Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 283 281: I Want to Bear Ah Han's Child, Please Help Me, Senior Sister

"Searching for a relative?"

Qing Yueqiu murmured, her brow furrowing slightly as a trace of surprise flickered in her eyes.

She looked up at Lin Qianyan, her gaze filled with a mix of confusion and scrutiny.

'The Saintess of the Jade Pool Sacred Land... is actually an old friend of Master's? A relative? Why has Master never mentioned her?'

Lin Qianyan let out a soft sigh, her gaze distant as if she were seeing a faraway figure through Qing Yueqiu.

"There's a reason your Master never told you about me," she said.

Her voice was gentle, yet it carried an unconcealable melancholy. "Before we met yesterday, he thought... I was no longer alive."

She paused, a complex look in her eyes, as if she had a thousand things to say but didn't know where to begin.

After a moment, she finally spoke again, her voice so low it was almost a whisper to herself. "Yesterday was the first time your Master and I... had seen each other in a hundred years."

Lin Qianyan's fingertips gently traced the embroidery on her cuffs. Her gaze lowered as if lost in a distant memory, and her voice, though soft, held an undeniable wistfulness.

"I waited thousands of days and nights for Brother Pei, and we only just reunited yesterday. Perhaps Brother Pei hasn't quite adjusted to my return, which is why he hasn't told you yet."

Qing Yueqiu froze at her words, but not because she was moved by Lin Qianyan's devotion.

She wasn't Ye Liyuan, who possessed an almost excessive innocence, having been sheltered and doted on by Pei Yuhang.

Having experienced so many of life's hardships, Qing Yueqiu's only remaining instinct toward anyone who got close to her Master was vigilance and hostility.

An image of her Master flashed in her mind—so handsome he could tempt any woman—and she thought of the flock of beauties that always surrounded him.

Connecting that to Lin Qianyan's obsessive search for him, an indescribable emotion surged within her, and she felt an instinctive dislike for the woman.

'I remember now... Isn't Lin Qianyan a married woman?'

'For a married woman to be so infatuatedly searching for another man... even if he were your real brother, wouldn't that be crossing a line?'

'Besides... your surnames are different. There's no guarantee Master is your biological brother anyway.'

At this thought, Qing Yueqiu looked up at Lin Qianyan, her eyes holding a hint of probing and distance as she asked softly,

"May I ask you a rather forward question?"

Lin Qianyan smiled faintly, her eyes gentle, and spoke in a relaxed tone. "Yueqiu, you don't have to be so formal. We're family, after all~ If you have any questions, just ask."

The word "family" fell on Qing Yueqiu's ears like a fine needle pricking her heart.

Her brow furrowed imperceptibly, and a strange sense of aversion rose in her heart, as if something that belonged to her was being quietly encroached upon.

Still, she took a deep breath, suppressed her discomfort, and asked in a calm voice, "Are you and my Master siblings by blood, or..."

"We're not biological siblings, but we're closer than any. We were childhood sweethearts. I see him as my sworn older brother, and he sees me as his sworn younger sister."

Lin Qianyan said softly.

...

...

Inside Dan Yun Pavilion, Ye Liyuan skipped lightly into the main hall. Her eyes swept across the room and immediately landed on a familiar figure.

A bright smile blossomed on her lips, and her voice was as crisp as a silver bell. "Senior Sister~ It's been so long since I came to see you~!"

Lu Ruoxi looked up at the sound of her voice. Seeing that it was her Junior Sister Ye Liyuan, a gentle smile also appeared in her eyes.

She set down the scroll in her hands, rose gracefully, and opened her arms to welcome her lively junior sister.

Ye Liyuan trotted over like a cheerful little bird and threw herself into Lu Ruoxi's embrace.

She pressed her cheek into Lu Ruoxi's ample bosom, nuzzling into it before letting out a contented hum.

"Mmm, so warm, just like a cloud, hee hee~ It's a shame no one else is lucky enough to enjoy Senior Sister's heavenly embrace!"

"Liyuan, what are you saying? Stop teasing me."

Lu Ruoxi stroked her junior sister's hair. Hearing her teasing, a hint of resignation flashed in her eyes.

'If it weren't for Junior Brother Pei,' she thought, 'I probably would have become as close as real sisters with Liyuan. A good woman like her is truly so likable.'

'If I really had a falling out with her, Junior Brother Pei would probably be devastated, too.'

'...So maybe it's not so bad to just keep hiding this from Liyuan, carrying on with Junior Brother Pei in secret. I could even have his illegitimate child later on, maintaining this hidden, balanced status quo.'

A look of relief flashed through Lu Ruoxi's beautiful eyes. Her gaze inadvertently swept over Ye Liyuan's collar, and when she caught sight of a faint hickey, her eyes narrowed slightly as a meaningful smile touched her lips.

"Liyuan, you and Junior Brother Pei... got a little too intense last night, didn't you."

Lu Ruoxi's voice was teasing and light, but it made Ye Liyuan's body freeze instantly.

"Huh? Senior Sister, how did you know?!"

Ye Liyuan snapped her head up, her cheeks instantly flushing a deep crimson, like a ripe peach.

Her eyes went wide with panic and embarrassment. She unconsciously twisted the corner of her robes, her voice becoming a stutter.

Lu Ruoxi chuckled, a sly glint in her eyes. She reached out and gently pinched Ye Liyuan's cheek, her tone playful.

"Mmm~ A woman's intuition, I suppose. I saw how your face was glowing and how refreshed you looked, so I knew you'd been thoroughly 'nourished.'"

