Seeing his master before him, eyes closed, yielding to him completely, Mo Xuanli’s heart felt utterly full.
He raised his hand and lightly brushed across Gu Baiqing’s eyes. A strip of black gauze covered them.
Now, even if Gu Baiqing opened his eyes, he couldn’t see anything. With no sight, he naturally wouldn’t know which way to go.
When Gu Baiqing realized this, he was about to speak when suddenly his hand was taken.
“Master, I’ll lead you.”
Gu Baiqing nodded, suddenly finding it a little funny. Just before, it was Little Xuanli leading him by the hand. Now it was Big Xuanli’s turn.
Seeing the curve of Gu Baiqing’s lips, Mo Xuanli also couldn’t help but relax. Lowering his head, he caught a glimpse of the images flashing through his sea of consciousness—scenes of him and Master together. His cheeks reddened.
A sea of consciousness was like the deepest part of one’s soul. Letting someone else in should have been met with fierce rejection.
Yet Mo Xuanli brought Gu Baiqing down without the slightest obstruction.
“Follow my incantation. Enter meditation. Because this is forcibly widening the limits of your spiritual roots’ absorption, the process will definitely be painful. If you can’t endure it, if you lose consciousness and fall into inner demons, it’s alright. Just remember: go with the flow of spiritual power, don’t resist. I’ll be watching you the whole time—I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Mhm, I understand, Master.” Mo Xuanli had expected as much. Sinking into the sea of consciousness was meant to put him in a state of utmost ease, so he could cultivate.
Just as outside, the two sat facing one another, pressing their palms together, and began to cultivate.
Gu Baiqing assisted Mo Xuanli in absorbing the excess spiritual power, gradually steadying the environment. The power turned into streams of light, continuously pouring into Mo Xuanli’s body. When it overflowed, Gu Baiqing absorbed it. Once absorbed, it vanished from existence altogether.
Because of that, Gu Baiqing didn’t need to worry, and there were no obstacles.
Mo Xuanli kept his eyes open, only relaxing once he saw that Master showed no ill effects.
When the first surge of spiritual power entered, the sensation made Mo Xuanli’s very spirit feel a sharp rush of pleasure. Even though his body was enduring excruciating pain—no less than before—it was as if clear blue waters wrapped around them both. With Master sitting calmly before him, eyes shut, suddenly a dangerous thought surfaced in his mind: if only Master’s spiritual consciousness could remain here forever, how wonderful that would be.
That kind of fusion of spirit was intoxicating.
【Demonization Value +1】
“Xuanli!” Gu Baiqing’s sudden voice jolted him awake.
“Master?”
“Steady your mind. I know you’re uncomfortable right now, but with me here, don’t worry.” Gu Baiqing spoke calmly.
Perhaps it was seeing those dark memories in his sea of consciousness, or perhaps it was the violent spiritual power’s instinctive assault that drove him to defend himself—but that was what raised his demonization value. Since he had already risked this much, letting it climb further would be a huge loss.
“Yes, Master.” Mo Xuanli truly came back to his senses. His earlier thought had been far too selfish. He shouldn’t have thought that way.
Yet he didn’t realize—when that thought had just taken root, his eyes had begun turning red. Even if his reason understood, his spirit was like one intoxicated, gradually wavering.
Gu Baiqing didn’t know what normal dual cultivation felt like. But now, immersed in Mo Xuanli’s sea of consciousness, with an endless current of spiritual power coursing through their bodies, he couldn’t describe the sensation. It was as though they were very, very close—closer than even bare skin pressed together in an embrace. In truth, Gu Baiqing felt a little embarrassed.
Still, when he sensed their cultivation increase by a notch, it seemed they might even directly advance here.
Gu Baiqing focused even more on working in harmony with Mo Xuanli.
But gradually, he felt Mo Xuanli’s arms start to tremble, clearly wracked with pain.
Gu Baiqing had already been sitting in meditation for a long time, unable to speak up and interrupt him, lest something go wrong. All he could do was silently worry for Mo Xuanli in his heart.
Suddenly, a surge of unfamiliar spiritual power burst out.
