A wisp of smoke arose.

Jin Ling felt his brain undergoing a massive wave of heat. He bit his lips while trying to think as fast as possible. His eyes fell onto the "porridge" which Xie Lian pushed towards him. Jin Ling was trying to find a way to avoid eating whatever was in front of him.

A bead of sweat slid down his forehead.

"You know," Xie Lian smiled. "If you don't want to, you don't have to eat."

Jin Ling's eyes lit up. He found a way out!

Before he could open his mouth, Luo Binghe proceeded to slam all his hope into smithereens. "Huh? It's only a bowl of porridge. It's not like it'll poison him or anything like that." The Demon Lord had already forgotten his first encounter with Xie Lian's cooking.

"Oh really?" Jin Ling arched an eyebrow. He tried to maintain his cool.

"Then, Sir Luo, would you like to have a bite first?" He pushed the bowl of "porridge" in Luo Binghe's direction, making sure that the Demon Lord would have an entire view of the violet goop.

Immediately, Luo Binghe stiffened.

Memories flooded his mind, and he lost control of his body. Abruptly, Luo Binghe grasped the edges of the table. His knuckles prominently melted into a bone-like white colour. Then, he flipped the table over. All Luo Binghe had in his mind was to get that abomination out of his sight!

The bowl was knocked onto the floor, with its "porridge" contents spilt across the wooden planks.

Surprisingly, the "porridge" contents began to corrode into the wood!

Hua Cheng's eyes flashed a dangerous light. However, he did nothing to stop the wood from dissolving under the "porridge" contents. Later on, when the content finally stopped corroding, a large hole was found drilled into the wooden floor.

Jin Ling, who just got a hole corroded into his floor, "..."

Xie Lian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He speechlessly picked up the bowl, an expression of solemnity written over his face.

A hand enveloped his shoulder, bringing warmth.

Hua Cheng's face softened before his Gege, as he attempted to comfort his beloved with skin contact. Noticing his efforts, Xie Lian's face of somber had melted, like snow seeping into the roots of spring.

"Ahem." Shen Qingqiu noticed the hole in the floor. "How unfortunate. Perhaps you should get someone to reconstruct that... or just move to another room."

Jin Ling didn't say a word. If he'd drank that "porridge", his insides would've been melted into acid!

"...right." He managed to say that one word.

He turned to look at Luo Binghe. "Why did Sir Luo overturn the table?"

Portions of the "porridge" had accidentally stained the table, boring holes into the furniture as well. Seeing the results, Xie Lian felt even more guilty.

Luo Binghe shrugged. "Why do you care? I ended up saving your life."

In the background, Shen Qingqiu fanned himself endlessly. Indeed, the protagonist's halo was useful.

"Forget it." Jin Ling lost his temper. He overlooked the overturned table, and didn't even bother picking it up. Instead, Hua Cheng indifferently placed it back on its legs with one hand. He was rewarded with a soft smile from his Gege. Nothing seemed to matter to him when his Gege is in the picture.

"...where would you like to visit next?" Shen Qingqiu turned to Jin Ling, asking him.

"Let's go to the archery station." Jin Ling expressionlessly spoke. He stood up from his chair, then walked towards the door. The two couples ran after him, resembling puny servants chasing after their master. The mere image had made the two husbands cringe in pain.

Jin Ling took up a bow, then attached an arrow on the string.

His eyes thinned, with an anticipating light flashing through them. Beyond in the horizon were shooting targets; kites which floated to the soft breeze in the wind.

Jin Ling pulled the string of the bow, demonstrating a beautiful arc of his arms. He measured the distance between his arrow and the kites in the air. His fingers tugged at the string, unwilling to let go. Finally, Jin Ling adjusted the angle. He finally released, a powerful force whipping through the air.

His arrow flew at an immeasurable pace, then hit dead centre of a kite!

A fellow Yunmeng Jiang disciple hollered, "500 metres!"

Jin Ling put down his bow, with a smug expression etched over his face. "Can you guys beat that?" He asked, a hint of provocation behind his tone.

