Xie An's figure was hidden in the darkness, and Xie Shuci could not see him clearly. He could only vaguely see his eyes reflecting a little light.

It was like a desolate and desolate silent place, which inexplicably made Xie Shuci's heart clench.

Xie Shuci turned around and closed the door. He walked quickly to the table, but hesitated when he was only a few steps away.

"Xie An?" Xie Shuci called softly.

Xie Shuci didn't know why he suddenly stopped, but to others, he seemed to be afraid.

Unlike before, he did not return to Xie An's side without hesitation. He hesitated, retreated, and became afraid.

The frozen breath suddenly deepened, and a burst of laughter abruptly rang out in the quiet room.

There was no laughter in that laugh; instead, it carried a chill as it whispered in Xie Shuci's ear.

Xie Shuci's heart suddenly tightened.

"Where did you go with him?" Xie An's deep, hoarse voice came from ahead. Xie Shuci couldn't tell if he was happy or angry, but he had a very strong intuition that he had angered the little blind boy again.

Realizing this, Xie Shuci tensed up, feeling as if countless ants were crawling on his scalp. He held his breath, widened his eyes, and stared at Xie An.

“Down the mountain…” Xie Shuci murmured.

Xie An's smile gradually faded. He slowly leaned forward, resting his elbow on the table and propping his head up, and asked, "What did you do?"

"I'm preparing a birthday gift for you," Xie Shuci murmured.

Xie An still didn't react much, only asking questions coldly, as if interrogating a criminal.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Xie An asked.

"I..." Xie Shuci bit his tongue. He didn't like the atmosphere between him and Xie An. He had already proven that Xie An was not Xiao Xun, and their relationship should go back to what it was a few days ago.

Xie Shuci took a deep breath, banished the inexplicable thoughts that popped into his mind, mustered his courage, walked up to Xie An, and half-squatted down.

Xie Shuci looked up at him, rested her chin on his thigh, and mumbled, "Don't be angry, I just wanted to give you an unforgettable birthday, I just wanted to give you a surprise, please don't do this, okay?"

Xie Shuci shook his head, leaning against his thigh. All he wanted now was to return to the way he and the little blind man interacted before Sikong Ye appeared. He didn't want to think about anything else.

The blind boy did not have the mark of the Holy Son.

His little blind man was just a little blind man; he was nobody else.

Xie An lowered his head, quietly looking into Xie Shuci's watery eyes. After a long while, he reached out a hand and pinched Xie Shuci's chin. Xie Shuci obediently raised his head. He only wanted to be with the little blind man like before, and he would do anything for that.

"What did you promise me on my birthday?" Xie An asked calmly.

Xie Shuci pursed her lips, "Let's make love in bed."

This was the first time Xie Shuci had spoken so boldly about something like this. However, for some reason, Xie Shuci showed no embarrassment or timidity whatsoever, as if he were talking about something completely ordinary.

Xie An's dark pupils stared at Xie Shuci. Xie Shuci couldn't see the emotions in his eyes. Of course, Xie An was blind, and his eyes were always so empty and lifeless. How could she see clearly?

After an eerie silence, Xie An leaned down and lightly kissed Xie Shuci's lips, his voice suddenly softening, "Didn't you prepare a surprise for me? Take me to see it."

Xie Shuci breathed a sigh of relief imperceptibly, and immediately smiled, her eyes seemingly filled with sparse starlight. "Let's go out!"

Xie An nodded and said, "Alright."

Xie Shuci pulled Xie An out of the room, where Sikong Ye and several Meng family disciples had already moved in the things Xie Shuci had prepared.

"Have a seat first." Xie Shuci pulled him to the stone table, then turned and walked towards the pile of things, carefully taking out a box. He opened the box, inside which were peach blossom cakes that he had spent half a day making by hand.

Xie Shuci inserted the candle, lit it, and slowly walked towards Xie An, carrying the box.

"Happy seventeenth birthday, Xie An," Xie Shuci said with a smile.

The faint firelight reflected on Xie An's face, and his eyes gazed into the distance, reflecting a glimmer of starlight.

What is this?

Xie Shuci said, "This is a peach blossom cake that I made myself. I gave it another name, which is cake."

Chu Wenfeng and the others looked at him with suspicion.

"cake?"

"Yes, a birthday cake."

Xie Shuci placed the peach blossom cake on the table, pinched off a small piece with her fingers, and brought it to Xie An's lips, "How does it taste?"

