Chapter 357: The Guilt of Cheating
Actually, when Xu Yourong informed him that the Third Prince had the backing of the Demon Clan, Young Master Sang had already had a hunch.
If the Demon Clan was searching for the Earth Store Immortal Treasure just like him and Li Shanyan, it was only a matter of time before they crossed paths.
However, Young Master Sang didn’t expect the other side to be so blatant, so direct in attacking those around him.
After all, such an act was no different from declaring war.
Faced with the Holy Kingdom, the Demon Clan only dared to hide behind the scenes, supporting a puppet like the Third Prince to rise to power, and didn’t dare to openly involve themselves in the affairs of the Holy Kingdom.
But against the Demon Cult, which also had two Great Ascension realm masters, the Demon Clan was surprisingly unrestrained.
“I feel underestimated…” Young Master Sang chuckled coldly.
“It seems that in their eyes, the Demon Cult is just a soft persimmon compared to the Holy Kingdom that can be bullied at will.”
“So,”
Nian Nian said, resting her chin on her palm as she fiddled with her teacup, “are you planning to take people straight over to the Demon Clan?”
“…Before that,”
Young Master Sang suddenly turned serious, “I need to confirm something.”
“What is it?”
“Is Li Shanyan dead or alive now?”
“Didn’t you hear?” Nian Nian rolled her eyes in boredom, “He’s trapped in a dream.”
“Is it also the work of the Demon Clan?”
“Exactly. The Demon Clan has a demon beast called the Dream Tapir, whose bloodline power allows them to enter and exit dreams at will, achieving an effect similar to ‘Dream Realm Dust’… By the way, why are you suddenly so concerned about Li Shanyan?”
Young Master Sang pondered, “I have a theory that I need to confirm with Li Shanyan. After all, he should know more about the Demon Clan than we do.”
“If we can conveniently rescue him, it’s also a favor to him. He can both reclaim his position in the Holy Kingdom and serve as a deterrent against the Demon Clan.”
“Well then, Master should hurry up,” Nian Nian replied casually, “The Dream Tapir can absorb the lifespan of the dream’s host.”
“And Li Shanyan has been stuck in that dream for quite a while now. If he continues to stay trapped, he might be in real danger. That old man is powerful, but his lifespan isn’t long, right?”
That was indeed true.
For Human Clan cultivators, the peak of the Great Ascension realm’s lifespan was just around a thousand years.
Li Shanyan was already over nine hundred years old; his lifespan was indeed running out.
“Let’s do it now then.” Young Master Sang turned to Nian Nian and said, “I’m counting on you.”
“…You idiot host. Always dumping troublesome tasks on me,”
Nian Nian grumbled with an unhappy face, “Remember to compensate me with points later.”
At that moment, Master Yu Xia, who had just recovered a bit from her weakness, saw Young Master Sang suddenly start taking off his clothes in front of her.
“Eh… eh! M-Master?”
She turned beet red almost instantly, her speech becoming a bit slurred, “W-What are you doing—”
“Sorry, but I’m sleeping here now.”
Young Master Sang had already stripped off his outer robe and lay down beside Yu Xia, “Don’t let anyone wake me up, okay?”
“Ah?! S-Sleeping here means… you want me to service you?”
What’s happening?
So sudden?
Did Master see me looking sick and suddenly take a fancy?
What do I do… If Master suddenly wants something, should I accept it…?
After all, Master used to sing and dance until late at night with the wives. The noise was so loud it scared people. Can my newly poisoned body handle that…?
Yu Xia didn’t even know if it was because of her lingering poison or something else, but she felt hot all over, holding her blushing face tightly:
“Well, um, I know I should be prepared for this day to come eventually, but this is so sudden…”
“B-But I might still be weak from the poison, and might not be able to withstand Master’s… um, so maybe you should let me rest for a few days?”
“Ah… I-I’m not trying to go against Master’s wishes. If you really want it, I’m, um, okay too… I just hope you can be gentle, ah, it’s really okay if you can’t be…”
Yu Xia nervously muttered to herself for a while.
When she turned her head, however, she found that Young Master Sang was already fast asleep. She could even hear him snoring.
“Master? Master?”
She tentatively called out a couple of times, and after confirming that Young Master Sang was really asleep, she silently breathed a sigh of relief, feeling her emotions in chaos.
In that moment, she couldn’t quite tell if she felt relaxed or disappointed.
At that moment, the room only had her and Young Master Sang. After Young Master Sang removed his outer robe, he was lying in bed in just his undergarments.
Yu Xia intended to get up and attend to Master Sang’s sleep, but as soon as she propped herself up, a wave of dizziness hit her, forcing her back down onto the bed.
…It’s just too much for me.
Helplessly, Yu Xia could only slightly bite her lip, gently pull up a corner of the blanket covering her, and then turn to cover Young Master Sang as well, so he wouldn’t catch a cold.
And underneath the blanket, Yu Xia, already undressed in order to check her injuries, felt her skin pressed against Young Master Sang’s warm body like sticking to a hot iron.
A strange feeling of stimulation and warmth rose within Yu Xia’s heart.
That feeling, she couldn’t quite put into words.
It was a bit like… the guilt of cheating?
I’m sorry, ladies, Yu Xia silently thought in her heart.
I didn’t mean to lure Master. It’s just that Master happened to sleep here, and I happened to be too weak to move.
I hope the ladies… can forgive me.
Though she thought this in her heart.
But Yu Xia still couldn’t help but unconsciously nuzzle closer to Young Master Sang.
She even gently wrapped her arm around his, burying his arm into the softness of her chest.
——
——
In the dream, when Young Master Sang opened his eyes, he found himself not in the brothel called Dream Pavilion as he had expected.
But in a city that felt both familiar yet strange.
…Tianlang City of the Holy Kingdom.
Although some places were different, Young Master Sang could still recognize that this was indeed Tianlang City.
But compared to the Tianlang City in Young Master Sang’s memory, this place was much more prosperous, rich, and peaceful.
The streets were crowded, with families coming and going, not worrying about their belongings nor locking their doors at night.
The biggest change was the National Teacher’s Residence.
This National Teacher’s Residence seemed to be several times larger than Young Master Sang remembered, almost the size of half a city. Within it were students wearing cloth robes and silk scarves, with the sound of reading resounding everywhere.
Li Shanyan was sitting in the center of the plaza of the National Teacher’s Residence.
His appearance had become incredibly youthful, with disheveled hair and rough hemp clothing, surrounded by a group of students eagerly asking him questions, all while smiling and answering them one by one.
“This… is Li Shanyan’s dream?”
It turns out that old man wasn’t as sinister and scheming as I imagined.
His dream is actually quite pure and clean.
He simply wants to be a beloved teacher with many students.
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