Parting Ways
Shen Luhua's gentle concern made Li Ye feel ashamed, unable to meet his mother's eyes. He lowered his head and replied, "Yeah, I got it."
Shen Luhua nodded and took out a small vial, handing it to him. "The Zhen Yan Dan you asked about today—I just checked with your Aunt Jiang, and she had a few left. I got one for you."
"Thank you." Li Ye accepted the small vial somewhat awkwardly.
Shen Luhua finally noticed something off about her son. "What's wrong with you today?"
"Nothing's wrong~" Li Ye looked up into his mother's eyes, but those faint phoenix eyes made him panic again, and he quickly turned his face away.
Shen Luhua eyed her son suspiciously but said nothing more, turning to leave the room.
Li Ye could no longer bear the torment of his conscience and desires warring within him. He called out to his mother, "Mom, I want to talk to you about something."
A faint smile tugged at Shen Luhua's lips, but she turned back calmly and warmly asked, "What is it?"
"It's about... time for me to go..."
"Go?" Shen Luhua's expression darkened.
Li Ye chose his words carefully. "Look, I'm not from the Shangqing Sword Sect. Staying here too long isn't right, and besides, the palace needs me back soon to report in..."
In truth, Li Ye just wanted some distance from his mother. He knew his desires had been running hot lately, and being around her day and night all the time... well, he couldn't blame himself for the thoughts creeping in.
"Didn't you say at dinner that you'd stay a few more days?" Shen Luhua tried to keep her tone steady.
"I suddenly remembered some urgent matters at the palace..." Li Ye struggled to come up with an excuse.
Shen Luhua didn't buy it. A strange emotion welled up in her heart. After a moment of silence, her brows furrowed slowly, and her phoenix eyes fixed straight on Li Ye. "Tell me the truth."
Overawed by his mother's unspoken authority, Li Ye was speechless for a moment.
How do I even say it?
Seeing Li Ye remain silent, disappointment crept across Shen Luhua's calm face. She let out a soft sigh and fell quiet as well.
The child has grown and no longer needs his mother... It's been fifteen years since we last met... Wait, five years for him... But even five years—doesn't he miss the mother who bore and raised him at all?
Seeing the disappointment on his mother's face left Li Ye at a loss. "Mom, don't be mad... I just... I just..."
Shen Luhua turned her face slightly, her beautiful eyes deep and melancholic.
"I..."
Mother and son, reunited across worlds, both treasured each other deeply in their hearts. Li Ye especially didn't want to tarnish the image he held in his mother's eyes. His inner turmoil was intense—he didn't want to see her upset, yet he couldn't explain his reasons. For the moment, he could only stand there, face flushed red, frozen in place.
"What's wrong with you?" Seeing her son's clumsy, flustered state, Shen Luhua found it amusing for some reason. The gloom in her heart dissipated quite a bit.
"I... I'm not feeling quite right..." Li Ye stammered.
"Oh?" Shen Luhua raised a brow lightly.
"Well... maybe I've been affected by some demonic thoughts..."
Li Ye realized he had to confess something or he'd never get past this. He decided on a half-truth, but first laid some groundwork to shift the blame. It's all that damn demonic thought's fault...
It really was the demonic thought's fault. Without those illusions, he wouldn't be like this... Li Ye stole a glance at his mother and convinced himself.
It wasn't wrong—Li Ye had become a eunuch at twelve, so at most he'd watched some porn and secretly touched his mother's silk stockings. When it came to matters between men and women, he'd seen the pig run but never tasted the meat. How could he know the pleasures involved...
As Li Ye consoled himself, Shen Luhua tensed at the mention of demonic influence. "Are you okay? Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"It's... not a big deal..." Li Ye mumbled evasively.
Shen Luhua grew anxious. "Then what exactly is going on?"
"I... I've got a bit of..."
"A bit of what?" Shen Luhua's beautiful eyes flickered with concern.
"A bit... of an urge to..."
Seeing Li Ye's embarrassed reluctance to speak, Shen Luhua didn't think much of it. She took one of his hands in hers and gave him an encouraging, gentle gaze without a word.
