Chapter 81 – Every Day the Protagonist Wants to Capture Me

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Chapter 81 – Extra: Bronze Mirror (1)

This chapter is by Lianyin of BC Novels.

After staying together in Fallen Maple Leaf Valley for several months, Chu Yu and Xie Xi decided to take a trip.

An astonished Chu Sheng was tearful. “Little brother has only returned for a few days. Why are you already going away and leaving big brother behind again…”

Xie Xi said coolly, “We have been accompanying you in Fallen Maple Leaf Valley for a long time. If you stop dragging shixiong to listen to you preach for several hours, then we don’t mind staying a little longer.”

Chu Yu gave a dry cough and clapped Xie Xi. “Big brother, we are also going out to search for Xuan Jing. Don’t worry, Xie Xi and I will return often.”

After a pause, he asked, “Young Master Fu hasn’t returned since he left last month. Big brother, did you… quarrel?”

At the mention of Fu Chongyi, Chu Sheng’s initially frosty expression softened. He shook his head with a smile and stroked Chu Yu’s hair. “He said that he wants to give me a surprise.”

It had not been easy for these two men to get together. Chu Yu could not help but sigh as he recalled how Fu Chongyi had been willing to give Chu Sheng his arm. After listening to Chu Sheng’s whispered instructions, he left Fallen Maple Leaf Valley with Xie Xi.

For Chu Sheng to agree to let him leave with Xie Xi… looked like he was slowly beginning to let go of him.

Chu Yu felt comforted.

They were already pretty familiar with Jiaoxia. The Chu clan was also quite close to Linlan. Chu Yu considered it for a moment, then headed in the direction towards Linlan.

Xie Xi naturally acquiesced to his wishes. The only thing was that he said that he started to “feel dizzy and weak” early on the day of departure. Thus, he attached himself behind Chu Yu and hugged him as he chuckled, refusing to release him no matter what.

Chu Yu was accustomed to this child’s clingy nature and let him have his way. After traveling for half a day, they crossed over into Linlan.

It was now spring. Life had begun to awaken, and everywhere below them was green and luxuriant; it was pleasant to look at. Chu Yu dropped into the mountain forest and held hands with Xie Xi as they took a leisurely stroll on the path.

Night descended swiftly upon them. Chu Yu did not intend to stay the night in the nearby town. Instead, he found a tent in his ring and was about to take it out when he glimpsed a bronze mirror in the corner of his spacial ring.

This bronze mirror had been inconspicuous as it lay quietly in the corner, but now, it was emitting white light as if something was going to gush out of it.

Chu Yu uttered a sound of surprise and considered it for a moment. He then smacked himself on the head as he recalled.

This was… the bronze mirror that he had picked up during that year in the mausoleum ruins when he broke through and left the imaginary realm in Xie Xi’s mind. He had forgotten about it all these years, but now it was suddenly shining. What was this about? Could it be that there was something sealed in it?

Chu Yu hurriedly took the bronze mirror out and briefed Xie Xi on it. Both of them placed the mirror a zhang[1] away in front of them and stared intently at it.
[1] 丈 measure of length, about ten Chinese feet

After a while, the light gradually weakened. Vague images appeared on the surface of the mirror and then gradually cleared up. There were even voices coming from it—

“… As you have just seen, those who are from Tian Yuan Sect are mean, wimpy, and love to screw people up. They all like to indulge in histrionics.”

… Why did it sound so familiar?
　　
Chu Yu blanked out for a moment. He was about to turn and ask Xie Xi when Xie Xi raised his eyebrows and asked in surprise, “Shixiong?”

Chu Yu, “Huh?”

Xie Xi pointed to the bronze mirror with a dubious expression. “That was shixiong’s voice.”

At the same time, the image on the mirror’s surface cleared up.

