Arc 5: Chapter 20
Lin Yuan had never seen this side of Xie Hanzhou. The usual aloof immortal now exuded an ominous, unpredictable aura. His gaze was dark and icy, seeming to conceal a bottomless abyss, leaving one’s scalp tingling and trembling with fear.
Lin Yuan had almost forgotten that although Xie Hanzhou was known to the outside world as noble and untouchable and the strongest among immortals, his real personality was very extreme. Yu Sui’an was the best evidence.
Lin Yuan reached out and grabbed onto Xie Hanzhou’s sleeve and stammered: “I… I didn’t mean that… This disciple was just afraid that Master would be angry…”
“Last night… this disciple acted out of line and offended Master. This disciple is afraid that you… you won’t want me…”
Lin Yuan was genuinely worried about this. Wasn’t the situation with Chu Yao an example? Chu Yao had been renounced after touching the back of Xie Hanzhou’s hand. Lin Yuan actually hugged, touched him, and kissed him… this offense was a hundred, no a thousand, times worse.
Xie Hanzhou glanced down at his disciple’s slender, pale fingers on his sleeve, and then his eyes shifted to the young man’s nervous face and red ears. Lin Yuan’s entire appearance was soft and rosy, like a ripe, alluring peach.
With tender skin, the flesh of the peach was soft and juicy and as sweet as honey. Xie Hanzhou could even catch the faint, enticing fragrance that tempted him to taste the little disciple that was the source of that sweet scent right in front of him.
Xie Hanzhou’s eyes darkened and brimmed with something inscrutable. He reached out both of his hands and placed them under Lin Yuan’s arms, lifting him to sit on the table.
Xie Hanzhou’s sudden move startled Lin Yuan. This action seemed completely out of character from Xie Hanzhou’s usual indifferent and distant demeanor, the kind that kept everyone at arm’s length. It was as if he had become a completely different person.
Lin Yuan almost couldn’t tell if this was Xie Hanzhou or Yu Sui’an.
Xie Hanzhou made Lin Yuan sit on the table while he himself sat on the chair, looking up at his little apprentice. His voice was cold but soft. “Don’t be afraid. Master is not angry.”
Lin Yuan blinked: “…Really? Master, you’re not angry?”
Xie Hanzhou gazed at the boy’s clear, innocent eyes and said in a low voice: “Why would I be angry? What reason do I have to be angry? You said you acted out of line last night, but if I hadn’t allowed it, what could you have done? ”
Lin Yuan tilted his head in confusion and asked: “Master, what are you talking about? This disciple doesn’t understand.”
Xie Hanzhou’s long, feather-like lashes fluttered slightly. His slender fingers toyed with the tassels at Lin Yuan’s waist, gripping them lightly, hiding his possessiveness: “Lin Yuan, my current cultivation is at the mid-stage of the Heavenly Realm. If I wasn’t willing, is there anyone in the immortal or demonic realms who could force me?”
Lin Yuan seemed to understand, but he found it hard to believe. Like a kitten testing its courage, he cautiously reached out and touched the back of Xie Hanzhou’s hand, then quickly retracted.
Xie Hanzhou felt as if he had been grazed by a light touch of a small animal, leaving behind a faint, ticklish sensation that lingered both on his hand and in his heart.
After touching him, Lin Yuan stole a glance at Xie Hanzhou, and then glanced again. After observing for a long time, he mustered his courage and asked softly: “Master… this disciple… can I touch you?”
Xie Hanzhou’s expression did not change, but his icy, dark eyes softened. They now shimmered like a rippling spring, as though the ice was melting and flowers were blooming: “Last night, you asked the same thing.”
These words eased the nervousness in Lin Yuan’s heart. He swung his legs happily and the dimples on his cheeks deepened. His hand gently covered the back of Xie Hanzhou’s, as if he was cradling a handful of snow.
“Master~”
“Master~~ Master~”
The youth's eyes were pure and bright, and his lightly curled ponytail bounced as he spoke. His voice was lively and cheerful, like a chirping little sparrow.
Xie Hanzhou let go of the tassel and his hand flipped over to clasp his little disciple’s smaller one. His deep eyes held an unmistakable assertiveness: “Is this enough?”
Lin Yuan remembered the intimate scenes from last night, and he could sense the suggestion in his master’s words. His ears and cheeks reddened even more. Clutching Xie Hanzhou’s hand tightly, he lowered his head shyly and whispered: “Master, it’s daytime now, but... but if you want to, this disciple... this disciple is willing...”
On the first day of the new year, Lin Yuan shared an intimate episode with his first husband that he originally thought he could only admire from afar. The start of this year was so good!
Lin Yuan giggled in his heart, heehee~
Xie Hanzhou looked at his little disciple’s happy expression, which seemed even more sweet and tempting, and his throat felt a little dry.
After the heat in his body calmed down, he helped his little disciple down from the table and had him sit across from him. He looked at the boy’s fair and tender face, and said deeply: “Lin Yuan, Master... is also willing, but there’s something I need to tell you. Be good and listen.”
Lin Yuan nodded and blinked his round eyes, looking very obedient.
