Chapter 107: Falling Together
Shen Yanzhou drew in a shallow breath of cold air, somewhat unable to endure this great temptress who slipped into someone else’s bed in the dead of night.
Fortunately, his willpower was astonishing, his Dao heart firm, not affected in the slightest.
Perhaps she felt this dull and boring, for not long after, Ran Yi poked her head out from under the brocade quilt, her eyes glistening like water as she looked at Shen Yanzhou, her lips moist with faint traces of wetness.
“You don’t return to the Prince’s Mansion at all now.”
Ran Yi propped herself up on both arms, leaning against his chest as the two met each other’s gaze.
Shen Yanzhou’s hand was not the least bit well-behaved, provoking Ran Yi into rolling her eyes at him in feigned anger.
“The true Heir has already been welcomed back to the residence. It wouldn’t be proper for me to go back. I don’t wish to make Mother feel embarrassed.” He spoke with forced helplessness.
“But seeing you outside, you seem quite carefree and at ease.”
“This estate is huge, and it’s right next to the Chilin Guards headquarters—very safe.”
“You could hide a few more beauties someday and no one would dare check.”
Ran Yi did not believe that kind of reasoning. She reached out her slender fingers and drew circles across his chest.
“……”
Shen Yanzhou turned over to lie on his side, lifted his hand to change posture, and conveniently pulled her into his arms. He said, “Why does Aunt Ran’s tone sound a bit sour?”
“If it’s not because of you, you little heartless thing. So many days passed, and you never thought to come see me. Did you find a new flame and forget your old love…” Ran Yi’s voice carried sadness.
“It’s different from before. No matter what, I’m now a Thousand-Household Commander of the Chilin Guards. There are many cases to handle, and returning to the Prince’s Mansion doesn’t feel comfortable either.” Shen Yanzhou said helplessly.
“Is the newly arrived courtesan at Chunshui Pavilion pretty?” Ran Yi suddenly asked with a mischievous smile.
“……”
Shen Yanzhou fell silent for a moment. “Quite pretty.”
“So Aunt really is getting old—can’t compare to those young and lovely ones, and can’t keep your heart.” Ran Yi let out a deliberately dramatic sigh.
“But I like Aunt Ran just like this—more mature, more tender.” Shen Yanzhou said.
“What’s big?” Ran Yi asked with a laugh, her gem-black eyes shining brightly even in the darkness.
“All of it.”
Shen Yanzhou made a gesture with his hands, then buried himself in her.
Ran Yi let out a soft cry and lightly patted him. “Little glutton…”
After the two indulged in playful teasing for a while, Ran Yi restrained her emotions and brought up the real matter. “The Prince went into the palace a few days ago and met the Empress. He obtained a secret art.”
“Oh? What kind of secret art?”
Shen Yanzhou had some guesses but still asked.
“I don’t know the specifics, but after obtaining the secret art, Shen Tian’s hysteria and fits have eased a lot. The Prince’s expression isn’t as dark as before either.” Ran Yi said.
Shen Yanzhou knew Shen Tian’s true situation and understood that an ordinary secret art was useless against this human puppet.
Moreover, this was only Shen Tian’s original physical shell. Even if Shen Jingxiao discovered the root of the problem, there was nothing he could do.
“It seems he has realized what is wrong with Shen Tian now.”
Shen Yanzhou was not surprised. He never believed that someone with Shen Jingxiao’s ability would fail to uncover the truth behind the current human puppet Shen Tian.
It appeared Shen Jingxiao intended to use the situation to his advantage.
Either he would let Shen Tian remain as he was, or he would stir up rumors, guiding public opinion to make it appear that Shen Tian was concealing his brilliance through self-demeaning behavior—just like what Shen Yanzhou had done previously.
But that was not a long-term plan.
Shen Yanzhou predicted that Shen Jingxiao’s next step would likely be to send someone to the Ten-Thousand-Mile Sword Court to inquire about Tantai Yuxian.
In the original plot, not long after Shen Jingxiao brought Shen Tian back, a beast tide erupted in the Southern Border, forcing him to return to defend Yao Pass.
That very beast tide marked the beginning of Great Qian’s era of chaos.
In truth, the Monster Kings of several tribes within the foreign monster nation had long reached an agreement with Shen Jingxiao.
During the beast tide, Shen Jingxiao intentionally damaged the defenses of Yao Pass, allowing the tide to pour northward into the territory.
The lands controlled by the great noble clans were thrown into crisis, forcing them to deploy forces to resist, leaving the imperial city’s defenses extremely thin.
