Beneath the dim, amber glow of the lamps, the low table set next to the bed concealed the two figures behind it.
In the eighteen years since taking human form, the greatest hardship Feng Qingyun had ever suffered was having his confession rejected. Everything else in his life had been smooth sailing, carefree and blessed. What he had never imagined was that fate had long since marked the price of all those gifts in secret, and that the greatest trial of his life was waiting for him at this very moment.
“Mm… mmm…”
Kneeling on the bed, he tilted his face up pitifully toward the man before him. It took only a few seconds for him to regret how bitterly stubborn he’d been earlier.
His waist had already gone weak. At this point, he wished he could tattoo the word husband across his forehead, lest he’d have to say it over and over again. Unfortunately, it was far too late.
His mouth was thoroughly occupied, leaving him unable to utter a single word. All he could do was kneel there with tears clinging to his lashes, cursing Long Yin bloody murder in his heart. Unfortunately, it did absolutely nothing to help.
By the end, even his throat was sore. The overwhelming shock had left him so shaken that he didn’t even dare continue cursing inwardly.
How could something like this… possibly…
The stubborn streak that had always defined the little flower demon finally crumbled beneath sheer fright. Tears streamed down his cheeks like pearls from a broken string, but he looked so pitiful that anyone seeing him would be tempted to tease him even more.
Long Yin had made quite a display of intimidation, but in truth he hadn’t actually done anything serious. Yet merely revealing the slightest fraction of himself had already frightened the little flower who had been pampered since childhood and had never truly suffered, half to death.
When Long Yin finally pulled away, he poured him some tea from the bedside table so he could rinse his mouth. The moment he finished, Feng Qingyun scrambled backward on hands and knees, curling himself into the farthest corner of the bed. No matter what, he refused to let Long Yin take things any further.
Seeing this, Long Yin’s eyes darkened. He followed him into the corner, boxing him in until his broad frame blocked nearly all of the candlelight.
Tears still hanging from his lashes, Feng Qingyun didn’t dare look directly at him. Even so, the corners of his eyes couldn’t help sneaking glances over Long Yin’s well-defined muscles. He stole one look after another, swallowing unconsciously before hastily looking away again.
That tiny movement naturally didn’t escape Long Yin’s notice.
Narrowing his eyes, he asked quietly, “Your Highness… what are you looking at?”
Even after being caught red-handed, however, Feng Qingyun still stubbornly clamped his mouth shut. No matter what, he refused to take the final step.
Long Yin’s mood immediately sank. Gripping Feng Qingyun’s chin, he leaned down and kissed him with restrained frustration. For an instant, Feng Qingyun’s resolve wavered beneath the kiss. The moment he regained his senses, however, he pressed both hands against Long Yin’s face to stop him from going any further.
“No… I’ll bloom…”
Long Yin froze. Lowering his gaze, he looked at the little beauty in his arms, whose eyes were still rimmed red. The poor little flower had already been bullied into such a miserable state, yet he still remembered Long Yin’s original order, not to bloom here.
By now he had clearly reached his limit. Tears trembled on his lashes as his entire body quivered uncontrollably, and the slightest touch sent shivers coursing through him. He resembled a perfectly ripened fruit, ready to be picked at any moment.
The sight immediately softened Long Yin’s heart, so he gathered Feng Qingyun into his arms and gently kissed away the tears at the corners of his eyes.
“There, there. Don’t cry anymore. Be good. If you really can’t hold it back, then bloom. I’ll keep watch for you.”
But at that moment, Feng Qingyun’s stubbornness resurfaced. No one would have guessed that beneath the appearance of such a delicate beauty hid the temperament of an obstinate little mule.
Tears shimmering in his eyes, he stubbornly protested, “…Who wants to bloom in some out-of-the-way corner like this?! I’m going back to the Demon Palace to bloom!”
As he spoke, he glared indignantly at Long Yin. Every inch of his expression screamed, This is all your fault! Normally he would have said those words aloud without hesitation, but after being thoroughly subdued, all he dared do now was grumble silently to himself.
Long Yin found the sight both amusing and irresistibly endearing. He truly had no idea how, after giving this little ancestor everything he ever wanted growing up, he’d somehow managed to raise someone so impossibly stubborn.
