Lu Shiyuan found herself momentarily at a loss in the face of Shang Si’s attitude.
Their conversation had been perfectly pleasant one moment, only for her tone to shift the next, as if Lu Shiyuan were entirely at fault.
But hadn’t Shang Si made this decision long ago?
“I didn’t.” Her lips pressed into a thin line, a hint of grievance in her expression. Lu Shiyuan mulled over Shang Si’s sudden change for half a moment before catching a glimpse of the truth. “If trusting you too much is wrong, then I’m probably beyond saving.”
Unconditionally believing every word that came out of Shang Si’s mouth had become Lu Shiyuan’s greatest habit over the past three years.
She knew exactly what Shang Si wanted to hear. She also knew that showing a little vulnerability was the most effective tactic in front of her. Yet the reaction she’d expected didn’t come. Something was off—showing weakness wasn’t working on Shang Si today.
“Oh?” In the firelight, Lu Shiyuan looked up to find a tiny flicker of flame mirrored in Shang Si’s ink-black pupils, burning all the way to the outer corners of her eyes. Shang Si’s gaze flickered and shifted until her voice dropped low. “So no matter what I say, you’ll do it without question, won’t you?”
Obedience without reason or rhyme.
Lu Shiyuan hadn’t anticipated the counterquestion, but she nodded anyway.
In the next instant, Shang Si’s sleeve fluttered as she raised a small, sturdy barrier. The blatant surge of spiritual energy, right there under everyone’s eyes, was as good as a public announcement: whatever they were about to share was private—too private for any outsiders.
Lu Shiyuan sensed what was coming, her eyelashes quivering faintly.
Moments later, Shang Si sidled up to her as if it were nothing, her arms sliding around Lu Shiyuan’s slender waist. A pair of cool lips pressed precisely to the corner of her mouth.
Inch by inch, now heavier, now lighter, she suckled gently, like a farewell before parting.
Shang Si rarely voiced her affection or attachment for Lu Shiyuan, but Lu Shiyuan could always read it in her actions.
She held nothing back now. Her hands climbed Shang Si’s shoulders as she returned the parting kiss.
An intimate heat suffused their lips and tongues, steadily building, laced with a thrilling pulse.
Her tongue coaxed open the barrier of teeth, twining together as their breaths mingled. The leaping firelight bore witness.
They lost track of time like that, until Shang Si’s breathing grew ragged and short. Only then did she gently push Lu Shiyuan away.
It had gone well beyond a mere taste, but Lu Shiyuan’s greed stirred all the same. It still wasn’t enough.
Now, looking at her, the usually aloof beauty’s face bore a faint flush. Her lips glistened with moisture, irresistibly alluring. The seduction in her eyes trailed to the corners—every sign of desire laid bare.
Lu Shiyuan blinked, then took the initiative, leaning in to wrap herself around Shang Si. “Just a little longer.” Her voice took on a coquettish lilt, her captivating eyes locked on those lips with unmistakable intent.
She wasn’t done yet. No one got to stoke a fire like this and walk away—the arsonist had to put it out.
But Shang Si was clearly struggling to keep up.
“Nan Jin and the others are here.” She pressed two fingers lightly to Lu Shiyuan’s lower lip, blocking any further pursuit.
The words had barely left her mouth when a stir erupted just outside the barrier.
No need to look or listen—their divine senses covered the area, leaving every outside movement crystal clear.
The group from Yedu had arrived. Lu Shiyuan had known even without Shang Si saying it. She only spoke up to remind her it was time to stop.
For Lu Shiyuan, fresh from having her desires ignited, it felt like cruel punishment.
She let out a soft “oh” and obediently lowered her gaze.
Shang Si breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Just when she thought the moment had passed and Lu Shiyuan had gotten the message, those downcast eyes lifted again. Lu Shiyuan pressed forward aggressively, catching Shang Si’s lower lip between her teeth in a sudden bite.
“Hiss—” Shang Si drew in a sharp breath. By the time she recovered, Lu Shiyuan had already stepped back several paces, casually restoring the distance between them.
“That’s your punishment for twisting my words.” Lu Shiyuan huffed in petty triumph, her eyes curving into crescents at the tiny bead of blood welling on Shang Si’s lower lip.
It made those already vivid lips look even redder. Even more tempting.
Shang Si had claimed she wanted to leave ages ago—and knowing full well the setting was all wrong, she’d still gone and teased her like that.
Even a clay figurine had a bit of temper, let alone Lu Shiyuan. This would make sure she remembered.
Stung by the unexpected retaliation, Shang Si paused. With the others waiting outside, she wasted no time. She wiped the blood from her lip and raised a hand to dismiss the barrier.