Chu Yu and Xie Xi looked intently and saw a scene in the mirror—there was a handsome young man dressed in a white satin robe quietly sitting in a cross-legged position in a small dome that was glowing with golden light. His expression was indifferent, and his slightly narrowed eyes stared at a man with a nefarious aura.

There was a buzzing noise in Chu Yu’s head.

Xie Xi looked stunned.

Both of them, particularly Xie Xi who had been deepening his understanding of Chu Yu every day, were all too familiar with the two people in this scene, especially the youth within the golden dome — it was Chu Yu.

The other was Wei Ciyin.

The more Chu Yu looked on, the more he found that this scene seemed familiar. Suddenly, the sky went from dim to pitch black, turning their surroundings dark. Golden snakes soon began their frenzied dance among the dark mess of clouds, as if it were the apocalypse.

… Hold on! 　　

Chu Yu’s eyes widened. As expected, he saw Wei Ciyin gave a carefree smile as he said, “Are you really going to sit here for ten years? Although the golden dome is a powerful defensive treasure, it remains to be seen if it can fully protect you from danger in the mausoleum ruins.”

The color drained from Xie Xi’s face. “Shixiong, is, is this the mausoleum ruins?”

Chu Yu pursed his lips and took the bronze mirror into his hand. He smiled gently. “Don’t look.”

If he was not wrong, the bronze mirror that he had been carrying with him had been recording him daily ever since the mausoleum ruins. He did not know if it had started to replay because it had hit its memory limit or something…

Which damn ancient cultivation elder had been so bored and innovative to refine such a treasure?

The scene in the bronze mirror… It was better not to let Xie Xi see. Although there had been Shen Nian to guide him, the beginning in the mausoleum ruins had still been tough for him. It would only make this child depressed; the crybaby would surely dissolve in tears.

Chu Yu might have looked calm, but Xie Xi was frowning. He had the jitters just when thinking about the scene earlier in the mirror. There was no way he could just let it go. He pursed his lips and watched as Chu Yu calmly put the bronze mirror back into his ring. He did not ask him for it.

Chu Yu gave a cough and was about to tell Xie Xi to let bygones be bygones when Xie Xi picked him up in a princess carry and strode into the tent.

The inside of the tent was covered with a thick blanket. Without saying anything else, Xie Xi set up a barrier and pinned Chu Yu down under him. In just a few strokes, he skilfully stripped Chu Yu’s clothes off, kissed his lips, and began to deepen his understanding of Chu Yu again.

Chu Yu was puzzled. He did not understand why the Xie Xi of tonight was going at it so many times compared to the past; he never stopped kissing and caressing Chu Yu, and his actions were not that gentle either.

Chu Yu was worn out after they had been at it for the latter half of the night and fell right into slumber. On seeing him sleep, Xie Xi carried him to the side to clean him up. After covering him with a quilt, he reached out to touch Chu Yu’s storage ring.

There was a prohibition seal on Chu Yu’s interspatial storage ring.

After a pause, Xie Xi lowered his eyes and looked guiltily at the sleeping Chu Yu. Turning his back, he successfully broke through the barrier of the ring and searched inside it. When he found the bronze mirror, he slipped out of the tent.

The scene in the mirror had long switched over. The Chu Yu who was inside was sitting on a boulder and counting his fingers idly. “… It has been three years. Elder Shen, have you recall where the array to leave the mausoleum ruins is?”

Shen Nian scoffed. “It’s not that easy. As a junior, can’t you show more understanding of this old man? I’ve been drifting for a hundred years and have forgotten many things. You should be thankful that I can still remember which direction to go.”

Three years had already passed inside? It looks like the time taken for the scene to change was much faster than in reality.

Xie Xi blinked. Leaning against the tent, he held the bronze mirror with both hands and stared fixedly at Chu Yu inside the mirror.

Chu Yu gazed at the gloomy sky in the mausoleum ruins with a faraway look on his face. He suddenly sighed as if he had thought of something. “I wonder how Xie Xi is… He should be fine… three years is surely long enough for him to forget me.”

