The imagined scene of “benevolent master and filial disciple” for Yu Sheng did not come to pass.
Yin Wangzhi did indeed react to his “favor,” but this reaction was not one of sudden tenderness, warmth, or shyness...
Instead, he tightened his grip on Yu Sheng’s arm even more, and his body pressed down on him more unrestrainedly. Even the way he stared at Yu Sheng up close with those eyes was utterly devoid of guilt, embarrassment, or shyness... They were just fixated on him.
Yu Sheng blinked, feeling that if they got any closer, his eyes might lose focus and he might end up cross-eyed.
Then his vision flickered, and he felt a cool, ticklish sensation at his neck. Was this... Yin Wangzhi?
A return gesture?
The information was a bit overwhelming; it took him a moment to discern that it was his second disciple’s head buried against him. Because he was a ghost, Yu Sheng not only felt no warmth, but instead felt the coolness enveloping his body and neck, like lying on a waterbed in the summer—cool and soft, very comfortable.
Yu Sheng felt relieved and thought this was an acceptance of his goodwill, and the tight grip was perhaps due to nervousness.
After all, his second disciple wasn’t very skilled at getting close to others; maybe this was the first time he had taken the initiative to act spoiled toward his master.
Yes, it was acting spoiled, just like Xiaotian often did. In the past, whenever Xiaotian sought affection with his childlike demeanor, Yin Wangzhi always appeared disdainful and aloof, as if a ten-year-old were looking down on a seven-year-old asking for a hug.
So, now that no one else was around, it made sense that he would be anxious and tense while burying his head in Yu Sheng's neck...
Yu Sheng’s imagination ran wild, and he felt a bit of heartache, thinking that Yin Wangzhi was too strong-willed, habitually hiding his lack of love even as he played the role of the villain protagonist well.
Balancing things out was difficult; he had to keep Yin Wangzhi’s character in the villain state without letting it collapse too severely while also helping him dispel his inner demons and maintain his calm. The difficulty was too high.
He wanted to pat his head, but his arm was gripped so tightly that it felt as if it were firmly fastened to the ground with iron shackles.
Yu Sheng felt a wave of helplessness, thinking this must be Yin Wangzhi wanting to act spoiled and seek warmth but not wanting him to over-comfort him and lose face.
Was it really necessary? Did he think that if Yu Sheng didn’t pat his head, he could pretend that he hadn’t buried his head to rub against him?
It seemed he really could.
“The fight is over, and you’ve acted spoiled enough; let me go, obediently.”
“I haven’t.”
Yin Wangzhi's assertive voice rang in his ear, his cool nose brushing against Yu Sheng's ear, sending an uncontrollable shiver through him.
“I’m clearly bullying my master. How can you be so unaware? Bullying?”
Yu Sheng felt utterly bewildered. This talent for lying with his eyes wide open was too in line with his character.
He recalled that in the original text, Yin Wangzhi had once arrogantly proclaimed, after killing someone, “Killing? He willingly came to the Ghost Realm to pledge loyalty to me; I just set the date for this recruitment day. What’s wrong with that? It’s mutual consent.”
That’s why he was a villain.
However, while villains could appear strong and unreasonable, looking very bad, here he was, pressing down on Yu Sheng without reason, acting spoiled yet insisting he wasn’t, claiming to be bullying him despite doing nothing.
While both were lying with their eyes open, Yu Sheng felt that at this moment, Yin Wangzhi was nothing like the cruel and ruthless character in the original text; instead, he seemed more like... someone who was insincere.
He couldn’t be bothered to struggle with his arm. After all, they had just finished a fight, and here the recovery of spiritual energy was much slower than Yin Wangzhi's recovery of his ghostly energy, so it wasn’t suitable to continue fighting. After thinking for a moment, he playfully moved his toes to kick at Yin Wangzhi's calf.
The height difference was perfectly exploited in this moment.
Yu Sheng smiled and joked with him, “Disciple shouldn’t bully the master; that’s an offense against authority.”
If there were a next line, it would be to stop messing around and be a bit more obedient. However, considering that this disciple had once been a fierce protagonist, he held back for the sake of face.
