Xi Lin and several palace masters scuffled as they went over to the mountain where Xi Huai's cave residence was located. 

They were all Nascent Soul stage Heavenly Venerables, but they didn't use spiritual power, instead using strength to compete normally.

They were all hundred year old friends, so how could they really use their full power against each other? 

"Don't pull me! I want to see what kind of male vixen can make him willingly become his furnace! A furnace! How shameful it will be when it gets out that the Young Qing Ze Sect Master is a furnace!"

Xi Lin was already hot-tempered to begin with. Right now, not only was his mind still clouded by anger, he almost lost control and set fire to the mountain due to the Hui Dragon Flames.

The Yue Mu Palace Master, aka Zong Sichen's father, could only try to persuade him with words, "They lived together in the cave for three years, it's normal for them to develop a relationship over time. The Young Sect Master also said that this little disciple willingly roamed the streets for two years so he wouldn't be made a laughingstock. Both of them have had it hard. Now that they've finally reunited, you can't separate this pair of lovebirds!" 

Xi Lin cursed, "A relationship? What kind of relationship? He is really hard-working, huh? Feeding a mixed spiritual root to Foundation Building stage in just three years. How dare you bring it up?"

The Yue Mu Palace Master could only explain, "Developing a relationship after a long time is an idiom."

Xi Lin didn't care. He continued to ascend the mountain. "Let me go, I won't beat him up. I wouldn't bully a Foundation Building stage. I just want to see if that He Huan Sect person is a human or a vixen. How could he be such a seductress! And make that little bastard fall head over heels for him?"

Eventually, the scrabbling crowd reached the entrance of Xi Huai's cave residence.

Xi Lin didn't go in immediately. He slammed the door outside and shouted, "Open the door! Get out here!" 

After waiting for a while, there was no response.

Xi Huai's cave residence had restrictions in place, which were set up by these very same Nascent Soul stage seniors. Xi Lin couldn't detect what was going on inside, so he could only knock again. "If you don't open the door soon I'll go in myself!" 

There was still no response. 

Xi Lin pushed open the door and strode in. Since they were the ones who set it up, they naturally knew how to dispel the restrictions. They just didn't want to be too violent before.

He was a little hesitant when he arrived at the door of Xi Huai's room, afraid of seeing something inappropriate. He listened to the breathing inside for a while, then stated another warning before going in.

After entering, the sight of the two people on the bed made his angry expression slowly change to consternation. 

Xi Huai was lying on his back, his clothes opened slightly. Seventy percent of the lightning on his body had been siphoned away.

The man in pink clothes beside him has obviously fainted, his hands hanging by his side.

The man in pink had a low cultivation and forcibly absorbed the lightning, causing his middle and index fingertips to be burnt. His entire palm was covered with wounds from lightning strikes, blood coagulating to gradually form scabs.

He probably wanted to siphon all the lightning away before treating himself, but unfortunately fainted after absorbing seventy percent, leaving the wounds he had sustained as is. 

He looked at these two with tightly pursed lips. In the end, he came over and took away the lightning still circling around them with a wave of his hand before leaving.

Forget it.

He'll leave this matter for later.

When the Palace Masters waiting at the door saw Xi Lin come out, they breathed a collective sigh of relief. They were all worried about seeing a scene with a He Huan Sect disciple crying and begging for approval. They wouldn't even know what to do in that case.

After cultivating for a hundred years and making countless enemies, they were only troubled in the matters of being a parent. It was much more satisfying to go and beat someone up than to try and dissuade someone. 

The Zun Yue Palace Master was curious at the lack of commotion he heard. "Those two eloped?"

Xi Lin's expression was a bit complicated. Finally, he sighed, "The little bastard found a fool willing to throw away his life. I can't be bothered."

Saying that, he went straight down the mountain.

The people left behind helped close the door of the cave residence and followed him down.

Although they didn't know what exactly happened in the cave residence, at least Xi Lin wasn't angry anymore.

When Xi Huai woke up, he was shocked to find that the lightning coursing through his body had disappeared.

