“…You have a nice home,” Gui Yin said.
The gentleman sat down, his robes shifting and revealing even more of his chest as he sat down at his desk. He was slouched with one arm propped on the arm rest and his head leaning against his knuckles. His brows were raised as he watched Gui Yin awkwardly looked around. A soft sigh left his lips.
“I suppose I should introduce myself,” the gentleman said lazily. “My name is Bái Àosūn (白傲孙). I am the seventeenth son of the eastern dragon king, King Zhào Bó (赵博). The land is outside of the dragons’ jurisdiction however, since Heiress He is incapacitated at the moment, I will be stepping up to investigate in her place.”
“I thought Kunlun didn’t have a centralized government?” Gui Yin said.
“We do not. We have our own independent territories,” Bai Aosun agreed. He toyed with a few brushes on his desk as he spoke. “However, the crane clan has a treaty with the eastern dragons, so they are…somewhat in our purview.”
Gui Yin nodded, showing he understood. “So, how shall I address you? Seventeenth Pr—”
“No need for that,” Bai Aosun said. “I’m just King Zhao Bo’s seventeenth son. It doesn’t mean I’m a prince. Just call me…Aosun.”
…Wasn’t that too casual for a suspect to address the head detective?
“…Then, Young Master Bai.”
Bai Aosun smiled. “Just Aosun is fine.”
“…Why has Young Master Bai invited me to your residence if you are not going to interrogate me?”
“Why do you believe that I am not going to interrogate you?”
“You invited me into your home without any guards by your side. If you believed I was the suspect, you would be afraid that I would run away. I am not slighting Young Master Bai’s abilities, but I would definitely be able to escape if it were the only you in my way,” Gui Yin said.
Bai Aosun smirked. “You’re not humble at all, are you?”
“I dislike lying,” Gui Yin replied curtly.
“Well, you’re right. I don’t think you’re a suspect, but everything is far too coincidental. I’m afraid if I didn’t hide you away first, the true culprit will set you up another way,” Bai Aosun said. “Not to mention, this is the perfect excuse that some of those old fogeys will use to stir up trouble with the mortal realm and Beidou Alliance. I don’t know about you, Lord Immortal, but I prefer peace and quiet.”
“Do you think someone from Kunlun plotted this?”
“Every place has their own troublemakers—Kunlun isn’t short of them either. The answer will reveal itself after we look around a bit more,” Bai Aosun said. “However, I’m more inclined to say no, the culprit is not from Kunlun.”
“So sure?”
“Heiress He is beloved by the people above and below. They know that messing with her would have dire consequences. Besides, from what I saw and from what little you have told me, that bear spirit seems to have been controlled. And no one from Kunlun would use such dirty methods,” Bai Aosun said.
“Xiongsan,” Gui Yin said. His brows furrowed. “Young Master Bai, I would like to see Xiongsan again.”
“He is currently under the physicians’ care—”
“My shidi is a well-known doctor in the Beidou Alliance. Allow me to wake him to have him examine Xiongsan,” Gui Yin said.
Bai Aosun raised a brow. “You realize that whatever evidence you humans gather will be seen as unreliable, right?”
“I do. But physicians of Kunlun can just reexamine them again for accuracy,” Gui Yin said. “There is something I would like to check, but I fear if I ask others, they will dismiss my suggestion.”
Bai Aosun looked Gui Yin up and down. He sighed and stood. “It’s night time. Wait till morning to do so. For now, the physicians’ only job is to make sure Heiress He and that bear spirit don’t die. My guards are keeping a close eye on them, so they won’t dare do anything else. You do not have to worry.”
Gui Yin’s brows furrowed tightly.
“I understand you are worried,” Bai Aosun said. “But you should just rest for now. Otherwise, you won’t have the energy to deal with everyone else tomorrow.”
“What does Young Master Bai mean by that?”
Bai Aosun smirked as he looked down his nose at Gui Yin. “You think the matter would just be placed into my hands without protest? Trust me, Lord Immortal, what you’re fighting against isn’t evidence stacked against you—it’s the hatred Kunlun has for humans.”
Gui Yin resisted the urge to gulp. He had been trying to ignore it for a while now, but Bai Aosun really was…good-looking. Yes, good-looking. He abruptly turned away, his expression pinched to look as if he were irritated. Bai Aosun watched him through his long, white lashes.
