Song Qingshi has a sweet tooth.
Seeing that the weather was getting hotter, he dragged Yue Wuhuan into a riverside tea stall selling icy treats and ordered two large bowls of "Crispy Mountain" and "Lotus Drink."
"By the way," Song Qingshi remembered a puzzle in Yue Wuhuan's medical case and directly inquired, "Your eyes don't produce tears, but the tear secretion system seems fine. What's the cause? Is it congenital?"
Yue Wuhuan, disinterested in sweet foods, nibbled sporadically at his icy treat. Taken aback by the question, he weighed his words carefully before answering, "It's not congenital... I used to cry when I was a child, but I didn't like others seeing it, so I'd hide to do it. Later, when I was sold to the mansion, I found that crying during those vile acts excited them more. I didn't want to give them that satisfaction, so I learned to hold back my tears... eventually, I lost the ability."
Human emotions can be stripped away. Inhumane psychological experiments have proven this.
Yue Wuhuan had been deprived of his ability to cry through rigorous control training and psychological conditioning after being caged.
Suddenly, Song Qingshi found that the icy treat in his hand lost its sweetness.
"It's not a bad thing. Tears aren't exactly a necessity in life," Yue Wuhuan said with an indifferent smile, trying to reassure, "I'm content to have something that the Huan Yin Seal cannot control. So, my lord need not worry about it."
"How can I not worry?" Song Qingshi gently lifted Yue Wuhuan's veil, gazed once again into his beautiful eyes, and solemnly said, "Laughing when happy, crying when sad—it's a human instinct. Don't worry; I will find a way to make you cry again!"
After saying this, he realized his mistake—why would he want to make someone sad enough to cry?
Song Qingshi awkwardly returned to his seat and tried to save face, "Not necessarily out of sadness; I sometimes cry when I'm emotional as well..."
"So, my lord cries when emotional?" Yue Wuhuan recalled the vision of Song Qingshi crying beneath him in his dreams and felt a strange sense of pleasure. Leaning a little closer to that clean scent, and taking advantage of the concealing veil, he made no effort to hide the longing in his eyes. Licking his dry lips, he flirted in a sultry tone, "I look forward to my lord making me cry..."
Relieved that he didn't make a faux pas, Song Qingshi patted his chest and assured, "Leave it to me!"
He would go back and thoroughly research psychological therapies!
For some reason, Yue Wuhuan felt oddly happy.
Suddenly, laughter and chatter from cultivators in the adjacent booth drifted over, seemingly mentioning terms like "Jinfeng Mountain Manor."
Song Qingshi immediately extended his spiritual sense to scan the area.
Sitting in the next booth were two Foundation Building cultivators—a sword cultivator and a demonic cultivator. Both were decent-looking but spoke rather freely, discussing recent major events in the immortal realm:
"Mad Daoist and Jinfeng Mountain Manor are going all out. Just a few days ago, they severely injured Manor Lord Jin."
"Thirty years ago, the Mad Daoist's only son, True Person Lieyun, disappeared, and the sect's most treasured artifact went missing. After years of offering a large bounty and investigating, he finally discovered that the Heartguard Terrace was in the hands of Manor Lord Jin. He had to seek justice."
"I can't believe Manor Lord Jin is also the kind to kill and steal treasures."
"That's the Heartguard Terrace, the best artifact for overcoming tribulations. Who wouldn't be tempted?"
"Of all people, Manor Lord Jin had to provoke the Mad Daoist—a protective and crazy fellow…"
"Now that Manor Lord Jin is denying killing True Person Lieyun, this is going to be a drawn-out affair…"
"..."
"Evil deeds will eventually bring self-destruction," Song Qingshi, who despised Jin Feiran's character, mentally spat out the word "scum" a few times. He then quietly cautioned Yue Wuhuan, "If Jinfeng Mountain Manor comes asking for medical assistance or herbs, say I'm not available—whether I'm in closed cultivation, gathering herbs, or whatever. Make up a decent excuse to decline, and let the apothecary handle it. Don't meet those bastards…"
Yue Wuhuan obediently agreed.
Song Qingshi couldn't help but ask, "Do you know anything about the Heartguard Terrace?"
"The incident with True Person Lieyun happened thirty years ago, and I've only been in Jinfeng Mountain Manor for ten," Yue Wuhuan explained with a smile. "Given Jin Feiran's cautious nature and our status as lowly slaves, controlled by the Huan Yin Seal, we couldn't access any secretive information…"
He had merely spent a few years piecing together scattered clues to discover this matter and deduce the whereabouts of the Heartguard Terrace. Then, he subtly made the Copper Divination Immortal aware that Jin Feiran's Foundation Establishment thirty years ago had some mysterious elements. The Copper Divination Immortal, greedy yet fearless, covertly held a grudge against Jin Feiran. Once he found evidence, he sold it to the Mad Daoist at a high price.