Shen Nian asked. “Xie Xi? Is that the shidi you often mentioned? Tsk, it’s clear that you miss him all the time. You care about him so much, why are you still hoping for him to forget you?”

Chu Yu looked conflicted. “… You’re too old to understand.”

Xie Xi felt a stab of pain in his heart. He vaguely recalled some memories from that year. The blow of not knowing Chu Yu’s fate in the mausoleum ruins had been too great for him. He could only vaguely remember Chu Yu lying to make him leave the mausoleum ruins, but he could not remember much of what had happened after they had gone into the ruins.

Xie Xi inexplicably felt terrible as he stared at the smiling Chu Yu in the scene. He rubbed his forehead. The vague images in his brain were clearing up. His hands shook, and he nearly dropped the bronze mirror.

He looked blankly at the bronze mirror. His tears inadvertently fell, and the world before him blurred.

The conversation in the mirror continued.

“Why? From what you have said, did that shidi of yours make you angry?”

“It’s not that either…” Chu Yu pondered over it. He felt that the reason for all this was because he had nurtured the protagonist gay. Ashamed, he said, “It was actually my fault. My shidi… I’ll never be truly angry with him.”

He was the protagonist after all. Who would dare to be angry with him…

On hearing this, Xie Xi’s tears gushed even more.

Feeling bitter and anguished, he wiped his eyes but realized that the scene in the mirror had changed yet again. The earlier lively Chu Yu was now collapsed on the floor. He looked as if he was dying as he appeared to be losing consciousness.

Before him was a vast swaying sea of flowers. There was a smiling face on each of the flowers as they spewed out thin wisps of purple air. It was obvious at first glance that these things were nothing good, and it was also apparent that Chu Yu had fallen into the trap. Shen Nian bellowed. “Hey, hey! Kiddo! Get up! Get up quickly if you don’t want to be eaten!”

With some difficulty, Chu Yu opened his eyes. His brows were tightly knitted as he gasped for breath and slowly crawled away in another direction.

One of the human-faced flowers suddenly moved with the wind and lowered its head to bite Chu Yu’s hand.

Chu Yu gasped in pain, and his tears nearly fell. Clenching his teeth, he drew Xun Sheng and slashed it. That human-faced flower seemed to have intelligence and immediately retreated to dodge the blow.

Chu Yu was then sprawled on the ground, immobile; it was as if wielding his sword had sapped all his energy. The human-faced flowers stirred and lowered their heads to bite him. However, they did not tear his skin and flesh apart on the first bite. They simply bit down on his flesh, as if tasting him.

Xie Xi’s heart ached like hell. With clenched teeth and reddened eyes, he stared fixedly at those human-faced flowers as the murderous intent in his eyes intensified.

But right at that moment, the scene changed again. Chu Yu was riding his sword in high spirits. He seemed elated, and the smile on his lips and brows dissipated that frosty aura around him. The sky was blue. It looked like he had left the mausoleum ruins.

Xie Xi’s terrible mood eased off as he looked at Chu Yu’s smile. With a gentle gaze, he looked on as Chu Yu put on a lazy expression that he would not usually reveal. After a while, Chu Yu’s expression took on a sorrowful turn as he mumbled to himself. “… No. I don’t know if Xie Xi has calmed down yet… After all these years, he shouldn’t be angry anymore… That won’t do. What if we meet and he stabbed me in a moment of agitation? I’d better not meet him yet.”

What?

Xie Xi’s eyes widened in a glare. He nearly laughed out in anger. So Chu Yu had actually been worried that Xie Xi would be angry, that was why he had fled the moment he saw Xie Xi?

Xie Xi had not initially been angry at that time. All he had felt when he saw Chu Yu was the excitement and ecstasy of recovering what he had lost. He had never expected Chu Yu to take to his heels. That had then infuriated him so much that he was dizzy with anger and almost coughed out blood.

