Chapter 59

Yue Wuhuan felt as if he had lost his armor and weapons, utterly defeated. He lowered his head in disarray, unable to face that clear gaze.

Ever since Song Qingshi took him in and showered him with affection, his reputation in certain circles was already ruined.

When he first left the valley, before he had earned the name of a madman, his scandalous fame was too great. People treated him as a joke, asking what the Medicine King Immortal Lord liked in bed, what positions he used to please the peculiar old ancestor? Some even dared to think that the Medicine King Immortal Lord could be easily swayed by carnal pleasures, attempting to send beautiful slaves to the Medicine King Valley in exchange for elixirs... He went completely mad, baring his fangs, and only then did people fear him, causing these rumors to gradually subside. At least no one dared to say such things in front of him anymore.

Every time he thought about this pure person, far removed from the dust of the world, being dragged into the filthy secular realm, stained with impurities.

Yue Wuhuan felt extremely distressed.

He had also considered throwing caution to the wind, indulging in his love, and making those rumors true. He was skilled in all sorts of seductive techniques, knew how to bring people to the pinnacle of pleasure in bed, and it would be a simple matter to make the Venerable Lord taste the flavor of desire, becoming unable to leave his body.

But, no...

These methods would blur the line between now and the past, ultimately tainting their relationship with a disgusting hue.

After experiencing those events, he harbored an intense aversion to submission, feeling that receiving pleasure was the greatest disgrace in the world. So, if he couldn't submit, should he make the person he loved submit? If he found something shameful, should he make the person he loved bear it? What difference would that be from repaying kindness with enmity?

Absolutely, no...

He could not accept such baseness; he wished he could kill the self he couldn't control in his dreams. Each time he released his desires, his mind would go blank, and he would see the satisfied faces of those beasts, the suffering of the young men who submitted, and his own shameless self. Then, he would wake up in waves of nausea.

He dared not touch matters of the bedchamber again; he feared the desires of his body...

Was there such an incompetent lover in the world?

And the Venerable Lord practiced the Emotionless Path...

The more Yue Wuhuan thought, the more desperate he became.

Last night, it was the emotions leaking from his flute that stirred the Master’s heart, leading to that sweetest of kisses. He could no longer indulge himself; he did not deserve such pure affection, for he would only push the other into an abyss of pain.

"Wuhan?" Seeing his silence, Song Qingshi asked again, "What are your thoughts?"

I love you, please don’t love me...

Yue Wuhan made up his mind, slowly lifted his head, and smiled. He brushed aside the long hair that had fallen over his ear, and his beautiful phoenix eyes sparkled with allure. Then, he extended his finger, teasingly sliding it across Song Qingshi’s face, speaking in the most nonchalant manner, uttering shameless words: "Thoughts? My body belongs to the Master. Whatever you want me to do, I will do..."

Song Qingshi froze entirely.

Noticing his stiffness, Yue Wuhan lightly traced his lips with his index finger, imbuing it with his breath, then drew it back and touched his own lips, smiling even sweeter: "Could it be that the Master is concerned about last night? The Master is truly adorable; losing control after drinking is quite common, isn’t it?"

The fragmented memories from the night after drinking were somewhat chaotic, some parts lost.

Song Qingshi vaguely remembered that he had been the one to initiate things. He struggled to recall: "I kissed you forcefully, and then..."

Suddenly, a moist and sweet kiss landed on his lips once more.

Song Qingshi looked at Yue Wuhan in disbelief, his voice cut off, his mind blank.

"Was it this kind of forceful kiss?" Yue Wuhan smiled as he pulled away from his lips, licking the corner of his mouth, speaking ambiguously, "If the Master likes it, you can taste it every day. It’s not a big deal, Wuhan enjoys this game, and if you want more, you can have it."

Song Qingshi, never good with words, found himself even more speechless in this situation.

He stood up in a panic, opening and closing his mouth repeatedly, trying to explain, but in the end, only managed to utter a few syllables: "I, I don’t, it’s not..."

