Gui Yin breathed out a soft sigh, his eyes still closed as he asked: “Have you looked enough?”
Hu Ze’s eyes widened. Her lips pursed into a coy smile as she leaned back, closer to the fire and further from Gui Yin.
Night had fallen just an hour ago. Despite being at the city nearest to Kunlun, there would still be a ways to walk before they arrived at their destination. Because of certain restrictions of usage of spiritual powers by foreign human cultivators, the party was forced to walk on their feet, rather than taking off to the skies and arriving in a few hours. Because Kunlun was still another day’s worth of travel away, Hu Ze suggested that they find a nice clearing and set up a camp.
Ye Liuxing was busy chatting with Xiongsan and the others while Gui Yin had opted to sit to the side in hopes of eliminating the irritation that still clung on to him. Yet, while he was meditating, he felt a presence settle down beside him. Since then, the set of eyes hadn’t moved, seemingly determined to drink in every detail and flaw of his features.
Gui Yin opened his eyes and turned to Hu Ze. “Does Miss Hu require something of me?”
“Lord Ninglan, I have a question to ask you,” Hu Ze said, fluttering her lashes flirtatiously.
“Please ask.”
“Are you mixed race?”
Gui Yin stared at Hu Ze. His eyes temporarily drifted away before refocusing on her. “Mixed…how?”
“Spirit and human. Or demon and human.”
“…No, I am not.”
Hu Ze sucked in a breath of cold air through her teeth. She leaned forward onto her thighs, her hands cupping her jaw as she tilted her head, as if to get a better angle on Gui Yin. “Then how come you’re so handsome?”
Gui Yin smiled his business smile. “Miss Hu, in our world, handsome and good-looking people are innumerable. I am merely a drop of water in the expansive ocean. There is really nothing to look at.”
Hu Ze’s fox-like eyes narrowed. She leaned in closer, an amused smile on her lips. “That’s not right.”
“What isn’t right?”
“In my experience, people like Lord Immortal are most proud of their looks and their martial ability,” Hu Ze said, drawing out her words in a seductive fashion. Her red lips curved as she nudged Gui Yin with her shoulder teasingly. “So, it turns out Lord Immortal is like us foxes.”
“So, you’re a fox spirit,” Gui Yin noted, unperturbed by her familiar actions.
“As if you didn’t know,” Hu Ze giggled. She leaned back and looked at Gui Yin in satisfaction. “This lowly one has heard much about Lord Immortal Ninglan. Even us spirit cultivators look up to you. I have even heard of demons and demon spirits entranced by your beauty. Now that I’ve met you…”
“Now that you’ve met me?”
“By human standards, you truly are attractive,” Hu Ze complimented. She used a hand to lightly touch her cheek, “About as much as me?”
“I wouldn’t dare,” Gui Yin denied. “How could my attractiveness be compared to that of the fox clan’s?”
“Well, certainly not on the same level. You don’t have that seductive air. You give people the impression that you’re an ascetic immortal,” Hu Ze said. She licked her lower lip. “It makes you seem much more delectable.”
Gui Yin glanced at Hu Ze.
“…You’re not interested in women, are you?” Hu Ze asked, somewhat disappointed.
“I am not. My apologies.”
“It’s okay. If you still want to play with a fox spirit, I know a few,” Hu Ze suggested, her eyes sparkling.
“…I appreciate your consideration, but I am not interested,” Gui Yin said.
Hu Ze sighed, a pout on her lips as she sat back. “That’s no fun. Are you promised to someone?”
“I’m promised to my cultivation path,” Gui Yin said solemnly. He met Hu Ze’s unimpressed gaze and lightly coughed.
“Are you still mad about earlier?” Hu Ze asked, poking fun at Gui Yin. “Let me apologize again. It was quite hot, wasn’t it?”
“I’m not mad,” Gui Yin said. “I’m just tired.”
Hu Ze raised a brow. She lightly poked Gui Yin. “Liar.”
Gui Yin glanced at Hu Ze. Seeing the fox spirit’s persistence, Gui Yin finally sighed. “Miss Gu, I truly am just tired.”
“If you’re not promised to anyone, will you at least meet my brother? He’s a little cutie. I’m sure you’ll like him!” Hu Ze said.
“Are there no good men in your fox clan?” Gui Yin raised a brow.
“There are, but cultivators are different,” Hu Ze said, a brilliant sparkle in her eyes.
As for what “different” meant, Gui Yin had no intention of finding out.