Only after confirming that the Copper Divination Immortal was investigating the Heartguard Terrace did he confidently plan his own death.
He even endured two more years of torture just to accomplish this satisfying deed.
Jin Feiran would probably never suspect that a slave, whose words and actions were not their own, could land such a devastating blow on him.
Unfortunately, the Mad Daoist failed to kill that beast.
What a pity…
Yue Wuhuan suppressed the regret in his heart, casting a discreet glance at Song Qingshi beside him. Fearing that Song would find his calculating and malevolent nature unappealing, he quickly resumed his guise of gentleness and obedience, continuing to eat his icy treat.
The conversation of the two independent cultivators in the next booth started to digress, eventually mentioning the Medicine King Valley:
"They say Medicine King Immortal is one of the most ascetic elders outside of the Buddhist school, but it turns out he's a fool."
"The old residence of Medicine King Valley caught fire. It spread pretty quickly."
"..."
Confused, Song Qingshi looked at Yue Wuhuan; he didn't recall any fire incidents at Medicine King Valley.
Yue Wuhuan, not wanting such vulgarities to reach his ears, rose to leave, "Master, I don't want to stay here."
Song Qingshi hesitated for a moment and stood up to pay the bill.
Just then, the sword cultivator laughed, "Who doesn't know about Master Wuhuan's beauty? His charm is irresistible; he's completely bewitched Medicine King Immortal."
The demonic cultivator joined in, sneering, "Once you're in Jinfeng Mountain Manor, who hasn't had a turn with that lascivious creature? No matter how beautiful, he's a thing worn out by Manor Lord Jin. Immortal Song is reclusive and doesn't know these things. He took this debauchee as a treasured disciple. I've heard that Master Wuhuan's bedroom skills are unique, and he can enchant men into losing their souls. Immortal Song hasn't tasted such delights; he must be addicted by now."
"Hahaha, I'd really love to see it for myself…"
Song Qingshi's face turned ashen. He regretted not leaving earlier. Carefully, he looked at Yue Wuhuan, unable to gauge his expression behind the veil. After some thought, he decided he couldn't just leave; he had to do something a man should do. So, he rolled up his sleeves and prepared to defend Yue Wuhuan's honor.
Yue Wuhuan couldn't hold him back and reluctantly followed.
With an air of solemnity, Song Qingshi walked up to the two men, suppressing his social anxiety and forcefully tapped the table, his mind busily organizing a series of insults.
The sword cultivator and demonic cultivator looked up to find a stunning figure in snowy-white robes standing nervously in front of them. He was visibly tense but trying to appear composed. His eyes darted from one man to the other; his rosy lips parted as if there were a thousand words waiting to be said.
What was going on?
Could it be that he found them attractive and was offering himself?
Stammering, Song Qingshi began, "I, I…" He realized he was really bad at hurling insults; what should he say to sound fierce?
Most cultivators have a libertine approach to life and don't mind relationships regardless of gender. Finding Song Qingshi's innocence intriguing, the sword and demonic cultivators were increasingly entertained. They quickly reassured him, "Don't be anxious, take your time. We're waiting."
"Alright, no rush," Song Qingshi took a deep breath to calm himself, and asked seriously, "Do you know who I am?"
The sword cultivator smiled as he tried to touch Song Qingshi's hand, "I don't. May I ask for the beautiful one's name?"
Seizing the restless wrist of the sword cultivator, Song Qingshi announced loudly, "Medicine King Valley, Song Qingshi."
The expression on the sword cultivator's face froze.
Song Qingshi tightened his grip and added, "The 'fool' whose house you claimed caught fire."
The wrist of the sword cultivator snapped.
Sensing danger, the demonic cultivator turned to flee.
Song Qingshi shot several poisoned needles, causing strange rashes to appear on their bodies—agonizingly itchy and painful. They wanted to scream, but a pill sent into their mouths left them hoarse, unable to make a sound.
"For slandering Medicine King Valley, you'll suffer pain and itchiness for seven days; for speaking disrespectfully, a ten-year ban on speech!"
After meting out the cold judgment, Song Qingshi returned to Yue Wuhuan's side, feeling fully like a man and quite proud of his performance. He hoped for some praise.
Yue Wuhuan instantly realized what unspeakable thoughts the two men had harbored towards Song Qingshi. Unwilling to tolerate this, he impulsively grabbed Song Qingshi's hand that had touched the sword cultivator, leading him to a well. He continuously scrubbed it clean with disinfecting soap: "Don't touch such filthy things. They're unclean…"
Song Qingshi was baffled by the rigorous washing.
Once Yue Wuhuan had cleaned his hand, he realized his emotional lapse. He lifted his veil, revealing a gentle smile, "Later, we'll have hand-grabbed mutton at the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion. You touched poison and people; it's safer if you wash your hands."
Song Qingshi immediately understood.
It seemed Yue Wuhuan had also picked up his slight medical cleanliness obsession.