141: 4.6 Fucked Up

4.6 Fucked Up

Heimo knew who it was, ever since he first laid eyes on that man.0

  Jingxue-Jun; he had often heard of that title being called in a tone full of worship, reverence, as if he was a God who was benevolent enough to grace the mortals with his presence. Everyone seemed to agree on one thing, Jingxue-Jun was the epitome of perfection, cold righteousness and beauty. 

He was born as a Young Master from a high rank family that had close ties to the monarch for centuries. If he so wished to, he could have married the Princess and became the future reigning Emperor. He was as gorgeous as luminous moonlight, quick witted, and most importantly, a prodigy that the world hadn't seen before. At the age of five, he received a personal offer from the Sect Leader of Lingyan to be his direct disciple. It had caused a huge uproar back then for the Sect Leader was a reclusive man who hadn't taken any disciple under his wings before. And Young Master Lu was only five, Heavens! Surely, he must be blessed with overwhelming talent to have received such an unprecedented treatment!

The rest of it was history. The little boy decisively threw away his Young Master's title, ditched his engagement with the Princess and abandoned his future as the Emperor. He kneeled in front of the Sect Leader and performed the ceremony to officially accept him as a shifu. In exchange, the Sect Leader bestowed him a courtesy name; Lu Yizhou. 

The title Jingxue-Jun came to existence a few years after Lu Yizhou went past the age of adulthood. Together with a few inner disciples of the Lingyan Sect, he fought against a fierce demon in the middle of the snowstorm. The story was passed from mouth to mouth since then, spoken with awe and admiration of how even the snowstorm seemed to have mellowed in Lu Yizhou's presence; the elegance in his every calculated move, his sword Hexue that flashed with deep blue glow, long sleeves billowed against the wind and jet black hair that set a striking contrast against the whiteness. 

He was the only color everyone could see amidst the vast expanse of snow. His form was graceful, like the swan skipping above water, gentle yet powerful, deadly yet beautiful. In the end, when he finally managed to defeat the demon, he stood still, his back ramrod straight as he sheathed his sword. The snow fell gently around him, caressing his jet black hair and clinging to his eyelashes. He breathed out, mists curling out of his pale colored lips.

The very image was so picturesque that it stole everyone's breath. Tranquil yet relentless, like the snow. Cold and righteous. Jingxue-Jun, they whispered.

Jingxue-Jun, Heimo's heart skipped a beat, recognition flashed in his eyes as soon as he spotted the man.

Who else carried such an refined ivory sword except him? Who else wore light blue robes and managed to pull it off such that it became the most vivid color among all? Who else had features that were carved to perfection? Except Jingxue-Jun? Nobody else.

It wasn't even snowing yet somehow he could imagine it. The snowflakes that drifted in the air, pieces of it clinging to the man's eyelashes, complementing the coldness that seemed to radiate from within. Heimo hid there, behind the shadow of trees and bushes, eyes transfixed on the man who was fighting the purple tiger, heart beating out a thousand beats per mile. 

He shifted from a predator who was eyeing his prey to a bard that chanced upon a hidden paradise of rarest flowers, enraptured. Jingxue-Jun's graceful movements, the swing of his sword, his precision, his eyebrows that were slightly knitted in concentration. It was like he was dancing around the tiger, performing a sacred ritual that even made the killing look like something he bestowed with mercy. That man was… simply breathtaking, the word came unbidden, striking him with a force that left him breathless.

He almost whistled in appreciation when Jingxue-Jun slashed the tiger's head cleanly but then he promptly recalled that he had come here for something else and his heart sank. Wasn't this his exact goal, knowing where Jingxue-Jun was and sneaking up on him? He just didn't expect the other man to look like… this. He was seldom speechless yet he found that in front of the blue robed man, no words were adequate enough to be used on him. 

Goodness! He shook himself out of daze and took an offensive stance. The eyes that were filled with appreciation hardened in an instant as he prepared his weapon. And if there was a tiny, little bit of struggle gnawing his chest, he immediately stomped it down and buried it in the backyard of his mind.

If he wanted to get rid of the cultivation world's darling, then there's no better time than now.

Distantly, Heimo thought that he should have checked the star alignment for his luck today. When he was already taken in by the man's appearance, he should have known when to back off. But no, he firmly stuck to his plan and dashed out of his hiding. Another mistake. Because he didn't expect Jingxue-Jun to be so sharp that he could detect him within a blink. "Who's there?" He grabbed his sword and demanded. "Show yourself."

Oh. Oh, his voice. Heimo almost tripped on his feet as soon as he heard the low and deep timbre. Damn it! He glared at the protruding vines under his feet. Abort, yes, he should abort his mission. There was no way he could take Jingxue-Jun off guard and kill him now. He should turn tail and run. He couldn't afford to let his real appearance be seen — even though no one knew he was the Black Demon — even more to someone from Lingyan like Jingxue-Jun.

His brain knew this was the right time to retreat yet his body seemed to have grown a will of itself as he barrelled straight to the man who could very well slice his neck off in a beat like the tiger a few meters away. In a split panicked second, he decisively turned the weapon on himself and mauled his own body, creating new wounds severe enough that it made himself lightheaded. He couldn't remember the last time he had been hurt this much… Damn it, he abruptly recalled that he coated poison there. How stupid! The most foolish person who smashed the rock onto his own feet, Black Fucking Idiot Demon. That's him! He had really lost his mind in front of this man!

Oh no no nonono, this was bad, he couldn't stop himself.

The distance between them was closing rapidly and his eyes clashed with the widening — and without a surprise, the most striking, sharp, and mesmerizing — silver eyes and in that instant, he knew, somewhere inside his black and ugly heart, a voice whispered to him.

He had fucked up. For real.

The world spun in Heimo's eyes and he abruptly lost consciousness, sending him straight into Jingxue-Jun's arms.

.

.

A/N: I can say that half of this arc will be full of our ML's internal gay panic lol

pqdm.com