A Strange Awakening

Dan Fusheng wanted to fuss over Chen Gui, but a clear-headed Chen Gui refused him. His Inner Demon still held some sway over his mind, and he felt they needed to maintain their distance to avoid further complications.

Dan Fusheng was deeply disappointed. It seemed his obedient and clingy junior brother had vanished once the crisis peaked. This feeling of disappointment lingered throughout the day, lasting well into the evening.

That night, Dan Fusheng was once again called away by disciples from the Qianyu Sect. Chen Gui did not follow him. He no longer felt the need to constantly be by Dan Fusheng’s side, as he now had his own tasks to attend to. Chen Gui’s Inner Demon was only suppressed, not entirely gone. While he was clear-headed, he intended to record the various sensations the Inner Demon had elicited so he could analyze them later.

When Dan Fusheng returned, he found Chen Gui already lying in bed.

‘Hm? Wait a minute.’

Dan Fusheng recalled that they used to sleep together to suppress the Inner Demon’s anxiety. Now that Chen Gui was seemingly back to normal, there was no longer a need for them to squeeze into one bed. So, what was Chen Gui doing?

“Oh, I had some of the sect’s homemade wine,” Dan Fusheng explained, trying to sound casual. “It was quite good. I even brought some back. Would you like to try it?”

Chen Gui shook his head. He turned over, making space on the mattress. “I don’t like drinking.”

‘Huh? Is he inviting me to lie down?’ Dan Fusheng wondered. ‘Right, this is his bed.’

Dan Fusheng performed a cleansing spell on himself, then silently climbed into bed and lay beside Chen Gui. His eyes remained fixed on his junior brother’s face, making Chen Gui uncomfortable.

“What are you looking at?” Chen Gui asked.

“Nothing,” Dan Fusheng replied, his hands clasped over his lower abdomen. He lay stiffly on his back, his gaze still unwavering.

Chen Gui couldn’t understand what Dan Fusheng was doing. Had his senior brother ever been this rigid before? Or was he plotting another mischievous trick? Chen Gui began to grow wary. However, Dan Fusheng did nothing but stare intently at the ceiling, then back at him. Unwilling to deal with the scrutiny, Chen Gui closed his eyes and eventually drifted off.

Two hours later, Chen Gui suddenly awoke with a start.

‘His Inner Demon was gone! Why was he still in bed? He didn’t need to sleep at all!’

Dan Fusheng was still staring at him, seemingly just as puzzled by the situation.

“Junior Brother, are you awake?” Dan Fusheng asked softly.

Chen Gui swallowed, feigning composure as he hummed in affirmation.

Dan Fusheng said nothing further; he had already drawn his conclusion. Judging by his junior brother’s startled expression, Chen Gui had simply forgotten that his level of cultivation meant he no longer required sleep.

‘He forgot, huh?’

Dan Fusheng’s initial confusion instantly morphed into a mischievous delight. He felt he had found a new source of amusement.

Chen Gui couldn’t fall back asleep now that he was aware. He lay with his eyes open, unsure whether he should get up. Would leaving immediately make Dan Fusheng think he was repulsed? Should he explain that he hadn’t fully recovered from the influence of the Inner Demon?

“That, uh… you demon, I… ah!” Chen Gui’s words were cut short when Dan Fusheng suddenly took his hand.

“What are you doing!” Chen Gui’s voice trembled.

“I was simply moved by what you said, Junior Brother,” Dan Fusheng murmured, gently stroking the back of Chen Gui’s hand with his thumb.

Goosebumps rose on Chen Gui’s arms. “What did I say?”

Dan Fusheng leaned closer. Chen Gui shifted back. Dan Fusheng continued to lean in, and Chen Gui kept retreating. Finally, Chen Gui was pressed against the wall, trembling. Dan Fusheng, seemingly oblivious to the awkwardness, simply wrapped his arms around him.

Chen Gui wished he could vanish on the spot, yet a strange warmth bloomed in his chest. Dan Fusheng buried his head in Chen Gui’s chest, rubbing against him like a cat.

Chen Gui couldn’t take it anymore. “What did I say?!” Dan Fusheng was definitely toying with him!

“You said you wanted your Senior Brother to live, didn’t you?” Dan Fusheng lifted his head. “I considered many things, thinking you just wanted to monopolize me. I can give you that.”

“Your Inner Demon lingered, and I kept wondering what else you wanted.” Dan Fusheng reached out, placing his hand on Chen Gui’s forehead, then gently stroking down his cheek. “You just wanted to prove that your Senior Brother cared about you, right?”

“I’ve already proven it. Don’t get so close,” Chen Gui said, feeling his skin grow warm wherever Dan Fusheng touched.

“Are you disgusted with me?” Dan Fusheng’s tone sounded uncharacteristically dejected.

“No, not disgusted. I just feel my thoughts about you are very strange right now,” Chen Gui admitted, noticing the shift in his own emotions.

“Strange?” Dan Fusheng hadn’t yet grasped the gravity of the situation. “How strange?”

Chen Gui cleared his throat. “I’ve always wanted to know if your lips are soft.”

Dan Fusheng raised an eyebrow. “Hm?”

“I want to touch them. May I?” Chen Gui asked directly.

“You may. No need to be so formal,” Dan Fusheng replied with a gentle smile. “It’s not as if you’ve never touched my face before.”

Chen Gui’s hand trembled slightly as he reached out and gently pressed a finger against Dan Fusheng’s lips.

“…Do they feel soft?” Dan Fusheng whispered.

“Soft,” Chen Gui confirmed. He pinched Dan Fusheng’s lower lip between his thumb and forefinger, then his upper lip. Finally, he pressed both lips together with his thumb. As he continued to touch them, Chen Gui’s hand suddenly drifted. He lightly brushed Dan Fusheng’s cheek, lingered for a moment on his earlobe, and then his hand rested on the corner of Dan Fusheng’s eye.