With his hand held by his mother, Li Ye's face reddened. Steel himself, he finally whispered, "Want a woman..."
Shen Luhua froze at his words. A blush suddenly bloomed across her jade-like face. She never imagined that would be the answer.
Since their reunion, she hadn't truly felt that her son had grown up. Though he looked like a young man now, in her heart, he was still that twelve-year-old boy.
Only now did she realize he'd truly grown. Her emotions were a tangled mix—absurdly amusing, shyly embarrassing, even laced with a faint, imperceptible sourness...
She suddenly recalled the way he'd looked at her these past few days. She'd noticed before but never dwelled on it—one, because she thought it was just longing after their long separation; two, as a transmigrator with over twenty years without intimacy, it hadn't crossed her mind.
But now, thinking back, that gaze had seemed... overly heated...
Could little Ye really be...
Her grip on his hand hesitated. A flash of shame and annoyance crossed Shen Luhua's mind, but she composed herself outwardly. "I thought it was something serious. You're seventeen now, and... you've just restored your body... It's normal to be curious about such things. Don't worry about it."
As she said it, Shen Luhua convinced herself it made sense. Her son wasn't a child anymore; his body was newly restored, and with lingering demonic thoughts, a bit of curiosity was perfectly natural.
Seeing no strange reaction from his mother, Li Ye breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He still whispered, "So that's why... I want to head down the mountain sooner..."
Shen Luhua knew the wisdom of sons avoiding their mothers as they grew. Recalling his gazes toward her, she felt it wasn't quite appropriate either. Suppressing her inner shame and reluctance, she nodded solemnly. "It's good to go down early. You still need to return to the palace—duty can't be neglected."
She said the words, but the reluctance in her heart surged uncontrollably. We've only been together a few days...
"Yeah, I'll leave tomorrow then." Li Ye nodded. Neither mentioned the earlier matter again, as if it had never happened.
"Then... get some good rest..."
"Mm."
Shen Luhua gave her son a complex look before turning to leave. After just two steps, her sharp senses caught a heated gaze on her rear. A gaze she once ignored now flooded her with shame. For a moment, she didn't know what to do—under that stare, her entire backside felt like it was burning.
Without showing a hint of oddity, Shen Luhua controlled her body to walk unhurriedly out of her son's sight. After several more steps, she abruptly stopped, exhaling a heavy breath.
Touching her flushed cheeks, she secretly spat lightly to herself, smoothed her skirt over her rear, and after a moment, regained her usual cold composure. She summoned her sword light and flew back to her cultivation grounds.
Li Ye's original plan had been to leave the Shangqing Sword Sect with his mother and find a place in the capital to settle, so he'd have support outside the palace. But things had come to this—he could only go alone for now.
The next day, Shen Luhua arrived at Li Ye's courtyard early in the morning, her face pale with fatigue.
"These are sword talismans, each holding one of my strikes. Activate them in danger. Time was short—these will do for now."
"These are messaging talismans. I've imprinted my aura—contact me if anything happens."
"This page records the Confucian divine ability Blissful Horizon Stride; it lets you teleport three hundred li instantly. I won it from the Confucians long ago—only this one page. Don't use it unless absolutely necessary."
"These are healing pills, for recovering from injuries."
"This bottle is Li Yang White Ginseng Pills—for clinging to life. Use them carefully."
"This is a Yan Shou Dan. Some vicious arts damage lifespan—keep it for emergencies."
...
"Put all these in the qiankun bag and keep it on you. Remember, with me here, prioritize your life above all." Shen Luhua's concern overflowed.
Li Ye didn't refuse, stowing everything away and tucking the qiankun bag close to his body. He looked at his mother with equal reluctance. "Mom, take care."
"Mm. Be careful with everything."
"Then... I'm off."
Shen Luhua nodded, saying no more.
Li Ye turned and walked a few steps before looking back, gazing deeply at his mother's solitary, otherworldly figure. For some reason, she suddenly seemed so alone. He waved to her in the distance, exhaling his wistful emotions, and when he turned away, his spirits were already soaring.
