Lin Shijin met Sheng Rufei’s gaze. He felt somewhat cowed, but remembering how Sheng Rufei usually indulged him, he straightened his back, unwilling to yield on this matter.
The room fell silent for a moment. Sheng Rufei still had him held fast, and he continued waiting for an answer.
Sheng Rufei’s breathing grew heavier. He closed his eyes, then opened them again after a short while.
Lin Shijin was still glaring at him, looking rather fierce. The next instant, the back of his head was pressed down, forcing him forward as Sheng Rufei kissed him.
This was clearly a time to discuss proper matters, not for kissing.
So Lin Shijin thought, yet his resolve quickly wavered. His attention shifted back to Sheng Rufei. His face flushed, and when he met Sheng Rufei’s eyes, he felt as though he had been scorched by the emotion within them.
It was said that when two people’s hearts were in accord, they could sense each other’s feelings, even through a single glance.
He seemed to catch a trace of anger in Sheng Rufei’s eyes. Something in his chest burned, and his lashes trembled.
In the moment he lost focus, pain came sharply from his lips. This kiss was different from before. In the past, Sheng Rufei had always been mindful of him, never too forceful, at most biting him lightly when he could not help himself.
Because he knew Lin Shijin feared pain.
This time, however, there was no restraint. Pain spread between his lips and teeth. Sheng Rufei seemed to be deliberately punishing him. Tears pricked at his eyes. He pushed at Sheng Rufei twice, yet fearing his injuries, he could not bring himself to force him away.
Instead, Sheng Rufei only pressed harder, leaving him unable to cope.
“Shixiong, it hurts.”
Lin Shijin had never known a kiss could hurt. He bit back in return and tasted blood. Sheng Rufei must have been in even greater pain, yet he did not seem to care.
His fingers clutched at Sheng Rufei’s robe, his face flushed crimson. At first it had been shyness, now it was anger, yet he could do nothing to him.
Just as Sheng Rufei, when angered, could only express it in this way, even when Lin Shijin was upset, he still instinctively thought of Sheng Rufei.
Not only his lips, but his earlobes and the side of his neck ached. There was not a single place that did not hurt, his skin even rubbed raw in places.
Sheng Rufei’s breath fell by his ear. He was covered in Sheng Rufei’s scent, the youth’s presence cold and heavy, his voice low and hoarse. “Don’t say that again.”
Lin Shijin was already angry, and his mouth still stung. Sheng Rufei had not even agreed to his earlier request. He retorted in a low voice, “You haven’t agreed.”
“You still refuse to tell me anything.”
His speech was low and slightly slurred, his tongue aching. He did not hear Sheng Rufei respond for a long while. Sheng Rufei was not one for sweet words, dull as a block of wood, not even knowing how to coax him.
Lin Shijin prised Sheng Rufei’s fingers apart one by one and stood up where he was, intending to sulk by himself. Sheng Rufei, seated in the corner, did not stop him, which only made him more annoyed.
He went to another corner on his own. He could feel Sheng Rufei’s gaze on him, but pretended not to notice, spreading the map out on the ground with feigned nonchalance.
They had bought a map of Wuxiang Mountain beforehand. Lin Shijin had only meant to go through the motions, but remembering Sheng Rufei’s injuries, he could not allow anything to happen to him along the way, so he began to study it in earnest.
At the centre was the Blood Tower. Around the edges were several shadowed forests, an abandoned city, and the rear side of Wuxiang Mountain from which they had come.
Now, people from all directions were heading towards the Blood Tower. Their current position lay at the edge of one of the maze formations.
“Fuheng, after the Blood Tower opens, can one enter at any time?”
“Yes, at any time.”
“But everyone can only enter, not leave.”
Lin Shijin fell silent.
He looked at the routes on the map. They might encounter demonic cultivators or scourge-slayers along the way. If they were discovered, it would be troublesome. There might even be people lying in wait for them.
“How can I lead shixiong past the danger?” Lin Shijin asked. “He is badly injured. He cannot be put through more of this.”
He studied the map carefully. There was only one entrance to the Blood Tower. Unless he could blend in, and even then there would be many complications.
“It is not impossible to blend in. Some disciples are not travelling strictly in pairs.”
At this, Lin Shijin recalled that some sects, for safety, arranged for additional followers to accompany their disciples. So long as those followers were willing to defect, it would not count as a violation. Mo Yan had done precisely that.
“Then we will have to observe along the way. Before entering, we should find out the situation of the sect groups.”
With that in mind, Lin Shijin kept his focus on the map, until a low cough reached his ears. His attention was drawn to it at once, as though someone had pressed upon the softest part of his heart. He looked up.
In the corner, Sheng Rufei’s silver hair lay loose at his side. His face was pale, his lashes slightly lifted as he looked at him, his eyes dark, his frame slender. He looked faintly pitiful.
Lin Shijin remembered that he was supposed to be sulking. He hesitated for only a moment before rising and returning to Sheng Rufei’s side.
His expression was reluctant, his heart still full of anger. His lips were pressed tight, yet when he spoke, his voice softened slightly. “Where does it hurt?”
Sheng Rufei lowered his gaze and said nothing, only looking at him.
