Chapter 12: This Venerable One Kissed the Wrong Person… WTF...

Mo Ran wandered around the illusory realm for a long time but still couldn't get his bearings. Meanwhile, the scent of Hundred Butterfly Fragrance in the air grew stronger and stronger. When someone was exposed to the scent for too long, they developed heightened emotions and enhanced senses, and they would find themselves compelled to do all manner of unreasonable things.

Mo Ran gradually grew increasingly agitated and restless. It was as if a flame had been lit in his stomach and was slowly heating the blood coursing through his body to a boiling point.

Water. He needed to find some water. Where was that spring again?

He knew there was a spring in the illusory realm. The last time around, he'd been parched and dizzy when he found it and, left with no other choice, had scooped up and drunk several handfuls of the water, thinking that death by poison was still preferable to death by thirst.

He'd felt his awareness become blurrier and blurrier after drinking the spring water, and he'd been fading in and out of consciousness by the time Shi Mei found him. Shi Mei cultivated the healing arts and had promptly set about dispelling the poison in his body, at which point Mo Ran, dizzy and addled under the poisonous enchantment's influence, had kissed Shi Mei on the lips as if possessed.

The vigorous and decisive ex-Emperor of the Mortal Realm desperately wanted a repeat of this dream-like encounter with the person of his desires. He wandered around the illusory realm for a long time before finally hearing the tinkling of spring water. Overjoyed, he dashed over and drank to his heart's content without a moment's hesitation.

As he'd expected, the spring water exacerbated the fretful agitation that had been brought on by that scent. More than anything, he wanted to go deeper into the spring, and before he knew it, half his body was submerged.

Just like in his last lifetime, as Mo Ran was about to lose consciousness, a hand swiftly pulled him out, sending water flying. Air rushed back into his nose and Mo Ran gasped, water droplets dangling from his eyelashes as they fluttered open to let him look upon the figure in front of him.

The figure slowly came into focus, accompanied by a voice that sounded almost angry. "What's wrong with you, drinking the water here? Are you trying to die?"

Mo Ran shook the water off like a wet dog and breathed in relief when he confirmed who it was. "Shi Mei…"

"Stop talking and take this medicine!"

Mo Ran opened his mouth and obediently swallowed the purple pill, eyes fixed on Shi Mei's incomparably lovely face.

Suddenly, just like in his last lifetime, those intense feelings of agitation made him lose all restraint—not that he was any kind of honorable man to begin with—and he captured Shi Mei's wrist, quickly pressing their lips together before Shi Mei could react.

Instantly, sparks flew everywhere, and his mind went totally blank.

Mo Ran was a man with a sordid history of promiscuity, but passion between the sheets needed no contact between the lips, no unnecessary affections. Hence, his carnal entanglements were many but his kisses pitifully few.

Shi Mei hadn't at all expected to be attacked like this, and he froze in shock until a tongue intruded inside his mouth. Only then did he finally react and start struggling.

"What are you do—mmph!" He only managed half a sentence before his face was turned back roughly and his lips were covered once again.

Mo Ran kissed him more intensely than he had in his previous life. The two tangled into a heap by the side of the spring, Mo Ran keeping Shi Mei pressed firmly under his body as he kissed those dewy, somewhat chilly lips, the sensation as breathtaking as in his memory. His mouth moved to Shi Mei's cheek, his ear…

"Stop moving…" The huskiness of his voice surprised even himself.

Fuck. The spring water's effect seemed somehow more intense than it had been in his last life.

The way things had gone last time around, he hadn't actually been able to make out with Shi Mei all that long. After getting a few pecks in, the young Mo Ran had been struck by his conscience. His grip had loosened, and Shi Mei had shot up and fled across the water with qinggong.

But in this lifetime, Mo Ran was vile and shameless. He had no conscience to strike him, only desire to urge him on. He kissed Shi Mei as much as he pleased, holding his body down by the side of the spring.

Beneath him, Shi Mei struggled and cried out in anger, but Mo Ran's heart was possessed, and he couldn't make out what Shi Mei was saying at all. He could only see that lovely face swaying back and forth in his vision, that pair of dewy, alluring lips opening and closing.

It felt as if a ball of fire had been ignited in his abdomen. Mo Ran gave in to his longings, and his kisses grew increasingly more ravenous as he pried open Shi Mei's jaw and pushed his tongue into his mouth, plundering the sweetness inside.

His heart thudded like drumbeats in his chest.