Meanwhile, in Great Qian’s capital, the undercover agents of the Nether Cult—who had been planted for years—surfaced to assassinate high-ranking ministers, throwing society into panic.
At the same time, the army of Beiyu pressed into Northern Desert Prefecture, exerting massive pressure.
Internal and external crises converge.
During this period, Shen Jingxiao intentionally created omens—such as finding a wild crane roosting in ancient tombs, its cry sounding ghostly and mournful. This drew crowds, who uncovered fragmented stone tablets bearing inscriptions like “Dragon and serpent rise, mountains and rivers overturned.”
He then summoned Daoist experts to call down thunder from the heavens, shattering mountains and revealing a broken tiger tally engraved with the words “Troops rise in the Southern Border, kingly fate returns to the wild”…
Under such orchestrated momentum, he raised his troops. Under the pretext of suppressing the beast tide, he marched northward, crushing the territories of noble families along the way and bringing them all under his control. Nearly one-third of the provinces north of the Southern Border fell to him.
The Demon Suppression King transformed into the uncrowned king of the Southern Border. Even hidden Daoist sects that rarely appeared in the world came under his command, as he pointed his sword at the imperial capital.
“Now that the plot has deviated, if Shen Jingxiao wants to make a move, he will need the right timing—likely after Shen Tian’s mind fully ‘recovers’ and he feels reassured.”
“But if we wait until then and let Shen Jingxiao return safely to the Southern Border, he will become much harder to kill.”
“I must kill him completely before he returns south—root and stem both cut.”
Shen Yanzhou’s thoughts churned.
He had kept Shen Tian alive not only to draw negative emotions from him, but also because Shen Tian no longer posed as grave a threat as before.
But now, Shen Jingxiao remained the greatest threat.
The two of them were already utterly incompatible. Shen Yanzhou had no doubt—if he took even half a step outside the capital, Shen Jingxiao would find every possible way to eliminate him.
“What are you thinking about? Worried Shen Tian might recover?” Ran Yi’s voice cut into his thoughts.
“Even if Shen Tian recovers, he poses no threat to me. He no longer even has the qualifications to be my opponent.”
“I’m thinking about when Shen Jingxiao will leave the capital and return to the Southern Border.” Shen Yanzhou said.
“In the Southern Border, the beasts have been calm recently. The ones that entered the pass earlier were driven back into the Ten-Thousand Deep Mountains. It’s only those hidden sects suffering because of it.”
“For now, the Prince likely won’t leave the capital—unless something sudden happens in the Southern Border.”
Ran Yi spoke. Clearly, she also understood the current situation of the Southern Border.
“Something sudden…”
Shen Yanzhou thought of Fu Yuying. After contacting her that day, he told her to come to the capital as soon as possible. She should be arriving soon.
“You didn’t come tonight just to bring me this information, did you?” Shen Yanzhou stopped dwelling on it and instead asked Ran Yi.
“So smart.”
“Aunt came to tell you something.” Ran Yi’s charming, gentle smile remained, her dark eyes like flawless gemstones.
“A farewell?” Shen Yanzhou paused slightly.
“Something like that.”
Ran Yi nodded and rested her head against his chest, as if wanting to hear his heartbeat clearly.
“Where are you going? Shen Jingxiao arranged it?” Shen Yanzhou seemed to have guessed.
“To handle something.”
“What matter? How long will it take?”
“Perhaps a long time… perhaps not long at all.”
“You’re lying to me.”
Shen Yanzhou turned Ran Yi’s face toward his.
Ran Yi blinked her beautiful eyes and glared at him teasingly. “Why would I lie to you?”
“Shen Jingxiao can’t wait anymore. The commotion I caused at the Daoist Courtyard today must have intensified his wariness. So he pushed you again. But you still refuse to lay a hand on me—so you chose another path instead.”
“You plan to follow his arrangement, go to those demon caverns, and become the furnace cauldron, or perhaps concubine… or gift he offers those big figures of the immortal sects?”
Shen Yanzhou’s tone was blunt, as if he had seen through all of Ran Yi’s thoughts.
Ran Yi froze, her gaze lowering, no longer bright and radiant as earlier.
“You’re too smart for your own good. Sometimes, pretending to be a bit foolish would be better.” Her voice grew soft.
Shen Yanzhou shook his head. “If I pretended not to know, then what? Would I watch you walk into a demon cavern with my own eyes, pushed into a pit of fire by him?”
“Or… do you prefer me like that? A clever man who protects himself?”