Turning over and seeing Chi Muyao lying beside him, he reached out and found that there was no lightning on Chi Muyao's body either. Just when he felt relieved, he saw Chi Muyao's hand.

He took Chi Muyao's hand and examined it carefully. Then he kissed Chi Muyao's fingertips.

He sent spiritual energy into the hand he was tightly holding to check the condition of Chi Muyao's body. He found that the spiritual energy in Chi Muyao's body was chaotic and appeared to be going berserk.

He knew Chi Muyao couldn't control the lightning. Even he couldn't do it perfectly, so how could Chi Muyao?

Someone probably came to the cave residence and helped the two of them take away the lightning. 

However, that was all they did. Chi Muyao was still electrocuted, causing him to fall unconscious and his spiritual energy to go berserk.

He didn't know how long Chi Muyao's body had been tormented by lightning before that person came to help. He didn't know why Chi Muyao was so dumb either. Why would he invite a pain he couldn't handle onto his own body?

Xi Huai's heart bled as he held Chi Muyao's hand and helped stabilise his rampant spiritual energy. He did his best to heal Chi Muyao's body.

After a long time, Chi Muyao woke up. When he turned his head, the peach blossom mask's bead curtain made a clattering sound.

Then their gazes met.

Chi Muyao reached over and touched Xi Huai carefully. He asked, "Are you feeling better?"

"What about you?"

Chi Muyao tried pushing his body up. Then he looked at his fingers and mused, "Why did the lightning disappear? Is it because I touched an insulator? Or is there a lightning rod in this room?"

"..." Xi Huai looked at Chi Muyao in a complicated mood. Why could he never understand what Chi Muyao was saying? 

Fortunately, Chi Muyao didn't continue to say 'nonsense'. Instead, he leaned over to look at Xi Huai's wound. "This wound can be healed by applying medicine now, right?"

"En. Probably."

He was too busy examining Chi Muyao's condition after waking up. If Chi Muyao hadn't mentioned it, he would've forgotten he was injured at all.

Now that he looked down at his wounds, he confirmed that they were normal ones.

Chi Muyao hurriedly sat up. Fearing that Xi Huai's bed would get dirty, he took off his boots.

Next, he took out his Qiankun bag in front of Xi Huai and then the Thousand Treasure Bell inside. Then he took out a small box from the Thousand Treasure Bell...

A little box?

Seeing how puzzled Xi Huai was, Chi Muyao explained to him when he opened the box, "This is called a Storage Box. Don't you think a single bottle of medicine occupying an entire spot in the Thousand Treasure Bell is a waste? If you put it in a Storage Box, one spot can now hold ten bottles, saving nine spots."

"Oh...that's nice.” 

Chi Muyao, who was very good at living his life, didn't notice Xi Huai's complicated expression. He took out the ointment and helped him apply it.

Xi Huai hesitated for a while, but couldn't help but say, "I know you had a bad time in the past few years, but you don't have to hold yourself back anymore. I can give you everything you need, so you don't have to be so frugal."

Chi Muyao took some ointment and gently applied it to the wounds. He asked bemusedly, "Is being thrifty frugal? It's better to call it a rational use of resources."

Xi Huai knew that living habits couldn't be changed overnight, so he picked up the ointment and applied it to Chi Muyao as well. "Your fingertips were almost cooked.”

When he mentioned this, Chi Muyao laughed, "At the beginning, Qiuqiu was also half-cooked after being struck by lightning..."

Xi Huai immediately laughed as well.

Chi Muyao paused in applying medicine.

A-Jiu from the He Huan Sect Logistics Hall mentioned the soul-bound spirit beast of Chi Muyao from the Yu Chong School...

This...This...

There was no coming back from this. He had lost his vigilance and said what was on his mind.

The two of them stewed in this awkward silence for a while. Chi Muyao tried to salvage the situation. "I, I heard that from someone else."

Xi Huai replied like he was coaxing a child, "En, I believe you."

"I'm not him."

"Oh."

He tried again, insisting, "Really."

"En, you're not. You just have to swear by it."

"En. I swear I'm not that you-know-who."

 "Okay. If you lied, you'll go into closed door cultivation for twenty years with me, alright?"