Then again, without that stubborn streak, no pampered young master would ever have chosen the arduous path of sword cultivation.
Ever since Feng Qingyun first stepped onto the path of cultivation, he complained about being tired no matter what he was doing. Back when he’d first taken human form, he still retained many of his instincts as a flower demon. Even absorbing moonlight required him to lie comfortably in Long Yin’s arms.
And yet this same spoiled young master, indulged to the point of lawlessness, became an entirely different person whenever he practiced the sword. Even when sweat soaked his face, he had never once complained of exhaustion.
The only hardship Feng Qingyun had ever willingly endured, however, was sword training. Beyond that, there was practically nothing else.
Now, forced to suppress the urge to bloom, he had become irritable to the extreme. Pulling the quilt over himself, he flopped into the corner of the bed and refused to acknowledge Long Yin at all.
Long Yin wrapped his arms around him through the blanket, lowering his head as he gently massaged Feng Qingyun’s waist in an attempt to ease his discomfort. But Feng Qingyun now felt like a water-filled pouch, his body so full that every careful kneading made everything inside slosh and sway, as though it were on the verge of spilling over.
His eyes instantly reddened. Furious, he turned his head and bit down hard on Long Yin’s wrist. He made no effort to hold back, and blood immediately welled from the bite. However, Long Yin didn’t even blink.
He seemed long accustomed to it.
As Feng Qingyun’s tongue brushed across the wound, he instinctively tasted the familiar sweetness of Long Yin’s blood. Ordinarily, it would have been the most delicious thing in the world, but the instant it touched his tongue, it felt as though his entire body had been set ablaze. A nameless fire surged up from the depths of his heart.
With a violent twist, he broke free from Long Yin’s embrace.
Left with no other choice, Long Yin simply pulled him back into his arms and coaxed softly, “Be good. Lie down.”
Feng Qingyun had no desire to hear a single word he said. Being held so tightly only intensified the restlessness boiling inside him. Throwing aside the blanket, he spun around and lifted a foot to kick Long Yin, but before he could, Long Yin caught him by the thigh and effortlessly pinned him beneath himself.
The man’s grip was astonishingly strong. His fingers sank deep into the flesh of Feng Qingyun’s thigh, pressing it so firmly that his leg was nearly folded against his own lower abdomen.
Flower demons were naturally flexible, and as a sword cultivator, Feng Qingyun’s body was even more limber. The position itself posed no difficulty for him, yet after a brief pause, his cheeks suddenly flushed crimson.
It wasn’t because it hurt.
It was because the position was simply too humiliating.
Long Yin held him there without moving, showing no sign of taking him outright. He simply remained there, his unreadable gaze fixed on him. Embarrassed beyond measure beneath that stare, Feng Qingyun couldn’t help but snap, “You shameless rogue, what are you staring at?! Let go…!”
Before he could finish, Long Yin suddenly seemed to come back to himself and lowered his head.
The room fell silent once more.
Feng Qingyun’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared blankly at the man before him. A moment later, he abruptly covered his lips, the tips of his ears flushing scarlet.
H-How… how can you even do something like that…?!
His entire body seemed to burst into flames. Trembling uncontrollably, he instinctively tried to clamp his legs together, only to have Long Yin firmly hold him in place.
The fragrance of flowers flooded the air.
Within the cramped little room, it felt as though spring itself had arrived, so intoxicating that one could gladly drown in it. The quiet sounds between them echoed softly through the room, mingled with someone’s muffled whimpers.
Like a rising tide, the overwhelming sensation surged forward. Only after what felt like an eternity did it finally begin to recede, leaving behind a riverbank soaked through by the retreating waters.
Moonlight filtered through the window into the room. Beneath its pale glow, Feng Qingyun lay motionless upon the bed, feeling as though his soul had been drawn clean out of his body. For some reason, everything felt strangely unreal, as though he were trapped inside a dream.
That dazed state lasted a long time, so long that even after Long Yin gathered him into his arms, he gave no response.
