“You!” Gu Baiqing was in disbelief. There was actually a day when Mo Xuanli would defy him, would even dare to say no! Truly outrageous!
“Master, I just want to protect you… I only wanted to protect you. Is that really something worth getting so angry over?” Mo Xuanli said with difficulty. “Didn’t you say I’m already very strong? Then don’t I have the right to protect you? You’re the most important person to me, I can’t stand to see you hurt, especially by something that might be caused by me. Is that… so wrong?”
“Twisting logic!” Gu Baiqing scolded sharply.
“If… if anyone dares to hurt you, they’ll have to step over my corpse first. Isn’t that what I, your disciple, should do?”
Mo Xuanli lifted his head, expression a mix of sorrow and emotion, his childish stubbornness making his eyes redden. He looked like a small, defiant dog, one that refused to obey no matter how tight the collar or how hard the leash was pulled, digging in its heels and refusing to move.
This side of Mo Xuanli suddenly reminded Gu Baiqing of that time on the lake in Linxun Town when little Xuanli, no matter how much he was scolded, insisted on going down into the water to retrieve a drifting lantern.
As expected, no matter how obedient he seemed on the surface, whenever he set his mind on something, unless given another solution, he would stubbornly follow his own way.
If Gu Baiqing hadn’t discovered the barrier, this child probably never would’ve told him. The detail he had hidden within the runes to keep it undetectable proved he’d been guarding against being found out.
At the thought of what might have happened, Gu Baiqing’s heart ached suddenly.
“Mo Xuanli…” Gu Baiqing’s voice softened and Mo Xuanli’s gaze trembled.
“You think doing something like this makes you noble? Am I supposed to be moved by it? Have you ever considered what could happen if you hide things from me? What if, during battle, I misjudge the enemy’s strength and fight without caution, and when I turn around, you’ve already collapsed in front of me because you couldn’t withstand it, what do you expect me to feel? Gratitude for your devotion, or blame for your recklessness? You still think you’re not wrong?”
Gu Baiqing wanted to sound stern, to play the role of a proper teacher reprimanding his disciple but his emotions surged like an erupting volcano, impossible to contain.
“If you don’t cherish yourself, how can you expect others to cherish you?”
“I… I didn’t… Master, you….”
“You didn’t? Mo Xuanli, in this world, if a person doesn’t love or care for himself, how can he expect anyone else to love or care for him? Someone who doesn’t value himself has no right to ask for others’ concern.” Gu Baiqing felt an unbearable pressure in his chest.
He was, in truth, afraid, afraid of this way Mo Xuanli would throw his life away for him.
It felt like a heavy burden.
Gu Baiqing stared straight at Mo Xuanli, his vision blurring slightly. “Mo Xuanli, your life is important. You must treasure it. Don’t use it for reckless gambles that give you nothing in return.”
The moment his words fell, Mo Xuanli rushed forward, wrapping his arms tightly around the trembling figure whose body shook from suppressed emotion.
“Master, I’m sorry! I was wrong. I’ll undo it right now. I’ll listen to you, I’ll listen. Please, don’t be angry with me, don’t….”
Don’t cry!
In Mo Xuanli’s heart, his master had always been calm and powerful. But now, his master’s sword-like brows were furrowed, his pale eyes filled with deep sorrow, and the light within them seemed shattered.
That shimmer, glistening faintly, looked as though it could spill down at any moment.
Those wouldn’t be tears, they were blades, stabbing straight into Mo Xuanli’s heart.
He had made his master cry. How despicable, how unforgivable he was.
He… didn’t want to think about anything anymore. Whatever his master said was right.
Mo Xuanli clung to Gu Baiqing, wishing he could fuse him into his own body just to stop the ache in his chest. One hand lifted to the back of Gu Baiqing’s neck; a faint glow, like fireflies, spread from the two of them.
Gu Baiqing only felt heat at his neck, while Mo Xuanli sensed the deep connection woven into his very flesh beginning to dissolve.
He understood what his master meant, knew that it was for his own good but… compared to their uncertain relationship, he would rather keep that bond between them.
And now, it was fading.
