Chapter 15: The Reader Is Rather Cute

Chapter 15: Chapter 15: The Reader Is Rather Cute

For the next few days, Sui Sui settled into the same routine. During the day, he buried himself in books, trying to better understand the unfamiliar world he now lived in. At night, Yizhou would quietly slip into his room to take his nightly mouthful of blood.

Sometimes, after feeding, he would linger a while longer, treating Sui Sui like a convenient test subject for the new spells he had learned before leaving.

Tonight happened to be one of those nights.

The spell Yizhou was currently experimenting with was called Heart Substitution, one of the techniques related to the Heart Gu. It allowed the caster to transfer their own injuries onto the host’s body. Right now, he was testing its limits, trying to determine exactly what kinds of wounds or dangers could be transferred and to what extent.

Sui Sui lowered his gaze to his right arm as it slowly turned black. Earlier, Yizhou had pricked his own arm with a poison-coated needle. A moment later, the poison vanished from Yizhou’s body and appeared within Sui Sui’s instead. The numbness spread little by little from the wound, causing his entire arm to lose sensation.

"S-Senior Brother..." Sui Sui called out, looking at Yizhou in panic.

"Stab wound transfer, check. Poison transfer, check." Yizhou nodded in satisfaction. "That should be enough for tonight."

He casually fed Sui Sui a medicinal pill. Almost instantly, the numbness receded, and feeling gradually returned to his arm. Although the skin remained slightly blackened, it was no longer spreading and would likely fade with time.

"Good job today, Junior Brother. I knew you wouldn’t let me down." Yizhou smiled brightly, looking every bit the gentle and righteous senior.

How can someone smile so kindly while doing something so cruel? Sui Sui silently complained.

Of course, he didn’t dare voice those thoughts aloud. Instead, he returned a flattering smile, pretending it was his honor to help.

Satisfied with the evening’s results, Yizhou tucked away the remaining pills and glanced at Sui Sui one last time. Seeing that there was nothing else worth testing tonight, he turned and walked toward the door.

The room fell silent as the wooden door clicked shut behind him. The faint sound of retreating footsteps gradually faded into the distance until only the quiet rustling of leaves outside the window remained.

Only after confirming that Yizhou had truly left did Sui Sui finally let out the breath he had been holding. The smile plastered on his face disappeared in an instant, replaced by a weary expression. He rubbed his still-tingling arm before dragging his exhausted body onto the bed.

Curling beneath the blanket, he stared blankly at the ceiling for a long moment. These nightly visits had already become part of his routine. Between the blood feeding and Yizhou’s endless experiments, there was hardly a peaceful night to be had.

Before long, the fatigue overtook him. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier until they finally closed, and he slowly drifted into a restless sleep.

—

The next morning, Sui Sui was currently sitting in the Bai Family’s library with an old book spread open before him. It had taken him quite a while to find it, as it had been tucked away in a dusty corner among a pile of rarely touched books. Although the contents weren’t particularly detailed, they were enough to confirm a suspicion that had been lingering in his mind.

According to the book, people born with an Extreme Yin Physique cultivated differently from ordinary cultivators.

Their bodies naturally contained an excessive amount of Yin Qi. Since Yin Qi was innately cold, it would gradually seal their meridians even before birth, preventing spiritual qi from flowing through their bodies. As a result, they appeared unable to cultivate, and their health would become weaker with age.

As Sui Sui read through the description, he found that it matched Bai Sui Sui’s condition almost perfectly.

However, the next paragraph caught his attention.

The book mentioned that an Extreme Yin Physique was not truly incapable of cultivation. Before they could begin cultivating, they simply had to complete a special process to unblock the Yin Qi that had sealed their meridians. Once the blockage was removed, they would be able to cultivate just like anyone else.

Seeing this, Sui Sui couldn’t help but feel a little excited.

So there really was a way, his body wasn’t a hopeless cultivation cripple after all. Unfortunately, his excitement didn’t last long. The book only mentioned that such a method existed, but it never explained what the process actually was.

Closing the book, Sui Sui let out a disappointed sigh.

It seemed that he really would have to make a trip to the Wenjian Sect.

Compared to the Bai Family’s library, the sect’s collection was far larger and much more comprehensive. If there was anywhere that recorded the method to unblock an Extreme Yin Physique, it would most likely be there.

—

A few more days passed, and it was finally time for Sui Sui and the others to return to Wenjian Sect.

Before they left, Mother Bai bustled around them like a mother hen seeing off her chicks. She repeatedly reminded Sui Sui to take care of his health and stuffed all kinds of pills, snacks, and daily necessities into his storage pouch. By the time she was finished, the pouch was practically overflowing.

Just like before, Sui Sui also wore a white veiled hat to shield himself from the sun.

For this journey, they rode the same bird-beast they had taken to Qingqiong City. Wenjian Sect was much farther from Qi Luo City, and even at the bird-beast’s fastest speed, the journey would still take two to three days.

Along the way, they stopped several times to rest and eat. After three days and two nights of travel, they finally arrived at the foot of Mount Changsheng. This entire mountain belonged to the Wenjian Sect, but reaching the main gate still required climbing a thousand stone steps.

