Chapter 71: Swallowed by It

Wen Chu spent two unforgettable days at Xiu’s house.

His copybook arrived, but as a ghost, he couldn’t touch paper and pen, so Xiu made paper and ink out of paper and burned them for him to practice calligraphy.

Every day, the chef cooked different dishes. After eating his fill, he would learn how to play games with Xiu, or go outdoors to play tennis with Xiu, stroll around the vegetable garden and small ranch, and choose ingredients for the evening snack.

Apart from the hired workers, there were no outsiders, only him and Xiu.

Even though he didn’t deliberately cling to Xiu, his lifespan went all the way up to ten days.

Successfully unlocked his left knee.

The only fly in the ointment was that Xiu’s work was a bit busy, and he didn’t know what he was busy with every night.

Wen Chu looked at the meatballs rolling in the hot pot and sighed from the bottom of his heart: “It would be great if every day in the future could be like this.”

Although he couldn’t lay eggs with Xiu, he was very happy to be with Xiu.

Xiu was putting beef into the hot pot. Hearing this, he paused and said, “En.”

“It’s just busy for this while. When we come back from the Wen family’s old residence, you will live the life you want.”

Wen Chu’s eyes looking at the hot pot meatballs dimmed, then he smiled and changed the subject: “Can the beef be eaten?”

“You only know how to eat.” Xiu was helpless.

He was afraid that Wen Chu couldn’t eat spicy food, so the hot pot was a tomato pot. He used chopsticks to fish the beef out of the red pot and put it into the oil dish in front of Wen Chu.

A modified talisman paper was pasted under the oil dish. After the beef was dipped in the sauce, it spontaneously ignited, turning into green smoke and drifting to Wen Chu’s mouth.

Wen Chu opened his mouth and ate it, his eyes shining: “Delicious.”

Xiu continued to take the flowering small sausages from the dining cart next to him and put them into the pot, saying casually: “If you like to eat, you can stay in the manor. It won’t take long for me to go to the old residence. Going this afternoon, at most the day after tomorrow…”

“I don’t want to.” Wen Chu interrupted Xiu directly.

“I want to be with you. We agreed.”

He also had to retrieve the complete memory of this body and return to the Formation Eye himself.

More importantly, Wen Chu didn’t know what was in the old residence. If Xiu knew he was the Formation Eye at the end, his pitiful and harmless image in Xiu’s heart would be destroyed.

This wouldn’t do. He had to go to prevent any eventuality.

Meeting Wen Chu’s firm eyes, Xiu knew this matter was non-negotiable.

“Fine, but you have to be obedient.”

He finished putting in the flowering sausages, and the crispy sausages floated up and down in the pot.

Wen Chu nodded repeatedly: “I’m obedient.”

He was the most obedient.

After nodding, Wen Chu was attracted by the crispy sausages in the pot.

He looked at the undulating crispy sausages for a while.

The bottom of the small sausage was cut into a flower shape, gradually spreading out to the surroundings as it was cooked by hot water. This appearance looked familiar no matter how he looked at it.

Wen Chu pointed to the sausage: “What is this?”

Xiu: “Flowering sausage, wait a while before eating.”

Wen Chu: …

Sure enough.

Wen Chu questioned the system on the spot: 【In the first world, you said I looked like this?】

The system felt guilty: 【Isn’t it very apt?】

Wen Chu felt wronged: 【Not at all. I am much better looking than the flowering crispy sausage. I can’t be eaten either. I am a beautiful little jellyfish.】

System corrected: 【Jellyfish are edible too.】

Wen Chu: 【…】

Wen Chu emphasized the key point: 【I am a beautiful little jellyfish, not an ugly crispy sausage.】

System: 【Okay, delicious flowering crispy sausage.】

Wen Chu: 【QAQ?】

“Done, try it.”

While talking, the crispy sausage had already floated up.

Seeing Wen Chu staring at the crispy sausage all the time, Xiu thought the other party was greedy, so he immediately picked one up for him.

