Chapter 269: Embracing the Waist

Chapter 269: An Arm Around the Waist

Xiao Wu’s cold gaze swept over. "Play the qin, serve tea, perform a sword dance, and entertain?"

Xue Sui: "...Indeed."

He grew even more deferential. "The Palace Lord is hosting a banquet in the main hall with wine and merriment. He invites the Immortal Lord to join him. Please come with me—don’t make this hard for me!"

Xiao Wu stood up, indifferent. "Lead the way."

He couldn’t quite grasp Xie Chunshan’s intentions, but with his current cultivation level, though he couldn’t directly oppose Xie Chunshan, he could at least protect himself.

As they neared the main hall, the distant sounds of music and singing drifted over. A songstress sang softly in a Wu dialect, the melody lush with passion. The song sounded like *Everlasting Longing*.

Xue Sui peeked at Lord Pingwu’s expression, but Xiao Wu’s face remained placid, revealing neither joy nor anger.

For some reason, Xue Sui suddenly spoke up. "Lord Pingwu, the Palace Lord hasn’t held a banquet in a long time."

He added cautiously, "A while ago, the Palace Lord dismissed all the musicians in the palace, sending each home with a sum of silver. Even the last qin master left. Now, the palace can’t even put together a decent troupe of dancers and musicians."

In Xie Shu’s past life, he had disliked noise. Though business dealings inevitably involved toasts and socializing, he personally loathed it. After arriving at Wuwang Palace and painstakingly sticking to the script, he never indulged in all-night revelry. Moreover, as a modern man, he had seen all kinds of performances—those in the Demon Palace did nothing for him, so he sent them away early.

If not for the plot’s later need for dancers and singers, Xie Shu would have dismissed them too.

Xiao Wu paused, his tone flat. "What does that have to do with me?"

Xue Sui didn’t press further.

He led Lord Pingwu across the hall’s threshold and bowed from a distance toward the dais. "Palace Lord, Lord Pingwu has arrived." Then, Xue Sui retreated with a bow, stepping aside to reveal Xiao Wu behind him.

Xiao Wu lifted his gaze, meeting the eyes of the figure on the dais.

Though the two had tangled intimately in the shadows, and Xiao Wu had glimpsed Xie Chunshan’s face during his unexpected recovery of sight, Xie Chunshan had been disguised as the Pharmacist then—the whole thing was so surreal, shock drowned out everything else. Their first meeting years ago at the Immortal-Demon Grand Tournament had been fleeting, both young and inexperienced, far from the later incarnations of Lord Pingwu and the Wuwang Palace Lord.

Thus, this banquet marked the first time Xiao Wu beheld Xie Chunshan as the Demon Sect Sovereign.

To be fair, Xie Chunshan’s temperament was eccentric, but his looks were devastatingly handsome.

Seated high upon the dais, clad in flowing black robes that pooled on the ground, he lazily propped his head on one hand, exuding casual elegance. His long fingers toyed with a crystal teacup as his gaze drifted idly across the hall, meeting Xiao Wu’s briefly. His lips parted slightly, the words barely audible: "My beauty."

—It wasn’t that Xie Shu was truly this perverse; these were simply lines fed to him by System 66.

The Wuwang Palace Lord had always gone out of his way to make things difficult for Xiao Wu. Righteous Path disciples couldn’t stand such frivolous talk, and Xie Chunshan found it amusing to provoke Xiao Wu with it.

The lines were cheesy, but Xie Chunshan’s striking beauty, paired with his slightly intoxicated demeanor—regal yet disheveled, like a jade statue about to topple—even the faint smile at his lips carried an indescribable charm, reminiscent of a noble prince carousing all night in a tavern.

Xiao Wu met his gaze evenly, then lowered his eyes.

Xie Chunshan pointed languidly to the qin table beside him, his voice thick with drunken amusement. "They say Lord Pingwu possesses an immortal’s grace, noble and refined, mastering all six arts of a gentleman—none beyond your skill, including the qin. Today’s banquet lacks a qin master, but we have an ancient phoenix-tree qin. Care to play?"

As he spoke, a maidservant brought forth the guqin, stopping before Xiao Wu.

Xie Shu rested his chin on his hand, watching him.

