Battle Through the Heavens: Starting with Cao Ying as an apprentice

"And those little movements, they're definitely not sleepwalking, right?"

She was referring to the fact that several times during the year, Su Baichen would pull her close in his sleep, his arms around her, his chin resting on her, and he would even unconsciously take advantage of her, murmuring things like "Cailin, don't go" and "It's so warm here."

She was so ashamed and angry that she dared not move, afraid of waking him and exposing her identity. She could only pretend to be asleep, cursing him a thousand times in her heart.

Su Baichen nodded frankly, a sly glint in his eyes: "Of course it was intentional. Since you didn't want to show yourself, why should I expose you? I just wanted to tease you since you were putting on such a show."

He suddenly reached out and gently brushed his fingertips across Cai Lin's cheek, the touch delicate and slightly cool: "Besides, the way you pretend to be calm when you're clearly embarrassed and annoyed is really quite amusing."

"You—!" Cai Lin was furious, her beautiful eyes wide open, staring at the nonchalantly smiling face before her. She had lived for decades, ruling the snake-people race, decisive in her killings; when had she ever been mocked like this?

But ironically, the person who was toying with her was her lover, Su Baichen, with whom she had shared physical intimacy and a deep connection of souls.

A surge of shame and indignation welled up to her lips, but in the end, it only turned into a weak and unconvincing scolding: "You bad guy... how could you bully someone like this!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she realized that her momentum was lacking, which added to her frustration.

Su Baichen gazed at her. At this moment, Cai Lin had shed her queenly armor, her eyes brimming with a rare shyness and helplessness. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and she bit her red lips lightly, making her completely different from the cold, proud, and decisive Medusa of the past. This contrast was like the first melting of snow and the first bloom of spring flowers, possessing a breathtaking allure.

His Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and a spark in his heart ignited and quickly spread like wildfire.

Almost instinctively, Su Baichen took a step forward, reached out and embraced Cai Lin's slender yet supple waist, pulling her into his arms. Caught off guard, Cai Lin gasped softly, her hands instinctively pressing against his chest, but she didn't push him away forcefully.

Su Baichen lowered his head, his warm lips almost touching her cool earlobe, his breath brushing against her: "Of course I'm a bad guy. Didn't someone say that women don't love men who aren't a little bad?"

He felt the body in his arms tense up instantly, trembling slightly. His smile deepened, and his voice lowered, becoming seductively hoarse: "Besides... those times when I held you, your heartbeat was faster than a snake's. Cai Lin, dare you say... you don't like me being mischievous?"

The last few words were almost whispered into her ears, carrying a scalding heat.

A buzzing sound filled Cai Lin's mind, as if all the strength had been drained from her body in an instant. All the forced composure and deliberate aloofness crumbled at that moment. She remembered the warmth of his chest in the darkness, his unconscious yet gentle caresses, her own accelerated heartbeat and secret joy at that time... All the pretense was completely shattered by that light-hearted remark.

"You... talking nonsense..." she tried to refute, but her voice was so soft that it was almost inaudible, her arms hung limply at her sides, and she almost collapsed into his arms.

Su Baichen said no more, tightened his arms, and picked her up horizontally. Cai Lin gasped softly, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her burning face in his shoulder.

"Su Baichen! Put me down!" she said in a muffled voice, but it had no deterrent effect whatsoever.

"Be quiet." Su Baichen carried her towards the inner room, his steps steady.

"Her Majesty has been asleep for two years, and the 'debt' she owes... should be repaid with interest."

"What debt? What do I owe you?" Cai Lin asked, embarrassed and annoyed.

"The debt of pretending to be asleep and spying, the debt of secretly climbing on me." Su Baichen kicked open the door to the inner room, his voice tinged with laughter, and continued, "And... the debt that I've been thinking about for two years."

The brocade curtains fell, concealing the spring light from the room. Occasionally, whispers and soft scoldings escaped, only to be quickly swallowed up by deeper tenderness.

Chapter 100 Yao Chen Awakens

The next morning, sunlight streamed through the window, casting bright spots of light into the room. Su Baichen woke up in the warmth, squinted, and habitually reached out to his side.

As his fingertips touched her smooth, slightly cool skin, he sighed contentedly, then wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into his embrace.