Wen Chu looked at the crispy sausage quickly turning into green smoke in the oil dish.

He wanted to be spineless and not eat it, but the aroma of the small sausage had already reached the tip of his nose.

Wen Chu opened his mouth spinelessly and took a bite.

After biting through the crispy skin, it was soft and elastic sausage meat. The tomato pot base was very flavorful, and it was also dipped in the vinegar taste of the oil dish.

Wen Chu took another bite.

Wen Chu chewed, chewed, chewed.

Wen Chu told the truth: “…Indeed delicious.”

Xiu didn’t understand, and gave Wen Chu another chopstick full: “If you like it, eat more.”

Wen Chu didn’t eat it immediately, but looked up at Xiu: “What do you think the flowering sausage looks like?”

Xiu: ?

Xiu glanced at the chubby little flowering sausage in the pot and thought: “Very cute?”

It looked clumsy, rolling around in the hot pot with a not-very-smart look.

…Why does it feel a bit like Wen Chu?

Rolling around Wen Chu.

Xiu was amused by the picture he associated. The corner of his cold lips pursed into a slight arc, and he said again: “En, also clumsy.”

Wen Chu: …

Fine, sometimes he doesn’t quite understand Xiu’s aesthetics either.

Wen Chu ate the crispy sausage floating to his mouth in one bite, not dwelling on this issue anymore.

Anyway, as long as he was beautiful and cute in Xiu’s heart, it was fine.

.

After lunch, Xiu put on the luggage he packed, ready to set off with Wen Chu.

Wen Chu looked at the helicopter parked on the lawn, shocked again: “We are going by helicopter?”

“En.” Xiu explained, “The Wen family’s old residence is in the mountains. Originally there was a small town below, but it has gradually been abandoned over the past hundred years. Now it is a deep mountain with no inhabitants, and various transportation is inconvenient.”

He carried a large bag half a person high. Wen Chu sat on the bag and boarded the helicopter with Xiu.

“The people of the Wen (Yaozu’s) family fell into a coma collectively two days ago, and they are still in the hospital, cause unknown. The Exorcist Association is also investigating the cause, but I took the Wen family genealogy and transcended An Ya. These two days I also arranged for Yuan Le to lead them in the wrong direction. They shouldn’t be able to figure it out for a while.”

“Because of this, the arrangement of the great array was postponed by one day. The location was chosen in the center of the capital, right on this dragon vein.”

Xiu had already sat down. While explaining to Wen Chu in detail, he didn’t forget to take out the map and point it out to Wen Chu.

Wen Chu nodded: “Oh.”

Seeing his calm appearance, Xiu instructed helplessly: “So, at a quarter past noon six days later, we will capture the Formation Eye there. This time I really can’t take you. After you come back, wait for me obediently at home. Before I go out…”

Xiu’s tongue tied for a moment: “Before I go out, I will feed you enough Yang energy.”

For the past two days, he had been deliberately keeping a distance from Wen Chu. The strange feeling in his lower abdomen finally disappeared, and that absurd wet dream didn’t continue.

Even without treatment, Xiu’s body had recovered now.

It was just that remembering the tremor almost from the soul when contacting Wen Chu, Xiu would still be extremely uncomfortable.

Why is it like this?

Xiu didn’t understand.

In the more than twenty years before meeting Wen Chu, let alone such uncontrollable desire, he hadn’t even had feelings for anyone.

But as soon as he saw Wen Chu, he couldn’t even control whether he would shoot.

It couldn’t be that he was originally such a lewd person, right?

Xiu’s earlobes were hot, and he quickly shook his head to throw away such thoughts.

No, it must be because his supreme yang body had some reaction with Wen Chu’s constitution.

They had only met for a few days. What spark could they have?

Xiu calmed down and emphasized again: “Wait for me at home, okay?”

Wen Chu only thought Xiu felt he was in the way and worried about him being alone, so he nodded and agreed: “Okay.”