“Don’t worry, Lord Immortal. Hu Ze has expressed her approval of you and Heiress He doesn’t seem to dislike you,” Bai Aosun said. “And I…well, I trust you. You don’t have to worry about being dragged through the mud or executed.”
“Thank you, Young Master Bai. I,” Gui Yin held his tongue. He met Bai Aosun’s gaze and pursed his lips. The words he wanted to say remained reluctantly at the tip of his tongue before he finally gave in. “I suppose I owe you…a favor.”
“Rather reluctantly, I see,” Bai Aosun said, his eyes narrowing as he smiled, somewhat triumphantly.
Hmph. That’s what this man was after.
“But the favor won’t be yours to repay, so you needn’t worry,” Bai Aosun said. He let out a long hum as he walked out of the room. His gaze flickered to the roof. “What shall I ask in repayment?”
The singsong voice both irritated and amused Gui Yin, but his brows furrowed. If not a favor from him, then who else would Bai Aosun get a favor from?
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.
When the next day came, Gui Yin spent the morning going about his usual schedule. At some point, as he was being served breakfast by the servants, he heard a commotion outside. He lifted his head and glanced out the still open door.
“Obgv Pwwbgaji cffvc’a kbggs. Zs wjrafg klii qgbafma sbe,” atf rfgnjca rjlv gfjrreglcuis.
Xel Tlc boofgfv j rwjii rwlif. Lf kjrc’a kbgglfv atja Djl Cbrec kbeivc’a yf jyif ab qgbafma tlw. Lf kjr bcis ibbxlcu yfmjerf tf obecv atf cblrf jccbslcu.
Cybea akfcas wlceafr ijafg, Djl Cbrec jgglnfv klat Le If ja tlr tffir. Ktf qfalaf kbwjc ibbxfv ja Xel Tlc klat qlaloeiis afjgoei fsfr. Vtf atgfk tfgrfio lcab Xel Tlc’r jgwr, jr lo atfs tjv yffc oglfcvr obg vfmjvfr, jcv rclooifv ibevis.
“You poor thing! You were only trying to do a good thing, yet all those unreasonable idiots are crowding at Aosun’s door to put your head on a stake!”
“…They’re what?”
“You’ve barely touched your breakfast too!” Hu Ze said, pointing at the untouched food on the table. “You must have not had an appetite!”
Gui Yin stared at the fox spirit in his arms. He really wanted to say “Um. No…you’ve truly misunderstood”.
“Hu Ze, you’re bothering Lord Immortal,” Bai Aosun said, puling Hu Ze back by the scruff of her clothes.
“B-but he truly is pitiful!” Hu Ze said, still staring at Gui Yin.
Gui Yin let out a soft sigh. He spread out his arms and nodded. “Just take it. I have a lot of spiritual energy to spare.”
Hu Ze howled in delight. She pushed Bai Aosun away and turned into her fox form. She walked around Gui Yin’s lap before happily settling down in the middle, her head comfortably nestled against his abdomen.
Gui Yin’s eyes widened. He hadn’t expected Hu Ze to transform. And he really hadn’t expected her to transform into an extremely, unbearably fluffy fox either. His gaze drifted to the four tails that waved happily beside him. His fingers twitched at his side. The urge to just…grab…
Bai Aosun sighed. “Hu Ze, have some pride, won’t you?”
The fox on Gui Yin’s lap harrumphed. “Stupid dragon! Your kind doesn’t have to rely on other people’s spiritual energy to cultivate—of course you can say such arrogant words! Do you know how rare it is to run into someone like Lord Immortal Ninglan? I have to take in as much as I can before he leaves.”
Gui Yin chuckled in amusement. “Heiress He and Xiongsan were gravely injured and I’m accused of harming them both, yet you still have the spirit to think about cultivation?”
“That’s something that can be easily resolved,” Hu Ze said, wrinkling her nose. She cuddled closer to Gui Yin and let out a content sigh. “Ah…really comfortable.”
Gui Yin looked to Bai Aosun.
The dragon spirit lightly cleared his throat. “I informed your shidi of what has happened. He should be here shortly. Afterwards, we can go to the clinic and look over Xiongsan’s wounds as you have requested.”
Gui Yin nodded. He glanced at the slumbering fox on his lap and sighed. To look but be unable to touch was humanity’s worst dilemma.