After ten years of absence, Chu Yu had fled as soon as they met. He was so furious he wanted to break Chu Yu’s legs all at once. But in the end, he could not bear to do it, so he did not do so.

It did not take long for Xie Xi to appear on the scene.

It was intriguing to see himself appear in the mirror. That was until he saw himself trick and bind Chu Yu to the bed. When he saw himself gently stroking a stunned Chu Yu’s back, Xie Xi suddenly sighed. “… Why did I suddenly go soft in the heart back then? I should have just devoured shixiong in one go.”

He was so intent on watching that he did not realize that the sky had long brightened. It was probably past noon. He could not help but let out a gentle smile as he watched Chu Yu at a loss as he met up with Lu Qingan and the others. Suddenly, a vague sound came from the tent as if a certain someone had discovered no one beside him after waking up.

It was then that Xie Xi returned to his senses. Looking at the mirror, he considered for a moment. When he recalled that Chu Yu had been accompanying him ever since he had emerged from the mausoleum ruins, he felt reassured enough to keep the mirror. Lifting the screen of the tent, he went in, just in time to see Chu Yu propping himself up from the bed with a slight frown on his face.

The quilt had slid down and exposed his body. Because he had not been sleeping well, his inner garment had fallen open, revealing many of yesterday’s traces.

Xie Xi looked deeply at him. All he could think about was the scenes that he had seen in the mirror.

His arrogant and untainted eldest shixiong.

For him… he had been confined in that kind of place, groping around and going through life and death situations.

Yet, Chu Yu had never once mentioned how life had been in the mausoleum ruins. Not once had he ever uttered a word of his hardships.

It was as if he had been born to be good to him.

Chu Yu was not fully awake yet and his eyes were slightly closed, so he did not notice the countless thoughts that had flashed through Xie Xi’s mind in the span of a few breaths. After being at a loss for a while, he finally sobered. He blinked and looked up at Xie Xi who was blankly standing beside the tent. Curious, he asked, “Shidi, what are you doing?”

Whenever he had woke up in the past, wouldn’t Xie Xi be holding him tightly in an embrace and smiling at him with his chin propped up?

Xie Xi’s actions last night were too merciless. Chu Yu had been so terribly tormented that his voice was still hoarse. It sounded somewhat… seductive.

Xie Xi strode towards him without a word, pulling apart his lapels as he pinned Chu Yu beneath him. He met Chu Yu’s astounded eyes and recalled the various scenes he saw in the mirror. With his heart aching, he lowered his head to kiss Chu Yu tenderly.

Chu Yu could only gasp for breath after that long, lingering kiss. Before he managed to catch his breath, Xie Xi pressed down on him until there were no gaps between them. Startled, Chu Yu gritted his teeth and said, “Xie Xi, are you mad? What drug did you take last night? Haven’t you had enough?”

Xie Xi paused and kissed his forehead. He murmured, “Shixiong, I think I have not treated you well enough.”

Chu Yu grunted sullenly and squirmed uncomfortably. “… Then do you think you’re treating me well now? Rascal… I just want to rest for a moment.”

Xie Xi smiled sulkily and said nothing.

Chu Yu held Xie Xi’s face in his hands and asked in puzzlement, “What’s wrong with you? Did you have a nightmare? Don’t let your imagination run wild.”

“It’s nothing. It’s just that I suddenly have an appetite for fish. Shixiong is especially delicious.”

Chu Yu gave up struggling and looked at Xie Xi, who was smiling brilliantly. He went weak all over. “… Get out.”

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Reika’s Notes:

• This is the first extra chapter. 🙂 I hope you liked it.
• Sneaky Xie Xi!
• Poor Chu Yu suffered a lot in the Mausoleum Ruins.
• This chapter is by Lianyin of BC Novels.
• Please let me know if there are any errors.
• Thanks for reading.

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