Chapter 158: Misunderstanding

Even if you know who I am, there is no need to be this excited. Let go, move aside, and quickly figure out a way to contact your senior sister, I said irritably.

Oh. Chunwan released her grip and stepped back, her eyes rolling.

She sat down nearby and asked, I heard your wife is Ling Xinyue, the head of the three great socialites in the capital.

Mm, that is hardly news. I brushed seasoning onto the hind legs of the two hare spirits and lit the fire.

Then are you very afraid of her? Chunwan asked, blinking her eyes.

What a joke, why would I be afraid of her? In front of me, she is as obedient as a little kitten.

That is not right. I heard from a friend in the capital that Ling Xinyue says you strictly obey her, that when she tells you to go east you dare not go west, and when she tells you to kneel you dare not lie flat.

Nonsense! That is a rumor, how could you believe such things? I said angrily.

Chunwan nodded and said, I can believe it.

Then you can stay here by yourself.

No, no... I cannot believe it, Chunwan hastily corrected herself.

Right, which sect do you belong to? I asked.

I... I am a disciple of the... Flush Sect. Chunwan choked on her words for a moment, and in her panic, she improvised a sect name using the character for spring from her own name.

The Flush Sect? Such a sect exists in China? That name is imposing, pray tell, how exactly do you go about flushing? I was momentarily stunned, then burst out laughing.

Chunwan grew anxious, her little face flushing red. She gestured wildly with her hands and gabbled a mile a minute. Her speed of speech was truly peerless, resembling a machine gun.

Alright, alright, your sect is the Spring Sect, not the Flush Sect. Understood, you may shut your mouth now. I pressed a hand to my forehead, feeling a headache coming on.

Yet Chunwan kept talking incessantly, making my temples throb. Previously I had lacked a conversational partner, but now this one talked so much she made me wish for death.

I directly shoved a roasted hare leg into Chunwan's mouth, finally plugging it up.

Might I ask you a question? Chunwan suddenly looked up from the food to ask.

No, you may not. I already understood this young girl's temperament; once she started talking, she was unstoppable.

What I wanted to ask is, hee-hee, um... have you and Ling Xinyue not done the deed yet... Is there something wrong with you? Chunwan asked with a flushed face.

My face turned dark. Had she been a few years older, I would not have minded letting her find out whether there was anything wrong with me in that department.

Fine, did I hurt your pride a bit? Actually, as long as two people have feelings for each other, it is the same whether they do that thing or not. Seeing me fall silent, Chunwan assumed she had hurt my feelings and immediately felt a twinge of guilt.

Do you understand anything about this, little girl? I squeezed these words out through my teeth.

Isn't it just that sort of thing? I have read many books, and they all explain it, Chunwan replied very earnestly, her gaze darting from time to time toward my crotch.

I nearly lost my composure, wishing only that her senior sister would hurry up and take her away.

I still want to ask something else... Chunwan began again.

I raised a hand, directly sealing her vocal cords with spiritual energy, and said through gritted teeth, If you bother me again, you will never speak for the rest of your life.

Chunwan shrank her neck, pressed her palms together, and looked at me imploringly.

Meanwhile, I used a knife to slice off a piece of rabbit meat to chew on, too lazy to pay her any more mind.

Just then, a flash of purple lightning shot over. It was none other than the purple marten, which immediately crouched on a hare leg and began gnawing voraciously.

Chunwan's face lit up with pleasant surprise, her eyes turning directly into heart shapes. Had her vocal cords not been sealed, she would have shrieked aloud at how adorable the marten was.

Chunwan took two steps forward, but the purple marten abruptly turned its head to glare at her, baring its teeth.

Anxious, she rushed over and grabbed my arm, shaking it continuously.

Well, this little girl is developing rather nicely... Amitabha, could it be that I have gone too long without touching a woman, that even a yellow-haired little girl can make my blood boil?

I raised a hand to unseal Chunwan's vocal cords, and she immediately blurted out, This marten is so cute, is it yours? Will you give it to me?

It is still daytime, stop dreaming. I reached out and pressed a finger against Chunwan's forehead, pushing her away.

Chunwan stamped her foot, refusing to take her eyes off the purple marten.

A moment later, a bracelet on her wrist suddenly began to grow scorching hot. Joy surged in her heart, as she knew her senior sister had tracked her down.

However, rolling her eyes, she intentionally ruffled her hair even more, smeared some rabbit blood onto her clothes, leaned her back against a large tree, and used a glowing rope to bind herself to the trunk.

Sensing the fluctuation of spiritual energy, I opened my eyes and watched Chunwan tie herself to the tree trunk. Astonished, I asked, What are you doing? Why did you tie yourself up? Could this be some secret cultivation technique of your Flush Sect?

