The little water ghost hugged his knees with both hands, his long, silver hair, reaching his chin, clung wetly to his cheeks, and under the light of the pearl, his eyes shone like luminous gems.
"Awooo..." the Great Dynasty cried out, and the little water ghost immediately closed its eyes, buried its head in its knees, and trembled.
"Keep it down." Xie Shuci patted it and glanced back at Xie An, who was fast asleep on the couch.
"Ouch."
oh.
The king obediently lay down by the table, its two eyes curiously watching the little water ghost. Its sense of smell was particularly keen, and it could not sense any hostility from this strange person.
“Don’t be afraid, it doesn’t bite people…” After saying that, Xie Shuci felt something was wrong and added, “It doesn’t bite ghosts either.”
Upon hearing this, the little water ghost slowly raised its head, and to express its goodwill, the king stuck out its tongue in a silly manner.
Xie Shuci wanted to ask him how he got up here, but was worried they would wake Xie An, so she pointed to the door and said, "Shall we go out first?"
The little water ghost understood his words and obeyed very well. He turned around and crawled out from under the table, leaving a large puddle of water on the floor.
After climbing out of the table, he squatted down beside it, his silver pupils looking at Xie Shuci, seemingly urging him to hurry up.
"Are you going?" Xie Shuci asked the king, bowing his head.
The king was somewhat tempted to go, but then glanced at Xie An on the couch, shook his head, and groaned.
I won't leave; I want to stay with my mother.
Xie Shuci nodded, "Okay, be good and don't make a fuss."
"Ouch."
After giving his instructions to the king, Xie Shuci dressed and tiptoed toward the door, with the little water ghost following behind him, crawling out little by little.
After leading the little water ghost outside the cabin, Xie Shuci glanced back at the large water stains on the floor of the room. Fearing that it would worsen Xie An's condition, he used his spiritual power to dry the water stains before gently closing the door.
It was already late at night, and Xie Shuci suddenly felt like he was sneaking out with his brothers in the middle of the night behind his wife's back, which made him laugh.
The little water ghost lay on the ground watching him, its face expressionless.
“Come with me,” Xie Shuci said.
Sikong Xin and Liu Dazhuang rested at the bow of the boat, while Xie Shuci led the little water ghost to the stern.
He placed the pearl on the ground and gestured for the little water ghost to crawl over.
It has to be said that after experiencing so many hardships, Xie Shuci has indeed become much braver. If it were before, he would have been so scared that he couldn't walk in front of the little water ghost.
From his appearance, apart from his silver hair, eyes that looked like he was wearing colored contact lenses, and pale, bluish skin, he was not much different from a human child. Now, upon closer inspection, the little water ghost's features were quite delicate, but his extreme paleness made him look rather eerie.
"Have you been following us the whole time?" Xie Shuci asked.
"Ah..." The little water ghost made a hoarse, strange sound from its throat.
Xie Shuci looked at him and couldn't help but feel sorry for him. According to Sikong Xin, he should have died in the water and become a "water god" whose soul was in sync with the water. But he was so young and, for some reason, he didn't have half a tongue.
Thinking about it this way, ghosts aren't actually that scary.
"Did you come to see me?" Xie Shuci asked again.
The little water ghost nodded, then suddenly spat out a mouthful of water, spraying Xie Shuci's face.
"Pfft—" Xie Shuci's features scrunched up as he wiped the water off his face and looked at the little water ghost.
Although the little water ghost didn't show much emotion on his face, Xie Shuci felt that he understood what he meant and said, "I really can't spray water."
The little water ghost lowered its eyes sadly, then blew a bubble at Xie Shuci, like a fish.
Xie Shuci: "..."
Does this little guy really think he can learn it?
But seeing the somewhat expectant look in his eyes, Xie Shuci said helplessly, "I really don't know how to blow bubbles."
At the same time, he realized that the little water ghost had probably been following their boat, but was a bit shy and hadn't shown itself to anyone else. Xie Shuci hadn't docked for several days either.
He boarded the ship near the railing, probably wanting me to keep him company.
He was so young when he lost his life, and he looked quite scary. So, the ghost was all alone in the water, and the only things that kept him company were the fish and shrimp in the water. He would spit out water and bubbles, which was quite pitiful.
Xie Shuci imagined the little water ghost's miserable experiences and couldn't help but feel more pity for him.
Just then, he suddenly remembered something, took out the packet of candied fruit from his small pouch, and the little water ghost's eyes lit up immediately upon seeing it.
