Chapter 284: Protagonist, wet temptation
Dark clouds obscured the sky, and a gentle rain lingered, draping a thin layer of mist over Tianyun Peak. Softened by the mist, the lamplight cast a halo over the mountain peak.
Ye Anping returned from Yuequan Peak with his sword, and upon reaching the triple courtyard community, his eyes immediately fell upon the building he shared with Xiao Yunluo.
Among the ten nearby triple courtyards, theirs was the only one without any lights.
Descending with his sword, Ye Anping reached the gate of his triple courtyard. Retrieving the key from his storage bag, his mind remained preoccupied with the matters concerning the Emperor Sect. He had previously estimated that the affairs of the Emperor Sect would take at least half a year, so he had planned to rest in the Xuanxing Sect for a month or two, allowing his junior sister to consolidate her cultivation and letting Feng Yudie practice the first fragment of the Xuanyin Jue. However, Si Xuanji had taken Xiao Yunluo there three months ago.
A quick calculation revealed that the turmoil in the Emperor Sect would commence in five months at most. Five months might seem short, but it was also not lengthy.
The Central and Western Regions were quite distant, requiring two to three months of travel. Catching up with Xiao Yunluo was likely impossible, leaving him with no choice but to revise the strategy book.
“I hope Brother Liang can catch up,” He murmured.
Ye Anping sighed lightly, pushing open the courtyard door and intending to take a hot bath and rest for the night. He still hadn’t fully recovered from nearly being drained by his junior sister earlier. However, as he took the first step into the courtyard, he froze.
Why was Xiao Yunluo’s bedroom door open? Had Senior Sister Bai forgotten to close it after cleaning?
Ye Anping felt slightly puzzled and quickly readied his spirit sword, cautiously approaching and peeking into the room.
To his surprise, he found Feng Yudie and Xiao Tian squatting beside the mahogany bed in the room. The dog was facing away, engrossed in something they were holding.
What were they sneaking around for?
What were they looking at?
After hesitating, Ye Anping tiptoed into the room as quietly as possible, slipping behind Feng Yudie and Xiao Tian, who remained oblivious to his presence.
Seeing that he had approached them undetected, Ye Anping grew even more curious. He stood on tiptoe, craning his neck to see what Feng Yudie held.
Swish—
Completely unaware of Ye Anping behind her, Feng Yudie turned to the next page of the book “Erotic Pictures of Immortal Palace.” On it, two finely drawn figures engaged in an intimate embrace, with the annotation “Boiled Luan Dao Feng” written above.
The paintings in the book failed to evoke any reaction from Ye Anping, who was well-informed, despite Feng Yudie’s book being far superior to the hairpin gift he had given to his junior sister. However, Ye Anping still felt slightly puzzled, and his gaze gradually shifted to Xiao Tian beside him.
“Feng Yudie seems so engrossed in it, but she has never seen it before. This is her first time. What’s going on?” Ye Anping questioned.
Feng Yudie turned another page and then pointed at the book, asking, “Xiao Tian, is this how live sparrows look? Why does the one you showed me last time look different?”
“That one last time was only half of the one below,” Xiao Tian nodded blankly. “Yudie, this painting is a bit exaggerated. Anping’s depiction is much cuter and not as fuzzy.”
Ye Anping’s lips parted slightly, unable to contain his surprise any longer. He reached out, snatched the book from Feng Yudie’s hand, and closed it abruptly.
“Oh my!” Feng Yudie and Xiao Tian exclaimed in unison, turning around to face Ye Anping with a mix of shock and embarrassment.
“Young Master Ye, you’re here!” Feng Yudie said.
“Anping, you heard…” Xiao Tian began but trailed off.
Ye Anping remained silent, his eyes fixed on the book’s cover.
—”Erotic Pictures of Immortal Palace—Hardcover Edition”
The edge of the book cover was adorned with gold foil. In a world without printing machines, books were already expensive, let alone ones embellished with gold foil and illustrations, which commanded exorbitant prices. He had been wondering where Xiao Yunluo had obtained so many imperial books. They didn’t seem like books confiscated from other disciples.
Ye Anping’s expression turned cold as he lifted the book and asked, “Who among you masterminded sneaking into someone else’s bedroom and peeking at their privacy?”
Feng Yudie, observing Ye Anping’s expression, shrunk back slightly and promptly blamed Xiao Tian, “It was Xiao Tian who asked me to come!”