“……”
Ran Yi paused, staring fixedly at Shen Yanzhou.
At this moment, Shen Yanzhou carried a heavy, oppressive aura that made her feel somewhat breathless, yet her eyes shone brightly, filled with emotion.
“I already told you I would find a way. Why won’t you believe me?” Shen Yanzhou raised his hand to cup Ran Yi’s cheeks, lowering his head to look at her.
“I originally thought I could drag this out a while longer, but he wouldn’t let me.”
Ran Yi tilted her snowy neck upward. After a moment of silence, she sighed.
“So, tonight… you actually didn’t intend to come find me. Or rather, you struggled and hesitated for a long time, otherwise you wouldn’t have waited until now.”
“……You saw through it again.”
“Can’t help it—who told me that I actually started liking you a little? Little man, if I left just like this, I really would feel reluctant. Seeing you once more counts as settling an attachment.”
As she spoke, Ran Yi lifted her face, reached out to wrap her arms around Shen Yanzhou’s neck, and gently kissed his cheek.
This kiss held no trace of desire—only pure farewell.
She tried to get up, but found she could not move.
“What are you doing? Don’t want me to leave?”
Ran Yi asked with a smile. She was a Martial Grandmaster, at the Fourth Rank. Even though Shen Yanzhou possessed the strength of the Dragon-Elephant and had broken through the dual Sixth Rank, he still might not have been able to restrain her.
“Tonight, you won’t walk out of this room.” Shen Yanzhou said.
“That’s not for you to decide……”
Ran Yi’s words froze halfway out of her throat—because she realized that even when she surged all her internal force and true qi, she still couldn’t break free from Shen Yanzhou’s arms.
It felt as though an immense, surging Dragon-Seizing Force was pinning her down completely.
This time, Ran Yi truly panicked. Her tone was full of worry and fright. “Don’t be reckless—this isn’t something you can joke about…”
But Shen Yanzhou’s eyes were dark, his expression emotionless, and he ignored her completely.
“Shen Yanzhou, are you insane…”
“Are you really not afraid of dying?”
“Mm… ho-oh…”
……
The Chilin Guards changed shifts at the hour of Chen in the morning.
Wu Ruyue, who had spent most of last night keeping watch outside Chunshui Pavilion, only returned to the Wu Residence after the hour of Zi.
She also overheard many patrons at Chunshui Pavilion speaking about the newly arrived courtesan.
Many said she was very beautiful—just sitting in the tall pavilion, hidden by a screen and a light veil that obscured her true appearance, plucking her zither. Even like that, many aristocratic disciples threw silver wantonly, spending lavishly just to win a single smile.
This made her think of the faint sound Shen Yanzhou had heard the night he stayed at Chunshui Pavilion.
Wu Ruyue couldn’t sleep—her mind filled with a jumble of restless thoughts.
She meditated in her room the entire night, and the next morning, she uncharacteristically applied slightly heavier makeup to hide the faint dark circles beneath her eyes.
After a simple breakfast, Wu Ruyue donned the usual Chilin Guards uniform, took her saber, and walked toward the Chilin Guards Thousand-Household Office.
On the road, she recalled the words of several colleagues yesterday—Shen Yanzhou seemed to have moved out of the Demon Suppression Prince’s Mansion and now lived in the residence arranged for him by the Chilin Guards.
It was conveniently on the way.
At this hour, Young Master Shen probably hadn’t gotten up yet. He had been accustomed to maids serving him in the prince’s mansion—she wondered if he managed living alone.
He should also not have eaten breakfast yet.
Thinking of this, Wu Ruyue stopped by a steamed bun stall at the street corner and bought a few steaming meat buns. Remembering that Shen Yanzhou said he liked big white buns as well, she bought two of those too.
She had never visited Shen Yanzhou’s residence before, but with the information gleaned from her colleagues, she found the alley quickly without trouble.
The alley was quiet, the street lined with stone walls.
Wu Ruyue easily identified the residence—birch trees planted at the entrance, a vermillion-painted gate that looked slightly old, hanging with the Chilin Guards Thousand-Household plaque.
She was just about to knock when she noticed the gate wasn’t locked, merely resting closed.
“Does Young Master Shen not have the habit of locking doors?”
“Though I suppose no thief would dare break into the residence of a Chilin Guards Thousand-Household Commander.”
Wu Ruyue pushed the door open and walked in.
The courtyard was elegant—rockery, pavilions, lotus pond—everything one could expect. Passing through the corridor and archway led to the inner courtyard, with several side rooms lined up and an open yard with a lush birch tree, stone table and benches—perfect for summer shade.
