Wen Jiu chuckled and complimented, "If you say it doesn't hurt, then it doesn't hurt. Your willpower is impressive; you're truly deserving of being the leader of the Immortal Alliance."
Indeed, this is a protagonist known for their combat duration and frequency, enough to have a star lit in their name on the cloud window.
However, in Yu Sheng's eyes, this kind of willpower is merely bravado; it shows a lack of care for one's body, which he cannot support. "Since the memorial is over, let’s return to the cave to rest. No matter how minor your injuries are, you shouldn't take them lightly. What if they worsen?"
A hint of color finally returned to Zhan Xiaotian's face. "Are you concerned about me, Senior?"
"Of course," Yu Sheng replied.
"Then let's return with Wen Shidi."
Yu Sheng's heart skipped a beat as he remembered Wen Jiu's purpose for coming here. "Wen Gongzi... have you prepared a sumptuous offering?"
He hoped it wouldn't happen again; he didn't want Wen Jiu to bring all the food he made for Yu Sheng to the grave.
"Not really," Wen Jiu smiled. "Master loved my cooking. Whether it was the fruits I grew or the rice wine and vinegar I brewed, he praised them endlessly. Since Master enjoyed them so much, he wouldn’t want to see these delicacies wasted or thrown away. If he knows from the afterlife, he would surely be heartbroken."
Hearing this, Yu Sheng felt deeply moved and nodded repeatedly.
What a good disciple; he’s so understanding and well-behaved.
Although it can’t compare to those task points, it’s precisely because he has missed so much that he cherishes the current delicious food even more. His spirit has already been hurt too much today; he couldn't bear any more blows.
After saying this, Wen Jiu deliberately looked at Zhan Xiaotian and, with a smile that felt like a spring breeze, politely sought his agreement, "Isn't that right, Senior Brother Zhan?" Zhan Xiaotian chuckled a couple of times as a response.
What a wonderful scene of brotherly love and harmony, if only there wasn't such an ominous atmosphere.
Thus, the three returned to the cave. Yu Sheng walked in the middle, with the older brother on the left and the younger brother on the right. He supported the older brother with his left hand while the younger brother supported him on the right, marching together like the flag bearers in the opening ceremony of a sports event.
Originally, Wen Jiu wanted to carry Zhan Xiaotian himself, but Zhan Xiaotian stubbornly refused any help, trying to show strength. Yu Sheng thought that perhaps Zhan would reveal his softer side in front of his elders, so he advised them not to argue further, resulting in this peculiar formation.
Since his "memorial day" was still a few days away, the two protagonists decided to stay, leading to a prolonged debate over sleeping arrangements.
The cave wasn't small, but it wasn't large either. Yu Sheng usually had his own room with only a jade bed inside. It would feel cramped if two people shared it. The other two rooms had been prepared by him a hundred years ago: one gathered yin energy while the other was vibrant with yang energy, specifically for the protagonists from the Three Realms.
However, since Zhan Xiaotian was injured and was a cultivator from the human realm, he was more suited to stay in the room with the jade bed. Yu Sheng thought it was best for him to sleep in this one.
Zhan Xiaotian insisted, "Senior, you can stay with me. After all, you're a close friend of our Master; it doesn't matter."
Wen Jiu said, "The room with heavy yin energy isn’t suitable for living people. It would be rude to squeeze you into one bed with me, so I think you should stay with me. The room on the east side, although it lacks spiritual energy, is at least harmless to the living and is much more spacious. We can just lay down some soft mats."
Zhan Xiaotian retorted, "Senior isn't a spirit; why should he sleep on the floor? If you truly care about him, then just go back. A mere division of spirit shouldn't take up space."
Wen Jiu countered, "I promised the Senior that I would leave some food for a night snack before going to sleep."
Yu Sheng sighed internally.
To be honest, he wanted to be alone. He could just sit in meditation all night; it wouldn’t tire him out.
However, looking at his two earnest disciples debating, he felt a bit hesitant to speak up.
Let them argue; it was best to let them be. If he showed too much enthusiasm or meddled, it might give away his identity as Yu Yangzi. He reminded himself to maintain his persona and moved aside to sit with his white bunny while munching on sunflower seeds, one hand cracking seeds and the other rubbing the bunny.
By nighttime, the two had finally reached a consensus.
The jade bed remained empty. In the east room, three grown men were sleeping on the floor, lined up neatly.
Yu Sheng lay in the middle, staring at the ceiling in a daze, contemplating life and worrying that the two would start fighting in the middle of the night, and he’d end up stuck in the middle.
On his left, Zhan Xiaotian turned over, lying on his side and facing Yu Sheng, inhaling sharply, "Hiss..."
Yu Sheng blinked and asked, "Does it hurt anywhere?"
Zhan Xiaotian shook his head, looking stiff as he gazed at Yu Sheng. "It’s nothing, just a bit uncomfortable. During the day, I was thinking about other things, so I didn’t feel it, but now at night, I..."
Such a poor thing.
Yu Sheng was left with only his inner clothing, so he reached into his robe and habitually pulled out a small piece of candy. He thought for a moment and decided not to unwrap it himself, directly handing it to Zhan Xiaotian, "Here, eat this."
Zhan Xiaotian accepted the candy, his gaze softening significantly, reminiscent of the moist look Yu Sheng remembered. While unwrapping the candy, he whispered, "When Master was still around, he often fed me candy. For a long time, I thought that no matter how much it hurt, eating candy would help. It was only after leaving the cliff that I realized it wasn’t like that..."
Yu Sheng felt a pang of heartache and reached out to pat his head.
Zhan Xiaotian continued, "I realized it wasn’t that candy made the pain go away, but that when Master fed me candy, I would forget the pain."