"You like it?" Xie Shuci asked.
"ah……"
He picked up a candied fruit and was about to feed it to the little water ghost when the little water ghost reached out and grabbed him, pointing to the side of the boat with his other hand.
"What?" Xie Shuci asked in confusion.
The little water ghost slowly crawled over, and Xie Shuci followed behind him. When they reached the side of the boat, he easily jumped onto the side and then jumped back into the water with a "plop".
Xie Shuci quickly took the pearl and held it up to the water.
The little water ghost fell into the water, its body submerged, with only its head floating on the surface. A pale face and a ring of silver hair floated on its head above the green water, making the scene look particularly eerie.
Xie Shuci couldn't help but imagine that if he were left alone at the bottom of the deep water, he would probably be scared to death sooner or later. He wondered how the little guy had managed to endure it.
"Ah..." Seeing that Xie Shuci did not move, the little water ghost opened its mouth and cried out.
Xie Shuci immediately understood what he meant. He casually picked up a candied fruit and threw it into the water. He wasn't very accurate, but the little water ghost was particularly agile in the water. No matter where he threw it or how tricky the angle was, the little water ghost could always get it into its mouth, just like feeding fish.
Xie Shuci lay on the gunwale and played with the little water ghost for half the night. Neither of them spoke, but they played with great chemistry. Sometimes Xie Shuci would play a trick and deliberately throw the water ghost far away. The little water ghost would splash around in the water for a bit, then swim over like a fish and eat it. Finally, it would look back at Xie Shuci provocatively.
When he had only a few candied fruits left in his bag, he tried to throw away the grease wrapper and pour the candied fruits into his own hand. But when he lost his grip, one of the candied fruits fell down the side of the boat. The little water ghost thought he was still playing with him, so he lunged forward from the water. Although he caught the candied fruit in mid-air, his head hit the boat.
Hearing the sound of the impact, Xie Shuci was startled and quickly bent down to ask, "Are you alright?"
A moment later, the little water ghost floated out from under the boat, its forehead red, and looked at Xie Shuci.
Seeing that he was alright, Xie Shuci chuckled, "Are you stupid?"
He smiled, and the little water ghost awkwardly smiled back.
After throwing away a bag of candied fruit, Xie Shuci saw that the sky in the distance was beginning to lighten. He clapped his hands and said, "It's getting late. I have to go back and check on the little blind boy. I won't play with you anymore."
Upon hearing this, the little water ghost's expression instantly darkened. With most of his face submerged in the water, he looked pitifully at Xie Shuci, his silver pupils filled with reluctance.
Well, Xie Shuci is the kind of person who responds to both soft and hard approaches. If you use a hard approach, he'll back down; if you use a soft approach, he'll easily soften his heart.
Seeing this, he waved his hand helplessly and said, "I'll come find you again tomorrow night, at this spot."
Upon hearing this, the little water ghost reluctantly nodded, glanced at Xie Shuci with lingering reluctance, then plunged into the water and disappeared from the lake's surface.
After seeing the little water ghost off, Xie Shuci was also a little sleepy. He yawned and went back to the cabin.
He gently pushed open the cabin door and, using the light streaming in through the small window, groped his way toward the couch.
Xie Shuci was somewhat puzzled because he couldn't sense the presence of the little blind man on the bed.
When he reached the bedside, bypassed the king who was lying on the ground holding his breath, and was about to reach out to touch the bed, he suddenly heard a chilling sound from the darkness.
Where have you gone?
Xie Shuci was taken aback. It was the little blind man's voice, but it sounded somewhat gloomy.
Xie Shuci didn't think too much about it and said, "You're awake? I went outside for a bit of fresh air."
He didn't want to lie, but he couldn't very well say he was accompanying someone.
Did a seven or eight-year-old kid play all night? How embarrassing!
"A breeze?" Xie An said coldly, then grabbed Xie Shuci's right hand, held it in front of the two of them, and pinched the back of Xie Shuci's hand hard with his fingers.
Xie Shuci sensed something was off about the blind boy's tone and the way he was gripping her hand was unusually tight. This made Xie Shuci uneasy, so she asked, "What's wrong?"
How come he's like a completely different person after he wakes up from a nap?
"You have someone else's scent on you. Who did you meet in the middle of the night?"
Xie Shuci: "..."
What's with this tone of catching someone in the act?
Xie Shuci thought that he might be sick and insecure, so he let him hold his hand, squatted down by the bed, and decided to tell the truth: "Do you remember the water ghost I asked Sikong Xin about before?"
