I materialised into being, still overwhelmed with it all. "Furball, what"re you doing?"
Foxes were intimate creatures. It latched onto Heng Wen, treating me as a lump of air. The fox"s paws caressed Heng Wen"s body, and it was clearly doing this for me to see.
As for Heng Wen, he looked tranquil, his spirit calm and not under enthrall. Heng Wen should"ve noticed me the instant I entered, but, up until I appeared, his eyes merely trained on the fox, letting it say what it wants and touch him as it pleases while I watched.
Don"t tell me Heng Wen actually fancied the furball?
Would he, even? It was undeniable that the fox spirit is attractive, but how could it match me in gallantry.
Although those red phoenix eyes would work on both men and women, significant differences remained. On a female"s face, they would be known as soul-stirring beautiful phoenix eyes, outstanding beauty that ought to belong in poems and paintings. On a male, they would be a pair of fierce, valiant phoenix eyes like on the Second Lord Guan"s maroon face.
I really did admire this fox"s guts. I didn"t want to hit it too hard, but the fox wanted a foot after gaining an inch, its paws travelled to more unspeakable places the more it lingered, I wasn"t paying close attention to the lightning technique I cast. A flash of heavenly lightning cracked above the fox"s head. The fox had several years of skills, it dodged sideways and blocked the blast with a surge of demonic aura.
The fox managed to block more than half of it. It staggered back and coughed up dark blood, gasping for breath as it leaned on the table.
I went to Heng Wen"s side and lit an oil lamp. The fox looked up at Heng Wen with rueful eyes before closing them in defeat. "It seems that the lord made me act out a pretense. That"s fine. To be able to get close to the lord this once was enough for me." When its eyes opened again, they were trained on me, "You can take me away."
Heng Wen took one step to stand in front of me, and spoke, "The blame is not on you, you can leave. It was me who encouraged you and borrowed your hand to mess with this Yuanjun on a whim. When I think about it, I realised I shouldn"t have done that to you."
The fox wiped the bit of blood from its mouth. It slowly stood up straight, its eyes bearing sorrow. "My lord must be playing with me again. A demon such as me, is no more than a human-shaped furball for the lord. You must"ve felt the things I did vile and dirty. I wasn"t expecting to keep my life when I came here. I would be satisfied if I could die at my lord"s hands."
What pa.s.sionate words, I couldn"t help sighing.
Heng Wen walked forward until he was no more than one chi away from the fox. His tone a soft lull, "To be frank, I was rather happy to hear the words you said. For thousands of years, there was no one who would tell me such things. I can"t tell you yes, however, it isn"t because I am an immortal." He laughed lightly, "Actually, you didn"t do anything, and there"s nothing for me to pay you back. Go back and care for your wound."
Shivers ran through the fox"s pointed ears. It murmured, "A few days ago, the mountain the lord first stepped on when you descended was the mountain I was cultivating on. At first, I coveted your immortal energy, but when I saw you up close I could no longer forget you. I followed you to this place and was rude tonight. I understood what you meant by your words, but……" A pair of longing eyes were set on Heng Wen. "If I do become an immortal one day, my lord, could I possibly meet you again and enjoy a drink together?"
Heng Wen gave a nod, "Okay. I promise you. You have to remember, my full t.i.tle is Heng Wen Qingjun."
The fox"s eyes brightened, "So, the lord is Heng Wen Qingjun, in charge of the arts. I ask the lord to remember my name, it"s Xuan Li."
I stepped up with a grin, "This one is Song Yao Yuanjun. If after you become immortal you"d like to get payback for me hitting you tonight you can also come look for me." The fox"s ears shook again, and it wouldn"t even move its paws. It seemed like he was hurt rather deeply when I called him a furball in front of Heng Wen.
