'Ah Chen...Ah Chen, wake up now.' Lu Yong sat on the edge of the bed, smiling down at his young lover. He stroked his head gently and then leaned down and kissed him. 'I ordered you a hot bath, and then we can have something to eat.'

Wu Chen groaned and snuggled deeper into the blankets. They had been up most of the night, and he was sore and very tired. He knew that if he ran a few circulations of his qi, he could both ease the aches as well as expel the foreign fluids, but that required movement. Right now, he didn't even want to move.

Lu Yong chuckled, feeling indulgent and happy after the night they'd shared. He shook his head at his sleepy ward and made sure he was completely covered up before the servants arrived with the bath. 

A short time later, Wu Chen frowned as the blankets were suddenly removed, and he was gently lifted into the air. He opened his eyes to see Lu Yong carrying his naked body towards the bathtub. 'Ah Yong, I can walk.' He yawned and rested his head against Lu Yong's shoulder.

Lu Yong smiled softly, 'I know.' Then he placed him into the hot water of the tub and went to order their meal and make them some tea.

Once in the water, Wu Chen finally shook off the dredges of sleep and allowed himself a nice long soak before scrubbing himself down. He hurt in places he didn't even know he had, especially in his lower half, and he blushed to think how he had gotten that way. There had been several experiences after his first one, and he was rather embarrassed at how wantonly he had acted with Lu Yong.

He sat in the water and circulated his qi several times. Slowly, the aches began to disappear, and he thoroughly cleansed himself inside as well. Almost certain he could at least walk now, he got out of the tub and quickly began to put his clothes on. He was starving for some reason and hoped for once that there was something more than just congee.

As he finished dressing, he heard a knock at the door and Lu Yong talking to the servants. Soon, the smell of food permeated the room. He came out from behind the partition to see a table filled with a variety of foods and Lu Yong pouring them both some tea. He felt a little shy after the night's activities, but his hunger won out.

He sat down gingerly across from Lu Yong. Qi could only do so much, so it was still a little uncomfortable to sit. Unable to hide the slight blush on his cheeks, he said quietly. 'I'm sorry I wouldn't wake up. Thank you for the bath and the food, Ah Yong.' He quickly began filling his bowl, casting shy glances at Lu Yong from underneath his long lashes.

Lu Yong smiled. In Wu Chen's last life, he was always starving after a night's play. He watched as Wu Chen ate and noted his flushed cheeks and little glances. His heart warmed, knowing Wu Chen had given him his love and trust.

'We should explore the town today and see about restocking our supplies.' Lu Yong said in an effort to make Wu Chen feel more comfortable. He took a sip of tea. 'Also, we should familiarize ourselves with the dangers of the pass. Things may have changed since I was last here.'

Wu Chen took a sip of his own tea. 'When was that?' he asked curiously.

'After I healed from the Battle of Serpents. I had to traverse the pass to return home so I could go into seclusion.' Lu Yong said with a small sigh.

Wu Chen saw his sadness, and his heart ached. He reached over and placed his hand on Lu Yong's. 'Hey, I'm here now. I'm safe. Let's move on from that, ok?' He smiled brightly at his Guardian and was happy to see him nod and smile back.

They spent the day wandering the market and were able to restock most of their supplies. Since the town was so near the pass, it had become a hub of sorts for supplying adventurers both exiting and entering its dangerous environs.

It was also a good place to get information.

Several rumors were running through the bustling market. The most important of which was that something had stirred up the Immortal Sects. Although each sect had set dates for recruitment, it seemed that all of them had suddenly sent disciples amongst various clans in an effort to entice new members. Some weren't very polite about it either.

The people were curious as to whether the Immortal Sects were gearing up for a sect war and just needed fodder or if something else was going on. Either way, the clans weren't willing to let their top talents be wasted in some pointless pissing contest that had nothing to do with them. Tensions were getting high.

Wu Chen was worried about his clan, especially his father and brother. The closest sect to them was the White Crane Sect. He couldn't imagine a healing sect giving his father too much trouble, but it sounded like every sect was sending out disciples. In that case, there might be problems he wasn't aware of being so far from home. He decided that he would send them a message with return capabilities and check on them.

Meanwhile, Lu Yong was gathering information about the hazards within the pass. He expected the usual spirit beasts like wolves, lions, and boars, but apparently something new had taken up residence since he was last there. It was known as the Three Banded Cobra. Its species was deadly as just a normal beast, but this one was a spirit beast of enormous size.

Wu Chen and Lu Yong had been enjoying a break in a small teahouse when they heard one of the patrons talk about the snake. He was angry over the loss of his group and was rather loud when talking to his companion about it. Lu Yong took a sip of his tea and decided to watch the man for a moment before calling him over.

