When I woke up, the entire cultivation world was talking about my master.

With Yi Chen's quick reflexes, he could have easily dodged the door the moment it opened, but he caught it because he saw that the person rushing towards him was his disciple and couldn't bear to let him fall to the ground.

But he didn't expect that Chu Xianlan would be so bold as to pounce on him and forcefully kiss him.

Even the highly skilled Immortal Lord Jixue was completely stunned at this moment, and only when his back touched the ground did he realize what had happened.

In a life-or-death battle, being tackled so unexpectedly at close range would likely have resulted in immediate death.

but……

The one pressing down on me right now is not a vicious enemy.

Chu Xianlan's hands rested on either side of Yi Chen's face. He bit his lip, his expression a mix of shyness and panic, and his ears were bright red.

Looking at his disciple so close, and hearing his rapid breathing, Yi Chen's gaze drifted and landed directly on the other's tightly bitten lower lip, the crimson color turning slightly white where it was repeatedly pressed by his teeth.

If you keep applying force, clear teeth marks will definitely be left where you were bitten.

Bite so hard...

Doesn't it hurt?

"Master...I, disciple...you..." Chu Xianlan's language system was completely chaotic. He knew he had messed up and was so shocked that he was about to explode on the spot.

Yi Chen's thoughts were disrupted by his stammering voice, and he regained his senses.

He suddenly realized what Chu Xianlan might say next.

So, if you push the boy too far and provoke him to the point where he has nowhere to retreat, he will get angry and reckless like just now, and might even... kiss you?

So what's next? What will happen next? Will something even more absurd happen?

Should I just give up and confess my feelings on the spot, abandoning all pretense and making my feelings clear?

……no.

Yi Chen didn't want to see his disciple fall into a painful struggle, but... he couldn't... at least not now, let him just say it out loud.

If Chu Xianlan really reveals those words and lays her heart bare, how should I respond?

Should I directly refuse, telling him coldly as before that this path is blocked and there's absolutely no way to get through?

But... after all, we've come this far.

What if Chu Xianlan doesn't back down after he refuses and becomes even more extreme?

His actions, like rushing up to kiss me just now, were already outrageous enough; who knows if he might have another impulsive outburst.

I can't refuse... Should I just agree?

If I just agree with him and satisfy his demands, will Chu Xianlan settle down and stop causing trouble? Will she be able to calm down and focus on her cultivation?

Thinking about it this way, it seems more feasible than refusing.

The allure of this hypothesis was greater than Yi Chen had imagined. It was as if with just a nod, all the dilemmas that were currently troubling him could find a way out and return him to a path he could control...

His disciples no longer need to suffer so much, nor do they need to hide their feelings for him on the surface.

The thought, once it arose, even Yi Chen himself found it utterly absurd.

He is the master, how could he possibly... respond to his disciple's affection?

Yi Chen's mind was in turmoil, as if some deeply ingrained beliefs were about to be shattered.

For the first time, I truly understood what it meant to be caught in a dilemma.

Chu Xianlan finally calmed down, and just as he was about to give a full explanation by sliding his knees, his master suddenly turned his face away.

Yi Chen's voice was hoarse, "Xianlan, I have left a sword manual in Xingjin Pavilion. You... go and fetch it for me now."

Chu Xianlan was stunned and looked at her master in shock.

"Huh?" He choked up.

The words I had just prepared were stuck in my throat.

Why is Master suddenly bringing this up...? Go get the sword manual from Junior Uncle?

Now!?

In an atmosphere so awkward it could practically be used to dig out three Taiyi Sect mounds?

Yi Chen pushed the boy off him, turned his back to straighten his clothes, and could clearly feel his heart racing. Was it because he was burying his head in the sand and came up with a clumsy excuse?

"Yes, it's in Wei Jin's hands. Go."

Yi Chen deliberately lowered his voice and reopened the courtyard gate of the cold pool, trying his best not to look like he was fleeing in panic.

Chu Xianlan was already full of questions when he heard this. He wanted to say something, but the next second, an ice-blue spiritual energy barrier rose up, and he was isolated from it.

If you observe carefully, you will find that the barrier is swaying slightly, which is a sign that the person who set up the barrier is not mentally stable.

Unfortunately, Chu Xianlan was completely distracted at the moment and did not notice the abnormality of the barrier.

He stood there blankly, touching his lips, then his face, and finally, he touched the back of his head in a daze.

Now, I'm even starting to doubt whether anything that just happened ever did happen at all.

Haha, the more I think about it, the more outrageous it seems. Maybe I'm just too tired lately and am hallucinating.

He was absent-minded the whole way, and when his fellow disciples greeted him, he was more than half a beat slow to react.

"Senior Brother Chu? Senior Brother!"

A kind junior female student called out to him, "Be careful, if you go any further you'll bump into a pillar."

Chu Xianlan froze. "Thank you."

The junior sister laughed, her gaze lingering curiously on his face. "Senior brother, where are you going? Why is your face so red?"

"Let's go to Xingjin Pavilion," Chu Xianlan chuckled. "It's nothing, it's just that the weather is too hot and a bit stuffy."

Junior sister: ...You mean it's hot when it's snowing?

"Then I'll be going now." Chu Xianlan nodded.

"Wait, senior brother."

The junior sister pointed to the mountain peak on the left, "You've gone the wrong way, that's the direction of Star Ember Pavilion."

"..."

After enduring the anxiety and concerned gazes of her fellow disciples along the way, Chu Xianlan finally reached the foot of Xingjin Pavilion.

The surrounding scenery was completely different from that of Yujing Pavilion. Wei Jin was flamboyant and liked all things intense. His territory was filled with fiery maple forests, torches every few steps along the mountain path, and at the end of the road was an extremely ostentatious vermilion palace, which was visually striking.

As soon as you get close, you can smell the rich and mellow aroma of the wine.

Junior Uncle is drinking in broad daylight?

Just as he was still hesitating whether to go in, Xiao Huandu sighed helplessly from inside the hall, "Master, please stop drinking! How many pots has this been? You're vomiting everywhere, it's such a hassle for me to clean up..."

It turns out that Xiao Huandu was also there.

Chu Xianlan felt much more at ease.

Junior Uncle is a troublemaker. Every time we face him alone, he can't help but tease him. With Xiao Huandu present, at least half of the teasing can be taken away.

At this moment, Chu Xianlan had no idea what would happen next, so she confidently stepped inside.

The light inside the hall was slightly dimmer than outside. Wei Jin was half-lying and half-leaning against the low table, his signature red robes loosely draped over his shoulders, his proud long hair like ink-black silk spread across the ground, and his usually glamorous face was flushed with drunkenness, his eyes glazed over.

Xiao Huandu knelt beside him, holding a damp cloth, and picked up the wine pot with a look of utter despair. "Sigh..."

Wei Jin suddenly spoke sharply: "Are you cursing me in your heart?!"

"How dare this disciple?" Xiao Huandu cleaned without even looking up, his skill so adept it was almost heartbreaking.

"There's definitely...you...hiccup," Wei Jin muttered, propping his head up with his hand. "You swore really, really swear, I heard it all."

No, really no.

Xiao Huandu gave a perfunctory reply, thinking he should finish quickly and slip away.

Wei Jin stared at him for two seconds, feeling dizzy, then reached out and drunkenly hooked his arms around his disciple's neck.

Before the other person could speak, he slightly tilted his chin up, his moist red lips, reeking of alcohol, firmly—

She kissed Xiao Huandu on the corner of his mouth.

Chu Xianlan: "…………"