Enemies Chapter 21: Lin Yi could feel his breathing speed up

Chapter 21: Lin Yi could feel his breathing speed up

Translated by Jouissance of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

This mountain range was barren, a blanket of yellow brown mud without a hint of green. Vicious gales could be seen from afar, and one could practically hear the plaintive wails on the wind.

Countless spirits wandered across the mountain range, wanting to devour the souls of those who approached them.

However, these spirits were the lost souls of mortals, not cultivators, and neither were they spirit cultivators, so they couldn’t harm Chu WuQing at all.

Conversely, the moment Chu WuQing’s form appeared, these lost souls all scattered in fear, not daring to approach. Yet the figure who followed a ways behind the flying boat didn’t have such a terrifying aura, instead, as they had just entered Qi Condensation stage, they were even more delicious than normal mortals.

Though Chu WuQing was terrifying, the person behind him was too tempting. Many of these spirits couldn’t resist the temptation and charged at Lin Yi, blood-curling laughter erupting from their forms.

As they approached, they noticed that Chu WuQing didn’t have any reaction. The spirits grew bold, swarming Lin Yi and wanting to consume his flesh and blood to strengthen themselves.

Though they didn’t know what kind of cultivator he was, they could instinctively tell that devouring Lin Yi’s flesh would be good for them. It would allow them to step into a new world, be reborn from the ashes.

Chu WuQing rubbed his chin, smiling as he commented, “Devouring the flesh and bones of a Level One Qi Condensation stage cultivator can, indeed, allow a hundred-year fierce ghost enter Level One Qi Condensation stage, becoming a spirit cultivator. It could allow normal fierce ghosts to grasp a feel for spiritual energy, and normal spirits would be able to gain a slither of life force to fortify their soul, eliminating the risk of their soul fading away from the world for a full decade.”

Before this, Lin Yi had merely been a member of the mortal realm. Suddenly faced with the onslaught of ghosts, his expression grew solemn. He could only struggle to survive amidst the ghosts.

He could defeat one ghost at a time with his sword, but not thousands of ghosts. The ghosts surrounded him from all sides, causing opening to appear everywhere in his defenses. The souls would lunge and take a small bite out of him given the slightest chance, tearing at his flesh.

If it was any normal person, they would’ve been poisoned by the aura of these ghosts already. However, somehow, Lin Yi somehow managed to build a resistance to it. Even if he was covered in blood, his life refused to give out.

In addition, with Chu WuQing there to watch over him, he would throw down some spiritual energy elixirs, allowing his dried meridians to repair themselves, his flesh and blood slowly growing back, over and over.

At the same time, the spirits that devoured his flesh grew stronger, and some even began to grasp the feel of spiritual energy.

In a situation like this, he should be struggling to even move, yet he also grew stronger with every fight. His swordsmanship grew refined, improving perceptibly. In the end, he even managed to figure out how to perform an air-piercing slash. One slash and tens of ghosts would fall.

Under this bloody carnage, his mind somehow grew calmer. His dark eyes were like the deepest night, an indescribable feeling welling up within him as he gazed at the figure that watched him from afar.

This was a life and death situation. It pushed him again and again to the brink, uncovering all his weaknesses and his ugly, struggling state. However, it was also a challenge, a trial, and in this trial, he wasn’t in any true danger of losing his life. Conversely, his cultivation improved at an even more rapid pace.

This was a rare opportunity.

Slowly, he learned how to look into himself and saw that within his Dantian, a formless sword energy was gathering. Though it grew slowly, by the time he managed to fell over a hundred souls with a single strike, the outline of this sword energy began to grow clear.

A shapeless comprehension began to form in Lin Yi’s heart.

Chu WuQing’s sharp eyes noticed that Lin Yi had somehow managed to comprehend the sword on this battlefield. These hundreds of thousands of ghosts had become Lin Yi’s millstones.

Even though he wore tattered rags, his hair messily, dirtily matted with blood and untied, his aura and demeanor remained unaffected. He stood there, exuding a startling aura, as if everything else was no more than a background to emphasise his greatness. All that remained was a swordsman and his razor-sharp sword, wandering the world under the heavens.

Chu WuQing knew that the spirits on this mountain range were useless for tormenting Lin Yi now. However, he was still in high spirits from this. With his protagonist halo, Lin Yi’s growth was unavoidable, but Chu WuQing was happy with being able to cause him more torment, more pain on his journey of growth.

