As soon as Mo Xuanli stepped into the illusion, he saw his Master—who had only ever been good to him—preparing to hold a wedding ceremony with another. At that moment, the world spun wildly, and he sank deeply into the illusion. Following his true feelings, he could not tolerate Master marrying someone else, nor tolerate anyone else attracting Master’s attention.
So Mo Xuanli frantically destroyed the wedding banquet, kidnapped his beloved Master, and threw him onto the bridal chamber bed, pressing him down forcefully.
“Mo Xuanli, are you crazy?”
“Master, please don’t marry someone else. I beg you.”
“What does my marriage have to do with you?! Don’t be willful.”
“No… I can’t accept it. Master, just the two of us… living together isn’t it better? Why must there be others?”
“That’s not ‘others,’ that is my beloved. She is your master’s wife!”
“But I only have Master. Can Master not have only me? What kind of beloved is that? How can Master have a beloved?”
“Enough! Snap out of it and get out!”
This sentence utterly enraged Mo Xuanli. But when he looked down, his expression changed drastically. At this moment, Gu Baiqing was flushed from anger, tears at the corners of his eyes, his black hair disheveled over the crimson wedding blanket, wearing only a thin red robe, its collar wide open, revealing a pale chest rising and falling violently with anger.
Mo Xuanli, as if possessed, reached out his hand.
In that instant, he understood why he destroyed the banquet, why he was angry, why he took his Master away.
Because Master was his, the only person in the world who was good to him, this one and only could not be lost. Master—from head to toe, inside and out, from soul to emotion—should belong solely to him.
“If Master insists on marrying, then it can only be me.”
With a wave of his hand, the bed curtain fell.
“Beast! Let go… of Master.”
“Master… Master… my Master!”
Only when Gu Baiqing’s cold voice came from outside did Mo Xuanli suddenly awaken, realizing this was an illusion. He tried to get up abruptly, but in an instant felt the warmth beneath him again. Looking down, his eyes were full of his Master. Thinking of the real Master outside, Mo Xuanli gritted his teeth and unleashed his spiritual power. The illusion before him vanished.
Mo Xuanli quickly put on his clothes and lifted the curtain, seeing the real Gu Baiqing’s displeased face.
“Master…”
“You’re young and immature. Fooling around.”
To Gu Baiqing, it was just that his disciple had become lost in a lustful illusion; he didn’t know the illusory figure was actually himself.
At this moment, Mo Xuanli was too ashamed to look up at Master. His body’s heat had not yet subsided.
“Master, I’m sorry. It’s your disciple…”
“It’s not entirely your fault. The illusion here malfunctioned. I came to rescue you.”
The larger illusion was not yet dispelled. The two had to feel their way forward. During the breaking of the illusion, Gu Baiqing habitually protected his disciple, blocking a blow for Mo Xuanli and falling into unconsciousness.
The illusion itself suddenly malfunctioned again. Seeing Master injured, Mo Xuanli burst forth with potential, seized the opportunity, and eliminated the illusion beast. But the dying beast’s aftershock still affected Mo Xuanli, causing his thoughts to briefly spiral out of control.
Looking down at the real Master lying in his arms—face pale, lips red—Mo Xuanli was unaware, as if allowing himself free rein.
He finally could not resist and bent down to kiss.
He even briefly took control of the illusion. When he collapsed holding Master, they fell onto the bed in Luofeng Pavilion’s inner chamber.
Mo Xuanli’s kiss did not leave, but even though his reason was out of control, he dared not treat the real Master as before—only extinguishing his passion simply with feelings both respectful and loving.
…
Respectful and loving? Heh heh? Gu Baiqing unintentionally recalled that scene again and was certain the rebellious disciple had not done all sorts of things while the Master was unconscious—pah pah pah, he didn’t even have the face to mention. Afterwards, though Mo Xuanli regretted and blamed himself, yet he still couldn’t help but imagine his Master every night—what a wicked disciple!
Gu Baiqing calculated the time. Mo Xuanli was already trapped in the illusion. If Mo Xuanli had no evil intentions toward him, the illusion must be different.
Gu Baiqing was not confident in Mo Xuanli’s current thoughts, only hoping the kid wasn’t controlled by the Master’s text, that they would remain a pure Master-disciple pair.
