Chapter 19

Pei Yuhan broke free from Lin Yi's embrace. She glanced at Li Tiaodeng, her face slightly flushed. Under the winter plum tree, she appeared exceptionally beautiful.

"I understand." Pei Yuhan turned her head away. Because of this commotion caused by Lin Yi, the slight worries in her heart slowly dissipated.

"Senior Brother, what Yin Yang?" Yu Xiaotang grabbed Lin Yi's hand. She looked at Lin Yi with some confusion; her eyes were already red.

Master said Senior Brother would die at the hands of Yin Yang?

Yu Xiaotang did not understand why Master would say such things. Could it be that Master could not deal with that Yin Yang?

"It's nothing, Xiao Tang." Lin Yi rubbed Yu Xiaotang's head.

"What do you mean it's nothing! Senior Brother! I won't let go until you explain clearly!!" Yu Xiaotang glared fiercely at Lin Yi. She felt deeply wronged, as she had always been excluded by Senior Brother.

Whether it was getting close to Master, going down the mountain, the matter with that Su Lingshu, or taking on an apprentice… she didn't care about any of these.

But regarding matters involving Senior Brother's Life, she cared immensely!

Lin Yi was stunned for a moment, then revealed a gentle smile. He had actually forgotten one thing: this Junior Sister, Yu Xiaotang, was the one who liked him the most…

For these past few days, he had focused his attention on Pei Yuhan, and recently on Su Lingshu, so he had somewhat neglected Yu Xiaotang.

He was not some Transmigration user who had undergone Possession and Rebirth; he had watched his Junior Sister grow up since she was a child.

Precisely because of this, Yu Xiaotang was so close to him, and even willing to confront Pei Yuhan for his sake.

"It's nothing, Xiao Tang. I, your Senior Brother, already said it's nothing. Do you not trust your Senior Brother?"

Lin Yi smilingly hugged Yu Xiaotang's waist. It had no excess fat, and because she had just finished practicing swordplay, there was still some sweat on her body. Leaning against the cold winter air, the sweat on her body had already turned icy cold.

Lin Yi felt a bit of pity. He picked up Yu Xiaotang and walked into the inner room. "Tiaodeng, don't just stand there. Continue practicing swordplay. I will come to check on you later."

"Yes, Master!" Li Tiaodeng's voice came through, sounding a bit nervous.

Lin Yi walked into the inner room, his spiritual power surging. In less than a minute, the inner room was already filled with mist.

Under Yu Xiaotang's blushing gaze, Lin Yi sat slowly into the bathtub while holding her.

Yu Xiaotang closed her eyes slightly, then took a deep breath of the slightly warm and humid air.

Chapter 33: You Must Promise Me, Xiao Tang

"Xiao Tang."

Lin Yi rested his chin on Yu Xiaotang's little head.

"Mm… Senior Brother…"

Yu Xiaotang closed her eyes slightly, leaning against Lin Yi's chest. Although the water temperature was slightly scorching at this moment, for Yu Xiaotang, who had worked up a sweat practicing in the cold winter, it was just right.

"Xiao Tang, will you believe your Senior Brother?" Lin Yi asked gently. He used his spiritual power to guide a stream of water to pour over Yu Xiaotang's exposed, delicate body.

Yu Xiaotang naturally nodded. She trusted her Senior Brother immensely; even if Senior Brother lied to her that the sun rose from the west, she would hypnotize herself into believing it.

Lin Yi picked up Yu Xiaotang, then gently put her down again.

Yu Xiaotang frowned slightly, then immediately smoothed it out. She leaned against Lin Yi's back again. This time, her belief became even firmer.

"Senior Brother… I believe you…" Yu Xiaotang said. Her voice carried a hint of stickiness and a slight tremor, perhaps because the air outside was too cold… It couldn't possibly be because it was too scorching.

"You must absolutely never say that person's name in front of others, understand? Xiao Tang." Lin Yi's voice was gentle but firm.

"Mm, but Senior Brother, why… mmm…" Yu Xiaotang nodded, and immediately wanted to ask Lin Yi why he was at odds with that Yin Yang.

However… Lin Yi leaned in, forcing her subsequent questions to be swallowed back.

Lin Yi raised his head and gently wiped away a trace of water at the corner of Yu Xiaotang's mouth with his hand.

"Don't ask, don't say, don't think. Xiao Tang, you must promise me." Lin Yi hugged Yu Xiaotang's slender waist, resting his head on her shoulder, gently biting her earlobe. His voice was as gentle as a lover's whisper.

No, they were already lovers.

