Wu Jian stared up at the ceiling in a daze. He had just gotten out of the bath after having spent maybe three hours inside. Only about fifteen minutes of those three hours had been spent getting clean. The rest of the time had been spent getting dirty.

Very dirty.

He glanced down at the woman on his chest. Hou Jingshu refused to look at him. Her head was buried against his skin. She was pressing her nose into him.

“Are you really that embarrassed about what happened?”

“O-of course I am! You would be too if it happened to you!”

“Well… maybe, yeah.”

“You should have been gentler with me.”

“You were the one who kept goading me on, if you’ll recall. I don’t really think it was my fault… but it’s not really a big deal, you know?”

Hou Jingshu finally looked up to glare at him. “Not a big deal? It’s a huge deal! What would people say if they knew about what happened? I’d become a laughing stock! People would probably give me a humiliating nickname like Princess Piss Herself! I would never be able to outlive my shame!”

“But… it’s not like anyone else but me will ever know, and I’m not gonna tell anyone.”

“That’s hardly the point. I’m so embarrassed. I just want to die.” Hou Jingshu groaned as she buried her face into his chest again.

During their time in the bath, Hou Jingshu and Wu Jian had gone at it so hard that the Shang Kingdom Princess had, well, an accident. She had urinated during her last orgasm. He didn’t even know things like that happened, but that just went to show he was woefully ignorant when it came to matters of sex. Hou Jingshu had been so ashamed of herself that she’d tried to run out of the bathing room, only for her legs to not respond to her wishes. Wu Jian had to carry her out of the bathing room.

It was a really good thing the bathing attached to the guest room was walled off from the rest of the palace. None of the servants were able to see a naked Wu Jian carrying an equally naked Hou Jingshu to his bedroom. The princess had wanted to return to her own room because she was too embarrassed in his presence, but that was impossible since she couldn’t move and it would have caused people to ask questions if they saw him carrying her. In either event, Wu Jian didn’t really want to leave Hou Jingshu alone right now.

He sighed and began stroking Hou Jingshu’s hair. “I’m sorry. It’s hard for me to understand what you’re going through, but I guess I’d also be embarrassed if something similar happened to me. I hope you know I’m not making fun of you.”

“…”

“Jingshu?”

“… Are you not disgusted with me? You know, for…”

“I’m not, nor will I ever be disgusted with you…” He trailed off. “Well, I suppose I might be if you craped on me or something.”

“That’s disgusting.”

“It is, which is why I said I would be disgusted.” Wu Jian leaned forward and pressed his lips to Hou Jingshu’s forehead. “But I didn’t find this gross.”

Hou Jingshu raised her head to look back up at him. She searched his face, though he didn’t know what she was looking for.

“Really?”

“Really?”

“You really mean that?”

“I really do.”

She searched his face some more before leaning forward and kiss him. Wu Jian placed his hands on Hou Jingshu’s butt as she opened her mouth, deepening their kiss. Her tongue was shy and tentative. She started breathing more heavily and pulled back.

“We… we shouldn’t… I’m already so sore…” she mumbled between heavy breaths.

“Mmm. I think you’re right. I’m not sure I can get it up anymore anyway,” Wu Jian said, only to pause when something began poking through Hou Jingshu’s thighs.

She gave him a dry look. “You were saying?”

“Well… he sometimes has a mind of his own.”

Wu Jian used some meditative exercises to calm himself down. Breathe in. Breathe out. Let go of worldly thoughts and desires. That was all he could do to cool the heat in his loins.

He had no idea his libido was so high. He knew that male cultivators would often have a high libido due to the excess energy they gained from chi, but he had never heard of it being this bad before. Even Huǒ Shuchang was not this horny.

“I spoke with Yu Chenguang before coming over here,” Hou Jingshu said, as though to divert the topic to something less stimulating.

“Oh? About what?” asked Wu Jian.

She drew circles on his chest. Her long index finger caused goosebumps to form on his skin.

“About your enrollment in the Shang Kingdom Imperial Academy. He said everything is ready for you to enter. Fortunately, the enrollment period is a day after the auction, so you’ll be able to enter like a normal cultivator. It would set a bad precedent if it looked like the Shang Kingdom was giving you preferential treatment since our reputation has always been with how we treat everyone equally.”

So he would enroll in the academy immediately after the auction? He was okay with that. Wu Jian felt like he had been very lax in his training these past few days, and he was worried about losing his edge. Once this auction was over and he was enrolled, he would need to train harder than ever. It was imperative that he become as strong as possible before the Shang Kingdom National Tournament.

“I understand. I’ll be looking forward to joining you at the academy.” He smiled. “We can train together like old times.”

“Yes.” Hou Jingshu shared his smile, but then frowned as she sat up. “I should probably go now. I’m sure the maids who come to check on me are wondering where I am by now.”

He reached out and grabbed her hand before she could leave. She frowned at him, but he shook his head and pulled her back into bed.

“Stay the night,” he said simply.

“But I can’t… if they find out where I’ve gone…”

“It’s an open secret by this point. I don’t think there’s a single person who doesn’t know we’re sharing a bed, and you already got your father’s blessing, right? Just stay with me.”