After eating dinner, Hu Ze and the other spirit cultivators moved off to the side to get their rest. Ye Liuxing settled in a corner by himself as well, dozing off before he even had a proper conversation with Gui Yin. The night passed peacefully, but when day arrived again, the group set off once more.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“Is that one your love interest?” Hu Ze asked curiously.
“Hardly. He’s like a younger brother to me.”
Hu Ze breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. I would be upset if you chose someone with those looks over our fox clan.”
Seeing Gui Yin’s raised brow, she smiled flatteringly. “Your little brother is good, but he’s just good by human standards—don’t you agree?”
“I wouldn’t know,” Gui Yin replied with a slight chuckle.
Hu Ze felt empowered by Gui Yin’s joking response. She straightened up and eagerly nudged Gui Yin. “But what’s your type? Tall? Short? Chubby? Skinny?”
“Anything as long as their personality is good,” Gui Yin said.
“This one’s sincere,” Hu Ze said, rather surprised. She let out a pitying sigh. “You’ve met too many bad men, huh?”
“You could say that,” Gui Yin said, recalling his exes in the twenty-first century.
“But there’s really not a type you go for?”
Gui Yin sincerely thought about it. “The asshole type?”
Hu Ze choked on her laughter. “Is that your type, or is that just who you end up with?”
“Who I end up with,” Gui Yin said, letting out a long sigh. “You know what they say—a face of beauty only attracts trouble.”
Hu Ze’s laughter grew. “But from what I see, those that you hang out with are quite possessive.”
Gui Yin raised a brow. “Why do you say that?”
“He left a scent on you.”
“…He?”
Hu Ze’s brows furrowed. “Mn! I smell at least two. One’s kind of aggressive though. The other is a lot gentler. You should be more careful about who you hang out around, especially when it comes to spirits.”
“Wh—”
“Hu-jie, we’re here!” Xiongsan said, shouting with all his might to the two people who were lagging rather far behind.”
Hu Ze clicked her tongue. “Alright, alright, I’m coming!”
Gui Yin’s brows furrowed tightly even as he stopped beside Ye Liuxing. Ye Liuxing glanced at him. “What’s wrong? Did Miss Hu step over the line?”
“No, she’s fine,” Gui Yin murmured. He looked to Ye Liuxing. “Am I marked?”
“Marked?” Ye Liuxing’s eyes widened. He scanned Gui Yin silently before shaking his head. “No, you’re not. I don’t sense anything on you.”
“Nothing on me…?” Gui Yin frowned. He glanced at Hu Ze. “Then, why did she say…”
Ye Liuxing glanced at Hu Ze, who was undoing the barrier to enter Kunlun. “Did she say something? Well, you know Miss Hu—perhaps she was just joking?”
“Right, maybe she was,” Gui Yin said, his gaze still concentrated on Hu Ze’s back.
The gates to Kunlun eventually opened, exposing a long set of stairs that led up the mountain. There was little structure in the area, but Gui Yin could faintly make out buildings that stretched past the skyline. As a cultivator, he had a spiritual sense that no normal human would have. Although it was only active when Gui Yin needed it to be, sometimes it was difficult to ignore what he was smelling.
Now, as they traversed up the stairs, Gui Yin could almost see the scents of spirit cultivators, winding around them and making their mark against his skin and his clothes.
“We’re heading to Qīngyǔ (青羽) Abode first,” Hu Ze explained. She glanced at Gui Yin and Ye Liuxing. “It might be a while before we can gather everyone for the conference. As you may guess, there are still some reluctant parties. So, for now, you’ll be staying at Qingyu Abode as a guest.”
“Qingyu Abode?” Gui Yin tilted his head. “That doesn’t sound like where you might live.”
Hu Ze threw a charming smile over her shoulder. “I do not. Our fox clan lives at the foot of the mountain over that way,” she gestured towards the west. “Qingyu Abode belongs to the clan of cranes. Other than the nine-tailed foxes, they were the only of the big clans that agreed to this conference.”
Gui Yin and Ye Liuxing exchanged glances.
“Who are the other big clans in Kunlun?” Ye Liuxing asked curiously.
“Well, there are the descendants of Five Heavenly Beasts—the Xuanwu beast, the Azure and Golden dragons, the vermillion bird, and the white tiger,” Hu Ze said. “You can pretend they don’t exist. They live at the highest peak—the one that scrapes Heaven’s floors. They’re older than Mount Kunlun itself. Only our ancestors from thousands of years ago have seen them.