“Offending authority... What punishment does the master intend to impose?”
Yet Yin Wangzhi still didn’t let go, seeming to have developed a habit of bullying.
Yu Sheng began to suspect that he was just being petty, wanting a hug and some closeness but feeling too embarrassed to ask directly, hence refusing to let him go.
Wasn’t that a bit awkward? Yu Sheng felt helpless; when he began to joke, he didn’t take it too seriously.
“What use is punishing you... you’re the protagonist now.”
Yu Sheng shook his head, continuing to laugh, half-seriously saying something true, “You are now the Ghost King, stronger than me. How can I punish you?”
When he took in disciples or saved people, he really treated those characters like his own children, nurturing and protecting them.
After all, he was facing those moments when these kids hadn’t yet grown into true protagonists; they were at the lowest points in their lives.
Just like how, no matter how fierce a beast is, when caring for its cubs, even if they know how things will turn out, they can’t help but become soft and invested emotionally.
Now, those adorable little cubs from his memories had grown up into protagonists—real protagonists. Everything was certainly different now.
Yu Sheng found it difficult to feel much reality in his role as a master; therefore, even if he lost, was defeated, and was being temperamental under the Ghost King’s whims, he didn’t feel much offense or embarrassment or anger.
He smiled, joking half-truths, appearing as if he hadn’t fully sobered up from drinking, looking far too laid-back and calm, far more composed than Yin Wangzhi had expected.
In other words, while the disciples felt gratitude toward him as their master, Yu Sheng himself didn’t feel that way. The disciples had their little schemes to deceive him, but he only cared about whether the little cubs he had picked up treated him sincerely.
As for the protagonist before him... whatever was fine, normal. After all, everything had collapsed, and the plot had fallen apart. They were all protagonists capable of achieving anything. The water spilled by a master’s disciple...
Yu Sheng maintained an unshakeable mindset; he feared nothing.
However, while he was so calm, Yin Wangzhi seemed to suddenly sense something, showing clear dissatisfaction with Yu Sheng's response and attitude.
This dissatisfaction directly reflected in his actions and words; he lifted his head, furrowed his brows, still gripping Yu Sheng, but his strength wasn’t as harsh as before.
He said, “How can you be indifferent?”
When Yu Sheng said there was no punishment or that he couldn’t punish him, Yin Wangzhi surprisingly matched his smile with an understanding of that indifference.
His sudden sensitivity was genuinely surprising, and the point of his dissatisfaction was hard to grasp.
Yu Sheng looked at him in confusion, the smile at the corner of his mouth not yet fully fading.
Then, one of his hands was released, and Yin Wangzhi reached out with the free hand to touch him, lingering at the side of Yu Sheng’s face, hesitating for a moment, and ultimately only pinching a strand of hair.
The calmness of the person before him and their utter indifference to it all caused a surge of intense unease within him.
“Master, you still refuse to return to the Three Realms, don’t you?”
Yin Wangzhi suddenly made this conclusion, sounding like he was sighing, “You’re always prepared to go back to that cliff, aren’t you?”
Back to that isolated corner, indifferent to worldly affairs, unconcerned with the joys and sorrows of the mundane world, and severing all romantic attachments.
Yu Sheng was taken aback. He had been thinking about returning eventually; home was where he belonged.
But how did it sound so... heavy coming from Yin Wangzhi’s mouth? What was wrong with him going home?
Yin Wangzhi was staring at him, seemingly having drawn an answer from Yu Sheng’s silence.
“Your magical artifact has been destroyed, and it was your disciple who did it. Your residence is also gone; your disciple took it all away. Even your false death has been exposed, all because of...”
“No,” Yu Sheng interrupted him, “this isn’t solely your fault. It was your fellow disciples who worked together with a common goal that made me acknowledge my identity.”
Yin Wangzhi: “...”
Yu Sheng continued, “And besides, it doesn’t matter that the flail was destroyed. Don’t be so hard on yourself. Look.”
With one hand finally free, he reached into his robe and pulled out a brand new flail that looked exactly like the previous one, waving it in the air.