“… Okay. I will.”

Hou Jingshu laid her head back down on his chest, and Wu Jian stroked her hair until she fell asleep. The moonlight streaming in through the window bathed them in a silver halo.

***

Zhou Lihua took several deep breaths. It was early morning, the sun had just risen, and she was standing before the doors to the head of the Zhou Family’s Shang Kingdom branch office. She had been called early this morning. It had been a very long time since she had been called to meet with their leader. The last time had been when she first arrived.

Finally, she knocked on the door.

“Come in,” came a voice.

“Excuse me,” she said after opening the door.

She carefully shut the door behind her and walked forward, hands clasped at her front. Rather than offering the traditional bow of a martial artist, she offered the subservient bow of a maidservant. The man before her did not take to women using the martial arts bow well.

“I’ve come, as you have requested, Lord Chaoxian.”

Zhou Chaoxiang was the head of the Zhou Family’s entire Shang Kingdom operation. Every branch within the kingdom answered to him. Unlike her father, who was a mere branch member, this man was from the main family. He was what many in the family would call a pureblood. That was one of the reasons she felt so nervous in his presence.

The other reason was his appearance. While his thin face and long silver hair gave him a scholarly appearance, his sharp eyes and strict demeanor gave him the aura of a ready to be drawn sword. He spoke with a sharp tone that furthered this feeling. She felt like she might get cut simply listening to him talk.

“Zhou Lihua, sit down over there,” the man said, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk.

“Yes, My Lord.”

Zhou Lihua sat down and waited for the man to speak, but he did not do so for several long seconds. She tried not to squirm. This man made her feel naked and vulnerable. It was like he could see right through her.

“I have heard that your talent in alchemy has returned,” he said at last.

“Yes, My Lord.”

“I’ve also heard that a masked man has been hanging around you.”

“… That is correct.”

“I do not need to tell you to be careful of who you spend your time with, do I?”

“… Are you telling me not to see him anymore?”

“Did I say you cannot see him? I merely said you should be careful about who you spend time with. If you believe there are no issues, then I won’t press the subject--provided you do not give yourself to this man. We have no idea who he is even after looking into him, and I do not dare trust someone I can’t find any information on.”

The Zhou Family’s information network was vast. As the only family who had holdings and influence in every nation, they created a network that allowed them to gather information from all across the continent. Getting information on a single rogue cultivator should have been a simple task. The fact that they had nothing on Wu Jian was obviously a cause for concern.

“Please, rest assured, Lord Chaoxiang. I won’t do anything reckless,” Zhou Lihua said.

“Good. Onto the next topic then. I also heard you have acquired several rare and powerful items that you wished to auction off,” he said.

“The one who actually found them was Princess Hou Jingshu. She said they came from the White Tiger Sect Ruins. I offered to present them for the upcoming auction on her behalf,” Zhou Lihua gently corrected.

Zhou Chaoxiang furrowed his brow. It was such a severe look that Zhou Lihua worried she had stepped out of line, but he nodded after a moment.

“It is good that you have become such a good friend of the Shang Kingdom’s princess. While the Zhou Family is unable to interfere in the policies of other nations, having strong connections to the royal family can benefit us in many ways.”

I didn’t befriend her so you could benefit from it, Zhou Lihua thought. She didn’t dare express this thought out loud.

“We have already begun sending out invitations and received several replies from prominent alchemists who are interested in the ingredient for the Three-Layered Red Yin-Yang Pill. Quite a few from other nations will also be arriving within the next few days. Because of the reception we have received, we have decided to delay the auction by two more weeks, to give everyone time to arrive. This could be big. If we play our cards right, we could increase our reputation significantly in the eyes of our leader.”

The Zhou Family head was a mysterious individual whom very few people had ever met. His name was Zhou Chaoqie. Zhou Lihua had only heard rumors about the man. Some people said he was one of the most powerful individuals in the world, the man second closest to becoming a god. Others said he was already a god and just disliked getting involved with mortals. No one actually knew the truth. Those who had met him never said anything, leaving only rumors to circulate.

Their family was quite unusual. They were the only family with a main and branch family, and they were also the largest family on the continent. Their clan head was also the leader of Divine Moon Hall.

Each branch family head was in charge of a specific city, and members of the main family ruled over the operations within a kingdom. Those who governed national policy were not called Lord Zhou--a title that referred specifically to the clan head--and were instead referred to by their “Lord” followed by their given name. This would often be considered rude, but the family had made this a policy to distinguish their head from everyone else.

“Since you are the one who offered us the most prized items to auction, I will also have you be the one who presents them,” Zhou Chaoxiang

“Me… My Lord?”

“Yes. Is there a problem?”

“No. I am just surprised. I will do my best not to disappoint you.”

“See to it that you do not.”

Recognizing a dismissal when she saw it, Zhou Lihua bowed once more, then left. She closed the door behind her and walked away. Only after turning a corner did she allow her knees to buckle. She leaned against the wall, pressed a hand to her chest, and took several breaths to calm down.

What a terrifying man, she thought to herself. Truly, those from the main family were a different breed from branch families like hers.