Xie An gave a cold "hmm".
Xie Shuci said, "Actually, I saw it in the water that day."
At this point, Xie Shuci sighed, "He's not very old, only seven or eight years old, and his tongue has been cut out. Last night, after you fell asleep, he came to me, and I played with him for a while."
After he finished speaking, he saw Xie An purse his lips.
Xie Shuci hurriedly said, "I'm not lying to you, it's true! If you don't believe me, ask the King!"
The king let out a loud "Aww," indicating that what Diedie said was true.
Xie An took a deep breath. "You're not resting in the middle of the night? You're going to play with a ghost?"
It's a ghost that looks only seven or eight years old.
Upon hearing Xie An's words, Xie Shuci also realized that it was a bit outrageous. He lowered his head and muttered, "He looks very pitiful."
"Come up," Xie An said succinctly.
"Oh." Xie Shuci nodded obediently, took off his coat, kicked off his shoes, and climbed into bed.
Xie An didn't speak, but told him to turn his body around, which Xie Shuci did.
The next moment, Xie An wrapped his right arm around his waist and pulled him to lie down on the bed together.
He wrapped his arms tightly around Xie Shuci's waist, trapping him in his embrace, and rested his chin on Xie Shuci's shoulder. He exhaled deeply and whispered, "From now on, you're not allowed to sneak away when I fall asleep."
The little blind boy's actions and tone were filled with boundless dependence.
Xie Shuci's heart softened, and his ears involuntarily burned.
Seeing that he didn't answer for a long time, Xie An gently bit his earlobe. "Did you hear me?"
Xie Shuci's heart skipped a beat. "I...I heard it."
Xie Shuci was surprised to find that his voice was trembling slightly, which was quite embarrassing.
"Hmm." Xie An was finally satisfied, and placed a kiss on his burning earlobe, saying with a hint of teasing, "Did you catch a cold? Your ears are so hot?"
Xie Shuci: "..."
He touched his earlobe, knowing the blind boy was teasing him, and muttered, "I'm just naturally hot-bodied, isn't that a problem?"
"Is that so?" Xie An said ambiguously.
Her warm lips moved downwards, lingering on his jawline, neither too light nor too heavy.
Xie Shuci couldn't help but shrink his neck and whisper, "It itches..."
"Turn around." Xie An stepped back slightly and said in an almost commanding tone.
"Huh?" Xie Shuci hesitated for a moment, then slowly turned his face away.
In the dim light, he saw the little blind man looking at him.
He wondered if it was the lighting, but Xie An's eyes no longer seemed empty; instead, they seemed real.
The two were quite close. Xie An looked at him quietly, and he was a little at a loss. He looked at Xie An back, not daring to look away.
"Open your mouth," Xie An suddenly said in a low voice.
Xie Shuci couldn't help but swallow, and as if possessed, he opened his lips, his tongue unconsciously wetting them. Before he could retract his exposed tongue, Xie An pressed down on him.
Their lips met, burning hot.
That tiny bit of heat rolled onto Xie Shuci's heart, burning him so much that his heartbeat almost stopped and his mind went blank.
Xie Shuci had no experience with kissing, and under Xie An's guidance, he awkwardly responded, but this posture...
He was so exhausted that he had difficulty breathing after only a short while.
"Hmm..." He nudged Xie An's shoulder, signaling him to let go.
Xie Shuci felt as if he had fallen into water; his body went limp, and his mouth felt intensely numb.
But Xie An was unwilling to let him go so easily, so he flipped over and pressed himself against Xie Shuci, continuing the lingering kiss.
Xie Shuci was helpless. He really didn't understand why he wasn't as strong as the little blind man. To make himself more comfortable, he had no choice but to hang his arms around Xie An's neck and obediently let him plunder him.
Xie An's kiss was not as calm and collected as he appeared; on the contrary, it was like a sudden downpour, catching Xie Shuci completely off guard.
"Huh?"
Hearing the noise from the bed, the king curiously got up from the ground, opened his two round eyes, and looked at them in confusion.
What are Diedie and her mother doing? Are they having a baby brother? Do they need any help?
The king straightened up, put its paws on the edge of the bed, and tried to jump onto the bed, but as soon as it jumped, Xie An used one hand to press it back down.
"Ouch!" The king rolled to the ground and cried out in dissatisfaction.
You naughty mother! You want to monopolize Diedie again!
When the two separated, both panting, Xie Shuci clearly sensed a change in Xie An.