Xie An nodded, opened his mouth and took a bite of the pastry that was offered to him, chewing slowly and gently.

"How is it?" Xie Shuci looked at him expectantly.

"Mmm, delicious," Xie An said.

"Great! This is my first time doing this! Xie An, make a birthday wish so you can blow out the candles."

"A wish?" Xie An raised his head and glanced in Xie Shuci's direction. "My wish..."

Xie Shuci quickly put her index finger to his lips and said, "You must never say your birthday wish out loud, or it won't come true!"

Xie An chuckled, grabbed his finger, and gently pecked it. "Okay, I won't say anything. Anyway, you'll satisfy me."

Xie Shuci: "..."

Okay, I know what your wish is.

"Alright, alright, let's blow out the candles!"

Xie An lowered his eyes and gently blew out the candle.

"Happy birthday!"

Xie Shuci took out a peach blossom hairpin and a spirit-gathering pill from her small pouch. "You like peach blossoms, so I bought you a peach blossom-shaped hairpin. I also bought you two sets of clothes and some fireworks. Although you can't see them, you can see them with my eyes. This is a spirit-gathering pill."

Xie An was somewhat stunned, "You've been..."

“Yes,” Xie Shuci touched the tip of his nose, “I just wanted to give you a surprise. I originally planned to come back early, but I didn’t expect to finish refining the Spirit Gathering Pill until evening. Brother Sikong also helped a lot. He misunderstood you before and wanted to make it up to you.”

Upon hearing this, Xie An glanced at Sikong Ye involuntarily.

The latter had a smile on his face, but it was unclear what it meant.

Xie An didn't say anything, but turned his head with a smile on his lips, "I like it very much."

"Young Master Xie, I didn't have time to prepare any congratulatory gift, so I'll give you this amber thumb ring. Please accept it." Chu Guiyi stepped forward and said.

Xie An nodded slightly in agreement.

Chu Wenfeng took out a small booklet from his sleeve and said, "I don't have anything else, so I'll give you this book of the Heart-Cleansing Mantra."

"Thank you," Xie An said, accepting the gift and nodding.

Sikong Ye turned his head and rummaged through the pile of things Xie Shuci had bought. He finally found a book and handed it to Xie An: "This is a storybook I bought at the market. It is said to be the most popular storybook among all of yours."

Xie Shuci: "..."

"If you don't want to send it, you don't have to." Xie An responded indifferently, took the storybook, and handed it directly to Xie Shuci.

“I can’t see it, so you can read it to me later, so as not to disappoint his good intentions.”

Xie Shuci: "..."

Is this a little bit cruel to me...?

Xie Shuci glared fiercely at Sikong Ye, but since it was Xie An's birthday, Xie Shuci didn't want to ruin the rare atmosphere between them, so he took the storybook from Sikong Ye's hands and then changed the subject.

"Are you all hungry? We bought some food and drinks, everyone should have some."

"Um."

The five people were drinking and eating in the courtyard, and the scene was clearly very harmonious without any problems. However, Xie Shuci felt for no reason that the meal was strangely eerie.

As if they had agreed beforehand, everyone remained silent, even Sikong Ye, the troublemaker, was unusually quiet.

Xie Shuci didn't know what had happened and didn't want to break the silence, so he buried his head in his food, occasionally taking a sip of wine, and didn't even dare to chew too loudly.

Although the five of them were sitting at the same table, it seemed that each of them had something on their mind.

Xie Shuci couldn't help but sigh inwardly. He had wanted to give Xie An a memorable birthday, but it turned out like this. What a failure! He shouldn't have tried to pull off that dramatic, upsetting-then-exciting stunt from TV shows. It seems he really angered the little blind boy.

Although the little blind boy hasn't shown anything yet, the atmosphere is really too strange, and it doesn't seem normal no matter how you look at it.

Xie Shuci was losing his appetite. He put down his chopsticks, and the person next to him immediately asked, "Are you done eating?"

"Huh?" Xie Shuci was taken aback for a moment, then nodded and said, "I'm done eating."

Upon hearing this, Xie An nodded, "In that case, take me back to my room to rest."

Xie Shuci's heart tightened, and he was about to say something when Xie An stood up from his seat.

Xie Shuci had no choice but to pick up a pot of wine from the table and say to the others, "You guys continue eating. Xie An must be tired. I'll go in and rest with him first."

After saying that, Xie Shuci turned around and followed Xie An.

The people behind them looked at their backs with very complicated expressions.

After a long silence, Chu Guiyi sighed and said, "I warned Shuci long ago that this method was inappropriate."