Yue Wuhan immediately resumed his ascetic appearance, coldly saying: "It seems I misunderstood."

He had twisted love into desire, misinterpreting the kiss as a game.

Song Qing shi was utterly panicked. He had no experience and couldn't distinguish between the two, but he disliked what Yue Wu Huan had said; he didn't want to become that kind of relationship.

Yue Wu Huan watched him quietly and countered, "Lord, what do you think?"

Song Qing shi understood and lowered his head. "I won't drink again, nor will I do such foolish things to you anymore."

Yue Wu Huan asked again, "Lord, what do you think Wu Huan is to you?"

Song Qing shi whispered, "A master and apprentice, friends..."

Yue Wu Huan knew he had succeeded. He had altered this budding affection, locking it away in the depths where it would never see the light of day.

He apologized softly, "I'm sorry, I overstepped my bounds."

Song Qing shi shook his head. "It's fine, you can be unrestrained."

Yue Wu Huan was taken aback.

Song Qing shi smiled and said, "You can be unrestrained in my heart, do anything you want."

"Don't make such promises lightly," Yue Wu Huan felt a bit flustered under his gaze and avoided the probing look into his soul. "I am not who you imagine me to be."

Song Qing shi asked, "What is the real you like?"

Yue Wu Huan closed his mouth.

Chaos, madness, evil, obsession, filth...

Unscrupulous, greedy and terrifying, even if it's an unattainable affection, he would still monopolize it...

Yue Wuhuan felt that his mind was becoming increasingly cluttered and chaotic, his thoughts growing more and more uncontrollable and bizarre.

While he still retained some semblance of reason, he hastily got up, made a hasty excuse, and fled in disarray.

Song Qing Shi sat alone in the room for a long time before he softly said, "No matter what you look like, I will always love you."

...

After all these messy events, neither of them had much interest in sightseeing anymore.

The best course of action for Yue Wuhuan's Gu insect poison was to return to Medicine King Valley for careful treatment, so he was forced to rest in bed. He ate the lovingly prepared noodles made by Song Qing Shi, then watched as Song Qing Shi busily packed their luggage, purchased medicinal herbs, and booked a magic boat from Divine Beast Gate, preparing to return to Medicine King Valley.

The noodles made by the Venerable Lord seemed to have a consistent taste, always exactly the same...

Yue Wuhuan sipped the noodle broth while looking at the ledger, feeling that the price of Wu Shou flowers could be negotiated down by another twenty percent.

Song Qing Shi looked smug, boasting about his excellent caretaking skills and strong ability to live independently, insisting he wasn't a useless person who couldn't do anything without an all-purpose secretary.

Yue Wuhuan immediately swallowed his words and smiled, "Venerable Lord has done very well."

Song Qing Shi displayed his trophies, "I also bought small gifts for everyone."

The merchants in Nanhai City were very good at selling. Recognizing him as a cultivator, they told him that when traveling, it was necessary to bring back gifts for the sect, as sharing joy with others was better than enjoying it alone.

Song Qing Shi found this quite reasonable...

He rarely went out before, and he had no disciples. The villages near Medicine King Valley voluntarily submitted themselves to gain his protection, sending their chosen servants and managers. No one dared to provoke the Venerable Lord of Medicine King Valley; they would do whatever he asked. He paid the servants and even rewarded them with elixirs, cultivating several Foundation Establishment cultivators, which he considered a stroke of luck.

Song Qing Shi felt quite content. Medicine King Valley was always kept spotlessly clean, and although the servants were afraid of him, they were honest and obedient.

Only after Yue Wuhuan took charge did he realize how chaotic the management of the herbal attendants was. The stewards embezzled wages, engaged in fights, abused private punishments, and even secretly sold medicinal herbs... Moreover, by presenting ledgers and reasoning with him, Yue Wuhuan tactfully showed Song Qingshi the poverty of the Medicine King Valley. Finally, Song Qingshi understood that no Nascent Soul Ancestor had lived as long as he had yet accumulated so little wealth.