He stood frozen, afraid to move, lest he touch something he shouldn't. He swallowed hard, closed his eyes, and said in a trembling voice, "You're still young. I'm warning you, don't... don't think about anything like that."
Xie An's voice was hoarse, almost right next to his ear, tinged with some panting, as he said, "Not small."
Xie Shuci said, "In my hometown, you can only do that at eighteen."
Xie An replied, "Since you've come here, you should follow local customs. In the cultivation world, it's perfectly normal for girls to reach adulthood at fifteen and for boys to marry and have children at fifteen or sixteen."
Moreover, he was originally more than sixteen years old, but...
Although Xie Shuci felt that what the little blind man said made sense, he still found it hard to accept for a moment, so he said, "You, you give me some time... give me some time."
Xie An didn't force him, and nodded through gritted teeth, "Okay."
Xie Shuci breathed a sigh of relief. "Um...why don't you come down first?"
Xie An persisted, and after regaining his senses, his expression even showed some displeasure.
Xie Shuci asked, "What's wrong?"
Xie An's expression turned somewhat unpleasant. "You have no feelings for me?"
"?" Xie Shuci's flushed face was filled with a big question.
What are you saying?
Xie An frowned slightly and asked, "Why is there no response?"
Xie Shuci's little brain worked quickly, and he instantly understood what he meant. As a man, his sensitivity in this area made his heart skip a beat. "What kind of reaction is that! How old are you? Would I dare? In my hometown, sleeping with a minor can land you in jail! Let me make it clear, I'm not impotent, I'm perfectly healthy!"
"This is the cultivation world, so there's no such thing as being an adult or not." Xie An was barely convinced by him.
Having successfully defended his dignity as a man, Xie Shuci breathed a sigh of relief.
Then Xie An added, "Xie Shuci, I'll give you time. Don't keep me waiting too long."
"Fine, fine, you can go down now," Xie Shuci said dismissively.
Xie An seemed tired too, so he stopped bothering Xie Shuci, lay back down, held Xie Shuci in his arms, and waited for his body to cool down.
The stinging pain in his body was constant, and a voice inside him clamored for Xie Shuci to be killed, but he didn't care; he had grown accustomed to its presence. In fact, most of the time, his desire for Xie Shuci far outweighed the stinging pain. He wouldn't be controlled by anything, not even the Heavenly Dao.
Unfortunately, this is not a good sign.
This only shows that his Dao heart was damaged very quickly.
Xie Shuci gradually fell asleep in his arms, and only woke up slowly when the sun was high in the sky.
After waking up, Xie An's spirits were indeed much better. The sky outside was clear and bright, so Xie Shuci pulled Xie Shuci and the King outside to bask in the sun, and also took the opportunity to retrieve the items that had been tied to the deck.
The cranes below were also brought out.
By this time, they had been traveling by water for four days, stopping at a small town to buy some necessities.
Xie Shuci leaned against Xie An and asked, "How much longer do we have to walk?"
Sikong said, “I don’t know. Ever since Chunsheng Mountain caused a flood that submerged the surrounding villages and towns, many people drowned. Those who were lucky enough to survive moved away from the vicinity of Chunsheng Mountain with their families. Now, so many years have passed, and no one knows its exact location. We can only continue south to see if we can find any remaining spiritual power of the water god.”
Upon hearing this, Xie Shuci couldn't help but sigh.
At this moment, Xie An suddenly spoke up: "The person you met yesterday might have some clues on him."
Xie Shuci was taken aback, then quickly realized what he meant and exclaimed excitedly, "That's right! The little water ghost might know something!"
Upon hearing this, Sikong Xin and Liu Dazhuang looked at him with suspicion.
Xie Shuci then realized that he hadn't mentioned it to the two of them yet, so he told them about his encounter with the little water ghost.
After listening, Sikong Xin said seriously, "First of all, he is not a water ghost, but should be considered a minor water god."
Xie Shuci was speechless. This guy usually seemed carefree and irresponsible, but sometimes he was exceptionally well-behaved. He waved his hand and said, "I know, I know. I just thought it would be more convenient to call him that. Water God, Little Water God, okay?"
Liu Dazhuang said, "What's the difference?"
“The difference is huge,” Sikong said.
Xie An was like the finishing touch in painting a dragon; after extracting the key points and pointing out the important aspects to Xie Shuci, he remained silent.
Sikong Xin then explained in detail: "Ghosts have always been an ominous sign. It is said that originally there were too many ghosts in the world, which gave rise to the evil symbol 'Bixie'. Water, however, is different."
