The Master’s Secret and the Disciple’s Sacrifice

The Compound Pill was a Rank 1 elixir, a type of medicine so exceedingly rare it could only be encountered by chance, never truly sought.Even a major sect would struggle to produce more than a handful.Knowing Xia Niansheng had concealed this matter, Duan Xi Shen harbored a definite, albeit subtle, unease in her heart.Xia Niansheng had stumbled upon the Compound Pill within a hidden realm, a fortuitous discovery.Adhering to the cultivators’ inherent need for hidden trump cards, he had, quite naturally, kept its existence a secret.Yet, despite a flicker of guilt, he responded with a certain candor.

“It was a chance acquisition from a hidden realm I once explored.”

Duan Xi Shen remained seated in her recliner, offering no immediate reply, instead patiently awaiting further elucidation from Xia Niansheng.

‘Now, it seems he finally remembers I’m his master…’

A wry smile touched Xia Niansheng’s lips, though it remained unseen.He then proceeded to display a talent for performance that rivaled even White Snow Jade’s.

Xia Niansheng drew a sharp breath, a soft ‘Hiss’ escaping his lips.

“It wasn’t my intention to deliberately conceal it from you, Master.It’s simply that I acquired it less than a month ago, and during that period, you were in seclusion.I hardly saw you, and thus, found myself at a loss for how to even begin to speak of it.”

This justification, he knew, was undeniably sound.After a brief silence, Duan Xi Shen offered a subtle nod, yet still felt compelled to caution him.

“I understand your nature, that you may find it impossible to stand idly by.However, there are times when kindness must be bestowed upon the deserving.”

While seemingly a routine admonition, her words were, in fact, a subtle warning to Xia Niansheng: White Snow Jade, the disciple of that woman Qiu Yan, was unlikely to be someone of good character.Their animosity, it seemed, could be traced back to the grievances of an earlier generation.Given that this was a game centered around yuri themes, the intricate web of grudges and origins inevitably led one’s thoughts down a particular path.Whether Xia Niansheng grasped the full implication remained unclear; only a faint tremor in his eyelashes betrayed any reaction.

“Master, when you saved me all those years ago, bringing me back to Blood Sword Mountain, was it truly an act of kindness?”

The question clearly caught Duan Xi Shen off guard, and a fleeting, almost imperceptible flicker of evasion crossed her gaze.

“…That was certainly a part of it, but more profoundly, I believe it was destiny.”

Destiny.Upon hearing that word, Xia Niansheng offered another silent, bitter smile before inclining his head.For reasons she couldn’t quite articulate, Duan Xi Shen sensed a subtle transformation in the Xia Niansheng standing before her.Yet, she couldn’t pinpoint the exact nature of this alteration.It merely kindled an inexplicable irritation within Duan Xi Shen’s heart.Abandoning the current topic, she pivoted to a new question.

“Have you bathed?”

Xia Niansheng nodded. “I just finished bathing.”

Duan Xi Shen gave a slight nod, then rose to her feet.Her slender, jade-like feet appeared to touch the ground, yet a closer look revealed her skin maintained a minuscule distance from the floor.

“Come, lie upon the bed.”

****

Heavenly Spirit Sect, Blood Sword Mountain.

Xia Niansheng, a mere disciple, found himself entering his master Duan Xi Shen’s private chambers, and not merely that, but lying upon her very bed.An air of forbidden intimacy permeated everything.It was difficult not to imagine certain implications.Xia Niansheng sat up, and Duan Xi Shen, encircling him with her arms, ’embraced’ him.The pre-visit bathing and change of clothes were a direct consequence of Duan Xi Shen’s severe mysophobia.Her aversion was so profound that even casual interaction with others was distasteful, yet she permitted intimate contact with Xia Niansheng, a man.Duan Xi Shen gently tugged open Xia Niansheng’s collar, revealing his shoulder, and then softly rested her head near it.Xia Niansheng’s dark eyes remained placid, like a tranquil sea.From his vantage point, he could clearly discern Duan Xi Shen’s shapely, cloth-draped buttocks and the rosy, tender soles of her feet.A rich, heady scent, unique to each, wafted between them.Duan Xi Shen savored Xia Niansheng’s unique aroma, yet she maintained a palpable restraint.Her lips brushed against Xia Niansheng’s shoulder.And then…It was not a tender kiss, but a sharp, stinging bite.The familiar agony, the familiar scent.It was a sensation so utterly familiar that it dragged Xia Niansheng back to a night in his previous life—the first time she had drawn his blood from his shoulder.In that instant, as Xia Niansheng’s blood welled forth, Duan Xi Shen’s eyes flashed with a dark, scarlet hue.Her body began to tremble uncontrollably, bordering on a frenzied delirium.She gasped for breath, deeply and raggedly.Her hands, no longer restrained, clasped desperately around Xia Niansheng.The tranquility she had displayed moments before had vanished, yet she was, by nature, a woman of profound intensity.The soft, heart-quickening press of her chest and buttocks flooded Xia Niansheng’s senses.Xia Niansheng, however, merely offered another bitter, silent chuckle.