Chu Wenfeng looked at the two figures with suspicion and asked, "I always feel that there's something strange between Xie Shuci and Xie An. He wouldn't do anything to Xie Shuci, would he?"

Sikong Ye pouted and said, "It's not that bad. Since the main character has left, let's all go our separate ways."

Sikong Ye stood up from the table and left the courtyard without waiting for a response from the two of them, disappearing without a trace.

Chu Guiyi looked at the closed door, pursed her lips, and had a complicated expression.

Back in his room, Xie An went straight to a corner and lifted the black cloth covering the pearl, instantly illuminating the room with light.

Xie Shuci followed him into the room, turned around and closed the door. Looking back, he saw Xie An already sitting down at the table.

Xie Shuci looked at him, took a deep breath, stepped forward, put the wine glass on the table, and said, "Little blind man, let's drink the nuptial cup together. From now on, we will be true Daoist partners."

You'll always just be my little blind girl.

Xie An replied calmly, "Hmm."

Xie Shuci brought two teacups, filled them with wine, and handed one of them to Xie An.

The latter reached out and took it, their arms crossing in the air. Xie Shuci looked at Xie An, who was so close to him, and his expression was so calm that Xie Shuci could not see any emotion on his face, like the boundless and unfathomable sea.

Xie Shuci suddenly felt like he was drowning, as if something heavy was pressing on his chest, making it impossible for him to breathe or move.

In the silence that filled the room, neither of them spoke again.

Xie An lowered his eyes, his gaze fixed on the ground, while Xie Shuci stared straight at Xie An's face, hoping to catch even the slightest hint of emotion from him.

Unfortunately, he hid his emotions too well, and Xie Shuci couldn't see anything.

Xie Shuci wrapped his arm around Xie An's arm and brought the teacup to his lips. Noticing Xie An's movement, Xie An also moved. The two of them tilted their heads back and silently drank the wine from the same cup.

The strong liquor went down his throat, and the bitterness seeped into his lungs, burning Xie Shuci so much that his eyes turned red.

"Open the Dragon-Subduing Artifact."

After a long silence, Xie An spoke his first words since entering the room.

Xie Shuci nodded, took out the Dragon-Subduing Magic Artifact from his small pouch, and activated it with his spiritual power. The Dragon-Subduing Magic Artifact gradually expanded and enlarged, forming a dome that perfectly covered the entire room, isolating the atmosphere inside and outside.

Xie An leisurely took the peach branch from his waist and placed it on the table, then took off the bell as well.

Xie Shuci's breathing suddenly became rapid.

He recalled that almost every time he was intimate with Xie An, he would first remove the peach branch.

Therefore, Xie Shuci was clearly aware of what would happen next.

Even though he was mentally prepared, Xie Shuci still couldn't help but get nervous. He held his breath and watched Xie An's movements slowly and meticulously, which tormented Xie Shuci's nerves.

He took the bell down and placed it next to the peach branch, then looked at Xie Shuci.

"Come here," Xie An said.

Xie Shuci's heart jumped involuntarily, but he dared not hesitate and slowly walked up to Xie An.

As Xie Shuci approached, he grabbed Xie Shuci's wrist and pulled her into his arms with undeniable force.

"Don't be nervous," Xie An said.

Xie Shuci pursed his lips, thinking to himself, how could he not be nervous?

Xie An lowered his head, felt around to find the bell hanging from his waist, took it off his body, and placed it on the table.

For some unknown reason, Xie An's fingertips became somewhat hot, and when they pressed against Xie Shuci's waist through his clothes, they almost set Xie Shuci's body ablaze.

After untying the bell, Xie An stood up and led Xie Shuci to the bedside. Xie Shuci's heart jumped into her throat, and she said nervously, "T-Take off the light first."

"No need," Xie An said.

Reaching the bedside, Xie An pressed Xie Shuci down, causing Xie Shuci to fall onto the bed. Without further ado, Xie An pressed down on him.

As the distance drew closer, Xie Shuci looked at Xie An's face, which was almost touching his own, and couldn't help but swallow hard, his heart almost leaping out of his chest.

"Wait a moment……"

Xie Shuci's cheeks were burning hot. He pressed his hand against Xie An's chest. The closer he got, the thinner the air around them became, and Xie Shuci could hardly breathe.

Xie An covered his hand with his bare hand, holding it tightly in his palm. The scalding heat made Xie Shuci feel as if his bones were melting, and he instantly lost all strength, only able to let Xie An approach him.