As Bai Aosun said, Ye Liuxing arrived just ten minutes later, led by a servant from Bai Aosun’s own residence. At first, he had been pale faced and worried. However, when he saw Gui Yin looking seriously at the fluffy fox tails, waving teasingly in front of him, he let out a sigh of relief. This sound caused Gui Yin to look up.
“I really respect you, Shixiong,” Ye Liuxing said, shaking his head. “Such a big event has happened, yet you—you’re playing with a fox spirit?”
Gui Yin snapped his fan open and arrogantly fanned himself. “Or else what? Am I supposed to scream, cry, and beg for mercy? I haven’t done anything wrong. On top of that, they have no evidence.”
Ye Liuxing smiled wryly. “As expected of Lord Immortal Ninglan. No wonder Sect Master-shixiong always says that you won’t suffer any losses when you’re out traveling.”
“It’s nothing, truly,” Gui Yin said. He glanced at Hu Ze on his lap and then turned to Bai Aosun. “May we go now?”
“Yeah,” Bai Aosun stood. He looked at Hu Ze. “Just…carry her. She won’t wake up even if you drop her anyway.”
Gui Yin did as he was told. His mind reeling at just how soft her fur was. A cultivated beast was truly on another level! He had never touched fur that was as soft as this. This must be what clouds felt like.
As they walked, Ye Liuxing glanced at Gui Yin, who looked as if he were trying his best to hold back.
Gui Yin had always liked fluffy animals. In fact, anything cute would receive his adoration. If he found you akin to an animal, it was more likely than not that he would be nicer to you. Ye Liuxing, who was often compared to husky by his own shixiong, knew what that look was. He glanced at Hu Ze. Instead of feeling bad for the new center of attention he felt…jealous? No. He shouldn’t feel jealous. He should be glad he wasn’t the one being adored.
Once they arrived at the clinic, Gui Yin gently set Hu Ze aside. He snuck a quick swipe over her tails and took a sharp inhale.
So. Damn. Soft!
The distraction was set aside and Gui Yin could concentrate again. He stood between Bai Aosun and Ye Liuxing.
“That night, when I exchanged blows, I felt something ominous in Xiongsan’s attacks,” Gui Yin explained. “Not only were his movements deadly, they were calculated and precise. From what I’ve seen of Xiongsan, his fighting style is less tactical and more tactile. He doesn’t think before he lunges in. Not to mention, he was able to hold out against me for longer than five minutes. With his level, if he exerted himself, I believe he could take Heiress He on for half an hour. But against me, he shouldn’t have even lasted three minutes.”
Bai Aosun nodded. “That makes sense.”
“When I managed to subdue him, I could tell that his spiritual energy was also in tatters,” Gui Yin said, approaching Xiongsan’s comatose form. He gestured towards the bear spirit’s necks. “The veins on his neck and arms were purple and bulging. He already has a large build, but his entire body almost seemed bloated. If I hadn’t stopped his qi circulation, I fear that he might have truly imploded.”
“When the physicians examined him, they told him that his meridians were overstretched,” Bai Aosun said. “It was as if someone forcefully widened a narrow passage. Although it could return to normal with adequate rest, he won’t be able to fight for a while.”
Ye Liuxing’s brows furrowed tightly. He turned to Bai Aosun. “Young Master Bai, do I have permission to examine Xiongsan as I please?”
“Well,” Bai Aosun shrugged, “I mean, don’t dissect him.”
Gui Yin chuckled at the joke. He took a step back and allowed Ye Liuxing to take his place.
Ye Liuxing’s brows were furrowed as he began to seriously examine Xiongsan. He pinched Xiongsan’s jaw, making his mouth open. After getting a light sniff of his breath, Ye Liuxing sat back and continued the other standard examinations.
When he was done, he turned to Gui Yin and Bai Aosun. “You said his meridians were stretched?”
“That’s what I was told.”
Ye Liuxing hesitated. He met Gui Yin and Bai Aosun’s gaze once more, “I suspect that this has something to do with the ghost cultivators.”
“The ghost cultivators?” Gui Yin’s brows furrowed.
“I’ve heard of a technique in the ghost cultivators that involved possession,” Ye Liuxing said. “A ghoul will enter the body of a living being. They push the body to its limits, forcing out an internal strength that had never been brought out before. Lighter cases result in the expansion of meridians, heavier cases cause the host to implode. I checked and there are still traces of a ghost’s breath residing within Xiongsan.”
“But how could he have come in contact with someone from the ghost cultivators?” Bai Aosun asked. “The border may be close to Kunlun, but it’s heavily protected on our side.”
