The polluted source, a divine beast and a call!

Bai Ying yue opened his eyes.

He felt warm hands groping his chest beneath his robe. He was overcome with shame and heat; only one person would dare to do that.

»You've been poisoned,« Zhen Yan said. Ying yue grudgingly brushed away the hand that approached him. »I know,« he hissed between clenched teeth. He could feel the poison inside him, how it ate through his veins and how it burned and devoured everything like a hellfire.

But the feeling that overcame him when Zhen yan approached him was even more unpleasant. His heart sank and a joyful feeling in his lower abdomen rolled back and forth. Zhen yan raised his hand again and Ying yue brushed it away.

»This is childish,« Zhen yan was annoyed, and didn't let himself be stopped a third time from putting his hand under Ying yue's collar and feeling his chest. Ying yue inhaled sharply when Zhen yan's fingers touched his skin, and he trembled, his body, his heart, and even though the demon's fingers were ice cold, they burned on his skin.

He stared, without blinking, into the dark, emerald-green eyes, while Zhen yan diverted the poison in him to look away or blink would be tantamount to defeat.

»So childish,« Zhen yan repeated softly. He sat down next to Ying yue and supported his back with his other hand. Even now that they were sitting next to each other on the bed, the demon still towered half a head above the young warrior.

Ying yue felt the poison building up inside him, but his rigid posture prevented it from escaping. He had hardened himself completely, unable to move, he suppressed the feelings that welled up inside him when Zhen yan looked at him or touched him, as he was doing now, with all his might.

He didn't want to feel these things, didn't want to question them, didn't want to know what the leaping of his heart and the heat inside him meant. Zhen yan was a demon and a man, Ying yue couldn't say which of these was the worst.

»Bai Ying yue,« Zhen yan's voice sounded warning and his fingertips pressed harder on his chest. Their eye contact was intense, too intense, and Zhen yan leaned forward even further. When the tips of their noses touched and their lips were only a few millimeters away, Ying yue turned away.

Zhen yan pushed him with gentle force against the bed and loosened his clothes. With one hand, he gathered the poison under Ying yue's skin under his fingertips, with the other, he ran his hand down his stomach. Ying yue's abs trembled under his touch, as if they wanted to evade him. Ying yue reached for his hand.

»Stop,« he forced out between clenched teeth, glaring angrily at Zhen yan. The fever and the poison in his body writhed in spasms. Zhen yan's hand went numb as Ying yue clutched at him in a fit. Zhen yan used a little more magic.

The burden dropped from Ying yue and with a retch, he vomited blood and poison. The tightness in his chest eased immediately and a slight one took its place. His chest rose and fell, trembling as he took a deep breath. Zhen yan's fingers slid over his pale skin and touched his chest before they retreated.

»Shameless, even under such circumstances,« Ying yue growled angrily.

»You're welcome,« the demon replied cheerfully and withdrew. He watched as Ying yue sat cross-legged on the floor and fell into a restless meditation.

Only a few weeks ago, Ying yue would have stuck his sword through his chest if he had been so impertinent. Now he only slapped his hands angrily when Zhen yan crossed his boundaries. The demon watched the young man with delight. His braid had come loose and long strands of dark hair fell across his face, brushing his cheeks and cascading down his shoulders.

His dark eyes were closed and his eyelids twitched nervously, so he was well aware of Zhen yan's presence. Ying yue's thick eyelashes were so long that the candlelight cast her shadow on his cheek. His eyebrows were drawn together, his lips pressed together to prevent him from doing anything more impertinent. After a while, he opened his eyes again.

»What happened?« he asked. Zhen yan had casually sat down at the low table. They were back in their tent. Zhen yan raised an eyebrow.

»You haven't heard yet, oh hero?« he joked. ‚You alone have slain the beast of the corrupted forest and cleansed the source of the miasma,' he said, pouring himself a bowl of steaming, clear liquid. It was alcohol. What could a demon like Zhen yan possibly find to like about this poison? Ying yue frowned and pursed his lips. His pale but earnest expression betrayed skepticism. Zhen yan sighed.