Having said this, Xiu had almost revealed all the exorcists’ plans. As long as Wen Chu intentionally avoided it, he would never step into the trap again.

Actually, he never avoided Wen Chu when working these days. Wen Chu could have seen the news himself.

But Wen Chu was too self-conscious. As soon as he started working, Wen Chu went aside to play with his phone.

Too much sense of propriety, leaving him no chance to reveal the truth to the other party even if he wanted to.

Xiu looked at the old genealogy in his hand, thinking of part of the information he found based on the names in the genealogy in the past two days.

The person in power of the Wen family at that time was Wen Boxian, who had three sons and two daughters. The two daughters were already married when the accident happened. The eldest son Wen Shuhua, the eldest brother Wen Chu said hit him, the second son Wen Jingchuan, and the youngest son was Wen Chu.

The great array back then used the power of almost all exorcist families and took more than ten years to set up. The originally obscure Wen family also jumped into the upper class because the genius youngest son in the family volunteered to become the Formation Eye.

But strangely, after the array was completed, not only did the Wen family disappear, but several families who presided over it at the beginning also had no news.

As for An Ya’s ancestor, Wen Xiaoyu, she was not in this genealogy at all. Xiu used all connections but found no such person, which matched An Ya’s statement of “hereditary servant.”

So why would the descendant of a hereditary servant who couldn’t even get into the genealogy be targeted by the Wen (Yaozu’s) family to this extent?

Where did the disappeared families go at that time?

Xiu’s right eyelid started twitching for no reason.

He rubbed his glabella, watching the ground buildings gradually shrinking under the helicopter, and held the spectre’s cold hand beside him.

“My contact information is on your phone. The phone is modified and can be used as a walkie-talkie even without a signal. If there is really danger, use the phone to contact me. I will also find you based on the residual spiritual power on you.”

Wen Chu responded obediently: “Okay.”

Xiu was still worried.

He always felt that taking Wen Chu on this trip would bring variables.

…Forget it, at worst he would protect Wen Chu more.

As for himself, Xiu didn’t think he would encounter any danger.

Wen Chu from a hundred years ago was called a genius, and he was no inferior to Wen Chu back then.

.

The administrative districts of the capital had been re-divided in these few hundred years. The Wen family’s old residence was not in the current capital but in a neighboring city.

Wen Chu followed Xiu in the helicopter, landing all the way into the deep mountains.

Hidden among the dense green forests was a building complex spreading along the mountain terrain. Half of the simple and unadorned gate was missing. The gold and jade that should have been inlaid on the lintel were dug out by someone unknown, leaving only empty pits.

Inside the half-open door, it seemed to be a fruit forest where crops were originally planted. There were no people at this time, but various fruit trees were still hanging with green fruits.

Xiu walked down carrying the bag and instructed the pilot: “If there are special circumstances, I will find a way to send a signal. No signal is normal. Come to pick us up two days later.”

The pilot nodded in understanding and flew the helicopter away.

Only Wen Chu and Xiu remained in the whole mountain forest, plus that bag of luggage.

Xiu pushed aside the weeds that were almost half a person high and said to Wen Chu, “Let’s go?”

Wen Chu stared blankly at the high gate and deep courtyard in front of him, held Xiu’s hand, and pushed open the old wooden door with him.

Creak—

The gate opened.

The moment Wen Chu stepped into the yard, a sinister wind rose for no reason in the long-abandoned orchard.

It was already dusk. There were no lights in the old residence, the trees were deep, and the desolate orchard showed full gloominess.

Xiu subconsciously protected Wen Chu in front of him.

Wen Chu stared blankly at all this. At this moment, the whole building built against the mountain seemed to have life, breathing in sync with him.

Before Wen Chu was ready, memories rushed back first.

This time he didn’t faint, but clearly remembered that when the Wen family hadn’t disappeared back then, this orchard was a thriving scene all year round. The Wen family’s hereditary servants would take care of it here every day.

The servants here treated him very well. Every time he came, they would distressingly stuff various fruits and vegetables into his arms.