Long Yin said nothing either. He simply rested a hand against Feng Qingyun’s back, gently patting him, waiting for him to return to himself. Only after a long while did Feng Qingyun’s wandering gaze finally regain its focus, and his lashes lowered slightly, his expression carrying a quiet, unmistakable look of contentment.
At that moment, his entire body radiated a peaceful satisfaction. Without even realizing it, he nestled a little deeper into Long Yin’s embrace, completely lacking the irritable fury from earlier when he’d wanted nothing more than to kick Long Yin off the bed.
The sight made Long Yin chuckle. He found Feng Qingyun adorable when he was angry, but he found him just as adorable now, nestled against him like a thoroughly contented cat. Unable to resist, he lowered his head and kissed his cheek.
“Feeling better now?” he teased softly. “Done causing trouble?”
Feng Qingyun kept his eyes lowered. There were still tears clinging to his lashes, and he was breathing unevenly, so distracted that he hadn’t even heard what Long Yin had asked. Seeing his absent-minded expression, Long Yin found it endlessly amusing. “So,” he asked with a smile, “you’re not going to call me names anymore?”
Feng Qingyun still looked thoroughly dazed, his lowered gaze unfocused from everything that had happened. After a long pause, he slowly shook his head.
“And no more hitting me?”
Only then did Feng Qingyun lift his eyes to look at him, though he still seemed to be processing what Long Yin had just said.
“I’ll take your silence as a no.” Supporting the back of Feng Qingyun’s neck, Long Yin leaned down and kissed him again. As their lips lingered together, he murmured softly against Feng Qingyun’s ear, “My Little Rose… this time, you chose me. From now on… even if you decide to leave one day, I will never let you go.”
Ever since taking human form, Feng Qingyun’s defining trait had always been his stubbornness.
The second was that he never seemed to learn from being bullied.
Only moments ago he’d been reduced to such a miserable state, yet upon hearing those words, he still couldn’t help asking, “If I really wanted to leave… what could you possibly do to stop me?”
His voice had become hoarse in a way he himself disliked, so he deliberately spoke more quietly. To Long Yin’s ears, however, that husky voice was like a feather brushing across his heart. He couldn’t resist kissing Feng Qingyun’s lips again.
“I have plenty of ways,” he murmured. “Would you like to find out?”
Feng Qingyun gave a quiet snort, clearly unconvinced.
“Oh? What ways? Let’s hear them.”
“For example…” Long Yin held him close and whispered, “How about building a golden house and keeping you locked inside it?”
“You?” Feng Qingyun lowered his eyes to hide the smile tugging at his lips as he leaned against Long Yin’s chest. “Someone who’s all desire and no courage thinks he can hide away his beauty in a golden house? The world says that the things people blurt out without thinking are their true thoughts,” he smiled faintly. “Don’t tell me you’ve been thinking exactly that all along.”
“Yes.” Long Yin admitted it openly, without the slightest embarrassment. “From the moment you said you wanted to see the outside world… that’s exactly what I was thinking.”
To his surprise, Feng Qingyun wasn’t angered by the confession. He merely let out a soft huff, whispering, “…Pervert.”
Long Yin wasn’t offended in the slightest. Instead, something in his heart stirred, and he lowered his head to kiss him again. At first, Feng Qingyun didn’t avoid him, but when Long Yin once more parted his lips and deepened the kiss…
“…!”
Only then did Feng Qingyun finally realize what that lingering floral sweetness in his mouth actually was. He suddenly widened his eyes and immediately frowned, jerking away like a startled fawn as he stared at Long Yin in disbelief.
“…Why didn’t you rinse your mouth?!”
“Your Highness, how could you slander this humble one so unfairly?” Long Yin replied with an aggrieved expression. “I clearly did rinse my mouth. It’s just that the floral fragrance is too strong, even rinsing couldn’t wash it away. Besides…” He smiled. “It’s your own scent. Do you dislike it that much?”
Feng Qingyun ignored him completely. Twisting his waist, he refused to let Long Yin kiss him again. With no choice, Long Yin pulled him into his arms and lowered his head.
“Be good. Let me kiss you once,” but no matter how much he coaxed, Feng Qingyun stubbornly pushed against his face and refused. Seeing that gentle persuasion wasn’t working, Long Yin simply resorted to threats.