This immortal had always been magnanimous, unlike this petty furball. I saw him start to leave and hurried in front of him to remind him of a significant issue, "Furball… Ah no, young lord Xuan… You have cut-sleeve inclinations so you won"t bother ordinary women, cultivating demonic arts that gathered yin to make for yang, these are alright. Who knows if it"s exactly because of this that you"ll receive divine karma, but you definitely mustn"t do evil like bothering beautiful men. Be aware of cultivating using yang for yang, and lacking in something. While cultivating, keep the mind pure without desires. Pure spirit comes from a clear temperament, clear temperament comes fr—"
The fox turned into wind and went away, letting my unfinished words sink into the night.
It"s hard to get me to discuss Dao, but he wouldn"t listen to my instructions. Heng Wen raised his brows, "You"ve been wordy the entire day. Even though you became an immortal for free, you could actually explain the cultivation method eloquently."
I said quietly, "During the thousands of years in heaven, all that flows into my ears were nothing but these. Tonight that furball tasted too much of Qingjun"s fat, after listening to my instructions, he"d also be able to use it for a hundred years and then some."
Waiting on Mu Ruoyan had become a habit, my hands unthinkingly gathered Heng Wen"s lapels, which the fox opened. "I"ve watched Qingjun closely for thousands of years, these days I couldn"t even get in your bed, yet that ball of fur actually managed to do it. It truly, truly hurts my heart."
Heng Wen stared at me with a half smile, "Then, why don"t you and I do something it didn"t get to do?"
His face that was only a breath away from me inched closer. A pair of soft and warm lips suddenly pressed against mine. I felt myself shudder. Don"t act up, who knows if Ming Ge, or Jade Emperor was currently watching up there.
And yet, for some things you could only be rational for a brief moment. It"s like a whole body submerged in a lake, it doesn"t follow that their clothes will be completely dry.
Heng Wen was not well versed on these matters. The light touch, nip, and lick relied solely on his instincts and were all the more alluring. I couldn"t help but hold him tightly and take the lead. I only felt that his soft lips were like deep waters and I"d gladly drown in it.
When he finally lifted his head, Heng Wen"s eyes were slightly open, they seemed to mist up under the lights. The moist red lips drew back into a smile. He suddenly moved close to my ear, murmuring, "It turns out to be this type of fun."
These words were really asking for my life. I almost became tempted and like that male fox, licked his ear with my tongue. The body in my arms shifted. Fortunately, my mind had been cultivated for many years, and I sobered up in time. I gripped Heng Wen"s shoulders and put a distance of three cun between us.
Heng Wen furled his brows, "What is it?"
I forced a smile, "Any more and we"ll have to go up the execution platform."
Heng Wen retreated but seemed unwilling to accept it, "If that was true, you"ve given breath to Tian Shu numerous times. You should have been taken to the platform and cut to pieces long ago."
I poured a cup of cooling tea in silence, downing it.
Heng Wen sat on the edge of the bed, took out his well-worn fan, and shook it. "It was only having fun for a bit, it wasn"t anything serious. And if we were to do it for real, wouldn"t we be doing that dual-cultivation?"
I put down the teacup silently. Heng Wen added, "It"s no wonder you often look dejected every time you talk about your Lone Luan fate. The human world turns out to be a place of unlimited wonders." He spoke unhurriedly as though fascinated.
My heart thumped with terror, "Qingjun, we came down to the world to manage the trials of others, we definitely can"t complicate matters. What will we get in return? If we become involved in this sort of thing, I know that it will torment us like enduring all of violent tortures in the world."
Heng Wen"s clear eyes were fixed on me, "Don"t worry. I was only a little curious, trying it out to get the feel of it. But you… The way you"re talking about it sounded like you"re being tormented now. Could you be feeling attached to the world and concealing it from the heavens?"
I smiled stiffly, "How could I… The matters of that year weighed on my mind is all." I bid Heng Wen good night and returned to my quarters.
I entered back into Li Siming"s body, thinking the morning will come soon. Tian Shu was sleeping soundly. Perhaps, the spirit barrier I set up fused with his divine energy and calmed his spirit.
I turned in bed. Having just kissed Heng Wen, it"d be weird if I could fall asleep.
When I met Heng Wen for the first time in heaven, what were the circ.u.mstances then?
Recently, I often find myself recalling the past.