Keeping watch and standing guard

Night, at the pool behind the mountain.

The waterfall roared, spraying water into the piercing chill.

A crescent moon was reflected in the water, gently wavering among the ripples.

No snow fell that day. The sky was clear, the moon bright, the air fresh and fragrant with pine and cypress. There was no need to say anything. Simply standing here was enough to find oneself among flowers beneath the moon.

Zhao Changhe and Luo Qi stood on the snow beside the pool, neither speaking for a long while, as though a single word would shatter the stillness.

Before long, both began to feel a little uncomfortable.

Why am I enjoying this quiet with him?

We're not here for a date.

Luo Qi folded his arms and cast a sidelong glance at Zhao Changhe. He finally broke the silence first. "Bath first, or breakthrough first?"

Somehow, even the word "breakthrough" sounded suggestive at a moment like this... Zhao Changhe said gruffly, "You wash first. I'll practice farther away and warm up."

With that, he fled behind the distant trees as though escaping a disaster, soon disappearing behind the snow and trunks.

Luo Qi curled his lip. Boss Zhao? Little Tyrant? He was just a boy who had never known a lover.

It was rather maddening. Usually, when he slipped out here to bathe, he stripped in a flash, jumped in, and got it over with. Now, knowing Zhao Changhe was nearby, he rested his hand on his belt for ages without managing to move.

It felt as though he were undressing right in front of him, even though he knew perfectly well that Zhao Changhe was honestly keeping his eyes away.

So what did I need you keeping watch for? You're nothing but a burden.

After agonizing for ages, Luo Qi finally called out indignantly, "Don't hide completely out of sight! Who knows where you might be peeking from? Find somewhere to turn your back and let me see the back of your head. That'll put me more at ease!"

Zhao Changhe: "..."

Right. The back of my head.

Are you inviting me to look at you?

He was still hesitating, unsure what to say, when Luo Qi called again, "Hurry up! Are you really hiding somewhere to peek?"

Zhao Changhe sighed. "I've never heard a request like that before."

I'm not looking, but you insist I must be. Fine, I'll reluctantly take a look.

He slowly emerged from behind a pine tree and crouched behind a snow-covered clump of bushes, leaving just the back of his head visible toward the pool.

The sight did put Luo Qi somewhat at ease. He nodded in satisfaction and finally began to undress.

Zhao Changhe crouched there with his hands tucked away. Through his Eyes Behind the Head, he clearly saw a body like white jade gradually appear amid the moonlit snow, radiant as the moon and pale as the snow.

Layer after thick layer of chest bindings concealed the crucial parts. Watching the back of Zhao Changhe's head warily, Luo Qi slowly unwound them.

He actually wasn't flat. Not particularly large, but definitely not flat.

Zhao Changhe unconsciously measured with his hands. Forget it-a hopeless virgin couldn't tell what cup size that corresponded to, even with gestures. He guessed either an A-plus or a B.

He could pass as a man because he had no chest, right? But he actually does. Binding himself that tightly-doesn't he get tired...

Then Luo Qi rubbed his throat, and his previously prominent Adam's apple diminished considerably. He rubbed his face as well, and the somewhat masculine angles vanished, revealing a classic oval face, cherry lips, phoenix eyes, and willow-leaf brows. Looking like that, he could go out and claim to be a man, and no one would believe him anymore.

So it really was the Disguise Art that had let him fool people before. Zhao Changhe discovered, to his shame, that confronted with such beauty, he was thinking about whether he could learn some disguise techniques to make traveling easier later...

At that thought, he wanted to slap himself twice. Useless.

But what could I do if I weren't useless? Actually turn around and pounce?

Luo Qi is at the first level of the Profound Pass. He could slap you dead. And how would you live together afterward...

Zhao Changhe sniffed, his hands tucked away, and suddenly began regretting ever looking.

Forget it. Someone has to be useless. Why can't it be me...

But... he's so beautiful. Even his disguise couldn't hide that allure. Now, with it removed, there in the snowy pool, he's an immortal bathing in moonlight-a beauty who could truly topple cities and kingdoms.