Gossip and curiosity were probably traits shared by humans and demons alike. As the barrier dissipated, dozens of eyes swiveled toward the two women in unison, everyone eager to pry some hint of what had transpired between them.
Even amid such scrutiny, Lu Shiyuan remained utterly composed, her nonchalant air leaving no gaps for anyone to exploit.
Shang Si, for her part, didn’t bat an eye. She ignored the stares and strode straight up to Nan Jin.
She had just opened her mouth to speak when she caught his gaze lingering oddly on her lips. The fresh, telltale marks there were impossible to overlook.
Shang Si: “…”
They exchanged a glance. Nan Jin averted his eyes and got down to business. “Are you heading back to Yedu with me?”
“Yes.” Shang Si gave a grave nod. She started to turn back toward the instigator of all this, only to find that Lu Shiyuan had already melted into the crowd of cultivators.
Once they parted ways, Lu Shiyuan led the group to wait out the night in the village. They didn’t set off until dawn.
These cultivators hailed from various nearby sects. With their wounds on the mend, they were naturally eager to rush home and report what had happened.
And so a large procession departed from the little village in high spirits. By midday, Lu Shiyuan was the only one left.
Shang Si’s instructions had been clear: return to Sword Spirit Sect, use her current strength to reclaim some authority there, and then rally the other sects to investigate the Clan Extermination Massacre.
Getting back from the Border Region to the sect without a Teleportation Array, though, would take at least four or five days.
Ever since leaving Yedu up until yesterday, Lu Shiyuan had done everything alongside Shang Si. Itineraries were mapped out in advance; she simply had to follow along. Even the Teleportation Arrays had been at the ready.
Separated from Shang Si now, the difference hit her all at once.
No one asked for her input on their plans. No one handled the arrangements for her. She had to manage it all herself, and Lu Shiyuan found herself strangely adrift.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t handle things alone. She had simply grown accustomed to Shang Si’s steady presence at her side.
Nostalgia crumbled under the weight of specifics. The more she dwelled on it, the stronger the ache of reluctance and attachment grew in her chest. To cope, Lu Shiyuan forced her mind onto the road ahead. Without Shang Si there, her peculiar nighttime habit of demanding a few hours’ sleep vanished entirely.
She pressed on without pause, day and night, through wind and rain. At last, on the morning of the fourth day as light broke the horizon, the familiar silhouette of the mountains came into view.
Three years had passed, but Sword Spirit Sect’s mountain gate looked just as it always had. The old sect master used to say that once they had some spare spirit stones, they’d fix the place up properly. But year in and year out, Sword Spirit Sect never seemed to catch a financial break.
It remained as threadbare as ever, its disciples toiling from New Year to New Year with empty sleeves and lighter pockets.
Lu Shiyuan had left abruptly three years prior and mentioned her return only in passing to her senior brother and master while en route.
As she drew near, she didn’t fly straight to the gate. Instead, she hung back at a distance to observe. The disciples on guard looked unfamiliar.
She landed some ways off, changed into a fresh set of robes, and hung her Sword Spirit Sect disciple badge—a small wooden token—from her waist. Then she approached the gate on foot, step by measured step.
Without any spiritual power channeled into it, the Azure Frost Sword in her hand looked indistinguishable from any common blade.
Sure enough, as she neared the gate, a disciple shouted, “Halt!”
“Miss, this is sacred ground of an immortal sect. You can’t come any closer.” Two young disciples eyed her from afar, murmured to each other, and walked over, clearly figuring her for just another mortal dreamer come to beg for cultivation.
Lu Shiyuan waited patiently in place. When they drew close, she unhooked the wooden badge from her waist and held it out. “I’m your senior sister.”
They examined it impassively, their faces growing sterner by the moment.
One of them spoke up, his patience fraying into a scolding tone. “Don’t talk nonsense. Every disciple in our sect is known by name. I’ve never laid eyes on you.”
“And that badge? It’s an obvious fake. Sword Spirit Sect has a reputation to uphold. We’d never use a scrap of rotten wood for something like that.”
“Some little girl trying to scam her way in. I’ll let it go this once—head back where you came from. Keep yapping, and I won’t hold back.”
“They’ve upgraded, have they?” Lu Shiyuan didn’t take offense. Her eyes flicked to the small copper badges pinned at their waists.
Gleaming brass, etched with “Sword Spirit Sect” in bold characters and faintly pulsing with infused spiritual energy. Far fancier than her own “scrap of wood,” and clearly the product of some real effort.
Lu Shiyuan’s lips curved faintly. She reached out—and the copper badges flew from their waists into her palm.
Ignoring the looks of astonishment on their faces, she carefully examined the copper token in her hand and let out a soft chuckle. “Using copper tokens now, huh?”
“Looks like the sect hasn’t been hurting for cash too badly these past few years.”
