Chapter 86

The sound of water trickled in the stone-paved open-air hot spring, and warm mist drifted slowly through the night air.

Moonlight spilled down through the eaves, as if plating the water's surface with a layer of thin silver.

A circle of green pines and rocks surrounded the pool, and one could vaguely hear the chirping of insects and the calls of night birds from the distant mountains and forests.

Qi Xing was soaking in the water alone.

He leaned back against the edge of the pool, burying his shoulders in the hot water, with only the top of his head visible.

In the basket beside him, along with a change of clothes and a towel, there was sake in a porcelain bottle, and of course, a small cup and some snacks.

"Ahhhh…"

Soaking in the hot spring while eating edamame and sipping sake was so comfortable that Qi Xing couldn't help but sigh, as if clouds of black mist were slowly dissipating from his body, steaming away all his exhaustion.

He really needed this right now.

As for how tiring the fighting was today, it wasn't tiring at all. There wasn't even a decent opponent.

But too many things had indeed happened today.

The undercover investigation, the Satan cult, that guy who claimed to be Amaterasu/Ise, interrogating prisoners, the flying competition, and some strange social pressures that were almost misunderstood.

"We agreed on a pre-wedding trip, so how did it end up like this…"

He picked up a piece of pickled eggplant to eat and took another sip of hot sake.

The sake was a bit too bland for Qi Xing's taste, but it was fine to drink while relaxing in the hot spring.

Closing his eyes and tilting his head back against the stone ledge of the hot spring, Qi Xing felt as if he were sinking into the mist.

But Sasa popped out at this moment, floating on the mist beside him and quipping, "So you still remember that you wanted to come here for a pre-wedding trip?"

"Of course I remember."

"A pre-wedding trip, yet your head is full of other women, busy playing with other women."

"Go, go, go, stop talking nonsense."

Although he said that, Qi Xing couldn't help but break into a cold sweat.

He wasn't completely unaware.

"Little fool, don't think I don't know what you're thinking."

The devil's shadow dodged his poke and floated further away to mock him, "What [she flies beautifully], what [a posture of freedom]… and if you keep thinking, it'll be [she smells so good], [she's so soft], and then you'll be lusting after her body, right?"

"Can you not make me sound like a scumbag?" Qi Xing complained.

"Sigh. That's why I say you're a fool."

Sasa floated around the hot spring and rolled her eyes, "You never needed to pretend to be a gentleman, did you? You were never some bright and shining hero, were you? You're just that kind of guy who, even though he has a gentle fiancée who can accompany him to the hot spring at any time, still wants to fly around in sparks and lightning with other powerful women. Can't you just honestly admit it?"

"Flying is one thing, but acting all [wow, she's amazing, I'm just appreciating her]… Qi Xing, you need to acknowledge your desires."

Saying this, Sasa paused for a few seconds, and then her tone became unusually serious and earnest, "Remember what I told you before? You don't think that taming the desire for [Domination] means you've tamed all desires, do you?"

"The second silver coin you obtained is [Illusion], the desire for [Change]. What do you think the desire for change is?"

Qi Xing was certainly not stupid enough to misunderstand what she meant.

The desire for [Domination] is essentially the pursuit of control; however, human desires will [change].

Although he liked Elaine very much, as the saying goes, men are always looking at what's in the pot while eating what's in their bowl… especially the strong, the overlords who possess power and leisure; they are even more likely to like one after another, liking two after two…

"No! I just need one person who loves me!"

"Keep lying to yourself."

"I said I would take responsibility!"

"You're thinking about such heavy things every day, aren't you tired?"

"I just want to be friends with Jingo Rin, don't think crookedly and talk nonsense!"

"Sigh."

Sasa shook her head, feeling very desperate about the immaturity of her chosen king. He still lacked the capacity to be a king.

Just like how Qi Xing now only knows how to issue [Commands] and [Judgments] with the silver coin of [Domination], his brain hasn't quite shifted gears yet.

Ancient people are one thing, but since they are all modern people who understand how power works, if they think about it carefully, they should know—are [Commands] and [Judgments] the entirety of the power to dominate, govern, and rule? No, right?

A superior can also command subordinates without needing the [King's Power]; a judge can also judge criminals without needing the [King's Power]. So, what exactly is the [King's Power]?

However, talking about this now seems to be drifting a bit too far.

The point is, Sasa actually knows very well what Qi Xing is thinking—he always feels [I am different from this absurd █ █ world!] so he doesn't dare to get lewd. Even if he wants to get lewd, he has to find some high-sounding pure love justifications for himself, such as saying that being responsible is pure love and not desire, so he can't start a harem, and so on.

In Sasa's view, this is stupid; it's just Qi Xing constraining his own intense desires and power.

But it doesn't matter! She is here!

Just watch how the incredibly wise Samael awakens Qi Xing's true self, letting him realize—he doesn't want to be friends with the beautiful girl at all, he just lusts after her body!

Once Qi Xing finally has some self-awareness, he will definitely be able to do more, and his power will advance further!

She quietly shrank down and disappeared.

Qi Xing just thought she had disappeared into the shadows again, didn't think too much about it, and relaxed to continue soaking in his hot spring.

However, not long after, just as he finished eating the edamame, Qi Xing suddenly sensed a presence.

The stone hot spring bath was spacious and intricate. Although his view was blocked by steam and rocks, with Qi Xing's superhuman senses, he still definitely sensed… a presence nearby.

Who is it?

Qi Xing thought there were no other people in the hotel today, and that the three of them had booked the place… could it be Old Wolf?

It couldn't be… surely not. If it were a normal person, it would be fine, and if it were a wild animal jumping into the hot spring, it wouldn't matter. But what if it were another assassin from [True Buddhism] or some Satan cult…

Even if the probability was very low, Qi Xing immediately took action, following that trace of presence past the edge hidden by rocks.

