Fang Tianxin looked at Lian Yunzhi and egged him on: “Come with us. Maybe we can even contract a demon beast or something.”
Chen Zhiyuan looked puzzled: “Doesn’t Brother Lian already have a contracted demon beast?”
Fang Tianxin: “Uh…”
Fang Tianxin touched his nose, unsure how to respond. He couldn’t exactly say Lian Yunzhi’s “demon beast” was actually a person.
Lian Yunzhi absentmindedly replied: “It’s about to die.”
Fang Tianxin’s eyes widened in shock.
.
After dropping everyone off outside Four Directions City and storing his Flying Sword, Fang Tianxin pulled Lian Yunzhi into a corner and lowered his voice: “For real? Mu Cheng is dying?!”
“Yes.”
Lian Yunzhi’s gaze drifted absentmindedly into the distance.
Fang Tianxin: “What happened? How so sudden? What’s going on with everyone surnamed Mu today… Wait… Wait, wait!”
Fang Tianxin incredulously lifted his head inch by inch: “Don’t tell me the one who ambushed the Mu Family Head was Mu Cheng… He’s just a mortal!”
Lian Yunzhi hadn’t expected Fang Tianxin to guess it, but he had no intention of lying to his best friend. After a moment of silence, he said: “Don’t tell anyone.”
Fang Tianxin immediately grasped the severity. He straightened up, looked into Lian Yunzhi’s eyes, and raised three fingers in oath: “I swear on my Dao Heart: if I leak this, my cultivation shall never advance in this lifetime!”
Lian Yunzhi pressed heavily on his shoulder: “I’m heading back first.”
Fang Tianxin asked: “Is there anything I can help with? Is he badly injured? Do you need me to get you some pills?”
Lian Yunzhi: “Get me a coffin… Never mind, I’ll handle it myself. The fewer people involved, the better.”
Fang Tianxin opened his mouth: “…Okay.”
.
Things took a sudden turn in the middle of the night.
Lian Yunzhi had been meditating and cultivating in his own cave mansion, planning to collect Mu Cheng’s body and make a coffin at dawn, when a drilling pain suddenly struck his heart!
Caught off guard, Lian Yunzhi clutched his chest and tumbled off the bed, his forehead slamming heavily into the wardrobe!
What was happening? Why did it hurt so much?!
—The Beast Taming Contract!
Lian Yunzhi staggered, clutching his chest tightly, and stumbled into Mu Cheng’s cave mansion.
Mu Cheng was curled up on his blood-soaked grass bed, the deadly poison invading his body now fully erupting.
His hands clawed desperately at his eyes, as if trying to gouge them out. His whole body trembled and was drenched, indistinguishable as blood or sweat. Agonized howls escaped his throat, like a wild beast enduring immense torment.
Lian Yunzhi collapsed to his knees before him, with a clear intuition—if Mu Cheng died like this, he, bound by the Beast Taming Contract, would either die or be crippled!
But why? How?!
The ancient texts recording the Beast Taming Contract had never mentioned anything like this!
Gritting his teeth through the pain, Lian Yunzhi placed his hand on Mu Cheng’s chest, intending to retrieve the drop of heart blood that belonged to him and dissolve the Beast Taming Contract.
But he failed.
Why?!
Didn’t the books say dissolving the Beast Taming Contract was extremely easy, merely a thought from the master?!
Why couldn’t he undo it?!
The pain surged again, death drawing nearer. Lian Yunzhi glared viciously at Mu Cheng, trembling as he retrieved the purple-gold Immortal Pill from his Storage Bracelet.
.
Lian Yunzhi was awakened by the scorching heat in his palm.
He had entered the hot spring pool in the latter half of the night to rest and had unknowingly fallen asleep.
Now, opening his eyes, he saw the morning light making the pool water shimmer. Mu Cheng, cleaned up and changed out of his bloodied clothes, knelt by the pool on both knees. He devoutly cradled Lian Yunzhi’s left hand draped over the edge, trembling as he buried his cheek deeply into it, utterly entranced.
The hot breath from his nostrils was what had woken Lian Yunzhi.
Sensing Lian Yunzhi awake, Mu Cheng slowly lifted his head.
All his wounds had fully healed, save for his eyes which still could not see. Yet at this moment, the dawn light refracted through the rippling water onto his eyes, making his unfocused pupils gleam brilliantly.
“Master,” Mu Cheng “gazed” at Lian Yunzhi obsessively, “thank you for saving me.”
His voice was hoarse yet soft, each word laced with irrepressible affection.
“Thank you, Master, for using the Immortal Pill to save me.”
.
Lian Yunzhi withdrew his hand from Mu Cheng’s palm, then sequentially checked his pulse, his Dantian, his heart, and his eyes.
Mu Cheng knelt obediently throughout, even bending his waist and lowering his head to make it easier for Lian Yunzhi to examine him.
When Lian Yunzhi touched his eyes, he even pressed his cheek further into Lian Yunzhi’s palm, like a truly docile demon beast.
“How do you feel?” Lian Yunzhi asked him.
“I feel great,” Mu Cheng answered earnestly. “Just like last time with the Immortal Pill. My eyes aren’t completely blind; they might recover.”
Lian Yunzhi hummed in acknowledgment and said: “Go out first. I want to soak a bit longer.”
Mu Cheng nodded obediently but didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he asked: “Master, can you give me today’s spiritual power? I bought some things yesterday. Today, I can draw the talismans you need for forming your Golden Core.”
Lian Yunzhi took his hand to transmit spiritual power, but Mu Cheng used the motion to pull him close and, eyes closed, devoutly kissed him.
Lian Yunzhi paused briefly, then calmly continued transmitting the spiritual power.
Mu Cheng lightly bit his lip, prying open his teeth until Lian Yunzhi nipped his tongue tip. Only then did he stop his mischief and obediently accept the spiritual power.
After the transmission, Lian Yunzhi pushed him away: “Go out.”
Mu Cheng said, “Goodbye, Master,” before turning and slowly leaving.
Only after Mu Cheng’s figure completely vanished from sight did Lian Yunzhi take out a Coral-Colored Treasure Box from his Storage Bracelet.
Snap.
He opened the box.
A pale purple “Immortal Pill” encircled by golden lines lay quietly inside.
…
How was he supposed to tell Mu Cheng that he hadn’t actually used the “Immortal Pill” on him last night?
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