He didn’t need to keep his hand pressed against the mark but Mo Xuanli couldn’t bring himself to let go of Gu Baiqing’s neck, or his embrace. He simply held him quietly.
Time slipped by, it felt both long and fleeting.
Gu Baiqing knew Mo Xuanli was unbinding the barrier, but not how long it would take. In the silence, his emotions ebbed as quickly as they had flared. His earlier outburst, tears and all, felt unbearably embarrassing now. Even if everything he’d said had been true, saying it through a choked voice made him want to lose his memory on the spot.
And… why was his head spinning? Why was he so tired? Was it the aftereffect of using spiritual power earlier?
It felt like his rationality was slipping away. And he didn’t like being held like this, not before, and even less now.
This habit of Mo Xuanli’s, hugging whenever he got emotional like a child, really needed to change. Sure, in a BG (boy–girl) world, two men hugging wasn’t strange even as master and disciple. But if this kid ever got a girlfriend and still kept that habit, how awkward would that be?
“Why is it taking so long? Hurry and undo it, then go back and reflect. I’m tired.” Gu Baiqing forced himself to stay alert, shifting his gaze toward the door to distract himself. What a waste of a night, it was such a beautiful one. The moon was full, the stars brilliant, a perfect, dazzling night sky. When he’d been moon-watching with Half-Step Mad earlier, he hadn’t even noticed how beautiful it was, too busy thinking wistfully of home.
D*mn… his vision was blurring. He was so sleepy…
“Master, I’ll reflect on it. Are you… still angry at me? If you can’t forgive me, you can hit me, scold me, punish me…” Mo Xuanli whispered softly, breathing in the faint scent of his master’s hair, unable to bring himself to resent him even a little.
“I can’t be bothered to argue with you. If you don’t learn to treasure your own life and pull something reckless like this again, don’t call yourself my disciple. I don’t have such a foolish disciple,” Gu Baiqing said. As soon as he finished, the arms holding him seemed to tighten, but his consciousness was already blurred, he couldn’t process anything anymore.
“Master, I’ll listen to you from now on. Please don’t be angry with me,” Mo Xuanli said softly, timidly.
“As long as you behave, that’s enough,” Gu Baiqing mumbled, barely able to stand but Mo Xuanli was holding him too tightly to notice.
As the last specks of light between them faded away, Mo Xuanli felt a sudden heat in his chest. He knew that the spell mark connecting him and his master had vanished.
His heart felt instantly hollow.
Again… no connection.
Mo Xuanli’s gaze flickered. Feeling the warmth of the person in his arms, an uncontrollable urge surged within him.
“Master, I’ll always be good, always listen to you. I just… want to stay with you forever. Even after we return to the Zixiao Sect, I still want to stay by your side every moment. Is that okay?”
Gu Baiqing was dazed by his words. For a moment, he almost laughed. Before, if he’d heard something like this, he would’ve been alarmed, worried that this kid had developed inappropriate thoughts, maybe even scolded or forbidden him from getting too close. But now, he didn’t care at all. Because he knew, deep down, Mo Xuanli was a straight man just like him. After all, his “father” had written him that way. So all of Mo Xuanli’s closeness was simply a child’s dependence on an elder.
To put it dramatically, it was a kind of “teacher attachment.” Like a child clinging to a parent.
So, how should he respond?
“Mhm. As long as you don’t do such dangerous things again.”
But suddenly, Mo Xuanli grew agitated. He released Gu Baiqing and grabbed his shoulders. “Master, you know what I mean, don’t you? This time you didn’t misunderstand, right? I mean, when we go back, I want to move back into Luofeng Pavilion. I want to live with you. No matter what anyone says, I will—”
“Of course! Luofeng Pavilion is your home, our home. You don’t need anyone’s permission. You have full control over everything in Luofeng Pavilion.”
Before, when he’d suspected traps, he’d driven Mo Xuanli away too harshly. That must have hurt the boy, made him feel he had no sense of belonging or safety. That had been his mistake. He should return everything that rightfully belonged to Mo Xuanli. He only had one disciple, after all, shouldn’t he give him everything?
