Minglong

Chapter 181 Coming at the right time

In September, Zihui Mountain is ablaze with autumn colors.

Linghu Qingmo, carrying his sword, walked up the steps outside the Book and Sword Pavilion. His junior sister, A Cai, tugged at the hem of her horse-face skirt, her eyes sparkling with envy.

Zhang Guan, dressed in a Taoist robe, walked ahead, his expression carrying a hint of melancholy.

"A daughter is like a tree that cannot be kept at home. I remember when you were about the same age as A-Cai, you were always climbing up and down in the Book and Sword Pavilion. In the blink of an eye, you'll be betrothed soon."

Linghu Qingmo's expression was solemn, but there was a clear hint of embarrassment in his eyes:

"Uncle Zhang, what are you saying? Xie Jinhuan and I were just working together at the Princess's residence..."

Ah Cai tugged at her skirt and muttered to herself:
"Eh~ Young Master Xie wanted some rare and precious herbs, but Senior Sister silently rushed back to the mountain from Luoyang, pestering and begging her Uncle-Master. She was still unhappy when she didn't get them. Hmm... she's siding with outsiders!"

Linghu Qingmo secretly pinched his junior sister's cheek:
"Xie Jinhuan refines pills to increase his cultivation, which is also for the purpose of slaying demons and eliminating evil. Moreover, he will not take it for free; he will definitely return it after some time."

Zhang Guan stroked his beard and sighed, "My master and Xie Jinhuan have a shared bond of slaying demons. If the sect had any valuable materials, you would have helped them even without asking. But the Vajra Dew comes from the Bodhi Tree, which only Buddhism possesses. You know the current situation; Taoism and Buddhism are at loggerheads. It's really not appropriate for my master to ask Buddhism for something and incur a favor..."

Linghu Qingmo promised to help her boyfriend inquire, but couldn't find out in the capital, so she ran back to Zihui Mountain to personally seek out her senior uncle. Seeing that her sect was in a difficult position, she could only change the subject at this moment:

"Fanyun Temple said it would open a sect in Danyang. What's the current situation?"

"This one……"

As the deputy sect leader, Zhang Guan had a hundred kinds of bitterness in his heart, but he couldn't confide in the younger generation.

In the path of cultivation, strength speaks volumes. To subdue Fanyun Temple, either the sect leader should go and discuss the Dao with the abbot, or the disciples should step in and have a contest between them, with the loser conceding.

However, the sect leader is temporarily unable to recover his strength, and his disciple is weaker than the senior disciple of Fanyun Temple, so he is currently unable to counter the attack and can only remain silent.

Upon hearing Qingmo's question, Zhang Guan thought for a moment and replied:
"Qingmo, do you and Xie Jinhuan have any thoughts about becoming Daoist partners?"

?

Linghu Qingmo blinked, his gaze slightly strange:
"Does Master Uncle mean to give Xie Jinhuan a chance to handle this matter, um... as a betrothal gift?"

Zhang Guan wasn't giving Xie Jinhuan a chance; he was asking for outside help to smooth things over, so that the Buddhist community wouldn't ruin its reputation at this critical juncture!

"Well... it all depends on what you young people think. Xie Jinhuan is a chivalrous man who is willing to risk his life to defend the righteous path. Even if he does nothing, the elders in the sect admire him. Of course, if he can help Zihui Mountain and make a name for himself in the martial arts world, it will benefit both Zihui Mountain and him."

Linghu Qingmo understood the meaning—Zihui Mountain entrusted Xie Jinhuan with the important affairs of the sect as a testing ground. If he won, he would agree to the marriage. In this way, Xie Jinhuan could prove his ability to the martial arts world. Zihui Mountain would also show its high regard for Xie Jinhuan and slap Fanyun Temple in the face. It was a triple win.

It's perfectly acceptable to talk about this, since the son-in-law is a pillar of the sect. If he defeats Xie Jinhuan, he'll be considered half a son of Zihui Mountain. It would be criticized if he didn't help Zihui Mountain settle things.

However, if Xie Jinhuan wins, she will be everyone's fiancée, and he will have no choice but to marry her. From now on, Xie Jinhuan's touching and kissing will be perfectly legitimate!
Although they still kiss and touch each other now, she can pretend to be angry...

Linghu Qingmo, being a young lady, was a little embarrassed to talk about these things. After thinking for a moment, she said:
"The eldest disciple of Fanyun Temple is no ordinary person. What if Xie Jinhuan loses?"

Since Xie Jinhuan lost, it would be difficult for him to propose marriage. Furthermore, Zihui Mountain would be in the wrong to obstruct Fanyun Temple from settling in.

