Ch48 - A Piece of the Action

Editor: Sahloknir

Chang Ye raised a hand to wipe at his damp hair, his pupils widened into an almost feral, animalistic shape.

He had never shown such an expression before.

He was originally a ferocious beast disguised as a kitten, full of terrifying savagery and danger masked under his overly beautiful face.

“Qin Jun.” Chang Ye narrowed his eyes, “What Shizun and I spoke about has nothing to do with you. Get lost.”

Qin Jun didn’t have the slightest intention of leaving. He quirked his lips up as he looked at Chang Ye.

“Little Shidi, your tail’s puffed up.”

There was still a tail behind Chang Ye that hadn’t been retracted. Not only that, his ears and canines were gradually appearing.

Chang Ye no longer paid attention to Qin Jun. When he turned his gaze to Jiang Yinghe, his voice suddenly softened, “I’ll accompany Shizun to the devil tribes to find Yun-shishu. Shizun…what must I do for you to forgive Ye-er?”

Li Huanhan’s pitch black cloak settled around Jiang Yinghe’s shoulders. Only its edges had blood red patterns embroidered on it, just like the man himself. The metallic scent of fresh blood wafted out from the deepest folds.

Jiang Yinghe stretched out his hand to gather the collar. He gave Chang Ye a deep glance as he spoke in a somewhat weary tone, “Forgive you? …I never had the strength to blame you in the first place.”

He turned away from the banks of the River Styx. A dark cloak surrounded a handful of snow-like, pure white. Whether it was his shoulders, his waist, or the slender line of his back as he walked away, the youth’s hands had caressed it all.

Chang Ye watched him leave, then closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. His serrated and beastly teeth, peeking between his lips, gave out a bloodthirsty warning as he revealed his truest side.

Qin Jun stood at a distance. A deep and slightly cold laugh erupted from his throat.

“Did you think that everyone was a pawn on your chessboard?”

Chang Ye didn’t speak, but his gloomy and fevered eyes shifted over.

Qin Jun squeezed his own hand and said carelessly, “You know Shizun’s passion root is gone and that he only cares for the good of mankind, but did you consider the root of the problem?”

He paused for a moment.

“Since you betrayed Hundun, you should’ve ended him in one strike. Then there wouldn’t be so much trouble afterwards.” Qin Jun turned around and looked at the River Styx where the living souls surged. “It would also save many people the need to rack their brains over a half-dead feral beast.”

Chang Ye clenched his teeth, “Of course I’ll kill him.”

“Easy for you to say.” Qin Jun abruptly recalled some of what Zhou Zhengping had said to him that day, “When you fought him, how many died within the devil race?”

“…”

“What about the humans?”

“…I don’t know.” Chang Ye was a bit frustrated, “You want me to remember the lives of insects?”

Qin Jun looked at him with a considering gaze for a moment. Then he suddenly laughed sarcastically.

“Two hundred years ago, if Shizun hadn’t taken pity on an ‘insect’ like you, you wouldn’t be here now.”

He licked his lips.

“Little Shidi, Chang Ye,” Qin Jun rarely referred to him this way, “Suddenly, I’m starting to pity you.”

—-

Meanwhile, in Youming Palace…

The main palace wasn’t difficult to enter. It seemed like the Golden Boy and the Jade Girl were on guard duty today. The two children were napping outside, each more sleepy than the other. They had snuggled together to rest.

When Jiang Yinghe arrived, the Jade Girl raised her head to take a look. When she saw that it was the great beauty, she drifted back to dreamland without another word.

Jiang Yinghe sat on a chair and lowered his head as he untied the laces of the cloak. His eyes were downcast and somewhat vulnerable.

A hand pressed against his fingers.

Jiang Yinghe lifted his head to meet a pair of vividly red eyes. In the dim light, Li Huanhan’s scent was both familiar and not. He radiated a faint chill, like a blade being unsheathed, yet…he also radiated warmth.

He had always been contradictory like this. Even though the difference was minute, Jiang Yinghe was able to tell whether Li Huanhan was under the influence of his internal demons.

When they were at the Tian Mo school in the past, although his attitude was still gentle, there was always an unsettling quality about him. It was as if the other party was a slowly surging stream of magma that could erupt and cause unimaginable destruction at any time.