Wu Ruyue inspected the layout and gave a small nod. Compared to the Wu Residence’s property in the capital, this place was noticeably larger.
And the location was in the heart of the capital.
“Young Master Shen probably hasn’t gotten up yet…”
Not seeing Shen Yanzhou anywhere, Wu Ruyue placed the baskets of buns and steamed bread on the stone table and continued inward.
But after only a few steps, Wu Ruyue heard some rather strange sounds coming from the central room.
Her expression froze. With her martial cultivation, she quickly heard clearly:
“Oh-hho…”
“Love me…”
It was a woman’s voice—familiar, yet she couldn’t immediately place who it belonged to.
She stood rooted on the spot, her beautiful eyes widening as her cheeks flushed rapidly red.
“T-this… this…”
Though inexperienced, she was not ignorant. Even with the slowest reaction, she knew what was happening in that room.
She truly hadn’t expected Shen Yanzhou to be… doing such a thing so early in the morning…
At that moment, Wu Ruyue no longer cared about waking Shen Yanzhou. She turned and fled in panic.
Even after leaving the residence and reaching the alley entrance, her heart was still pounding wildly.
“Young… Young Master Shen, how could he…”
……
“You did it on purpose, didn’t you?”
“Ah? What is it?”
“With your cultivation, how could you not know Wu Ruyue came?”
“I didn’t know. Did Miss Wu come just now? Why would she come so early in the morning? Aunt just had her whole heart on the Heir—how could she pay any attention to the outside…”
“Heh…”
“Is the Heir angry?”
“No. I just realized you have… other preferences…”
Shen Yanzhou slapped down, and immediately waves rippled across her hips.
A stick of incense later.
Now fully dressed, Ran Yi went to boil water, fetched a large wooden tub, and obediently and gently served Shen Yanzhou as he bathed.
“The tub is too small. Find a bigger one next time.”
Shen Yanzhou soaked in the tub, his mind drifting back to last night.
At first, Ran Yi truly felt he was being reckless, lawless, frightened and anxious, but she ultimately couldn’t resist him.
Because she understood her cultivation method better than anyone else.
If Shen Yanzhou stepped into this vortex again, he would fall back under Shen Jingxiao’s control and become a chess piece manipulated at will.
The twenty years of effort he had spent before would be wasted.
But even knowing all this, Shen Yanzhou still chose, without hesitation, to pull her out of the fire pit—even if he had to fall back into it himself.
This resolute desire to save her… it genuinely moved Ran Yi.
Then let us fall together…
That was her thought in that instant.
And as Shen Yanzhou had said—she indeed had a strong addiction.
After such tossing about until dawn, they only rested a little. If his physique weren’t extraordinary, far beyond ordinary people, he truly risked being drained dry.
“What size would be enough then?”
Ran Yi massaged Shen Yanzhou’s brow gently, her voice soft. “Are you starting to get a headache?”
“Nothing to worry about. Soldiers block the soldiers; water is covered by earth.”
“Shen Jingxiao wouldn’t actually dare kill me, would he? If something happened to me now, His Majesty would immediately suspect him.” Shen Yanzhou shook his head, tone casual, as though it meant nothing.
The Scripture of Binding Yin and Fate had no effect on him at all.
He could clearly sense a thread of icy-cold qi lingering in his dantian and organs, yet as the Primordial Qi approached, that thread showed signs of dissolving.
Therefore, Shen Yanzhou controlled the Primordial Qi so it did not touch it—lest he dissolve it entirely.
From that thread of cold qi, he sensed the same origin as the aura on Ran Yi.
It was the pure yin internal force cultivated by the Scripture of Binding Yin and Fate. Ordinarily, it should have already coiled around his heart, slowly seeping into his soul.
Shen Jingxiao could kill Ran Yi by activating the death curse.
And once Ran Yi died, Shen Yanzhou would be implicated—his heart would burst instantly, his soul would melt.
No matter how strong a martial artist, once the heart shattered and the soul dissolved, there would be no body nor spirit left.
But to Shen Yanzhou, this was also another opportunity—to make Shen Jingxiao believe he had submitted.
“Now you regret it, don’t you?” Ran Yi sighed softly, heartache in her tone.
“I don’t regret it. If I had to choose again, I’d make the same choice.”
“But today, I need to return to the Demon Suppression Prince’s Mansion—to have a proper talk with my foster father.” Shen Yanzhou said.