Overjoyed by her consent, Li Xuan brought the basin over and placed it at her feet. He cradled her feet as if they were priceless treasures, then carefully removed her shoes.
Chu Qingyi frowned, sensing the impropriety of the situation, but recalling the earlier events, she held her tongue. Resigned, she closed her eyes, preferring not to witness what was to come.
The fairy's feet carried no unpleasant odor; instead, they emitted a faint, refreshing fragrance that soothed the senses.
This was Li Xuan's first close encounter with the Fairy Qingyi, and with her delicate feet no less. The excitement was almost unbearable—his heart pounded wildly.
One by one, he peeled off her white socks, revealing a pair of exquisitely slender feet. Ten dainty toes stretched gracefully, and the fragrance grew more pronounced.
He yearned to press his lips to those jade-like toes and savor each one, but fearing her anger, he suppressed the urge fiercely.
With her eyes shut, Chu Qingyi was enveloped in darkness, making the sensations from her feet all the more vivid. As Li Xuan moved, a tingling, numbing sensation spread from her soles—a strange mix of discomfort and unexpected pleasure. Especially when his youthful hands brushed against her skin, it felt like tiny electric currents dancing across her body, radiating warmth throughout.
Li Xuan held her feet in his palms, marveling at them as if they were rare gems. Truly, she was a fairy—even her feet were irresistibly alluring, like flawless works of art crafted by nature, impossible to let go.
Freeing one hand, he tested the water's temperature, then scooped a handful and gently trickled it over her feet. The clear liquid slid down her smooth instep, dripping back into the basin.
The moment the water touched her feet, Chu Qingyi shivered slightly. An odd sensation traveled from her soles—she couldn't tell whether the water was too warm or Li Xuan's palms were too fervent.
After repeating this a few times, Li Xuan immersed both feet in the basin, causing the water to ripple and rise just above her ankles.
He crouched on the ground, his tender hands reaching into the basin, gently caressing the jade-like feet. With careful attention around the ankles, the smooth and delicate skin sent a tremor through his heart, like clear water rippling in the basin.
The fairy's feet were not warm like those of ordinary people; instead, they carried a chill.
Li Xuan's hands were enveloped by the slightly scalding water, yet his palms felt a distinct coldness. The contrasting sensations of ice and fire brought a unique experience to his touch, igniting a powerful thrill within him that made the unyielding bulge between his legs rise defiantly, tenting his trousers.
Guiltily, he glanced at Chu Qingyi and found her beautiful eyes tightly shut, completely unaware of his predicament. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Still, he was crouching low, and from her angle, the awkward bulge at his crotch would likely remain unnoticed.
Li Xuan focused intently on washing the jade-like feet, feeling as though everything before him was an illusory dream. He had initially thought the distance between him and the Fairy Qingyi would only grow wider, yet now, in just a moment, he found himself cradling and caressing her delicate feet in his hands!
If all of this were but an illusion, he would gladly remain in this beautiful dream forever, never to awaken.
Yet the glaring, snow-white purity before him starkly reminded him—this was no dream!
He was truly, palpably touching the fairy's jade feet!
How could Li Xuan, who had long yearned for the fairy, not be exhilarated? His hands trembled slightly in the basin of water. Were it not for fear of alerting Chu Qingyi, he might have already been dancing with excitement.
In contrast to Li Xuan's exhilaration, Chu Qingyi's heart was a turmoil of conflicting emotions. Aside from her parents, her feet had almost never been touched by anyone—not even her husband, Li Ye.
But now, her adoptive son, a mere fifteen-year-old youth, was freely caressing them!
What astonished her even more was that she felt no urge to resist. Instead, a strange sense of pleasure began to stir within her.
His youthful palms made contact with the soles of her feet, stroking and kneading incessantly. The warmth from his hands enveloped her petite, slender feet, evoking an indescribable comfort that made her want to let out a soft moan.
A wave of shame washed over her, yet the words to stop him lodged in her throat, impossible to utter.
Unaware of the profound impact his actions had left on Chu Qingyi's heart, Li Xuan remained wholly absorbed in her feet. He meticulously caressed each delicate, translucent toe, moving from left to right, using two fingers to gently knead them, occasionally tracing the spaces between with his fingertips.
"Mmm…" A faint, almost imperceptible moan escaped Chu Qingyi's lips, so quiet she herself hardly noticed.
The warmth on her sensitive toes sent a jolt like an electric current racing through her body, causing every cell to tremble and pulse with excitement. Even the meridians within her seemed to stir, glowing faintly with a pale blue light.