“As for the ones who actually have a say, there’s my clan, the nine-tailed fox clan. There’s also the tiger clan, dragon clan, and the phoenix clan. There are other magical beasts as well, but they prefer to keep to themselves. They live deep in Kunlun and we don’t actually know where they all are,” Hu Ze said. After a moment, she added, “I hear you went to Devil’s Desert?”
“Yes. That’s how we discovered the slave trade,” Gui Yin said.
“Then, you must have heard of the Ruby-Eyed Serpent.”
Ye Liuxing glanced at Gui Yin in confusion.
“I’ve heard of it,” Gui Yin said.
“That one’s also a spirit.”
Gui Yin’s brows furrowed slightly. “The local that I spoke to there said that the Ruby-Eyed Serpent dwelled in the sands of the desert, but there were people who could communicate with it. She didn’t mention anything about descendants of it.”
“Well, there’s some truth and some lies to it,” Hu Ze said. “I think the legend is generally about how one of the dragons of the seas were accused and then banished to the deserts, correct?”
Gui Yin nodded.
“The dragon didn’t go alone—he also had family that was banished along with him. The Ruby-Eyed Serpent was one of those descendants. But the monster that dwells in the sands of the desert is…how you say…a shadow of the past?”
“It’s a ghoul?”
“It’s more complicated than that,” Hu Ze clicked her tongue. “It’s a remnant of a memory. You can’t touch it. You can’t eliminate it. Think…oh, yes! Think of it as resentment! But…purer. Stronger.”
Gui Yin nodded slowly in understanding. “Then, the Huigu Palace Lord who was suspected of being able to control it…”
“Is a descendant of that Ruby-Eyed Serpent. You’ve heard of the nomadic tribe that worshipped it, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Somewhere along the line, the direct descendants of the Ruby-Eyed Serpent cultivated into human form. I heard some broke away from the clan to live among the humans. I believe that the Palace Lord of Huigu was actually an offspring of a descendant and one of the nomadic clan members,” Hu Ze said. “I didn’t get a good read on him though, but I could definitely tell he was more human than spirit.”
“You’ve met him?”
“I have! A handsome young lad! Well, maybe not young—I think he’s about…your age?” Hu Ze said, wiggling her fingers. “But he looked young! Tall, bronzed, muscular.”
Hu Ze glanced at Gui Yin again and then to Ye Liuxing. She pointed at Ye Liuxing. “Just a little taller than you? Probably about the same height as Lord Immortal Ninglan. Not a bad choice if you’re looking for a partner.”
Ye Liuxing squeezed Gui Yin’s biceps. “Tsk. Shixiong, you’re missing out on the muscular part! You have to exercise more!”
“What are you saying? I am muscular,” Gui Yin said, knocking the back of Ye Liuxing’s head with a quick swipe of his hand. “You should be saying that I’m as pale as a ghost.”
“Not at all, not at all. Lord Immortal has lovely ivory skin,” Hu Ze chirped.
“What did he come to Kunlun for?” Gui Yin asked, dragging the subject back on track.
“Oh, him? Mm…I don’t really remember! It was a long time ago. I think he wanted to borrow…borrow an artifact? He wasn’t here for me. He was talking to the dragon clans,” Hu Ze said. “I only saw him in passing. Oh! But I saw him again recently.”
“How recent?”
“How recent? Um…about a month or two ago? Maybe three or four,” Hu Ze said. “He was injured.”
“Injured?” Gui Yin’s brows furrowed tightly.
Hu Ze opened her mouth and slowly closed it. A teasing smile lit up her foxlike eyes. She narrowed her eyes and joyfully slid over, her shoulder shimmying against Gui Yin’s chest. “Lord Immortal, is the one I smell on you him?”
“I’m not sure what you mean,” Gui Yin said.
Hu Ze giggled. “Or else, why would you be so curious about Young Master Er?”
“Young Master Er?” Gui Yin repeated, his voice quiet and his gaze a little distant.
“What did he tell you to call him?”
“Erlang—”
“Oh my goodness!” Hu Ze squealed, her feet stomping in excitement.
Gui Yin’s eyes widened. He whipped his head to look at Xiongsan and then to Ye Liuxing. The two men turned away before their eyes could meet, but the quivering shoulders of Ye Liuxing and the dramatic cough from Xiongsan made Gui Yin’s face flush indignantly.