As time passed, all other disciples who had entered before gradually came out, leaving only Mo Xuanli still silent inside.
The onlookers inevitably felt some regret, thinking maybe Mo Xuanli could create some miracle this time again.
Suddenly, the elder responsible for monitoring the Demon Refining Tower hurried to Fu Zhiyi, anxious:
“Something’s wrong in the Demon Refining Tower.”
Gu Baiqing listened calmly to the report, which matched the previous scenario. Normally one beast appeared per level, but suddenly two illusion beasts appeared in Mo Xuanli’s level, with overlapping double illusions—far beyond what a Foundation Establishment disciple could dispel. This was not a matter of skill but a vast cultivation gap.
“Stop the trial and bring Mo Xuanli out,” Fu Zhiyi decisively ordered. Why were there suddenly two illusion beasts, would have to wait until after rescue.
“This can’t be stopped. Either send someone inside to dispel the illusion and bring him out, or destroy the tower from outside.”
But everyone knew once the tower was broken, the beasts inside would scatter. These were bloodthirsty beasts that ate people—letting them loose would be disastrous. So only the first option remained.
“We can’t delay any longer. If this goes on, Mo’s consciousness will be trapped in the illusion forever,” the elder explained, sweating profusely, then looked at Gu Baiqing.
After all, Mo Xuanli was Gu Baiqing’s direct disciple, so it was appropriate…
“Send an illusion technique expert inside,” Fu Zhiyi said outright.
Others were puzzled. Shouldn’t Gu Baiqing go rescue him?
Gu Baiqing ignored their gazes. He had a perfectly reasonable excuse in their eyes—he had no spiritual power to rescue.
Besides, after all this time training Mo Xuanli, Gu Baiqing believed that as long as Mo Xuanli didn’t harbor impure thoughts, even trapped in that tender illusion, even with two illusion beasts, Mo Xuanli could escape successfully if given more time.
Soon, several elders skilled in illusion magic were summoned, but they immediately encountered difficulties.
The Demon Refining Tower’s teleport arrays were affected by the beasts. They didn’t know which space the person was sent to. The tower had too many spaces, and without being able to pinpoint location, searching randomly would waste time.
Everyone had no choice but to look at Gu Baiqing.
Gu Baiqing and Mo Xuanli shared a Master-disciple bond. Though location couldn’t be pinpointed, there was a connection—only Gu Baiqing stepping into the array would be instantly transmitted into the same space.
“Then we’ll wait,” Fu Zhiyi naturally wouldn’t let Gu Baiqing take the risk. After all, the array could only transmit one person at a time, and Gu Baiqing couldn’t bring along a high-spiritual-power expert. This matter was unsolvable. If it failed, they would have to destroy the tower and figure out which arrays could contain the beasts.
Fu Zhiyi began frantically brainstorming.
As soon as Fu Zhiyi spoke, the onlookers who had heard of the incident whispered immediately.
Everyone knew that as soon as Gu Baiqing acted, Mo Xuanli would definitely be fine.
But why didn’t he act?!
Tang Yu wanted to rush up and question Gu Baiqing, but dared not. Helpless, he looked around, hoping to see an especially anxious woman. At this moment, that little Plum Branch shouldn’t be so heartless as to not show any concern.
After a while, the tower guardian elder grew increasingly anxious, clearly knowing the inside situation better. He knew if they delayed any longer, Mo Xuanli’s death was certain.
At that moment, Gu Baiqing suddenly stood up.
Next to him, Luo Nianyi somewhat disapprovingly tugged on Gu Baiqing’s sleeve, frowned, and shook his head, signaling to wait a bit longer, silently telling him with his eyes that Second Senior Brother was also trying to find a solution.
Gu Baiqing’s face had already turned pale. He drew out Morning Snow, which instantly grew large, and with a step stomped onto it, flying sword-style straight into the Demon Refining Tower.
“Junior Brother recovered?” Fu Zhiyi exclaimed in surprise.
“Afraid it’s just temporary again!” Chu Fei also wanted to rush in.
“What are you doing!” Luo Nianyi hurried to pull him back.
“Since it’s random, what if it hits the right mark!” Chu Fei shrugged off Luo Nianyi and burst into the Demon Refining Tower. Meanwhile, watching below, Nan Zhi saw her Master acting like this and without hesitation, also charged in wielding her heavy sword.
