Sea-Heart Fragrance (Extra Deep-Water Update)

Qi Xianqing walked ahead, but for some reason, a surge of irritation suddenly rose in her chest.

For cultivators, guarding someone through a breakthrough was clearly an intimate act. Just now, she had practically entrusted her life to Yan Jue, and she was already exhausted to the point of collapse…

Yet Yan Jue had been holding her life vein only moments ago, and in the blink of an eye, her attention had gone elsewhere.

Besides, a breakthrough was a matter of life and death; the torment it inflicted on Yan Jue was immense as well.

In Yan Jue’s heart, was her body really that unimportant?

Qi Xianqing had originally wanted to show concern for Yan Jue, but the moment she saw Yan Jue looking at the snake, the words caught in her throat and refused to come out.

Yan Jue looked at Qi Xianqing’s back and lowered her head, feeling inexplicably wronged.

Her whole body had been painfully scorched by Qi Xianqing’s electric qi; she felt as if her bones were about to fall apart. And Qi Xianqing didn’t even know to pay her a little more attention…

…

After walking a few steps, Qi Xianqing suddenly wanted to ask Yan Jue whether she knew that protecting someone during a breakthrough was, in essence, one of a dao companion’s duties.

Qi Xianqing frowned slightly and swallowed the words back down.

If Yan Jue knew that, then the heavens would really be blind…

Actually, no ancient text ever said that guarding someone was a dao companion’s duty. There were indeed good master sisters and fellow disciples within the sect who protected one another during breakthroughs.

Only dao companions could guard each other, though that was merely something Qi Xianqing had pieced together herself after reading many books.

She had only told that outrageous thought to one person.

No.

To one fox.

The more Qi Xianqing thought about it, the more wrong it felt. A matter she had long suspected rose in her mind once again.

Another issue slowly began to occupy her entire brain.

What had happened when she killed that serpent monster reminded Qi Xianqing once more just how bloody and brutal monsters could be.

The Five Dragons Sect absolutely did not allow the existence of demons or evil things.

That was the principle Qi Xianqing had been taught over and over from the very beginning.

But for some reason, her worldview had already been shattered by her own hand.

Qi Xianqing’s heart was in utter turmoil; it felt as if a pair of invisible hands had reached out of nowhere and gripped it tightly.

After taking a few more steps, she suddenly turned around as if she had made up her mind and asked, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Junior Sister Yan make any progress in cultivation, yet your cultivation seems to improve every moment of every day. Why is that?”

Qi Xianqing’s gaze felt almost tangible; Yan Jue’s mind buzzed, and in an instant, a chill ran through her from head to toe. Her blood seemed to turn in reverse in her veins.

Yan Jue blurted out, “I do cultivate! It’s just… just that you didn’t see it.”

She was a little guilty, but Qi Xianqing kept looking at her without missing a single detail.

Yan Jue’s scalp prickled under that gaze. She subconsciously stepped back, only to bump into the wall behind her.

Qi Xianqing stepped forward and lowered her eyes to look at her.

All around them was darkness; there was only her and Qi Xianqing.

Qi Xianqing’s breath was close enough to feel, those beautiful peach-blossom eyes slightly lowered.

In an instant, Yan Jue’s heartbeat thundered. Countless ill-timed images suddenly surged through her mind.

In the cave in Nanxing Town, Qi Xianqing had killed demons with brutal force.

At the Suyang immortal residence, Qi Xianqing had single-handedly slain that Ten-Thousand-Souls Venomous Spider.

And then just now, in the dim Sea Valley… Qi Xianqing…

Qi Xianqing was already at the early Heart Stirring Realm now, and the aura around her made Yan Jue’s legs go weak. Though Yan Jue was a demon herself, if anything unexpected really happened right now, she was certain she wouldn’t have the slightest chance of escaping alive.

The surroundings were very quiet. Qi Xianqing suddenly withdrew her gaze and let out a breath. “Is that so.”

“I was regretting that I didn’t get the chance to guard Junior Sister during your breakthrough.”

Yan Jue: “…”

-

The two of them soon returned to the top of the valley, where they ran straight into the merfolk guard team sent by the old merfolk king from the palace.

