Chapter 138: Spring Comes Upon A Withered Tree (V)

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Chapter 138: Spring Comes Upon A Withered Tree (V)

That night, Shang Ke soaked his legs in the lake, comfortably absorbing the water elements.

Soft footsteps sounded behind him, followed by Ivan’s voice. “Why did you go to Warsong Camp?”

Shang Ke lazily stirred the water with his legs. “I wanted to gather some information.”

“The Wraith Jade?” Ivan sat down beside him.

Shang Ke nodded.

Ivan said, “The Forge Wraiths have issued bounties on every mixed-blood elf. So don’t go out anymore. If there’s any news, I’ll let you know.”

Shang Ke had heard about the bounties, but he had not expected the Forge Wraiths to go so far as to hunt every mixed-blood elf to extinction. If that was truly the case, then it really was unwise for him to show himself in public. After all, his current priority was protecting those twelve young elves. They might very well become the primary force against the Forge Wraiths in the future.

“All right. I’ll try not to go out from now on,” Shang Ke readily agreed.

Seeing him being so obedient, Ivan could not resist the urge to pat his head. But his hand stopped halfway and slowly dropped again. Thinking of his own ugly face, a trace of self-loathing flashed through Ivan’s eyes. The elf beside him was simply too beautiful; he could not bear to defile him.

Shang Ke keenly sensed that strikingly melancholy, miserable aura emerging from the man again. He clearly wanted to come closer, yet was desperately suppressing himself.

“Ivan.” Shang Ke braced his hands on either side of himself and turned toward him. “I’ll be waiting at home for your news, so don’t break your promise.”

Ivan’s heart skipped a beat, and he turned toward the elf beside him. In the darkness, a pair of emerald-green eyes shimmered with a faint glow, filled with boundless trust and tenderness. Ivan had often heard people say that elves were the purest creatures in the world. He had never thought much of it before, but now he understood the sentiment deeply.

Without warning, a fierce desire surged through him. He wanted this elf. He wanted to possess him and make him his alone.

Ivan clenched his fists hard, his heart pounding violently. Beneath his lowered head, two blazing flames burned in his half-lidded eyes.

Just then, the melodious sound of strings drifted beside him, soothing Ivan’s restless heart like a gentle breeze.

Shang Ke held a wooden zither in his arms, his slender fingers rhythmically plucking the strings. Beautiful music flowed through the night, each note carrying elemental power. Like stars falling from the sky, they shimmered with beautiful light across the tranquil surface of the lake.

Ivan’s heart gradually calmed, his entire being becoming immersed in the elf’s music. At that moment, however, a burning pain suddenly erupted in his left eye.

“Ugh.” He raised a hand to cover his eye. The bandages over the left side of his face began twisting strangely, as though dozens of worms were writhing beneath them.

“What’s wrong?” Shang Ke stopped playing and looked at him with concern.

“Nothing.” Ivan turned his head away, avoiding his gaze.

“Let me see.” Shang Ke pulled his legs from the water and knelt in front of Ivan, reaching to move the hand covering the left side of his face.

“It’s nothing.” Ivan blocked his hand.

“If you won’t let me look,” Shang Ke threatened calmly, “then I won’t let you look anymore either.”

Ivan froze and turned toward him. “Won’t let me look at what?”

“My face, my eyes, my body, my room, or my bed!” Shang Ke knelt there with both hands neatly resting on his knees, looking as though he were presenting himself for Ivan’s inspection.

Ivan stared at him intensely for a long time, almost as though he wanted to see straight through him. After a moment, he slowly lowered his hand.

Just when Shang Ke thought his bait had worked, Ivan stiffly said, “Sorry. I don’t want you to see what I look like.”

Ivan’s heart was bleeding. Heaven knew how badly he wanted to agree!

“What’s wrong with the way you look?” Shang Ke asked in confusion.

“It’s ugly.”

“It’s not that bad. It may not fit conventional standards of beauty, but it’s certainly distinctive,” Shang Ke assessed objectively.

“You don’t have to comfort me…” Ivan abruptly stopped and asked in shock, “You’ve seen my face?”

“Yeah.” Shang Ke answered casually, “When I treated you last time, I removed your mask so I could examine what was wrong with your face.”

“You… weren’t afraid at all?” Even Ivan himself found his face horrifying!

“What is there to be afraid of?” Shang Ke had never imagined that this man would one day feel insecure about his appearance. “I’m not afraid, and neither are my little elves.”

“They saw it too?” Was it really appropriate to let children casually look at something that terrifying?

Shang Ke nodded.

Ivan immediately pictured himself lying unconscious while one large elf and two little ones calmly gathered around to inspect him. Somehow, he felt even worse.

“So you don’t need to worry about it.” Shang Ke held out his hand again.

This time, Ivan did not refuse and allowed Shang Ke to remove the bandages from his face.

His eyes remained fixed on the beautiful face only inches away, while Shang Ke’s faint, clean fragrance lingered around him. As each layer of bandage was unwound, Ivan felt as though his heart were being opened little by little as well. The dark, frozen world he had once inhabited was gradually filled entirely by one warm, radiant figure.

The cool night breeze brushed across his face. Before he realized it, the bandages concealing his ugliness had been completely removed, leaving his true appearance fully exposed beneath the elf’s gaze.

