Chapter 10: Pei Zhi’s Murderous Intent

Chapter 10: Pei Zhi Develops Murderous Intent

"I didn't fall into the cold pool, I'm in tip-top shape. Why do I need to soak too?" Xue Youtan asked, puzzled. Staring at the various herbs floating in the bath, he added, "Every medicine has its side effects. Are you trying to poison me so you can take over my North Courtyard inheritance?"

Yueli couldn't be bothered with him. It was Ling Feng, busy pouring water into the barrel, who spoke up to explain, "To dispel the cold poison, besides soaking in a hot medicinal bath, you also need a highly skilled senior to protect the process. And right now, Uncle-Master, you're the most suitable candidate."

"Me?" Xue Youtan pointed at Yueli. "Your master's cultivation is deeper than mine. Why doesn't he do it himself?"

"Well..." Ling Feng was stumped, momentarily at a loss for words. "I mean, is it possible that it's because the one with beast ears is your disciple, Uncle-Master?"

"What beast ears this, beast ears that. He has a name—it's Pei Zhi." Even Xue Youtan didn't realize how defensive he sounded.

"Right, Junior Brother Pei." Ling Feng corrected himself accordingly and was about to say more when Yueli cut in, "Why are you wasting your breath on him?"

He glanced at Xue Youtan, his face expressionless, but he picked up his fan and shook it again. "If you want to treat him, treat him. If not, get lost."

Tsk tsk tsk. That cocky, bad-boy energy—this guy had it down to a T.

Xue Youtan wasn't one to take such treatment lying down. He slammed his hand on the table and shot up. Ling Feng thought he was about to lose his temper, but the next second, Xue Youtan was grinning as he ducked behind Yueli, pounding his back and massaging his shoulders. "I'll treat him, of course I'll treat him. Master Yue, how do you need me to cooperate? What position do you want? From the front or from behind?"

Such perfectly innocent words, yet coming from Xue Youtan's mouth, they sounded anything but. No wonder they say the shameless are unstoppable.

Yueli snapped his fan shut and patiently explained the next steps. "During the detoxification, I will open his Yúnmén and Xiábái acupoints from behind. These two points connect to the lungs and vital organs. Once opened, the cold poison will pour out. Your task is to shield the process with your qi when the cold poison exits his body, making sure it doesn't flow back in."

Sounded simple enough, but...

"I can do that with my clothes on. Why bother with the extra step of taking them off?"

Xue Youtan's confusion went unanswered, because after saying this, Yueli got up and went to heat up the gold needles.

Left with no choice, Xue Youtan stripped off his outer robe and got into the water. The moment he sat down, he shot right back up.

Holy crap. This wasn't a bath—this was scalding a pig! The temperature had to be at least 50-plus degrees. Sure, Pei Zhi was as cold as an ice cube and needed a hot soak, but Xue Youtan was hale and hearty. Why did he have to suffer through this too?

Xue Youtan winced and bared his teeth, trying to climb out, but Yueli pressed him back down with one hand. "We're starting. Stop messing around."

Who exactly is messing around here? He had every reason to suspect Yueli was getting back at him under the guise of duty.

The water temperature showed no sign of cooling despite the herbs soaking in it—if anything, it was getting hotter. Skin exposed to water over 50 degrees for twenty minutes would get scalded, and the current temperature was definitely above that.

Xue Youtan's skin was turning red from the heat, sweat trickling down his cheeks and soaking through his half-off underclothes. The rising steam made everything look blurry.

At this temperature, he couldn't help but edge closer to Pei Zhi's icy-cold body.

Outside the wooden barrel, Yueli had already begun inserting needles and chanting spells. If Xue Youtan didn't know that Yueli actually had skill in healing, watching his movements would make him think the man was acting like some kind of witch doctor.

"Red child in the palace, nine truths in the chamber. Grand Unity's light, to vanquish all evil. Heaven's course has passed—out!" Yueli chanted a string of incantations Xue Youtan had never heard before. In an instant, the golden needles stuck in Pei Zhi's body all sprang out, and a wave of cold air came rushing at him, causing the temperature of the steaming wooden barrel to plummet.

Pei Zhi frowned in pain, then suddenly snapped his eyes open and grabbed Xue Youtan by the throat.

!!!

Wait—Yueli never mentioned anything about getting choked during this.

Liguang sensed its master was in danger and automatically shot out from his divine sense, slashing toward Pei Zhi.

At the same time, Yueli spoke: "Now! Cast the spell!"

Xue Youtan had no choice but to use his spiritual energy to block the escaping cold poison from re-entering Pei Zhi's body while simultaneously diverting focus to stabilize Liguang as it struck toward Pei Zhi.

His life-bound sword, sensing danger, automatically protected its master with pigheaded stubbornness. As long as Pei Zhi didn't let go, it would keep clashing with Xue Youtan, determined to strike Pei Zhi no matter what.

What was wrong with everyone today? The system was dumb enough as it was, but now even the life-bound sword wasn't cooperating.

As a result, Xue Youtan had no spare energy to break free from the hand Pei Zhi had clamped around his neck.

Xue Youtan was so done with this.

As Pei Zhi's grip tightened, Liguang's attacks grew more aggressive. Xue Youtan could only call Pei Zhi's name, trying to awaken his consciousness.

"Pei Zhi! Let go!"

Pei Zhi, lost in chaos, heard the shout and a flash of lucidity returned to his eyes. But when he saw Xue Youtan clearly, his grip didn't loosen—instead, it tightened further. Xue Youtan's breathing became labored, his face flushed from the steam turning from pink to deep purple.

With his brain briefly starved of oxygen, a gap opened in Xue Youtan's protective barrier. In an instant, the cold poison trapped outside Pei Zhi's body reversed direction and surged toward Xue Youtan. Yueli sensed something wrong and waved his hand to block the attack, but a small amount of the cold poison still slipped into Xue Youtan.

The surrounding spiritual energy began to destabilize, and Liguang went out of control. In the split second before the life-bound sword would have come down and struck Pei Zhi, Xue Youtan grabbed the person in front of him and pulled him close, using his own body to shield him from Liguang's attack.

Liguang dissipated the moment it touched Xue Youtan's skin, vanishing back into his divine sense. But the sharp edge of the sword still sliced Xue Youtan's undergarments in two, leaving a shallow cut across his smooth, fair back.

"Master~" Pei Zhi seemed to finally regain consciousness at that moment. He let out a dramatic cry and withdrew the hand he'd had around Xue Youtan's neck.

He remained curled in Xue Youtan's arms, not getting up, his eyes red-rimmed as if he might burst into tears at any moment.

"Master, I didn't do it on purpose. I had no idea what I was doing."

His words sounded sincere, but Yueli stared at Pei Zhi's tear-streaked face and squinted.

If he'd seen correctly, when Xue Youtan called his name, the boy had already regained consciousness—yet he'd still tightened his grip on Xue Youtan's neck.

Had Pei Zhi truly harbored murderous intent, or was Yueli overthinking it?

Unlike Yueli's paranoid streak, Xue Youtan—as the one caught in the middle—hadn't noticed Pei Zhi's subtle movements in the urgency of the moment. Seeing that the cold poison had been successfully expelled, he pushed Pei Zhi away and tried to stand up from the barrel. But he tripped over something, his body slipped, and he tumbled back in.

Xue Youtan, who couldn't swim, thrashed around trying to get his footing. His hand hooked onto something, and he suddenly grabbed hold of—