The core immortal energy in her heart, usually calm and steady, grew unusually active without any prompting, swirling rapidly above her heart and forming a small vortex. The energy hummed rhythmically within, brimming with delight.
Pure and inexperienced as a blank sheet of paper, Chu Qingyi had never felt anything like this before. She closed her eyes and surrendered to the sensation, letting go of all previous shame and aversion. The stimulation from her feet swept through her like a whirlwind, leaving pure, unadulterated pleasure in its wake.
In the dark, silent night, within a simple and dilapidated room illuminated by the flickering glow of a dim candle, a breathtakingly beautiful woman stood while a thin, ordinary-looking youth knelt half-crouched at her feet. The youth, seemingly in his teens, hunched over as he used his tender, slender hands to wash and knead the woman's sacred, soft, and exquisite jade feet.
The boy's face was contorted with extreme excitement, his eyes fixed on her feet with an almost perverse longing, as if he might at any moment succumb to the urge to kiss and lick them.
The woman exuded an aura of cool elegance and transcendent grace, yet at this moment, she allowed the youth to play with her feet. Her stunning eyes were closed, her face—a masterpiece of celestial beauty and wisdom—radiated an untouchable coldness, as if she were a vision to be admired from afar but never sullied by touch.
However, a trace of contentment seemed to linger between her brows, as if she were closing her eyes in quiet enjoyment.
No one could have imagined that Chu Qingyi, revered by all as an immortal-like figure, would be intimately touched by a mere teenager in a border town. If this scene were to be witnessed by anyone, it would undoubtedly cause an uproar across the Mysterious Mechanism Continent the very next day. Countless admirers would never tolerate their idolized Qingyi being defiled in such a manner, and many would surely rush to tear the wretched boy to pieces! Fortunately, aside from the mother and son, no one else was aware of this moment.
Fortunately, aside from the mother and son, no one else was aware of this moment.
The night had deepened, enveloping the entire city of Jinling in a blanket of darkness and tranquility. Occasionally, a few barks from the alleyways pierced the silence of the night.
In the eastern chamber of the Li family's old residence, candle wax dripped slowly from the flame, accumulating at the base. The dim, flickering candlelight illuminated the room, casting the shadows of the mother and son onto the earthen-yellow walls. Lost in their own thoughts, they seemed completely unaware of the passage of time.
"Xiao Xuan, Qingyi, I'm back!"
A cheerful voice rang out from outside the door—it was Li Ye, who had hurried home to spend the night.
Startled, the two locked eyes, a flicker of panic evident in their gazes.
Li Xuan scrambled to his feet in a fluster, rubbing his dry face vigorously as if trying to erase any traces of his tears.
Chu Qingyi, who was usually calm and composed, also felt a wave of panic. She quickly recited an incantation under her breath, activating her spatial storage device to stow away the basin, shoes, and socks.
Then, under Li Xuan's astonished gaze, she summoned her immortal arts. A misty, ethereal aura enveloped her like smoke, completely obscuring her form. From the outside, nothing within the haze could be seen.
A few moments later, the mist dissipated, and Chu Qingyi's attire had been completely renewed, her shoes and socks neatly in place.
Witnessing this, Li Xuan's jaw nearly dropped to the floor in disbelief. Aside from the slap he had received that afternoon, this was the first time he had seen such a miraculous display of immortal arts, reigniting his deep yearning for cultivation.
By the time the two had composed themselves, Li Ye had already stepped into the house with excitement.
"Qingyi, look what I brought for you... Huh? Xiao Xuan, aren't you usually asleep by this hour? Why are you still in Qingyi's room so late?" Li Ye asked, holding two packages of pastries as he pushed the door open lightly. He had expected to find only Chu Qingyi inside and was surprised to see Li Xuan there as well.
"Ah... well... I..." Li Xuan stammered nervously, unable to come up with a plausible excuse.
"Xiao Xuan brought me some fruit," Chu Qingyi interjected calmly, pointing to a basket of bright red wild berries in the corner of the room.
Grateful, Li Xuan glanced at Chu Qingyi, only to find her expression as serene and unruffled as ever, as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.
Seeing her composure, Li Xuan's flustered emotions gradually settled.
"Xiao Xuan, thank you. I know it's been hard on you while I was away—working in the fields all day must be exhausting, and you still had to come home and take care of Qingyi. Xiao Xuan, I promise I'll make sure you live a good life from now on." Li Ye looked at Li Xuan with deep emotion.
