Chapter 282 The Twenty-Seventh Day of Entering a Xuanhuan Novel

Chapter 282: Day 27 in the Cultivation Fantasy Novel

An Yi looked at the undisguised obsession in his eyes, listening to this bizarre, logic-defying confession, and for a moment didn't know how to respond.

He stared at Xie Xuandu for a few seconds, then let out a low, unreadable snicker from his nose.

He said no more, tugging at the leg Xie Xuandu was holding, and his tone returned to its usual calm: "Get up."

Xie Xuandu, however, seemed to have found new amusement. Instead of letting go, he went further, burying his whole face into the softness of An Yi's thigh. Through the thin sleeping robe, he could feel the firm, warm skin beneath.

He refused in a muffled, whiny voice, his tone dripping with petulance: "No."

An Yi's patience snapped.

Without another word, he focused his will, and a surge of power radiated from him.

Xie Xuandu felt a soft yet overwhelming force rush toward him. The arm wrapped around An Yi's calf was wrenched away, and he was forced to let go involuntarily.

He stumbled back half a step, barely catching himself before he could fall.

Xie Xuandu stood up, making no further attempt to approach. He simply remained where he was, his gaze fixed on An Yi as if he wanted to devour him with his eyes, consume him whole, body and soul.

An Yi really was stronger than him.

He raised a hand and lightly touched his own cheek, which still stung and burned. The sharp sting made his eyes darken further.

His tongue unconsciously traced his slightly dry lips, as if relishing the memory of that slap.

"An Yi..." He called out again, his voice lower and rougher now: "Are you angry?"

An Yi didn't reply right away.

He stood up, reached out, and closed the open window with a creak, shutting out the cold moonlight and the cool night breeze.

The room was lit only by the dim oil lamp on the table, casting a warm, hazy glow.

Then he turned around to face Xie Xuandu.

The lamp was behind him, outlining his figure with a soft halo of light, while his face stayed hidden in shadow, impossible to read.

"I'm angry." An Yi's voice rang out in the quiet room.

He paused, looking at Xie Xuandu before continuing: "And you need to cool off."

He raised his chin slightly: "Go back to your own room to calm down."

Finally, he added: "I'm going to bed."

Xie Xuandu watched him quickly return to that calm composure, as if nothing had happened at all. The twisted excitement he'd felt from An Yi's outright anger subsided somewhat, replaced by a deeper, more aching hunger.

He craved to tear through that calm, to see more ripples in those still, unreadable eyes—ripples caused by him. Whether joy or anger, love or hate, as long as it was because of him, he'd drink it all in.

But he also knew that tonight, he'd already pushed too far, touched An Yi's bottom line, and seen a side of An Yi he rarely showed.

Going too far was as bad as not going far enough.

He could vaguely sense that An Yi's boundaries were already slowly loosening for him.

So Xie Xuandu reached up and began to straighten his sleeves and collar, which were slightly disheveled from the earlier struggle. He smoothed every wrinkle, fixed every stray thread, until he was once again the immaculate, flawless, elegant Daoist master.

"Alright." He complied obediently, his voice returning to its usual calm, refined tone, as if the person who had been lying on the ground, speaking shocking words, and getting turned on after being slapped was not him at all.

He nodded slightly: "I'll go back... and calm down."

His eyes lingered on An Yi's face for a moment, then he turned and walked toward the door.

Just as his hand touched the cold door, he paused briefly but didn't turn back. Instead, he tilted his head slightly, his voice floating over like a whisper on the night wind: "An Yi, see you tomorrow."

An Yi stood still for a moment, then let out a simple, low hum: "Mm."

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A little over a month passed.

An Yi and Xie Xuandu continued their leisurely, meandering journey northward, entering cities when they came upon them, admiring mountains when they passed them—like two clouds drifting without purpose.

One day, the two were walking by a beautiful lake, the water shimmering and the mountains veiled in mist.

An Yi suddenly stopped mid-step—not because of the scenery, but because of the comment section:

"I'm going to throw up! (vomit emoji)"

"Same here! I was enjoying it before, even put up with the author's weird gay subplot, but why this kind of plot again! (eye-roll emoji)"

"Those toxic relatives are still after me!"

"What? Are cultivation novels being taken over by toxic relatives too? Seeing the male lead they once looked down on now successful, they're trying to guilt-trip him with filial piety?"

"They even want the male lead's cultivation method, and want to ride on his coattails to get into the Demon Suppression Bureau?! Seriously, this is making me laugh out of pure anger. How shameless! (here's a slap for you, jpg)"

"@Author, just write the male lead's growth and his career properly. If you write this kind of plot again, I'll get someone to come after you!"

"It's not that bad, at least the male lead handled it decisively and shut it down fast."

"Good thing this arc is over in under three chapters, or I'd seriously drop this book!!"

"..."

An Yi recalled the original novel. Gan Feng's toxic relatives had appeared, so what came next was...

Sure enough, the comment section immediately started discussing:

"The All-Cultivator Prayer Assembly?"

"Tsk tsk, is the plot about to hit a climax?"

"The Emperor is inviting all the capable people of the world to the capital to pray for the nation. But mainly, with all these demons and monsters and cultivators in this world, can he really control them?"

"I can guess what happens next—something goes wrong, and the male lead steals the show!"

"Whatever it is, as long as it's not more of those toxic relatives, I'm looking forward to it!"

"..."

An Yi's gaze shifted slightly. So the plot had already progressed to the capital stage.

He quickly recalled the original content. Gan Feng running into his toxic relatives in the capital, and the Emperor's plan to hold a grand gathering of cultivators from across the world called the "All-Cultivator Prayer Assembly"—these plot points all checked out.

What interested him more was a creature from the original novel that nearly derailed the assembly—the "Three-faced Wraith."

A rule-type ability... that was rare.

A pure collector's urge stirred in An Yi's heart. He wanted to seal it into the Juxing Tulu.

He carefully recalled more information about this creature. According to the original novel, it appeared in the capital two days after the Emperor first floated the idea of the assembly, causing panic.

Doing the math, it should be within the next two days.