He was a cultivator of around 6th Foundation Level, heavier set, and dressed in a dark blue robe with a white underrobe. His black hair was up in a topknot with a steel pin to hold it in place. His sharp brows were drawn down in anger over double-lidded eyes, and his thick lips were pulled into a deep frown. The jade ornament hanging from his belt appeared to be from the Spirit Mountain Sect, so he was a demonic practitioner. That was interesting.

Lu Yong subtly cast a sound barrier over their table and turned to Wu Chen. 'Ah Chen, I'm going to invite our upset friend over for a cup of tea. Be on your guard.' Wu Chen nodded, also recognizing the jade ornament, and Lu Yong sent a server over to invite the man to their table.

The man waved the server away, still talking to his table mate and ignoring Lu Yong entirely. Lu Yong drew his brows together and sent out a strong wave of aura that stopped everyone talking in the teahouse immediately. The man's face turned white, and he hurriedly got up and bowed politely to Lu Yong.

'I was rude, senior. Forgive this ignoble person for not recognizing Mount Tai.' He was shaking slightly.

Lu Yong stared at him for a moment and then asked him to join them. He sat at the table and darted a glance at the other man sitting with the senior. His jaw dropped open when Wu Chen turned to look him full in the face. How could a man be that beautiful? He gulped and didn't notice the slight frown on the senior's face as he stared openly.

'Are all disciples of the Spirit Mountain Sect so impolite?' inquired Lu Yong, his face darkening.

'Sorry, senior, sorry.' He bobbed in a halfhearted bow, but his eyes kept being drawn back to the beautiful man at the table. 'What can I do to help senior?'

'I am interested in knowing more about the cobra your team encountered.' Lu Yong wanted to keep this simple. He didn't know how long he'd be able to keep his temper with this rude bastard.

The man seemed to have been shaken by his line of questioning and finally pulled his eyes from Wu Chen. 'Are you planning to go through the pass, senior?' he asked, surprised. 'It's not safe during the summer. Better to wait for winter when the snake hibernates.' He nodded sagely.

'Thank you for your guidance, but I want to hear about the cobra, if you would.' He poured Wu Chen a cup of tea and glared at the annoying man.

Wu Chen hid a smirk. It appeared that Lu Yong was sipping vinegar instead of tea. How sweet! As if this man was a threat to him at all.

'Thank you, Ah Yong.' Wu Chen smiled up at his Guardian and took a sip of the tea. He noticed Lu Yong's ears were a little red and tried not to laugh out loud.

The disciple wasn't a complete idiot. He could see now that these two were a couple and decided he'd better watch himself. That aura was no joke. He cleared his throat and turned his full attention to the senior. 'When my team encountered the snake, we were on the far side of the pass. I don't know if that's where its lair is, just that we were attacked there.'

'How many were in your team?' Lu Yong asked.

'6...and I was the lowest rank.' He hung his head.

'If you were the lowest, how is it you were able to walk away?' Wu Chen asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

The man shrugged, 'I don't know. It suddenly stopped attacking the team and left.' He didn't dare look at the pretty man, so he looked up at the senior, 'I'm just as confused. I don't know what I'm supposed to tell the sect leader.'

'What about size, cultivation, attacks?' Lu Yong wanted specifics. Something didn't seem right about this whole thing.

The man bobbed his head, 'When it rears up, it stands about the height of 3 men, but it attacks fast, so I didn't get a good look at it on the ground. I don't know its length. It spits poison up to 10 meters away. It can fly short distances, I guess it's more like gliding, and it uses wind qi. I know that because it made a small windstorm that knocked us over when it first attacked. As for cultivation, it was a higher level than me, so I couldn't read it.'

Lu Yong listened while tapping his finger on the table. That was quite the size and cultivation for a spirit beast. Especially one from the snake family. Why hadn't the local sects taken care of it before it had gotten to this point? Now, it would be a major hassle to kill it off.

It made no sense. At least the bear had a reason for not being dealt with quickly. It had grown too fast because of the pool, and the rumors hadn't reached the sects yet. This thing had grown right under the noses of the Spirit Mountain Sect. Wasn't it their job to keep these types of things under control?

Unless the snake had discovered another high cultivation source like the mushrooms. He got a little excited.

That still didn't explain why it just stopped attacking, though. That was still a mystery.

Lu Yong looked down at the man and leaned forward until he filled the man's vision. 'One last thing. Was your team sent to deal with the cobra?'

The man gulped, but he put on a stoic face, 'I'm sorry, senior, I can't discuss sect business with outsiders.'

Lu Yong sat back with a smile and said, 'Thank you for your help today. You may go.' He waved the man off and watched as he grabbed his companion and walked quickly out of the teahouse.

Wu Chen watched him over the rim of his teacup. 'They were definitely sent to deal with the cobra.' he said, taking a sip of his tea.