Zhang Guan felt that this matter was actually quite risky, and after thinking about it, he said:

"I'll discuss it with my senior uncles and elders again. You can also ask them when you get back to see if Xie Jinhuan is confident. As for the Vajra Dew, it's simple. If we really plan to settle the matter in a tournament, we can place some bets. For example, my Zihui Mountain can offer three white lotuses, and Fanyun Temple can offer thirty-six drops of Vajra Dew. Whoever wins gets to keep it."

The white lotus is the lotus flower that blooms in the Jiazi year, with only one bloom every twelve years, and its value is roughly equivalent to that of Vajra Dew.

Linghu Qingmo felt that this method was risky, with the winner taking all and the loser losing everything. He didn't say anything more at the moment. After talking with his senior uncle, he prepared to rush back to the capital overnight to discuss the matter with Xie Jinhuan.

As I walked down the mountain road, I glanced at Danyang City outside the mountain.

Night had fallen, and the city of Danyang was dotted with lights, but Danwang Pavilion was easy to spot, with the Princess's Mansion and Qingquan Lane not far away.

When Linghu Qingmo saw Wuwei Pavilion, she couldn't help but recall their first encounter in the small courtyard behind the wall, as well as being groped, forced to sweep the floor, and spanked...

I used to think it wasn't a good memory, but now I guess it was fate...

Xie Jinhuan has a large mansion in the capital, but he probably won't be living there again...

I cleaned it up so thoroughly last time, and now it's probably covered in leaves again...

……

Lost in thought, Linghu Qingmo headed down the mountain, originally intending to go to the riverbank dock.

But whether it was fate or not, as I walked, I inexplicably turned back towards the city, wanting to take one last look at the place where we first met...
-
Night had fallen in Qingquan Lane.

The bedroom in the back courtyard was lit up, and the room was completely silent, with three weapons leaning against the headboard.

Xie Jinhuan lay on the inside, the five bloody holes from the scratches on his left arm had already scabbed over. The thin blanket was now covering his waist as he stared at the ice block in front of him.

Nangong Ye lay on his side facing the light outside the curtain, showing the person next to him the back of his head. The autumn quilt was draped around his waist, and his black dress was not unbuttoned. His icy face was still covered by an eye mask, making him look like an ice block that had fallen into a coma.

But she would occasionally bite her red lips, her breathing wasn't very steady, and her expression revealed a hint of subtle disdain...

Xie Jinhuan breathed a sigh of relief upon noticing the retreat of the Yang poison and inquired:
Are you feeling any better?

Nangong Ye had already obtained the Yin-cold energy, the Yang poison within his body had been suppressed, and his Qi and blood had returned to a stable state. His lips moved slightly, feigning that he had just woken up:

"I'm fine now. I don't know what you were doing, and I don't want to know."

"I didn't do anything just now."

Xie Jinhuan said helplessly, "I only glanced at your legs because I saw you were out of it earlier."

Nangong Ye didn't actually faint, so it's not just about his leg. Fortunately, he pulled through, and Xie Jinhuan didn't suffer either...

Nangong Ye adopted a distant and unapproachable expression, and tried to get up:
"Let go, and I'll pretend nothing happened."

"Eh."

Xie Jinhuan pressed his shoulder: "You were affected by the Yang poison just now, and your mind wasn't clear. Are you clear-headed now?"

"?" Nangong Ye was perfectly lucid, and therefore felt extremely uncomfortable lying here.

"What do you mean?"

Xie Jinhuan said earnestly:

"I saw you were having a bad bout of yang poisoning earlier, so I didn't want to waste any more time. Now that you're alright, I need to ask you some questions."

Nangong Ye, blindfolded and frowning, asked, "What are you asking?"

Xie Jinhuan said seriously, "I'm flirting with you openly and honestly, and you're not particularly resistant to me. We're both adults. Tell me, why can't we be more honest and have the courage to love and hate?"

Because you are a child...

Nangong Ye remained silent for a long time before responding:

"Anyway, it's not going to work. My physical contact with you was just a temporary measure; my intentions are perfectly clear, we're just friends from the martial arts world."

Xie Jinhuan nodded thoughtfully.
"Does that mean we'll only talk about physical intimacy, not feelings?"

?

Nangong Ye found these words a bit strange, but she could only nod.
"Yes. And the physical contact was for a reason, so neither of us should take it to heart..."

Xie Jinhuan felt that Bing Tuozi's tone was a bit unreasonable, but his tone was also quite interesting, so he started rustling under the covers.

