Chapter 72

Song Qingshi dressed himself, resuming his usual detached and ascetic demeanor. He turned to see Yue Wuhuan still lost in thought on the bed. Picking up some clothes from the floor, he offered them, asking expectantly, "Care for a bath together?"

Bathing alone was rather dull. He’d long wanted to invite Yue Wuhuan, but the latter was fiercely private about his body, making Song Qingshi hesitant. Now, as lovers who had already shared intimacy, he felt confident he wouldn’t be refused, so he boldly extended the invitation.

Yue Wuhuan stared blankly for a long moment before finally donning his clothes and following.

Song Qingshi adored bathing. The private bath he’d built for himself was vast, resembling a small swimming pool.

Yue Wuhuan also enjoyed bathing and, with permission, often used the pool, though always at different times. Last night’s passion had been so intense that he still felt adrift, like a marionette, allowing Song Qingshi to lead him into the bathroom, undress him, and guide him into the water. Only when splashed in the face did he fully awaken.

Song Qingshi had plunged into the pool, diving like a fish, blowing bubbles, then resurfaced. Seeing Yue Wuhuan still dazed, he playfully splashed him awake, then leaned close, a bright smile on his face. "What are you thinking about?"

Yue Wuhuan hesitated before asking, "You seem… happy?"

"Yes," Song Qingshi replied cheerfully. "I’m very happy. Wuhuan is my boyfriend now."

Yue Wuhuan tensed slightly. "You think… I’m your boyfriend?"

Did "boyfriend" simply mean a male companion? He suddenly recalled a certain insect who dared call itself his "friend," and a wave of discomfort washed over him.

"Isn’t that right?" Song Qingshi noticed his darkening expression and panicked. He wasn’t adept at social interactions and often misjudged situations. Had he messed up again? He racked his brain, trying to salvage the situation. "After what we did, doesn’t that imply we’re a couple? Unless… there’s some other kind of arrangement…" As he spoke, his expression stiffened as he remembered a term his senior brothers had joked about in his past life—"bedmates."

An Long had also mentioned that in the cultivation world, some cultivators engaged in carnal arrangements without emotional attachment.

Was Yue Wuhuan dissatisfied with his performance in bed and planning to discard him afterward?

The more Song Qingshi thought about it, the more his confidence crumbled. Stumbling over his words, he said, "I’ll improve. Just give me another chance." He resolved to ask Immortal Lord Ye Lin to send him hundreds of romance novels for study—he would master this if it killed him.

Finally understanding, Yue Wuhuan felt as if he were dreaming. "Qing… Master, you want me as your lover?"

Song Qingshi nodded vigorously. "Yes! A true lover! I don’t want a fling or a casual affair!"

"Master, do you know what ‘serious’ entails?" Yue Wuhuan thought of Song Qingshi’s Emotionless Path and felt a pang of unease. Slowly, he rose from the water, his soaked hair dripping onto the pool’s edge, his slender waist resembling the most alluring sea nymph. He bared every inch of his skin to Song Qingshi, his voice hoarse as he asked, "Beautiful, isn’t it? Everyone at Golden Phoenix Manor has seen it. Those illustrations circulated throughout the realm. Over the years, wandering alone, I’ve met countless vile people who tried to strip me with their eyes, imagining what lay beneath, hungering for my degradation. If you become my lover, you’ll have to endure their filthy gazes and whispers… Like a noble young master and his courtesan—play if you must, but to take it seriously? Everyone would think you’ve lost your mind. After all, my reputation is worse than a courtesan’s."

His lips curved in a smile while his frame quivered faintly—whether from fear or excitement, he couldn’t tell.

Realizing what was happening, Song Qingshi quickly pulled him into an embrace. "I don’t care about others. This isn’t your fault."

"Right or wrong doesn’t matter," Yue Wuhuan murmured against Song Qingshi’s shoulder, then took his hand and pressed it against his own chest, dispelling all protective spiritual energy. "No sweethearts, no tender feelings. I don’t want such feelings. If Master desires my body, let me be your diversion. Let me serve you. Please…"

The Emotionless Path required absolute detachment—play, but never love.

Should affection take hold, then after ecstasy, let his heart be torn out.

He wanted to prove the Dao for his Master.

With unbearable yearning…

Song Qingshi felt like he’d stumbled into a question of mortal consequence. His mind raced, trying to recall how those senior brothers had reassured their girlfriends. Grand vows? Abject supplication? The more he panicked, the blanker his mind became. Seeing Yue Wuhuan’s distress escalate, he simply threw himself forward, clutching at his knees. "Let’s get married! No—let’s enter a Dao Union!"

No greater testament to a man’s devotion exists than marriage!

In the cultivation world, entering a Dao Union would leave a sacred sigil on both partners. He’d place Yue Wuhuan’s mark on the back of his hand—or even his forehead if necessary! All would bear witness to his fealty!

Yue Wuhuan froze, realizing things had taken an unexpected turn.

At a loss for further consolation, Song Qingshi muttered plaintively. "Wuhuan…"

After a pause, Yue Wuhuan affected a hollow chuckle. "Master, have you truly fallen for me?"

Relieved that he understood, Song Qingshi nodded eagerly. "Yes! I like you!"

Yue Wuhuan’s expression instantly darkened. He dragged Song Qingshi roughly against him, pressing a hand against his dantian and channeling Divine Sense. "Remove the Netherfire from your nascent soul! Let me see clearly!"

A cultivator’s dantian was a sanctum inviolate—no one was allowed to touch it. Once, relying on Song Qingshi’s leniency, he had secretly probed it, already crossing a line. Back then, Song Qingshi’s nascent soul and cultivation had seemed normal, thus Yue Wuhuan had presumed his Dao heart remained unmoved, untouched by true love. But now, judging by Song Qingshi’s words and actions, he realized he’d been wrong.