Lin Shijin could tell that even this blockhead was angry, and felt a trace of helplessness. In his previous life, he must have owed Sheng Rufei a great debt, to provoke him like this day after day.
“Let me see your wounds.” His fingers moved to Sheng Rufei’s collar. The moment he touched it, his hand was caught.
Remembering something, he said, “I already checked when you fainted.”
No need to stand on ceremony. Sheng Rufei’s palm was warm. He held him without speaking. When Lin Shijin shifted, his grip tightened further, still without a word.
“Let go first. Let me check your wounds.”
Lin Shijin did not move. He did not know what had set Sheng Rufei off again. If he moved rashly, he might provoke another outburst.
His fingers were held fast. After a while, Sheng Rufei spoke. “I will tell you in future.”
His voice remained cool, but much lower than usual.
Lin Shijin’s heart stirred faintly at those words, though he did not show it. Sheng Rufei lowering himself like this made something soft and sweet unfurl within him.
Outwardly, he feigned ignorance. “Tell me what?”
“You speak so little every day, yet do so much. Which part are you referring to?”
Before him, Sheng Rufei’s earlier dark and oppressive aura had withdrawn, leaving him faintly at a loss. After a long silence, he said, “If you ask, I will tell you.”
“That will not do,” Lin Shijin muttered. Would that not mean he would say nothing unless asked? He was often slow to react, easily falling into Sheng Rufei’s traps.
“Even if I do not ask, you must tell me of your own accord.”
“Do not make me worry.”
Lin Shijin watched him. After a long moment, Sheng Rufei’s lips tightened against his pale face, and at last he said, “All right.”
His fingers were still held. Sheng Rufei coughed twice more. Lin Shijin immediately grew tense, reaching up to touch his forehead. It was still warm.
“Fuheng, why is he still feverish?”
“He has only just woken,” came the brief reply.
“It has already been a while,” Lin Shijin said anxiously. He dampened a handkerchief and laid it across Sheng Rufei’s forehead, the cool cloth easing the heat slightly.
“Does it still hurt?” Lin Shijin did not know what demon poison felt like, only that it must be unbearable. Through the ages, cultivators had never truly overcome it. No matter how high one’s cultivation, if the wound was not treated at once, the poison would quickly invade the mind.
His concern was impossible to conceal, his eyes gentle. His cool fingers rested against Sheng Rufei’s forehead.
Sheng Rufei grew slightly distracted, his gaze lingering on the youth’s face. His heart seemed to tremble faintly.
The look in the youth’s eyes scattered the dark thoughts that had been creeping through him. Feeling the warmth of those fingertips, his mind gradually settled.
“Mm.”
Hearing this, Lin Shijin grew at a loss. Since Sheng Rufei said it hurt, he did not know what to do. He emptied out all the bottles and jars from his storage ring.
“I recall from the texts that medicinal decoctions are more effective. I wonder if there are any such herbs nearby.”
Before he could say more, his wrist was seized, and he was pulled into Sheng Rufei’s embrace. Sheng Rufei’s lips brushed his ear as he spoke. “Do not wander about.”
Lin Shijin had not intended to wander at all. Had he been able to see Sheng Rufei’s eyes, he would have found them filled with surging darkness, an almost palpable obsession.
But he noticed nothing. He only felt that Sheng Rufei’s nightmare must have had something to do with him. Held in his arms, he touched Sheng Rufei’s shoulder lightly. “Where could I go?”
“That is what I should be saying. Do not one day leave me behind, Shixiong.”
His gaze fell again on Sheng Rufei’s wounds. They seemed to have split open once more. Concern rose immediately.
“Shixiong, the wound seems to have reopened.”
“Let me take a look.”
Sheng Rufei held him tightly, leaving him scarcely able to move. In illness, he seemed particularly clingy, his breath heavy by Lin Shijin’s ear. “Shixiong?”
He called again. After a long moment with no reply, he carefully propped him up and realised that Sheng Rufei had fainted once more.
So he had only been forcing himself to hold on.
Lin Shijin felt both distressed and helpless. He carefully settled him back down, then, still uneasy, went out to check the barrier again, adding several more layers outside.
These barriers had been prepared for him by Feng Rugao. Any disturbance would be detected.
Lin Fuheng glanced at the barriers the youth had cast. They were made from ancient spirit stones, difficult to obtain, items Feng Rugao had given him to preserve his life. Now he had scattered a large number of them without a thought.
Fortunately they were Feng Rugao’s. Had they been his, he would have given the youth a thorough beating for such wastefulness.
Lin Shijin knew nothing of this. He returned to the room, found Sheng Rufei still unconscious, and checked his wounds again.
They had indeed split open once more, the blood again thick and black. He frowned, touching the wound as he muttered, “It was fine just now. Why is it becoming corrupted again?”
Troubled, he stripped Sheng Rufei completely and reapplied the medicine. The blood returned to normal. He watched for a while before binding the wounds again.
His gaze drifted from the wounds to Sheng Rufei’s abdomen. Years of sword practice had left his muscles firm, defined and striking.
Unable to resist, he reached out and gave them a light touch.
That touch did not wake Sheng Rufei. Instead, something long suppressed suddenly made itself known, pressing abruptly against him.
