Yankui stilled as the warm hand enveloped his head again. His grip on the tray tightened for a second. He pulled away and pushed the items into Gui Linghuo’s hands. He glanced at Gui Linghuo, the guarded expression pulling up again. He tilted his chin towards the door.
“I need to get changed.”
“Alright,” Gui Linghuo said good-naturedly. He observed Yankui’s face again before slowly leaving.
Yankui sighed as soon as Gui Linguo left. He quickly changed into the clothes he had been given and pulled his hair up into a ponytail. His eyes narrowed as he looked at himself in the reflection. He touched his face for a moment before he reached into the dense shadows closest to him. A moment later, a small vial was produced, seemingly from thin hair. He gently tapped the perfume onto his inner wrists and tapped some behind his ears.
The perfume carried a light, sweet scent that was barely noticeable and not at all overpowering. When he glanced at his reflection again, the features that looked slightly like his mother had been exaggerated again, which told him that the perfume was beginning to work once more.
He carelessly tossed the vial into the shadows, but it didn’t hit the ground. Instead, it was absorbed and quickly disappeared.
When he saw Gui Linghuo again, the older man was dressed in plain robes, completely different from his previous attire, and his hair was tied up into a sloppy bun. He smiled when he saw Yankui approaching, but when he was beside him, the smile fell from his face slightly.
“What’s wrong?” Yankui asked.
“Hm? Nothing,” Gui Linghuo said. “My shijie asked me to help her tend to the lotus pond. Do you want to come with me?”
Yankui glanced at Gui Linghuo’s attire and then at his own.
“You can borrow some of my old clothes. But you don’t have to help,” Gui Linghuo said.
Yankui shook his head. “I said I would help you.”
“Alright. I’ll lend you some clothes,” Gui Linghuo said. He rubbed Yankui’s head and quickly abandoned the basin to return to his room.
Once Yankui had changed, the two of them headed to Lin Hua Peak, where Meng Meng had already begun harvesting the lotus pods.
Meng Meng straightened her back and let out a long sigh. She brushed back her hair, staining her forehead and a few strands of her fringe. When she lifted her head, she saw Gui Linghuo approaching, with a pretty young man behind him. Her brows furrowed in slight confusion, but she still happily called out to him nonetheless.
“Gui-shidi, you’re here!”
Gui Linghuo offered a small smile as Meng Meng climbed out of the lake and ran over. She stopped a slight distance away from them and her eyes fell curiously on Yankui again.
“This is…?”
“Yankui,” Gui Linghuo said. He gestured to Meng Meng. “This is my shijie, Meng Meng.”
“Hello, Miss Meng,” Yankui greeted. “You can call me Yankui.”
“Yankui,” Meng Meng grinned. “Nice to meet you. Gui-shidi, where did you pick up this handsome little guy?”
“Young Palace Lord Li and I went to deal with some ghost cultivators and we found him there,” Gui Linghuo said. He glanced at Yankui. “He said he had nowhere to go, so I thought it would be okay for him to stay here.”
“Of course, it’s more than okay!” Meng Meng said. She smiled as she led the two young men over to the lake. “Better for me anyway—more hands to help me.”
Yankui rolled up his pants and sleeves and stepped into the muddy lake without any hesitation. Meng Meng glanced back, somewhat impressed.
“Most people who haven’t done this before are a bit squeamish. You’re very brave,” Meng Meng complimented.
Yankui laughed. He carefully observed Meng Meng as she began to harvest the pods. “It isn’t that. I’m just used to rolling around in the mud.”
“Did you play outside often when you were younger?” Meng Meng asked.
Yankui copied Meng Meng perfectly. “Something like that.”
Gui Linghuo set aside the snacks he had brought to give to Meng Meng and rolled up his sleeves and pants as well. He hopped into the lake and started his work.
Meng Meng glanced at the two young men beside her, a discontent look passing over her face. She thought about it for a moment before flicking mud at Gui Linghuo. The man stilled and looked up at Meng Meng dumbly. The woman smiled back.
“Why? It’s just so quiet,” Meng Meng groaned. “Back in the day, everyone would be running around the pond while I was the only one working. I’d much rather that than this silence.”
Gui Linghuo smiled softly. He returned to the task at hand. “We can talk.”