“It’s not that.”
Hu Ze covered her face and squirmed. “You call him so affectionately.”
“It’s not that,” Gui Yin emphasized. “It’s just a name.”
“Oh, it’s okay. You don’t need to be embarrassed, Lord Immortal! It’s natural for couples to have pet names for each other,” Hu Ze said.
“No, you are misunderstanding. I’ve only met him once,” Gui Yin said.
“Once and you already…”
“We didn’t—I don’t know why his scent is on me,” Gui Yin said clearly. “Erlang is another pseudonym he goes by. It isn’t a term of endearment.”
“But it definitely is one hell of a way to mess with you,” Ye Liuxing murmured.
Gui Yin glared at his shidi and looked back to Hu Ze. “The Huigu Palace Lord and I have no relation whatsoever. I’ve only helped him once.”
“Helped him once?” Hu Ze’s eyes shined. “Well, that’s more than enough then!”
“…What?”
“I would love to have him owe me a favor,” Hu Ze said poutingly.
Xiongsan and the other spirit cultivators nodded and murmured amongst themselves.
“The Huigu Palace Lord has always repaid those who helped him generously,” Xiongsan explained, as Hu Ze’s mind flew off to a far-off fantasy. “The dragon clan that helped him once managed to take over two territories and the lotus spirit clan, who was dying out because of their poor living conditions, began to flourish again the following summer.”
“No one knows what the Huigu Palace Lord did, but everyone knows that having him owe you a favor is a blessing of the lifetime,” another spirit cultivator added on.
Ye Liuxing let out a low whistle. He nudged Gui Yin. “There’s a bigshot indebted to you.”
“Am I not a bigshot? Do I need someone to be indebted to me?”
Ye Liuxing smiled weakly. “Yes, yes, you’re also a bigshot.”
Gui Yin may be known as a compassionate lord immortal and a philanthropist to all, but those who knew him personally also knew that he hated accepting losses. People could owe him, but it was extremely difficult to get him to owe people. The only times Gui Yin had experienced a “loss” was when he was younger, but most of those losses had been repaid in full by now and each one was more extravagant than the next. This was mainly because Lord Immortal Ninglan, Gui Qinle, was an inventor with an eccentric mind and a great pair of hands. Other than his teleportation array and the Recording Orb, he had other gadgets and oddities that sold at an astronomical price or were just not available to the general public.
In total, only three people had gotten Gui Yin to admit that he “owed” them. One was Elder Shan, who made his granddaughter Gui Yin’s disciple. One, who had helped Gui Yin establish tighter trading relations with Beidou Alliance, had asked for teleportation arrays to be distributed the major cities in the Beidou Alliance; the other was the master of Zhujian Abode (朱剑水榭), the number one information network in Quanjing Continent. The person was sneaky and had asked Gui Yin to reveal one secret about himself. As for what that secret was, no one as of now knew. However, since it was information on Gui Qinle, whose past and present were shrouded in mystery, even the smallest piece of information would be worth its weight in gold.
However, oddly enough, when it came to owing or being owed, Gui Yin preferred to owe people. He, himself, knew how to regulate the amount of debt he collected, but the amount of people who “owed” him could wrap around the entirety of Quanjing Content several times.
Because Gui Yin had grown tired of the hassle of being someone’s benefactor, he would politely turn them away, saying he didn’t need repayment. After a certain number of times, Gui Yin was rewarded the “holy saint” award, thus bringing about the misconception that Gui Yin was oh-so compassionate.
Ye Liuxing glanced at Gui Yin. He wasn’t a bad person, but if you asked Ye Liuxing, he wouldn’t describe him as compassionate either.
“What are you staring at? Am I good looking?” Gui Yin asked, meeting Ye Liuxing’s gaze.
Ye Liuxing laughed hollowly. “Good looking.”
Gui Yin scoffed at Ye Liuxing’s half-hearted compliment.
The path up to Qingyu Abode was long. By the time they arrived at the gates of the waterside abode, the sun was already beginning to set. Hu Ze exchanged a few words with the servant who had come out to the gate to meet them. After these few words, Hu Ze turned to Gui Yin and Ye Liuxing with a hating-to-part expression.
“Well, this is where we say goodbye,” Hu Ze said. “Unfortunately, our fox den doesn’t have any guest rooms, so I can’t bring you two with me. From here on out, the representative who will be taking care of you will be the crane clan’s first miss, Hè Pèiyǎo (鹤沛杳). She—oh, there she is! Yaoyao, over here!”