But his chances to come here were few and far between.

Most of the time, he was trapped in the courtyard deep inside.

“Xiaoyu! Bring the scissors, this fruit tree needs pruning!”

Lively sounds from the orchard seemed to ring in his ears.

—Wait.

Wen Chu poked his head out from behind Xiu, his eyes widening in surprise.

Not an illusion, the orchard in front of him really swept away the desolation just now.

All the weeds disappeared, revealing the original bluestone road. The setting sun also disappeared.

The scorching sun was in the sky, the sunshine was bright, bees and butterflies were flying among the flowers, everything seemed to have returned to a hundred years ago.

The servants were working in full swing.

The bright and beautiful girl called “Xiaoyu” was handing the gardening shears to the master with a smile, asking seemingly inadvertently: “Is a new teacher coming today? Why ask Master you to prune personally suddenly?”

The old master took the shears and sighed: “Yes, the teacher invited for the Little Young Master this time is said to have an unusual identity. The Eldest Young Master specially ordered to entertain him well.”

Xiaoyu’s eyes rolled. Just as she wanted to continue inquiring about news, she glimpsed Wen Chu standing blankly at the door out of the corner of her eye.

Xiaoyu exclaimed, ignoring the master immediately, and ran quickly to Wen Chu: “Little Young Master, why did you run out? Come back with me quickly. The Eldest Young Master is not here today, but a new teacher is coming. seeing you running around will definitely punish you again.”

Wen Chu was bewildered. He couldn’t figure out the current situation either. Why did he suddenly return to a hundred years ago?

He subconsciously turned his head to look for Xiu beside him.

But there was no one beside him.

Xiu, who was protecting him in front just now, disappeared.

Wen Chu still remembered Xiu’s instructions, lowering his head to grab the phone hanging around his neck.

But when he looked down clearly at his attire, Wen Chu was stunned.

On his body was a heavy, layered blue-gray robe.

The phone Xiu hung around his neck vanished without a trace.

Only heavy chains remained on his wrists.

He turned into that “Little Young Master Wen” from a hundred years ago.

Fortunately, Xiaoyu seemed accustomed to Wen Chu’s silence. pulling Wen Chu’s sleeve to drag him inside, she whispered while dragging: “Little Young Master, now the Master is bedridden with a stroke, we servants can’t interfere even if we want to. You bear with it a bit longer. When your Eldest Sister returns home in a few days, ask her to take you away. Let’s not go against the Eldest Young Master now… by the way.”

As Xiaoyu spoke, she started hurriedly stuffing fruits into Wen Chu’s sleeves: “Are they not giving you food? Secretly take these back, eat when hungry. Xiaomei is sweeping at the Eldest Young Mistress’s place, saying they leave steamed buns for you every day…”

“No need.” Wen Chu lowered his eyes, reaching out to refuse Xiaoyu’s action of continuing to stuff fruits.

As he was dragged by Xiaoyu step by step towards the real gate behind the courtyard, Wen Chu’s memory also became clear bit by bit.

“Too many things in the sleeves will be discovered by the etiquette teacher.”

Hearing this, Xiaoyu stopped her movements immediately.

Wen Chu saw tears appearing in the other party’s eyes. She sniffed hard, stopped talking, and just led him along the small path to the inner courtyard.

The Eldest Young Master wasn’t there. The surrounding servants pretended not to see, turning a blind eye and letting Xiaoyu take him away.

After all, everyone knew—

“If not for the Eldest Young Master’s order, never offend the Little Young Master.”

The pruning master instructed the apprentice beside him.

“Anyone who provoked the Little Young Master, none died with a whole corpse, including all previous teaching teachers, not one didn’t die tragically…”

As the pruning master spoke, he shuddered himself.

These words fell into Wen Chu’s ears word for word.

Wen Chu didn’t remember the route clearly, but he really didn’t want to be beaten, following Xiaoyu forward quickly, while calling the system.

