14 The Murderous Sword 03

"What a beautiful child." Qingyi stared at the youth held aloft by the giant python. With a pale complexion and brows slightly furrowed, the youth looked even more captivating in this weak, helpless, and vulnerable state than he had when he first appeared with his arrogant demeanor.

Though his face was that of an ordinary person, Qingyi felt as if he had pierced through to the hidden bones of a true beauty beneath.

His inner demon, the giant python, flicked its tongue, lingering against the side of Leng Fangxie’s cheek. Its tail rustled, and its thick, hard, sharp scales shivered and rubbed against one another in restless agitation.

"Oh? You’re actually in heat?" Qingyi remarked with amusement. "They say an inner demon is a reflection of the host, so I am in heat as well? Like some beast."

He spoke without reservation, his voice tinged with a hint of madness, and he pondered thoughtfully, "It hasn't risen, though. It seems I haven't yet descended to the level of a beast."

The inner demon was merely an ignorant creature, acting solely on instinct, completely indifferent to its host’s madness. Its massive serpentine body began to coil—a gesture intended to bind its prey tight.

Using his spiritual energy to suppress the demon at its critical point, Qingyi sighed, "You foolish thing."

Sensing danger, the inner demon dared not move further. Qingyi suddenly stepped forward and hooked his finger under Leng Fangxie’s chin. With a light tap of his fingertip, in the blink of an eye, the true appearance of a celestial beauty was revealed. Amidst the gloomy forest, an ethereal radiance bloomed, breathtaking and transcendent.

Qingyi’s gaze darkened. His thumb brushed rudely over the beauty’s thin lips, rubbing and kneading them repeatedly. Before long, the red lips were flushed with blood, as if adding the final touch to a masterpiece, making the entire face look startlingly vivid.

His finger slid down to the neck, that incredibly fragile place that could be crushed with a single hand. He used his nail to flick repeatedly at Leng Fangxie’s delicate Adam’s apple. Seeing a flush of color rise to the youth's cheeks at his touch, a surge of pleasure, born from the act of control, welled up within him.

At this moment, there was no smile on Qingyi’s face; the gloom hidden in his brows broke free, uncontrollable.

A moment later, he withdrew his hand and said to the inner demon, "Let us go. Such a treasure should be kept within my Star Pivot Palace."

*

After waking, Leng Fangxie did not open his eyes immediately. He maintained the breathing pattern of someone still unconscious, refusing to rashly stir his spiritual consciousness, relying instead only on his keen senses to probe his body and surroundings.

He was currently buried in soft fabric, the air filled with a faint, unidentifiable floral scent. He appeared to be alone. His body was still too weak to move, and when he probed his Nascent Soul, it remained in a sealed, murky state. As for his spirit sword, it went without saying—the one he brought into the secret realm was already a flawed, sealed version, and it had been tainted when he struck the serpent demon, leaving the blade turning black.

He had neither the ability to act nor any defensive magical treasures. Because he had entered the secret realm concealing his identity, Wei Yun and Liu Jing’e outside would not know of his situation; he feared they wouldn't even realize he was missing before the realm closed. He had to find a way to escape before then.

There was no worse predicament than this.

Leng Fangxie steadied his mind and opened his eyes to examine his surroundings.

It was exactly as he had sensed: a cage-like room with four corners. He lay in the center on what seemed to be a bed covered in soft blankets. The space was empty, devoid of excess decoration. With him at the center, bizarre runes crawled across the pale floor and walls, converging overhead to terminate in a single, massive, dark orb.

A rune array.

Of course. Xi Qingyi was a genius in the art of runes.

What surprised Leng Fangxie more were the deep night skies visible through the circular windows on both sides, adorned with shimmering stars that illuminated the room.

Was this the deepest part of the secret realm?

Leng Fangxie thought calmly. His physical state was due partly to Xi Qingyi’s sneak attack and partly to the rune array in the room.

He was a master of the sword, but he possessed knowledge of other disciplines as well. The art of runes was profound, pointing directly to the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. Leng Fangxie had spent much time studying it, and thus, at a single glance, he recognized the function of this array: absolute prohibition and lockdown.