What was the pain from being attacked by these spirits compared to being abandoned by the Chu Clan, to having one’s flesh sheared off bit by bit, and then one’s soul slowly grinded into nothingness?

When Lin Yi’s brandished his sword energy once more, sweeping through the rows of ghosts, Chu WuQing grabbed and lifted him by the collar.

After such a long time of traveling without rest, even the Level Ten Qi Condensation stage Chu WuQing was beginning to feel exhaustion creeping up on him. He had yet to enter Foundation Establishment, so he still required sleep and food. Thus, he grabbed Lin Yi and went to a cavern, planning to stay there for the time being.

Though Lin Yi had achieved a breakthrough in his fight against the ghosts, erupting with a fearsome power, after the battle ended, the hidden, unhealed injuries left in his body began to act up, causing his face to pale. He had also depleted his spiritual energy and could feel the pain of his meridians cracking.

However, he didn’t make a single noise, just quietly dangling.

Then he was thrown into the cave by Chu WuQing.

This cave was situated in the very same mountain range, and naturally didn’t have any spiritual energy either. The rocks here jutted out in strange shapes. Chu WuQing throwing the other inside would jostle his injuries, causing the other even more pain.

However, just as Lin Yi’s body hit the rough, rocky ground, a spiritual spring suddenly began to leak out from between the rocks. It barely took a moment to form a lake, instantly replenishing and healing Lin Yi’s exhausted and battered body and meridians.

Chu WuQing: “!?” What the hell just happened?

Though he had seen the original and had mentally prepared himself… Chu WuQing was still stunned by this protagonist halo that had caused a random spiritual spring to appear out of thin air. He looked down at Lin Yi who was inside the spring from above. Chu WuQing fell silent as he watched the gushing spring.

Soon enough, Lin Yi got up from the spiritual spring. He tidied himself up into something a little more presentable and approached Chu WuQing, saying, “Xianzhang has been travelling all this time without rest while protecting me and must be tired. Please use the spring to clean up.”

After he finished speaking, he noticed that Chu WuQing’s gaze was full of contemplation. There was an unhidden surprise in his eyes.

Lin Yi didn’t know what he had done to gain such a look from Chu WuQing. Before now, Chu WuQing had looked down on him completely as something that could be thrown away at any time.

“Don’t call me Xianzhang, call me Master.” Chu WuQing slowly intoned. He wanted to carve the present into the young protagonist’s soul, make sure he remembered how humiliated he was at addressing Chu WuQing as master and never forget how he was treated when he was weaker.

After Chu WuQing snapped back to the present, the consideration in his eyes deepened. Some idea seemed on the verge of sprouting out of the ground, and when Lin Yi then said, “Master, please use the spiritual spring,” it clicked.

Lin·enemy in a past life must torture repeatedly·Yi→Lin·treasure detector that can be repeatedly tormented·Yi.

That was the correct way to use Lin Yi.

Once Chu WuQing figured it out, he nodded lightly. “You’re dismissed for the time being.” He was indeed quite tired from these few days of traveling and the spiritual spring could restore his mental state and spiritual energy back to its top form.

Chu WuQing waved his hand and a set of furniture appeared. Puppet maids immediately smoothed out the ground and added glowing pearls to the ceiling. It was completely different from how barren it had just been.

After Lin Yi retreated from the cave, he was met with barren surroundings, but his body was filled with spiritual energy. In combination with the battle he had just fought, it was the optimal time to meditate and attempt breakthrough, however, all that occupied his mind was Chu WuQing’s figure.

“Master,” he mumbled.

Thinking of what had happened these few days, he knew that he should be guarding the other outside the cave, showing good etiquette and courtesy, but his body couldn’t help but shift towards the cave Chu WuQing was in.

With every step he took, Lin Yi’s cold, blood-baptised heart couldn’t help but thud in his chest. He knew this was wrong, he knew what consequences this would have. It was against all his beliefs and value of his previous life, yet he still took step after step past his moral boundaries like he was bewitched… until he arrived at the entrance of the cave.

Heavy curtains hung in the entranceway of the cave. Lin Yi nervously peeked in through the gaps, filled with an intense excitement.