What Li Ye didn't know was that before their return, Li Xuan had indeed followed the farmer's routine—rising with the sun and resting at dusk, toiling diligently in the fields like any ordinary farmhand.
But ever since Chu Qingyi began recuperating at home and Li Ye went away to train in demon hunting, Li Xuan had lost all interest in fieldwork. He spent his days entirely at home.
These were fields passed down through generations of the Li family! Letting them lie falled like this was something Li Xuan would never have dared consider before—it would have been seen as profoundly unfilial.
But times had changed. Now he wished he could cling to Chu Qingyi's side every moment, even if it meant being nothing more than a plaster stuck to her clothes. As for the ancestral fields? They had long been forgotten in some distant cloud.
"Father, we're family—there's no need for such formalities. Mother is my elder, it's only right that I show her respect." Li Xuan avoided meeting Li Ye's sincere gaze, his eyes darting away. His adoptive father loved him so dearly, yet he harbored improper thoughts toward his fairy mother...
"Xiao Xuan, let's not dwell on that. I bought some pastries—originally meant to bring to you tomorrow, but now there's no need to wait. Come try them! I heard from folks in the city that this pastry shop's craftsmanship is absolutely unparalleled!" Li Ye, having composed himself, eagerly invited Li Xuan to taste the treats.
Li Xuan readily agreed, picking up a osmanthus cake and popping it into his mouth.
"Could this be from Linglong Pastry Shop in the east end?! They're a century-old establishment! I've only had their pastries once before—could never bring myself to buy them again, though I've been craving the taste ever since!" The delicate texture melted on his tongue, rich osmanthus flavor blooming in his mouth as Li Xuan praised enthusiastically, giving a thumbs-up.
"From now on, I'll buy them for you every day if you like!" Li Ye said with deep affection.
Standing silently nearby, Chu Qingyi watched the heartwarming scene of father and son bonding, particularly noticing the genuine smile reaching Li Ye's eyes, and fell into deep thought.
She felt somewhat grateful she hadn't told Li Ye about what happened that afternoon. Even if just to preserve the smile on his face, she had to keep it buried in her heart.
"What are you thinking about so deeply?"
Just as Chu Qingyi was lost in thought, Li Ye walked over and drew her into his arms, asking softly.
Snapping out of her reverie, Chu Qingyi found herself sinking into Li Ye's gentle, liquid gaze and shook her head with a slight smile.
"Here, these pastries are delicious. My Qingyi should try some too." Saying this, Li Ye picked up a pale pink petal-shaped cake and brought it to her lips.
Her red lips parted slightly, neat teeth taking a small bite of the pastry. The soft, glutinous texture carried both the fragrance of roses and the sweetness of glutinous rice—a perfect combination that delighted the palate.
Stuffing the remaining half into his own mouth, Li Ye said somewhat indistinctly, "The Heavenly Master's residence has nothing this delicious. We must bring some back for the Preceptor and our masters when we return."
In his arms, Chu Qingyi's delicate frame trembled slightly. Unconsciously, they had already spent over a month in Jinling City. She really did miss the Heavenly Master's residence somewhat...
While still enjoying his meal, Li Xuan was jolted by the mention of "Heavenly Master Manor" from Li Ye's lips, instantly finding the pastry in his hand tasteless.
This past month, neither long nor short, had accustomed him to the company of Li Ye and his wife. If they were to leave him behind one day and return to the Heavenly Master Manor, the vast Li family estate would once again be left with only his solitary presence.
At this thought, he lost all appetite for the pastry. With difficulty, he swallowed the last bite he had been chewing, bid farewell to Li Ye and his wife, and turned to retreat to his room.
"Once you break through the convergence of Yin and Yang, we can set off for the Heavenly Master Manor immediately, alright?" After Li Xuan had left, Chu Qingyi hesitated for a long while before finally voicing the idea she had been contemplating for days.
As she spoke, she could clearly feel Li Ye's body stiffen.
"Qingyi, your injuries haven't fully healed yet. Let's wait until you've recovered before making any plans," Li Ye said, releasing her and walking alone to the bed to sit down.
"But..."
"Qingyi, let's think about this when that day truly arrives, alright?"
She wanted to say more, but Li Ye cut her off before she could continue.
Watching him undress and lie down on his own, she knew it was futile to press further and swallowed her unspoken words.
The deep night was tranquil, with hazy moonlight streaming through the window, gently spilling into the room.
That night, the couple did not sleep in each other's arms as usual. Instead, they lay back-to-back, each lost in their own troubled thoughts as they drifted into a heavy slumber.