“Behave. If you keep refusing, I’ll make you release your true form, spread open your petals, and have you taste your own nectar.”
Feng Qingyun froze in utter shock.
His reddened eyes stared at Long Yin in complete disbelief, as though he were seeing the man for the very first time, his face filled with stunned horror.
That outrageous threat had clearly frightened him senseless. So when Long Yin gently lifted his chin and softly told him to open his mouth, Feng Qingyun didn’t dare utter another word. He obediently tilted his head back, parted his lips, and let the man kiss him.
The lingering floral fragrance, now somewhat faded, mingled between their lips and tongues. Yet even that faint sweetness was enough to make Feng Qingyun so ashamed that he didn’t dare open his eyes. He simply leaned limply against Long Yin’s chest, allowing himself to be kissed.
When the kiss finally ended, Long Yin held him as though cradling the most precious treasure in the world. After a long silence, he murmured beside his ear, almost dreamily, “…You’re mine now.”
Such simple words, yet they held immeasurable tenderness and an obsession deep enough to unsettle anyone who heard them.
“Since I’m yours…” Feng Qingyun whispered softly, “then you’d better hold on tight. If you ever treat me badly again…”
“How can you falsely accuse me in broad daylight?” Long Yin immediately protested. “When have I ever treated you badly?”
Feng Qingyun answered with complete confidence, “Then why did you reject me before?”
That single sentence struck Long Yin’s sorest spot.
He fell silent at once.
“So…” Feng Qingyun said quietly as he toyed with a strand of Long Yin’s hair, “…since I’m yours now, you’d better keep a close eye on me. If there’s ever a next time… I’ll run off with someone else and leave you behind.”
“…There won’t be a next time.” Long Yin lowered his head and kissed his eyes. “I promise.”
Feng Qingyun let out a soft huff and was about to speak again when Long Yin suddenly brushed a hand across the side of his own neck. The next moment, he held out a gleaming dragon scale, still stained with fresh blood.
Feng Qingyun froze.
Holding him close, Long Yin whispered, “My reverse scale… a gift for my Little Rose, as an apology.”
It was a dragon’s reverse scale, the single most precious scale on a dragon’s body. Handing it over was no different from placing one’s very lifeline into another person’s hands.
Feng Qingyun silently accepted the dragon scale. Outwardly, he said nothing. But in his heart, he quietly whispered:
Everything I said just now was a lie.
As long as you never abandon me, I’ll never leave you…
Even if one day you no longer want me, I’ll still follow you to the ends of the earth.
The moonlight gradually faded from the heavens, replaced by the brilliant glow of the rising sun.
After finally confessing their mutual feelings, Long Yin practically treated Feng Qingyun like someone to be worshipped. At last, Feng Qingyun truly understood what it meant to be basking in the spring breeze of success. He even thought to himself that it was no wonder people counted the wedding night among life’s greatest joys.
It truly was wonderful.
Unfortunately, his happiness lasted less than a day, for starting the very next day, he found himself utterly unable to bear it.
“S-Stop… mm… stop kissing me!” He pushed against Long Yin’s face. “You’ve kissed me dozens of times this morning already! If you’re sick, go get treated… mmph!”
But Long Yin seemed possessed by something, and only then did Feng Qingyun finally witness the true meaning of the “obsession” Long Yin had once spoken of. The man practically wanted to keep him hanging from his belt every waking moment, kissing him hundreds of times a day until Feng Qingyun felt his lips were about to be kissed raw.
And it wasn’t just his lips.
Back at the inn each evening, after they finished bathing, the time that ought to have been spent cultivating would instead begin with Long Yin insisting on “checking his cultivation.”
Using that excuse, he’d press Feng Qingyun onto the bed and kiss every inch of his body from head to toe. It turned out that once a person abandoned the principles they’d upheld for years, it was as though all their meridians had suddenly opened and they became completely unrestrained.
As a result, Feng Qingyun’s life on and off the bed became sharply divided.
Off the bed, Long Yin indulged him even more than before. Feng Qingyun did not doubt that if he genuinely asked for Mu Hanyang’s head, Long Yin would disregard the Sword Master’s reputation entirely, march straight into the Xiān Gōng Sect, kill the bastard, and bring the head back simply to make him smile.