Looking down, Cai Lin was still asleep, her breathing even and long. The morning light shone on her face, casting a light shadow under her long eyelashes, softening her usual sharpness and giving her a rare gentleness and tranquility.

Su Baichen watched quietly for a long time, and the corners of his lips unconsciously turned up.

He gently brushed aside a few stray strands of hair from her cheek, lowered his head, and placed a very light kiss on her smooth forehead. Then he leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Rest well, I have some things to take care of."

The body in his arms stiffened almost imperceptibly for a moment. Su Baichen's smile deepened, but he pretended not to notice, quietly got up, and dressed.

Before leaving, he glanced back – beneath the brocade quilt, her exquisite curves rose and fell gently with her breath, as if she were still asleep.

The door was gently closed.

Almost the instant the door closed, Cai Lin, who was "sleeping" on the bed, suddenly opened her eyes. She first looked warily towards the door, and only after confirming that the person had left did her tense body completely relax, and she let out a long sigh of relief.

"Finally gone..." she murmured softly, her voice hoarse and languid. She tried to move her body and immediately gasped—her whole body felt as if every bone in her body had been taken apart, and she was incredibly sore and weak.

Recalling everything that happened last night, from her initial half-hearted resistance to her later barely holding on, and finally to her almost completely collapsing and begging for mercy... the heat that had just faded from Cai Lin's face returned.

"That bastard... he's an insatiable wolf!" she muttered, biting her lip, but a soft light, unnoticed even by herself, shone in her eyes. Pulling the quilt up to cover half her face, the cool yet warm scent of Su Baichen filled her nostrils, bringing her a strange sense of peace.

Deep within her consciousness, a childish voice weakly rang out: "Sister... next time, next time... could you please tell me in advance... so I can stay away... I'm still young!"

It's Xiao Cai. Ever since she was caught in the crossfire when her soul took control of her body last time, this poor little thing has become a nervous wreck.

Cai Lin's face flushed even more, and she thought to herself, "Shut up and go to sleep!"

Xiao Cai shrank back in frustration, determined to immediately shut down her senses whenever she sensed any signs of "danger" in the future, and never repeat the same mistake.

Cai Lin closed her eyes again, a wave of weariness washing over her. Her last thought before falling asleep was: Never mind, I'll catch up on some sleep first. As for the future... I'll think about it when I wake up.

Queen Medusa, who once reigned supreme over the desert, now nestled in a quilt still imbued with his scent, drifting into a deep sleep. A faint smile, almost imperceptible to herself, lingered on her lips.

…………

Su Baichen stepped out of the room, his face beaming with joy, exuding a languid air of contentment. He strolled leisurely to the center of the courtyard, tilted his head back, and stretched out his arms to greet the morning light, letting the fatigue and exhilaration of the night dissipate in the cool air.

"Sigh, being too strong is also a kind of trouble." He muttered to himself, but the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up. Thinking of the black-clad men from Zhongzhou, he began to fantasize.

“Your Majesty (Cai Lin), you still can’t handle this alone. When we return to Zhongzhou, Xuan Yi must go with her, otherwise this ‘battle’ will be one-sided and it will be so boring.” He shook his head, his tone full of smug satisfaction, and his whole body was filled with a sense of pride, as if even the ends of his hair were shining with joy.

"Young Master, what's going on...?" Cai Die, who had just stepped out of the room, stopped in her tracks and looked puzzled when she saw Su Baichen standing in the courtyard with a subtle expression.

"Oh, Xiao—" Su Baichen turned his head upon hearing the voice, but quickly stopped himself from saying "sister-in-law," barely swallowing the words back. He coughed lightly and continued, "It's Cai Die. Go and prepare some nourishing and restorative food, and bring it to my room in a bit."

"Yes, young master, I'll go right away." Although Cai Die felt that his demeanor was somewhat different from usual today, she didn't ask any more questions, but obediently agreed and turned to walk towards the kitchen.

Watching the slender figure disappear into the distance, Su Baichen's smile deepened. However, yesterday's "important matter" was not yet resolved, so he quickly composed himself and took out the ancient Bone Flame Ring from his robes.

