Love and Aversion Face to Face

Beigong Juechen looked at Xi Mo's strangely smiling face and slowly curled his lips into a smile. He grasped Xi Mo’s hand, pulling him onto the bed, then pressed his own body over him. Xi Mo gazed at him in astonishment, and Beigong Juechen, his expression half amused, half mocking, raised his eyebrows and leaned down to whisper in his ear, “Since you like him, I’ll help you out.”

With that, he sat up and leisurely removed the outer robe draped over his shoulders, tossing it carelessly to the floor. Beneath, Beigong Juechen wore only a pure white undergarment, its collar gaping open, revealing a chest and neck covered in dense, deep-purple kiss marks and bite marks—so many, so vivid, it was impossible to look away.

Xi Mo’s eyes lingered on those bruises, some even tinged with blood. A surge of jealousy swept through him. Even the exposed areas were nearly covered, proof of the possessiveness of the one who left those marks. It was clear they wanted everyone to know this man belonged to them, wanted him to bear only their imprints. Xi Mo bit his lower lip as he watched the man strip off his undergarments, exposing his upper body. The array of marks, leaving no patch of skin untouched, stabbed into Xi Mo’s heart like a hundred needles, one after another.

It was not agony, but the pain would not abate.

Beigong Juechen saw Xi Mo’s reddening eyes and murmured, “What’s wrong? Do you want me to help you undress?” Xi Mo snapped back to himself, staring unblinkingly at the man sitting atop him. Then, in a sudden frenzy, he tore off his own clothes. His skin was pale and slender, his ribs stark beneath the surface.

Beigong Juechen reached out with a long, jade-like finger, tracing across the youth’s thin chest with a low chuckle. “You have excellent bones. If not for these years spent beside Beigong Qiyi, unable to train, you might have become a top master.” He looked at Xi Mo’s wan face and asked, “You followed him at first hoping for a chance to kill him, but ended up falling in love instead. Isn’t that a waste? Rather regrettable.”

Xi Mo suddenly burst into laughter, his reddened eyes locked onto Beigong Juechen’s rare, emerald phoenix eyes. He spoke each word as if carving it: “Beigong Juechen, you may have gained everything possible, but your nature is cold and loveless. You will never know what it means to fall in love. You are destined to die alone!”

“Who says he’ll die alone?” A low, angry voice sounded behind them. Xi Mo startled, quickly turning his head. Beigong Qiyi stood at the doorway, his black eyes burning with fury, fixed on Beigong Juechen. Xi Mo lowered his head, lips curled in a bitter smile. As expected, not a single glance for me…

“Brother, can you explain what you two are doing?” Beigong Qiyi strode forward, his words heavy with each step until he was practically grinding his teeth.

The man who had his back to Beigong Qiyi finally rose from Xi Mo, sitting calmly at the edge of the bed. He shrugged indifferently at Beigong Qiyi. “What we’re doing—you saw it for yourself.” His hands clenched tighter. Beigong Qiyi looked at Xi Mo, his eyes so cold that Xi Mo couldn’t help but shiver.

“I…” Xi Mo, eyes red, opened his mouth but found no words of explanation. Beigong Qiyi exhaled deeply, pointed at Xi Mo, and ordered, “Go out.” Xi Mo quickly rolled off the bed, grabbed his torn clothes from the floor, wrapped them haphazardly around himself, and fled in panic.

Only Beigong Qiyi and Beigong Juechen remained in the room. Beigong Qiyi stood beside the bed, looking down from above at the seated man. “Brother, I was gone for only half a day, and you couldn’t help yourself?”

Beigong Juechen cast him a glance, mocking yet almost sympathetic, and slipped his undergarment back on. “If you won’t let me leave, I must find amusement for myself.”

His hands clenched harder, bones popping audibly. Beigong Qiyi stared at him, anger turning to laughter. He stroked the man’s hair behind him, gritting his teeth as he smiled, “Brother, you really are disobedient…” Beigong Juechen sneered, turning his head away to avoid the touch.

His hand suddenly fell empty. Beigong Qiyi narrowed his eyes, then abruptly yanked Beigong Juechen’s hair, half-squatting to meet those mesmerizing emerald eyes. His voice was cold as steel. “Brother, have you forgotten? You are no longer the exalted master of Lì Manor, whose every stomp shook the martial world.” He slowly released the man’s hair, stroking it gently. “Now, you have no strength left, and can do nothing but lie beneath me, my toy and plaything.” His words were venomous, obscene, but his face wore a gentle smile.

Beigong Juechen’s eyes chilled. He grabbed the artery at Beigong Qiyi’s wrist, fingers digging in deeply. But the next instant, agony wrenched his heart. Beigong Qiyi seized Beigong Juechen’s hand, his gentle actions at odds with the force, the man’s fingers squeezed so tightly that the crisp snap of breaking bones could be heard.