»A lot has happened in the week you've been unconscious,« he explained more seriously. »Let's start from the beginning. You lost consciousness just as I was cracking the turtle shell, and you mumbled something about jade shards and divine trees before you completely lost

consciousness.« Ying yue continued to watch Zhen yan with narrowed eyes. »I destroyed the jade splinter and with it the source of the miasma, but if someone asks you about it, you are welcome to boast about this heroic deed,« he said, winking at him. Ying yue swallowed.

So Zhen yan really wanted to continue playing this game? Then it was logical that he had told him that Ying yue, who was officially considered his master, had destroyed the shard. But something about the story bothered him. At the edge of his consciousness, he had perceived something else. Zhen yan hadn't destroyed the shard, he had absorbed it.

Was he lying? Ying yue took a deep breath, and to his surprise, he didn't want to know. The result was that Zhen yan would stay with him a little longer and, as much as he was ashamed of it, that was all that meant something to him.

»When the source disappeared and the miasma collapsed, many demons became headless and ran around wildly. For days, the fighters and the magicians have been busy exterminating them. But now they are no longer afraid, but have literally declared a hunt. Whoever kills the most Yao will be rewarded and recognized,« Zhen yan's tone had become increasingly icy. The demon looked up. »Of course no one will get as much credit as you,« he said more cheerfully.

»The divine beast... how did you?« Ying yue's question hung in the air; he still felt unnaturally weak. He had only used the excuse of meditating to see if Zhen yan had been injured elsewhere. But he seemed to be unharmed. Zhen yan shrugged. »

After you had perforated the shell with Xiaodan and I had a clear path into the interior, it was quite simple. I broke the shell and when the splinter was removed, the six remaining heads decomposed instantly. You were badly wounded and poisoned to the gills. For days I had to separate the poison in you bit by bit from your spiritual energy and collect it and then wait for you to finally wake up to make you spit it out,« he complained.

Ying yue put his hand on his heart, it was true, he felt the energy flowing freely and effortlessly in him. He didn't feel any trace of miasma in him anymore. Even the most experienced healers and medicine men wouldn't have succeeded in that. He really owed his life to Zhen yan this time.

»Thank you...« was all he could manage. Zhen yan had stood up, smiled, and bent over Ying yue, his black hair falling like a silk curtain.

»How do you plan to thank me?« he asked defiantly. Ying yue had become serious again, he stared stubbornly ahead, even though his gaze fell on the half-exposed chest of the demon, who hadn't really dressed up. Apparently he hadn't left the tent in the past few days either. Ying yue narrowed his eyes and pressed his lips together. He didn't say a word.

»Still unapproachable, huh?« Zhen yan said softly and his dark, soft voice floated over him. With one hand he stroked Ying yue's cheek and gently opened his lips with his thumb. Although Ying yue resisted, his body surprisingly did the complete opposite. He turned his head around abruptly.

»Stop it!« he scolded. But his voice trembled slightly and he felt his breathing quicken. He couldn't see the blush on his cheeks and ears, though.

»You called my name,« Zhen Yan whispered right into his ear, and Ying yue suppressed a shudder! »In there, when you thought you were going to die, you didn't pray to the gods or beg your father for forgiveness, you called for me!« His lips touched Ying yue's ear and breathed a soft kiss on his earlobe. I will be there.

No matter how far away I am, I promise you I will be there when you need me!« Ying yue took the hand of the great demon and pushed it away. After he had pulled back, he turned his head straight again and looked up at him. »Should you say such things to another man?« he asked, but this time his anger was restrained. Zhen yan laughed.

»Would you rather I said it to another woman?« he asked and noticed how Ying yue's hand, still clasping his, flinched briefly. Before Zhen yan could provoke and tease him further, Ying yue pushed his hand aside and said loudly and firmly, »No!« Then he stood up abruptly and left the tent. Zhen yan stood in front of the bed for a while, his hand raised and pushed aside by Ying yue, his forehead deeply wrinkled. Did Ying yue just forbid him from flirting with others?