If Song Qingshi’s Dao heart had stirred, his nascent soul couldn’t be unharmed.

And if the nascent soul was damaged, his cultivation would fade…

Yue Wuhuan knew the torment of watching one’s cultivation ebb away—it felt like having a piece of your life stolen away.

Mounting dread and fury possessed him, his voice growing ever more imperious in his demands.

Song Qingshi knew he’d betrayed himself. With no way to hide it now, he reluctantly withdrew the Netherfire shielding his dantian, revealing a nascent soul webbed with innumerable hairline fractures. "I took painkillers… It’s fine, don’t worry—"

"It’s not too late yet." Yue Wuhuan scrutinized the nascent soul, confirming it hadn’t shattered completely and could still be saved. He exhaled in relief before piercing Song Qingshi with his gaze, digging fingers into his shoulders tightly. "Kill me."

Song Qingshi was struck dumb. This wasn’t how he’d expected things to go.

Yue Wuhuan’s eyes blazed crimson as he repeated, "Kill me. Now."

"Calm down first—" Song Qingshi fumbled for words before recalling a scene from one of Immortal Lord Ye Lin’s romance novels about appeasing an incensed beloved. He climbed out of the water, kissed Yue Wuhuan’s lips, and perched himself upon those thighs. "If… if you’re angry, you can punish me, okay? Like last night… You can do whatever you want with me…"

Yue Wuhuan stared at him, wrought with frustration and desperation, feeling like an alchemy furnace nearing critical pressure. After several deep breaths to steady himself, he dislodged the clueless figure from his person. "You’ve cultivated the Emotionless Path for years. Do you know what happens when your heart stirs?"

"Yes," Song Qingshi answered honestly. "If the Dao heart wavers, you must shatter it and begin afresh."

"And if you don’t want to destroy it?"

Song Qingshi thought for a moment. "You slay the beloved to affirm the Dao?"

How could he, a cultivator of the Emotionless Path, not know such basics? Yet the idea had never crossed his mind. The Dao heart could be rebuilt, but someone he truly loved was rare. In two lifetimes, he’d only found one—how could he ever sacrifice Yue Wuhuan for so paltry a thing as a nascent soul?

A once-in-a-millennium lover versus two centuries of rebuilding a nascent soul.

Was there even a choice here? Wasn’t the math obvious?

Yue Wuhuan was beautiful, brilliant, a paragon—the embodiment of his deepest longing. Why would he trade that for a broken path and loneliness?

Yue Wuhuan pressed urgently, "Do it now! Once the nascent soul shatters, it’ll be too late!"

Song Qingshi shook his head wildly. "No! I want to enter a Dao Union with you!"

Furious, Yue Wuhuan clenched his fists. If only self-sacrifice could sever the bond—but the Emotionless Path demanded the cultivator personally cut ties. If only he were strong enough to force Song Qingshi’s hand, to make him strike the fatal blow!

He tried reasoning. "If you care for me, use Drunken Heart Poison. It’s painless, and the body remains intact." If that failed, he’d find another way—perhaps "accidentally" stepping into Song Qingshi’s Netherfire and refusing treatment.

Song Qingshi was near weeping. "Why must I kill you?!"

They went in circles, neither yielding, until exhaustion forced them to stop.

Seeing Yue Wuhuan still seething, Song Qingshi carefully channeled spiritual energy to soothe him before fetching two Calming Pills from his Mustard Seed Bag. Once Yue Wuhuan had calmed down, he explained everything—the cracks in his nascent soul, his two-century cultivation plan.

Yue Wuhuan murmured, "So you’ve loved me for a long time…"

He didn’t know whether to be happy or devastated.

"You’re overcomplicating things," Song Qingshi said, leaning against him. "I just chose the wrong path and need to rebuild it. The library’s *Records of Lingbo* mentions Lady Lingbo, who abandoned her sword path at the nascent soul stage to cultivate the blade path instead. She succeeded and ascended."

Yue Wuhuan gazed at him deeply: "No cultivator of the Emotionless Path has ever started over."

"When you're on the wrong path, you fix it," Song Qingshi declared, thumping his chest. "I’m willing to be the first."

"My name was given by the court diviner. He said my fate was ill—born cursed, doomed to never find happiness," Yue Wuhuan murmured, his eyes distant. "My father didn’t believe it, nor did the empress, my mother, or even my elder brother the crown prince… They tried to prove the prophecy wrong, treating me with kindness. And then… they all died. In the cultivation world, I encountered nothing but misfortune—until I met Master. Master liked me, treated me well… and then Master’s nascent soul shattered. I was truly terrified…"

Song Qingshi fell silent for a long moment before smiling. "But you did have one stroke of luck."

Yue Wuhuan looked at him in surprise.

Song Qingshi reminded him earnestly: "Bloodvine."

Dark clouds churned in the sky, as if sensing someone’s attempt to reveal heavenly secrets, preparing to mete out punishment.

Sensing the danger, Song Qingshi knew he couldn’t speak further. He quickly changed the subject: "The research on the Black Death Butterfly is nearly complete. Though I’ve failed many times, I never gave up. Now, I’ve finally confirmed the fusion method for the flowerworm fungus. In a few days, I’ll be able to produce an improved version of the Black Death Butterfly… and give it to you as my proposal gift."

Yue Wuhuan’s expression turned uncertain.

"We’ve already slept together—this wasn't just some fling! I can’t fall for anyone else now!" Song Qingshi, fearing rejection, pleaded desperately. "I want to do right by you! Please give me that chance!"

What's the best way to propose? Should I get down on one knee with a ring?