Chapter 37: Naturally, This King always keeps his word. Part 1

A day later, Lin Chuyun was once again brought to Spirit Herb Peak by Gu Jingshan.

Dan Li stared with a strange expression at the pint-sized Lin Chuyun before him. His gaze paused for a few seconds on the cat ears atop his head before he silently averted his eyes and calmly took a sip of tea.

“You simply ate too much medicine. That is medicine used to suppress the Demon Core, preventing it from absorbing spiritual power too quickly and causing your cultivation realm to regress. According to the dosage I gave, two pills a day is enough.” Saying this, he glanced at Lin Chuyun as if offhandedly, and asked, “How many did you eat?”

Lin Chuyun thought about the two licks he’d taken and felt it might have been… a dozen or so pills. He silently rubbed the tip of his nose and decided to ignore this question.

“Then why did I shrink? And…” Lin Chuyun paused and cleared his throat lightly, “Why haven’t my ears changed back?”

Actually, he didn’t mind the shrinking too much; the problem was that these ears were just too conspicuous. Even Gu Jingshan hadn’t been able to snap out of it for half a day when he saw him.

“Your Demon Core hasn’t yet taken shape. The reason you turned back into a human this time is solely because the Demon Core was suppressed. Because it was influenced by the elixir, the transformation wasn’t complete.” Dan Li seemed to be in a slightly better mood today, answering every question. “Thus, the shrinking, and the… ears remaining.”

Lin Chuyun somewhat gloomily touched the cat ears on his head and asked dejectedly, “So… how long until I change back?”

He couldn’t keep going around looking like this forever, could he?

“Just two or three days. Once the medicinal effect passes, you’ll naturally return to normal.” Dan Li set down his teacup, then suddenly gave Lin Chuyun a kind, gentle smile. “If Junior Brother can’t wait, this Third Senior Brother can also provide some treatment for you.”

Lin Chuyun instantly thought of Dan Li’s entire box of Silver Needles. He was so scared his cat ears shot straight up. He spun around and ducked behind Gu Jingshan’s… legs. “No, no need. I wouldn’t dare trouble Third Senior Brother.”

Gu Jingshan frowned and looked at Dan Li disapprovingly. “Third Junior Brother…”

“I know, I know, don’t bully Sixth Junior Brother.” Dan Li stood up and put away the tea set on the table. “Since it’s nothing, Junior Brother me will be off to work.”

Facing away from the two, Dan Li waved his hand and returned to his medicine refining room.

As soon as he entered, he nearly tripped over his own medicine apprentice.

He stumbled two steps before steadying himself. Looking back, he saw two medicine apprentices hiding behind the door, stealing glances at Lin Chuyun. Probably too engrossed in watching, they hadn’t noticed him coming and had tripped him.

Decisively penalizing the two to copy books, Dan Li sat down in the chair within his refining room. He stared at the Pill Furnace in the center for a long time, then raised his hand to cover his eyes.

“So adorable when young, how did he become so detestable after growing up?”

…

Since Dan Li said he’d recover in two or three days, Lin Chuyun stopped worrying. After thanking Gu Jingshan, he obediently went back to Spirit Cloud Peak.

Feng Xixing was practicing his sword in the courtyard. Hearing the sound, he quickly turned around and indeed saw a small figure walking over.

After shrinking, Lin Chuyun’s features were much rounder than in his adult form. No matter how hard Lin Chuyun tried to put on a stern face, attempting to project a Shizun’s dignity, it only made people find him adorable.

Of course, Feng Xixing wasn’t about to tell Lin Chuyun that.

“Shizun.” Feng Xixing spoke respectfully. Seeing Lin Chuyun’s dejected expression, he guessed that Dan Li hadn’t been able to solve Lin Chuyun’s problem.

With a strange, secret delight, Feng Xixing followed Lin Chuyun into the Bamboo Hut.

Upon entering, Lin Chuyun fairly habitually headed towards the bed. After all, when he was a cat, his favorite thing was rolling around on the bed.

However, this time, when he reached the bedside, he couldn’t help but hesitate. Speaking of which… he was in human form now. Shouldn’t he stop staying at his disciple’s place?

But the very thought of returning to the original host’s ice-cold house made Lin Chuyun resist with his whole being.