Song Qingshi was profoundly affected...

After waking up, he found himself completely looked after by Yue Wuhuan, with no worries left to trouble him.

He secretly reflected on himself and vowed to change his ways...

Yue Wuhuan had trained many junior disciples for the Medicine King Valley. As the Valley Lord, shouldn’t he bring back some gifts for everyone when traveling?

Unsure if his thinking was correct, Song Qingshi quietly consulted Yue Wuhuan. Receiving affirmation, he happily accepted the merchants' promotions and bought a large quantity of floral pastries, porcelain dolls, and wooden puppets. He even invited the merchants to the inn and had Yue Wuhuan pick out some beautiful fabrics and ordinary gemstones—some to keep for himself and some to distribute upon their return.

He also spent some time in the bakery’s kitchen, learning the recipes of several pastries, planning to make them for Yue Wuhuan later.

Seeing him happily busy and free from troubling thoughts, Yue Wuhuan felt slightly relieved.

Song Qingshi excitedly ran over, holding a multicolored courtesan kite, and handed it to him: "Isn’t this pretty? You keep it."

Finally understanding his thought process, Yue Wuhuan said, "The Luo Ying blossoms on Xinyi Mountain are about to bloom. Would the Master accompany me to fly this kite?"

Delighted, Song Qingshi asked, "Wuhuan also likes flying kites?" He had seen others do it before and thought it looked fun.

"I do," Yue Wuhuan replied with a smile, taking the kite and examining its rough patterns. "This one isn’t refined enough. Let’s give it to Qing Luan and the others. I’ll make you a better one, with a whistle that sounds like birds when it flies. It’s been a long time since I’ve made such things, so I might be a bit rusty..."

Song Qingshi nodded earnestly, "Don’t worry. If it fails, I’ll just summon winds to lift it into the sky! We’ll take it straight to the ninth heaven."

Yue Wuhuan imagined the scene of the kite—and the Master—being carried into the sky and couldn’t help laughing.

Though unsure why he was laughing, Song Qingshi thought happiness was always good, so he laughed along.

After a long day of preparations, they finally finished all their tasks. With their luggage in tow, they boarded the spiritual vessel and flew home.

...

Back in the Medicine King Valley, Qing Luan received news of their return and made clean, welcome preparations.

Disliking formalities, Song Qingshi first dragged Yue Wuhuan to his alchemy chamber to tend to his injuries again, ensuring the toxins were suppressed and most of the pain had subsided before relaxing. Then, he went to the vault and took out all the pills meant to stabilize his Nascent Soul, consuming them all.

His Nascent Soul was riddled with cracks, artificially stabilized by the Cold Jade Technique to slow its collapse.

After acknowledging his failure as a healer, he could finally face his Dao Heart squarely.

There truly were no shortcuts in life. The Emotionless Path might allow greater focus on cultivation, but it also carried greater risks. He didn’t care how other Emotionless Path cultivators handled such situations—for him, this was just solving the problem incorrectly.

His emotions had once been a barren wasteland, until that radiant phoenix painted colors within it.

The collapse of his Dao Heart signified the stirrings of love.

He had learned the taste of affection, and it was wonderful.

Gently touching his lips, Song Qingshi felt pleased. Since leaving the mountains to embark on the path of cultivation, he had never had a clear goal. Cultivation had always come easily to him, with almost no bottlenecks, so he never truly understood the struggles of ordinary cultivators fighting against fate, through grueling effort.

Most of his time had been spent reading and researching, drifting through year after year, day after day. Occasionally, he would meet travelers, but none left deep marks in his heart...

By the time he came to his senses, there was nothing beside him but the passing clouds above.

Such a life held no meaning.