Yu Sheng stared at him, momentarily at a loss for words.
From his right side came some sounds; Wen Jiu had turned over, now facing Yu Sheng. It seemed he was murmuring in his dreams, "Master..."
Perhaps because he relaxed while dreaming, Wen Jiu appeared even more translucent, as if he might disappear at any moment.
Yu Sheng worried about waking him, so he gestured for Zhan Xiaotian to be quiet and cautiously glanced in that direction.
Wen Jiu seemed to be dreaming of something, his brows furrowing tightly, and his murmurs were indistinct, sounding somewhat panicked, causing him to toss and turn restlessly. As Yu Sheng was about to comfort him, he accidentally got his hand grabbed.
"Master..."
He murmured again, this time in a tone of contentment. With a sigh, Wen Jiu’s expression finally softened, and he fell back into a deep sleep.
Yu Sheng tried to move his hand, but it was tightly held, and without more strength to wake him, he couldn't pull it away, so he simply gave up.
There was nothing to be done; he could only continue lying flat.
With a crisp sound of "ka-cha," Zhan Xiaotian bit into the hard candy, breaking it.
Yu Sheng glanced at him upon hearing the sound. In his memories, Zhan Xiaotian seemed to eat candy slowly; this was the first time he heard the sound of someone crushing candy.
Zhan Xiaotian smiled sweetly at him, "It's very sweet. Thank you, Senior."
Unconsciously, Yu Sheng began to feel a bit drowsy, as if he would fall asleep the moment he closed his eyes.
Then, he spent the entire night having strange dreams.
In the dream, he alternated between becoming an old man with white hair and returning to his original form. He even encountered his second disciple, Yin Wangzhi. In the dream, Yin Wangzhi's temper seemed to have become fiercer; upon seeing him, he instantly softened and approached Yu Sheng, looking at him with a warm expression.
As he came closer, Yu Sheng discovered that his illusion had failed, and he returned to being Yu Yangzi. His identity was exposed, and Yin Wangzhi raised his hand to pinch a strand of Yu Sheng's hair at the side of his face. With a deep and pleasant voice, he leaned in to speak softly in his ear, his warm, humid breath causing Yu Sheng's ear to tingle, like a feather lightly scratching it.
"One day as a teacher, a lifetime as a husband..."
Yu Sheng's head felt heavy, and he vaguely sensed something was wrong. "Is... is there such a saying?"
Yin Wangzhi chuckled softly. A person whose appearance and temperament were both cold and fierce, when trying to be kind, exuded an imposing aura. "Master has deceived his disciple so cruelly; should the disciple not deceive the Master once in return to take responsibility for the past...?"
It seemed... that made sense.
All emotions in the dream were amplified, including guilt. Yu Sheng nodded, suddenly becoming obedient and no longer evasive. "I'm sorry..."
Yin Wangzhi untied the belt around his waist, secretly removing Yu Sheng's feather duster and tossing it aside. He also removed his own ghost whip, throwing it at his feet. Their bodies were close as they moved, almost as if embracing each other. "Master need not apologize. Though the disciple wants you to take responsibility, he is also willingly deceived by you this once. Others don't have such good fortune."
Yu Sheng still felt a lingering sense of unease. "Aren't you supposed to defeat me?"
He remembered that his second disciple longed to surpass him; why had he discarded his weapons?
Yin Wangzhi looked at him. "The disciple has already lost to the Master."
"Eh? When did that happen?"
Yin Wangzhi shook his head and leaned in to block his lips. "Master, have you ever heard of the dual cultivation technique of yin and yang in the Ghost Realm?"
Yu Sheng was taken aback. "You..."
He couldn't muster the courage to make another sound.
After all, a dream is just a dream—absurd and illogical, with disjointed fragments overlapping one another. It left only a vague haze. Yu Sheng felt as if he were being boiled in hot water, unable to breathe, and overwhelmed by an intense heat, rolling over and over, wanting to wake up, wanting to escape this vast ocean, yet he couldn't do so, and it continued like this until the latter half of the night when it finally settled down a bit.
In a half-asleep, half-awake state, he seemed to hear someone speaking and faintly smelled a strong scent of vinegar.
Why was there a smell of vinegar?
By the time he woke up, he had forgotten most of the dream, unable to recall what he had heard or smelled. He opened his eyes to look at the ceiling, and after a few breaths, he suddenly felt uncomfortable between his clothes.
Realizing what the nature of last night's dream was, Yu Sheng's face flushed bright red and became hot. He clutched the blanket tightly, not daring to get out of bed.
Although he really liked his healthy and long-lasting constitution... but this was a bit too healthy, wasn’t it?! He felt so energetic that it was outrageous!
After secretly casting a small spell under the covers to clean himself and the bedding to the point where no abnormalities could be detected, Yu Sheng finally stiffly got up.
The other two main characters were already awake. In the room was only Wen Jiu, who kindly brought over a cup of warm tea to soothe the stomach.
"Senior, is there anything you would like to eat for breakfast?"
Such a question reminded Yu Sheng of the time Wen Jiu had stayed here.
"I... anything is fine," Yu Sheng replied. He was afraid that mentioning his preferences would expose him. After releasing his spiritual awareness to sense for a moment, he asked, "Where is Zhan Xiaotian?"
As soon as he finished his question, a booming sound like a dragon's roar suddenly echoed from outside, shaking the heavens and earth.
Ah, the thunder had started again. After two or three consecutive rumbles, Yu Sheng realized this was the thunder he would hear when it was not yet his day of remembrance but it seemed to be coming a bit early this year... Wait, this thunder sounded like...
Wen Jiu brought him warm water for washing up and a hot towel, his expression natural. "He got up early and went out. He’s probably in a duel with the Ghost King."
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