Mo Xuanli stared at Gu Baiqing in disbelief. He had thought Gu Baiqing would resist, would hesitate. How could he agree so easily? The happiness came so suddenly that Mo Xuanli almost didn’t dare believe it. Did Gu Baiqing truly understand what he meant?
Was he really sure… that Luofeng Pavilion was their home?
“Then… if I want to hold a… a wedding banquet there?” Mo Xuanli asked, emboldened by courage.
Gu Baiqing, in his muddled state, felt as though lightning had struck through him, his whole body numb and tingling. Was that pain? Or something else?
This kid, he hadn’t even started anything with Si Chun yet, and he was already thinking about weddings? Seems he really does want a home.
Mo Xuanli watched Gu Baiqing nervously, terrified of no response. Maybe he’d gone too far, greedy, even. After finally getting this close, he still wanted more. He wanted acknowledgment, a public declaration from Gu Baiqing, a wedding banquet to prove his place. Too greedy.
And yet, he couldn’t stop hoping. Maybe… maybe his master would agree?
“Master, I mean… you remember the illusion trial in the Demon Refining Tower, right? That kind of wedding banquet. Only this time, I’d be the main character—”
“I get it!” Gu Baiqing suddenly interrupted. “If you want one, then hold one.”
It made perfect sense. He was the master, if his disciple was getting married, of course the wedding should be held at Luofeng Pavilion. The only concern would be whether Chuxue Pavilion would let the bride go.
Ah well, he’d protect his disciple no matter what.
“As long as you want it, I’ll make it happen for you.” Gu Baiqing felt a pang of guilt for having once misunderstood and mistreated Mo Xuanli. He’d wasted such a filial and devoted disciple, now he had to make it up to him. So he patted Mo Xuanli’s head, promising generously.
Hearing those words, Mo Xuanli trembled with emotion.
The thing called happiness surged through him like a flood, drowning him completely.
He didn’t even have time to think, just stared blankly at Gu Baiqing.
That simple?
He’d gotten what he wanted most?
That simple? He and his master had achieved what he’d dreamed of?
That simple… their bond was now eternal, and when they returned to Zixiao Sect, they’d even hold a wedding banquet, his master would give him a name, a title.
In that instant, Mo Xuanli felt that every hardship in his life had never been suffering at all. The heavens were fair, they had given him immense pain before, only to reward him now with boundless joy.
The heavens were compensating him.
“Master, heh… I’ll treat you well, I promise. I just, Master, why me? How could I deserve such happiness? I… Master, I still have secrets I haven’t told you. How should I, what if you find out and despise me, abandon me? No, you won’t. You’d never. I know you wouldn’t… I can fix it all. Once everything’s solved, we’ll hold the wedding banquet. Master, thank you, truly… no matter how hard the road ahead, even if I die, it’ll be worth it, no, no, I can’t die. I have to be with you forever. How could I…. haha…”
Mo Xuanli began laughing and crying at once, his words incoherent.
Gu Baiqing, meanwhile, could only feel his vision blur; the voice beside his ear grew fainter and fainter, until he couldn’t hear anything at all.
At last, Mo Xuanli gazed down at Gu Baiqing’s face, dazed and full of deep affection.
“Mas… Baiqing… I like you. Could you… could you say it too? I want to hear you say it.”
But Gu Baiqing finally couldn’t hold on any longer and fell asleep.
As soon as Gu Baiqing collapsed, Mo Xuanli hurriedly caught him, startled. Then, remembering the aftereffects of using spiritual power, he sighed in relief. Somewhat helpless, somewhat regretful but unable to stop smiling, he carried Gu Baiqing to the bed.
Humming softly under his breath, a tune he couldn’t quite place, perhaps something he’d once heard long ago, he laid his master down and watched him with tender eyes.
The moment Mo Xuanli laid Gu Baiqing down, he was about to get up, only to find that Gu Baiqing had hooked an arm tightly around his neck, trying to pull him closer, even rubbing his forehead against Mo Xuanli’s chin while letting out faint murmurs. Mo Xuanli’s gaze darkened; naturally, he couldn’t bear to pull away again. He stared fixedly at the man before him. Whatever he did now, surely, it was all justified.