"But…" Yu Xiaotang didn't want to agree. She didn't want to be someone who knew nothing, who only foolishly asked Senior Brother for carrots and sticks…

"You must promise me, Xiao Tang." Lin Yi held Yu Xiaotang slightly. The water surface rippled slightly. Yu Xiaotang felt her head becoming a bit dizzy. Her arms, which appeared exceptionally fair and alluring in the lamplight, rested on Lin Yi's arms.

"Please, Senior Brother… at least let me know a little bit of the inside story…" Yu Xiaotang was unwilling to agree. She wanted to help Senior Brother; she didn't want to live only under Senior Brother's protection.

"Xiao Tang, you agreeing to Senior Brother is the best help you can give him, or… add to that, like this, helping Senior Brother relieve his mental and physical fatigue." Lin Yi's words carried a hint of playfulness, but this couldn't make Yu Xiaotang smile.

She watched the water ripples gradually become chaotic, and she herself gradually became chaotic. "I promise you, Senior Brother… mmm…"

Yu Xiaotang suddenly grabbed the edge of the bathtub. She tilted her head back, blankly watching the mist drifting in the room. Outside the bathtub, the cold air licked the water droplets on her arms, cooling them down.

Yu Xiaotang withdrew her arms. She stood up, then quickly sat back into the bathtub, but this time, she had already turned around.

Lin Yi held the turned-around Yu Xiaotang. Their foreheads touched, and they could both perceive each other's breathing. Lin Yi looked at Yu Xiaotang's somewhat aggrieved eyes and suddenly chuckled.

"Senior Brother! You're bad!" Yu Xiaotang angrily patted Lin Yi's shoulder. Just when her head was dizzy, Lin Yi had actually forced her to agree to those demands!

"No, this is for your own good, my little Junior Sister. Senior Brother hopes more than anything that you won't suffer a single bit of harm." Lin Yi kissed Yu Xiaotang's lips affectionately.

The two enjoyed their bath together in the cold winter comfortably.

"Hmph!" Yu Xiaotang turned her head away. She felt so wronged; Senior Brother actually used that method to make her yield!

"Little Junior Sister, do you want to help Senior Brother?" Lin Yi raised an eyebrow, then pulled Yu Xiaotang's face over. He looked smilingly at Yu Xiaotang's somewhat moist eyes.

"Mmm… I do." Although she wanted to act as if she was ignoring him, her heart was soft after all. Under Lin Yi's gentle touch, she immediately nodded.

Lin Yi rubbed his face against Yu Xiaotang's little face, then hugged her body, letting her little face press against his chest.

Yu Xiaotang silently listened to her dear Senior Brother's slightly heavy heartbeat, waiting for Lin Yi to speak.

"Lu Jiajing, Ji Chanxi, Xia Qianzhen." Lin Yi gently uttered three names. He didn't know if Shao Shenyun and the others met the System's requirements in this world, so he only said these three names.

"Huh?" Yu Xiaotang blinked, then looked up in confusion.

Lin Yi reached out and pressed Yu Xiaotang's little face back against his chest. He ignored Yu Xiaotang's confusion, his voice floating lightly throughout the inner room.

It seemed like he was saying it to Yu Xiaotang, and it seemed like he was saying it to others.

"I need them, Xiao Tang. You will help Senior Brother… right?" Lin Yi lowered his head and kissed Yu Xiaotang's hair gently.

"Senior Brother! How come you are thinking about other women every day!!" Yu Xiaotang's pink face puffed up. She thought Senior Brother was going to say something else; even if he asked her to practice that Sun and Moon Brilliance technique with him, she would be willing, but she didn't expect…

"Having me and Master isn't enough for you! You found that Su Lingshu! Having the three of us isn't enough! You found a little apprentice, Li Tiaodeng! Now you're thinking about Lu Jiajing, Ji Chanxi, and Xia Qianzhen!"

"Senior Brother, where on earth did you hear those names! I know Lu Jiajing, she's the Palace Master of Qingmu Palace! It's said she's the number one beauty in the world! But… who is Ji Chanxi! And who is Xia Qianzhen!"

Yu Xiaotang began to ramble. She opened her pearly teeth in dissatisfaction and bit down on Lin Yi's shoulder, then mumbled as she scolded Lin Yi.

Lin Yi didn't stop Yu Xiaotang's actions; he smilingly let Yu Xiaotang count his "sins."

Outside the inner room.

Li Tiaodeng held her long sword. When she heard Yu Xiaotang mention her, her body suddenly stiffened. The sword stance that had become somewhat orderly began to become messy again.