Meng Meng’s lips pursed and her brows furrowed slightly. She couldn’t help but look away in order to hide the pain in her chest. Yankui glanced at her and then towards Gui Linghuo. He threw a few pods into the basket.
“When I was a kid, I played outside the most,” Yankui said. “Whenever I got home, I’d be scolded because I would dirty the floors. My mother was always anxious, since my father was a hot-tempered man, but I didn’t really care. I didn’t know any better. Nowadays, whenever I get dirty I just remember my mother’s scolding words.”
Meng Meng smiled slightly. “I was the same! My shizun hated when I used to climb trees when I was younger. Our disciples’ uniforms are a lighter color, so they’d always get stained with some type of grime. I think I spent the majority of my childhood getting yelled at.”
Yankui laughed. “Me too. But my mother was always too soft-hearted to hit me.”
“Really? My shizun would make me kneel outside with my arms up if I did it too often. But she’d wash my clothes for me anyway,” Meng Meng said.
Yankui looked at Gui Linghuo. “Gui-xiong, what about you?”
Gui Linghuo straightened. He tossed the pods into a nearby basket and thought about it. “I spent most of my time indoors when I could. If not, I would be chasing after my shimei, trying to make them stay out of trouble.”
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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Xel Olcuteb uijcmfv bnfg.
“Fcobgaecjafis, P cfnfg uba atf bqqbgaeclas,” Tjcxel rjlv.
“Qfgf sbe j sbecufg rlyilcu?” Zfcu Zfcu jrxfv meglberis.
“Rb,” Tjcxel rtbbx tlr tfjv. “P kbeiv jguef atja P kjr yjrlmjiis ilxf jc bcis mtliv.”
The wording was odd, but Meng Meng didn’t think about it too deeply. Gui Linghuo on the other hand glanced over. When his eyes clashed with Yankui’s, he smiled.
“Did you ever ask your parents for siblings when you were kids?” Gui Linghuo asked. “I remember vaguely asking my father and he was so flustered that he just stomped out of the room.”
Meng Meng laughed. “I never did that. I did ask my shizun if she would accept more disciples, but she asked if I was going to teach them or if she was going to teach them.”
Yankui laughed. “That’s true. Having an extra disciple or an extra child means you’re the one suffering.”
“Did you ever ask for another sibling then, Xiao Kui?” Meng Meng asked.
The new nickname made Yankui nearly miss the stalk he was cutting. He stilled for an imperceptible second before he began working again.
“Nope,” Yankui shook his head. He straightened with a cheeky grin. “Even though I wanted a sibling, I’m actually quite territorial. I didn’t want others taking away my parents’ attention.”
Meng Meng cooed. “That’s so cute. I can just imagine a smaller version of you following your parents around.”
Yankui moved back to avoid Meng Meng’s muddy hands. Gui Linghuo stepped between the two of them and received a full smear on his cheek.
“Is he that cute? Aren’t I cuter?”
“No, no. You two are two different types,” Meng Meng said with a soft clicking of her tongue. “Gui-shidi, you’re like the little puppy type. Xiao Kui here is like a cat. Extra soft and cute.”
“A cat?” Gui Linghuo glanced at Yankui. “He reminds me more of a rabbit.”
“A rabbit? Is there something wrong with your eyes?” Meng Meng laughed. She gasped dramatically. “Could it be that you’re blinded by love?”
“What love?” Gui Linghuo flicked muddy water at Meng Meng, who squealed and ran off to empty the lotus pods. He turned to look at Yankui. “Don’t mind her. She just says whatever nonsense pops into her head.”
“She’s very lively,” Yankui said with a bright smile on his face.
“Do you like that?”
“It’s rare for me to meet people like that,” Yankui laughed.
Gui Linghuo silently observed Yankui. It seemed like the wall around the young man had lowered slightly, allowing Gui Linghuo to peer into his world. He took a step closer and lifted his hand to cup Yankui’s face. Yankui froze as the slimy texture fell from his cheek and landed onto his chest. He hissed in irritation and turned to Gui Linghuo with a fire in his eyes.
Gui Linghuo’s lips were lifted and Yankui’s furious words fell dully before they escaped his lips.
“…What are you doing?”