Nangong Ye sensed something was wrong, slightly turned his head, and his profile conveyed the resentment and indignation of an icy female CEO being coerced by a blond-haired man:

"Xie Jinhuan, don't disappoint me! I've already said that my contact with you was out of necessity. Now that we're on good terms, if you still want to... what are you doing?!"

Xie Jinhuan took out the "Adding Fuel to the Fire" pill and popped it into his mouth:

"Who said it's harmless? Right now, my Qi Sea is empty, and you're just unable to fight due to the suppressed Yang poison. What if someone comes after you? Let me see if I can help you detoxify. The 'Adding Oil to the Fire' pill works every fifteen minutes. After you finish a bottle, you'll recover at least ninety percent of your cultivation. Hiss~ Huff..."

?

Nangong Ye, blindfolded, hadn't noticed Xie Jinhuan's agitated breathing and burning body as he spoke. He quickly pulled down the blindfold, his phoenix eyes flashing with a hint of fierceness:
"Why do you always disobey me? I just told you not to take the poison, and I let you do as you pleased, but you still took it after you were done. Then what happened to me...?"

Xie Jinhuan slightly raised his hand:
“A real man should act decisively. I can really handle it, so you just need to rest. Of course, if you feel sorry for me and want to help relieve the pain, I have no objection.”

Nangong Ye's eyebrows furrowed, sensing that this man was using a "gentleman's deception" tactic, taking advantage of her guilt and inability to ignore the situation.

But the fact was that the two of them couldn't fight at the moment. This brat was covered in injuries and now his body was burning hot. She was truly worried about him.

"you……"

"You won't be able to fight without detoxification. It'll only take a quarter of an hour. You can rest now, don't worry about me."

How could I possibly ignore it?

Nangong Ye gritted his teeth. Seeing that Xie Jinhuan was too stubborn, he finally leaned back against him, thinking of helping the boy relieve his pain a little.

But this girl is truly principled. When she's in a daze, she might touch and look at things, but when she's sober, she's truly capable of any evil!
……

Nangong Ye noticed that Qiu's skirt under the covers had been pulled up again. He initially tried to suppress his emotions and ignore it, but his face quickly turned red, and with a hint of confusion, he twisted his waist.
"what you do?!"

"Don't move, what else can I do?"

"How could you..."

Nangong Ye's eyes widened in disbelief. He had initially intended to teach Xie Jinhuan a lesson, but seeing Xie Jinhuan drenched in sweat, his eyes almost burning, his heart softened against him. He gritted his teeth, turned his face away, closed his eyes, and thought to himself:

This is outrageous...

He must have been delirious with fever to have gone astray...

What happened just now was already excessive; this is just adding fuel to the fire. At least it didn't damage the virginity mark...

Nangong Ye's face gradually turned fiery red. He couldn't help but give Xie Jinhuan a light elbow, coldly saying:
"Just be smug. You helped me detoxify, so consider these evil deeds your reward. From now on, we'll pretend we never met. No matter what you say, I won't stay any longer."

Xie Jinhuan thought that Bing Tuozi truly lived up to his title as the 'Supervisor God' in charge of the stern and murderous atmosphere; his expression control was truly remarkable. He replied:
"If you dare to leave, I'll post notices everywhere looking for you."

"You...you are shameless!"

"Hehe~ Lady Mu, just accept your fate, you can't escape..."

Nangong Ye nudged him again with his elbow, interrupting him, his eyes tightly closed, a look of disdain on his lips, trying his best not to give any positive feedback.

But this was clearly a bit difficult. After being so ashamed she could no longer bear it, she still bit down on the autumn blanket, her face flushed crimson.

"Woo..."

Xie Jinhuan found the little girl's appearance quite amusing, but he didn't forget to detoxify her. He activated his extreme yang fire within a quarter of an hour, then transferred his qi to her, took the antidote, and continued taking the medicine.

This process was repeated several times, and after more than half an hour, the results were remarkable.

The Yang poison in Nangong Ye's body has decreased from its peak to less than half of its original amount, which no longer affects his daily activities. If he restrains himself, it will not flare up again for at least six months. However, to completely eradicate it, he will have to gamble on luck.

Finding that Xie Jinhuan could withstand it, Nangong Ye no longer wanted to pay attention to this smug kid. He simply bit the quilt, pretending to be an ice cube that felt nothing.

This situation was supposed to continue until dawn.

But halfway there, Xie Jinhuan suddenly frowned and looked out the window.

Nangong Ye appeared calm as an iceberg, but was actually quite bewildered. Only when he realized there was no movement did he open his beautiful phoenix eyes.

Call ~
A barely audible whistling sound came from the front yard...

(End of this chapter)