“What? Yudie…” Xiao Tian paused, realizing that Ye Anping seemed angry. He hurriedly explained, “Anping, I just wanted to teach Yudie…”
“You are the guardian spirit of the Heavenly Dao Scroll, meant to assist Feng Yudie in fulfilling her destiny. Instead of guiding her properly, you taught her to steal!” Ye Anping’s tone was accusatory.
“I was wrong,” Xiao Tian said, feeling sorry for himself as he lowered his head and pouted. But then he had another idea. “But Yudie doesn’t know about these things, does she? No one has ever taught her, so why don’t you teach her?”
The ball was suddenly in his court, and Ye Anping didn’t know how to respond. He turned his head to look at Feng Yudie again, suddenly noticing that she was drenched. It seemed she had just run over in the rain. Her Xuanxing Sect uniform was still flesh-colored, and her silver hair was still wet, with water droplets clinging to it.
After a moment of hesitation, Ye Anping instinctively looked away and quickly retrieved a towel from his storage bag, tossing it onto Feng Yudie’s head.
“Here, take it and dry it off.”
“Oh! Thank you,” Feng Yudie said, taking the towel and rubbing her head. She then asked, “Young Master Ye, about the paintings in the book…”
Ye Anping immediately cut her off, “Don’t ask. If you want to know, ask Senior Sister Xiao.”
“Oh…”
After a brief silence, Ye Anping shifted the topic, ignoring Xiao Tian’s hopeful gaze for him to teach Feng Yudie, and asked, “How’s your practice of Xuan Yin Jue going?”
Upon hearing Ye Anping ask about this, Feng Yudie quickly removed the towel from her head and said, “I was just about to ask! I’ve been practicing for three months, but it doesn’t seem to be effective. There haven’t been many changes in my body. There’s no detailed record in the Book of Heavenly Dao, and Xiao Tian doesn’t know either.”
“There’s no record in the scroll of Heavenly Dao?” Ye Anping inquired.
“There was someone named Gu Xuanyin who gained a magical power a long time ago,” Xiao Tian added. “Anping, is it this? The writing in the scroll is very vague.”
“Yeah, it’s a magical power left by that person,” Ye Anping nodded and explained. “Xuanyin Jue is a dragon-controlling technique that matches your Holy Emperor Dragon Body. It can also control other dragons, for example…”
“For example!” Feng Yudie prompted.
Ye Anping hesitated to mention Xiao Yunluo’s name.
But in the later stages of the game, Feng Yudie did ride Xiao Yunluo around every day, Ye Anping thought.
“We’ll discuss it later,” Ye Anping said, changing the subject again. “My junior sister should have returned to your triple courtyard. You should go back and tidy up. We have to rush to the Central Territory in a few days.”
“Ah! Leaving again… didn’t we just come back?” Feng Yudie asked.
“It’s a sudden situation,” Ye Anping explained.
“Then I’ll go back and tidy up first!” Feng Yudie said, flattening her mouth before leaving the room with the towel Ye Anping gave her.
Watching her leave, Ye Anping sighed silently and turned to see Xiao Tian floating beside him, looking pitiful. Xiao Tian looked cute again as if trying to win him over with a charming gaze.
Ye Anping didn’t buy into Xiao Tian’s ploy, furrowing his brow as he said, “Xiao Tian, if you keep doing these random things, from now on…”
“Ah… Anping, I’m just trying to help~ You see… if Yudie learns…” Xiao Tian tried to explain.
“It’s up to you,” Ye Anping cut him off.
Xiao Tian pursed his lips in disappointment, “Oh…”
Ye Anping rolled his eyes at him, then glanced at the book. After a moment of hesitation, he asked, “By the way, where was this book originally placed?”
“Under the pillow,” Xiao Tian replied.
Ye Anping walked to the bed, stuffed the book back under the pillow, and then turned back to his room. However, as he entered his bedroom, the image of Feng Yudie soaked to the bone suddenly flashed in his mind. Reflectively, he murmured, “Did I unconsciously look away just now?”
After pondering for a moment, Ye Anping frowned and clicked his tongue, concluding, “Must have been an illusion.”
He then removed his rain-soaked robe and approached the desk in the room. Lighting a candle, he retrieved the Star-Returning Bell that Qiu Shuirou had given him earlier. Holding the bell in his hand, he gazed at it with a hint of melancholy.
“Si Xuanji… Sigh…” he sighed softly, then gently flicked the jade bell with his index finger.
Jingle Bell—
The sound was delicate and pleasant, resonating throughout the room.
…