It was more complex than any similar runes in the Fuyuan Realm today, containing many patterns he had never seen before—likely lost techniques not passed down through history.

To leave, he had to break this array.

However, understanding the function of an array and actually breaking it were two different things.

Given its complexity, Leng Fangxie feared he would need months without food or rest to even find a starting point.

It was impossibly difficult.

As for the dark orb overhead, although it showed no signs of spiritual energy and appeared to be an ordinary object, it was the final anchor of the lockdown array, so it must be extraordinary.

Just as he was contemplating how to break the deadlock, Xi Qingyi appeared in the room, standing before the bed. Leng Fangxie lay there, unable to move freely, and even sitting up was a struggle. Rather than display such weakness, he simply looked at him with cold eyes, showing neither fear nor anger, appearing entirely composed.

Xi Qingyi smiled. "Worthy of a prodigy of Jiuchen."

In his era, there were also three major sects. Jiuchen was the most powerful among them, at the height of its glory, its disciples all brilliant and rare. Of course, half of those arrogant heaven-favored children had perished at his hands.

He had not expected that a thousand years later, that massive behemoth would still stand tall in Fuyuan, not only producing new prodigies and being guarded by a rare Tribulation-stage Daoist, but even a mere Nascent Soul disciple was this refined and stunning.

He had learned much about Leng Fangxie from those disciples: the dual pillars of the sword, the Master of the Resplendent Light Sword, the first seat of the ten true transmissions of Jiuchen, and the favorite first disciple of that Tribulation-stage cultivator.

"Your master will surely come to save you. However, that will be a long time from now."

Xi Qingyi said, "This is the core of the secret realm, the Star Pivot Palace. What do you think of it?"

Leng Fangxie sneered, "Nothing special."

He spoke the truth. Apart from the lockdown array, the Star Pivot Palace was nothing compared to the Floating Cloud Flying Palace.

Xi Qingyi was not annoyed, smiling lightly. "True. You are a person of such status; what kind of immortal palace have you not seen? It is just a grievance for you to be here with me."

"Ah, and there is also an ignorant, foolish creature." A giant python slid from his shoulder, its crimson eyes fixed on Leng Fangxie, its tongue hissing as it grew restless.

Leng Fangxie suddenly had an ominous premonition.

Xi Qingyi said, "Do not be afraid. It will not do anything to you. Neither will I."

As the words fell, the giant python impatiently crawled onto the bed. Its head climbed to hover before Leng Fangxie’s eyes, while its body wound and writhed across him. Given the python's size, it should have been heavy as a mountain, yet Leng Fangxie felt no pressure, only waves of chilling coldness, interspersed with the ticklish sensation of its scales rubbing against him.

The green serpent seemed to crave the warmth of a human body. Merely by pressing against Leng Fangxie, the sinister, evil mist around it faded significantly. As it flicked its tongue, it seemed lazy and content.

Only Leng Fangxie suffered.

The snake spent every day tangled with him. Most of the time it was quiet, simply pressing its body against his to draw warmth from his flesh. Leng Fangxie could ignore the bone-chilling cold and focus on finding a strategy. But at times, the snake would inexplicably go mad, rubbing its massive head against his cheeks, shoulders, and neck, its tongue sliding over the back of his neck and leaving a trail of wet moisture.

The serpentine tail wrapped around his body was also restless, the tip making unsettling sounds as it struck Leng Fangxie’s feet. The scales at the tail would open and close, scraping against his legs and leaving a trail of warm, moist substance behind.

Leng Fangxie pushed the green serpent away with great effort and braced himself on the soft bed to sit up, only to see a layer of transparent, wet residue on his legs, faintly glowing. He tried to wipe it away with his hand, but instead of cleaning it, he ended up getting it all over his palm.

"Get out!" Leng Fangxie cursed. The green serpent, oblivious, pressed itself against him again. Its tail parted his legs and wedged itself firmly against his groin, forcing his legs to stay stiffly apart. He could feel the length of the serpent's body slowly writhing, causing an unbearable itch.