He lowered his head and pressed a kiss down. Soon, Gu Baiqing responded instinctively, faintly, though his eyes remained closed. Mo Xuanli, with his eyes open, drank in everything before him.
The kiss grew out of control. When Mo Xuanli came back to his senses, he was already pressing Gu Baiqing heavily beneath him. Both of their robes were in disarray, their breaths tangled and hurried. The air thickened into something dreamlike, unreal, charged with yearning. Everything was moving toward something beautiful, yet, in the end, Mo Xuanli’s hand stopped at the sash around Gu Baiqing’s waist. He didn’t dare go further.
Not because he couldn’t but because he could too well.
But his master was unconscious, lost in sleep, every reaction was purely instinct. What meaning would it have like this? How could Mo Xuanli go through with it? He remembered that past accident, how angry his master had been, how unwell he’d looked afterward. Mo Xuanli didn’t want their first true time together, after finally confirming their bond, to be one-sided like this.
So he forced himself to swallow every spark of desire, locking it deep inside. In the end, he simply held Gu Baiqing quietly, soaking in his master’s cool plum-blossom scent, the warmth of his body, the almost dizzying feeling of happiness. He didn’t even dare close his eyes, afraid that if he did, all of this would turn out to be just a dream.
He didn’t know how long had passed before Gu Baiqing suddenly sat up as if waking.
Mo Xuanli immediately straightened, flustered, unsure, shyly glancing at him.
But Gu Baiqing brushed past him and got off the bed.
“Master?” Mo Xuanli asked, confused.
Gu Baiqing turned and said, “Disciple, come watch the night sky with me.”
Mo Xuanli froze, unable to make sense of it, but followed anyway. Seeing that Gu Baiqing was looking toward the roof, he brought them both up to it.
It wasn’t until Gu Baiqing pulled him to sit down beside him, both of them gazing up at the heavens, that Mo Xuanli realized just how beautiful the night truly was.
The Milky Way shimmered, bright and dreamlike, unearthly in its beauty.
To sit beneath such a sky with the person one loved, it was indeed a rare, quiet kind of wonder.
Unable to help himself, Mo Xuanli reached out to take Gu Baiqing’s hand. Gu Baiqing didn’t resist, and that steadied Mo Xuanli’s heart like he feared that, upon waking, his master might change his mind.
“Master…” The habit was hard to break, but he liked calling him that anyway. “From now on, I’ll take you to see every beautiful scene in this world. But you must promise me, of all the people who could watch the world’s beauty with you, I’ll be the only one. All right?” Mo Xuanli couldn’t help it; for the first time, he voiced a small, lover’s request.
Gu Baiqing had been smiling all along. Hearing this, he turned and patted Mo Xuanli’s head.
Mo Xuanli took that as an agreement.
He inched closer, wrapping an arm around Gu Baiqing’s waist. Gu Baiqing didn’t stop him, and that gave Mo Xuanli more courage. He was just leaning in for a kiss when Gu Baiqing suddenly raised his hand and pointed upward. “Look, a shooting star.”
Mo Xuanli blinked, glancing toward the sky.
“You can even see the constellations clearly,” Gu Baiqing added seriously.
“…What constellations?”
“When’s your birthday?” Gu Baiqing suddenly asked.
“I… I don’t know.”
“Then I’ll find them all for you.”
Just like that, Gu Baiqing began pointing out constellations, explaining them as if lecturing in a class. Some of them weren’t even real, just ones he imagined looked right, and he even told the myths behind them.
Mo Xuanli didn’t know why Gu Baiqing suddenly became so talkative.
But thinking about it, maybe his master was just like him, so happy that he didn’t know how else to express it.
Eventually, Gu Baiqing leaned against Mo Xuanli’s chest and fell asleep. Mo Xuanli kept memorizing every constellation his master had pointed out, so that whenever he looked up at the night sky in the future, he could remember this moment, the beauty of it all.
“Baiqing… thank you,” Mo Xuanli whispered, rubbing his nose against the sleeping man’s. “Thank you for coming into my life, for choosing me, for accepting me. Thank you…”
Im terrified