【Second mission quest, Task 2: Destroy the Puppet Spirit-Gathering Array. Successfully advanced to Mid-Stage Golden Core. Cultivation progress: Mid-Stage Golden Core, 34%. Reward: 500 points. Account balance: 888 points. Demonization value: 21】
Gu Baiqing instantly let out a breath of relief.
Outside, the spiritual fluctuations from a cultivation breakthrough were obvious. Jingzhan, who had been watching, was so shocked he couldn’t speak.
They had already stood guard over the two for a full day and night.
“Heavens, is this what they call a blessing in disguise? Qingrong, your Rufeng Sect’s cultivation method is truly incredible,” Jingzhan exclaimed. It was the first time he had ever seen someone advance so quickly. Mo Xuanli’s cultivation had already caught up with theirs—also Mid-Stage Golden Core. And if they continued with this dual cultivation, their strength would inevitably keep rising. Who knew, maybe they could even leap two whole stages in one go.
“In truth, the technique only helps them absorb spiritual power more smoothly. Whether it turns out well or not still depends on one’s innate aptitude,” Xie Qingrong said, seated cross-legged in meditation.
Now awake, his body could no longer move; he could only slowly heal. He had already stored away Luo Yi’s corpse with a spell, and once everything here returned to normal, he planned to bring Luo Yi back to Rufeng Sect.
“If it’s really this amazing, why don’t the two of us try spiritual-dual-cultivation too, to help you recover sooner?” Jingzhan asked—not just to help, but mostly because he was curious about how this “spiritual-dual-cultivation” worked.
Xie Qingrong knew him all too well—Jingzhan could never stay serious for more than a quarter of an hour. “It’s not that simple. There are all kinds of troubles that can’t be spoken of to outsiders. Unless it’s between parents and children, siblings, or husband and wife, then it must be between people who truly love each other or who share a life-and-death bond. Only then can one enter another’s sea of consciousness with ease. Otherwise, even the slightest misstep will result in rejection, and in dangerous situations, could injure the other’s spiritual sense. That is extremely dangerous.”
“Ah? That serious?” Jingzhan asked in disbelief. “But they seemed so relaxed about it.”
“It is indeed that serious. Since the method was created, there have only been a handful of successful pairs. Even in the situations I just mentioned, such cases are rare. Just now, it was only because there was no other choice that I suggested letting Senior give it a try. I honestly didn’t think it would succeed,” Xie Qingrong explained.
Hearing this, Jingzhan immediately lost his nerve. If it wasn’t necessary, then it wasn’t worth the risk.
But soon enough, Jingzhan was gossiping again.
“Then which of those relationships do you think they are?” Jingzhan raised an eyebrow.
Xie Qingrong gave him a helpless glance. “A master-disciple bond, born of life-and-death dependence.”
Jingzhan gave a dissatisfied “tch.”
“No matter what kind of feeling it is, it will certainly take a step further after this dual cultivation. It’s just that…” Xie Qingrong said.
“Just that what?”
Xie Qingrong didn’t answer, afraid that Jingzhan would gossip more. The truth was, he was worried. In dual cultivation, the one absorbing most of the spiritual energy inevitably suffered great pain, greatly increasing the chance of producing heart demons. Though these weren’t the kind of heart demons faced in true trials, they could still cause one to lose all rationality. If one simply gave in to impulse, the trial could be passed—for example, by turning the spiritual energy into an attack and releasing it. But after all, this was another person invading one’s sea of consciousness.
What Xie Qingrong feared most was that Mo Xuanli would attack Gu Baiqing. Of course, before Gu Baiqing attempted this, Xie Qingrong had already warned him:
If he attacked, Gu Baiqing must protect his own spiritual sense from dispersing. Otherwise…
Entering the sea of consciousness was the hardest step. But in dual cultivation, overcoming the edge of losing control—that was the most dangerous step of all.
At this moment, however, Gu Baiqing had already relaxed his guard.
He had thought the mission would fail, and had already braced himself for a massive deduction of points. Unexpectedly, he had just barely succeeded in the end.
That feeling of surviving disaster was enough to make him overjoyed.
It was thanks to everything Mo Xuanli had done—and to Xie Qingrong’s help—that this had worked at all.
Just as he was thinking this, Gu Baiqing suddenly felt the hand pressed against his move slightly.