“Shizun, don’t you like the Spirit Silk?” Feng Xixing asked, seeing him standing motionless by the bed.

Lin Chuyun was startled. Only then did he notice that the entire bed had been covered with a layer of Spirit Silk, even the bedposts on both sides had been wrapped with it. That way, even if he rolled around on it, he wouldn’t get hurt from bumping into the bedposts.

But Spirit Silk, as the softest fabric, was worth a fortune and hard to come by. When most people got some, they’d only make clothes out of it to show off when worn outside.

Who would be like his little disciple and use Spirit Silk as bedding? And furthermore…

Lin Chuyun looked back, his gaze sweeping over Feng Xixing’s head. His face immediately puffed up in anger.

Just as he thought, his little disciple himself was still wearing that old, worn-out hair ribbon!

Feng Xixing saw Lin Chuyun looking at the bed for a moment, then looking back at him, and then getting inexplicably angry. He felt rather bewildered.

“Shizun…?” Before Feng Xixing’s words could finish, Lin Chuyun grabbed his sleeve and tugged him all the way to the bedside.

The pint-sized Lin Chuyun couldn’t possibly reach Feng Xixing’s head, so he could only pull him towards the bed, his small face full of displeasure. Seeing that Lin Chuyun was genuinely somewhat annoyed, Feng Xixing obediently sat down.

He watched as Lin Chuyun climbed onto the bed. Feng Xixing instinctively wanted to turn his head, but was forbidden by a cute, childish voice: “Don’t look back!”

Feng Xixing obediently kept his head forward. He felt Lin Chuyun behind him, doing something unknown. Occasionally, he could even feel Lin Chuyun’s fingertips brushing past his neck.

If Lin Chuyun had even the slightest killing intent towards him right now, he could kill Feng Xixing without the slightest effort. But Feng Xixing felt absolutely no urge to be on guard, unaccountably certain that Lin Chuyun wouldn’t hurt him.

Lin Chuyun rustled and bustled behind him endlessly. Finally, in an utterly exhausted tone: “Done.”

Feng Xixing touched the top of his head but didn’t feel any change. Puzzled, he stood up and turned around, but was instantly stunned.

Lin Chuyun looked completely worn out, slumped on the bed. Even the cat ears were limp from exhaustion. The hair ribbon from his head was gone; his originally bound-up long hair cascaded down, tossed behind him in impatience.

Because his body had shrunk, it looked as if Lin Chuyun had been swallowed up by his long hair.

“…Shizun?” Feng Xixing touched the hair ribbon binding his own hair atop his head. It was indeed the piece of Spirit Silk he had used to tie Lin Chuyun’s hair.

Lin Chuyun didn’t even have the energy to answer him. Tying up hair was truly too difficult. On top of that, since he had shrunk, his hands were smaller and had less strength. Even with the help of spiritual power, the final result was a bit… unbearable to look at.

It seemed crooked.

Lin Chuyun stared at the topknot on Feng Xixing’s head for a long time, then sighed. “Forget it… Disciple, redo it yourself. Just don’t change the ribbon. Use this one.”

As for himself, Lin Chuyun used the worn ribbon Feng Xixing had swapped out, carelessly tying his long hair at his lower back. Done.

Feng Xixing touched the somewhat crooked topknot on his own head, but had no intention of undoing it and redoing it. Instead, he bent down and lifted Lin Chuyun to the edge of the bed. He himself half-knelt on the ground and took down that tattered old ribbon.

“How can Shizun use this kind of thing,” Feng Xixing said disapprovingly, but he still took out new Spirit Silk and meticulously tied up Lin Chuyun’s long hair.

Of course, accidentally brushing against the cat ears in the process was purely unintentional on his part.

Lin Chuyun’s face was flushed bright red from being touched. He pressed his ears down with both hands. Once Feng Xixing was done, he chased the person out, blushing furiously. “Alright, alright, your teacher is going to sit in meditation and cultivate now.”

Feng Xixing knew if he stayed any longer, his Shizun would become angry from embarrassment. He obediently withdrew from the room.

Seeing him leave, Lin Chuyun finally let go of the hands pressing his ears.

Alone in the room, Lin Chuyun hopped off the bed, found a cracked mirror in the house, and looked at himself.