Jiang Yu stood anxiously beside the merfolk soldiers. The moment she saw Yan Jue and Qi Xianqing emerging from Sea Valley, she hurried over. “Good heavens, that was far too dangerous just now. I thought something had happened to you two.”

It turned out that after Qi Xianqing and Yan Jue followed the serpent monster down into the valley, Jiang Yu immediately contacted the palace.

The merfolk guard team had arrived quickly, but because the merfolk clan had also been badly frightened by the serpent monster in ordinary times, they hovered above the valley and didn’t dare go down.

Seeing Yan Jue and Qi Xianqing return, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The group soon returned to the palace.

…

The old merfolk king held Qi Xianqing’s hand, tears of gratitude nearly spilling over. “This time, many thanks to the immortal sir for helping our merfolk clan rid ourselves of a scourge.”

Qi Xianqing looked at the old merfolk king, her expression utterly unchanged. “It was only right.”

The old merfolk clapped his hands, and at once several fair-skinned, beautiful golden-haired merfolk swam out, each carrying a few large tubs.

The tubs were filled with brilliant golden radiance. Yan Jue took a closer look and realized they were packed full of golden shells.

The old merfolk bowed to Qi Xianqing again. “Immortal sir has shown our merfolk clan kindness as weighty as a mountain. This old one has nothing with which to repay it, only these vulgar gold and silver trinkets. I hope Immortal sir will accept this old one’s gratitude for the merfolk clan’s sake.”

Yan Jue was standing behind them, thinking her own thoughts, when she suddenly heard Qi Xianqing say with a faint smile, “This time, the greatest contribution to slaying that monstrous serpent was made by my junior sister.”

The old merfolk immediately swam over and took Yan Jue’s hand, smiling. “Though this immortal sir is still young, she has the bearing of a true hero.”

After a round of pleasantries in the great hall, the old merfolk king ordered people to arrange rooms for the human cultivators.

…

In the room.

Yan Jue sat on the soft bed and slowly drew out the immortal sword Drifting Ice.

So many things had happened earlier that only now did Yan Jue finally have a little time to carefully review the abnormal events from before.

Under the dim light, the immortal sword Drifting Ice gave off a faint luster.

It was a flexible sword. With a slight exertion of Yan Jue’s arm, it curved gracefully through the air.

The first strange thing was this Drifting Ice.

When she encountered that black-clad man wrapped in blood evil qi on the beach, Drifting Ice had shaken violently, and the power it unleashed when combined with Zhuying was dozens of times stronger than its original might.

Just now, when she saw that monstrous serpent in Sea Valley, burdened with countless lives, Drifting Ice had trembled wildly and even become extraordinarily sharp, able to cut iron like mud.

Yan Jue stared at Drifting Ice and suddenly had a bold thought.

Could Drifting Ice have some special ability?

For example, whenever it saw someone extremely evil, would its power increase dramatically?

This still needed to be tested.

Yan Jue thought irritably for a while, then put Drifting Ice back into the snow-white scabbard Qi Xianqing had made for her.

She held the scabbard and looked at it for a moment, her brows slowly knitting together.

So annoying…

The image of Qi Xianqing scolding her in the valley just now suddenly surfaced in her mind.

Actually, that didn’t even count as scolding. Yan Jue didn’t know why, but as carefree as she usually was, she had become exceptionally sensitive to even the slightest change in Qi Xianqing’s attitude.

Maybe it was because Qi Xianqing had been too good to her before.

Qi Xianqing seemed to know it, deliberately turning so fierce toward her just when Yan Jue had started to feel that strange affection.

She didn’t like her anymore.

Yan Jue felt her nose sting. She rolled around on the bed for a while before sitting back up.

Calm down. In a world full of danger like this, it was better not to be love-struck.

From the way Qi Xianqing had spoken just now, maybe she had already begun to suspect her fox-demon identity.

Qi Xianqing was so ruthless when dealing with demons. If she really discovered her, would she be just as merciless and kill her without hesitation?

Yan Jue didn’t know, and didn’t want to know.

She steadied herself again, knelt on the floor, and counted the old merfolk king’s rewards. Among them were both gold and spirit stones; the spirit stones, too, radiated dazzling light and seemed to be top-grade.

