Chapter 98: Who’s meeting gift in Hunyuan is a small toy?
The water flows through the stone veins and drips into the sand, and the ghost lights are like lacquer dots on the pine flowers.
When Qi Qing saw Hun Yuan, his first reaction was that he was hallucinating because of the poisonous miasma, and his mind was filled with the question "Is this scientific?"
He and Yue Ji had been trapped in the miasma for several days, unable to find the direction. They almost saw a lantern in front of their eyes. Suddenly, when they looked up, they saw a towering city hanging upside down above their heads.
The pitch-black eaves stretched like the backs of beasts, and the city walls were dark, hovering on the horizon, like a dormant ferocious beast, overlooking them from above.
Qi Qing shuddered all over, and before he could come to his senses, he was already standing in the city.
The feeling under your feet is no different from walking on flat ground, but the ground above your head is lead-gray and black fog is pressing down heavily, as if it will collapse at any time.
The buildings on both sides of the street appear and disappear from time to time. One moment you can see human figures swaying, and the next moment there is no one there, as if the whole city is inhabited by ghosts.
Cold and eerie.
Qi Qing felt a tingling sensation on the back of his neck, and subconsciously followed Yue Ji's footsteps.
Yue Ji was very familiar with this city. He took him around in many ways and finally stopped in front of a somewhat dilapidated courtyard.
The courtyard walls were mottled, desolate and empty, with black moss growing in the corners. Although the presence of other residents could be felt, there was no one in sight.
When they arrived in front of one of the rooms, Yue Ji squeezed Qi Qing's hand and whispered, "Master, wait a moment. I'll be back soon."
He walked hurriedly, as if he was in a hurry to report. Qi Qing glanced at the several magnificent palaces not far away and couldn't help but complain in his heart - this Demon Lord was really stingy. When Yuqing Sect planned to bring him back, they even arranged an elegant residence for him. Now that Yue Ji brought back so many cultivators, they only gave him such a shabby courtyard?
He walked around the room, his brows furrowed more and more. Apart from a decent step-out bed, the rest of the room was empty, not even a stool. It was too much of a stretch to call it a guest room, it looked more like a makeshift storage room.
It's even worse than his shabby little courtyard.
Qi Qing is now somewhat content with his small courtyard. After years of care, flowers and plants are all over the fence, the shabby furniture has been replaced with new ones, and he has also built a grape vine trellis. There is vitality everywhere, unlike here which is so lifeless.
Considering that he would have to sleep here tonight, he quickly dusted off the place, tidied up, and became more determined to find a chance to escape.
Strangely enough, Soul Abyss was calmer than he had expected. He had thought that he would be taken to meet the Demon Lord once he entered the city, and would suffer some hardships and be beaten up.
Qi Qing was thinking aimlessly when he suddenly heard a group of footsteps outside the door.
"Is the new person named Qi living here?"
Qi Qing's heart tightened. They had come to his house in such a short time, so he could only think of them as the Demon Lord's men.
...Whatever you fear will come true.
He took a deep breath and opened the door calmly.
Suddenly, a fragrant breeze blew in my face and a silver bell-like laughter struck my ears.
Several maids were standing in front of the steps holding gilded lacquer boxes. When they saw him open the door himself, they were startled at first, then smiled brightly and said in a sweet voice, "Greetings, Mr. Qi. This is the grace bestowed upon you by the Lord."
grace?
Qi Qing was somewhat surprised. He stared at those luxurious lacquer boxes, but instead of relaxing, he became alert.
Would the Demon Lord be so hospitable?
He pushed cautiously, indicating that he didn't need these things. The leading maid burst out laughing and said, "Why is Mr. Qi so cautious? The master is kind-hearted."
After saying that, she opened the first lacquer box regardless of Qi Qing's wishes.
The fine golden light immediately dazzled Qi Qing's eyes. Dozens of gold chains were neatly arranged in the box, some long and some short, some with gems, some wrapped with silver threads, shining brightly in the gloomy sky.
As a man, what does he need these girls' jewelry for?
Qi Qing frowned, but the maids smiled without saying anything and opened the lacquer boxes at the back one after another.
With each opening, Qi Qing's suspicion grew.
Some boxes contained strings of beads, some large and plump like night-shining pearls, some small and uneven, each one clearly strung together. Some contained jingling bells and thin chains, which looked suspicious in every way.
etc.
An absurd thought suddenly flashed through his mind, and Qi Qing suddenly opened the last lacquer box——
really!
Inside are five different lengths and shapes...
“…”
It's disgusting!
Qi Qing's face instantly turned as dark as the bottom of a pot, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Take it away!"
The leading maid smiled softly and covered her lips, "This is a special reward from the Demon Lord for you to serve the young master, you'd better accept it."
Qi Qing tried his best not to utter a curse word, and with a red face, he flipped the paint box to the ground: "Get lost!"
Do you understand what it means that a gentleman can be killed but not humiliated?
The dignified Demon Lord actually gave him small toys to humiliate him!
The maids exchanged ambiguous glances, and without caring whether he accepted or not, they picked up the things in the lacquer box, piled them at the door, and floated away like a fragrant breeze.
——What’s with that look in your eyes that’s mocking the chaste and brave husband!
Qi Qing was so angry that he kicked over the paint box and felt that he couldn't stay here any longer.
He was about to rush out the door when he saw a few children standing outside the yard, looking around.
Although they were the first passers-by he met in this dead city, Qi Qing felt embarrassed when he thought of the scene just now. He said angrily, "What are you looking at!"