“It was most likely just a coincidence,” Ye Liuxing said. “They must have seen us coming to Kunlun as a chance to stir up hostilities between the two groups. Perhaps attacking Heiress He had also been a fluke.”
“The true plan could have just been to directly attack the two of us,” Gui Yin said. “Maybe Heiress He had the misfortune of running into Xiongsan when he was on his way to find us, thus leading to their battle.”
“That could be the case,” Bai Aosun murmured. “However, Heiress He is still comatose. And even if Xiongsan awakens, we’re not sure he would even know anything about what has happened.”
“Is there an indication that Heiress He will wake soon?” Ye Liuxing asked.
Bai Aosun shook his head. “She has been gravely injured. Although her life was saved, the physicians estimated that it would take her at least another month to awaken.”
“We don’t have a month,” Gui Yin muttered.
“That’s right. If we wait a month, the Beidou Alliance might send others out here to help alleviate the situation. That might actually make things worse,” Ye Liuxing said.
Gui Yin looked at Ye Liuxing in surprise. “That’s not what I was referring to.”
“Huh? Then, what…?”
“Young Palace Lord Li’s banquet is in three weeks now,” Gui Yin said. “I already promised that I would go. I can’t renege. If I’m still trapped in this fiasco by that time, I’ll have to lose face.”
Ye Liuxing stared at Gui Yin. He slowly pulled his gaze away. That’s right. The person he was speaking to was Gui Qinle. How could he have assumed this man would have the same worries as him?
“Then, how should we go about this? Just because we can prove that ghost cultivators were involved in this incident doesn’t mean we can convince everyone,” Bai Aosun said. “The more stubborn ones might even go as far to defame you, Lord Immortal.”
Gui Yin silently tapped Fenghua as his gaze remained on Xiongsan’s form. Finally, he looked at Bai Aosun and Ye Liuxing.
“We’ll just have to capture the original culprit then,” Gui Yin said.
“How do we do that?” Ye Liuxing asked. “Ghost cultivators can act from thousands of miles away. Maybe the one who organized this attack is still in the Ghost Realm.”
“Right…how do we do that?” Gui Yin mumbled.
The three men fell silent.
“Could you extract the remnants of the ghoul?” Gui Yin asked.
“I could try, but I don’t know if it would harm Xiongsan or not,” Ye Liuxing confessed.
“Hm…”
“How about we take a break and reconvene later?” Bai Aosan suggested.
Ye Liuxing nodded. “I would like to examine Heiress He as well, if I may.”
“Yes, I will arrange that for you,” Bai Aosan nodded. He looked to Gui Yin. “Lord Immortal…”
“I’ll just head back to my room,” Gui Yin said with a smile.
Bai Aosan nodded. He left with Ye Liuxing. His attendant remained behind to walk Gui Yin back to his room. Once Bai Aosan’s attendant left, Gui Yin plopped down on the bed. He stared up at the ceiling with furrowed brows, the tip of Fenghua tapping his forehead as his brain ran a million miles an hour.
The window shook open with a slight creak.
Gui Yin frowned. He sat up and watched a piece of paper flutter to the floor. He scoffed and laid back down. “Useless. Do you think I want to talk to you right now?”
He felt the breeze grow a little stronger. When he glanced over again, the note was closer at hand. He sighed, got up, and plucked it from the floor.
“What has you riled this time?”
Gui Yin irritably threw the note back down. “I don’t want to talk to you right now. You’re the reason I got into this mess in the first place.”
Moments passed before another note arrived. Gui Yin opened it.
“Me? Lord Immortal, this is Erlang. You haven’t mistaken me for another person, have you?”
“It’s because I was looking for you to answer a question last night that I ended up in those woods and—” Gui Yin stopped himself. He let out a short huff and waved his hand. “Forget it. What am I doing arguing with a faceless man?”
Gui Yin gathered the notes and laid back down on his bed. He watched as a paper crane flew in and landed just by his fingers. His brows furrowed. He unfolded it.
“Then, it truly was my fault. My apologies, Lord Immortal. In return, allow me to offer my assistance.”
“Are you a genie?” Gui Yin grumbled irritably. “If I don’t make three wishes, you won’t be able to be free of me? Is that it?”
The next note: “What is a genie? And, no, Lord Immortal. It isn’t three wishes. It’s two requests. I would like to pay you back.”