At this moment, Gu Baiqing watched as his points steadily dropped, truly furious.
If not for the system warning that something serious was about to happen, he wouldn’t have been forced to rush in to save someone. Gu Baiqing was really disappointed—he had hoped this time Mo Xuanli could manage on his own, but unexpectedly he still had to rely on him.
He was genuinely afraid of encountering some indescribable illusion scene. If Mo Xuanli were to be left with psychological trauma, how would he ever face task missions again?
Gu Baiqing prayed silently for a long time, and then a flash of white light passed. When he opened his eyes again, he was overwhelmed by the mountain-wide red of joy and celebration.
They were setting him up, his Master!
This was really a wedding banquet!
Gu Baiqing surged forward in one breath, holding Morning Snow ready to beat someone up.
But when he reached the banquet, no one was there. Meaning this scene was already past. Then next would be… Gu Baiqing started silently repeating in his mind:
“Don’t let me catch you in the bridal chamber, don’t let me catch you in the bridal chamber!
If you dare to do anything to your Master, I’ll castrate you!”
Gu Baiqing felt awkward all over, as if something was about to happen to him. Like the wind, he rushed toward the inner chamber.
Just outside the inner chamber door, he indeed heard voices inside—Mo Xuanli’s and his own.
“Xuanli, don’t be so forceful, take it easy.”
“Master, please don’t blame me. I was just too excited and lost my strength, but this also shows my sincerity.”
Outside, Gu Baiqing’s body hairs stood on end. What kind of wolf-tiger words were those?! You little brat, Mo Xuanli, you’re dead!
Gu Baiqing kicked open the door directly, holding Morning Snow, filled with murderous intent.
Because the illusion created by the beast could not affect cultivators with higher cultivation than itself, Gu Baiqing’s Tribulation Crossing level cultivation could not enter the illusion at all. So the people inside showed no reaction to Gu Baiqing’s appearance and continued their own actions.
At that moment, Gu Baiqing stopped, shocked by the scene before him.
Mo Xuanli was respectfully kneeling on the ground, full of smiles, holding a teacup to toast Gu Baiqing and the bride…
No rebellious disciple behavior, no warm scenes in the bridal chamber, but… tea offering.
The disciple was offering tea to Master and Master’s wife?
“Yes, Xuanli, be gentle when kowtowing, don’t knock yourself silly and embarrass your Master’s wife,” someone teased nearby, laughing.
Gu Baiqing was dumbfounded, then blushed, his hand trembling. Clearing his throat, he looked around. Although many people were nearby, no one should have seen him.
Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Gu Baiqing caught a glimpse of a colorful figure flashing past.
Startled, Gu Baiqing looked up just in time to see the figure vanish as if merging into the background. He immediately sent out Morning Snow to intercept, but the figure disappeared in a blink.
Gu Baiqing knew this must be the beast.
He had no time to chase it now—if he didn’t quickly wake Mo Xuanli, his consciousness would be trapped here.
Gu Baiqing retracted Morning Snow and hurried forward to grab Mo Xuanli.
“Mo Xuanli, wake up, this is an illusion.”
But Gu Baiqing’s hand passed right through Mo Xuanli’s body. He immediately realized—if Mo Xuanli wasn’t awake, they were essentially in two different spaces.
Looking at the silly smile on Mo Xuanli’s face, Gu Baiqing couldn’t help but laugh in anger. What was so special about this illusion to make him sink into it? With stronger power than the original text, he still failed. Next time he should be punished properly.
Listening to the system alarm ringing louder in his mind, Gu Baiqing could no longer be angry, only desperately trying to call Mo Xuanli awake.
But the disciple who in the original text was easily awakened by Master was stubborn now.
Gu Baiqing was helpless and had to ask the system for help.
System: [Detected plot deviation. The task target has been immersed in the illusion too long and cannot break free, affecting task completion. Does the host want to exchange points for a strategy to resolve the current predicament?]
Hearing this, Gu Baiqing understood. It meant he had come in too late, so Mo Xuanli was deeply poisoned, unable to wake.
System: [Based on difficulty, this strategy only costs 10 points.]
Ten points?
Gu Baiqing was tempted instantly. Ten points was affordable… but wait, where were his points? So many points!
Looking at the interface, only 50 points remained. This was like breaking one of his legs. Just entering one illusion, barely fighting, and already so much was spent?