The innocent tone of voice made Gui Linghuo’s eyes widen and his lips slowly curve up. A bubble emerged in his chest, threatening to burst as he puffed out his first laugh. It was then followed by a second louder and much longer one.
The hand that was touching Yankui’s cheek fell away and, instead, went to hold Gui Linghuo’s own stomach. He stumbled back to the bridge and sat down as his side began to ache.
The innocent tone combined with the fury brewing in Yankui’s eyes was a deadly combination.
He had reached out just to see Yankui’s face again in an attempt to see just what was cat-like about his features. He hadn’t expected to be given such a funny reward.
Yankui’s face slowly burned in embarrassment. He drew a sharp breath and splashed water on Gui Linghuo’s trousers. “What are you laughing at?”
This made Gui Linghuo laugh even harder. He leaned back on the bridge as he tried to catch his breath. His smile revealed his perfect teeth and his eyes shined brightly like the sun overhead. It made Yankui still and made him even more aware of the songlike laughter.
The dumb expression on Yankui’s face reduced Gui Linghuo’s laughter to mere giggles.
He shook his head. He was almost certain that the man in front of him hadn’t realized he had yet to control his anger. For someone like him, Gui Linghuo wouldn’t have guessed he could get embarrassed so easily.
“Can I also call you Xiao Kui?” Gui Linghuo asked.
Yankui glared at him. “No.”
The petty answer made Gui Linghuo smile. He stood and followed Yankui, who moved to a different area to cut the lotus pods.
“You let my shijie call you that. How come you won’t let me?” Gui Linghuo asked, his voice soft like mochi as he shifted closer.
Yankui dodged him. His eyes widened as he looked at Gui Linghuo quizzically. Why was this man suddenly trying to act close? He averted his gaze for a moment and seemed to come to an understanding. It was because of his face, right?
“I just don’t want you to call me that,” Yankui stubbornly said.
He turned back around again as his thoughts raced. At times, he was irritated, at others he was a bit indignant. He didn’t know why he was feeling these emotions, but he found it completely annoying. It was working, wasn’t it? He should technically be happy. Once he was sure it worked, he could move onto the second step.
Gui Linghuo shifted closer again. “Then, what about…A-Kui?”
Yankui glared at the lotus pod in his hands. “Just call me normally. Why do you need a nickname?”
“So we can be closer,” Gui Linghuo said.
Yankui glanced at him.
“You don’t seem very comfortable around me,” Gui Linghuo explained. “Nicknames usually bring others closer, so I wanted to call you a nickname.”
Yankui fiddled with the lotus stalk between his fingers. Was this true? Back where he was from, no one ever used nicknames derived from the person’s names. It would always be derogatory and slanderous. But he glanced at Gui Linghuo again and felt like this man in front of him shouldn’t know how to lie.
Gui Linghuo’s amusement was growing again. He watched Yankui’s eyes carefully and finally found out what was cat-like about him—these eyes of his that were so different from Li Yan’s.
“Fine,” Yankui finally muttered. He pushed past Gui Linghuo. “Do whatever you want.”
“You can call me Linghuo,” Gui Linghuo said.
Yankui hummed noncommittally. He never actually addressed anyone by their name and wasn’t planning on doing so any time soon.
Gui Linghuo watched Yankui’s eyes. His lashes trembled slightly as he yanked the lotus pod out with a bit more force. An odd coldness emanated from his eyes that didn’t fit the facial features so similar to Li Yan’s. If Gui Linghuo was just given a painting of Yankui’s eyes and was told to fill in the rest, he could guess a sharper face, pointed lips, and a less rounded nose. Although the features that mirrored Li Yan’s didn’t look disharmonious on Yankui, Gui Linghuo disliked it.
Yankui glanced over at him. “What are you staring at?”
“Nothing,” Gui Linghuo said. “Are you hungry?”
They had been working for several hours now and it was approaching lunch time. Yankui thought about it for a moment and nodded.
“Let’s go first. I’ll make you something to—”
“Lunch is here!”
Wu Ze’xi’s abrasive voice rattled their ears as he came in holding several large lunchboxes with an embarrassed Pan Die’an in tow.
His steps slowed when he noticed Yankui. He looked at the young man questioningly and then to Gui Linghuo. “A guest…”
The words hung awkwardly in mid-air before he coughed loudly.