Luo Binghe immediately stepped forwards. He was certainly provoked.

However, he was held back. Shen Qingqiu patted him on the shoulder, then leaned to his ear and whispered, "When babysitting, we have to hold back. We need to purposely let the weak win."

Luo Binghe stiffened. He gritted his teeth, then smiled hazardously.

"Right." Luo Binghe took ahold of a bow and arrow, pulling the string and aiming at a faraway target. He kept repeating his Shizun's words, "We need to purposely let the brat win." Feeling amused at his own actions, Luo Binghe bit his bottom lip then released the arrow.

An arrow flew across the air, outstretching into a remarkable parabola. Then... the arrow dropped and got itself stuck inside a tree.

A disciple thinned their eyes before blurting out, "300 metres!"

A smug look enveloped Jin Ling's entirety. His chest was puffed out, and pride demonstrating his every movement. "I won." He declared.

Luo Binghe bit down all the complaints and insults that swarmed in his throat. Instead, he gave a shaky smile, "Yeah, you sure did."

Behind him, Shen Qingqiu and Xie Lian gave him a secretive "thumbs up". Hua Cheng merely nodded.

In the end, Luo Binghe was the one wearing a smug face. Haha, it is still I who won!

Regardless, Jin Ling had no idea what fanatic thoughts were roaming around in Luo Binghe's head.

Throughout the entire day, the two couples were being dragged around by Jin Ling. If the brat wanted something, they would serve it to him on a golden platter. If Jin Ling didn't like the golden platter, they would throw it away like it was meaningless trash.

By the time they came to, the two couples realized it was nighttime.

"Ever heard of night hunting?" Jin Ling asked, offhandedly.

The rays of the moonlight shone on his pale skin, softening his outlines and features. Jin Ling looked onwards, his sight unwavering. It was nighttime, and dark clouds smothered over the sky. The two couples and Jin Ling stood before the entrance of the woods. The trees were astonishingly tall, almost touching the skies.

By his side, Xie Lian's eyes held a curious glint. "What is night hunting?"

Amused by his lack of foresight, Jin Ling laughed. "Everyone in the major clans are all aware of what night hunting is. Don't tell me you don't even know this little thing?" His smile was lop-sided, so he gave up. "Forget it. I'll tell you. Night hunting is when we go out in the wild and hunt for evil spirits. We purify or slay them to bring back as a trophy."

Shen Qingqiu's attention was caught. "Will we be going night hunting at this time?"

Jin Ling sneered at him. "Of course. Night hunting must be done during night. The evil spirits will come out that way."

Thinking that it makes sense, Shen Qingqiu nodded and didn't add anything else.

"Just follow me, and I'll perhaps let you guys have some of the credit." Jin Ling huffed. The utter arrogance and confidence underlying in his tone was obvious. Thinking that his teeth began to sore from gritting so hard, Luo Binghe silently sighed. By his sides, his hands were curled in fists.

Indifference flashed across Hua Cheng's face. "Shall we get going then?"

The group of five had all held onto their swords, excluding Xie Lian. Then, they gradually entered the forest.

Once their figures disappeared, two other figures revealed themselves.

Lan Zhan and Wei Wuxian slipped out from the shadows. One's face was full of indifference, while the other smiled gleefully. "They're getting along well, huh." Wei Wuxian grinned.

"Mn." Lan Zhan nodded. His eyes were full of love and respect when looking at his lover.

After that small conversation, the couple sneaked into the forest as well. Jumping up onto the high branches, they continuously spied on the group of five. In case there were any danger, they were always ready to lend a hand.

"Hey, Lan Zhan." Wei Wuxian teased. "Do you think they'll be able to slay any evil spirits?"

Lan Zhan lowered his eyes to look at the group of five below them. "It depends."

"Depends?" Wei Wuxian laughed. "I think they'll catch... hm... maybe five? Well, that is a great harvest for someone like Jin Ling."

Lan Zhan didn't talk any longer. He set his eyes on the group of five.

