Chapter 78

The Silver Dragon Child had said so much to Rabbit Tuan and suggested that he find some strong and robust demons to give to Xie Shu as a gift, all in order to figure out exactly how Xie Shu had lost his virginity. If Xie Shu accepted the gift, perhaps he could glean some clues from his choice.

The child had no idea that Rabbit Tuan had entered the Ancient Mirror together with Xie Shu. Even if he knew, he wouldn’t have thought that Rabbit Tuan was the one who took Xie Shu’s virginity.

A little rabbit like that—so tiny and soft—how could it possibly withstand the mating season of their dragon clan? When dragons went into heat, they became exceptionally violent and ferocious, going at it for a full day and night. A delicate little rabbit demon wouldn’t last even the time it took to drink a cup of tea before being ruined by them.

Usually, to have their fun without killing their mating partners, they sought out their own kind. If they couldn’t find a suitable one, they would go for powerful demons like pythons, rhinos, or giant bears—and they needed two or three at once in a single night, since even one alone couldn’t handle them.

In his estimation, after entering the Ancient Mirror, Xie Shu must have found six or seven demons at the same time. After all, his demon power was so strong that no one in his clan could match him, and the stronger the demon power, the more intense the heat period.

Moreover, Xie Shu had painstakingly abstained for over a century. Once it flared up… tsk tsk, it was hard to even imagine such a scene.

The Silver Dragon Child’s face showed a look of emotion as Rabbit Tuan, unaware of his inner thoughts, asked in surprise, “The ‘withstanding’ you mentioned—what kind of withstanding do you mean?”

Though he suspected the child was referring to bedroom “withstanding,” he simply couldn’t connect it to Xie Shu. Was he really talking about Xie Shu?

“You don’t get what I mean?” The child’s gaze turned pitying. “Poor little thing, you’re not still a virgin, are you?”

Rabbit Tuan: “…Of course not.”

The question from the Silver Dragon Child made his chest feel stuffy. How could he be a virgin? He’d nearly become a mother.

The child: “How many lovers have you had?”

Rabbit Tuan: “Four.”

“Only four?” The child clicked his tongue. “What’s the difference from being a virgin?”

Rabbit Tuan: “…”

“Fine, let’s say you’re not a virgin then. In that case, you should understand what I mean. I’m telling you, the Palace Lord has very strong desires and is ferocious in bed. Only the sturdiest demons can withstand him.”

The Silver Dragon Child spoke with great authority. Though he himself was just a young dragon child, influenced by his clan, he considered himself an expert on the matter.

He continued, “In short, listen to me. Find a few strong and robust demons to give to the Palace Lord as lovers. He’ll definitely be pleased, and no matter what you ask him to do, he’ll agree.”

“I’ll keep it in mind. Thanks for the reminder.”

Rabbit Tuan nodded his little head. Though he didn’t quite believe the child’s words, there was no need to refute him to his face. Anyway, he would see Xie Shu soon and had no time to prepare a gift. If Xie Shu refused to save His Majesty, then he would consider giving one.

Inside the hermitage.

After leaving Rabbit Tuan in the Silver Dragon Child’s room, Xie Shu returned to his own hermitage. He transformed into human form and stood behind the curtained canopy, concealing his figure, before calling Xuan Yang inside.

Xuan Yang had been waiting in the side room for a long time before he arrived, but since Xie Shu was his nominal master, it was only natural for a disciple to wait for his master. Xuan Yang had no complaints and respectfully saluted the figure behind the curtain. “This disciple pays respects to Master.”

Through the curtain, Xie Shu’s gaze fell on Xuan Yang, scrutinizing his disciple.

Xuan Yang had entered Cloud Moon Temple twenty years ago, recommended by the elders, and become Xie Shu’s first disciple.

When Xuan Yang was young, Xie Shu had taught him for a time, but due to his inconvenient transformations, he always instructed from behind the curtain. He had never revealed his true appearance, even to his disciple.

As master and disciple, their relationship was far less close than that of ordinary pairs, but Xie Shu was satisfied with Xuan Yang’s performance. He entrusted the temple’s affairs to him and later had him teach the other disciples he accepted.

Xie Shu had never doubted Xuan Yang—until the night he was injured by him. Only then did he discover that Xuan Yang had been hiding something from everyone. His magical power was profoundly deep, not inferior even to his master’s.

This was absolutely not a level a human could reach. Such vast and profound magical power would erode a human body to dust.

It seemed, then, that Xuan Yang was very likely not human, and his relationship with Qixue was probably not so simple.

Xie Shu watched Xuan Yang but did not alert him. He merely said indifferently, “Rise.”

After Xuan Yang stood, he asked, “I’ve been in seclusion for many days and ignored worldly affairs. Has anything major happened in that time?”

Xuan Yang lowered his head slightly. “Please forgive this disciple, Master.”

Xie Shu: “What sin have you committed?”

“This disciple failed in his duty to guard the temple. A silver dragon named Dao Qing abducted the Noble Consort Qi from the palace into the Ancient Mirror, causing the Noble Consort to go missing. The Emperor fell gravely ill, his life hanging by a thread.”