Chunwan shook her head with a muffled "mm-mm," her eyes sparkling with craftiness.

I got up and walked over, wanting to see what trick the girl was playing.

Yet at that very moment, a graceful figure descended from the sky.

I turned my head to look, and froze instantly—Ling Xinyue!

Why on earth would she appear here?

Wife? I blurted out in surprise, a smile escaping my lips.

Shameless! Ling Xinyue roared in an instant, her magic sword trembling as she thrust it straight toward me.

Frowning, I flicked my body away like a ghost and opened my mouth to speak, but Ling Xinyue's attacks came at me in an endless stream.

Ling Xinyue had also broken through and was now at the seventh rank of the Onmyoji realm.

Initially, she had struck out of anger, but upon discovering that my cultivation had also broken through, she was thrilled by the match and engaged me in a fierce, evenly matched duel.

However, once the fight began, it grew impossible to hold back, quickly turning into a life-or-death struggle.

The culprit behind all this, Chunwan, was dumbfounded. She had merely wanted to play a prank, but clearly, the prank had gone too far. Untying herself in a panic, she shouted loudly for them to stop.

Yet with two seventh-rank Onmyojis fighting, the voice of a mere novice Onmyoji was shattered the instant it left her lips.

She could not even manage to rush forward.

Boom!

I traded a blow with Ling Xinyue, sword and blade locked together, and frowned. Are you out of your damn mind? Do you believe I won't thrash your backside until it swells?

You jerk, what did my junior sister ever do to you that you would treat her like this? Ling Xinyue demanded furiously in return.

Your junior sister... Oh, damn it, that wretched little brat... I turned my head to look.

Ling Xinyue followed my gaze and saw Chunwan standing in the distance, looking utterly innocent.

...

I sat on a protruding rock at the summit of the mountain, a cigarette dangling from my lips, feeling thoroughly displeased.

The purple marten hid inside my jacket, poking its head out to survey my "strangers keep out" expression before ducking back in.

As for Chunwan, at worst I found her a bit annoying. But toward Ling Xinyue, who never bothered to distinguish right from wrong and drew her sword the moment she saw me, my anger refused to subside.

On the other side, Ling Xinyue wore a cold expression as she stared at Chunwan, whose head was sinking lower and lower, nearly buried in her chest.

I'm sorry, Senior Sister, Chunwan muttered timidly, her bouncing, mischievous temperament completely subdued.

Ling Xinyue remained silent, the aura around her still frigid.

Terrified and trembling, Chunwan understood all too well that the angrier Ling Xinyue was, the less she spoke.

Senior Sister... Chunwan sobbed.

You are not allowed to cry, Ling Xinyue ordered coldly.

Frightened into stiffness, Chunwan kept her little mouth pursed, her reddened eyes brimming with tears.

Seeing her junior sister's expression, Ling Xinyue could not help but soften. She said, I told you to stay put and wait for me, yet you ran off without a trace. Qin Feng saved you, and yet you pulled this kind of malicious prank. What if it hadn't been him, or what if his cultivation had been a bit lower and I had killed him with a single sword strike?

I understand, Senior Sister. I am so moved; I never knew I held such heavy weight in your heart, Chunwan said with tear-filled eyes.

Ling Xinyue opened her mouth. How exactly was her junior sister's brain wired? Ah, she couldn't be bothered with her.

Ling Xinyue walked to the summit, looking at me as I sat brooding on the rock smoking my cigarette. She clasped her hands together in front of her lower abdomen, at a loss for how to broach the subject.

Admitting fault and apologizing did not come easily to Ling Xinyue.

Hesitantly, Ling Xinyue walked over to my side and sat down.

Qin Feng, sor... Ling Xinyue took a deep breath and began to apologize.

Am I such a villain in your eyes? I coldly interrupted Ling Xinyue, a wicked fire burning in my chest. I turned my head to glare at her and continued, I smile at you, and you draw your sword on me?

I...

Forget what you, get lost. I snapped in a rage.

Ling Xinyue bit her lip, abruptly stood up, stamped her foot, and vaulted to the peak of the mountain.

As she stamped, her spiritual energy directly shattered the protruding boulder we were on.

I launched myself upward, landing at the peak, and watched the rock fragments tumble down the mountainside.

Hmph!

With a cold snort, Ling Xinyue turned and walked over to Chunwan, sitting cross-legged beneath a large tree and closing her eyes.

I likewise sat down on the other side with a sullen face.

Chunwan looked back and forth between Ling Xinyue on one side and me on the other, completely at a loss as to what to do.