According to the plot, Xiao Wu wouldn’t accept.

At this point in the original text, Xiao Wu’s cultivation had only just begun to recover, unbeknownst to Xie Chunshan. Xiao Wu pretended to be frail, unable to lift a sword, so Xie Chunshan demanded he play the qin instead.

Disciples of the Shangling Sect all learned the qin to cultivate their minds. Xiao Wu usually played lofty tunes like *High Mountains and Flowing Water*, but banquet music was all frivolous tunes. Moreover, the mockery was too blatant—of course, Xiao Wu wouldn’t comply.

Here is the refined translation incorporating the expert suggestions:

As expected, Lord Pingwu glanced at the maid holding the guqin but did not take it. The maid immediately paled and began trembling uncontrollably.

Xie Shu chuckled, "Rumors claim the Immortal Lord is merciful and virtuous. For this maid's sake, you should accept it. Otherwise, a servant who can't persuade a guest to play the guqin is of no use to me—better to kill her."

The maid fell to her knees with a thud, her face drained of color, looking as if she might burst into tears.

Xiao Wu had always been soft-hearted and despised Xie Chunshan's callous disregard for life. He paused briefly, a flicker of disgust flashing in his eyes, but ultimately said nothing and reached out to take the guqin from the maid.

He swept his robes aside and sat at a side table, resting his clasped hands on his knees without any intention of playing.

Xie Shu glanced at the scene and continued casually, "The Immortal Lord is truly stubborn. Do you know what happened to the last owner of this guqin who played poorly?"

He smiled. "That guqin master had such beautiful hands, so I tore out his meridians and ripped out his finger bones. But out of mercy, I didn’t kill him—just hurled him off a cliff. Ah, but cliffs are so high, and he bled so much. With all the beasts in the mountains, he probably didn’t make it. Tell me, Immortal Lord, was that a good ending or not?"

According to the script, Xiao Wu should press his lips tightly together and grit out, "You monster."

And Xie Shu should take no offense but instead delight in it, replying, "Spoken like a true Immortal Lord."

So Xie Shu waited quietly for Xiao Wu's reaction.

But this time, Xiao Wu's first instinct wasn’t to curse.

His eyes snapped open, stunned for a heartbeat as a storm of thoughts raged in his head. His expression shifted through layers of complexity before settling into a deep frown, his eyes glacial as they fixed directly on Xue Sui’s direction.

A closer look revealed his fingers tightening around the guqin strings, tendons standing out on the back of his hands as he exerted slight pressure.

Song Xiaoyu had also died after being thrown off a cliff. In the original text, Xie Chunshan brought up the past to provoke Xiao Wu.

But this time, someone else was provoked.

Xue Sui, who had been sitting quietly until now: "..."

He stared at the dishes before him, screaming internally.

...Hadn’t that guqin master been sent away with a purse of silver? Since when were his finger bones ripped out and fed to mountain beasts? When did this happen? Wasn’t he the head of the Punishment Hall? How did he not know about this?

The Palace Lord hadn’t even mentioned it!

As it happened, Xie Shu had once reviewed the palace accounts and found them in deficit. Since their unorthodox sect thrived on plunder, no one had ever cared about finances. But Xie Shu couldn’t bring himself to commit such cruelty. Those like musicians, who had no role in the plot, were dismissed where possible. The only exception was the guqin master, who was allowed to leave—but only after leaving behind the guqin now in Xiao Wu’s hands.

The guqin master had been so overjoyed to be released that he wept. The guqin wasn’t even his—it belonged to the palace treasury—so he left nearly tripping over himself in his haste down the mountain.

—Xue Sui had even arranged his escort.

Under Lord Pingwu’s piercing glare, Xue Sui didn’t dare lift his head, keeping his eyes firmly on his food.

Then the Palace Lord’s unhurried voice rang out again: "Now that you’ve heard the guqin master’s fate, Immortal Lord, do you understand what you must do?"

Xue Sui: "..."

He opted to play the coward and stay silent.

But Xiao Wu lowered his gaze and actually placed his fingers on the guqin, asking, "What would the Palace Lord like to hear?"

Xie Shu raised an eyebrow. Xiao Wu’s obedience caught him off guard—it even cut a few lines. Fortunately, they weren’t crucial, so he replied, "Play whatever you wish, Immortal Lord."