‘Rather than master and disciple, was it not more akin to… master and blood-servant?’

Master and blood-servant.Duan Xi Shen was afflicted with a rare condition known as Bloodlust Syndrome.This Bloodlust Syndrome was a peculiar ailment, frequently encountered in the northern borderlands bordering the werewolf tribes of the frigid regions, yet Duan Xi Shen’s symptoms were considerably more severe than most.No known cure existed for it.Fortuitously, Xia Niansheng, possessing the rare Blood Spirit Body combined with a Pure Yang Constitution, found that consuming his blood could effectively suppress the affliction.This, then, was likely the underlying reason.It was for this very purpose that Duan Xi Shen, during her travels down the mountain, had brought Xia Niansheng back to Blood Sword Mountain, within the Heavenly Spirit Sect, and taken him as her disciple.Moreover, it now seemed clear that her intentions harbored an even more profound goal, perhaps… Sacrifice.

‘Could even this be considered destiny?’

It was a constant struggle to discern when this woman saw him as a disciple and when she merely viewed him as a tool.The severing of any bond of affection always lay but a single thought away.Duan Xi Shen clasped him tightly with both hands, as if requiring immense willpower to suppress a burgeoning madness.Duan Xi Shen detested contact with anyone, let alone such an intimate embrace.She had endured for over two decades with astounding willpower, only bringing him back when she encountered an eight-year-old Xia Niansheng.This boy was undeniably unusual; he was the first person whose presence didn’t trigger her almost pathological mysophobia.

‘Was it perhaps due to his unique constitution?’

Duan Xi Shen could not ascertain the reason.Nevertheless, even though Xia Niansheng could not see her eyes at that moment, she strove to maintain a semblance of calm in her gaze, as if adhering to some unspoken boundary.The act of drawing.Her throat worked, a subtle ripple.As she drew his blood, her agile tongue glided across his shoulder, a perplexing blend of pain and tickling sensations, intensified by the rich fragrance and the yielding softness of her body.With each passing moment, Xia Niansheng’s complexion visibly paled.From the initial practice of drawing blood from his wrist, it had escalated to a point when Duan Xi Shen, unable to suppress her Bloodlust Syndrome, had clutched Xia Niansheng’s shoulder and begun to draw from there.From then on, it had become an unstoppable tide.Their physical intimacy had long transcended the conventional bounds of a master-disciple relationship.Xia Niansheng felt the unique, rich aroma of Duan Xi Shen lingering at the tip of his nose.Conversely, Duan Xi Shen, enveloped by Xia Niansheng’s scent—indeed, having seemingly consumed his very essence—was on the verge of rolling her eyes in sheer ecstasy.Yet, her rationality, however tenuous, managed to pull her back from the brink.As Duan Xi Shen finally drew her mouth away, faint, reddish threads stretched between her lips and Xia Niansheng’s shoulder.The wound on his shoulder, now devoid of blood, appeared unnaturally pale and tender.Duan Xi Shen lay draped over Xia Niansheng, panting softly, seemingly lost in the lingering afterglow of her indulgence.

“Master?” Xia Niansheng’s voice was a soft inquiry.

Duan Xi Shen exhaled a long breath, her lips a vivid crimson.She spoke in a hushed whisper, her words intimate, as if murmured against his ear.

“The Sect Grand Competition is in a week, isn’t it?I won’t take too much this time.You must rest well.”

The Sect Grand Competition served as a proving ground for the Heavenly Spirit Sect’s inner disciples.Xia Niansheng’s prowess was well-regarded among them, and with proper preparation, he stood to achieve a commendable ranking.Xia Niansheng remained silent for a moment before offering a nod.

“Later, retrieve some qi and blood replenishing medicine from the back room.White Snow Jade is injured and cannot participate, which means your ranking will be higher, and that will be to your benefit.”

In such moments, she seemed to genuinely consider his welfare.Duan Xi Shen was a woman of profound contradictions, and often, Xia Niansheng found himself utterly perplexed as to his true standing in her heart.Yet, the outcome remained perpetually unchanged.

****