Yin Wangzhi took a deep breath, his expression complicated.
“Many years ago, a senior advised me not to use such a labor-intensive method. Even if I could sustain my life’s magical artifact, I wouldn’t be able to hold on forever. I thought he was right, so I accumulated a lot of magical artifacts; using them for a thousand years is no problem.”
Yin Wangzhi helplessly realized that he wouldn’t be able to finish his latter statement.
Yu Sheng finally succeeded in patting his head, speaking earnestly, “Wangzhi, I’ve just realized you’re not as cold as people imagine. You’re different from the ghost king they think you are.”
Yin Wangzhi looked at him, “How so?”
“People say you’re a ferocious god of death, and even your gaze is cold. But actually,” Yu Sheng smiled with his eyes squinting, “you’re warmer than the ground here. You have warmth.”
“...”
“Really, the ground is quite cold. If you don’t believe me, you can lie down and see for yourself.”
Yin Wangzhi finally, under Yu Sheng’s indirect reminder, felt guilty and stood up, picking up his master in the process.
“Since Master enjoys it, let’s stay close for a while longer. I have plenty of strength.”
When it came to putting aside his pride, Yin Wangzhi believed he had learned a bit under Xiaotian’s influence.
Yu Sheng was rendered speechless, being held sideways by the ghost king, his entire face wrinkled into an awkward expression.
He vaguely felt that Yin Wangzhi might still be upset about something, but he had already comforted him, sparred with him, and said all the nice words. He truly couldn’t figure out what else was missing that warranted such treatment.
He really didn’t care about losing face as a master, but being held like this was something he didn’t want to lose so quickly.
Was it too late to flip through the guide again?
Yu Sheng struggled a bit, but the result of his movements only caused his clothes to open wider. With one hand hanging around Yin Wangzhi’s neck and the other hand inconveniently unable to fix the collar on the same side, he helplessly met Yin Wangzhi's gaze.
Yin Wangzhi seemed to understand, lowering his head and leaning in closer while raising his arm that was holding Yu Sheng, pulling his upper body even closer.
Somehow, Yu Sheng was momentarily struck by the ghost king’s appearance from this angle, causing him to falter in flipping through the guide in his mind, resulting in a small error.
What should have been turning to the next page suddenly jumped to a later section, and while Yu Sheng was still staring at Yin Wangzhi’s face, he didn’t notice the densely packed words on the pages, only seeing the word “kiss.”
His mind went blank in an instant, and the system in his consciousness reset the book to its default initial state, neatly arranged, with no browsing history or bookmarks left. In reality, Yu Sheng suddenly froze, petrified as he allowed Yin Wangzhi to inch closer, even feeling their breaths mingle, causing his eyelashes to tremble slightly—in fear.
However, Yin Wangzhi ultimately bypassed his face, lowering his head to rest against Yu Sheng’s ear, landing on the collar of his partially opened robe.
While Yu Sheng’s mind was still foggy, Yin Wangzhi had already bitten down on the corner of Yu Sheng's robe, pulling it back into place before releasing his grip, his dark gaze fixed on the person in his arms, who seemed paralyzed.
In the process, whether his lips brushed against Yu Sheng’s shoulder or more places, he had no memory of it.
Yin Wangzhi stared at him, a sly smile curving his lightly colored lips. “Master, it seems you’re not as clueless as you appear.”
It was a smile that was different from any he had shown before, resembling his body temperature. Without comparison, one would think it was cold, but once familiar, it was found to be warm.
Yu Sheng was still in a daze until Yin Wangzhi set him down on a wide, soft couch suitable for an afternoon nap and leaned in closer, causing alarm bells to go off in his mind. He instinctively raised his hand to cover Yin Wangzhi's lips.
Strangely... it was warm.
Before he had time to ponder how the temperature had changed, a loud bang exploded in his ear, interrupting everything as a massive white figure burst in, exuding a murderous aura that made Yu Sheng instinctively raise his hand to defend himself, only to forget he had just gone through an exhausting battle and had little energy left.
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