“Well! Good thing we brought a lot of food,” Wu Ze’xi happily showed off the lunch boxes in his hands.
Pan Die’an felt like she was going to die in embarrassment. She turned to Gui Linghuo and ignored her significant other. “Gui-shidi, who’s your friend?”
“He’s a guest, staying at Shuangye Peak,” Gui Linghuo said. “Xiao Kui.”
“My name is Yankui,” he swiftly corrected.
“Oh, Xiao Kui! I’m Wu Ze’xi and this is my woman, Pan Die’an.”
Pan Die’an finally couldn’t take it anymore and smacked him upside the head. She sighed and then turned back to Yankui with a gentle smile. “Nice to meet you, Xiao Kui. I hope you enjoy your stay here. If you ever need anything, don’t be afraid to come find me at Li Hua Peak.”
Yankui smiled and nodded obediently on the surface. Beneath his smile, he wondered if there was something wrong with the people at Yunjing Pavilion. Why were they so insistent on using nicknames?
Gui Linghuo smiled to himself and took Yankui to shore to eat.
The two of them washed their hands and joined the others, who had already laid out their small feast for the day.
Yankui looked at the spread of food hesitantly. Gui Linghuo glanced at him and knowingly placed a few things into his bowl. He leaned closer and whispered, “This is savory, this is a bit sweeter.”
Yankui frowned and shifted away. But a moment later he moved back towards Gui Linghuo and silently ate.
“Say, if he’s staying here, have you ever thought about taking him in as a disciple?” Wu Ze’xi asked.
Gui Linghuo looked at the older man wearily. “He’s only three years younger than me. Besides, I’m not in any position to take in a disciple. I’m only at core formation.”
“Core formation is already good!” Wu Ze’xi exclaimed.
Pan Die’an nodded seriously. “To have gotten to the late stages of core formation so quickly despite your circumstances has to make you’re a prodigy.”
“When I was your age, I hadn’t even gotten to core formation,” Meng Meng sighed wistfully.
Gui Linghuo chuckled and shook his head humbly. “It’s just because I’m lucky. And Shizun is a good teacher.”
Yankui glanced at Gui Linghuo curiously. The other man met his gaze as he placed more food into his bowl. He raised a brow.
“What circumstances do you have?” Yankui asked.
“Ah,” Gui Linghuo chuckled. He tugged back the collar of his shirt, revealing black winding veins that crawled up his neck.
Yankui stared in shock. These veins were reminiscent of those people from Yinfeng Valley.
“When I was a kid, my home got attacked by ghost cultivators. After that, I was tainted by ghost qi,” Gui Linghuo briefly explained. “It doesn’t affect me much in daily life since I have a lot of medicine to control it.”
Pan Die’an and the others frowned at the state Gui Linghuo was in. It had clearly gotten worse since last year, when they had last seen it. But in front of an outsider, they kept their mouths shut.
“Does it hurt?” Yankui asked.
“Not really,” Gui Linghuo carelessly replied.
But Yankui knew Gui Linghuo was lying.
However, it wasn’t his place to pursue the matter, so he stopped asking when Gui Linghuo no longer gave him any more information.
“Ghost cultivators,” Pan Die’an sighed. “What do you think they’re up to now?”
“Who knows. They got beaten into mush by Gui-shibo. They’re probably recuperating,” Meng Meng said.
Wu Ze’xi huffed. “They’re like a hoard of cockroaches. No matter how much you beat them back, they still come rushing forward. What do they even want?”
“Chaos, probably,” Pan Die’an muttered. “All devil cultivators are the same. They just want to see the world burn.”
Yankui’s chopsticks moved slightly when Gui Linghuo placed another piece of pork into his bowl.
“Not necessarily,” Gui Linghuo said.
Wu Ze’xi glanced up at Gui Linghuo and laughed. “Gui-shidi, you’re the last person who should be standing up for devil cultivators. Your life has been ruined twice by them.”
“It has, hasn’t it?” Gui Linghuo smiled good-naturedly. He paused for a moment before speaking, “Shizun always taught us to not be prejudiced against one group of people. Those at Yinfeng Valley are determined to make us righteous cultivators their enemy, but I don’t think it’s fair to say that every devil cultivator wants to make a mess of the world.”