Jin Ling was leading the way, with the two couples following behind. Clearly impatient, Luo Binghe wore a scowl on his face. Trying to pacify him, Shen Qingqiu fanned him with his own fan. Sometimes, he'd occasionally pat Luo Binghe (the sly dog) on his head.

Eyes full of brightness, Xie Lian keenly did whatever he was told. He followed close behind the crowd, always a foot away.

Hua Cheng stood protectively beside.

A wind rustled past the trees, tousling leaves down the branches. Wei Wuxian held onto the bark of the tree he squatted at, balancing on the branch. Lan Zhan sat beside him, attentive to his surroundings and to his lover's care as well.

"Aha! I sense an evil spirit nearby!" Jin Ling blurted. In one hand was a compass, capable of pointing out the direction of evil spirits. It was the Compass of Evil.

Looking at the hand of the compass, it pointed towards north. "Let's go!" Jin Ling piped up.

He ran towards north, clearly inattentive to the baffled expressions of the two couples. Luo Binghe was speechless. Weren't they supposed to stick together? Pushing that thought aside, he and the rest caught up to the little brat in no time.

Contrary to their expectations, they found a walking corpse.

On the high branch, Wei Wuxian arched an eyebrow. "A fierce corpse? Is someone controlling it?" He didn't get to finish his thought process, because Jin Ling had already took out his sword, Suihua.

"Charge!" Jin Ling yelled. He unsheathed his blade, the sharpness reflecting upon the moonlight's gaze.

Jin Ling ran forwards, clearly wanting to slice the fierce corpse into smithereens.

However, for some reason, the fierce corpse began running away!

Gritting his teeth, Jin Ling followed.

The two couples stood on the spot, clearly confused. They shook their heads, then chased after Jin Ling. After all, they were babysitters. If they don't take their job seriously, then... what was the purpose of them?

On the high branches, Wei Wuxian sighed. He and Lan Zhan chased after them.

Suddenly, the running away fierce corpse stopped in its tracks. Swerving around, it threw an alarming punch at Jin Ling! The latter was unprepared. He could only duck underneath, avoiding the punch by merely inches.

Unfortunately, Luo Binghe was chasing after Jin Ling.

He didn't expect the little brat to suddenly duck. To his surprise, the fierce corpse's fist was a centimetre away from crashing into his own face!

Luo Binghe cursed, "Shit!" What would he do if his magnificent face got damaged?

He quickly unsheathed his sword and blocked the incoming punch.

The fierce corpse and him were at a standstill. Luo Binghe's eyes thinned, and he spat at Jin Ling, who had ran away to hide behind his back, "You brat! You almost got my face injured! I swear, if anything happens to my face, you'll have to pay for it by ten times the amount!"

Hearing the accusation, Jin Ling fell silent. Wasn't it just a face? What was so important about it?

What he didn't know, Luo Binghe thought his face mattered the most. After all, if he looked ugly, his Shizun wouldn't let him sleep with him anymore!

"Pfft." A sudden laugh interrupted the silence.

Luo Binghe noticed the figure of a black-and-red clothed cultivator, who was just sitting atop of branches. "Wei Wuxian! You still dare to laugh!" He spat.

The Demon Lord kicked at the fierce corpse, who was flung at the bottom of a tree trunk.

Luo Binghe knew it wasn't over yet. Therefore, he quickly slashed his sword, Zhengyang at the fierce corpse's limbs. Its arms hung down, and its legs were definitely broken. There was no chance for it to get away anymore.

The fight ended smoothly... but Luo Binghe's anger didn't.

He shot a glare at Wei Wuxian, "I really want to beat up your nephew!"

Shen Qingqiu: We need to purposely let the weak win

Luo Binghe: Aha! ᕙ('▿')ᕗ I let the weak win, therefore, I won!

A few chapters ago...

Wei Wuxian, Lan Zhan, Xie Lian, and Hua Cheng, who purposely let Luo Binghe win during the swordsmanship fight: (≖᷆︵︣≖) How ironic