In the room, amidst the darkness, the youth’s silhouette swayed.
Amidst the intoxication, tender groans echoed incessantly.
A slight tremble—it was unclear whose heart was thumping.
A gasp—it was unknown who had succumbed.
Shifting shadows intertwined.
Hazy and muddled, they flickered.
It was no longer possible to tell if it was a dream or reality, drunkenness or delirium.
All that was known was that, before they knew it, the light of dawn had arrived.
Forcing eyes to open, the world welcomed the arrival of day.
Tai Lingxuan sat up, her eyes filled with confusion.
The consequences of the hangover manifested, causing her head to throb with a sharp, sudden pain.
Last night… was that a dream?
Or was it real?
For a moment, she couldn’t tell.
But seeing the youth lying beside her, deeply asleep, and noting the hickeys and scratch marks on his neck… Tai Lingxuan’s lips parted slightly.
No words were needed.
It must have been her, emboldened by the alcohol last night, unable to restrain herself with Yuyang…
Damn it, why couldn’t I hold back?
However, in her fragmented memories, it seemed like the person on top wasn’t her… What was that about?
Forget it, that wasn’t important.
It couldn’t possibly have been Yuyang who took the initiative; that would be a gross violation of the natural order and their master-disciple bond.
Within Tai Lingxuan’s heart, a wave of regret washed over her.
Right, now… the most important thing was to find out if Yuyang remembered clearly what happened last night.
If he was also drunk and his consciousness was blurred…
Tai Lingxuan clutched the bedding, a plan immediately forming in her mind.
Circulating her spiritual energy, the shallow wounds on the youth’s body vanished.
After changing into fresh clothes, Tai Lingxuan sat uneasily at the head of the bed to wait.
At this very moment, Chen Yuyang was having a dream.
In the dream, there was a vast, empty expanse.
Only a massive sun stood nearby, very, very close.
But the sun’s temperature wasn’t scorching.
Instead, it was warm and comfortable, like someone’s embrace.
Chen Yuyang felt an inexplicably intimate sensation.
He couldn’t help but raise his eyes, gazing at the sun in confusion.
For a long, long time…
“Yuyang!”
“Yuyang!”
A soft, familiar call.
In his confusion, the youth forced his eyelids open.
What he saw was Tai Lingxuan’s concerned face.
“Master…”
Chen Yuyang propped himself up, looking at the woman before him.
For a moment, he felt his mind go blank, as if a piece of his memory was missing.
However, it wasn’t because of the wine, but because of that dream…
“Master, what time is it?”
“It’s noon. I only called you because I saw you were still sleeping,” Tai Lingxuan said hurriedly.
Chen Yuyang nodded, pressing his fingers to his temples and rubbing them firmly a few times.
“Master, last night…”
Hearing Chen Yuyang mention last night, Tai Lingxuan’s body instantly tensed up, and she sat up a bit straighter.
“Last night, did you sleep well?”
“Very well, very well. I slept quite well…”
Tai Lingxuan answered quickly.
She paused for a moment, her eyes secretly stealing a glance at the youth’s face.
“Then… what about you, Yuyang?”
“Yes, your disciple slept very well.”
Chen Yuyang gave a short reply, his gaze fixed straight on Tai Lingxuan.
He was waiting for her to speak.
To say more.
To speak of the intimacy from last night.
If she remembered and wanted to clarify things, Chen Yuyang would be perfectly open and honest.
But if she felt the timing wasn’t right, or if she had other concerns, Chen Yuyang would cooperate and play dumb, pretending he remembered nothing.
Tai Lingxuan felt the youth’s gaze.
She bit her lip and pondered for a long time.
“Yuyang… do you… remember how we got back last night?”
“Does Master remember?”
Without answering immediately, Chen Yuyang simply asked a question in return.
“This… I was a bit drunk and don’t remember very clearly…”
After some thought, Tai Lingxuan decided to play dumb first to see Chen Yuyang’s reaction.
“I see… actually, I also drank a bit too much… Sigh, I didn’t expect the alcohol to be so potent once it kicked in.”
Chen Yuyang followed suit, shaking his head and putting on a confused expression.
“So, I don’t know the specifics either. I don’t even know why I’m in Master’s room. I was actually hoping Master could enlighten me.”
Tai Lingxuan nodded, though she let out a long sigh of relief in her heart.
Perfect, he doesn’t remember anything.
It made sense; she remembered him drinking several glasses himself.
If she had been that drunk, there was no reason he could have remained sober.
“I remember… you were so drunk that after you sent me back to my room, you just collapsed here,” Tai Lingxuan immediately “recollected” some details to explain to Chen Yuyang.
Chen Yuyang nodded as if realizing something.
“I see…”
Then, the youth immediately lowered his head, full of guilt.
“Master, your disciple has offended you. I hope Master will punish me.”
Seeing Chen Yuyang apologize, Tai Lingxuan jumped to her feet.
Feeling ashamed internally, she waved her hands frantically.
“It’s fine. You only did that because you drank too much. I don’t blame you.”
“Thank you, Master.”
Chen Yuyang accepted her words, then straightened his clothes and left Tai Lingxuan’s room.
Once the youth had gone, Tai Lingxuan finally let out a long breath of air.