Amidst the chaos, he had already ripped off Shi Mei's intricate outer robe and torn open his belt sash. His hand slid down and caressed smooth, firm skin. The body underneath his jerked at the touch but was again pressed back down by Mo Ran.

He bit at Shi Mei's ear, whispering, "Be obedient; it'll be good for both of us."

"Mo Weiyu—!"

"Aiya, aiya, are you that mad, to call my name like a stranger?" Mo Ran smiled as he licked the other man's earlobe. His hand wasn't idle either, groping directly toward his waist.

Mo Ran was categorically a piece-of-shit jackass, but the sixteen-year-old budding jackass of his previous lifetime simply couldn't compare to the thirty-two-year-old veteran jackass of the present. This guy grew more shameless with each passing day.

Shi Mei's entire body was tense, and Mo Ran could feel him trembling slightly. Really, he looked like such a slender person, but the contours of his body were surprisingly toned under Mo Ran's hand. His desires ran even more rampant, self-control slipping further away as he pulled at Shi Mei's inner robes.

Shi Mei finally hit the limits of his endurance. "Mo Weiyu! Are you tired of living?!"

There was a loud bang, and a burst of intense spiritual energy tossed Mo Ran aside. The power was ferocious, and Mo Ran was caught completely off guard. His entire body was flung to the side, flipping over and slamming against a rock by the side of the spring, and he nearly coughed up blood.

Shi Mei clutched at his disheveled clothing as he stood, flustered. Golden spiritual energy crackled in a frenzy at his palm, and sparks flew audibly, mirroring the fury in his eyes.

Mo Ran was dizzy from the impact, but even then, he had a vague sense that something wasn't quite right.

"Tianwen, come!"

Following the enraged bellow, a golden willow vine appeared in Shi Mei's hand as Tianwen answered his call. The willow vine glowed piercingly bright, streaks of fire and bursts of gold coursing along its length, willow leaves swirling in the air.

Mo Ran was stunned. Since when had Shi Mei learned how to summon Tianwen?

The thought hadn't even settled in his mind before Tianwen viciously ripped through the air toward him. There was no reservation whatsoever in that lashing, and the blood of the despicable scoundrel Taxian-jun was spilt without mercy. If anyone who had suffered at Mo Ran's hands were to see this scene—like Rong Jiu—they would no doubt have clapped and cheered, "Nice one! Awesome! Do it again! Vanquish the evildoer! What a good deed!"

Under this relentless storm of brutal lashings, Mo Ran finally sobered up.

Shi Mei was so gentle. How could this be him? Who but Chu Wanning was so greatly skilled at whipping people?!

Chu Wanning's hand grew tired from all the whipping, and only then did he pause to take a breath, rubbing his wrist. He was just about to continue when Mo Ran, leaning against the rock, coughed up a large mouthful of blood.

"No more… I'll really die…" Mo Ran coughed up yet more blood and felt his heart sink to the depths of the abyss. That had definitely been the best and most remarkable highlight in his history of debauchery.

Why the fuck was it Chu Wanning who'd come for him?

What's more, for some reason, Chu Wanning had worn Shi Mei's face. Even his voice had sounded exactly the same!

Mo Ran wiped the blood from the corners of his mouth and looked up, panting. Perhaps it was due to the beating, or perhaps it was because the medicine Chu Wanning had given him earlier was finally starting to work, but when he raised his head this time, the person before him was no longer Shi Mei.

Chu Wanning seethed from where he stood under a tree, his face dark as he glared at Mo Ran, his eyes like twin bolts of lightning. That vicious and enraged look of his really was frightening. But…

Mo Ran stared for a few seconds. And realized that he…had grown shamelessly hard.

Chu Wanning was always immaculately dressed, not a hair out of place, but right now, his intricate white robes—usually worn with collars high and tightly closed—were an untidy mess, held up only by the tight grip of his pale, slender hand. His lips were red and swollen from kisses, and love bites peppered the side of his neck. His expression was fierce, but that only added to his allure.

Mo Ran's recollections of Chu Wanning from his past life were full of insanity, bloodlust, hatred, recklessness, conquest, pleasure—memory upon memory, piling up one after another.

Memories that Mo Ran had not thought of, had not even planned to recall, abruptly resurfaced amidst the rusty tang of blood in the air mixed with the scent of Hundred Butterfly Fragrance. They were shockingly vivid, impossible to block out, and they swelled like the tide to flood his thoughts.