“Great General Wei Huai demanded the Ancient Mirror from the temple, but it is the precious treasure left by Zheng Yuan Zhenren to protect the temple. This disciple did not dare to hand it over without authorization. Thus, the Great General deployed heavy troops to seal off Cang Mountain, and it has been over a month now.”

“Fortunately, the Noble Consort has escaped the mirror today, brought back to the Imperial Palace by Dao Qing. This disciple believes all these troubles stem from Dao Qing and that he should be severely punished. Only by executing Dao Qing can we give the Emperor and the people an explanation.”

After saying this, Xuan Yang stood with hands at his sides, awaiting Xie Shu’s orders.

Xie Shu was silent for a long time before speaking. “This matter is not your fault. I will decide Dao Qing’s punishment myself. These next few days, I need to refine life-saving pills for Helan Ji. First, take this bottle of pills into the palace and have Helan Ji take one. It will protect his heart meridian and keep him alive for now.”

A dark glint flashed in Xuan Yang’s eyes as he received the pills handed over by the Silver Dragon Child and said respectfully, “Yes, Master.”

“Leave.” Xie Shu looked away.

After Xuan Yang departed, Xie Shu instructed the child servant to bring Rabbit Tuan in. Moments later, the child arrived carrying the cushion and gently set it down, revealing the little Rabbit Tuan in the center. “Palace Lord, Qixue has arrived.”

Feeling himself set down, Rabbit Tuan immediately transformed back into human form and groped his way toward Xie Shu to bow. “A Xue pays respects to State Preceptor Xie.”

Xie Shu said nothing and waved a hand to seal the room door with a spell.

He stepped out from behind the curtain, grasped Qixue’s wrist, and without a word pulled him into an embrace.

“…!”

Qixue startled, his sightless eyes widening in fright as he gently pushed at Xie Shu. “State Preceptor? What are you…?”

Xie Shu remained silent, lowering his head to kiss Qixue’s lips. Qixue panicked even more and struggled desperately. “Don’t—mmph!”

Though he recognized Xie Shu’s familiar scent—identical to the incense on Dao Qing—he saw them as completely different people and hadn’t connected their scents. He just assumed all Cloud Moon Temple Daoists smelled like that. So Xie Shu kissing him without a word truly frightened him.

Hot breath invaded his mouth, leaving Qixue limp all over, but his mind stayed clear. With great effort, he bit down hard on Xie Shu’s tongue.

A faint metallic tang spread as Qixue took advantage of Xie Shu’s loosened grip to scramble away. He wiped the blood from his lips in refusal and disgust. “State Preceptor Xie, please show some self-respect!”

Xie Shu’s brows furrowed slightly, his pale thin lips stained with blood, giving him a demonic allure. “You call me State Preceptor? You still haven’t recognized who I am?”

But Qixue didn’t catch the second half of his words, for at that moment, the entire Dao Field shook violently. A silver dragon youth rushed in panicked, reporting to Xie Shu, “This is bad, Palace Lord! Wei Huai has gone mad—he’s going to blow up the mountain!”

To force Xuan Yang to hand over the Ancient Mirror, besides sealing Cang Mountain with heavy troops, Wei Huai had used every ruthless method. This time, he had brought hundreds of carts of explosives. If Cloud Moon Temple didn’t surrender the mirror, he would really level the entire Cang Mountain.

Earlier, Wei Huai had only ordered a single cart of explosives lit at the temple’s mountain gate as a warning. The disciples who went out to stop it were driven back by Wei Huai and injured badly.

In terms of magical power, the disciples were no match for Wei Huai. In terms of manpower, the temple’s few hundred couldn’t compare to his tens of thousands of troops. The silver dragons bore restrictions and couldn’t leave the Dao Field without Xie Shu’s permission, so they could help but not exit—leaving them anxious and helpless.

Taking advantage of the silver dragon youth’s report, Qixue turned back into Rabbit Tuan and hurriedly fled Xie Shu’s hermitage. Xie Shu frowned but didn’t stop him, knowing Qixue couldn’t escape the Dao Field even if he ran.

Xie Shu ordered the silver dragons to find Rabbit Tuan and settle him properly, then left the Dao Field to deal with Wei Huai.

Rabbit Tuan sneaked into some bushes and only poked out a rabbit ear when he heard the Silver Dragon Child calling his name, waggling it to lead him over.

The child picked him up and brushed the grass off him. “Why did you run? You’re so small and blind—aren’t you afraid we’ll step on you?”

“That old beast Xie Shu is too much of an animal!”

Rabbit Tuan recounted the earlier events to the child with lingering fear. “You were right—he really was pent up. The moment I went in, he started hugging and gnawing on me. If Wei Huai hadn’t come up the mountain suddenly, I probably would’ve been ruined by that sanctimonious old brute Xie Shu!”

The child paled in shock. “No way! How could the Palace Lord be like that? He’d even ruin a rabbit as small as you?”