"I...I'm a little...scared..." Xie Shuci blushed like a cloud, and her voice became a little incoherent.

Xie An paused, his breathing slightly heavy. "What are you afraid of? Me?" "No, no." Xie Shuci shook his head. "I'm afraid of pain..."

A gentle smile appeared on Xie An's lips. "Don't you have experience? Teach me, it won't hurt you."

Xie Shuci's face flushed even more. "It always hurts the first time."

"Then I'll try my best to make you more comfortable."

"Um……"

Xie An leaned down, and Xie Shuci gritted his teeth, thinking, "Fine, I'll go for it. It hurts a little, but I'll bear it!"

But the next moment, Xie An leaned to his right, reached into the small pouch on his body, took out the storybook given to him by Sikong Ye, placed it in Xie Shuci's hand, and said in an unquestionable tone, "Read it."

Xie Shuci: "?"

"Word by word, sentence by sentence."

Xie Shuci: "..."

Xie An leaned forward and gently kissed his eyebrows and eyes. "Don't let his good intentions go to waste."

Xie Shuci: "..."

"Can I not read it?" Xie Shuci frowned. Almost all the stories about the two of them in Jiyue City were devoid of normal content, and he was being asked to read them aloud word by word. It was too embarrassing.

"No, read it." Xie An's tone was relatively gentle, but it had a certain irresistible quality that made it impossible for anyone to refuse.

"But……"

"I want to hear it, read it aloud." Xie An raised his head, his eyes warm and ardent.

Xie Shuci felt a sharp pain in his heart and asked, "Have your eyes recovered?"

"No."

"oh."

Xie Shuci felt a little pathetic, but he really couldn't refuse Xie An's tone when he spoke to him like that. His breathing trembled slightly, and his arms trembled as well, almost causing him to drop the book.

Xie An waited patiently for him, without making any other move.

Xie Shuci turned to the first page of the storybook and whispered, "In a dimly lit room..."

Xie An got up, walked to Mingzhu's side, took off his outer garment, and covered Mingzhu with it.

The outer garment was rather thin, and light penetrated through the fabric. Although some light was blocked, it was still clearly visible.

After doing all this, he returned to Xie Shuci's side.

Xie An looked at the man on the couch with burning eyes and half-squatted down.

Xie An knelt down in front of him.

Xie Shuci realized what he was about to do, and his voice involuntarily stopped.

"Continue," Xie An said.

Xie Shuci's face was burning. Urged by Xie An, his throat felt like it was on fire, and he said to Xie An, almost in a sob, "I'm so thirsty, can we stop reading?"

Upon hearing this, Xie An remained silent. He rose, walked to the table, picked up the teapot, and returned to Xie Shuci. He brought the spout to his lips, tilted his head back, took a sip, then lowered his upper body, pressed one hand against the back of Xie Shuci's neck, and blocked his lips and teeth, forcing the water into his mouth, saying, "Continue."

Xie Shuci was stunned for a moment, not expecting him to do this. A drop of water slid down his neck along the lines of his skin. Xie An pressed his body down even lower, gently touching his skin, and his tongue rolled the water drop into his mouth.

"continue."

Xie Shuci's breathing quickened, his fingers gripping the storybook so tightly they turned white, and he gritted his teeth as he continued reading: "He grabbed Xie Shuci's ankle, which was dangling in mid-air, and slowly took off his boots..."

Before Xie Shuci could finish speaking, he suddenly felt a hand grab his ankle. The warmth of the palm made Xie Shuci involuntarily flinch. Xie An immediately increased the pressure, half-kneeling in front of Xie Shuci, letting his boots step on his thighs, leaving a clear stain on his white clothes.

"No need, I can do it myself!" Xie Shuci's cheeks were burning, and her eyes were unfocused.

"continue."

Xie An took off his boots and then pulled up his other leg.

"Please don't do this, I beg you." Xie Shuci was so ashamed that tears were about to fall. This feeling was too unbearable. He felt like his heart was about to explode.

After a long silence, Xie An lifted him up. "Don't you like it?"

"It's not that I don't like it, it's just that I'm very, very ashamed," Xie Shuci said, sighing and on the verge of tears.

Xie An said, "Haven't you been looking at these things all along?"

"I'm just curious! Curious, you understand?"

Xie An thought for a moment and nodded. "I thought you wanted me to do that."

He thought that if he did that, you wouldn't be so scared.