The once well-off little family instantly went broke, and still had to pay 10 points to get a solution—talk about adding insult to injury.
But Gu Baiqing had no choice.
He had to redeem it.
System: [Congratulations, host has obtained one strategy pouch, offering three ways to solve the current problem.]
Oh? Three? So many? And with choices? Kind of humane. Thinking that way, spending 10 points to redeem was quite worth it.
Gu Baiqing felt a little better inside.
System [Option 1: Kiss him!]
Gu Baiqing: …
Before he could say anything, a flood of curse words rushed out but was cut off by the system’s explanation:
[You can forcibly shock Mo Xuanli’s spiritual consciousness with a large amount of spiritual power to awaken him, but the host lacks enough points to use a large amount of power. Using hand-holding or hugging would be slower and likely to fail the rescue.]
Gu Baiqing: Heh heh heh, this is just making up excuses to trick him into the trap—he won’t fall for it!
“Two, two, two, give me two!”
System: [Option Two: Kiss him twice or kiss deeply once.]
Gu Baiqing: !!! Please restrain your twisted sense of humor! Why do I have to sacrifice my purity for this?!
But the system seriously explained: [Destroying the illusion-creating beasts can resolve the situation; there are two of them. The system has marked the path for you, but the host’s spiritual power is insufficient. According to strict calculations, the accumulated spiritual power can meet the requirement… The strategies offered are the most effective based on the host’s current condition, please don’t view them emotionally.]
Is it dissing me as a host? Teaching me a lesson?!?!
Gu Baiqing: “Forget it, I don’t want either of the first two options. Can’t I just pick three?”
System: [Option Three: …]
Gu Baiqing immediately interrupted, holding Morning Snow and saying, “If you give me any more shameless options, I’m going on strike—we’re both done for!”
System: [… Option Three: The host can possess their illusion character’s body, consuming only a little spiritual power, and do something shocking enough to wake him up.]
Gu Baiqing breathed a sigh of relief, as if escaping a disaster. “If there’s a normal option like this, why didn’t you say it earlier?!”
System: [Regarding Option Three, the suggestion is… Kiss him fiercely, carry him to the bed, then undress… until he’s scared awake.]
Gu Baiqing: …
What kind of lousy strategy is this? It’s basically just a hand-holding fund! A setup for the Master trope!
It’s basically saying, “Just give in, no other choice!”
He’d long suspected this system wasn’t a proper system—it was just trying to turn him! No way! No way!
“You’re all so evil. What’s the difference between these three options? They all cost me! Don’t waste my points on any more lousy strategies!”
The system, seemingly afraid to upset Gu Baiqing, responded: [These are only suggestions. The host can find other ways to scare Mo Xuanli, but the system reminds the host that these suggestions guarantee success. If you try on your own… please watch the time.]
That’s a threat. Definitely a threat.
Am I the kind of person who gets threatened?
Hmph!
Gu Baiqing held his breath and directly slammed into his illusion character. In a blink, he was wearing the wedding robe, holding his bride’s hand. Gu Baiqing awkwardly let go, but through the bride’s veil, she turned and glanced at him. Maybe it was just his imagination, but the tilt of her veil looked like she was sadly looking at him, unhappy that he let go.
Gu Baiqing ignored this and looked at his other hand—luckily, Morning Snow was also brought along.
Want to scare him? Fine!
Without another word, amidst the joyous atmosphere, Gu Baiqing suddenly raised his sword and stabbed at Mo Xuanli, who was just about to rise after kowtowing.
Mo Xuanli could now see and flashed a momentary look of shock, stunned. Although he instinctively retreated, he didn’t counterattack. Instead, dodging, he asked confusedly: “Master? Why do you strike at your disciple?”
“Because I want to kill you!” Gu Baiqing said coldly, clearly still angry from the system’s instructions. His tone was full of murderous intent.
Because of Gu Baiqing’s change, everything around them seemed to freeze, except Mo Xuanli and Gu Baiqing who were still moving.
Hearing this, Mo Xuanli looked hurt, sorrowfully gazing at Gu Baiqing with grievance and confusion in his voice: “Master, why? What have I done wrong? I can change!” He did not run but knelt on the ground before Morning Snow. “If you have reason to kill me, I accept punishment willingly.”