"Ahhh—Senior Sister, stop it! It's too embarrassing!"

Ye Liyuan's face was so red it looked like it might bleed, and even her neck was flushed a faint pink.

She covered her cheeks, let out a mortified shriek, and then buried her face back in Lu Ruoxi's chest, trying to hide from the topic like an ostrich.

Seeing this, Lu Ruoxi couldn't help but laugh out loud.

She gently tapped Ye Liyuan's forehead, her voice a mix of affection and teasing.

"Alright, alright, Senior Sister will stop teasing you. But, Liyuan, you have to remember to exercise some restraint. Don't wear Junior Brother Pei out, okay?~"

"Senior Sister!"

Ye Liyuan let out an embarrassed cry from within Lu Ruoxi's embrace. Her cheeks were still flushed, but her expression soon grew somber, a complex emotion flickering in her eyes.

She unconsciously twisted the hem of her robes, her lips pressed together, seemingly lost in thought.

"What's wrong? Did Senior Sister go too far? Did I make my dear Liyuan unhappy?"

Noticing the shift in Ye Liyuan's mood, Lu Ruoxi gently released her from the hug and looked down at her with concern.

Ye Liyuan hesitated, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz, filled with shyness and unease.

"Senior Sister, Ah Han doesn't get tired..."

Lu Ruoxi paused at her words, an involuntary, knowing smile playing on her lips as she muttered to herself inwardly,

'Of course I know Junior Brother Pei doesn't get tired. After all... it's not like I haven't experienced it firsthand.'

However, she quickly wiped the smile from her face, her gaze turning inquisitive as she asked softly,

"Liyuan, why bring this up with me all of a sudden? Don't tell me... you're trying to show off your Dao Companion's 'superhuman' abilities to your poor, single Senior Sister?"

Ye Liyuan's cheeks flushed even redder at Lu Ruoxi's teasing.

She clutched the hem of her robes tightly, her eyes flashing with panic and distress.

She bit her lip as if she'd made up her mind, and her voice was barely a whisper. "Senior Sister, I'll tell you a secret, but you can't tell anyone, okay?~"

Seeing this, Lu Ruoxi's curiosity was piqued. She leaned closer to Ye Liyuan, her tone encouraging.

"Oh? What secret? Senior Sister promises not to tell a soul."

Ye Liyuan took a deep breath as if steeling herself, then said in a small voice, "The truth is... I'm not very good... in that department."

Her voice was as light as a feather, yet it seemed to have taken all her strength.

After speaking, her face was so red it looked like it might bleed. Her eyes darted away, unable to meet Lu Ruoxi's, and she looked utterly shy and helpless.

Lu Ruoxi was stunned. Of all the things she had considered, she never imagined that Junior Sister Ye would have... a shortcoming in this area.

Her throat bobbed on her snow-white, swan-like neck. Unsure if she was excited or worried, she asked in a slightly trembling voice, "Liyuan, when you say you're not good... how not good are we talking?"

"Don't be scared. Just tell Senior Sister everything~ I'll help you."

Lu Ruoxi's gentle voice gradually soothed Ye Liyuan's anxious heart.

She closed her eyes and told her most trusted Senior Sister everything.

After hearing everything, Lu Ruoxi didn't know what to feel. Although she felt a sense of regret for Liyuan's physical shortcoming,

perhaps... she felt more joy than anything. After all, physical compatibility is often the lubricant that keeps a Dao Companion's relationship going long-term.

'Liyuan can't handle it, but I can... This means Junior Brother Pei will pay more attention to me.'

'This is my possessiveness acting up. I can only hope Liyuan will forgive my selfishness.'

Her fingers gently brushed through Ye Liyuan's hair as she spoke in a soft, comforting tone. "Silly girl, what's there to be embarrassed about?

Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. Besides, something like this... isn't just your responsibility. It's probably also Junior Brother Pei's fault for being too strong."

Ye Liyuan looked up, her eyes filled with grievance and unease, and said in a low voice, "But... I'm afraid Ah Han will be disappointed. He's so incredible, and I'm... so inadequate."

"I want to have a child, but if things keep going like this, I'll never have the chance..."

Ye Liyuan's voice was dejected. Hearing this, Lu Ruoxi understood why she had come looking for her today.

'So she wants my help conditioning her body.'

Although prescriptions for this sort of issue weren't Lu Ruoxi's specialty, it wasn't as if she couldn't concoct them.

It was just as she had thought.

Out of a certain selfishness, she didn't want Liyuan to get better. Junior Brother Pei's bond with her was already strong enough; if their bodies also became perfectly compatible, then she would truly have no chance to steal him away.

Thinking this, Lu Ruoxi felt a pang of guilt but decided to make things difficult for Liyuan.

"Liyuan, your constitution suffers from a deficiency of Innate Yin Qi. Meanwhile, Junior Brother Pei's Giant Sun Saint Body is overflowing with the ultimate Yang Qi. Before you were severely injured by the Celestial Tribulation and had your foundation destroyed, you could perhaps just barely manage to be intimate with him.

After your foundation was destroyed, even though you used Heaven and Earth Spiritual Objects to reconstruct it and got a second chance to cultivate, this innate deficiency can no longer be hidden. I'm afraid the only cure is to undergo a complete Body and Marrow Cleansing to renew your body..."

Lu Ruoxi's subtext was clear: Junior Brother Pei was simply too much for her to handle.

"Then, Senior Sister, do you have a solution...?"

Ye Liyuan had never imagined her situation was so serious, and the news sent her heart into a panic.