He sized up Rabbit Tuan and hesitantly said, “Maybe he wasn’t after your looks but craving rabbit meat…”

“Impossible. I was in human form earlier.” Rabbit Tuan corrected him. “It must be that my human form is too beautiful—he couldn’t control his bestial urges.”

Curiosity sparked in the child, who whispered, “Very beautiful? Can you show me how beautiful your human form is?”

Rabbit Tuan transformed back into human form to show him.

The child stared, dumbfounded, suddenly realizing what a stunning beauty this little rabbit he’d been cuddling was.

He blushed and stammered, “O-okay… I get it. Change back quick. If the other dragons see you, you won’t get out of here—they’ll take turns ruining you…”

Frightened, Qixue quickly changed back. The child felt too embarrassed to pet his fur anymore, wiped the sweat from his palms on his pants, then picked up Rabbit Tuan again and murmured softly, “You really are so beautiful…”

Rabbit Tuan: “Do you believe now that Xie Shu lost control with his bestial desires toward me?”

“I believe it!!”

How could the Silver Dragon Child not believe? Rabbit Tuan’s beauty was too shocking—that face capable of toppling nations was proof enough. He believed even Xie Shu couldn’t resist Rabbit Tuan’s allure.

He sighed. “The Palace Lord finally seems like a dragon. After all, our dragon clan has always been no better than beasts. You must’ve heard that old saying: ‘Dragons beget nine sons, each different’…”

Rabbit Tuan: “…”

He wasn’t exactly devastated or scared—just angry—and had no mood to banter with the Silver Dragon Child. “Can you take me out of here? I want to go find Wei Huai, or take me to Dao Qing instead.”

He wanted to settle accounts with Dao Qing. No wonder he’d told him not to get angry at Xie Shu—had that dead mud eel foreseen that Xie Shu would ruin him?

Just thinking about it infuriated him. The Silver Dragon Child looked troubled. “I’d love to take you out, but without the Palace Lord’s permission, we can’t leave. Why not wait a bit? I’ll take you to Dao Qing soon.”

“Why not now?”

“He’s left the Dao Field and won’t be back for a while.”

“Fine.” Rabbit Tuan sighed and fell silent, lying motionless in the child’s arms like a quiet milk cake.

Sensing his unhappiness, the child cautiously asked, “Are you still going to ask the Palace Lord to help you?”

“…Yes, I still am.”

Rabbit Tuan said glumly. Though the meeting with Xie Shu had been unpleasant, he still needed his help. Even if he was the one wronged, he would have to greet Xie Shu with a smile and apologize for biting him.

If Xie Shu really wanted him, he would have to offer himself up—as long as Xie Shu agreed to save His Majesty’s life.

Thinking this, he took out Sang Chi’s Young Master’s Command Token from the Jade Token and sent a transmission to Sang Chi.

Almost in a flash, Sang Chi picked up the transmission and asked excitedly, “Qixue? Is that you? Really you? I heard you went missing—are you okay? Where are you right now?”

His voice trembled from the overwhelming agitation. Rabbit Tuan paused, then asked in surprise, “I’m fine now. How did you know I went missing? Did Luxiangqiu tell you?”

“The news of your disappearance spread all over Shangjing—how could I not know!”

Sang Chi’s voice choked as he began to cry. “Do you know how worried I was? I was afraid something bad had happened to you again, like more than a dozen years ago. I knew I shouldn’t have let you go down the mountain back then… If you’re gone, what am I supposed to do? Do you know I even thought about dying with you!”

Rabbit Tuan: “Eww… let’s not. The two of us dying together? That’s so gross.”

Even so, hearing how much Sang Chi had worried about him warmed his heart. It had been so long since he’d left home, and even the familiar voice of his hated rival fox felt exceptionally warm and nostalgic.

Sang Chi sniffled, speaking in fits and starts. “Anyway… if you die, I won’t live either. Where are you? Still near Cloud Moon Temple? I’ll come pick you up.”

Rabbit Tuan: “I am at Cloud Moon Temple, but how are you going to pick me up? You’re not in Shangjing.”

“Who says I’m not? I’ve been in Shangjing for a while now! With you missing, how could I stay at Dali Mountain!”

Sang Chi spoke hurriedly. “Wait there. I’ll figure out a way to get you out of Cloud Moon Temple right now!”

“No need, don’t rush. I’m not in a hurry to leave Cloud Moon Temple yet—I still have things to do.”

Rabbit Tuan said, “Can you get me some strong and sturdy demons? Like tigers or lions—ones that are lustful and promiscuous, willing to mate with strangers. Best if they know the Disguise Technique too.”

Sang Chi’s voice immediately grew tense. “What do you mean? Aren’t you at Cloud Moon Temple? Why do you need lustful demons? Don’t tell me your disappearance was because those Daoists captured you and made you their sex slave?”

“What are you thinking? Your brain is still as messed up as ever.”

Rabbit Tuan rolled his eyes. “Just mind your own business and get them for me. Can you do it or not?”