Compared to when he offered tea, Mo Xuanli’s kneeling was now straighter. His eyes were full of sincerity, staring intently at Gu Baiqing, making Gu Baiqing’s hand holding the sword tremble slightly.
Gu Baiqing wanted to scare him, so naturally he stabbed straight toward Mo Xuanli’s heart—but Mo Xuanli chose to close his eyes and accept it.
That was just… foolish.
How did he teach such a silly, naive disciple!
In the end, Morning Snow’s tip only grazed Mo Xuanli’s clothing, releasing a faint electric shock. Mo Xuanli shuddered and opened his eyes.
Gu Baiqing’s expression was different—very conflicted and troubled, more vivid than Gu Baiqing remembered, strangely stirring an odd feeling in Mo Xuanli.
Making Master show such a complicated expression somehow… made Mo Xuanli happy.
Seeing Mo Xuanli’s joyful expression, Gu Baiqing thought it was relief after surviving the disaster, but Gu Baiqing himself was far from happy.
It wasn’t that he cared for Mo Xuanli; he wasn’t that attached yet. But first, he felt embarrassed to strike. Second, being cautious, he thought this kind of plot was very cliché. Usually, in Master-disciple stories, if the Master hurts the disciple, it might just be a catalyst for emotions, and later emotions would be repaid—love and hate exchanged. Better to avoid this plot.
Forget it, this move failed, so…
“Mo Xuanli, danger, sword out!” Suddenly, Gu Baiqing looked behind Mo Xuanli, showing urgent concern and commanding warning.
Mo Xuanli trusted Gu Baiqing deeply, even though he felt no danger behind, if Gu Baiqing said enemies were coming, he would immediately obey.
So as soon as Gu Baiqing finished speaking, Mo Xuanli drew his sword, wielding fierce wind element, and turned to slash behind him.
But the scene behind changed instantly. Originally empty, suddenly a red figure flashed before the sword—it was Gu Baiqing wearing a wedding dress.
Mo Xuanli’s pupils shrank; his dark eyes were filled with Gu Baiqing’s calm face, while his sword was about to treacherously strike his master.
How could he allow this to happen? How could he harm Gu Baiqing?
But the sword momentum could no longer be withdrawn.
At the critical moment, Mo Xuanli used a strong waist twist to pull his whole body and block in front of Gu Baiqing. The sword’s momentum was deflected, slashing fiercely across Mo Xuanli’s other arm, instantly tearing the muscles and flesh to a bloody mess.
At the same time, Mo Xuanli suffered a heavy blow of his own wind elemental spiritual power, and collided into Gu Baiqing’s embrace.
Gu Baiqing was shocked and had no time to react; he could only catch the collapsing Mo Xuanli.
“What… what are you doing!”
“Master, disciple didn’t hurt you, right?”
Gu Baiqing was stunned. He had intended to use Mo Xuanli stabbing him as a scare tactic, since Mo Xuanli always respected him. Unexpectedly, not only did it fail, but Mo Xuanli got injured. This kid was too honest—he would rather hurt himself… This made Gu Baiqing feel guilty for a moment.
Gu Baiqing first used magic to stop Mo Xuanli’s bleeding, helped him sit down, and told him to tend to the wound himself. Mo Xuanli did not complain at all about Gu Baiqing’s crazy behavior earlier, but obediently followed with a happy mood.
Gu Baiqing could only try to explain the situation here to him.
But seeing Mo Xuanli’s bewildered face, he knew it was useless.
Gu Baiqing felt discouraged. What could possibly be scary enough? Did he really have to follow the system’s advice and do… that to Mo Xuanli? Gu Baiqing quickly shook his head—too terrifying, just thinking about it made his hair stand on end.
He’d rather shout “I’m your long-lost father!” and forcibly kiss Fu Zhiyi standing among the onlookers! He wouldn’t even be afraid of facing Mo Xuanli afterwards. Facing his senior brother’s face was painful, but not a setup—wouldn’t leave a mark in Mo Xuanli’s heart, at most just a gross shadow.
Unfortunately, the system reminded him only actions done to Mo Xuanli would work; doing something to others with Mo Xuanli just watching wouldn’t cause enough stimulus.
The system’s warnings began to accelerate, like h*ll’s soul-chaining hooks wrapping tightly around Gu Baiqing’s neck.