“How did this happen?” Shang Ke’s fingers gently traced the uneven skin on the left side of Ivan’s face.

“I don’t know,” Ivan replied. “It’s been there for as long as I can remember.”

Shang Ke carefully examined the area for a while. The markings did not feel like scars caused by an external injury; they seemed naturally formed. At first, Shang Ke had thought they might be birthmarks, but birthmarks certainly did not wriggle.

Ivan’s attention was drawn to the lips moving directly in front of him. They were only a few centimeters away. All he had to do was lower his head slightly and he could touch them.

Shang Ke was concentrating on examining the markings when something suddenly brushed lightly against his lips. The contact was so quick that it could almost have been mistaken for an illusion.

Shang Ke’s gaze swept across the man’s face. Ivan looked utterly calm, his eyes positively righteous, as though he had not been the one who had just stolen a kiss.

“I have a suggestion,” Shang Ke said.

“What suggestion?”

“Let’s cut these markings open and see what’s inside.”

Ivan’s face stiffened. He pursed his lips. “Is that really necessary?”

“I think it’s very necessary.” There was not the slightest hint of a joke in Shang Ke’s voice.

Ivan’s face twitched several times, and the snake-shaped markings writhed along with it, making them look even more sinister and terrifying.

In the end, Shang Ke still failed to get permission to take a knife to Ivan’s face, even though he felt the markings were highly worthy of investigation. Since his music had caused them to react, they likely possessed some force that repelled nature elements. Something like that appearing on Ivan’s body was definitely not a good sign.

In fact, Ivan had tried all kinds of methods to remove the markings from his face and had even asked a priest to heal them. The power within the snake-shaped markings had immediately lashed back at the priest, nearly killing him. That was why Ivan refused to let Shang Ke attempt anything, no matter what.

Ivan believed the markings might be some ominous curse. Because of them, he had been forced to leave his family and relatives behind and wander the world alone. He had thought he was destined to drift through life forever, but then he had been fortunate enough to meet this elf. Shang Ke had picked him up when he was at his lowest and allowed him to experience the feeling of home again.

Ivan gazed tenderly at Shang Ke, who was currently tending to the plants in the orchard. The sensation of that stolen kiss still seemed to linger on his lips, enough for him to savor the memory for a long time.

“These are for you.” Ivan handed Shang Ke several gold coins.

“What are you giving me these for?” Shang Ke looked at the glittering gold coins in his palm in confusion.

“Payment for the fruit.”

“This much?”

Ivan hoisted a basket of fruit onto his back. “If there’s anything you want to sell in the future, let me handle it. I guarantee you won’t be cheated.” Ivan simply could not tolerate watching this elf sell precious essence-rich fruit as though it were ordinary produce.

“Mm, all right.” Shang Ke put the gold coins away and gave Ivan an innocent, deceptively easy-to-bully smile.

Ivan once again swore that he absolutely had to protect this innocent elf who knew nothing of the ways of the world!

After saying goodbye to Shang Ke, Ivan left the forest with the basket of fruit on his back. The horse he had ridden there previously had spent several days living beside the elves and now refused to leave at all. Ivan therefore had no choice but to depart on foot, leaving the horse happily behind to enjoy its newfound freedom.

Ivan did not stay away for long this time. Five days later, he returned with plenty of gifts for the four elves and had even established a discreet sales channel for Shang Ke. From now on, anything Shang Ke produced could be sold through that channel without worrying about attracting unwanted attention.

Ivan had intended to surprise Shang Ke, but after being gone only five days, he returned to find two more little elves beside him instead, leaving Ivan the one who was surprised.

Of these two new little elves, one was unable to speak while the other had lost his hearing. Ivan had noticed the children’s various abnormalities before but had never given them much thought. Now it seemed there might be more to the matter.

Ivan began wondering whether Shang Ke specifically adopted disabled elves. Otherwise, why did a new little elf appear beside him every so often, each one with some kind of disability? Mixed-blood elves might not possess the extraordinary gifts of pure-blooded elves, but their physical constitutions were generally excellent, and disabilities among them were extremely rare.

Shang Ke treated every one of the little elves exceptionally well, regardless of their disabilities.

Ivan did not mind either. He did everything he could to care for and protect them. Whenever he returned to Shang Ke’s side, he removed the mask from his face and openly revealed his true appearance, peacefully enjoying their quiet life together.

Several times, however, Ivan nearly failed to control the urge to pull Shang Ke into his arms. His increasingly intense desire left him in an agonizing kind of happiness, reason and emotion clashing violently inside him every day.

Yet he never dared cross the line, afraid of destroying everything they had now.

Late at night, Ivan listened to Shang Ke’s steady breathing from the tree above, and his body began growing restless once again. He ran several steps and threw himself into the lake, hoping to cool down. But the frigid water could not extinguish the fire burning inside him, and erotic images continued flashing through his mind.

He had never realized his self-control could be this fragile.

In his dreams, the elf writhed beneath him in pleasure. The feel of his skin, his restrained gasps—it was enough to consume Ivan’s very soul… Through the haze of the dream, a familiar figure came to his side. Without hesitation, Ivan pulled him into his arms, captured his lips, and sucked at them with almost frantic hunger…

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