Ying yue had just stepped outside his tent to get some fresh air and calm down a bit when he heard footsteps behind him. He quickly straightened his robe and turned around.

»Wang Gongzi,« he greeted politely, clenching his hand into a fist. Of course, Wang Bing wen would show up here, too; after all, he had sent Ying yue, and thus, he also had a share in dissolving the miasma of Fubei senlin. Bing wen took a quick look at him, but didn't seem to consider it appropriate to point out his appearance to Ying yue.

»I see you are awake again, Bai Gongzi,« he said politely. ‚How are you? I heard you were badly injured and poisoned by the miasma.' Ying yue bowed. »Thank you for your concern. The injuries are not too bad and as for the poisoning, the doctors here in the camp have done a great job,« he replied. Bing wen nodded. Then his gaze fell on the tent, the entrance blew slightly in the wind, but you couldn't see inside.

»I heard you were a companion of a demon,« Bing wen finally came out with it. »What made you do that? As far as I can tell, you have always rejected demon taming!« Ying yue's gaze flickered to the tent, hoping that Zhen yan would behave for a little longer. Soon he would leave when everything was settled, and then they would be traveling alone again.

Ying yue drew in a sharp breath when he realized that he preferred to roam the wilderness alone with Zhen yan than to deal with other cultivators. Of course, he had never particularly liked dealing with members of other clans, he was not even a welcome sight in his own clan, but at least he had always been welcomed into hunting groups with open arms. Ying yue forced a smile on his lips, it came across as colder than intended, so he kept his usual serious expression.

»I'm curious, what kind are they?« Wang Bing wen continued. Ying yue thought of the tall, slender yet muscular figure of Zhen yan. Of his magnificent robe in black and dark green. The dark eyes that resembled emeralds, the thick eyebrows, the straight nose and the full lips. Of his slender fingers and the coolness of his skin, which nevertheless radiated a certain heat.

»A mountain demon!« Ying yue replied, looking straight at Bing wen. ‚I had an accident on Mount Wushan and fell. That's when I met him. After the fall, I was physically too weak to fight him, so my only option was to try my luck at taming him,' he explained. That was a lie.

Ying yue had often conjured up white lies. You didn't get far with honesty when you were the son of a concubine. Still, when he was called to be a cultivator, he had sworn off this unattractive trait, actually. Wang Bing wen nodded. »I understand. I am glad that you were successful and that he is a good servant for you!« Ying yue ground his jaw.

His servant? How long would Zhen yan tease him with that? He half expected the demon to walk out of the tent and call out to him happily, ‚My wife!' But he stayed in the tent, quiet as a mouse. Ying yue had no idea that Zhen yan was still standing in front of the bed, confused and wondering how far Ying yue's ‚no' went.

Was he not allowed to talk to women or not even to men? What about Yao? Was he simply not allowed to be nice or not say anything at all and if so, would Ying yue get jealous? He was almost tempted to ensnare every living creature just to find out if the young swordsman would turn angrily red.

Wang Bing wen had received his answer, but was still dissatisfied. He had wanted to see the demon with his own eyes and make up his mind. After all, it had caused quite a stir. Not only was it unusual for a subdued demon not to immediately attack its master when he showed weakness, it had carried Bai Ying yue all the way from the mountain by itself, killing thousands of yao in the process.

When the cultivators noticed the fluctuation of the miasma and rushed into the forest, they saw with their own eyes how the demon, with Ying yue in his arms and a mere blink of an eye, slaughtered two demons that had been created from a selection ritual.

Not to mention the hundreds of undead Yao and after that, he had comfortably crossed the protective barrier without his master's permission and disappeared into the tent with Ying yue for a full five days. No one had seen him since then, the young swordsman's injuries had healed so well and the poisoning didn't affect him any further either, that could only be the work of this demon. A mountain demon? They were strong, but also coarse and stupid.