So Xiao Wu began to play. In the original text, he had pretended his meridians were still damaged, his fingers too feeble to play cleanly, leaving the music halting and broken. But Xie Chunshan hadn’t been there for the music—he’d only been there to savor Xiao Wu’s face twisted in humiliation and helpless rage.

So, Xie Shu was prepared for the music to sound unpleasant.

Yet after closing his eyes to listen for a while, the melody flowed like clouds adrift and streams flowing—distinct from modern music, emphasizing a timeless, weighty, and effortless grace. Xie Shu lifted his gaze to see Xiao Wu sitting calmly amidst the Demon Palace's banquet, yet radiating the calm of playing the qin amidst picturesque mountains and clear waters.

It actually sounded quite pleasant.

Xie Shu drank leisurely to the rhythm of the music.

The moment his cup emptied, a servant stepped forward with a jug to refill it. Xie Shu glanced at the servant, and the man’s knees buckled, causing him to stumble and spill the wine—much of it splashing onto Xie Shu’s sleeves.

By Lord Wuwang’s temper, this servant would surely die.

The other servants shot pitying looks his way. Trembling, the servant collapsed to the ground, kowtowing desperately.

Xiao Wu paused, the music halting as he looked toward the commotion.

Xie Shu rested his chin on his hand, lazily remarking, "This clumsiness irritates me. Xue Sui, drag him out and beat him to death."

Xue Sui: "..."

Under the combined piercing glares of the Palace Lord and Lord Pingwu, he gritted his teeth, stood up, and seized the servant. Amidst the pleading wails, he twisted his arms behind his back and hauled him toward the door.

Xiao Wu gripped the qin strings so tightly they left crimson marks on his palms. His mind was a whirlwind, but after a moment, he suddenly croaked, "Palace Lord Xie..."

He called out but did not continue.

His thoughts were in turmoil—so much so that his fingers trembled, pressing the strings into discordant notes, making it impossible to play further.

Logically, he should plead for mercy. But Song Xiaoyu’s fate was a cautionary tale—the more he begged, the crueler the servant’s death would be. And given Xiao Wu’s current strength, forcibly saving someone from Xie Chunshan’s grasp was impossible. Strangely, though, an absurd yet persistent premonition nagged at him.

He felt that Xie Chunshan wouldn’t actually harm this servant.

Why would he have such a thought in the presence of the murderous Lord Wuwang?

Xie Shu: "Yes?"

He glanced over lightly, waiting for Xiao Wu to continue.

In the script, Xiao Wu was supposed to have a plea for mercy.

For some reason, Xiao Wu’s agitation eased slightly at that. He said stiffly, "This servant meant no harm. Could the Palace Lord spare him?"

Xie Shu: "Very well."

In the original text, Xie Chunshan only wanted to mess with Xiao Wu—an insignificant servant meant nothing to him. Following the script, he added, "But if you wish to spare him, Immortal Lord must show some sincerity."

Xiao Wu: "...What sincerity?"

Lord Wuwang gave a soft chuckle and pointed to the seat beside him. "Sit here first, Immortal Lord. We’ll discuss the punishment in detail."

That seat was reserved for the Palace Lord’s favored concubine—convenient for pulling a beauty into his arms, tilting her chin, and drinking and toying with her.

In the original text, Xiao Wu balked, of course.

Humiliated yet helpless, he stiffly sat down for the sake of an innocent life, his body stiff as a board, teeth biting his lip bloody. Enduring silently, he closed his eyes and allowed Xie Chunshan to degrade him.

Xie Shu watched Xiao Wu with amused detachment.

As expected, Lord Pingwu pressed his lips together, hesitating briefly before wordlessly rising and taking the seat beside Xie Shu.

Xie Shu raised his hand and loosely draped it around Lord Pingwu's waist, as per the script.

His fingertips brushed against the curve of his waist, making Xiao Wu shiver.

He stiffened all over, frozen in place.

Author's Note:

Immortal Lord (flustered): "Who am I? Where am I? What am I— What exactly does Xie Chunshan want?"

Xie Shu (calmly): "Oh look, totally frozen. Nailing this plot progression~"