Chi Muyao felt that this oath was a bit scary. What was the difference between this and killing him? He quickly shook his head, "I can't swear to such a poisonous oath!"

Xi Huai was unhappy for a while. "Is it so scary to enter closed door cultivation with me? Calling it a poisonous oath is a bit..."

"Of course! Don't you understand your little guy? It keeps attacking after stuffing people to the point of bursting. Anyone would be left half dead. Even if I'm from the He Huan Sect and I have its cultivation methods, I'm not indestructible. I can't take being tossed around like that."

"I was...too fierce?" 

"En!"

"I was a little overexcited and anxious last time."

"Only last time?" Chi Muyao glared at Xi Huai after he finished speaking. 

Xi Huai knew that he was wrong, so he could only continue to help Chi Muyao apply medicine.

Chi Muyao used his left hand to help Xi Huai apply medicine to his wounds, while Xi Huai took Chi Muyao's right hand and applied medicine to his fingertips and arm. 

The two of them applied medicine to each other without saying a word. There was only the sound of clothes rustling in the room for a while.

Xi Huai's ointment really was something. The wounds began to heal at a visible rate after it was applied. Truly a superb treasure. 

If Chi Muyao didn't have the healing ability of the Colourless Yunni Deer, he would have to get a few more bottles of this ointment. Maybe it could cure his old, aching knees.

He leaned over to check Xi Huai's wounds carefully and made sure they were all healed. Then pulled Xi Huai's clothes and asked, "Are there any other wounds in other places?"

Xi Huai was even calmer than him. "Why don't you take it all off and have a look."

“...”

Chi Muyao finally realised something wasn't right with the atmosphere. He packed the ointment away calmly in the Storage Box on purpose. 

Xi Huai leaned in, closing the distance between them.

Chi Muyao quickly pushed Xi Huai's cheek away. "Your injuries just healed..." 

"But my heart still aches."

He turned to look at Xi Huai's chest. "Heartache? Did the Sect Master beat you in other ways?"

"No. It hurts because you got hurt for my sake. If you lie to me again to do stupid things like this in the future, I'm going to treat you very fiercely."

Chi Muyao put away the Storage Box and simply shoved Xi Huai's shoulder. "What sorts of things are stored in that head of yours? It hurt so bad before, but now you're leaning over? Stay away from me. I'm going to rest because I don't feel good."

Xi Huai stopped and stared at him with burning eyes. The corners of his mouth raised slightly as he softly asked, "Where doesn't feel good? I'll take a look for you."

"No need!"

"Well I need it. My chest hurts. Rub it for me." He said, taking Chi Muyao's hand.

Chi Muyao quickly slapped Xi Huai's hand away. "Change your clothes. Your enchanted vestment is all torn."

"Okay." Xi Huai finally backed away, letting him breathe a sigh of relief.

Immediately afterwards, he saw Xi Huai taking off his robes and middle layer by the bed.

A tall body lined with muscle, cutting smooth lines like waves on the surface of the sea. Sturdy arms, clear but not exaggerated chest and abdominal muscles...

Chi Muyao hurriedly turned his head away, but Xi Huai called out to him at that moment, "Are there other injuries on my body?"

"Ah?" He startled before looking back with a pretence of calm. "O-oh. Let me take a look."

"Do you need me to come closer?"

"No, no. I can see." He really did spot a wound that was not treated properly. He called Xi Huai over. "Just one more. I'll help you apply medicine."

Xi Huai leaned down obediently, propping up both hands on the bed by his side. Even such a simple pose was filled with powerful aggression.  

Chi Muyao swallowed dryly, his heart beating out a rapid rhythm. Even his fingertips were shaking slightly.

After helping Xi Huai treat the wound on his shoulder and capping the ointment, Xi Huai leaned over again, nuzzling their noses together and parting the bead curtain of the peach blossom mask.

Then their lips touched.

Hot breath ambiguously flowed, stirring up ripples in the heart.

Chi Muyao leaned back in an attempt to dodge, but that left him sprawled on the bed.

Still kissing him, Xi Huai followed him over...