“…Did you miscount? I’ve only helped you once,” Gui Yin said. He put the notes into his Qiankun pouch and turned onto his side. “Either way, I don’t need your help. I have it handled. And, again, you don’t need to pay me back for anything. I don’t have time to be anyone’s benefactor.”
The window creaked again and Gui Yin instinctively knew that it had shut.
Erlang…he was still so shameless to insist that Gui Yin used that name. Ridiculous.
Gui Yin closed his eyes. Since he couldn’t think of a solution now, maybe he could just take a nap. Taking a nap would rejuvenate his mind and allow him to come up with better answers when he woke up. It was like restarting his laptop. Yes, that was what he would do.
What Gui Yin didn’t calculate for was what would happen after he fell asleep.
He opened his eyes, his hand unconsciously feeling around for his cellphone. He could hear his parents arguing again. For the fifth time that day, he wondered why his parents refused to get a divorce. There were plenty of studies that showed that kids who grew up in broken households were worse off than parents who were divorced. But they weren’t the type of people to believe that.
His brows furrowed tightly. He sat up, rummaged around for his CD player, and laid back down on his bed with his headphones over his ears. He buried himself in the blankets and closed his eyes.
One…two…three…four…five…six…seven…eight…nine…
“Gege, what are you doing?”
Gui Yin’s eyes opened again. He turned and looked over his shoulder at the small dumpling of a child who was standing behind him. The irritation in his heart melted in a flash. He smiled and sat up, his hands instinctively rubbing the soft head of hair.
“Gege needed a quiet place to think,” Gui Yin said.
“To think? ‘Bout what?” the child asked, his little face pinching.
Gui Yin happily pulled the little boy closer, his hands molding the boy’s face as he spoke. Because the boy had been raised by his mother, who was not from the Central Plains, the way he spoke carried a delightful little accent. Although his shizun found it annoying, Gui Yin found it adorable. Not to mention, because the boy had lost a tooth, his speech was filled with a light lisp. It made it difficult to resist his cute aggression.
“Mm, about what I wonder,” Gui Yin sang.
The child pouted. “Gege dun remember?”
“I was really bothered about it for a while, but after you arrived, I’ve completely forgotten!” Gui Yin said.
The child’s eyes widened. “I-Is it my fault?”
Gui Yin laughed. He shook his head. “It’s a good thing I forgot. The thing I was thinking about wasn’t a happy thing anyway.”
The child nodded slowly. He shifted from foot to foot as Gui Yin squeezed his fingers. Eventually, he glanced at Gui Yin. “Gege, what would you do if…”
“If?”
“If…we lost each other?” the child asked.
Gui Yin raised a brow. “If we lost each other?”
“Mn!”
“I would look for you,” Gui Yin replied honestly.
The child stared at Gui Yin for a long time, his eyes eventually glazing over. “Then, Gege, why didn’t you ever look for me?”
“What?” Gui Yin’s brows furrowed.
The scene around him melted away. All he felt was an intense pain in his abdomen. Above, the skies swirled with ash. He was screaming something as several people held him back. He felt pain, sorrow, and guilt. The thoughts of the little boy disappeared. All he could think about was the scene in front of him. The scene that swirled with intense resentment and demonic energy.
At the center of it all, Gui Yin could see the pair of crimson eyes, staring back at him. He saw a devilish smirk and watched as a flash of red light enveloped everything.
And then…silence.
Thank you for the update ❤️💯
Who is that child? And does it have anything to do with Erlang? And I got a little confused wasn’t he in the modern world how did it get to shizun and all?
it’s a dream, so it shifts without notice :3 thanks for reading!
Yeah I figured that, and now I am trying to understand if he was originally from cultivation world and why he lost his memories. I’m so curious 🤔😍Thank you for your hard work ❤️💯
hehe my favorite part of the mystery in this story >:3 happy reading!
Gui Yin 🤝 me, Gentleman Dragon is good-looking. also cute aggression; his self-control is amazing.
my heart is all achey from that dream ;-;
thanks for reading ;v;
😭
😔
ew creepy centipede dude :(= also now my brain is fizzing with theories 🙃
Thanks for the chapter !(^^)!
Hey man I’m really confused now😭 I think erland can shapeshift? And he has different forms? Like he said he marked our mc in the desert but when? Is yulan and erlang same? But different personalities? And im doubting this gentleman dragon to be his different form? Idk😭thts just my theory lol