Xie Shuci replied, “But the flood killed so many people. Besides, ghosts aren’t all evil ghosts. If the warding off evil spirits are born from them, there are also benevolent ghosts among them, ghosts whose wishes are not fulfilled and therefore cannot be reincarnated. Does that mean that the warding off evil spirits are not entirely evil?”
Xie Shuci was simply puzzled; he felt that Sikong Xin had taken the concepts of good and evil too absolutely.
Sikong Xin was visibly taken aback upon hearing his words.
"These are all just empty words, and no one knows the truth." Sikong Xin ended the topic and said, "The little water god you described was born in the water and had no tongue. After death, his soul merged with the water and he became a true 'water god'."
Xie Shuci asked in surprise, "He doesn't have a tongue in his mouth. Is it because of his cultivation?"
Sikong Xin nodded and said, "Yes, water cannot speak. He has cultivated into a minor water god, so naturally he cannot speak either. However, this kind of water god is different from the Banxia clan who control water. They are water themselves. Throughout history, there have been very few 'water gods'."
Xie Shuci couldn't help but ask curiously, "Then how did you know?"
Sikong Xin smiled and said, "My elder brother often tells me strange and interesting stories he knows."
After hearing this, Xie Shuci exclaimed, "You brothers have such a good relationship."
Just as he finished sighing, he felt Xie An give him a light pinch from behind.
"What are you doing?"
Xie An parted his lips slightly and silently uttered a few words. Xie Shuci understood him; he meant that Xie An was not allowed to mention Sikong Ye again.
Xie Shuci chuckled twice after realizing what he meant, and the little blind man pinched his waist. "Did you hear that?"
Xie Shuci suppressed a laugh and quickly nodded, "I know, I know."
The other two didn't know what they were talking about, nor did they ask any further questions.
Sikong Xin continued, "Since he is so young, it must have taken him a very long time to become a water god. Perhaps he really does know something. Brother Shuci, when will you have him come to the ship to find you?"
Xie Shuci hesitated for a moment and said, "He seems very shy. Won't it scare him?"
Sikong said, "We're just asking; we won't do anything to him."
Liu Dazhuang hissed, "My goodness, did you scare people because you're too ugly?"
Xie Shuci: "..."
If you can't speak, then shut up.
superior!
“Then you should hide and not let him see you. I’ll go ask him,” Liu Dazhuang said, thinking he was being righteous.
Xie Shuci swallowed a mouthful of traditional Chinese medicine, but, well, others might not know, Xie Shuci seemed to lose his mind a bit when he was in love. He turned his head and leaned against the little blind boy's shoulder with a pitiful expression, "He called me ugly..."
The tone of voice, while seemingly coquettish, didn't quite fit, yet I couldn't find any other adjectives to describe it.
Liu Dazhuang said, "I didn't insult you, I was just telling the truth."
Xie Shuci became even more anxious, "Look at him!"
Xie An didn't speak, but gently placed his hand on Xie Shuci's back, a slight smile in his eyes. He was clearly pleased with Xie Shuci's actions and said softly, "Don't bother with him."
Sikong Xin looked at them and sighed involuntarily.
Liu Dazhuang said thoughtfully, "Don't you think there's something a little strange about their relationship?"
"I advise you not to meddle in other people's business," Sikong Xin said.
In the end, Xie Shuci decided to ask the little water god tonight and instructed the others not to come out.
The group sat on the deck until late at night. Seeing that the moonlight was bright and it was almost time, Xie Shuci told the others to hide to one side.
Xie Shuci walked to the side of the boat, holding a few candied fruits in his hand. He glanced at the water in the light of the pearl and saw that the sea was calm. So he threw in a candied fruit, which floated gently on the surface and was swallowed by the water in a moment.
Xie Shuci knew that the Little Water God had arrived.
Sure enough, a pale face gradually emerged on the water. When the little water god saw Xie Shuci, he immediately curved his eyes and formed a stiff smile.
Xie Shuci glanced at Sikong Xin and the others behind him, then turned to look at the little water god in the water. After a brief hesitation, he said, "I want to ask you something, is that alright?"
The little water god was a little confused, but still nodded.
Xie Shuci asked, "Do you know where Chunsheng Mountain is? We need to go there to find someone."
But upon hearing his words, the little water god's expression instantly darkened, as if he had become a different person.
He straightened up in the water, half of his body above the surface, a cold killing intent appearing on his face.
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