【System, are you still there? What is the situation now?】

System: 【Here. These people are just illusions. Except for Xiu, no one can hurt you, so you won’t feel pain either, don’t worry.】

Wen Chu was still confused: 【Why did we suddenly fall into an illusion? Where is Xiu?】

System: 【…Can’t explain clearly in a few words, wait a moment.】

The system screen paused for a few seconds.

Then, Wen Chu saw Xiu’s face on the screen.

The system directly broadcasted the scene on Xiu’s side for him.

Xiu was wearing a Zhongshan suit, his tassel earring swaying lightly, sitting indoors talking with a young man beside him.

“This younger brother of mine is naturally intelligent, able to draw talismans at three years old, but has a weird temperament, driving away many teachers, so he hasn’t started enlightenment until now.”

The young man was all smiles.

“But under the influence of father, he also cares about the world and volunteered to sacrifice himself for the Exorcist Array, so I entrusted the Exorcist Association to invite a teacher to teach Little Chu spells.”

Wen Chu saw Xiu’s eyes turn cold.

“Wen Shuhua?” Xiu read out the other party’s name word by word.

The young man bowed and scraped: “Yes, I am Wen Shuhua. Thank you Mr. Xiu for remembering my name. This time…”

“En.” Xiu interrupted Wen Shuhua directly.

He looked at the wall behind Wen Shuhua, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully.

“No need to say more. Since I have accepted the remuneration, I will naturally teach with care. Why don’t you take me to see your Little Young Master first?”

The system’s screen also shifted with Xiu’s gaze.

Behind the young man, on the blank wall, was impressively a wall of blood words.

【Rude intruder, you entered the Wen family’s old residence, awakened the wronged souls sleeping here, and were thus pulled into the illusion.】

【Returned from studying abroad, you combined Chinese and Western Taoist methods and have quite some experience in cultivation, so you were hired by the Eldest Young Master of the Wen family to teach the Little Young Master.】

【But the truth of the matter seems not to be so. Under the seemingly simple employment, lies a deeper conspiracy—】

【Your mission:】
【1. Survive until the Little Young Master reaches adulthood】
【2. Uncover the Wen family’s secret】
【Note: Do not offend the Eldest Young Master, otherwise you will be dismissed, automatically dying after mission failure. Of course, it’s best not to offend the Little Young Master either. I think you wouldn’t want to know the consequences of offending ^^】

【This mansion is breathing, please be careful, do not be swallowed by it.】

“…Rule-based illusion?” Xiu muttered to himself.

If someone else came to this illusion, they would probably be confused by the messy character relationships right away.

But he had investigated the Wen family’s information in advance, and even raised the “Little Young Master” for a long time, almost walking through the illusion with a walkthrough.

The main problem now was—

Xiu looked down at his empty right hand.

Just now he was holding that little spectre’s hand.

He became a teacher, so where did his little spectre go?

On the other side.

Wen Chu felt something was wrong when he saw Xiu’s mission clearly and heard Xiu mutter “Rule-based illusion.”

【This is the illusion created by my resentment?】 Wen Chu asked the system incredulously.

System: 【En, you can understand it that way. But because you haven’t come back for too long, the illusion here is a bit out of control, so you can’t completely control your own illusion for the time being.】

Wen Chu didn’t care about this.

He followed Xiaoyu, turning left and right, running all the way back to his cramped small courtyard.

Xiaoyu bid farewell to him with tears in her eyes: “Little Young Master, persist for three more days. The Eldest Young Mistress will come back in three days.”

Wen Chu looked at the other party coldly, without any reaction.

Xiaoyu closed the door crying.

The moment the door closed, Wen Chu squatted down holding his head in collapse: “Finished. I still need to lie to Xiu that I am not the Formation Eye. Now he is my teacher, won’t he recognize me as Wen Chu at a glance?”

System: 【…Shouldn’t you think about how to get out first?】

Wen Chu continued to hold his head: “What to do? Will Xiu kill me on the spot? If I knew I wouldn’t have come, at least—”

Wen Chu’s words stopped abruptly.