Fortunately, he hadn’t noticed.
Outside the room, Chen Yuyang closed the door and shook his head.
“It seems Master doesn’t think the time is right yet.”
Muttering to himself, Chen Yuyang intended to head back to wash up.
But just as he reached his door, a head popped out from the room next door.
“Senior Brother! Senior Brother!”
Ling Xi’s face was flushed red.
She bit her lip, looking somewhat annoyed as she stared at Chen Yuyang.
“You’re awake too. Did you sleep well last night?”
Ling Xi quickly rolled her eyes at him, her expression saying, “How do you have the nerve to ask?”
“Senior Brother, come over here. I have something to talk to you about,” Ling Xi said, taking a deep breath as if steeling herself for something.
Chen Yuyang frowned slightly but still walked toward Ling Xi’s room.
As soon as he reached the door, Ling Xi reached out, grabbed Chen Yuyang by the collar, and impatiently dragged him inside.
Before Chen Yuyang could react, he was pinned against the wall by Ling Xi.
The girl bit the corner of her lip, glaring at him with an unfriendly expression.
However, while Ling Xi’s face was full of anger, her cheeks were tinged with an unnatural crimson.
“Senior Brother, what… what did you do to me last night?”
Chen Yuyang: “???”
“I… although I was asleep, I still vaguely felt it… Did you kiss me and touch me?”
“You even pinned me down and wouldn’t let me move, trying to do something indecent to me!”
“You even said such embarrassing things to me like, ‘I’m going to bully you’!”
The question marks above Chen Yuyang’s head continued to multiply.
“Junior Sister, what are you talking about?”
“Last night, I only carried you back from the restaurant on my back.”
Alright, Chen Yuyang admitted he did kiss her once.
But it was just a single peck.
Pinning her down?
That was because he was afraid she would have a drunken fit.
Touching her?
That was absolute nonsense; she must have mistaken the unintentional contact from when he carried her.
As for saying he was going to bully her… wasn’t that his promise?
How did it get distorted into this?
It seemed those blurred memories and impressions had been scrambled and reassembled in her mind, leading her to believe he had been trying to do something untoward.
“Stop pretending. I know you were still awake then… Hmph, although you… you probably had a change of heart at the last second and didn’t actually do it… but… the fact that you wanted to bully me is indisputable!”
As Ling Xi spoke, her eyes brimmed with tears, having completely convinced herself of this “fact.”
Although Chen Yuyang wanted to explain, he didn’t know how to start.
“Fine, I admit it’s because I’m too cute.”
“Regardless of what you say, you took liberties with me…”
“If I tell Master about this, she will definitely be furious. She might even break your legs and expel you from the sect.”
As she spoke, the girl turned her back to him, her voice growing sterner.
Chen Yuyang felt a secret sense of helplessness.
Looking at the girl who seemed aggrieved but clearly had a sparkle of excitement in her eyes, he sighed and asked, “Junior Sister, then what do you want?”
Hearing those words, the girl became visibly more excited, yet she restrained her emotions and said with a sorrowful look: “Well… after all, we are fellow disciples. I… it’s not like I have no feelings for you at all.”
“Since it already happened, Senior Brother, you have to be a man and take proper responsibility for me.”
“That way, even if Master asks, I can reluctantly say that we are mutually in love.”
Chen Yuyang: “…”
He took a deep breath.
The youth nodded and said seriously, “Fine, I promise you.”
The girl’s face immediately broke into uncontrollable joy.
“Really?”
“Of course it’s true… However, since that’s the case… Junior Sister, are you prepared?”
Chen Yuyang said, looking straight into the girl’s eyes.
That burning gaze suddenly made Ling Xi feel a bit flustered.
“Prepared? Prepared for what?”
“Think about it, Junior Sister. Since I’ve agreed, the two of us should be considered Dao companions now, right?”
Chen Yuyang’s lips curled into a grin, his smile suddenly becoming radiant.
Ling Xi felt even more guilty, but she still nodded.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Since the two of us have become Dao companions, then it’s only reasonable for us to do things that only Dao companions can do, right?”
As he spoke, Chen Yuyang reached out, unfastened his belt, and tossed it to the floor.
Ling Xi’s pupils dilated instantly.
“Wait, wait a minute… Senior Brother… This, this is too sudden. I… I haven’t thought it through yet!”
“How is it sudden? Didn’t you say you wanted me to take responsibility? How could you not have thought it through?”
As Chen Yuyang spoke, he took a step toward her, scaring her into immediately backing away, her heart pounding wildly.
Ling Xi bit her lip, her face completely red.
Chen Yuyang pressed forward step by step, quickly cornering her.
He pinned her against the wall in reverse, pinching her chin with his fingers.
Looking at her panicked, flickering eyes, the smile on the youth’s lips became increasingly wicked.
“You said I kissed you, touched you, and wanted to bully you, right?”
“Then, feel for yourself right now what a real kiss, a real touch, and real bullying are actually like.”
With that, Chen Yuyang leaned in, intending to kiss her.
However, before he could, Ling Xi shoved him away.
“Wait, wait a minute!”
“Senior Brother, I… maybe I made a mistake.”
“I was just joking just now!”