Unexpectedly, these skinny children were not afraid at all. Instead, they blinked their eyes and said incoherently: "It looks good! It looks good!"
They were dressed in rags, their eyes looked unusually large because they were too thin, and there were faint traces of magic patterns on their faces, but they did not mean any harm.
Qi Qing raised an eyebrow and pointed in the direction the maid left: "Does it look good?"
This question and answer seemed to turn on a switch. Several children gathered around boldly, looking at Qi Qing with curiosity, and shouted in unison: "Outside!" "Beautiful!"
Qi Qing glanced at the group of children and asked, "You live here too?"
The children nodded at first, then hurriedly shook their heads, and said with gestures: "Young, Young Master... Young Master?"
Qi Qing understood and said, "Yue Ji has gone to see your master."
The children looked at each other, and a skinny little hand suddenly grabbed his sleeve.
Qi Qing instinctively wanted to pull his hand away, but paused when he saw the hand clearly. It was as thin as a chicken claw and short in stature.
——For no reason he was reminded of Yue Ji when they first met.
He sighed inwardly, but in the end he couldn't bear to shake them off, so he let the children pull him to the next yard.
This yard was even more dilapidated than the garden he had just been in. The ground was muddy, rags were draped everywhere to keep out the wind and rain, and it was so dark that almost no light could get through.
He thought someone came here to see him, but the children just excitedly brought out their "treasures": smooth stones, grasshoppers made of dry grass, and small shapeless toys made of mud.
Qi Qing's attention was drawn to one of the wooden boxes. Among this pile of crude toys, the wooden box carved with simple patterns seemed out of place and did not look like something that would appear here.
More importantly, there was a faint scent of his presence in there.
As soon as Qi Qing opened the lid of the box, the children rushed over screaming, "Baby! Don't touch it! It belongs to the young master!"
But just that one glance was enough for Qi Qing to see clearly what was inside.
A snowflake smaller than a fingernail.
He stood there in a daze, thinking for a long time before he remembered where it came from.
——The Thousand Lantern Festival three years ago.
When he casually handed the snowflake to Yue Ji that night, did he ever think that this thin piece of snowflake would be treasured until now by someone who was delighted by the first snow?
My tense heart seemed to be cut open by the snowflake, and it moved and sad water flowed out.
Qi Qing's throat moved slightly, and he felt mixed emotions. After a long while, he said softly, "Okay, I won't touch you."
Frost formed on his fingertips, and in the blink of an eye he made a few cute ice sculptures of puppies. His voice became gentler: "I'll give this to you to play with, okay?"
The children immediately forgot about the argument and started scrambling for the item with their eyes wide open in surprise.
Seeing that they liked them, Qi Qing pinched a few more. Suddenly, a laughing voice came from behind him: "Master, why are you here?"
He turned around and saw the man he had just been thinking about standing at the gate of the yard, with a long sword on his waist, his figure tall and straight, his clothes fluttering in the cold wind.
"Just take a walk." Qi Qing patted his clothes and stood up.
Yue Ji glanced at the playing children, and spoke in a lighter tone. After greeting them, he naturally put his arm around Qi Qing's shoulders and said, "Go back."
There was no conversation along the way. Qi Qing looked at Yue Ji several times and wanted to ask him what kind of life he was leading in Hunyuan, but he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Yue Ji seemed to sense something and broke the silence at the right time: "I heard that the Demon Lord sent a gift to Master?"
...Why are you bringing up something that is not relevant?
Qi Qing swallowed back the words that were about to come out of his mouth, and his face darkened again.
Yue Ji was bewildered by his stare and didn't understand what he had said wrong. He wanted to ask again, but Qi Qing had already entered the room.
There is no day and night alternation in the Soul Abyss, so he couldn't tell the time. As soon as he entered the door, he felt sleepy.
Yue Ji obeyed and stopped talking, helped him undress, and helped him lie down.
Qi Qing felt strange. Wasn't this man the young master of the demon clan? Not only did he not have painted buildings and red curtains, nor a group of servants, but why was he still servile in front of him?
Then he saw Yue Ji taking off his outer robe and lying down beside him.
Qi Qing immediately frowned: "Don't you have a bed?"
Since their last argument, the two haven't slept in the same bed for almost half a month, and Qi Qing kicked him off.
Yue Ji rubbed against him confidently: "This is my bed."
Qi Qing immediately turned over and sat up, and was about to get off the bed, but was pushed back by a strong hand.
"Lie down." Yue Ji said slowly, "I won't do anything for now, Master, don't worry."
Qi Qing laughed: "Temporarily? When exactly is your 'temporarily'? Do you think I will believe your sweet words again?"
Even for your own butt’s sake you can’t believe it!
In the dim light, Yue Ji turned his head to look at him and smiled. Qi Qing sneered back, not to be outdone. As he laughed, he suddenly couldn't laugh anymore.
He found that he really couldn't do anything.
When their eyes met, the man in front of them was no longer the skinny child he had been back then. In a month or so, he would be seventeen years old. He had broad shoulders and long legs, a distinct Adam's apple, and even the hand pressing on his shoulder carried an irresistible force.
Now looking at him, he really looks like a man.
Qi Qing pulled the quilt expressionlessly, covered his head and turned around. Somehow, it seemed like he was trying to escape.
Yue Ji really did what he said - although he only stayed quiet for a quarter of an hour.
Just when Qi Qing was about to fall asleep, he suddenly felt a warm hand touching his clothes.
He shuddered all over, turned around and was about to scold, but was blocked.
Close at hand, Yue Ji opened his eyes, without any shame for breaking his promise, and instead bit his lips and said, "Master."
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