Imperial palace, I'm back.
"I thought you'd leave together." Jiang Zimei's ethereal figure landed beside Shen Luhua, watching Li Ye's receding back.
"Forget it. He has his own path—I can't protect him forever." Shen Luhua said flatly.
"Really letting him go back to the palace?"
"Mm." Shen Luhua's brows furrowed slightly, but she nodded.
"Not even seeing him off? The mountains and rivers stretch a thousand li—when will he reach the palace?"
Shen Luhua shook her head. "I had Chushuang take him. Me going would draw too much attention."
"Chushuang's the one who brought him here anyway. One favor deserves another." Jiang Zimei nodded lightly, then turned to Shen Luhua. "By the way, Chushuang said you found him because of something called silk stockings. What's that? I've never heard of it."
Shen Luhua smiled faintly. "Just a novel garment. If you're interested, I'll send you a pair sometime."
Jiang Zimei nodded gladly, but asked the question that had long piqued her curiosity again. "Why do you two always have these novel tricks up your sleeves?"
Shen Luhua smiled still, but shifted the topic. "Shijie, I might head down the mountain soon. Message me if anything comes up."
"I knew you'd follow..." Jiang Zimei pouted. "I just don't get it. He's just a kid—why are you so besotted? Before he came, I'd never seen you smile from the heart..."
Shen Luhua paused, her smile blissful. "You haven't been a mother—you wouldn't understand."
Jiang Zimei frowned. "Being a mother, huh..."
Li Ye met Xing Chushuang again. She was as cold as ever. She summoned her sword light and said flatly, "Get on."
Li Ye's playful side emerged. "This... men and women shouldn't be so intimate, right?"
Xing Chushuang seemed oblivious that this exchange had happened before. Her voice clear and cold, she repeated, "You're a eunuch."
Seeing the girl's amnesia-like demeanor dampened Li Ye's playfulness. He obediently hopped onto the flying sword.
Habitually wrapping his arms around the girl's slender waist, Li Ye suddenly realized something was off. Wait, I'm not a eunuch anymore, am I? Isn't this too close...?
But with the soft curves of her body under his hands and her faint fragrance filling his nose, asking him to let go voluntarily was truly asking too much.
The sword soared through the air. Xing Chushuang suddenly turned back, puzzled. "Aren't you a eunuch?"
"I was a few days ago." Li Ye knew exactly why she asked—his cock had inevitably hardened, now pressing firmly against Xing Chushuang's tender rear.
"Not anymore?"
"Nope." Li Ye felt his glans sink into exquisite softness, bliss overwhelming him.
The girl seemed satisfied with the clarification and turned forward again, saying calmly, "Then move back a bit."
"Why?" Facing what felt like a simpleton, Li Ye decided to play dumb.
"Something down there is poking me." Fine, the girl wasn't that naive.
"Oh, got it." Li Ye regretfully pulled back.
But without his mother there, free from moral restraints, Li Ye felt his lust rising uncontrollably. He could barely suppress the pounding in his heart.
"Could you keep treating me like a eunuch?" Li Ye asked earnestly.
"You want to take advantage of me?" Xing Chushuang's voice remained flat, like a simple question.
Li Ye thought for a moment and answered honestly. "Yeah."
He was letting loose a bit.
"Others have wanted to take advantage of me before." Her clear, cold voice was actually quite pleasant.
"And?"
"They all died."
No killing intent leaked out, but Li Ye didn't think she was joking. He chuckled awkwardly. "Never mind then."
The wind howled fiercely, the landscape vast and beautiful. Midway through the sky, silence fell between them.
Am I getting a bit cocky...? Eh, whatever... cocky it is. With all sorts of treasures in his possession, Li Ye brimmed with confidence.
Having shed the burdens of five years and escaped his mother's binding presence, the long-suppressed youthful vigor rebounded with a vengeance. In short, Li Ye returned to the palace in high spirits.