Every time Rabbit Tuan took the initiative to contact Sang Chi, it was basically because he needed Sang Chi’s help. He discovered that ever since he had gone down the mountain, this red-furred fox had changed his tune. Not only did he no longer oppose him, but he complied with everything he asked. This time was no exception—he agreed quickly.
“I can do it,” Sang Chi said. “Tonight at the earliest. Where shall we meet?”
“I’ll contact you later. Get prepared first. I still don’t know when I can leave Cloud Moon Temple,” Rabbit Tuan said.
“Are you really okay?” Worry was evident in Sang Chi’s tone. “What exactly happened? Why have you been missing for so long?”
“It’s a long story. We’ll talk when we meet.”
After Rabbit Tuan finished speaking, he specifically instructed, “Help me pass a message to Luxiangqiu. Tell her I’m very safe, but don’t bring her to see me. My eyes are having problems—I can’t see anything right now. I don’t want her to worry about me.”
“What?!” Sang Chi immediately panicked and hurriedly asked, “How did your eyes…”
“I’m fine, don’t worry. We’ll talk when we meet!”
Rabbit Tuan swiftly cut off the connection and tossed the Young Master’s Command Token into the jade token. Sang Chi was nagging on and on—he didn’t want to explain everything in detail; that would be too exhausting.
The Silver Dragon Child stared at the token the entire time with a very interested expression. “What a novel thing. I’ve only seen Sound Transmission Flying Talismans before. What is this? How can it let you talk directly?”
“I don’t know the principle behind it either,” Rabbit Tuan said, shaking his tail. “It’s a Spirit Fox Clan item. They always come up with some very peculiar spells.”
“The Spirit Fox Clan, huh? I know of them. They’re quite famous.”
The child nodded. There were several major demon mountains and well-known demon clans in the world, one of which was the Spirit Fox Clan of Dali Mountain.
The Spirit Fox Clan was renowned for their profound magic power and clever minds. Their homeland was in the far west of Great Yong, but their people were scattered throughout the world. They were extremely skilled at doing business and had accumulated incalculable wealth over the past few centuries.
With such intellect and riches, it wasn’t surprising that they could invent novel gadgets.
At this thought, the Silver Dragon Child sighed. “There are so many things in the world I’ve never seen. I really want to go out and explore, but unfortunately, I haven’t undergone the Thunder Pool refinement, nor have I received the Palace Lord’s permission. Who knows when I’ll be able to leave the temple.”
Rabbit Tuan asked, “Besides Dao Qing, is there anyone else among you silver dragons who can freely enter and exit the Dao Field?”
“No.”
The child said dryly, “The Palace Lord thinks we’ll cause trouble if we go out, so only Dao Qing can come and go freely.”
“Are the two of them that close?” Rabbit Tuan wondered, suddenly thinking of a possibility. “They wouldn’t have some illicit affair, would they?”
The child was shocked. “How could that be? Don’t talk nonsense!”
“You wouldn’t be spot on, would you?” Rabbit Tuan said suspiciously. “Why are you reacting so strongly?”
“It’s not what you think…” The child waved his hand, but then remembered he couldn’t see, so he patted his rabbit fur instead. “You’ll know why soon enough. Come on, let’s go back. I’ll keep an eye out for when Dao Qing returns for you.”
He carried Rabbit Tuan back to his quarters and fetched some fresh fruits for him. They waited together for Xie Shu’s return.
The Silver Dragon Child thought Xie Shu would be gone for a long time, but unexpectedly, Xie Shu returned to the Dao Field very quickly. He had easily made Wei Huai withdraw his army and hurried back to the Imperial Palace.
Xie Shu appeared at the temple’s mountain gate, but he still did not reveal his true appearance. Instead, he sat within a jade carriage surrounded by curtains and descended from the sky.
His arrival was like a bolt of lightning splitting the horizon, parting the thick, fog-like demon qi. Only then did the bright daylight pour through the gap, illuminating the mountain gate.