This act, bordering on copulation, made him deeply uncomfortable, and his sense of foreboding grew stronger. Leng Fangxie hissed, "Get out!!"

If it weren't for his dimmed brilliance, he would have shredded this beast into ten thousand pieces!

The commotion drew Xi Qingyi, who was always appearing like a ghost. Seeing Leng Fangxie’s predicament, rather than removing the serpent, he leaned his chin on his hand in appreciation, his eyes full of interest.

By the time murderous intent overflowed in Leng Fangxie’s eyes, he finally flicked the serpent away with a casual gesture, saying languidly, "This foolish thing has been lonely with me for a thousand years and has never seen an outsider. Perhaps it is just curious after finally seeing another human! Besides, you are different from me; you are like the rising sun, full of vitality. Darkness chases the light; it is no surprise that the green serpent is obsessed with you."

As he spoke, he stepped closer. His dark gaze fell upon the side of Leng Fangxie’s neck, which was still glistening where the snake’s tongue had been. He pressed his thumb against it, moving it lightly. "Even I sometimes cannot help but want to be close to you."

With the movement of his fingers, a cold, dark spiritual energy seeped into Leng Fangxie’s body, and a moment later, the moisture on his skin was wiped clean.

"There," Xi Qingyi said, as if expecting praise.

Leng Fangxie closed his eyes and calmed his spirit, ignoring him.

Xi Qingyi did not leave. Even with his eyes closed, Leng Fangxie could feel his gaze scanning his body, as if piercing through clothes and skin to reach his flesh and blood.

Xi Qingyi kept him imprisoned here, and aside from letting the serpent disturb him, he did nothing else. He neither demanded secrets about the Jiuchen Sect nor probed the techniques Leng Fangxie practiced. He only appeared occasionally to look at him, speak a few words, or hum a few lines of opera. His purpose was unclear, and his attitude was intriguing.

He truly seemed to be, as he claimed, just someone lacking a companion.

Leng Fangxie, however, did not believe a word of Xi Qingyi's nonsense. If a thousand-year-old ghost were truly lonely, he would have had his pick of people every time the secret realm opened and swarms of vibrant young cultivators entered. Why would he lack company?

He feared the man's purpose far exceeded his imagination.

"You are always thinking of other things every day," Xi Qingyi said abruptly. "Why not take a good look at me and it? You know who I am; are you not curious about me or the Daoist arts of that era? I was such a prodigy—are you not interested in how I fell to this state?"

Leng Fangxie said coolly, "Given your methods, there could be no second outcome other than death and the dissipation of your Dao. Being able to linger in this secret realm is already the greatest stroke of luck in your life; what is there to be curious about?"

Xi Qingyi continued, "Then look at the dark orb overhead. You mentioned wanting to find a treasure to aid in enlightenment, which I assume is true. This object is called the Primordial Orb, a supreme spiritual treasure nurtured by several Daoist Sovereigns. Every other day, it grants a chance for enlightenment."

Leng Fangxie opened his eyes, but he showed not a shred of interest.

"Do you want it?" Xi Qingyi asked with a smile.

Leng Fangxie replied, "If you do not let me out, what use is that decoration to me?"

"Sigh—" Xi Qingyi shook his head slowly, appearing very troubled. "Truly difficult to please. However, you are worth my effort. I will go out now to see what might please you, and let this foolish thing continue to keep you company."

The green serpent, which had been pressed aside and was growing restless, scurried back onto the bed, impatiently pressing its body against his warm skin.

Leng Fangxie had to get used to it, whether he liked it or not. He was contemplating the information Xi Qingyi had revealed in their conversation when he suddenly felt a searing, scorching heat.

What was that?

Accustomed to the coldness of the snake's scales, the sudden heat was somewhat unbearable. Leng Fangxie braced himself and looked down, his eyes widening abruptly.

"...You beast!"

Sensing the human's incredulous gaze, the hissing green serpent, as if receiving some reward, grew even more excited. Its tail wrapped around Leng Fangxie with fervor, and a stream of scorching, clear liquid splashed onto his thighs, winding its way down.