At the same time, the presence and figure on the other side seemed to be surprised from the bottom of their heart, turning around inadvertently, as if completely without guard.

Facing each other, through the pervasive steam, Qi Xing finally saw—he saw her.

Jingo Rin was sitting quietly on the edge of the hot spring pool, her head slightly tilted back, eyes closed.

The water submerged her shoulders, revealing only her clearly defined collarbones and a section of her snow-white neck. She looked as if she were submerged in the mist, and also as if she were born from the mist.

Moonlight shone down through the shadows of the branches, and amidst the swirling mist, her face, which was already cold and distinct, revealed a holiness that one could not bear to look at directly.

Since she was soaking in the hot spring, she was, of course, wearing nothing.

This body belonged to a young girl, to an extremely powerful warrior, and to a demigod among humans.

Her fair skin was steamed by the mist and vapor of the hot spring into a lustrous sheen, like jade, or like snow untainted by dust. Her hair was slightly damp, clinging to her shoulders or floating gently with the current. Her healthy figure was thin where it should be thin, and had flesh where it should have flesh.

Her appearance embodied the desires of thousands of men, as if an ideal had walked into reality.

Every breath she took seemed to move the air and water, making one feel an indescribable rhythm—

Like the wind sweeping across a shrine under the moon, like a pure fire just ignited on an altar.

In this instant, Qi Xing was truly stunned.

He originally thought that after ten years of fighting, he was already accustomed enough to the [beauty] of this world. After all, this world had too many things that were just too much in terms of visuals, sounds, and smells. He should have been calm enough, long since no longer easily shaken by his five senses.

But this was not [beauty].

It was not the beauty of a mundane body.

It was—the kind of beauty that made the gods hold their breath, like the moment when Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty, was born and rose from the sea.

It was a combination of saint and warrior, girl and lion, god and human.

No words, no movements, only that divinity that did not need to be deliberately displayed, but flowed out naturally.

He could not disturb her.

He could not destroy this scene.

The term "sacred and untouchable" seemed to be describing such a scene.

In an instant, all his perceptions about Jingo Rin were gently shaken.

Qi Xing originally thought he [liked her style], [admired her strength], and [felt they were a good match]—even when Samael teased him or Elaine asked him indirectly, Qi Xing stuck to his own ideas.

But now he understood.

It was not [appreciation], not [respect], not [mutual understanding as capricious strong people], but a very human, very primitive, completely irrational… desire to get close, to touch, just like the hot spring water, steaming up from the depths of Qi Xing's body, steaming away the [rationality] he had previously pretended to have, layer by layer.

Sasa's mockery was still echoing in his mind.

—"You were never some bright and shining hero, were you? You were never a gentleman, were you?"

He wanted to refute it, but he knew—this time, he couldn't deny it.

He didn't just admire her.

That heartbeat, it wasn't the excitement of battle, not the tacit understanding of friendship, not respect or envy.

It was—something that had quietly risen, a mixture of impulse, amazement, and joy…

He finally realized… damn it, there aren't that many coincidences of mixed bathing in hot springs in reality. Sasa, this is your doing, right?

It was also at this moment that Jingo Rin opened her eyes.

Those sky-blue eyes, amidst the blending of mist and moonlight, saw him.

The two looked at each other. Each other's expressions were reflected in each other's eyes.

The air froze for about three seconds.

—Then Jingo Rin slowly raised an eyebrow: "Why are you peeking?"

"Purely an accident. I was worried it was an assassin."

Qi Xing raised his hands, and while sinking back into the hot spring, he said calmly.

"Hmm? Probably because there are no guests in the off-season, Dad pulled down the grating between the men's and women's baths…"

Jingo Rin frowned and sighed, she seemed to really not care, "It's fine, don't worry about it. My father is a weirdo, he was just saying how much I like you. I hope you don't mind."

Good heavens. Now it was really hard for Qi Xing not to mind.

"Your father seems like quite a special person?"

He asked calmly… but not without curiosity.

Jingo Rin's father, Jingo Shinji, the [Association] had of course investigated him before. He was from Germany, 43 years old this year, and should have come to Japan at the age of 20, but he started his activities in the Kanto region, and only came to the Tohoku region three years later, married into the Jingo Family, and was a naturalized immigrant.

As far as the [Association]'s investigation was concerned, he should not have any supernatural connections.

In addition, the [Association] did not have much information about Jingo Rin's mother.

"Speaking of which, I have never seen your mother either. Shouldn't she be the shrine maiden of your family for this generation?"

"Hmm."

Mentioning her parents made Jingo Rin rarely show a somewhat complicated expression, "My mother… has been in poor health since I was born, and has had to live in a private nursing home."

"I visit her every week. But…"

But what?

Jingo Rin didn't say it directly, but Qi Xing could guess a little.

First of all, a mother-daughter relationship like this since birth probably wouldn't be like that of a normal family; secondly, if a person had known since childhood that their mother had been in poor health since their birth and had to be hospitalized for a long time, she would probably have some complicated feelings.

"My father told me that my mother's poor health is not my fault, not because I am special. But sometimes I still can't help but think—"

However, the words Jingo Rin murmured next made Qi Xing a bit shocked, "—Humans are really too fragile."

Humans are too fragile. Just a forceful hug would shatter them. In the myriad of things, there are too many things in this world that are too delicate.

This is a feeling that only those born as the strongest would have.

Someone like Qi Xing, a strong person who has worked hard to cultivate, probably finds it difficult to have the same personal experience. It was only after recently obtaining the [silver coin] that he would warn himself [don't get addicted and keep using [Domination] on people all day].