Wei Huai rode his white tiger, standing at the forefront of the tens of thousands of troops. Ever since the Noble Consort had gone missing, he hadn’t slept for days. His handsome face had become extremely haggard, stubble grew on his chin, and his eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion.
He stared deathly at the jade carriage and said hoarsely, “Hand over the Ancient Mirror, or I’ll lead my army to raze your Cloud Moon Temple.”
“Doing that would serve no purpose.”
Through the curtains, Xie Shu said coldly, “Qixue has already safely returned to the Imperial Palace. If you don’t believe me, send someone back to the palace to verify.”
Xie Shu never lied, so with just that one statement, Wei Huai immediately leaped down from Ask Dao Peak on his white tiger. He swiftly leaped and maneuvered through the jagged cliffs, taking a shortcut down the mountain straight toward the Imperial Palace.
The army soon withdrew to the foot of the mountain. Without Wei Huai’s command, the soldiers couldn’t control those dangerous demons and fierce beasts, so they returned to camp to await his orders.
After Wei Huai left, Xie Shu returned to the Dao Field, stepped down from the jade carriage, and asked the surrounding silver dragons who had gathered, “Have you found Qixue?”
He hadn’t lied, but he also hadn’t told the full truth. Qixue had indeed gone to the Imperial Palace, but he was now back at Cloud Moon Temple.
The other silver dragons shook their heads, indicating they hadn’t seen Qixue. Only the Silver Dragon Child pushed forward. “Palace Lord, I found Qixue.”
Xie Shu said, “Bring him to the hermitage to see me.”
The child looked troubled. “Palace Lord, to be frank, he seems to really dislike you as the State Preceptor. You’d better meet him as ‘Dao Qing’ to avoid scaring him again.”
Xie Shu didn’t object. He transformed into the form of a silver dragon youth and came to the child’s quarters.
The child opened the door and said to Rabbit Tuan on the bed, “I’ve brought Dao Qing. You two chat.”
He tactfully left the quarters and closed the door behind him.
Xie Shu approached the bed. Rabbit Tuan heard his footsteps and pinpointed his location. He immediately bounced up like a hot, steaming glutinous rice ball and crashed into Xie Shu’s arms.
He raised his rabbit paw and punched Xie Shu. “You bad eel, you dead eel! What the hell do you mean by that!”
Xie Shu thought Rabbit Tuan had seen through his identity and was about to explain when he heard Rabbit Tuan say, “Did you already know that Xie Shu is an old rogue, so you told me not to get mad if I saw him? You knew he was going to kiss me!”
“…”
Xie Shu was silent for a long time. “No, I wasn’t aware beforehand.”
“Then what did you mean?!” Rabbit Tuan demanded fiercely.
“You already disliked him, yet you had to ask him for a favor. I was just reminding you to restrain your temper,” Xie Shu said. “He actually took liberties with you. Shall I teach him a lesson?”
“Forget it. You probably couldn’t beat him anyway, and I’ve already bitten him.”
Hearing this, Rabbit Tuan’s anger subsided. He said sullenly, “Actually, I’m regretting it now. I shouldn’t have bitten Xie Shu. What if he gets angry and refuses to save His Majesty?”
“For His Majesty’s sake, I should let Xie Shu kiss me. As long as he saves His Majesty, he can do whatever he wants to me…”
Xie Shu’s emotions were complicated. He frowned, a hint of displeasure in his expression. “Helan Ji doesn’t deserve such a sacrifice from you.”
“You’re not me—you wouldn’t understand.”
Rabbit Tuan said, “I want to prepare a gift of apology for him. Can you get me out of here? Also, I need to bring a few demons into the Dao Field. Do you have any way to do that…?”
“The Dao Field is a pure land. Ordinary demons are not allowed inside.”
Xie Shu refused outright, then asked, “Why do you need demons in the Dao Field?”
“I swear I’m not planning anything bad! I just want to apologize to Xie Shu.”