He had seriously pondered the reason and concluded it was his own fault. His heart was different from others—like carved jade, barely capable of feeling joy or sorrow. He had envied others’ love but could never feel it himself. Whether it was men or women, beautiful or homely, tall or short, kind or wicked... he felt nothing.

Yue Wuhuan, like the most brilliant colors, had torn open his heart and settled inside, making him realize he could feel after all...

He was willing to give everything for this feeling.

He didn’t fully understand Yue Wuhuan’s feelings toward him, but it didn’t matter. The mere ability to love someone was the greatest happiness, a gift to him. Even if it meant giving everything with no return, his life would no longer be dull and meaningless.

Happily prodding his Nascent Soul, Song Qingshi whispered, "Don’t worry, we’ll meet again."

The pain in his Dao Heart was a joyful sensation, a new beginning.

He would correct his mistakes and walk the right path.

Physicians needed steady hands—no need to panic.

Rebuilding a shattered Dao was still less terrifying than all his test subjects dying, especially when he couldn’t figure out why they perished.

This was just like reviewing mastered material and sitting for the exam again.

Song Qingshi took out pen and paper, organizing his notes...

Foundation Establishment expanded the dantian, laying the groundwork. Then came the Golden Core, which later transformed into the Nascent Soul.

Destroying the Dao meant shattering the Nascent Soul, dissolving the Golden Core, and falling back to Foundation Establishment.

This exam wasn’t difficult at all. He now had cultivation resources a hundred times better than before, and as the foremost alchemist in the immortal realm, he could refine his own breakthrough pills, craft spirit-convergence arrays, and set up warding toxin arrays—all familiar tasks that wouldn’t waste time. After destroying his Dao, he could suppress word, go into seclusion, control the Mystic Fire and Nether Fire within him, set aside research, and focus solely on cultivation. Spending twenty or thirty years to rebuild his Golden Core would ensure basic self-defense, then another two or three centuries to reach Nascent Soul again, this time with a more suitable Dao Heart, slowly working back to perfection.

No rush...

There were still matters he needed to settle first.

For now, he would use the Cold Jade Technique to slow the collapse of his Nascent Soul, supplementing it with pills and treatments to delay the inevitable. He needed to refine the "Bishui Powder" quickly, followed by medicinal baths and acupuncture... With luck, he could gain two or three years.

Yue Wuhuan had long taken over all external affairs of the Medicine King Valley. Alchemy and pill refining didn’t require much spiritual power, and as long as the Mystic Fire and Nether Fire remained, he could stay secluded for decades without raising suspicion. He could also search for techniques like the *Devouring Sea Art* or *Spirit-Siphoning Demon Technique* to transfer his waning spiritual energy to Yue Wuhuan—no point wasting it. Ideally, this could help Yue Wuhuan reach Golden Core, further bolstering the valley’s defenses.

After confirming his plans, Song Qingshi poked his Nascent Soul again, urging, "Endure a while longer."

What troubled him most was how to explain this to Yue Wuhuan...

The destruction of an Emotionless Path Dao Heart was awkward no matter how he phrased it. If questioned about how it happened, it would be even more embarrassing—easily misinterpreted as shifting blame. Yue Wuhuan obeyed him absolutely and might feel forced to accept feelings he didn’t want, which was the last thing Song Qingshi desired. How was that any different from those scum who threatened women with, "If you don’t love me, I’ll die"?

Yue Wuhuan carried profound trauma and resisted emotional bonds. Forcing him past his boundaries could trigger severe reactions.

Song Qingshi fully understood his rejection and the reasons behind it. He couldn’t just keep pestering him, could he? If Yue Wuhuan learned the truth and felt guilty, exacerbating his condition, what then? Perhaps he could use another excuse—like losing a fight, qi deviation, or Dao Heart destruction...

But he was a terrible liar, and Yue Wuhuan was too perceptive to deceive.

Yet this wasn’t something he could hide forever...

Sitting on the floor of the vault, Song Qingshi pondered the dilemma for hours on end.