Chapter 35

Translated by boilpoil Edited by boilpoil

Zhong Xiutang is too obviously depressed that Bai Lianhua can’t even ignore it.

While complaining in his mind about how moody the antagonists are, he still starts to ask, “what is it? Something wrong?”

Zhong Xiutang nods, “such a simple thanks is too little.”

Bai Lianhua “???” What’s this sudden ominous premonition?

He asks, dryly, “then what do you want?”

At the same time, Zhong Xiutang is also asking himself – true. What do I want?

——I want you to stay forever.

… Will it ever work if he does ask, though?

Staring at Bai Lianhua, he has an idea. He remembers how in those tales of the storytellers that he used to scoff at, there are these cliché plot points that often occur if it involves a human and a supernatural being.

If only… he could become something special in Bai Lianhua’s heart too.

Zhong Xiutang suddenly approaches Bai Lianhua and lightly kisses him on the lips… It’s almost like an illusion. Bai Lianhua can see Zhong Xiutang’s face right in front of him, and his brain can clearly conclude what he’s done, but there was no actual feeling of contact .

It’s like either he’s kissed the air, or he’s hallucinating.

The scene is so unsettling that Bai Lianhua widens his eyes in surprise; in fact, he doesn’t feel the romantic subtext at all.

Bai Lianhua’s unchanging expression is essentially a wet towel slapped onto Zhong Xiutang. He backs off and chastises himself with a smirk… What a disagreeable situation. Why did he have to be an evil spirit? He’s worse than those monsters that can apparently shapeshift into humans, and be able to actually touch Bai Lianhua.

Zhong Xiutang tries to suppress his current hatred of his own identity as an evil spirit. This kind of disidentification of self would reduce the denseness of the demonic aura on him.

It’s the same as last time. He really just wanted to make Bai Lianhua see a better, more satisfying him. In the end, he only managed to lose him completely. Hasn’t he learned his lesson yet?

Bai Lianhua wants to soothe him, and he wants to keep Bai Lianhua. Whether his demonic aura dissipates or not is what decides the winner of this competition.

So Bai Lianhua sees Zhong Xiutang becoming even more depressed. He even cancels his projection and hides back into the Sword.

Bai Lianhua “???” So you just kissed me, and then ran away. What kind of new harassment is this?

Hello? I’m supposed to be the one who’s shocked here? How did you end up acting like the one who’s spooked and went back hiding into the Sword of Inverse Springs?

I’m already quite perplexed thinking about what I did the first time I came to this world to have even maniacally romantically attracted a sword to warrant the kiss, even suspecting whether my current set of memories are fake, and then Mr. antagonist you… you’ve made me start to question my entire sense of self.

The system looks completely down in the dumps. Its voice sounds like it squeezed it out of its throat, “what else could it be… Because the antagonist has been hurt by your expression! Like, host, can’t you always remember your character setting and give some appropriately awkward and lightly scared reaction?”

“How did that saying go… It’s that gentleness of lowering once head that most resemble the coyness of a lotus shaking lightly in the breeze?”

“Coy, my host! C●o●y!”

Bai Lianhua “…” Emm… You’re kidding this white lotus here, right? Excuse me for being unable to put up such an embarrassing act in the face of this supernatural occurrence.

Not just pointing out “you’re scaring me” directly is already me saving face for the antagonist, alright?

…

Crouching alone in the remote forests is quite boring, Bai Lianhua has to admit.

The repeating scenery gets dull quite quickly. So he just shifts his attention back onto the Sword of Inverse Springs.

Right now it’s struck into the ground at an angle. It might be quiet but the cold blade makes it quite obvious what an uncanny weapon it is.

Uh, right, there’s no sheath.

… Since the Sword flew right out of Lei Kuiliang’s room after it’s unsheathed, and it wasn’t resheathed later——But Bai Lianhua understands that Zhong Xiutang doesn’t really care about the sheath either. Since it was smithed, for various reasons the sword has had countless sheaths. For Zhong Xiutang, the sheath has never been a part of the Sword of Inverse Springs. He’s a long sword that needs blood; sheaths are only obstacles to that end.

Still, the Sword appears to be reflective without a speck of dust——Uh, this is another thing the Sword of Inverse Springs is famous for. That is, no matter how much blood is splattered onto it, it can always clean itself and go back to being as clean as it was.

But when Bai Lianhua recalls how Lei Kuiliang and Wu Hechui’s blood has been splattered onto it, he still wants to scrub it… He’s bored, so he might as well find something to do.

Bai Lianhua gets to work and tears a piece of clean fabric, pulls out the Sword with some force, and then starts rubbing it lightly.

Bai Lianhua is extremely focused. The moment he’s done and he turns his head around for a stretch, he finally discovers that Zhong Xiutang who inexplicably went back into the Sword has decided to come out and seems to have stood behind him for a while.

Bai Lianhua “…” So Zhong Xiutang has decided to quit being an evil spirit and become a guardian spirit ?