Gui Linghuo calmly met the eyes of his older martial siblings. “If we’re allowed to talk like this, then can’t we also say that every cultivator in the Upper Realm is cowardly and only looking out for themselves?”
Otherwise, why hadn’t there been any reinforcements during the war?
“I won’t ever forgive the devil cultivators who have killed so many of our people,” Gui Linghuo said. “But the ones who haven’t done anything…aren’t they just trying to survive?”
Yankui abruptly stood. He left Gui Linghuo’s side and headed back to Shuangye Peak. Pan Die’an and then glanced at each other.
“Why did he suddenly leave?” Wu Ze’xi asked in a slight panic.
Meng Meng pursed her lips and looked at Gui Linghuo. “Gui-shidi, I think you upset him. He just came back from being rescued, and you’re all…”
“That’s fine,” Gui Linghuo said. He set down his bowl as well and stood. “I’m going to go after him. Thank you for lunch.”
Gui Linghuo left Lin Hua Peak and found that Yankui was nowhere to be seen. He paused for a moment before walking back to Shuangye Peak. When he arrived, he found the young man staring into the pond, covered thinly by the red maple leaves. The sound of his footsteps were quiet, but Yankui had heard him a long time ago.
“Are you stupid?”
Gui Linghuo smiled leisurely. “What do you mean?”
Yankui looked over his shoulder and glared at Gui Linghuo. “I’m talking about what you said about devil cultivators.”
“Was I wrong?” Gui Linghuo asked. “My shizun taught me that there are plenty of people who enter that path because they felt that they never had a choice. Because society refused to accept them. If they’ve never done anything wrong in their life, then aren’t they just like you and I?”
“You don’t understand anything,” Yankui said. “They don’t have a choice? Of course, they do. If they weren’t so cowardly and if they still had any morals, they would just choose to die. People who enter the devil path are power hungry and spineless. And you’re an idiot to think otherwise.”
“Devil cultivation is just another path of cultivation. So long as the person can keep a clear mind and maintain control, there is nothing wrong with it,” Gui Linghuo said. “There are plenty of techniques out there that don’t cause you to lose your mind.”
“The righteous path and the devil path have never seen eye to eye. I don’t understand why you’re defending them, especially when you’re a victim,” Yankui said.
“The righteous path and the devil path have never seen eye to eye because neither side has ever tried to understand each other,” Gui Linghuo said.
“Is this also what your shizun taught you?” Yankui mockingly asked.
“It is,” Gui Linghuo replied.
Yankui pursed his lips. He could feel an uncontrollable anger bubbling from inside him. His head throbbed as he forced himself to turn away from Gui Linghuo. Finally, he turned to look at Gui Linghuo.
“You’re an idiot.”
Gui Linghuo watched Yankui stalk off. The fists at his side slowly loosened. His expression softened and he chuckled quietly to himself.
So, this was his real personality, wasn’t it?
im not getting Malicious Intent vibes from Yankui though i am extremely curious about what his (someone behind him?) plan is, cause it seems like its to look similar to Li Yan, get Gui Linghuo to like him -which he is being conflicted about lolol; which speaking of earlier point, wouldnt he look more like the mysterious beauty if he didnt look like Li Yan? could it possibily be that he feels guilt over her death too and has some resolution that for Secrets he cannot share with GLH? ……. hm……story about his family i am taking as potential truths with omissions cause there’s smth there, and i have some wild spaghetti of either illegitimate child and/or Yankui’s father is (was?) a devil cultivator and/or he was abused by devil cultivators. i feel pretty confident tho that he is familiar with Yinfeng Valley at least.
……..Gui Linghuo continues to concern me alxbzxksbsj real question (did i ask this before..?): did Gui Yin ever bring up the healing springs to GLH that Erlang was gonna help out with? or are they all just extremely occupied rn? thanks for the chapter!!
The healing springs was right before the war broke out, so Gui Yin never had a chance to mention it ;v; (also, rip to your og comment u_u) Thanks for reading!!
Not looking good for the sus…
I think Yankui IS the kou ( Without The 7 emotion )
i reckon Yankui is a demon/ghost cultivator
nvm i think my brain just broke there