But once they climbed into bed… Everything changed completely.
Though they had never gone all the way, Feng Qingyun constantly felt as though every inch of his body had been pried open and thoroughly explored beneath Long Yin’s gaze.
In the end, Long Yin even shamelessly took advantage of the moments when Feng Qingyun’s mind had gone hazy, coaxing him into revealing his true form, the flower buds that had yet to bloom.
But the instant that delicate, dewy flower buds appeared, Long Yin didn’t hesitate in the slightest. His hand reached out immediately.
“D-Don’t touch… don’t…”
No matter how Feng Qingyun clutched at his shoulders and begged, the wicked Demon Emperor remained utterly unmoved. Trembling violently, even through his muddled thoughts, Feng Qingyun still remembered the threat Long Yin had made before. Bullied until he had curled himself into the corner of the bed, he cried and pleaded, “P-Please… don’t touch it anymore… I’m begging you…”
Long Yin crowded him into the corner and looked down at him. “If you’re asking for mercy,” he said softly, “then show a little sincerity, Your Highness.”
Burning crimson with humiliation, Feng Qingyun had no choice. He stumbled over every affectionate title he could think of, calling them out one after another. Only after Long Yin hugged him close and kissed him over and over again did he finally let him off.
After that ordeal, Feng Qingyun had been kissed into developing an unconscious habit: whenever Long Yin wrapped an arm around his waist or pinched his chin, he’d instinctively lift his head and obediently part his lips.
The moment he realized he’d developed such a reflex, Feng Qingyun nearly died of embarrassment.
This is absolutely mortifying!
“Tomorrow is the Heavenly Gate Ceremony…” Feng Qingyun covered Long Yin’s mouth with his hand and said through gritted teeth, “No matter what happens, no more kissing. Behave yourself!”
Long Yin paused. But after placing a gentle kiss against his palm, he actually honored the request. True to his word, he didn’t steal a single kiss before the Heavenly Gate Ceremony officially began the following morning.
Instead, Feng Qingyun was the one who found himself feeling strangely unsettled.
From the moment they left, he kept unconsciously licking his lips. Yet Long Yin behaved as though he were blind, dutifully following a few steps behind him like the most loyal attendant, without uttering a single unnecessary word.
Feng Qingyun was so annoyed he could hardly bear it, but he still had his pride. All he could do was purse his lips, wear a displeased expression, and silently endure it.
Long Yin noticed every bit of it. However, he merely smiled to himself and pretended not to.
The Heavenly Gate Ceremony was renowned throughout the Eight Realms. Countless cultivators traveled from afar to attend, making the Xiān Gōng Sect bustling with talented figures from every corner of the world.
Feng Qingyun had reached the Qi Condensation stage the moment he first took human form. In only eighteen years, he had already advanced to Foundation Building. However, no one else knew his true age. So judging only by his cultivation, he didn’t stand out particularly among the assembled guests.
His appearance, however, was another matter entirely.
His beauty was so exceptional that people continually glanced his way, clearly eager to strike up a conversation. Yet the beautiful young master, accompanied by his attendant, ascended the steps with an icy expression and utter silence. He looked every bit the aloof noble heir who regarded everyone else with indifference, treating the curious gazes around him as though they didn’t exist.
The surrounding cultivators couldn’t help wondering:
Which sect’s disciple is this? How can he be so arrogant?
Feng Qingyun couldn’t have cared less what they thought. Still slightly annoyed, he climbed the steps without sparing anyone around him so much as a glance. But the moment he came to a stop before the magnificent main gates of the Xiān Gōng Sect…
His footsteps halted.
As though sensing something, Feng Qingyun suddenly looked up at the towering gates before him.
They were utterly unfamiliar.
And yet, for one fleeting instant, an indescribable feeling of having crossed lifetimes welled up inside him. It was as though every sweet moment he had experienced until now had been borrowed.
As though this place…
…was where his life had truly been destined to begin and end.
For the briefest moment, an inexplicable thought surfaced in his heart:
People always say life is but a dream…
Could the carefree, blessed life I’ve lived until now…
Have been nothing more than an illusion?
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