Since flying beasts and flying artifacts were prohibited when climbing towards the sect’s territory, the group dismounted and continued the rest of the journey on foot.

However, just as they began climbing the mountain, Bai Suichen suddenly received a transmission talisman from one of the sect’s disciples.

After reading its contents, his expression became slightly serious.

"It seems something urgent has come up," Bai Suichen said as he put away the talisman. "You two go on ahead. I’ll head down the mountain first and catch up later."

Without waiting for a reply, he hurried back down the stone steps.

Before Sui Sui could even open his mouth to say that he also wanted to go back down, Bai Suichen had already disappeared into the distance.

"..."

Watching his brother leave so decisively, Sui Sui suddenly felt a bad premonition.

Now...Only he and Yizhou were left.

The atmosphere instantly became a little awkward.

"Junior Brother, shall we continue?"

Yizhou looked at him with the same teasing smile that never seemed to leave his face.

Although Sui Sui really didn’t want to be alone with him, he had no choice. Besides, they were already within the territory of Wenjian Sect. Surely this person wouldn’t be shameless enough to do anything inappropriate here.

Without replying, Sui Sui simply turned around and continued climbing the stone steps while Yizhou followed leisurely behind him.

However, it didn’t take long for Sui Sui to realize that he had greatly underestimated the thousand-step staircase; before he had even reached the halfway point, his breathing had already become uneven. Sweat slowly formed on his forehead as his legs grew heavier with every step.

Although his health in this life was much better than it had been in his previous one, he was still a mortal with no cultivation. Naturally, he couldn’t compare to cultivators who could ascend the mountain as though they were walking on flat ground.

Every few dozen steps, Sui Sui had to stop and catch his breath before continuing.

"Junior Brother," Yizhou called from behind, his tone carrying a trace of amusement. "Can your frail body still keep up? Would you like this Senior Brother to help you?"

Sui Sui turned around.

Sure enough, Yizhou was looking at him with that irritating smile again.

"I’m fine." Sui Sui couldn’t help but shoot him an irritated glare. Unfortunately, with his naturally gentle features, the glare carried little intimidation. Instead, it looked more like he was pouting and throwing a childish tantrum. "I don’t need your help. Stay away from me."

Instead of becoming angry, Yizhou’s smile only deepened.

"Really?" he asked unhurriedly. "If the Junior Brother asks politely, this Senior Brother wouldn’t mind carrying you up."

Those words immediately made Sui Sui grit his teeth.

"No!" He huffed and turned around.

"Stay away from me. I don’t want to talk to you." Muttering those words, Sui Sui angrily continued climbing the stairs. Perhaps because he was too distracted, or perhaps because he was simply too exhausted, he accidentally stepped on the edge of a stone stair. His footing slipped and his body immediately tilted backward.

Oh no...

Sui Sui instinctively shut his eyes, preparing himself for the painful fall.

However, the expected impact never came. Instead, a pair of strong arms caught him securely around the waist.

Before Sui Sui could react, the next second another hand slipped beneath his knees , his feet had already left the ground. Instinctively, he reached out and grabbed onto Yizhou’s robes to steady himself. With one smooth motion, Yizhou lifted him into a princess carry.

"You’re welcome."

Yizhou looked down at him, the corners of his lips curling into a teasing smile, as though carrying another person up a thousand stone steps was no more difficult than taking a leisurely stroll.

Only then did Sui Sui realize the position they were in. His eyes widened slightly, and warmth immediately crept up to his ears.

"L-Let me down right now," Sui Sui protested.

Yizhou acted as though he hadn’t heard a thing, his footsteps never slowing in the slightest.

Sui Sui glared at him for a moment before finally giving up. Remembering how stubbornly he had refused Yizhou’s help only moments ago, only to end up being carried anyway, he suddenly found himself at a loss for words.

...Whatever.

His feet hurt, anyway. Don’t know what Yizhou ate that he insisted on helping but If Yizhou insisted on carrying him, then he could carry him.

In the end, he simply lowered his head and buried his face against Yizhou’s chest, pretending not to hear or see anything.

...Anyways

He didn’t ask Yizhou to carry him.

Yizhou had insisted on doing it himself.

After lying there quietly for a while, Sui Sui originally intended to continue pretending to sleep out of embarrassment.

Unexpectedly, perhaps because he had been exhausted from the journey over the past few days, his tense body gradually relaxed.

Before he knew it...He had actually fallen asleep.

Feeling the breathing of the person in his arms gradually became slow and even, Yizhou lowered his gaze.

His head rested lightly against Yizhou’s chest, the white veil having long since slipped back, revealing a head of snow-white hair. Soft strands draped over his face, his cheeks retained a hint of baby fat, making his already small face appear even more delicate, while his naturally rosy, plump lips were pressed together in a peaceful line.

The corners of Yizhou’s lips curved upward even further.

Truthfully, he had never intended to help. Carrying other people was not something he would normally do. He had only wanted to embarrass Sui Sui a little.

He just hadn’t expected it.

This little Junior Brother of his...

Was actually rather cute when he was angry.