Gu Baiqing was at a loss.
Fine, just choose Option One—it’s better than the other two worse ones.
Now Gu Baiqing bitterly understood that the system truly put the simplest choice first.
But Gu Baiqing was a clever trickster, and immediately raised his hand intending to knock Mo Xuanli unconscious.
If he knocked him out and then kissed him, at worst he’d disgust himself, but Mo Xuanli wouldn’t know anything and wouldn’t be affected.
Heh heh! The system’s tricks can never catch me!
“Master, are you still… going to kill me? Why?”
Just as Gu Baiqing was about to swing his hand down in surprise, Mo Xuanli looked up sorrowfully and asked.
Still obedient with no resistance, his clear eyes locked directly on Gu Baiqing’s, as if seeking an answer. Faced with such a gaze, Gu Baiqing couldn’t bear it and looked away, firmly proceeding.
Mo Xuanli then seemed dazed and said, “Am I not allowed to live? Even Master wants to kill me? But I still don’t want to die—I want to be with Master… forever.”
[Demonization Value 1]
Gu Baiqing was interrupted by the system’s “Demonization Value” alert, missing Mo Xuanli’s last whispered sentence, but suddenly had an inspiration.
Demonization Value? Demon race?!
Next moment, the hand meant for a strike became a motion placing on Mo Xuanli’s shoulder, and he leaned close to whisper mysteriously into his ear:
“Why kill you? Don’t you understand? Have you forgotten who you really are? Your identity… do you still remember?”
Mo Xuanli’s pupils instantly shrank.
Who he was, his identity… he was a human-demon hybrid… a dirty existence unacknowledged by others, one that must be eliminated if discovered.
So… Master wanted to kill him… because he knew his identity.
What about his seal? Wasn’t it still intact? Why would Master know…? He’d long expected exposure someday, but he had just gotten along well with Master… He had just…
If he did something wrong, and Master wanted to kill him out of anger, there might be a chance for repentance. But if it was about his identity, then there was no chance. Master would kill him.
Mo Xuanli was mentally shaken deeply. Meanwhile, the surrounding illusion began to tremble.
Gu Baiqing also felt the illusion character he possessed pushing him out. As Mo Xuanli’s belief collapsed, Gu Baiqing was instantly ejected.
A flash of light appeared in Mo Xuanli’s eyes; he finally escaped the illusion. The sensation of waking from a dream made him realize—he remembered everything and understood he had been trapped in an illusion; Master came to save him… So just now…
Gu Baiqing heard the alarm stop and breathed a sigh of relief. “Finally awake.”
“Master… you just said…” Mo Xuanli, despite escaping the illusion, felt no relief; his face was even paler.
Gu Baiqing calmly finished his earlier sentence: “You forgot you are Mo Xuanli. Only those who forget themselves would indulge in illusions. I’m a bit disappointed in you. Looks like after this, you need to strengthen your cultivation in this area.”
That one sentence dragged Mo Xuanli’s heart back from h*ll to the human world. Mo Xuanli was dazed, “Master, you mean…”
“What? You can’t hold firm to your heart? Forgot who you are, where you are, what you’re doing? Did I say something wrong?” Gu Baiqing twisted the meaning of his previous words. He did guide Mo Xuanli into misunderstanding on purpose, to scare him awake. After all, nothing frightened Mo Xuanli more than revealing his true identity.
Sure enough, when Gu Baiqing said this, Mo Xuanli let out a breath of relief, then cautiously said, “It was this disciple’s fault, this disciple failed to comprehend.”
“Alright, even though you’ve woken up, the illusion hasn’t been dispelled yet. There are still two illusion beasts here—only by defeating them can we leave.”
Gu Baiqing acted as though he didn’t care, making Mo Xuanli certain that he had overthought it—that his master truly knew nothing. If he did know, how could he still treat him so calmly?
But… although his rational mind told him this, the matter still left a faint thread of unease buried in Mo Xuanli’s heart.