Jiang Yinghe’s entire body relaxed as he let out a very heavy sigh. He leaned forward somewhat weakly to rest his forehead on his disciple’s shoulder.

His hand was held in Li Huanhan’s fingers.

“No need to give it back to me.” The voice in his ear was quiet and calm, “It’s been a long time since I’ve been…so close to you.”

Jiang Yinghe was speechless. He choked for a moment before whispering, “Why did you two come here?”

Li Huanhan didn’t reply, instead wrapping his arms around Jiang Yinghe’s shoulders. His palm slowly slid through the other party’s loose and inky hair.

He could smell that familiar cold fragrance that was light and distant, like the smell of plum blossoms with a hint of the sweetness of pine.

After a long silence, Jiang Yinghe closed his eyes and asked again.

“Ye-er isn’t someone who would suddenly lose control. Are you two behind this?”

“En.”

The Nether Realm was really too dim. The only light sources inside were the phosphorous braziers lit on either side of the main hall. Their cold blue light clearly illuminated the hand of the man in his arms.

Beneath the skin, there were slender bones and veins. The vague movements of his meridians could be seen as he moved.

Jiang Yinghe returned Li Huanhan’s grip.

His fingers were a little chilly due to dipping into the water of the River Styx earlier.

“You weren’t so easy to talk to at the Tian Mo School.”

Jiang Yinghe lifted his head. His tone had thawed a bit, “Chains and a small black room? Where did you learn that from? Who misled even my most obedient disciple?”

The other party’s dark and slightly bloodshot eyes peered over.

“Is Shizun still angry?”

Jiang Yinghe looked down and sighed, “What should I be angry about? My only redeeming quality is not holding grudges.”

“That’s not true.”

Jiang Yinghe raised his eyes as he felt the other party’s grip on his fingers tighten. He even spoke a little faster.

“That can’t be true. Shizun has many redeeming qualities and strengths.”

Jiang Yinghe found his disciple’s uncharacteristic nervousness a bit cute. He was in a much better mood now as he continued to ask, “What else is there…? Am I good-looking?”

Li Huanhan suddenly paused.

The phosphorescent fire cast a ghostly shadow over those bloodshot eyes. Jiang Yinghe felt as if he was startled, but that feeling was fleeting.

The weak rays of light revealed the scattered strands of his inky black hair over his thin clothes. Li Huanhan’s cloak was even resting over his shoulders. His eyes were like stars, his lips were thin and softly outlined, but a very faint chill could be felt from them. At the edge of his collarbone, a patch of skin that was still irritated from being licked was partially visible,  like a drop of red cinnabar fallen on a white declaration.

The colder a person appeared to be, the more alluring they became when ravished.

That pair of bloodshot eyes hastily looked away.

Then he heard the quiet, soft voice of his eldest disciple.

“…Shizun is very good-looking.”

It was an ordinary sentence, but it made his pulse race—

Jiang Yinghe felt his heart skip a beat, as if something had cut off abruptly. He pressed a hand to his chest and frowned slightly.

“What’s wrong?” Li Huanhan asked, “Are you uncomfortable there?”

His hand covered the back of Jiang Yinghe’s hand.

Jiang Yinghe drew back his fingers and shook his head, “I’m fine, but you on the other hand… If you could always be the way you are now, I wouldn’t have to seal your cultivation to travel together. Internal demons and obsessions are extremely complicated and hard to manage.”

Li Huanhan remained silent for a moment. “…I’ve also thought of many solutions. I’m trying to control it right now.”

“…Control?”

“Yes.” Li Huanhan said, “I just started. If I gave them free reign…I might hurt you. It also needs to be released at suitable times, or else it would easily escape my control.”

Jiang Yinghe thought for a moment and asked, “What kind of ‘hurt’ are we talking about?”

Li Huanhan didn’t answer immediately. He hesitated for a moment before saying quietly, “A wound on your…body.”

Jiang Yinghe’s mind couldn’t keep up. Li Huanhan didn’t even do anything to him at the Tian Mo school, so why was he worse off now? He subconsciously followed up, “Be more specific.”