He knew that after advancing, his body’s instincts would absorb even more spiritual energy, and he would definitely endure greater shocks. But as long as he endured, his cultivation would skyrocket. By the time of the next mission, even if something went wrong midway, there would be a lot more security.
Disciple, for the sake of your own cultivation, you’ll just have to endure a little suffering. Bear with it—it will pass.
In his heart, Gu Baiqing cheered for Mo Xuanli, waving a silent flag of encouragement.
But he did not know that Mo Xuanli had already slowly opened his eyes, those eyes so red they were nearly black, staring dead at the man before him with the black gauze blindfold.
Caught off guard, Gu Baiqing was seized by the hand, yanked forward in a fierce pull.
Before he could react, he was pulled into an embrace, lips suddenly covered.
In that instant, Gu Baiqing’s scalp almost exploded.
His sight was still pitch black, completely unable to tell what was happening—only that his lips were tangled in ragged breaths.
When he finally realized, his heart jolted violently, his mind filled with exclamation marks. He let out a muffled grunt of protest and tried to push the other away.
But Mo Xuanli was already out of control. In his mind there was only one voice: when in pain, follow your instincts, and soon it will pass.
Right now, he was in unbearable pain, as though his whole body would explode. The moment he opened his eyes and saw Gu Baiqing clearly, he was overwhelmed by a primal urge to devour the beauty before him. So he followed his instincts.
He embraced him, locked him down, kissed him, pressed him down despite his resistance.
The sea of consciousness, under the shift of his awareness, seemed to turn into a bed of soft clouds—tangible, a place where one could hold someone and lie down together.
Mo Xuanli knew with piercing clarity that he still wanted more.
He coveted this man’s warmth, his breath, his taste. This was everything beautiful in the world as he knew it. How could he not crave it? He had to possess it forever, trap it here forever, keep it solely for himself.
Gu Baiqing was utterly dumbfounded. This kind of dual cultivation is not that kind of dual cultivation! How did it turn into this?!
Is there even any justice left in this world?
And this time, it wasn’t a dream, nor was it just fleeting contact. This time, it was truly…
Gu Baiqing felt that Mo Xuanli was about to eat him alive. He was kissed into chaos—flustered, ashamed, angry, and utterly ill at ease. Not to mention Mo Xuanli’s body… which made Gu Baiqing suddenly, unmistakably realize one thing.
What on earth was happening here? How had things suddenly crossed the line?
Gu Baiqing wanted to see clearly what was happening, but the cloth over his eyes wasn’t real—it was a spell, one cast by Mo Xuanli, and only he could undo it.
So right now, Gu Baiqing was effectively trapped in total darkness. All he could feel was softness beneath him… and a ferocious beast on top of him.
When the kisses trailed down to his neck, Gu Baiqing finally roared aloud.
“Mo Xuanli, what are you doing! I’m your master—let go of me!”
But there wasn’t the slightest response, as if Mo Xuanli were far too busy.
His clothes were pulled open.
Gu Baiqing didn’t dare strike back—after all, this was the spiritual sea; if he hurt him, what then? But the other acted as though he didn’t care whether Gu Baiqing resisted or not.
One hand pinned his wrists, while the other roved without restraint.
This was nothing but a scoundrel. A shameless scoundrel!
Gu Baiqing cursed furiously inside, his face burning hot. Was this still his obedient little disciple?
Suddenly, he noticed Mo Xuanli’s cultivation progress was still rising—which meant the dual cultivation continued. In a flash, he understood: this was exactly the situation Xie Qingrong had warned of. He had reminded him of it. But… how was he to know it would turn out like this? He thought it meant a fight!
Could it be that under certain circumstances, spiritual dual cultivation really became… dual cultivation? Had he been tricked again?
He’d thought only someone like Jingzhan would play him like that, but now it turned out the seemingly proper Xie Qingrong had set him up too. This was enough to cost him his life!
Then suddenly, the feeling across his chest was all wrong.
Gu Baiqing’s mind flashed with an image, and he immediately felt like dying. Although, back when Ruiyao had toyed with him, he’d had those kinds of dreams before, that had been under the influence of a charm spell. He had long since forced himself to forget. He didn’t need rehabilitation!
