White datura swirled endlessly alongside the demon-repelling incense. Rong Chen Zi’s vitality had been severely depleted, and he could no longer resist at all. He was by nature a man of few desires — in truth, the wickedness harbored in his heart was genuinely quite minimal.
The Great Clam thought for a long time and still felt that an opportunity like this was not to be missed — you can’t fit into a shell without a bit of squeezing! She turned back onto the bed and gazed at Rong Chen Zi’s reddened eyes, her voice very soft and gentle: “You stinking Daoist, are you trying to take advantage of me?”
Rong Chen Zi still retained his reason. He Bang was cautious and had used only the faintest trace of soul-capture arts, but Rong Chen Zi at this point was already at the end of his rope — how could he possibly withstand her temptation? He lunged at her like a wild beast, and with five fingers swept aside her white feathered robe.
The moment that warm, smooth skin came into his grasp, his reason broke as though a levee had burst, flooding outward for a thousand li.
Now, the Great Clam, truth be told, had accumulated quite a few years. When it came to eating, this creature was absolutely an expert. Over these years she had eaten every ocean delicacy there was — the Eastern Sea, the Southern Sea, the Caribbean Sea — there was nothing she had not eaten. So much so that whenever the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea held any kind of gathering, he absolutely never invited her — she was too expensive to feed.
After coming to the land, conditions had been far more limited. While she had not eaten a wide variety of things, she had worked her way through everything Qingxu Temple could offer.
Because so very much time had been spent eating, and one cannot be expert in all things at once, she was genuinely quite ignorant of other matters — such as the pleasures between men and women.
And so, when she touched that formidable weapon, this Clam still harbored a good deal of perplexity: “Old Daoist, is this what humans call the instrument of procreation?”
Rong Chen Zi parted her legs, his voice thick in his throat: “Mm.”
He Bang reached out and took hold of it, and had a request: “Wow, let me have a look!”
Rong Chen Zi could not get a single word out. His face was red enough to seem about to seep blood. He forcefully pushed He Bang’s hand away, shifted his hips — and He Bang cried out in pain.
Her body was by nature soft and easily injured, having spent her entire life hidden inside her shell — extraordinarily sensitive at all times, unable to endure so much as wind and sunlight. And so this Clam had always been afraid of pain. How could she possibly withstand such a forceful advance from Rong Chen Zi!
Furthermore, a clam’s method of reproduction was nowhere near this complicated. She had absolutely no idea what this situation was! All she knew was that in the human world, if a man did this to a woman, the man was obligated to take responsibility for that woman!
“What the—!” Even now she still did not understand why that thing kept pressing against the juncture of her thighs and continued pushing inward, but it hurt. She reached down and grabbed the thing — in the spirit of learning. “Rong Chen Zi, why do you keep pressing against me there?”
Rong Chen Zi had no means of giving her a lesson right now — he could barely manage himself. He pressed forward again, and the thing finally entered a head’s worth. He Bang finally understood — a moment of complete and total enlightenment. And then she let out a sharp scream and kicked Rong Chen Zi away with full force.
Rong Chen Zi gripped her jade-like ankles and dragged her back beneath him. This Clam desperately cast a Body-Fixing Curse — that fierce and fearsome thing, how on earth could it possibly be fit in there? Damn humans for even dreaming up such a thing!
But Rong Chen Zi paid no heed. At such close range, any technique required time to execute. His eyes blazing red like a lion, he suddenly seized He Bang’s hand and broke the technique she was only halfway through casting. He Bang was, after all, the Sea Sovereign — she had seen great storms and great waves. Since force was not working, she forced a smile and tried to negotiate with Rong Chen Zi: “Could we switch positions? Or use the mouth? I think my mouth is bigger than that place…”
Needless to say, Rong Chen Zi would not accept such a compromise. The process was harrowing. The Great Clam cried until her entire face was soaked with tears, continuing to curse Rong Chen Zi even as she wept. Rong Chen Zi moved relentlessly — his heart in hell, his body in paradise.
The Great Clam raked his back with her nails until it was covered in wounds. The pain gave him a fraction of lucidity. He sliced open his wrist, pressing the wound to He Bang’s lips. He Bang naturally did not stand on ceremony and immediately opened her mouth to drink. With something good to eat, this foodie began to quiet down. Her body still ached, but the meat was genuinely delicious.
The Great Clam wanted to cry and yet could not bear to open her mouth wide. In the end she decided — fine, finish eating first, then cry.
…
Rong Chen Zi’s sweat dripped onto her face, each thrust powered by every last ounce of his strength. The Clam felt something like an iron rod churning inside her, as though all her internal organs had been displaced. She wept as she drank from the wound at Rong Chen Zi’s wrist, and between her sobs thought to herself: “In any case, that particular piece of meat — I am absolutely not eating it when I eat the rest of him later!”