"Playing around is fine, but we can't neglect our business." He whispered, his fingertips lightly tracing the surface of the ring.

With a thought, the vast and boundless power of the soul seeped silently into the ring, like an invisible stream of water.

That soul barrier, which is so strong and unbreakable for ordinary people, is as thin as paper in front of him, crumbling at the slightest touch.

Everything in the ring space instantly came into clear view: a mountain of martial arts scrolls, high-grade medicinal herbs brimming with spiritual energy, and a dazzling array of rare pills... In a certain corner, a phantom soul was quietly floating, its aura weak yet steady. It was none other than the Medicine Venerable—Yao Chen—who had fallen into a deep sleep after being betrayed by his beloved disciple and having his physical body destroyed.

Compared to the near collapse of his original fate, his soul is now much more solid and shows signs of recovery. It is likely that he will be able to wake up on his own after a few more months of nurturing.

"It seems that the old guy actually took my warning to heart and made some preparations in advance." Su Baichen muttered to himself, and without any hesitation, he swept away all the medicinal herbs and pills that caught his eye, putting them all into his own pocket.

"Hey, let's collect some kickbacks first!"

Then Su Baichen's "gaze" fell on the sleeping soul, and a playful smile appeared on his lips.

"My dear child, your father has come to rescue you from this sea of ​​suffering."

As he spoke, he flipped his hand, and a warm, smooth jade bottle appeared in his palm. Inside the bottle was a soul-nourishing elixir that had been prepared beforehand, its color like amber, with a subtle shimmering light.

With a flick of his finger, a drop of crystal-clear liquid pierced through space and precisely entered the space between Yao Chen's brows.

"Om-"

The moment the medicine entered the body, the dormant soul trembled violently as if it had been parched for a long time and then began to greedily and frantically absorb the pure energy within.

The previously illusory form solidified at a visible speed, the dim spiritual light rekindled, and a soul pressure belonging to a top-tier expert began to slowly revive and spread...

Fighters!

Fighting Master!

Grand Master!

…………

His aura surged towards the Dou Huang level. Just as this pressure was about to break through the ring's restraints and alarm the outside world, Su Baichen casually raised his hand and waved it.

An invisible barrier silently descended, firmly sealing the restless soul fluctuations within a small area, without leaking out even a trace.

"Absorb it well, old friend." He rubbed his fingertips against the Bone Flame Ring, his gaze deepening as he looked into the distance.

It wasn't until the aura reached the Dou Zong level that it gradually stabilized.

Yao Chen slowly awoke and opened his eyes.

Where am I?

As soon as Yao Chen finished speaking, he heard the voice of his "beloved family and friends".

"Oh my, my dear son is awake?"

Chapter 101 Su Baichen and Yao Chen's "Love and Affection"

Yao Chen's consciousness gradually returned.

Everything around him seemed so blurry and unreal until a few coughs brought him fully awake—no, rather than awake, it was more like he was forcibly dragged back to reality by some noisy sound.

"Oh dear, my dear son, your cough woke you up."

"Do you know how worried your father has been for you these past few years while you were missing?"

That voice...that tone...

Yao Chen's soul trembled slightly. He opened his eyes, which remained clear despite the vicissitudes of life, and saw a smiling face that seemed to say "I deserve a beating."

Su Baichen.

That bastard.

Yao Chen's mind was still in a state of confusion, as if it were filled with soaked paste, heavy and sluggish.

who am I?

Where am i?

what am i doing?

Where did I get a father?

A series of questions exploded in the depths of my soul, but as that familiar face gradually became clear in my sight, all the confusion was instantly replaced by an inexplicable fire.

That bastard Su Baichen is taking advantage of me!

"Get lost, Su Baichen, you bastard, you're taking advantage of me!"

Yao Chen's illusory soul suddenly fluctuated, and the arrogance belonging to a peak Nine-Turn Dou Zun expert, even now that he was only a remnant soul, would never allow such an offense.

He lunged forward almost instinctively, his transparent soul arm poised to strike Su Baichen's hateful smiling face.

"Oh dear, how dare you be so disrespectful, godson! You want to hit your godfather? Fine, I'll teach you a lesson today."

Su Baichen shouted, but his feet nimbly dodged to the side, a mischievous glint in his eyes.