Gui Yin lifted his head, looking past Hu Ze, to see a woman who looked to be in her early twenties, walking out with an ensemble of servants. Gui Yin had always had a hard time discerning between shades of colors, but when he saw this woman, he realized what it meant to have varying shades of white. Her robes were layered, making Gui Yin feel like he should be sweating in this summer weather. Her hair was adorned by light feathers, resembling those of cranes. The front of her robes carried embroidery similar to the ones on her skirt and sleeves, swirls of clouds, portrayed by silvery threads.
If Gui Yin wanted to draw a comparison for He Peiyao’s beauty, he would most likely compare her to the fairies that served the Queen Mother of the West. A beauty that seemed unearthly, ethereal, and utterly unreachable.
“Miss Hu,” He Peiyou gently lowered her head in greeting.
Hu Ze happily threw herself into He Peiyao’s arms. She eagerly rubbed her cheek against the crane spirit’s. “Yaoyao, haven’t I said many times that you needn’t be so formal with me?”
Beside Gui Yin and Ye Liuxing, Xiongsan stooped to their level and whispered, “Hu-jie and Heiress He attended the same school together because they’re about the same age. Don’t judge Hu-jie just because she acts flirty around everyone, but once nine-tailed foxes find their mates, they’re together for life.”
Ye Liuxing’s eyes widened. “So, Miss Hu and Heiress He…”
“It’s one-sided. Besides, I don’t think Hu-jie actually realizes,” Xiongsan said, a pained expression on his face.
“What are you whispering about?” Hu Ze asked. She excitedly pulled He Peiyao over. “Yaoyao, this is Lord Immortal Ninglan and Lord Immortal Cao Wen. They’re the humans the Beidou Alliance sent over.”
“Lord Immortal Ninglan and Lord Immortal Cao Wen,” He Peiyao repeated, her eyes drifting over the two men breezily. She detached herself from Hu Ze, cupped her hands before herself, and bowed slowly. “Peiyao has seen Lord Immortal Ninglan and Cao Wen.”
Gui Yin and Ye Liuxing returned her gracious bow.
“Heiress He needn’t be so formal,” Gui Yin said.
“She’s always like this. Even with me—someone she’s known for over a century,” Hu Ze said, latching on again once He Peiyao stepped back.
He Peiyao glanced at Hu Ze, a small smile on her lips. Words seemed to trickle to the tip of her tongue yet, for some inexplicable reason, she never allowed them to escape her lips. She met Gui Yin’s gaze. In that moment, Gui Yin recognized the look in the crane spirit’s eyes.
It was indeed a one-sided love, but as for which side it was, Xiongsan seemed to have gotten it wrong.
Thank you for the update ❤️💯
thank YOU for READ I N G!
Once again I realise how interesting you’ve made by letting Gui Yin both know nothing while being easily adapted to the “new” environment. Often transmigration novels are very inconsistent with their characters, but the execution was perfect for the “just transmigrated but why did I adapt so fast? Oh nevermind, here’s a beautiful butterfly. Wait, what was I thinking about just a second ago?” 😍
And I’m starting to warm up to the foxy girl now after a bad boiling first impression
😁
!!! thank you! i’m glad you think so ;v; and thanks for reading!
[flipping conspiratively threw my notes] okay SO! two scents: aggressive and gentle; spirit related. i’m guessing aggressive is Mr. Centipede whom Gui Yin had the displeasure of dealing with, unless his ex was also a spirit and still haunts him. and i’m guessing the gentle one is our Known Note Guy the Huigu Palace Lord.
verrryyyy interesting that he’s reportedly a descendant of the serpent and we also got this shadow of the past…. and one of my spaghetti threads is shadow manipulation >.> hmmmmm
oh! also this Kunlun place is super neat :>
What if the scents are opposite? With the palace lord being the aggressive scent and the tower centipede the gentle? 😂 I can kinda picture it with how the interactions have gone tbh
lolol you’re funny! but no i don’t think so :>
shadow manipulation would Sure be cool 👀👀 thanks for reading!
Two scents on Gui Yu? 🤔 Lol looks like it may be ER-ye and centipede dudes’
Thanks for the chapter 🤩
Okay, the last paragraph literally broke my heart!
Poor He Peiyao🥲🥲🥲
Two scents? Is the other one from the centipede? Don’t tell me he is the second ml? Hmmm