Rong Chen Zi slept for four full hours. When he woke, every muscle in his body ached. His consciousness had remained clear throughout, so naturally he knew exactly what had taken place. He rose and properly tidied his clothes and grooming, and his very first act was to look everywhere for the Great Clam.
He Bang was not in the room. He went outside and encountered Qingsu. Qingsu had barely called out “Master” before he interrupted her: “Have you seen that Clam?”
Qingsu nodded: “She came out in the afternoon and has been soaking in the water vat in the dining hall. Senior Brother gave word, and no one has dared to chase her out.”
Rong Chen Zi walked quickly to the dining hall and sure enough found her transformed into her Great Clam form, soaking in a stone water vat. A milky white substance floated on the clear water surface. Rong Chen Zi naturally knew what it was — when his consciousness had failed him, he could not control himself. His vital essence had been converted to impure essence, and having cultivated as a Daoist for many years with his original Yang energy intact, yesterday had been the first unsheathing of the sword — an accumulation of many years was bound to overflow.
Even his neck flushed red. He bent down and gently lifted the Clam out. The disciples also noticed that today their Zhiguan seemed somehow different — though no one could quite articulate what was different…
Rong Chen Zi carried He Bang back to his sleeping quarters. Qingxuan was perceptive enough — he immediately brought food and drink over, but this time did not dare push the door straight open. He coughed loudly from a great distance away, continuing all the way to the door before finally knocking.
Rong Chen Zi gave a quiet cough and allowed him to enter. He pushed the door open to see that He Bang had already resumed her human form, one jade-like leg resting on his Master’s leg while his Master sat on the edge of the bed, gently applying medicine to that smooth and fair ankle.
Qingxuan did not allow himself so much as a second glance, and immediately set the food and dishes out on the table: “Master, your meal is ready.”
Rong Chen Zi nodded slightly. Qingxuan fled — though naturally he did not forget to pull the door closed behind him.
The fragrance of food drifted through the room. Rong Chen Zi burned a Daoist evil-expelling talisman, dissolved it in a cup of water mixed with rock sugar, and offered it to He Bang. He Bang refused to drink it — when she was in pain she had no appetite. Since entering the room Rong Chen Zi had not spoken a single word. He naturally had methods for relieving pain, but the injury was in that particular location…
His face carried a strange flush. After a long moment he finally spoke: “Eat something first.”
The tone held an awkward tenderness.
He Bang turned her head away and still refused to drink the talisman water. Her body was far too delicate — even minor injuries and minor aches lingered for a long time, let alone the storm Rong Chen Zi had put her through. Rong Chen Zi felt himself in the wrong. Gritting his teeth, he sliced open his wrist once more and let blood drip into the talisman water. Only then did He Bang turn to look at him. He raised the cup to her lips and spoke gently once more: “Come.”
He Bang’s appetite had diminished greatly. When she gorged herself Rong Chen Zi had looked down on it; now that she ate little he worried she would fall ill. The weather was hot outside, which was bad for her.
In the end he gritted his teeth and crouched before her: “Does it hurt very much?” His face burned so hot it could practically ignite. “Let me look at it…”
He Bang did not refuse. He lifted the feathered robe. Beneath were two bare long legs. Rong Chen Zi took a swift glance, saw there was indeed some redness and swelling, and without thinking passed her a tin of salve for dissipating blood stasis and reducing bruising.
He Bang would not take it. He let out a quiet sigh, tilted his face slightly to the side, and applied the medicine for her. The sensation was so tender and delicate that his heart nearly burst from his chest.
The next day, He Bang’s spirits had recovered somewhat. She had taken a liking to the red date and sweet paste moon cakes made at Qingxu Temple. Rong Chen Zi instructed the dining hall to prepare more in reserve for her, then announced he was entering closed-door cultivation.
His vitality had not yet recovered, and he had been struck by a strange poison — he naturally needed a period of recuperation. More importantly, he now did not know how to face this Clam. He gathered all his disciples in the Patriarch’s Hall, gave his customary address, then instructed Qingxuan to oversee the temple’s affairs with Qingsu in assistance, and passed down two volumes of talisman charts for the disciples to study and reference.
Once all matters were arranged, he suddenly also gave this instruction to Qingxuan: “That Clam… during the time your Master is in closed-door cultivation, you are to look after her well. Apply the treatment to her eyes regularly on schedule.” He held Qingxuan’s gaze, his bearing solemn and imposing. “Treat seeing her as seeing your Master. You are not to be disrespectful toward her.”
Qingxuan nodded like a little chicken pecking grain, thinking to himself: how would I even dare to be disrespectful — the moment you enter closed-door cultivation, Master, I’ll be placing her on the offering altar and worshipping her as a divine figure.