Yan Jue counted them. In total, there were more than a thousand top-grade spirit stones.

Drifting Ice had been bought from Qi Xianqing.

The debt to Qi Xianqing needed to be repaid as quickly as possible.

Just as Yan Jue finished counting the spirit stones, she suddenly heard a knock at the door.

She paused slightly, walked over, and opened it to find the merfolk princess Hai Ying standing outside. She smiled at her. “Daoist Yan.”

Yan Jue also smiled. “What is it?”

Hai Ying: “I specially took out my father’s thousand-year brew, Sea-Heart Fragrance, and wanted to invite Daoist Yan to taste it with me. I wonder if Daoist Yan would be willing?”

In Hai Ying’s hands was a small wine flask made of white jade; that must be the Sea-Heart Fragrance she was talking about.

Yan Jue stared at the wine flask and froze slightly.

Sea-Heart Fragrance?

For some reason, the name sounded familiar.

…"

Yan Jue suddenly remembered something and slapped her forehead.

Was this the legendary Sea-Heart Fragrance?

Yan Jue had once read many books in the Library Pavilion and had also seen records of this sort of fine wine.

Sea-Heart Fragrance was the merfolk clan’s exclusive secret wine. It was said to contain the essences of wind, thunder, ice, and fire, then be brewed from seawater by the merfolk clan’s most famous vintner; within it was even hidden a rare trace of ancient oceanic charm.

Legend said this wine was one of the few in the world that could rival Frozen Peach Haven Nectar.

It was not only beneficial for tempering one’s character; it was even useful for attaining sudden enlightenment of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

If one could drink a flask of it, it would bring unspeakable benefits to cultivation.

Hai Ying: “I just went to find Lord Meng Heng, and she said she was going into seclusion.”

Hai Ying said with distress, “It’s a pity this Sea-Heart Fragrance has already been taken out of the wine cellar. If we wait another half a cup of tea, I’m afraid it’ll go bad, so I came looking for you.”

Qi Xianqing had only just broken through to the fifth realm, the Heart Stirring Realm; of course she couldn’t recklessly take anything else in now. She clearly had no blessing to enjoy such fine wine.

Yan Jue looked at Hai Ying’s pitiful expression and couldn’t help feeling a little troubled.

Since they had specially taken out palace-brewed wine that had been aged for so many years, if Qi Xianqing wouldn’t drink it and she wouldn’t drink it either, were they really just going to let such an exceptional wine go to waste?

That would be far too disrespectful.

Yan Jue still hesitated a little. “I wonder if this Sea-Heart Fragrance has a strong kick?”

She hadn’t forgotten how, at the Five Dragons banquet last time, she had almost revealed her true form after drinking too much of the wine from the Guanlan wine pool.

Hai Ying smiled. “Is the immortal sir afraid of getting drunk? There’s no need to worry; Sea-Heart Fragrance is quite mild. Back then, when our merfolk vintner made this divine wine, it was mainly to help our people attain sudden enlightenment of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. If just drinking it could make one drunk, then how could it possibly help one attain enlightenment of the Great Dao?”

Yan Jue couldn’t help laughing at that.

Though she was a fox demon and shouldn’t drink too much,

Yan Jue also knew that wine like Sea-Heart Fragrance was highly beneficial for enlightenment, so its alcohol content must be relatively weaker. Compared with the wine she had once drunk from the Guanlan wine pool at the Five Dragons banquet, it certainly couldn’t even be mentioned in the same breath…

This opportunity was once in a thousand years. Yan Jue simply turned her longing into action and nodded. “Then I’ll trouble you.”

Hai Ying: “Please follow me, immortal sir.”

Yan Jue followed Hai Ying to a great hall, where she saw Jiang Mengchu already seated and yawning as she waited for her.

Jiang Mengchu: “Sister Yan Jue, why are you only here now…”

Though half a day had passed since they last saw each other, Jiang Mengchu still had a golden radiance all around her. Rings of true qi could be seen circling her body, and the light remained dazzling.

Yan Jue: “…How enviable.”

Yan Jue stared at Jiang Mengchu for a long while, then suddenly had an inspiration.

Because of her constitution, Jiang Mengchu had lost most of her original memories. If she drank this precious Sea-Heart Fragrance now, perhaps it could greatly help her recover them.