If you didn't subjugate a demon, you entered into a contract with it, but this method cost you more than you got, and Bai Ying yue had never indicated any intention of taking possession of something that didn't belong to him. Wang Bing wen saw Ying yue as a comrade, even if not as a friend, he had never heard anything bad about him and he had never been unreliable.

So Bing wen took a deep breath before calling it a day for today. »Actually, I do have another job for you,« he changed the subject. ‚Well, actually it's more of a request!' He took another golden scroll out of his sleeve and handed it to Ying yue. »This request reached me at the same moment that I received the news of your victory in the Blighted Forest, and the applicant immediately insisted that you should get this request,« Bing wen cleared his throat.

Normally, private requests are not granted, but sent to several clan houses, and each house sends a messenger, who then deals with the matter in a group. »Normally, I go the official way, but at the moment that takes up too much time. Even though the matter seems to have been resolved here, demonic activities are still springing up like weeds. There are investigations and fights going on at every turn. So if you are willing to take a look!« Bing wen asked.

Ying yue took the scroll from him and unwound the tape. A few hundred years ago, there was a bride who was dropped off at a temple halfway through her bridal procession due to a storm and was promised that her future husband would come for her soon.

But the groom didn't think about it, and so the two families argued until a few weeks later, temple servants found the young woman's body still kneeling in the temple. Shortly thereafter, the temple servants who had returned after the storm heard strange noises at night, weeping and sobbing, and a female voice was heard repeatedly calling,

»Where is my husband, where is he? Are you my husband?« When she received no answer, she moved on and calmed down at daybreak.

One day, however, when one of the younger novices answered her and explained that her husband had left her and would not be coming back, she became angry and killed him. Soon after, her lamentations became even louder, and soon she could no longer be ignored.

Many cultivators begged the former husband to apologize to the ghost, but he refused, moved away and married another woman. But soon the spurned woman was tired of complaining. One night she asked a temple visitor if he was her husband, and he jokingly answered in the affirmative. The next morning, except for a huge pool of blood, no remains were found. And so the ghost of a wailing woman became a Yao.

The temple had to close and only those who spent the night in it despite all warnings disappeared, leaving only a lake of blood. For decades, the Wailing Bride remained silent, but in recent times her radius had expanded and she began asking passers-by and pilgrims on the street.

She soon appeared in the villages and even managed to break one or two spirit-deterring seals. The number of victims rose rapidly. Ying yue rolled up the parchment again. The Yao had been unusually active lately and were growing stronger and stronger. Could the Weeping Bride also be possessed by one of the black jade shards? Ying yue bowed before Wang Bing wen.

»I will write a report about the incidents at the Fubai senlin and send it to you. Don't worry, I will look into the case of the complaining bride. Should I come to the conclusion that I can't take her on alone, I will ask for help,« he said, following etiquette and looking at the ground at Wang Gongzi's feet the whole time.

It was unlikely that he, with Zhen yan at his side, would be able to stop this ghost woman. But he didn't say that out loud. He didn't need to, he knew that Wang Bing wen was thinking exactly the same thing. Ying yue had no problems with a demon that could just about sweep away half of the Yao on the mountain.

Bing wen took a step towards him, hands clasped behind his back, leaning slightly forward. »Take care!« he murmured to Ying yue before disappearing with a nod of his head. Ying yue straightened up again. Was that a warning or advice? He went back to the tent. Zhen yan had sat down in front of the table again and waved his tea bowl.

»Are you done chatting?« he asked, bored. Ying yue gave him an annoyed look. »We'll be leaving soon,« he said. »Ah! Where are we going?« Zhen yan asked cheerfully. Before Ying yue could grab his renewed robe and put it on, he pointed at the demon with the scroll in his hand.

»To Hong Shan, there's an old, abandoned temple of marriage there!« He froze when he realized what he had just said. He quickly turned around and tried to nip Zhen yan's usual teasing in the bud, but the latter had only leaned back, looked at Ying yue with raised eyebrows and a broad grin on his face, before he slowly raised his tea bowl to his mouth and murmured,

»As you wish, my love!«