Unable to persuade Ye Chu to act, Pang Shao could only give up helplessly. Yet the fellow was despicable enough. After revealing to Bai Xuan that Ye Chu had been feigning his faint, he swaggered off.
Lying on the bed, Ye Chu now faced the fallout from Pang Shao’s vile exposure.
Bai Xuan’s beautiful eyes fixed on Ye Chu in a glare. Her tender red lips were lightly bitten, anger clear in her clenched teeth. “What Pang Shao said, is it true?”
At the time, Bai Xuan had not thought much about it. Only now did she recall how Ye Chu’s head had collided with her proud peaks, as if he had planned it perfectly. Her face flushed crimson. She could not help thinking this fellow was utterly rotten.
Seeing Bai Xuan’s cheeks turn a blood-like red, her delicate face radiant, her soft, smooth skin tinted with a drunken flush, Ye Chu’s heart was thrown into chaos. He felt utterly enchanted.
Bai Xuan’s angry question snapped him back. Ye Chu cursed Pang Shao in his mind, then looked at her with perfect innocence and firmly denied it. “Bai Xuan sis, you actually believe Pang Shao’s words? I don’t need to say much about that fatty’s character. This time he framed me because I refused to help him get revenge for the beating that left his face swollen. I chose to treat your father instead. He bears a grudge.”
“Really?” Bai Xuan studied Ye Chu’s wronged expression, as if he had suffered a great injustice. Doubt crept in. Had she wrongly accused him?
“Of course it’s true. You know how terrifying baleful energy is. Sis wouldn’t naively think that all of it surging into my body left me completely unharmed.” Ye Chu put on a pitiful look, his expression dimming as if deeply hurt. He sighed and continued, “I thought waking up would earn your praise, maybe even a fragrant kiss as a reward. Instead, I get questioned. Looks like I’m not suited to good deeds. Evil must be my true path. From now on, I’ll bully men and dominate women. Sis, you’ve ruined my chance to be a good person.”
“Don’t talk nonsense.” Bai Xuan rolled her eyes at him. Her clear, rippling eyes held a thousand charms. A faint blush rose on her perfect oval face. She wondered if she had truly wronged him. At least from his behaviour, he seemed far better than Pang Shao, who changed women daily. And Ye Chu had put great effort into saving her father. Questioning him like this felt unfair. It might really hurt him.
“I apologise.” Bai Xuan said sincerely. “I shouldn’t have doubted you.”
Ye Chu secretly rejoiced inside, remembering the soft fragrance in his arms. His heart stirred. He almost wished to faint again. Naturally, he showed none of this glee. He kept a bitter face, still looking innocent. “Sis has already wounded my heart. Shouldn’t there be a consolation prize? I’m not demanding. A fragrant kiss would do.”
“I’m going to check on Yaoyao.” Seeing Ye Chu’s burning gaze fixed on her, Bai Xuan panicked, made an excuse, and fled the room.
This fellow was so young, yet so bold. The way he looked at women felt as if he wanted to devour them. There was no youthful awkwardness, only the skill of a seasoned veteran.
Ye Chu admired the graceful sway of Bai Xuan’s retreating figure until she left the room. Only then did he flip up from the bed, movements swift. Where was any trace of weakness after fainting?
…
Bai Xuan’s father had a strong constitution. One day after Ye Chu expelled the baleful energy, he woke. Bai Xuan wept with joy, her gratitude towards Ye Chu deepening.
Ye Chu did not rush to ask Bai Bao about the general’s tomb. He instructed Bai Xuan to find an alchemist to nurse him back to health.
Though Ye Chu had some skill against baleful energy, true healing was only superficial for him. He could not compare to a proper alchemist. Now, Bai Bao needed only slow recovery. Ye Chu was no better than an alchemist at that.
Because he had exposed Ye Chu’s pretended faint, Pang Shao dared not appear before him. Ye Chu enjoyed rare peace, happily taking Yaoyao out to play in the mud.
A seventeen-year-old young man playing with mud by the roadside. Bai Xuan often wanted to laugh at the sight. Sometimes passers-by glanced at Ye Chu several times, sighing inwardly. Such a handsome lad, yet mentally impaired. What a pity.
Ye Chu paid no mind to others’ stares. Whatever Yaoyao wanted to play, they played. Being with this chubby, snow-white little girl who looked like a porcelain doll, Ye Chu felt his own heart soften, becoming carefree too.
Over the past three years, he had wandered the continent, travelling no less than a hundred thousand li. The experiences outweighed all his previous years combined countless times. Every day carried pressure. He had endured three full years of trials. Such relaxed moments were truly rare.
Yet he did not know how long this life would last.
At present, he was neither particularly strong nor weak. Though far from comparing to those madmen on Qingmi Mountain, in Yao City, few could casually provoke him.
Returning to Yao City this time was because that lunatic fatty on Qingmi Mountain had mentioned a unique book left here. It might help with his special constitution. Only for that did Ye Chu come back. But in this vast Yao City, who knew where that book was.
“Dead fatty. Says half a sentence and won’t tell me exactly where.” Ye Chu cursed inwardly, but he was helpless against the man. His dislike of the fatty stemmed from this powerlessness.
If Pang Shao knew this was why Ye Chu disliked fatties, he would surely weep. You’re annoyed with him, fine. Don’t vent on other fatties. Go settle it with him if you dare. There’s punishing nine generations of a family, but never punishing by body type.
“Fine. If I really can’t find it, I won’t look. Though I don’t understand what change happened when my soul entered this body, at least for now it brings only benefits.” Ye Chu shook his head. If he could not find it, so be it. Spend more time cultivating. Reach a high enough realm, and perhaps he would understand why.
“I’ve lingered at this realm for three months. No idea when I’ll break through.” Thinking of his cultivation level, Ye Chu felt helpless. There was still no sign of advancement.
…
Under the alchemist’s care, Bai Bao’s condition gradually improved. Naturally, he had heard of Ye Chu’s reputation. He was surprised Ye Chu could resolve the baleful energy. As the victim, he knew its terror. The moment it entered his body, he had felt certain death. Even palace alchemists could not have saved him, let alone the infamous Ye Chu.
Bai Bao did not dislike Ye Chu because of rumours. Men of broad experience like him would not let others’ words sway their judgement. Moreover, Ye Chu had saved him. He felt grateful and treated Ye Chu kindly.
Sometimes they chatted. This only deepened Bai Bao’s surprise. Where was the worthless youth rumour claimed? Some of Ye Chu’s views made him slap the table in admiration. Some tales he had never heard. His words always carried independent thought, nothing like a mere seventeen-year-old.
Of course, interacting with Bai Bao, Ye Chu also found the man extraordinary. Occasional remarks left him pondering long without full understanding. Some insights into cultivation surpassed his own comprehension.
Ye Chu had originally thought Bai Bao merely a capable cultivator. Now he realised it was not so simple. It made sense. A man who reached the depths of a general’s tomb could not be ordinary.