Just then, Mo Xuanli saw Gu Baiqing tuck away Morning Snow and slide it into his hair as a hairpin. He froze for a moment, then suddenly realized, “Master, your spiritual power… how could you risk coming in here for me…”
Mo Xuanli’s face paled in alarm, filled with self-blame. “Master, it’s all this disciple’s fault, to have made you risk yourself for me…”
Gu Baiqing immediately cut off Mo Xuanli’s self-moved speech. “No. If something happened to you here, the Demon Refining Tower might also be affected, and that would be an even bigger problem. Originally, we were going to send others in to rescue you, but the phantom beasts disrupted the teleportation array—only I, with our master–disciple contract, could be precisely sent in. I had just recovered a bit of spiritual power, so I came to check the situation. If you hadn’t woken just now, my spiritual power would’ve been nearly depleted, and I still wouldn’t have been able to save you.”
Gu Baiqing looked as cold and heartless as ever—but in Mo Xuanli’s eyes, it was completely different: with so little spiritual power, his master had still risked himself to come; he could have left him to live or die, but instead wasted that hard-won spiritual energy on him. Just now too, to wake him, he hadn’t hesitated to risk injury. If Mo Xuanli hadn’t reacted in time—if he had truly harmed his master—he would regret it for the rest of his life.
Master… how can you be so good to me?
“Master, from here on, this disciple will protect you. I will not let the beasts here harm you in the slightest,” Mo Xuanli said firmly.
Gu Baiqing gave a dry laugh. Of course I have to rely on you—no way am I wasting my points. Still… faced with Mo Xuanli’s burning gaze, he felt a bit awkward. After all, this was something he could’ve solved instantly by sacrificing a kiss, yet he’d dragged it out this long, even getting Mo Xuanli injured. He really did feel a little guilty. But if a man doesn’t put himself first, the heavens and earth will destroy him—don’t blame your teacher for being selfish.
Since he had already made a choice in the brocade pouch earlier and successfully solved the problem, the option in the pouch to “help navigate and locate the beasts” was now gone. Looking at his dwindling points, Gu Baiqing was unwilling to spend more, so he could only proceed step by step through the plot.
This time, however, he would be cautious. He absolutely would not faint in some muddleheaded way from being injured for the male lead—leaving everything to him was far too unsettling. Firmly resist the trope!
At this moment, Mo Xuanli had already swung his sword, sat down cross-legged, and formed a hand seal. A glowing array began to spread from his body outward; wherever the light passed, the scenery dissolved away.
Gu Baiqing watched the illusion around them fade and felt a bit emotional. Looking at it now, in this illusion Mo Xuanli could even watch him get married—clearly showing he had no real feelings for him at all. That was truly something to celebrate. Coming in to take a look had temporarily set his mind at ease; at least it proved that his previous efforts to avoid the trope were entirely correct. He should keep it up in the future!
The last to disappear were Gu Baiqing’s stand-in and the bride. He had no interest in his own stand-in, but he was a little curious about the bride whose face was hidden under the red veil. His hands itched to lift it and see—just who did Mo Xuanli imagine as his future master’s wife?
But halfway through lifting it, Gu Baiqing suddenly gave up. He remembered seeing Fu Zhiyi and Chu Fei earlier, but not Luo Nianyi. He thought the most likely person to appear in the illusion would be his third senior sister. Better not look—if he saw her in bridal clothes marrying him, he would definitely have nightmares.
Having abandoned his curiosity, Gu Baiqing let it be. Mo Xuanli, having finished the spell, opened his eyes just in time to see his master’s stand-in, dressed in a red wedding robe embroidered with gold thread—tall, radiant, the matching jade belt cinched at the waist outlining a graceful curve, like a drawn scimitar flashing in the light.
The red hue lit up that face—truly a gentleman like jade, features dazzling, eyes like cold stars, brows like painted ink.
It was a beauty he had never seen before.
But Mo Xuanli still withdrew his gaze. That was not the real master; if the real one was present, no matter how good the fake was, it meant nothing.
Sitting on the ground, with a lower line of sight, he turned his head and happened to see Gu Baiqing lifting the bride’s veil halfway. He knew his master must be curious about the bride; he himself didn’t know who it was, and it was hard to imagine whom he would picture as his master’s partner. Perhaps it was because of Tang Yu’s many tales about his master and various fairies… perhaps the sect leader or his third senior aunt?
But since his master didn’t want to see, he was even less inclined to pry. After all, conjuring up his master’s partner was already an offense; it was enough that his master didn’t hold it against him.
He was just about to look away when, in the corner of his eye, he caught a fleeting glimpse of a nose bridge—
A fine, elegant nose… with a faint mole on one side.
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