His eyes lit up: “I know what to do.”

System: 【…】

Except for Xiu, is there nothing you care about in this world?

On the other side.

Xiu followed Wen Shuhua all the way to the Wen family mansion.

Although the Wen family a hundred years ago was declining, it wasn’t to the point of being unable to maintain appearances. Passing through the prosperous small town, taking a sedan chair up the mountain, passing through the orchard, Xiu stood in front of the Wen family’s magnificent gate.

Wen Shuhua was smiling, introducing while pushing the door: “What you saw just now was our Wen family’s orchard. Father liked to plant some melons and fruits when he was healthy, and still takes care of them now. It’s a pity that Father now…”

Wen Shuhua sighed with pretended sadness: “Second brother spends his days drinking and seeking pleasure, and the youngest brother has a weird temperament. Now only I support this Wen family, it’s really difficult.”

Xiu listened coldly, not responding.

Fortunately, Wen Shuhua could continue talking himself, leading Xiu forward all the way, introducing the history of every grass and tree in the family, even introducing a dilapidated stone bridge with “The Emperor walked here back then.”

After walking for about twenty minutes, they stopped at a remote small courtyard.

“This is my younger brother’s residence.” Wen Shuhua said.

Xiu frowned, blurting out: “Your Young Master lives in such a remote place?”

The expression on Wen Shuhua’s face froze, obviously not expecting Xiu to be so disrespectful, laughing dryly: “Isn’t it because he… has a weird temperament? He doesn’t like living in big places.”

The expression on Xiu’s face became colder.

Wen Shuhua couldn’t keep up the act either, the smile on his face becoming stiffer, simply turning around to push open the courtyard door, inviting Xiu in.

Unlike the prosperity outside, this small courtyard had obviously barely been cleaned, with weeds everywhere, and the small house in the middle was dilapidated.

Xiu pursed his lips.

He left Wen Shuhua behind directly, walking forward quickly, pulling open the dilapidated wooden door amidst the anxious voice of the person behind him.

Rustle—

A rotten and damp smell rushed over.

Sunlight shone into the gloomy small room, and Xiu finally saw that familiar white figure because of this.

Wen Chu.

Wen Chu stood quietly in the dark corner.

He was too slender, and the robes on his body were so heavy, as if they would crush him in the next moment.

Between his wrists, there was the faint reflection of silver handcuffs.

“You…”

Meeting those calm azure eyes, Xiu’s throat tightened.

Wen Shuhua finally caught up, hurriedly introducing: “This is my younger brother, Wen Chu.”

As he spoke, his voice changed, sternly saying: “Wen Chu, hurry up and greet the teacher.”

The white-haired boy seemed to turn paler when reprimanded sternly.

He trembled, hands folded amidst the clattering of chains, bowing properly to Xiu.

“Teacher.”

Wen Chu lowered his eyes, long white eyelashes fluttering, like a fragile and rotting butterfly.

Xiu was stunned.

This wasn’t the tone of his familiar little spectre.

At the same time, on the wall behind Wen Chu, blood words slowly emerged.

【You successfully met the Little Young Master. Be sure to teach him well according to the Eldest Young Master’s instructions. Whips, teaching sticks, bamboo sticks, any means are fine. Make him behave properly and become the perfect Formation Eye willingly.】

As soon as this paragraph of blood words appeared, it was covered by another paragraph of messy handwriting.

【Do not hurt the Little Young Master】
【Do not make the Little Young Master cry】
【Do not disobey the Little Young Master’s orders】
【He is a wronged soul wandering in this family, an impermanent spectre. Do not disobey him, otherwise you will be retaliated against by the unjustly dead souls.】
【For example… be swallowed by it, conceive a ghost fetus, and die of dystocia.】

Xiu’s expression froze completely.

---

Author’s Note:
Wen Chu pretending to be an NPC took out the most scary (with private goods) means.
(Then found out Xiu was already pregnant)