He saw Chu WuQing remove his hair circlet, his long dark hair falling around him and swaying with the steam. Strands stuck wetly to his cheeks and clothes.

Then, Chu WuQing shed his complicated outer robes, slowly opening his inner robes, revealing his slender neck… His shoulders, pale as snow, that were usually hidden, unseen, wrapped tightly under his chaste robes… his delicate collarbones that begged to be kissed and licked… a little more… just a little more and the rose buds on his chest would be exposed…

Lin Yi felt his breathing speed up.

Chu WuQing had always been a very careful person. Plus, he was currently with his archenemy. Even if the other was weak enough for him to kill with a single palm strike, he couldn’t fully relax. After all, his protagonist halo was still active. No one would be stupid enough to completely expose themselves. So, from the moment he had decided to bathe, he had covered the entire cave with his divine sense and naturally noticed Lin Yi’s approach and peeking.

Did he want to find out his weakness by studying his pressure points and meridians? Chu WuQing sneered internally, grabbing the outer robes he had hung up and throwing them outside. “Go and wash them.”

After he quickly submerged himself inside the spiritual spring, Chu WuQing’s eyes narrowed in satisfaction. He filled a basin with water and tossed it outside before removing his undergarments. “Wash these as well.”

There was no need for cultivators to wash their clothing the mortal way. Any cultivator who had passed Level Five Qi Condensation stage would be able to learn a self-purifying chant, allowing their body to remain clean and keeping their clothes free of stains, dirt and dust.

But Chu WuQing wanted to use this to humiliate Lin Yi.

Just think about it. A man being forced to wash another man’s clothing, including their underwear. How humiliating was that! And it was the original protagonist who was known for having a strong sense of pride and dignity being humiliated as well!

Chu WuQing soaked in the springs, joy washing through him in waves. It made his entire being feel clearer and calmer.

Lin Yi held Chu WuQing’s outer robes in his hands. The snowy-white robes didn’t have a speck of dust on them, completely pure and untouched, just like Master. A fresh fragrance exuded from it. This soft material had just come off of Chu WuQing’s body.

As his emotions fluctuated wildly, the silver basin was tossed out, undergarments inside.

Lin Yi’s face went red. In Chu WuQing’s eyes, this was naturally Lin Yi trying to endure the humiliation. Lin Yi went outside with the clothes. Only after washing the outer robes again and again did he pick up the underwear.

It was pure white, too, but due to how tightly and intimately it had pressed against Chu WuQing’s skin, the fresh fragrance was stronger. He could imagine what the other looked like wearing it.

Lin Yi’s hands shook faintly. He had been born to a noble family, so naturally he had seen and experienced all the world had to offer, but as a reputable and talented Confucianist disciple, a role model for others, his private life was strict and organized. He had adhered to the Confucian gentleman’s ideals for everything, so being abstinent was unbelievable.

However, all those morals and all that discipline, all the courtesies and etiquette turned into foam in the sea in that moment. It all disappeared from his blood, leaving behind only the pure white figure that had descended out of nowhere and the white private undergarments in his hands.

He closed his eyes, ears burning, and slowly raised the undergarments to his nose. He then worked up the courage to reach out with his tongue and lick it. This area that had pressed against Chu WuQing’s most private parts… His blood boiled, burning his face redder, yet his eyes darkened and deepened further, something inside him changing.

He breathed in deeply, half-sighing and half-moaning, “Master…” 

There were too many emotions in that one word. He was naturally quite intelligent. It wasn’t that he didn’t understand the emotions Chu WuQing displayed towards him, but so what? It was because of that he was able to get closer to this person, giving himself a chance to grow stronger bit by bit as well, strong enough to, one day, truly possess that person for himself.

He would also slowly become a part of this person’s life and make Chu WuQing get used to his presence, used to him being behind him, beside him.

There was no lack of books that talked about those beauties who would cause wars, but none of those beauties could match up to Chu WuQing at all. There was no way a person like this wouldn’t have countless obsessed admirers.

Just a single gaze was already an honor, never mind this sort of intimacy.

After Chu WuQing bathed, he could feel that his cultivation was even more solid. It seemed that with some more effort, he would be able to reach Peak Qi Condensation stage within five months. Then, he could Establish his Foundations, and continue on his Path.

Chu WuQing rose from the spring and called out, “Lin Yi, attend to me.”