If it wasn’t too serious, then he could avoid sealing Hunahan’s cultivation. After all, the other two were each as vicious and bloodthirsty as the other. The only thing that could keep one in check were the others. A triangle was the most stable way to…get along.

Li Huanhan looked up and whispered, “Do you want to try it?”

“…What?”

“Try it out…and see how it is for yourself.”

For some reason, warning bells began going off in Jiang Yinghe’s head. When he was about to refuse, a dark sheen clouded Li Huanhan’s eyes as his previous warmth drained away.

That feeling appeared again.

It was like he could be bitten at any moment.

Jiang Yinghe was slightly nervous. Before he could say something to diffuse the situation, he was kissed.

His lips were already a little red. He couldn’t struggle free just now at the River Styx, and things were no different at Youming Palace.

Jiang Yinghe was bitten by him hard enough to draw some blood. Then, the other party gently and possessively lapped at his lips.

He shoved at Li Huanhan’s shoulders as his other hand touched his wounded lip. Just when he thought that this bit of pain was nothing, he felt his belt loosen.

…There was now a bigger problem.

His refusal was too slow.

Jiang Yinghe didn’t even know how Li Huanhan had undone his belt. His cloak was still perfectly attached, but the thin, snow-white layer within had been pulled back.

Although nothing had been done yet, the contrast of the dark cloak against his complexion exuded a special appeal.

Jiang Yinghe felt his disciple’s hand slide into his inner clothes, down the line of his belly…

Then, he felt him fiddling with that ring.

Ordinarily, he should have kicked this internal demon possessed evil cultivator away long before, but he faltered at the critical moment.

It would definitely hurt himself.

Jiang Yinghe breathed in slowly and deeply. He should be kinder to his own body… Even if it was a small wound, you had to consider the place, ah.

The demonic marking on the silver ring made from special materials slowly began to glow as Li Huanhan’s fingers fondled it and the sturdy length it encircled.

“You!” Jiang Yinghe grasped his hand, “Take it off.”

Li Huanhan was silent. Then he actually said, “Alright.”

…Why was he agreeing so easily?

While Jiang Yinghe was still a little confused, he suddenly felt the inner side of the silver ring warm up. He shifted his legs apprehensively, his thighs tensing. “What are you doing…?”

“I’m taking it off, like Shizun requested.”

Huanhan’s eyes remained completely unchanged as he said this. If Jiang Yinghe couldn’t hear his breathing gradually devolving into pants, he would’ve thought that this person was devoid of desire.

But the evidence was in. Not only was he deeply lustful, he was also peerlessly bold and reckless.

That silver ring loosened little by little, heating up wherever it made contact. Jiang Yinghe was being held intimately by his disciple’s slim, yet powerful fingers, so the only fabric he could hold onto was the other’s bright red, embroidered lapels.

“Is this the only way to…to take it off?” Jiang Yinghe wanted to cry a little. It wasn’t that it hurt, but the sensation really was too strange and chaotic. It was even more dizzying than the time when he was hidden away and the ring was put on.

Besides, this was still Jun-er’s main palace, and the other party might arrive at any moment. But he was in such a disheveled and somewhat sensually debauched state…

Jiang Yinghe grabbed Huanhan’s lapels somewhat anxiously. His breathing was now a bit disordered too. “Why is it so…so strange…?”

He was kissed again before he could finish.

“It was Shizun who wanted to take it off.” Those bloodshot eyes glowed with a phantom light from within, “If you can’t endure it, we can stop and put it back, okay?”

…Who agreed to putting it back?

Jiang Yinghe clenched his teeth and closed his eyes. “Keep, keep going.”

He thought this guy was gentle and obedient before. How did he become like this at the flip of a switch… Internal demon? More like a little yellow book adaptation device. As soon as this thing was touched and loosened, it started doing all kinds of… nonsensical things.

It wasn’t just hot down there, his entire body felt odd. Jiang Yinghe looped his arms around Li Huanhan’s neck and held on while he panted and tried not to move. It was only when the silver ring was completely removed that he breathed a long sigh of relief.

Just as he was busy feeling relieved, he suddenly heard a calm voice rumbling in his ear.