Rabbit Tuan licked Xie Shu’s finger and pleaded softly, “Please, Brother Dao Qing. Don’t you have any way? I’m really worried. I’m afraid His Majesty’s body won’t hold out. I need to quickly get a life-saving method for him…”
Xie Shu said, “He won’t stand by and watch him die. Even if you do nothing, Xie Shu will preserve Helan Ji’s life.”
Rabbit Tuan shook his head. “I don’t believe it. If no one begged him, Xie Shu would have saved His Majesty long ago. Why wait until now?”
Xie Shu fell silent, unable to explain the truth to Rabbit Tuan. “Do as you wish.”
Rabbit Tuan continued to lick him. “You really can’t?”
“I can’t let demons inside, but I can make Xie Shu leave the Dao Field,” Xie Shu said.
“Really?”
A glint of light appeared in Rabbit Tuan’s misty black eyes. “It would be much easier if I could lure Xie Shu outside Cloud Moon Temple.”
“Yes,” Xie Shu said. “Where shall we meet?”
Rabbit Tuan thought for a moment and came up with a place: When he had first arrived in Shangjing, Sang Chi had arranged a residence for him there. The place was serene, and it was Sang Chi’s territory, which made it convenient for his plans.
He told Xie Shu the address of the residence. “Would here work?”
Xie Shu said, “Yes. What time?”
Rabbit Tuan said, “Tonight would be best.”
“Alright.” Xie Shu agreed. He quietly looked at Rabbit Tuan for a moment, then asked, “What gift do you plan to prepare for Xie Shu?”
Rabbit Tuan lowered his voice. “I’ll tell you secretly—the gift is those demons! That old lecher Xie Shu couldn’t help but nibble on me the moment he saw me. He must be pent up from too much abstinence. I’m going to arrange the fiercest demons for him to battle for three days and nights. He’ll definitely love it.”
“…” Xie Shu said, “Is this an apology or revenge?”
“Of course it’s an apology and gratitude!” Rabbit Tuan said righteously. “At worst, I’ll have them all use the Disguise Technique to look like me. Xie Shu will surely love that, right?”
“By the way, do you think Xie Shu can really handle five or six demons? Should I get him some aphrodisiacs to spice things up, slip them into his tea? Once he drinks the potent drug, he’ll be even more vigorous…”
Xie Shu looked at Rabbit Tuan coldly, his thin lips uttering two words: “Yes.”
He paused, then added, “I’ll prepare it for you personally.”
“Hm?” Rabbit Tuan twitched his ears. “You’ll prepare the aphrodisiac for me?”
“Yes.”
Xie Shu’s golden vertical pupils fixed on Rabbit Tuan. His slender palm covered the little body entirely, picking him up like a prey in his grasp. “He’ll have a great time.”
The silver dragon in his estrus period once again ignited his brutal possessive desire. But Rabbit Tuan, unable to see Xie Shu’s terrifying expression, happily rolled over instead. His soft, fluffy rabbit belly pressed against Xie Shu’s palm as he hugged his finger. “You’re the best.”
Xie Shu said, “Prepare quickly.”
“Sure!” Rabbit Tuan said. “Take me out, and I’ll arrange it right away.”
“Alright.”
Xie Shu tucked Rabbit Tuan into his robes and left Cang Mountain with him, entering the city of Shangjing.
That evening.
Rabbit Tuan contacted Sang Chi and arrived at the meeting place.
They had agreed to meet in a restaurant, which was also a property of the Spirit Fox Clan. Business was booming, but fortunately, Sang Chi had given prior instructions, reserving a private elegant room for them.
Xie Shu dropped Rabbit Tuan off at the door of the private room and left the restaurant. Rabbit Tuan transformed into human form and knocked on the door. After just one knock, a hand pulled him inside.
After a day of rest, Qixue’s eyes had improved a bit—he could vaguely make out human silhouettes. He tentatively called out, “Sang Chi?”
“…It’s me.”
The five fingers gripping Qixue’s wrist tightened. Sang Chi responded in a low, hoarse voice.
Then, he suddenly pulled Qixue into his embrace.