A fine sheen of cold sweat covered Beigong Juechen’s brow, the pain in his heart growing only more intense. He gripped Beigong Qiyi’s hand, gasping, “What… did you… plant in me?” Beigong Qiyi gently wiped the sweat from the man’s brow, laughing softly. “It is indeed ‘Binding,’ but I’ve improved it. If you try to hurt me, the parasite will turn on you instead.”

Beigong Juechen squeezed his eyes shut, sweat dripping onto his lashes like trembling tears. Beigong Qiyi’s throat tightened; he abruptly pushed the man onto the bed and pressed himself over him, kissing his features in a frenzy before finally landing on those tightly pressed lips.

The man felt no pain from the youth’s wild hands; all sensation was concentrated in his heart. Beigong Qiyi released the man’s bloodied lips, raising his head slightly to gaze at the pain-knotted brows, and slowly smiled.

The pain in his heart vanished suddenly. Beigong Juechen had barely caught his breath before another, fiercer pain wrung a cry from him. Beigong Qiyi held his hands tightly, dark blood seeping from the youth’s chest, staining his pale golden robe. Beigong Qiyi bit down on Beigong Juechen’s jade-like earlobe, whispering, “Brother, you can only be mine.”

He kissed the man’s cheek and, with a casual touch, stopped his own bleeding. The man gradually quieted, opening his emerald eyes, panting slightly. “Why don’t you just kill me?”

The youth slowly stripped off his clothes, looking at the man whose collar was disheveled from struggle, exposing a chest covered in kiss marks. In a low voice, he replied, “How could I kill you?” He pressed himself over the man, their bare chests pressed tightly together. “How could I bear to kill you?”

“Then get off me. You disgust me,” Beigong Juechen said coolly. Beigong Qiyi’s expression changed; he slowly sat upright. “You let other men touch you willingly, but when I touch you, you find it revolting?”

As he spoke, he ripped the man’s undergarments, then spread his hands and feet wide, binding them to the bedposts. Beigong Juechen’s expression was unchanging, letting him do as he pleased.

Beigong Qiyi climbed off the bed and brought out a large box from the cabinet behind it, setting it down beside the bed with a sinister smile. “In that case, let’s play something interesting, Brother!”

In the main hall of the Hundred Evils Palace, silence reigned. Tianqing stole a glance at Qi Yong, whose face was dark and whose aura was oppressive, then quickly lowered his head. The palace lord had been acting strange since returning today—surely it had something to do with the master of Beigong Manor! Tianqing thought privately.

“East Chamber, North Gate Master Huo Qi.” Qi Yong’s low voice echoed through the cold, gloomy hall, making everyone tense. A man in gray wiped the cold sweat from his brow and stepped forward. “Palace Lord, Huo Qi reporting.”

Qi Yong stared at him expressionlessly, so long that Huo Qi felt cold from head to toe before he finally said, “Keep a close watch on Lì Manor. Report any unusual movements to me immediately.” Huo Qi nodded quickly. “Yes, Palace Lord.” Qi Yong nodded, and Huo Qi breathed a sigh of relief, retreating to his original place.

“Tianqing.” Tianqing, who had been lost in thought, quickly stepped forward with a solemn expression, bowing. “At your command.”

Qi Yong glowered at him and said in a low voice, “Go find someone for me.”

“Yes. Who does the palace lord seek?” Tianqing asked. Qi Yong’s hawk eyes narrowed, his voice low. “The person Beigong Juechen once intended to marry—Qiang Yanxi.”

After giving instructions for the palace affairs, Qi Yong leaned back in the gilded bronze chair, surveying the subordinates below, all silent with heads bowed. Suddenly, he said, “Wasn’t someone captured last time? Bring him up.”

Soon, the clank of chains was heard. A battered, wounded man was dragged forward, and the person behind him kicked his knees, forcing him to kneel on the floor. Qi Yong frowned and asked, “Can he still speak?” Chu Jianxin, who had brought the man, nodded and knelt. “Reporting, Palace Lord, he can say simple sentences.”

Qi Yong nodded. “Is he from the ‘Shadow Pavilion’?” The man answered, “Reporting, Palace Lord, he was found by our attendants on the mountain behind the Shadow Pavilion.”

Qi Yong lowered his eyes, murmuring, “Who is the master of the Shadow Pavilion?”

No one replied. The already cold hall fell utterly silent. Chu Jianxin, kneeling beside the man, bowed his head, cold sweat trickling down his brow.

As everyone held their breath, the man suddenly rasped, “Bei… Beigong Qiyi…”

Qi Yong abruptly stood.

Author’s note: Next chapter~ Hehehe, you all know what that means.

No update tomorrow; chapter will be posted at 8:30pm on Tuesday the 6th, and replaced at 10:30pm on 166 Reading Network.