Her mind was in some chaos.

So Master had those thoughts about her…

But…

She pursed her lips and glanced at Pei Yuhan, who was standing under the cold plum tree. Why were the relationships in the Sword Sect so chaotic!

She originally thought it was Grandmaster forcing Master, but she didn't expect it to be mutual.

Last night, she was still holding the handkerchief Master gave her and doing those unreasonable things…

These thoughts whirled together in her mind, making her heart completely chaotic.

Chapter 34: They Are Chess Pieces, and Also Discarded Pawns

Pei Yuhan knew clearly that Lin Yi's words were not said to Yu Xiaotang, but to her.

The names Yu Xiaotang didn't know, she knew very well; they were all Fairies who had close relationships with her Master.

The struggle between Yin Yang and Ye Linyuan would soon be borne by them. They were chess pieces, and also discarded pawns. Whether it was Yin Yang or Ye Linyuan, neither of them took them to heart.

The former used them as chess pieces to break Ye Linyuan's Dao Heart.

The latter used them as discarded pawns to exchange for that sliver of opportunity to achieve a Breakthrough to the Dao.

They all had bright futures, but what about them?

Pei Yuhan pursed her lips. She remembered the unreasonable demands those filthy people from the Yin Yang Pavilion made of her. Was so-called Sword Dao and the Sword Sect… really that important?

Pei Yuhan used her Divine Sense to watch Lin Yi and Yu Xiaotang frolicking in the bathtub. The confusion in her eyes dissipated, leaving only those clear and beautiful eyes.

"Tiaodeng, you stay here and don't walk around." Pei Yuhan instructed slightly.

When Li Tiaodeng put away her sword and turned back to look, her Grandmaster with white clothes and green hair was already gone.

She shook her head, then continued to wave her long sword in the courtyard according to the task Lin Yi assigned her. Although she was somewhat distracted by what Yu Xiaotang said, she could still gain something by lifting the sword according to the three-tenths of the sword moves in her memory.

…

Yu Xiaotang rested her head on Lin Yi's shoulder, listening to her beloved Senior Brother telling her those worldly jokes, a smile spreading on her lips.

Every now and then, a slightly risqué joke would make her give a coquettish scold.

Hmm?

Yu Xiaotang blinked, then slowly lifted her head.

"Master?" She was a bit surprised.

Lin Yi raised an eyebrow, then turned his head back. Sure enough, his Fairy Master was standing behind them.

Pei Yuhan entwined her hands behind her back and took off the snow hairpin on her head. Her green hair then splendidly turned into a snowstorm, draping behind her.

Speaking of which, the hairpin on her head was gifted to her by Lin Yi.

Pei Yuhan looked at the crystal-clear hairpin in her palm, pursed her lips, then flipped her hand and put it away properly.

"Xiao Tang, you've played enough, haven't you?" Pei Yuhan placed her hands on the waistband of her garment, then turned to look at Yu Xiaotang.

Yu Xiaotang's eyes widened. She didn't expect Master to snatch even this little bit of time away from her!

Senior Brother isn't yours alone!

How she wanted to shout this out!

Unfortunately…

"Mmm… Then I'll go back first." While Pei Yuhan turned around, Yu Xiaotang stuck out her tongue at her from behind her back.

Pei Yuhan's brows relaxed slightly. This little apprentice, it wasn't like she couldn't see her just because she turned around.

Lin Yi looked at this lively side of Yu Xiaotang with amusement. He tilted his head slightly, kissed Yu Xiaotang's lower abdomen gently, and then winked at Yu Xiaotang who had lowered her head.

Yu Xiaotang stepped out of the bathtub, and while Lin Yi turned his head away, she quickly rubbed his head!

"Junior Sister…"

Lin Yi was stunned, then revealed a smile that made Yu Xiaotang feel something was wrong.

"Senior Brother! I was wrong!!"

Yu Xiaotang hurriedly begged for mercy, but her mouth carried a smile. She hurriedly wrapped herself in clothes, hiding her delicate body, and ran to the other room when Lin Yi reached out to grab her.

Pei Yuhan sat down in the bathtub generously. She turned around slightly, then leaned against Lin Yi's chest.

This proactive appearance surprised Lin Yi a little, but… it was within his expectations as well.

"Yuhan…" Lin Yi had just called Pei Yuhan's name when his mouth was already blocked by her.

Pei Yuhan tilted her head slightly… Lin Yi's lips, and then inch by inch…

She turned around, letting the warm bathwater soak her long hair. In the bathtub, she hugged Lin Yi tightly.