“Shizun, do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?”

“No, I…”

He was interrupted.

“More specifically, is…is there anywhere you feel…needs comforting?”

Jiang Yinghe: “…?”

“That place behind.” Li Huanhan said, “How does it feel?”

Jiang Yinghe was somewhat shocked at how casually he asked while also being dumbfounded by the question. He froze for a moment before asking. “What…am I supposed to be feeling there?”

Li Huanhan looked up at him and raised his hand to show the silver ring between his fingers to Jiang Yinghe. The demonic pattern on it glowed intermittently.

He was completely serious as he calmly said, “Desire for satisfaction.”

Jiang Yinghe blinked, then flushed. “…Are you joking?”

“No.” Li Huanhan hugged him, “When Shizun said that he was clear-hearted and devoid of desire, I told you that would be a problem.”

Jiang Yinghe didn’t know when this internal demon would retreat, but he already believed his words.

Because he had indeed…felt it. The place at the base of his spine was sensitive, itching slightly as though…it needed something.

“The injury I was talking about,” Li Huanhan lowered his head and gently touched his flushed earlobe with his lips, “was this. Your waist might be sore. Also…”

Jiang Yinghe was kissed from his ear to his neck by his wicked disciple. Then he felt Li Huanhan’s slightly cool fingers slide down his spine to ease into the crevice between the rounded cheeks…”

“It will hurt here.”

Li Huanhan looked at him, “But not to worry. I’ve kept the medicine that that devil shopkeeper gifted Shizun.”

Jiang Yinghe held in his surging emotions for a while before shouting, “Who told you to keep that kind of stuff?!”

He was somewhat furious, but he was held so tightly that he didn’t even have the strength to summon Wangchen. Therefore, he could only lower his head and bite the other man viciously on the shoulder.

Li Huanhan didn’t seem to notice as he quietly watched him.

Instead, it was Jiang Yinghe who was poked by his finger. He made a muffled grunt as a dawning realisation came to him–

The ointment the deer devil shopkeeper gave him didn’t mostly contain chrysanthemums as an ingredient…

It was for chrysanthemums—specifically the one at the base of his spine!

The corners of Jiang Yinghe’s eyes reddened as the taste of Li Huanhan’s blood flooded his mouth. He lowered his head when he loosened his mouth, his voice hoarse as he said, “I’ll do it myself.”

“You can’t easily reach it.”

“I can too.” Jiang Yinghe was incensed, “It’s not that deep…”

His voice stopped abruptly, and even if he didn’t look, he could feel Li Huanhan’s gaze cover him.

“Not…that deep?”

His tone was the same as ever. If he wasn’t speaking of this kind of thing, he might’ve been mistaken for just a respectful and filial disciple. This man’s internal demons were distinctly different from him. Only their calm and gentle restraint was exactly the same.

“…So the place where Shizun feels discomfort is very shallow?”

Jiang Yinghe’s ears were completely red. He pushed the other man away with all his might, but before he could say anything else, another person’s voice rang out from the palace doors.

“Li Huanhan.” Qin Jun looked over with his grey eyes from a short distance away. His tone didn’t betray his emotions, “I won’t talk about the other things, but your ability to take advantage of weaknesses is indeed something special. You’re quite skilled at ‘eating alone’.”

Li Huanhan’s eyes suddenly darkened. He retied the clothing that he just half pulled off his Shizun without changing his expression. He only picked up the bonelessly tired person beside him protectively when his ankles were the only thing left uncovered.

“Eating alone? Are you trying to tell me,” his tone was icy, “that you want a piece of the action?”

Author’s Corner

HeHe: What do you mean ‘a piece of the action’!? Can’t you two behave like humans?!

Qin Jun: …I didn’t say anything like that…..

Li Huanhan: I’m not human.

Rain

Huanhan, you’ll have to learn to share eventually…

Sahl

I’d like to note here that with the lovely Rain’s permission, I’ve added a little extra spice to chapters (irl I write romance) I’ve edited. Mostly because we agree this was the author’s intention, but censorship is a thing that exists. I’ve stayed as strictly as I can within what I believe the author intends and would have done if she could have. 😏 I hope you guys don’t mind.