"No!" Xie Shuci said firmly. "Although the plot is very exciting, I would definitely run far away if I encountered it in real life."

Xie An pursed his lips and nodded.

Xie Shuci breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that he was willing to let her go.

"Then we..."

Xie Shuci was interrupted by Xie An when he was halfway through his speech.

"Why do you know him so well?" Xie An suddenly asked.

Xie Shuci was taken aback. "Who?"

"Sikong Ye".

Xie Shuci never expected that at such a crucial moment, he would bring up an insignificant person. Judging from his serious expression, he didn't seem to be joking at all.

Xie Shuci chuckled dryly, "No, I've just heard some things about him."

"What's up."

Xie Shuci looked at his face, and as if remembering something, her eyes trembled and then dimmed considerably.

"I heard—" Xie Shuci paused here, biting his tongue, trying to use the pain to give himself a bit of courage, "I heard that he and Xiao Xun like each other."

As she said this, Xie Shuci stared intently at his face, afraid of missing any clues.

Upon hearing his words, Xie An showed no emotion on his face. His eyes were fixed on Xie Shuci's face, his gaze unfathomable. Xie Shuci was unsure whether he could see or not.

After a long silence, Xie An asked, "Do you think Xiao Xun would like him?"

"I...I don't know." Xie Shuci lowered her head sadly.

He truly didn't know that he hadn't finished reading the book.

Xie An took his hand and stroked the back of it. "You've heard so much about Xiao Xun. Do you think he would like Sikong Ye?"

Xie Shuci looked at him. In fact, even before he abandoned the book, he could not sense any mutual affection between them. He felt that someone like Xiao Xun would not like anyone. He would only sweep away Sikong Xin, who had always been against him, as an obstacle.

Xie Shuci shook his head. "No."

"Yes, he won't."

Xie An slowly stood up, snatched the storybook from Xie Shuci's hand, and tore it into pieces bit by bit in front of Xie Shuci.

"You just tore it up? I haven't even read it yet," Xie Shuci muttered. He hadn't actually read the book yet.

Xie An took a step closer to him. "No need to look. I'll do whatever you want."

Xie Shuci blushed and lowered her head.

"But this time, you have to teach me."

Xie An sat down beside him. "First, a kiss." "Don't you know how to do that?" Xie Shuci protested.

"I forgot."

"..."

Xie Shuci nervously swallowed, grabbing the corner of his sleeve with her hand, thinking, "It's just a kiss, what's the big deal? It's not like we've never kissed before."

Xie Shuci straightened up and slowly approached him.

Although Xie Shuci's movements were still very slow this time, Xie An appeared extremely patient, remaining motionless and waiting for Xie Shuci to approach.

Finally, Xie Shuci pressed her lips against his.

Despite his experience, Xie Shuci's kissing was unusually awkward. He managed to pry open Xie An's lips, but hesitated to take the next step.

Xie An responded slightly, guiding him step by step with a mixture of reluctance and welcome.

What's next?

After a brief exchange of words, Xie An stepped back slightly.

Xie Shuci's eyes were blurry. "...Take off your clothes."

"Um."

Xie Shuci understood what he meant, and with trembling arms, slowly pulled his clothes off his shoulders.

Halfway through undressing, Xie Shuci's hands trembled like a sieve, but Xie An simply grabbed his hand and didn't force him to continue.

"How can you and I enjoy love?"

Xie Shuci's breath hitched, "After...after..."

"I can't see, take me there."

Xie An straightened his hand and then placed his own hand in Xie An's palm.

Xie Shuci's heart skipped a beat, his throat felt like it was on fire, and he hesitated to move.

Xie An didn't urge him, but placed his hand on the corner of his lips, his fingertips lightly caressing them. "Is it here?"

Xie Shuci shook his head silently.

His fingers moved downwards, stopping at Xie Shuci's Adam's apple. "Here?"

He continued moving, his fingers pressing against Xie Shuci's chest. "Still here?"

Xie Shuci's breathing trembled, "No...none of that..."

Xie An chuckled softly, then leaned down and kissed Xie Shuci's lips. "Brother Xiaoci, take me there."

Xie Shuci is finished; those words were incredibly damaging to him.

His eyes reddened. "Don't call me brother."

Xie An ignored him and said in a low, hoarse voice, "Brother Xiao Ci, please, teach me."

Xie Shuci heard a loud "boom" in his ears, as if something had collapsed.

He took Xie An's hand and led him to an unknown place.

In the scorching heat of the room, their breathing gradually became heavy.