Xie Hanzhou placed his palm gently on Lin Yuan’s soft cheek, and caressed it gently for a few times before saying: “What happened last night might be wrong in the eyes of conventional rules, but what has happened has already happened, and there is no way to undo it. Moreover... my Dao heart has already been disrupted.”
Lin Yuan froze in surprise. Although Xie Hanzhou’s tone was normal, the phrase “my Dao heart has been disrupted” was basically a confession in the immortal world.
Before he could react, Xie Hanzhou’s hand, which could move clouds and thunder, moved to Lin Yuan’s lips. He mimicked Lin Yuan’s actions from last night and gently brushed over them.
He said more softly: “Don’t dwell on what happened last night. Don’t feel you were disrespectful or improper. Between the two of us, it could never be wrong.”
The man’s deep eyes met the boy’s clear and innocent gaze, as if carrying a depth that the darkest abyss couldn’t even reach: “You and I, we can't help but love each other.”
Xie Hanzhou was actually a little worried about his little disciple’s cultivation. Lin Yuan had only started cultivating relatively recently, yet he was experiencing passionate emotions that burned even stronger like fire. Over time, he feared these emotions might derail his disciple’s path.
He wanted Lin Yuan to understand that regardless of mortal conventions, everything that had happened, including what would happen in the future, was impossible to avoid...because they were in love.
Love was not something wrong.
Lin Yuan stared at Xie Hanzhou and naturally thought of a question. Xie Hanzhou admitted that he had feelings for him, but when did those emotions begin?
Lin Yuan held Xie Hanzhou’s cool hand and slowly raised it up and placed a feather-light kiss on the man’s palm.
“Master...” The boy’s voice was soft and the brightness in his eyes was obvious, they were full of gentle warmth. “Can you tell this disciple... when you became willing?”
He was indirectly asking when Xie Hanzhou started liking him, but Lin Yuan felt a little awkward to say it bluntly.
Xie Hanzhou understood what he meant, and replied slowly: “It’s been some time.”
Lin Yuan grew even more curious: “Then why did you allow those feelings? You said yourself that this is wrong by worldly conventions.”
Xie Hanzhou’s long lashes lowered slightly, resembling a crow perched in solitude. His figure seemed to be manifest loneliness, and his tall, slender body suddenly seemed very thin.
After a long time, he slowly looked up at Lin Yuan, his refined and elegant eyes reflected the boy’s figure, and also reflected the sun, moon, and stars witnessed by the thousand-year-old sycamore tree.
The corner’s of his thin lips were slightly curved. Xie Hanzhou was unskilled at smiling, but even so, he was like the first bloom of spring, like thawing snow crystals, and even miles of frost-bound forests could not conceal the brilliance of such a scene.
Xie Hanzhou’s voice was gentle and carried a trace of warmth: “I am willing because I am willing. Just know that among the three thousand paths of cultivation, I, Xie Hanzhou, am willing for you only.”
Hearing this, Lin Yuan couldn’t stop the flush of his cheeks.
His gaze uncontrollably landed on Xie Hanzhou’s lips, and was just about to take advantage of the current atmosphere to sneak a kiss, when the man spoke: ““Today, you will stay here and copy the Clear Heart Sutra twice before returning.”
Just a few words extinguished Lin Yuan’s happy mood. He immediately gave Xie Hanzhou a pitiful look, and asked pleadingly:“Master, today is New Year’s, who copies scriptures on New Year’s? Can’t I do it tomorrow? I promise I’ll copy it tomorrow.”
Xie Hanzhou pinched Lin Yuan’s cheek lightly, his voice cold yet teasing: “No, you need to copy it. Your mind and energy are too chaotic.”
Lin Yuan felt wronged. It was clearly because Xie Hanzhou was too attractive.
Sitting at Xie Hanzhou’s desk, Lin Yuan quietly began copying the sutra. Xie Hanzhou sat beside him, reading a Daoist text.
After finishing the first copy, Lin Yuan glanced at the open door of the cold study, then at the handsome man beside him. He said with some helplessness: “Master, it’s useless. Even if I copy it twenty times, I still... still want to be close to you.”
Xie Hanzhou paused in the middle of a page-turn, and his eyes shifted to Lin Yuan: “Is that so?”
Lin Yuan nodded vigorously: “Yes.”
Xie Hanzhou closed the Daoist text in his hand and set it aside, and invisibly, the door to the cold chamber silently shut, plunging the room into dimness.
The man reached out to encircle his disciple’s slender and flexible waist. He asked with a low voice: “How do you want to get close? Show me.”
Lin Yuan wrapped his arms around Xie Hanzhou’s neck, his smile blooming as he leaned closer. Then, he kissed the thin lips he had yearned for.
At the same time, in the Grand Hall of the Demon Realm, Yu Sui’an suddenly felt something soft and moist rubbing against his lips. Soon, something wet and warm drilled skillfully into his mouth and entangled with his tongue.
He knew what this feeling was.
Yu Sui’an: “…”
It’s only been a few months! Just a few months!!
Little liar! Little rascal!!