Yan Jue sat down.

A maid came over and filled the wine cup in front of her.

Pale blue liquor rippled slowly in the cup. Yan Jue’s nostrils fluttered; sure enough, she caught a refreshing, soul-clearing fragrance of wine.

And then she couldn’t help salivating again…

Yan Jue faintly had a feeling that, even though the original novel never said so, the original owner must have really loved drinking.

Hai Ying raised her cup. “This Sea-Heart Fragrance is of immense benefit to cultivation and enlightenment. I toast the immortal sir!”

Yan Jue hurriedly stood and, together with Hai Ying, drained the fine wine in her cup.

The moment it went down, a faint sweetness spread across her lips and teeth, mingled with an exceptionally pure strand of spiritual power.

Yan Jue closed her eyes. She only felt that this strange spiritual power rose all the way to her heavenly gate and descended into her sea of qi; the turbid qi within her body seemed to gush forth all at once.

Yan Jue slowly exhaled the impure air, and in that instant, she felt her whole body grow light.

Good wine.

Yan Jue almost wept with gratitude. If she wanted to improve her cultivation, she had to seize this once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity and drink a few more cups.

-

The original owner had already been fond of alcohol, so Yan Jue naturally indulged in a few too many cups. She couldn’t taste any real alcohol flavor anyway, so she simply drank heartily with Hai Ying in the great hall.

Gradually, she actually became a little drunk.

Yan Jue felt sleepy; she closed her eyes and sat there, falling asleep right away.

“You can fall asleep while sitting?” Hai Ying couldn’t help laughing. “This little immortal sir is kind of cute.”

Suddenly, a servant came to report, “Princess, Lord Meng Heng has arrived.”

Yan Jue smacked her lips in her dream. Hearing the words Lord Meng Heng, she didn’t react at all.

A girl in white entered the great hall.

Under the flickering candlelight, the girl wore a crossed-collar narrow-sleeved robe and carried a long sword on her back. She stood tall and straight; her bearing was that of an immortal, graceful and ethereal.

This was Lord Meng Heng, Qi Xianqing. Qi Xianqing stepped forward and gave Hai Ying a salute. “I was dispersing spiritual power in my room just now and couldn’t make it to the princess’s banquet. My sincere apologies.”

Hai Ying smiled. “It’s fine; we were just drinking.”

“Someone, bring wine for the immortal sir.”

At once, a maid set out a small temporary table, and someone came to refill Qi Xianqing’s cup.

Qi Xianqing sat down and took a sip. She had just broken through her realm; this Sea-Heart Fragrance had a very faint taste, but its spiritual quality was pure and clear, helping her better adjust to her new power.

Yan Jue, sitting nearby, continued sleeping, even starting to snore.

Everyone: “…"

Qi Xianqing’s gaze could not help but fall on Yan Jue.

Qi Xianqing asked, “What happened to her?”

Hai Ying: “Daoist Yan drank quite a lot just now and fell asleep.”

Yan Jue had drunk herself to this state; she clearly couldn’t drink any more. If she stayed in the great hall and caught a chill, that would not be good.

So Hai Ying: “Someone, help the little immortal sir back.”

A merfolk maid walked over, and Qi Xianqing suddenly noticed something; her movements paused slightly.

Yan Jue had still been sitting a moment ago, but at some point she had already sprawled onto the floor, rolling around. Her narrow phoenix eyes were half-lidded, giving her a naturally alluring air.

Qi Xianqing: “I’ll do it.”

She had come with Yan Jue in the first place, and earlier many people in the palace had been saying that she and Yan Jue were dao companions.

Hai Ying naturally found nothing strange about it and smiled. “Of course. I’ll have the wine sent to the immortal sir’s room shortly; the immortal sir may drink it alone there.”

Qi Xianqing stood and walked to Yan Jue’s side.

Yan Jue carried a faint scent of wine, along with the pure milk fragrance unique to a young girl.

Lying on the floor, she was slightly furrowed-browed, as if she couldn’t quite process the spiritual power that had become too dense all at once.

Qi Xianqing looked at her deeply and said in a gentle voice, “Junior Sister Yan, let’s go back to the room first.”