Zhong Xiutang doesn’t seem to feel awkward at all that he’s discovered. Instead, he asks him with a displeased tone, “what are you rubbing? Do you think the blood earlier was dirty?”

No matter how dense Bai Lianhua could be at times, it’s quite obvious from this tone that he can never say yes in this tone. So he acts dumb.

“Then I’m sorry. Since I’ve been smithed who knows how much blood there’s ever been on my blade. I’m probably as sullied as I could ever be… Even the hilt you’re holding onto right now is not that clean either.”

“In any case, for me, this murderous scent is the most delicious.”

And he’s also long since used to it.

His past owners all liked how the Sword looked when drenched in blood. They thought this is the way to live up to the infamous reputation this legendary weapon carried. There’s even someone that’s actually drained their enemies’ blood and submerged the Sword of Inverse Springs in it.

He’s an evil sword. There’s been the blood of countless people on it.

Bai Lianhua doesn’t respond… And it makes Zhong Xiutang more and more anxious. So he just sniggers, “if you mind it that much, just throw it away.”

But whether he really can get rid of him entirely when he throws it away is another matter entirely.

——If he’s really abandoned a second time, not even Zhong Xiutang is certain what he would actually do.

Bai Lianhua is still quiet. He seems to have stumbled upon the core of Zhong Xiutang’s stubbornness here.

So after a while, he asks, “you’ve said I’m your only master before. Does this still count?”

Zhong Xiutang chuckles, “why? Of course you are to me.”

——But perhaps not to you… I’m afraid you don’t want to be my master at all.

“Then good.” Bai Lianhua pauses, and resumes his scrubbing, before lifting his head to continue asking, “just now you said I think blood is dirty. Then what about you, do you think blood is dirty?”

Zhong Xiutang is stupefied for a moment trying to work out the logic in what Bai Lianhua is saying, during which he answers, “it’s both dirty and mesmerising.”

Bai Lianhua seems to fall into thought for a moment before asking another surprising question, “then is my blood dirty?”

“… No.”

Zhong Xiutang’s thoughts digress. He’s been with him for long enough to know his true self. If his blood is also dirty, then is there truly anyone clean in this world?

So he smiles, and his face almost looks malicious, “not only is it not dirty, it’s pure. I’ve not experienced it myself, but I’m sure it’s special.”

“Ah, right, perhaps it can even purify stuff. Isn’t that how the stories go about it in those storybooks on the market?”

And yet, beyond Zhong Xiutang’s wildest imaginations, Bai Lianhua is nodding along.

He casually slashes the Sword of Inverse Springs against his arm deeply without hesitation. Then he aligns it with his wound. He drenches the whole blade of the Sword with his own fresh blood.

Zhong Xiutang is enraged, but he’s unable to stop it. He’s just verbally reaffirmed Bai Lianhua’s identity as his master, and their contract is currently at its peak strength. When Bai Lianhua is holding the Sword in his hand, he’s unable to stop his master at all.

Bai Lianhua looks calmly at him, “alright, now it’s drenched in my blood.”

“Not the blood of some random enemy. It’s the blood of the master you recognised, and it’s not dirty.”

“It doesn’t seem to be any good at purifying, though.”

——No, it is.

Zhong Xiutang appears dazed. The Sword of Inverse Springs has taken countless lives, and he thought he has long since adapted to the feeling of flesh and veins being sliced open… But this is different.

This is the first time he’s ever truly felt the temperature of the physical body of Bai Lianhua. It feels as if he is thrown back into the kiln for reforging, being swallowed up in flames, being turned into mush to disappear completely.

It’s scalding hot. Bai Lianhua’s blood is scalding hot.

Zhong Xiutang doesn’t know whether he’s being purified, but what he does feel is as if the feeling of one’s meat and bones decomposing and shedding layer by layer.

He wants to approach Bai Lianhua and heal him. He can’t, though. He’s an evil spirit, with a great amount of demonic aura. The only technique he can’t execute is the art of healing.

His corporeal representation that can actually touch Bai Lianhua’s body is itself the evilest weapon in the entire world, and it’s just sliced him too. He would be hurt more severely if it gets closer to him.

He should at least feel glad that Bai Lianhua didn’t aim the Sword right at his own heart.

Zhong Xiutang is unable to stop his self-degradation of him both as an evil sword and an evil spirit——Nor has he ever felt as much before in his life that, Bai Lianhua is the sharpest sword of them all, that is snapping him into piece after piece.

His voice is throaty and gravelly. He repeats what he’s just said, “it’s useful. It is very useful.”

He locks his eyes with Bai Lianhua’s while he’s trembling. He’s defeated; his steps are wobbling as he returns back into the Sword.

This time the blood on the blade isn’t quickly shed away. The whole Sword still looks like it’s completely covered in blood, and incidentally looks even more like an evil sword now than before.

Bai Lianhua tries rubbing his hand on it and then gets confused——He can’t remove the stains from the Sword?

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