Chapter 118: Hidden Beneath the Waters

No, absolutely not!

Just thinking about how his younger sister would openly show surprise, doubt, and even disgust… And how Bai Li, after a moment’s thought, would decide that since Baiqian could do it, she should join in too. Chu Huaizhou felt a sharp pain between his temples.

He had to admit that this scene had played out before. A familiar sense of déjà vu.

The previous times, someone had always arrived just in time to stop the chaos. But now that the situation had already been resolved perfectly, the rescue team was only just showing up. What were they trying to do?!

If possible, he wished they would both just go back!

Chu Huaizhou roared inwardly, but the voices outside continued to drift in.

“By the way, Bai Li, now that your big brother and Baiqian have left, why didn’t you follow them?”

“Meow, I… I still had some things to take care of, meow.”

“Besides, it was that person who first said he wanted to get some fresh air, and little Baiqian said the same a bit later, meow. They might not even be together, meow.”

Chu Huaizhou heard clearly, and veins seemed to bulge on his forehead.

Fine, fine, fine! *Hakubai*! So it was you who led them here!

He was truly speechless. Maybe in the future he should find the right opportunity to teach Bai Li how to handle certain situations.

But right now… how was he going to get through this?

The entire top-floor hot spring had only one exit. From the sound of footsteps, the two had already reached the stairs to the fifth floor. If he went out, he would almost certainly run right into them. Not to mention Bai Li’s fox nose, which could immediately sniff out something amiss. And the two weren’t blind—they would instantly see Xia Baiqian still soaking inside.

Going out directly was clearly not an option. Then hide? But where? There was an elegant, antique red bridge in the center of the spring, but it was entirely openwork; no matter where he hid, he would be seen.

It seemed the only choice was to hide underwater.

Chu Huaizhou took a deep breath and gently shook Xia Baiqian.

“Hmm? What’s wrong, Master~” She made a soft sound, lifting her head as if waking from a dream, her beautiful almond eyes gazing at him with loving affection.

Chu Huaizhou: “Baiqian, your master really wants to keep holding you.”

Chu Huaizhou: “But after all, it wouldn’t be good if our relationship got out. How about we hide it for now?”

Xia Baiqian: “Hmm, alright. I’ll listen to Master. But how will you hide? How about resting inside my Hundred Gu Refining Immortal Pot?”

Chu Huaizhou stared at her, a chill creeping up the back of his head. Given his disciple’s yandere tendencies, if he actually entered a space entirely under her control, getting out would be no easy feat. If those two outside discovered him, at worst it would just be social death and a loss of face. But going inside—that was a matter of life and death. At least right now, Xia Baiqian would definitely not let him out. Chu Huaizhou wasn’t naive enough to think that a few words and a hug could cure a mild yandere’s tendencies. That would be underestimating the feelings Xia Baiqian had hidden for centuries.

Weighing the options, he decided to use the Return Breath Technique to hide beneath the spring. Xia Baiqian didn’t refuse, but a flicker of disappointment flashed in her eyes before she quickly suppressed it. She summoned a Concealing Breath Gu, the same type as before, for her master. The hot spring itself was already difficult to probe, and with her Gu insect added, as long as Bai Li and Xu Mengdie didn’t search the depths carefully, they definitely wouldn’t find him.

“Squeak—” Finally, just before the two outside pushed the door open, Chu Huaizhou submerged himself underwater.

“Oh, Xiao Bai Li, Mengdie, what brings you here?” Xia Baiqian acted as if she had been completely engrossed, as if she hadn’t been pretending at all. Her Mahayana-stage control allowed her to instantly smooth the ripples on the water. She used the Gu insect to mask her master’s scent on her, and her complexion returned to normal from its rosy flush. She smoothed her slightly tousled cherry-pink hair and put on a perfectly surprised expression: “Mengdie, weren’t you supposed to be at a meeting? How did it end so quickly?”

“Don’t even get me started. Those useless Supreme Elders and Branch Masters are all cowardly to the bone.” Xu Mengdie waved a hand, instinctively making a sour face at the mention. “On one hand, they want to unite other sects to suppress Elder Brother, on the other, they’re terrified he’ll come with his sword. So they just went back and forth in circles. I got so annoyed I put an end to it and said, since that’s the case, let’s just maintain the status quo.”

“Neither offend the Tianyuan Sword Sect nor explicitly suppress it—just wait and see.”

Bai Li, for some reason, hadn’t reverted to her energy-saving fox form and remained humanoid. She walked in, her nostrils flaring, her willow-leaf brows furrowing in confusion. “Eh? I clearly smell the scent of a person in the air, but why don’t I see anyone?”

Xia Baiqian stood up in the hot spring, looking slightly shy. “Master was indeed here earlier, but when he saw me coming, he said that men and women shouldn’t be too close and left.” “I don’t know where he went.”

Xu Mengdie was puzzled. She raised her hand and waved a talisman, causing the originally invisible and formless Dao resonance in the air to materialize. Clearly visible were wisps of yellow smoke swirling around Xia Baiqian. Bai Li’s was pink, while her own only emitted a faint white mist. This was a sign of extremely high control over the Dao, able to release and retract at will. Indeed, there was no trace of Elder Brother’s Dao resonance, nor any outward leakage of normal spiritual pressure.

“Little… Little Bai Li, how are your nostrils so sharp?” Able to smell anything? It was just that lingering scents were detectable; a person who briefly passed by the stairs wouldn’t leave a trace.

Chu Huaizhou’s tension eased. It seemed they hadn’t discovered him. He hoped they would leave soon. Holding his breath underwater was extremely uncomfortable. After all, his reputation was that of the Sword Immortal Chu, who shook the world, dominated the land, and was like a banished immortal. He had just hidden under the bed once, and now he was using the same pose to hide again—it was too embarrassing.

What’s worse, the Celestial Nectar Spring was one of the three top-tier spiritual springs, on par with his own hot spring. As a mid-Yuan Ying stage cultivator with the soul memories of a late-Yuan Ying, his head was starting to feel bloated from soaking. He was being over-nourished, and his body was growing hot. Although it wasn’t life-threatening like absorbing Tu Tianyi’s remnant soul, the continuous intense nourishment made his soul feel tipsy, his body brimming with energy with no outlet. Looking at Xia Baiqian’s small jade-like feet, wrapped in white pantyhose, and her slender calves, with a hint of pink at the heel—it was like a premium strawberry ice cream! Chu Huaizhou’s cerebellum, pitifully, showed signs of a rising dragon.

Sigh, at least Baiqian hadn’t suddenly come up with any mischief.

Even Chu Huaizhou hadn’t expected her to be so obedient, not only hiding him but also considerately diverting the two away with her words. He had thought that, given Baiqian’s personality, she might invite them to join the hot spring and then take advantage of his immobility to do something bad. It seemed the hug and the talk therapy had worked remarkably well.

Chu Huaizhou thought that in a moment, Xia Baiqian would considerately lead the two away. But things didn’t seem to go as he expected.

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