“Mo Xuanli, you b*stard! Look clearly—I’m a man, your master! Since when were you into men?!”
But Mo Xuanli’s touch left his body strangely powerless.
The dignified Elder Luofeng now seemed weak, easily bullied.
Mo Xuanli grew impatient with cumbersome belts and robes. This was his own sea of consciousness—he could make the two of them bare in an instant.
But more than that, he wanted Gu Baiqing to see him. He wanted to look into Gu Baiqing’s eyes, and just imagining it made him excited.
With a wave of his hand, Gu Baiqing’s vision was restored.
At once, Gu Baiqing froze. What he saw were Mo Xuanli’s demonic eyes, brimming with primal emotions. Irresistible ones.
In that instant, Gu Baiqing understood: Mo Xuanli absolutely wouldn’t listen to him now. The words “It’s over” practically filled his whole head.
He could feel Mo Xuanli’s grip on his waist. Gu Baiqing’s heart lurched, rejection rising like a tide. He knew he couldn’t accept this.
But to actually strike at Mo Xuanli… he couldn’t bring himself to.
Then suddenly, Mo Xuanli’s movements froze. As if a ferocious wolf had abruptly turned into a big, clumsy dog, he lay obediently atop Gu Baiqing.
Gu Baiqing was stunned, staring into Mo Xuanli’s crimson eyes—like dark red gemstones, clear and shining—looking at him in a daze.
Gu Baiqing muttered hoarsely, “Mo Xuanli?”
Mo Xuanli suddenly lowered his head. Gu Baiqing flinched in instinctive fear—then felt a sudden heat at the corner of his eye.
“Don’t cry. Don’t be afraid of me. I was wrong. I’ll stop. Don’t be angry at me.”
Gu Baiqing froze. So it turned out, in his anger and panic just now, he’d grown red-eyed with grievance, and a single tear had slipped down, seen by Mo Xuanli.
Mo Xuanli caught it with his lips, panic in his heart, cradling Gu Baiqing like a fragile treasure.
If he doesn’t like it, I won’t do it. If he’s afraid, I’ll stop. I can’t let him be sad. Never.
Mo Xuanli’s fevered body gradually cooled, leaving only a gentle warmth as he embraced Gu Baiqing.
From time to time, he pressed light kisses to Gu Baiqing’s cheek and chin. When desire grew unbearable, he could only look up at him pitifully, timidly brushing against his lips. At first, Gu Baiqing turned his head away, so Mo Xuanli stopped. But slowly, he managed to kiss, then deepen… until pain wracked his body, and his strength grew harsher.
To his surprise, when he kissed deeply, the other no longer resisted, but instead slowly wrapped him in an embrace, soothing him.
Never crossing the final line—until at last the most agonizing stage passed, and Mo Xuanli finally fainted.
The two drifted out of the sea of consciousness. The dual cultivation ended. Holding Mo Xuanli in his arms, Gu Baiqing could not calm himself for a long time.
He couldn’t even recall how he had given in, only that when he came to his senses afterward, everything felt utterly absurd.
This wasn’t right. It shouldn’t have happened. His principles—he couldn’t just let a moment of softness, a lapse in focus, lead him astray.
It was just… just a momentary lapse of reason.
Yes—that had to be the side-effect of the dual cultivation method. Just as with Mo Xuanli: usually a rule-abiding disciple, yet suddenly like this—who would believe it? It had to be the fault of the technique.
They should never have played lab rats, testing out some half-baked secret method.
Wait—what if Mo Xuanli woke up later and remembered? That would be disastrous.
Could he knock him into amnesia here and now?
As he thought this, a wave of rejection surged. With the end of the dual cultivation, Gu Baiqing’s spiritual sense was swiftly pushed out of Mo Xuanli’s sea of consciousness.
This felt exactly like being discarded after being used.
When Gu Baiqing opened his eyes again, he didn’t even have time to worry about the aftermath—his stored spiritual energy was spent. Exhaustion hit like a backlash, and he directly fainted.
Even as he lost consciousness, his thoughts spiraled: What to do? What to do when I wake? Or maybe… just don’t wake at all. I don’t want to face this world that insists on bending me. My integrity feels so fragile already—if this keeps up, I can’t even guarantee I’ll hold on!
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