“Junior Brother, your actions are a bit ambiguous.”

“Actually, I suspect…” Chen Gui gazed at Dan Fusheng’s face. It was a face he knew intimately, yet it had recently grown increasingly captivating. It wasn’t just Dan Fusheng’s superior looks, but the feeling of reclaiming something lost—the hope of holding onto a constant in a chaotic world. They had only each other.

Dan Fusheng was still smiling, but then he heard a reply that shocked him to his core.

“I suspect I’m falling in love with you. I mean, the kind of love one has for a partner.”

Dan Fusheng froze. He was genuinely dumbfounded.

Chen Gui asked again, “Did you hear me?”

Dan Fusheng hesitated, then nodded.

“Actually, I suspected it was just the Inner Demon’s influence, but even as it subsides, this feeling remains.” After the initial tension of the confession, Chen Gui regained his composure and began to analyze. “I thought it might be because we hadn’t seen each other for too long. After all, you’re the only family I have left, and I might have mistaken filial affection for romantic love.”

Chen Gui finished, then glanced at the bewildered Dan Fusheng. “Do you think there’s any logic to my analysis?”

“Yes… perhaps,” Dan Fusheng finally reacted. “Wait, Junior Brother, what gave you the idea that you might like me that way?”

“When you leaned in just now, I had a very strong urge to kiss you!” Chen Gui was extremely nervous, his voice becoming very loud. “That’s not normal!”

Dan Fusheng: “…”

‘What the hell! How did things get to this point?!’

“To be honest, I had a really strange dream not long ago!” Chen Gui declared with a firm expression, enunciating each word. “In the dream, you were touching your own body and asking if I wanted to claim you for myself. Your eyes then were especially… how should I put it? Sexy! Yes! That’s it—sexy! Your hand moved over your chest, your abdomen, and then—”

“Enough! Don’t be so detailed!” Dan Fusheng quickly interrupted, covering Chen Gui’s mouth.

They stared at each other in the dark. After a long silence, Dan Fusheng finally spoke. “No, this can’t go on. This is going to lead to something big.”

Chen Gui agreed. “I don’t think I’m that fond of you yet. Perhaps we should maintain some distance for a short while.”

“I’ll switch rooms,” Dan Fusheng said, immediately getting out of bed. He used Si Fenglang’s affection to manipulate the Prince, but he would never use such methods against Chen Gui.

Dan Fusheng carried his pillow and blanket to the doorway. As he reached it, he looked back at the forlorn Chen Gui sitting on the bed. Chen Gui looked very reluctant to see him go.

“No, this won’t do. Your Inner Demon hasn’t been completely cleared,” Dan Fusheng sighed, returning to the bed with his bedding.

Chen Gui let out a soft sigh of relief. They sat side by side, simultaneously turning to look at each other, then just as quickly turning their heads away.

“You truly like me?” Dan Fusheng was still unsure.

“I like you,” Chen Gui affirmed, clutching the blanket Dan Fusheng had just brought back. The lower half of his face was buried in the fabric.

“Why? If you were going to like me, you should have liked me ages ago.” They were both over two thousand years old; the timing seemed illogical.

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s because your eyes, you demon, are too alluring.” Chen Gui felt his eyes were a significant factor. Those eyes had once gazed at him with tenderness, then with cold calculation, and now with gentleness again.

“I refuse to accept personal attacks,” Dan Fusheng said, touching his own eyes.

“I think your mouth is also a problem,” Chen Gui continued. With thin lips that hinted at heartlessness, Dan Fusheng’s mouth always curved upwards, revealing a false gentleness.

Dan Fusheng nodded. “My ears and nose are also problems, right? And my limbs, my torso.”

Chen Gui’s ears turned red. “Don’t talk nonsense.”

“…Why are you blushing?” Dan Fusheng asked, puzzled. “Saying ‘facial features’ and ‘torso’ makes you blush?”

When ‘torso’ was mentioned again, Chen Gui’s face flushed even deeper. Dan Fusheng was stunned. “You blush at the word ‘torso’?! What are you thinking, you brat?”

Chen Gui lowered his head. “I’m thinking of some rather inappropriate images.” Dan Fusheng’s torso was equally beautiful: a lean waist and perfectly sculpted muscles.

Dan Fusheng: “…Do you want me to cut off my torso and give it to you?”

Chen Gui’s face instantly turned pale at the macabre suggestion.

‘Alright, problem solved.’

‘What should I do? Leaving isn’t an option, nor is staying.’ Dan Fusheng thought. If he continued to flirt, Chen Gui might truly fall for him. But if he left, the Inner Demon might resurface, and he didn’t want Chen Gui to be alone and depressed.

Chen Gui was also conflicted. Finally, he came up with an idea. “Haven’t you finished the orders you took?”

Dan Fusheng nodded. “Yes, why?”

“We should start working.” If they worked, they wouldn’t have time to overthink.

“Now?”

“Now!”

Early the next morning, the clients who had just woken up received notifications that their orders were complete. They looked at the finished product images and marveled at Dan Fusheng’s exaggerated speed.

Dan Fusheng, upon receiving a message from his lead client, glanced at Chen Gui, who was working so fast he was a blur.

Lead Client: [Everything okay? You finished an entire week’s worth of work in a night.]

Dan Fusheng: [I’m not sure.]

Lead Client: [?]

Dan Fusheng: [But I think I’m about to get rich.]

The client sent a thumbs-up emoji. Dan Fusheng gave Chen Gui a real-life thumbs-up. Chen Gui was bewildered, but he returned the gesture without stopping his work.