Yan Jue was very obedient. She had no guard at all around Qi Xianqing; after rolling once, she fell asleep again.

Qi Xianqing couldn’t help but smile. Just how easily could this one be lured away? She bent slightly, supported Yan Jue’s arm with one hand, and lifted her up. “Farewell.”

The two of them slowly returned to the room. Qi Xianqing narrowed her eyes and looked at her sideways, then casually closed the door.

Yan Jue rolled onto the bed, opened her eyes, and the moment she saw Qi Xianqing, she raised a hand to cover her own eyes.

Qi Xianqing smiled. “Junior Sister Yan, why are you covering your eyes?”

Yan Jue cursed, “I don’t want to see you.”

Qi Xianqing: “…"

Qi Xianqing took Yan Jue’s two hands and slowly lowered them, then asked, “Why don’t you want to see me?”

Yan Jue’s voice turned soft and bashful. “Because you’re a big pig trotter, and you bully me, and you even want to kill me!”

Big pig trotter? Qi Xianqing raised a brow. “Hm?”

“I helped you guard so nicely, and you… you don’t even know how to feel sorry for me, and you still scold me… wuwu…” Yan Jue rolled around on the bed outright, and in the blink of an eye she was crying her eyes out. “I even thought I kind of liked you.”

Bad.

Deep in Yan Jue’s mind, she vaguely felt that she seemed to have done something terribly messy.

But she really couldn’t control herself.

This damned wine seemed to have awakened some fox-demon instinct.

…

Yan Jue lay on the bed, her jet-black hair damp with sweat. Her fair cheeks were flushed with a pale red; those long phoenix eyes were narrowed to slits, just enough to reveal a hint of her amber pupils, and her vivid red lips were wet from being licked.

It was the kind of beauty that could only be described as heartbreakingly lovely.

Qi Xianqing closed her eyes briefly and frowned a little, then reached for Yan Jue’s hand. “Let me see…”

Yan Jue flung off her hand and kicked her leg. “I don’t want it anymore now.”

Qi Xianqing made no further move.

Yan Jue kept her eyes shut and felt even worse.

I said I don’t want it… and you really just stopped looking at me…

So mad. Yan Jue covered her eyes and cried in a soft, fierce little voice.

Qi Xianqing found it amusing. She closed her eyes for a moment, laid Yan Jue flat on the bed, and gently rubbed her cheek with her fingertips. “Honestly. You drank that much again?”

The room was very quiet; only the two of them were there.

Qi Xianqing stared at those amber phoenix eyes shimmering with watery light and suddenly felt that she was very close to the truth.

She had tested it many times before, but always stopped her speculation at the critical moment.

But now Qi Xianqing really couldn’t hold back anymore.

She realized her feelings toward Yan Jue were becoming increasingly strange.

Qi Xianqing had never liked anyone before; she simply instinctively felt that this feeling was very abnormal.

If she let this feeling continue to develop, she had to figure out the matter she had been suspecting all along.

…

Qi Xianqing slowly moved her fingertips downward. Yan Jue felt very comfortable under the touch; she seemed to especially like it when people touched her neck. One touch, and her whole body went soft.

Qi Xianqing lightly scratched at her; a cool, numb sensation spread from Yan Jue’s neck, gradually seeping through her whole body like electricity. Yan Jue contentedly closed her eyes and let out a couple of soft hums, burying her head lower and lightly clutching the hem of Qi Xianqing’s robe with her fingertips.

Qi Xianqing: “Little fox baby.”

Yan Jue’s whole body stiffened. The instant she heard Qi Xianqing call her that, she completely broke down.

The familiar fragrance of an Immortal Spirit Physique drifted at her nose, distant and lingering. In a daze, she could no longer tell whether she was in the ocean now, or back in the familiar Frozen Peach Haven.

Yan Jue couldn’t help burying her head lower, her soft cheek gently rubbing against Qi Xianqing’s hand. “What are you doing…”

Something suddenly poked up.

Qi Xianqing froze; her heart thumped.

On top of Yan Jue’s head, a pair of black ears as dark as ink appeared.

TL Note:

big pig trotter (大猪蹄子) = slang for a man who is thoughtless or unreliable in romance.