Ouyang Chong stepped forward and reached out to help Bai Yuqing up.
His fingers had barely touched the hem of Bai Yuqing's robes before Bai Yuqing dodged away.
Ouyang Chong froze.
Was Junior Brother Bai drunk or not?
The next moment, a wine-red flush rose over Bai Yuqing's handsome, serene face. He swayed unsteadily and toppled toward Xiao Qinghe.
Xiao Qinghe was just about to get up when Bai Yuqing fell against him.
He stumbled, and both of them went down.
Bai Yuqing raised his eyes, his gaze hazy.
Through the blur, he seemed to recognize Xiao Qinghe before him. A faint smile curved his lips. "Qinghe... my disciple..."
Murmuring softly, he wrapped his arms around Xiao Qinghe, rested his head against his chest, and even nuzzled him.
Xiao Qinghe: "..."
Wasn't Master's drunken behavior a little too surreal?
This couldn't be real!
"Master, wake up." Xiao Qinghe struggled into a sitting position.
Bai Yuqing showed no response to his words. Instead, he leaned against him, pressing their bodies together as though he wished they were conjoined twins.
The sight was rather too much for Ouyang Chong to bear looking at. "It seems my junior brother is all right. In that case, I won't stay any longer."
"Sect Leader, please wait!" Xiao Qinghe barely managed to support the drunk beside him as he hurriedly said, "There's something I don't understand. I hope you can enlighten me."
"What is it?"
"Why does Master hate the Demon Clan so much? And what happened between him and the demon who escaped the night before last?"
Ouyang Chong fell silent for a long while, then let out a deep sigh.
"If that demon hadn't escaped, even I might have forgotten these old events."
Ouyang Chong looked at the drunken man and finally began recounting the story.
"Back then, the barrier between the Demon Clan and the Human Clan grew unstable. Countless demons escaped through its cracks into the Human Realm and wreaked havoc. It happened to be a full-moon night, and the demons revealed their bloodthirsty nature, slaughtering innocent civilians, drinking their blood and devouring their flesh. For a time, the mortal world became hell."
"All the major sects mobilized their entire forces to hunt down the demons. Countless demons were imprisoned beneath the Demon-Suppressing Tower. But that particular demon possessed formidable magic power and resisted to the bitter end. After the major sects severely wounded him, he seized an innocent boy to make his escape, threatening to kill him unless they let him live."
"I wasn't there at the time. All I know is that the major sects agreed to his terms. But the demon went back on his word. The boy died horribly, with not even his remains left behind. Junior Brother Bai was deeply shaken and swore that he would never coexist with the Demon Clan."
"After that, Junior Brother Bai cultivated day and night, all to capture that demon himself. Three years later, he finally fought the demon atop Snow Mountain for three days and nights and brought him down with his sword."
Xiao Qinghe froze. "But that demon didn't die."
Ouyang Chong nodded and continued, "It wasn't because Junior Brother Bai showed mercy. The boy's remains were missing, so Junior Brother Bai interrogated the demon about their whereabouts. But the demon refused to say a word."
"So Master imprisoned that demon beneath the Demon-Suppressing Tower not to spare his life, but to find out where the boy was?"
"Rather than finding the boy, he wanted to know where his remains were. After all, many people witnessed his death. Junior Brother Bai only wanted to bring his remains back and give him a proper burial. But that hateful demon was cunning and treacherous. He saw through Junior Brother Bai's intentions and refused to reveal anything, certain that Junior Brother Bai wouldn't kill him until he had an answer. Now that the demon has escaped, it's even harder for Junior Brother Bai to learn the truth."
Xiao Qinghe lowered his eyes and looked at the man he had seen drunk for the first time. A jumble of emotions welled up in his heart.
So even his aloof, unattainable Master had once cared so deeply for someone.
He, too, had once given everything for someone and spent years holding on, all to bring that person home and give him a proper burial.
But there was one thing Xiao Qinghe couldn't understand.
"If that demon could single-handedly leave all the major sects helpless, how did Master defeat him?"
His master was indeed the strongest fighter among all the major sects now, but he hadn't been back then.
Ouyang Chong shook his head, equally puzzled. "Strangely enough, that demon seemed to have lost his spirit pill. Otherwise, the major sects couldn't have wounded him at all, and with Junior Brother Bai's cultivation back then, he probably couldn't have captured him either."
After all, he was one of the Four Great Demon Kings of the Demon Realm.
As for where his spirit pill had gone, that remained an unsolved mystery.
"I've already sent disciples of the Sect down the mountain to search for that demon and notified the major sects of his escape. After being tormented by the Demon Spirit Pearl for over a decade, he's barely clinging to life and can't do any harm for now. But if he recovers his spirit pill and his demonic power surges, I'm afraid the world will fall into chaos again."
Knowing how the story would unfold, Xiao Qinghe said nothing.
He thought that chaos might arrive late, but it would arrive all the same.
The Four Great Demon Kings would inevitably emerge one after another to stir up trouble. And beyond them, there was Xie Jun, the Demon King of Demon Kings...
Naturally, Xiao Qinghe didn't dare mention any of that. He only asked, "By the way, who exactly was that boy? What was his relationship with Master?"
"He was Junior Brother Bai's sworn younger brother. They depended on each other to survive back then and shared a very deep bond. In fact, when Junior Brother Bai first took you as his disciple, I thought you were him. Only after hearing your name did I realize you weren't. His name was Bai Yulou, and his nickname was Xiao Lou."
Wait!
Bai Yulou!
Xiao Lou!
Wasn't he the boy who suddenly appeared later and was nearly slain by Master after falling onto the Demonic Path?
Xiao Qinghe remembered him vividly, not only because the original novel described him as "still a boy upon his return after more than a decade away," but also because his fate was almost identical to his own.
He had likewise fallen onto the Demonic Path, likewise died beneath Master's sword, and likewise been a mindless sycophant of the Female Lead!
He was practically a copy of Xiao Qinghe. How could Xiao Qinghe not remember him?
Most importantly, since Bai Yulou was a character who appeared later in the story, that meant he was still alive!
"The reason Master can't find Bai Yulou's remains is that he isn't dead."
Ouyang Chong was surprised by his certainty. "How do you know?"
Xiao Qinghe: "..."
He couldn't exactly say he was a man with the script in hand, could he?
Ouyang Chong sighed deeply. "I understand that you can't bear to see Junior Brother Bai grieve, but the dead can't return to life. If he really were still alive, why has there been no word of him all these years? Why has he never sent Junior Brother Bai so much as a single message?"
Xiao Qinghe had no answer.
By then, the moon had risen above the willow branches.
"It's getting late. I'll leave Junior Brother Bai in your care." Ouyang Chong rose and left.
Xiao Qinghe pressed a hand to his forehead.
Looking at the drunk beside him only made his head pound harder.
His master had always seemed ethereal and unattainable. Now, stripped of that otherworldly air, his handsome face was tinged with a drunken flush.
Dazed and half-asleep, he had suddenly become exceptionally clingy.
His usually immaculate white robes now hung loose and slipped to the ground, but Bai Yuqing paid them no mind. He stared straight at Xiao Qinghe.
Suddenly, he raised his hands, cupped Xiao Qinghe's face, and studied it carefully.
His handsome face drew so close that Xiao Qinghe could feel his breath against his skin.
Xiao Qinghe's heart skipped a beat.
What was Master doing?
Could he have mistaken him for the Female Lead?
"Master, please sober up a little. I'm Qinghe."
"Qinghe..."
Bai Yuqing murmured softly, and a pleased smile suddenly curved his lips.
Before you continue