Someone that beautiful, hiding in disguise in a mere Luo Family Manor, serving as the outer disciples' senior brother?

Strange. Very strange...

Lost in thought, Zhao Changhe stopped looking at the beautiful sight over there... There was nothing worth looking at, really. He could look but couldn't have a taste. What good was it besides whetting his appetite?

He might as well practice.

And he really did settle into a Horse Stance right there and begin cultivating, utterly giving up.

"Not bad." After a refreshing bath, Luo Qi restored his disguise and appeared beside Zhao Changhe with a smile, patting his shoulder. "I thought you might give in to your animal urges..."

Not pretending anymore, huh?

Zhao Changhe was thoroughly speechless. "If I wanted to give in to my animal urges, I could've done it in our room. Why come out here to freeze?"

"Heh..." Luo Qi arched a willow-leaf brow. "You really think you can run roughshod over the whole stronghold?"

Only then did Zhao Changhe remember that this fellow was actually stronger than him... He turned to look at Luo Qi's face, its beauty hidden beneath the disguise once more, and felt rather regretful. That instant when the disguise came off, like clouds parting to reveal the moon, was truly hard to forget.

Unable to stop himself, he grew bold and began courting death, deliberately reaching around Luo Qi's shoulders again. "Giving in to my animal urges doesn't necessarily mean I have to beat you in a fight. Say, senior brother, how about putting on women's clothes someday and giving your buddy a treat?"

"Fuck off! Why don't you give me a treat?" Luo Qi kicked him several feet away and brushed his shoulder in disgust. "Get down to business and stop talking crap. How did your warm-up go?"

Too well. I'm about to explode.

Luo Qi folded his arms and looked Zhao Changhe over. "I know that when you get deep into practicing the Blood Baleful Art, your blood surges and you get terribly agitated. But could breaking through a mere first level really drive you berserk?"

"I don't know. The instructor didn't explain it fully either. His point was that there's danger involved, and this was the only possibility I could think of. That's why I specifically came out here. I was going to ask you to guard me. If anything looks wrong, splash cold water in my face. If that doesn't work, kick me into the pool."

Luo Qi sneered. "Why does that sound like the effect of some kind of aphrodisiac?"

"Are you ever going to stop..." Knowing perfectly well what Luo Qi was thinking, Zhao Changhe deliberately said, "You're jealous that I can break through in just a month, aren't you?"

"Oh, yes, absolutely." This time, Luo Qi draped his own arm over Zhao Changhe's shoulders, grinning like they were the best of buddies. "I'm so envious of this miraculous art that requires someone to kick you into a pool just to break through the first level. And I'm even more amazed by this terrifying killing intent that a splash of cold water can dispel. I'm scared to death. Go on, get started. Let me broaden my horizons."

Unexpectedly, Zhao Changhe, who had once felt no more about this shoulder-to-shoulder contact than his left hand touching his right, actually ducked away this time, avoiding Luo Qi's arm.

Luo Qi's eyes widened in surprise.

Zhao Changhe offered an apologetic smile. "I suddenly feel like I don't need you to guard me after all. Why don't you go back and rest?"

Instead, that stirred Luo Qi's stubborn streak. "You kept watch for me, so I'll guard you. It's only right. Are you a man or not? Stop fussing!"

Zhao Changhe: "..."

He had indeed intended to ask Luo Qi to guard him when he came to the pool to break through. He hadn't come solely to keep watch, and accidentally getting an eyeful certainly hadn't been part of the plan.

But in his current state, he seriously doubted whether he could calm his mind enough to break through... Then again, practicing the Blood Baleful Art didn't require a particularly calm mind. It was different from cultivating internal arts, after all.

In a sense, perhaps this state of surging hot blood would actually help?

At that thought, Zhao Changhe didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He shook his head, settled into a Horse Stance, and began circulating his art.

Matters of romance were ultimately not what mattered. A little diversion was enough; they shouldn't occupy too much of his attention... Instructor Sun's seemingly meaningful expression from that afternoon suddenly flashed through his mind. Zhao Changhe kept feeling a faint sense of foreboding, as though this breakthrough would not come easily.