bag drifted into his hand. Xun Yi seized the brocade bag and drilled it into the display rack, his muttering soon filled the hall, “This can… this is also… oh wait, this is wrong—oh, here….”
The clamorous clanking of the bottles and can on the display rack made Bai Tu startled, and all sounded like Xun Yi accidentally broke something.
Unable to contain his nervousness, Bai Tu walked up to him in haste to help. “Shixiong, are you drunk?”
“No. How can I get drunk like this?” Xun Yi waved his hand at him, tied the brocade bag, and handed it to Bai Tu.
Bai Tu received the bag and put it away. “Many thanks, Shixiong.”
“Okay, why are you so polite with your brother?” Xun Yi rubbed Bai Tu’s head and said, “It’s not just me, but your face looks unwell, ah. Mind to let your Shixiong take your pulse?”
Bai Tu shook his head. “It’s fine. That should be because I accidentally lost some of my cultivation bases. It’ll come back after I nurse it for some time.”
The warm scent of wine made Bai Tu a little breathless. He did not stay long and soon bid farewell to Xun Yi and left the hall. As soon as Bai Tu stepped out of the hall, he spotted the same man waiting for him outside. The man was about to send Bai Tu out, but he heard Xun Yi’s voice boomed from the jade palace. “Pei Ran, bring me the altar wine again!”
A look of helplessness creased in between Pei Ran’s eyebrows, and Bai Tu appeased, “It’s okay, I’ll just depart by myself.”
“Salute2,” saluted Pei Ran, turned around to help Xun Ti get the wine.
When Bai Tu returned to Luoxia Peak, it was already deep into the night.
Since he hastened on his journey today, Bai Tu rested in the house for a while but still felt out of sorts. He frowned and got up, and his sight gazed out the window. Yun Ye had been practicing swordsmanship behind the mountain for the past few days. And it was only natural for the Luoxia Peak to cater to no one since he came back late.
In the next second, Bai Tu’s neat, white robes fell onto the floor, and a little white rabbit lay in the middle of clothing on one’s back. Then a long and contented sigh of relief blew from it.
‘Ah, much better.’
Whether it was a celestial being or a demon, as long as the body was not innately human, changing into a human form would consume much spiritual power. And no form was more comfortable than their true form. So although Bai Tu was a human before he entered the book, since he became a rabbit cultivator when coming here, he gradually adapted to like the feeling of returning to his animal physique.
The tiny white rabbit rolled around in his clothes twice. Sweet comfort seeped through in his bones. Then it sat up, hopped out of the room with a kick on its hind legs, and ran towards the bamboo forest without looking back. A fluff of white soon disappeared into the night.
Deep in the bamboo forest, a silken, silvery-furred rabbit plunged half of its body into the thick bushes. Its small round tail, which was exposed, quivered a little. After a while of wiggling, a small rattan woven basket was pulled out of the bushes.
In the basket, all kinds of grass, vegetables, and fruits were placed inside in a pleasing manner. The melons and other fruits gave off such wonderful fragrance, and both grasses and leaves were so tender, making the rabbit’s paws twitch.
The rabbit leaned on the straw basket. Its pink button nose quivered as it sniffed heartily. The three-lobed mouth opened, pulling out a tender and juicy carrot from it.
After the carrot was placed onto the grass-covered ground, it hid the straw basket first before plopping itself in front of the orange vegetable. It stretched its two front paws, picked up the carrot, and gnawed on with relish. Mind that the carrot was larger than the tiny rabbit.
Zhaohua Xianjun’s immortal body had undergone complete transformation when he ascended, reasonably enough that eating became unnecessary. Regardless of how profound cultivation was, his appetite had no cure. The real Zhaohua may fast, but it was impossible for Bai Tu at all.
If he could not eat, then what’s the point of having an immortal body?
The silken rabbit ate and drank to its fill. When finished, a burp escaped as it massaged its stomach in contentment. Then, it laid on the grass, drowsy.
Time flew by heedlessly, and some footsteps suddenly sounded from afar.
With its ears laid against the ground, alerted, the little rabbit stood up on its hind legs. It turned its head in panic, just to meet a familiar face. Yun ye seemed to have just returned from his sword practice. His hair still had some streaks of wetness on it, and his breath was a little unstable.
When did he come back??!
The fur on the back of the tiny rabbit puffed up, and it dived into the bushes without hesitation. Fleeing away like a wisp of white smoke, leaving Yun Ye stunned at his feet.
Yun Ye blinked, a once in a blue moon-dazed expression written on his face.
That just… seemed to see a rabbit?
‘A rabbit???’
Yun Ye’s eyes lit up.
Staying in Tianyan Sect as a disciple for many years, he had to constrict his fangs and claws and acclimate the bearings like an average person. But the nature of being a wolf in his blood could not and would not be thoroughly washed out after staying alongside humans guiding him. Especially when his thirsty eyes caught sight of the rabbit, the innate predominant essence of a predator gained the upper hand.
Ah, a rabbit had served itself to the wolf.
Yun Ye licked his lips and quickly chased after the frantic rabbit.
The author has something to say:
Yun Ye: Spicy rabbit’s head, roasted rabbit leg, braised rabbit meat. I’m here.
Bai Tu:… Ahhhhhhhh, go away!
Footnotes:
[1] 师兄 shī xiōng – the senior male fellow student or apprentice
[2] 怠慢了 dài màn le – means to neglect, also used as an apologetic salutation for being a poor host
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