Looking at it… he really was adorable.

Even Lin Chuyun himself had to admit, if he saw a cat-eared youth like this, he would also go up and rub those ears enthusiastically. But the problem was, that youth right now was himself!

Was himself…

Lin Chuyun cleared his throat lightly. Facing the mirror, he very carefully reached behind himself and rubbed the tips of his ears.

The cat ear, forced to endure its master’s fondling, had no desire left even to swat at him. It wilted aggrievedly, allowing its master to touch it all over until satisfied before withdrawing his hand.

There was no other way. When Lin Chuyun turned into a cat before, his hands also turned into paws. He could only watch longingly every time, unable to touch them at all. This time, he could consider it a wish fulfilled.

“Shizun?” At that moment, Feng Xixing suddenly knocked on the door from outside.

Lin Chuyun was startled by him. His hand lost control of its strength momentarily, pinching the cat ear painfully. It shook back and forth irritably. Somewhat wronged, he rubbed the slightly sore ear tip and asked, “What is it?”

Feng Xixing only told him he needed to go out for a while.

Lin Chuyun didn’t think much of it and acknowledged, “Your teacher understands.”

Listening to Feng Xixing’s departing footsteps, Lin Chuyun soothed the somewhat wilted ear tip a bit more before climbing back onto the bed.

He planned to use these next few days when he could stay in human form to cultivate more spiritual power, so he wouldn’t always be exhausted every time he used it. What if his little disciple encountered danger later, and he didn’t have enough spiritual power to help!

…

Yan Sha had been having a rather happy couple of days. The combination of the Gold-Devouring Rat’s Demon Core and the Flame Tree Demon’s Demon Core had directly elevated his Scimitar to the Spirit Tier. Now, even against the Eldest Senior Brother, he could hold out for the time it takes an incense stick to burn.

So, when Feng Xixing came looking for him to spar, Yan Sha agreed without a second thought.

And was promptly beaten to the ground by Feng Xixing again.

Lying on the floor, Yan Sha began to question his own intelligence. Obviously, he was beaten miserably by Feng Xixing every single time, so why did he never learn and always agree to spar with Feng Xixing?

But unlike before, this time after the fight, Feng Xixing didn’t just leave him lying on the training ground and walk away. Instead, he walked over and stopped beside Yan Sha.

Yan Sha felt a warmth in his heart. He flipped over and sat up, waving a hand nonchalantly. “Don’t worry, I’m fine. Junior Brother Feng, don’t be concerned.”

Feng Xixing looked at him without speaking, then half-crouched down and even tilted his head deliberately.

Yan Sha watched his movements, completely baffled. “Junior Brother Feng, what’s wrong? I don’t think I hit your head just now…”

Feng Xixing frowned and tilted his hair slightly again.

“???” Yan Sha was full of confusion. He stared at Feng Xixing’s hair for a long time but couldn’t see any problem. However… “Junior Brother Feng, why is your topknot crooked?”

He had assumed this was just an ordinary question. Yet Feng Xixing looked at him quite approvingly and then spoke: “This is how Shizun personally styled my hair.”

Yan Sha: “?”

“Even deliberately used Spirit Silk.”

Yan Sha: “??”

“Presumably, Martial Uncle Zhu treats Senior Brother Yan so well, he must have styled Senior Brother Yan’s hair too.”

Yan Sha: “???”

As if just saying it casually, Feng Xixing stood up. “This Junior Brother has other matters, so I won’t disturb Senior Brother further.”

It wasn’t until Feng Xixing had already left that Yan Sha, slow on the uptake, finally reacted.

Had he just… been shown off to by Junior Brother Feng about his Shizun?

Coincidentally, Zhu Yan heard that Feng Xixing had come to spar with Yan Sha and decided to swing by the training ground on his way. When he arrived, he saw his foolish disciple, beaten black and blue again, sitting on the ground with a vacant look.

Zhu Yan assumed Yan Sha had been hit hard mentally from losing to Feng Xixing. He walked over, about to offer some words of encouragement, when he heard Yan Sha ask him: “Shizun, could you style my hair for me?”

The smile on Zhu Yan’s face froze. He stared at Yan Sha silently for a moment, then revealed a kind and gentle smile.