Fuck. In the end, he really couldn't afford to see Chu Wanning look like this after all.

Even if he loathed him, hated him, so much so that he wanted to chop him up and make him into wontons and eat him, Mo Ran had to admit that in his previous life, his most fervent entanglements, his most intense climaxes, all of them had been gotten off of Chu Wanning's body.

Hating him was one thing. But as a man, especially a vulgar, shameless man like Mo Ran, the body's instinctive reaction was another matter altogether.

Chu Wanning let out a breath. He seemed genuinely furious, and the hand holding Tianwen shook slightly. "Finally come to your senses?"

Mo Ran forced down a mouthful of blood. "Yes, Shizun."

Chu Wanning seemed like he wasn't done doling out beatings yet, but he recognized that Mo Ran had been under the influence of the illusion and shouldn't be blamed for all of his actions. He hesitated for a moment but, at length, put the willow vine away. "What happened today…"

Mo Ran rushed to speak before Chu Wanning finished. "No one will know besides you and me! I absolutely won't say anything! Let the heavens strike me with lightning if I speak a word of it!"

Chu Wanning was quiet for a moment, then smiled grimly. "I've heard you take that oath no fewer than a hundred times, and not once did your word count for anything."

"I'm definitely serious this time!" Sure, his body might have reacted, but as far as Mo Ran was concerned, wanting to fuck Chu Wanning was like wanting to eat stinky tofu—neither were sentiments that should be bandied about in public. Just eat your stinky tofu in a corner away from everyone else so they won't have to smell it. The same went for wanting to bed Chu Wanning.

Mo Ran had always loathed Chu Wanning. How could he let anyone know that he loathed him on one hand but secretly wanted to fuck him on the other? If that wasn't crazy, then what was?

As for his sordid business with Chu Wanning in his previous life? Spare him; he really didn't want to even mention it.

"This illusion's influence is strong. Whoever you meet within it takes on the appearance of the person your heart most wishes to see," Chu Wanning explained as he walked alongside Mo Ran. "To avoid its influence, you must remain calm and stay focused."

"Oh…"

Huh? Wait a second! Mo Ran suddenly thought of something and quivered. If that was the case, then the Shi Mei that he'd met in the illusory realm in his last life might not have been the real Shi Mei either? What if that had also been—

He snuck a sideways glance at Chu Wanning and couldn't help but shudder.

No way! If that had been Chu Wanning he'd kissed in his last lifetime, he definitely would've gotten a good old round of whipping! Or at the very, very least a slap! It couldn't have been Chu Wanning! Definitely not!

In the midst of Mo Ran's internal crisis, Chu Wanning halted and pulled Mo Ran behind him. "Quiet."

"What is it?"

"There's movement ahead."

This incident had unfolded completely differently from how it had in his previous life, so Mo Ran didn't know what to expect anymore. At Chu Wanning's words, he immediately said, "Maybe it's Shi Mei?"

Chu Wanning frowned. "While in this illusory realm, you absolutely must not imagine who you might meet ahead, or else whoever or whatever you meet will take on that person's appearance. Remove distractions; focus your thoughts."

Mo Ran tried to do so for a bit, but then realized that he couldn't.

Chu Wanning glanced at him. A dagger of concentrated spiritual energy formed in his hand and jabbed unceremoniously into Mo Ran's arm.

"Ah—!"

"Don't yell." Chu Wanning had anticipated this. His other hand was already touching Mo Ran's lips with a golden light, and Mo Ran suddenly couldn't make a sound. "Does it hurt?"

What do you think?! Why don't you stab yourself, too, and see if it hurts! Mo Ran nodded pitifully, eyes watering.

"Good. Focus on the pain and don't think about anything else. Follow behind me. Let's go take a look."

Mo Ran silently cursed Chu Wanning as he followed quietly behind him on the winding path. Unexpectedly, they heard the sounds of chatter and laughter as they got closer. In this desolate place? How suspicious…

As the pair turned the corner of a tall, continuous wall, they finally arrived at the place the voices were coming from.

It was a brightly lit manor draped in vibrant red silks that swayed gently in the breeze. Well over one hundred banquet tables stood in the large courtyard of the manor, bearing all manner of exquisite dishes. The courtyard bustled with activity, the guests drinking and making merry. Past the open gates of the main hall was a massive, eye-catching Xi character in bright scarlet. To all appearances, it seemed to be a wedding banquet.

"Shizun…" Mo Ran whispered. "Look at these people… None of them have faces!"