Little Pink Starfish

The next day, Gu Bai slowly woke up, feeling something soft beneath his head.

Without a doubt, it was definitely Gu Xiaoshan’s thigh. But the sun was already high in the sky, and he still hadn’t reacted at all. Did he sleep that soundly? He was really too careless.

He opened his eyes and, sure enough, saw that handsome face.

Almost immediately, Qi Guanrui spoke: “Gege is awake?”

Gu Bai felt a little embarrassed: “Why didn’t you wake me last night?”

Qi Guanrui said softly, “Seeing gege sleeping so soundly, I couldn’t bear to wake you.”

Gu Bai’s ears turned red.

Ahhh, you little brat, playing ambiguous again! Be careful, or I’ll smack you!

But as a shut-in who only loved the two-dimensional world, despite always calling others ji lao ji lao (slang for gay people), he actually knew very well that the world he had created was absolutely, strictly a straight-up harem world.

So after silently spitting on his remaining dignity, he sat up straight.

After a whole night, his clothes seemed a bit wrinkled.

Gu Bai sighed internally. No matter how well-prepared he was in this mountain, tents and animal hides still couldn’t compare to the comfort of a bed at home.

But he didn’t dwell on it too much. He stretched his body and felt comfortable all over.

Qi Guanrui let Gu Bai get up and lightly pounded his own legs.

Gu Bai saw this and said, “…Want me to massage them?”

As an older brother, relying on his little brother to keep watch at night was really a bit irresponsible.

Feeling guilty, Gu Bai decided to at least offer some comfort.

This kind of situation wasn’t unheard of before, but back then, Qi Guanrui had always refused.

However, today, Qi Guanrui’s gaze flickered, and he said, “Sure.”

Gu Bai immediately felt even guiltier.

He must have been too tired and numb to even stand up. Otherwise, given how obedient Gu Xiaoshan was to him, he wouldn’t have stayed down for so long.

Thinking this, Gu Bai walked over, sat beside Qi Guanrui, lifted his calf, and straightened one of his long legs.

Speaking of which, these legs were really long and straight… Wonder how his assets are—stop!

Realizing he was about to lose his dignity again, Gu Bai focused his eyes on his nose, his nose on his heart, and controlled himself from looking at anything inappropriate. Instead, he concentrated on massaging.

Qi Guanrui watched Gu Bai’s lowered head, feeling the tingling pleasure in his calf while suppressing the moan that almost escaped his throat.

It wasn’t just mentally satisfying—it was physically satisfying, too.

After confirming his desecrating thoughts about Ziche Shubai last night, he no longer indulged recklessly.

Instead, he began trying to control his desires.

Every inch of Ziche Shubai’s skin, every word, every move was seducing him, making the raging desire in his chest boil, making him want to drag him to bed immediately.

So almost anything Ziche Shubai did, even just standing there without a word, could instantly arouse him.

Such desire was too intense, too easily provoked.

Qi Guanrui absolutely could not let Ziche Shubai notice, so he had to be in control.

Last night was indeed a good opportunity. After Ziche Shubai fell asleep, he had only tasted him briefly before stopping.

Slowly suppressing, slowly restraining, until after a few hours, he could finally avoid losing control too easily.

Just like now—Qi Guanrui’s physical body was incredibly strong. How could he possibly be numb after just one night?

He just wanted the person he desired to personally massage him.

He felt the firm yet gentle touch on his leg—the other hadn’t even put on gloves—and his mind constantly envisioned the obedient Gu Bai… as well as how he would one day trap him in bed, how he would turn the tides with him, how he would make him cry out, moan, gasp… how he would lock him in his embrace, only in his embrace.

Qi Guanrui’s control over his desires had reached a terrifying level.

No matter how wildly his thoughts ran, that most easily aroused part of him remained still, completely unreactive.

And Gu Bai, of course, noticed nothing unusual.

Gu Bai diligently massaged Qi Guanrui’s legs for a full half-hour before stopping. “Xiaoshan, see how it feels.”

Qi Guanrui was reluctant to stop, but he knew he couldn’t raise suspicion. He moved his legs a little and smiled. “I’m all better, gege.”

After speaking, he stretched his legs and stood up, then reached out to pull Gu Bai up as well.

Gu Bai sighed at how considerate the kid was and, not wanting to reject his kindness, let him pull him up. Only after he was stable did he withdraw his hand.

Qi Guanrui straightened both of their clothes before saying, “Gege, wait outside for a bit. I’ll clean up.”

Gu Bai nodded, deciding to go out and start a fire to roast some meat.

The two had a pleasant morning. After finishing his meal, Gu Bai wiped his mouth clean and resumed his noble and aloof demeanor, the signature posture of the Tian Du City Lord. “Let’s go.”

Qi Guanrui smiled. “Alright, gege, I’ll listen to you.”

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A fully grown Guwu Bull was a Wu Jun-level beast, over three meters tall, with a dark green-black body and feline-like padded paws. Its sharp single horn, powerful bite, and crushing strikes made it a terrifying predator. When charging, it could shatter small hills, and its skin was so tough that ordinary weapons couldn’t pierce it.

In these rugged mountains, such beasts were rare—only this one occupied the peak as its domain.

At this moment, a Guwu Bull was locked in combat with a young man.

The young man wore a white robe, spotless from head to toe. His noble aura was undeniable. The silver gauze gloves on his hands appeared delicate and soft, yet during his attacks, they exuded a sharp, icy brilliance.

The Guwu Bull swung its long tail and raised its front paws, swiping aggressively at the young man!

It wasn’t bleeding, but upon closer inspection, several dents on its body were visible—deep impacts that nearly caved in.

The pain must have been unbearable, leaving its eyes bloodshot with madness.

The young man’s figure flickered, suddenly lowering himself before swiftly lunging forward, slipping nimbly under the Guwu Bull’s belly—its weakest spot. Here, neither its paws, fangs, nor horn could reach him.

It was a blind spot.

With swift precision, the young man curled his fingers into claws and struck directly at a red mark on its belly—

In the next moment, the skin tore open, and his fingers sank deep inside!

The Guwu Bull let out a long, agonized howl, its body trembling before collapsing onto the ground.

The young man gracefully stepped back, effortlessly landing outside the beast’s falling range.

—No matter how the dust flew, not a single speck touched him.

This man, who always took zhuang bi (showing off) to the extreme—who else could it be but Gu Bai?

Even deep in the mountains, he remained impeccably dressed, making sure everyone knew how expensive—no, how noble and expensive he was.

Qi Guanrui stood nearby, eyes filled with obsession.

After Gu Bai finished off the Guwu Bull, Qi Guanrui emerged from behind a tree, quickly concealing his greedy gaze.

Then, skillfully, he crouched before the beast’s corpse, took out a sharp knife, and began dismantling it…

First, he cut off the head—this was the proof that a student had truly slain a beast of the same level during their training. Then, he carefully extracted the most tender parts of the meat, along with valuable materials like the bull’s horn, hooves, heart, and hide, which could either be used for forging weapons or replenishing human energy. He stored everything in his spatial ring.

As for Gu Bai, he naturally stood far away, making sure not a single drop of blood got on him.

They had been in the mountains for three days now.

In these three days, they hadn’t encountered a single other student from the academy hunting in the area. Even finding the beasts they wanted to hunt had been difficult, requiring constant trekking.

Fortunately, both of them had plenty of stamina, so it wasn’t too exhausting.

However, as time passed, Gu Bai began to feel a little irritated.

Damn it! Three days without a bath!

If his cleanliness obsession was at a level 5 when he was still a shut-in, then now it had multiplied at least tenfold, almost breaking the scale.

—This had a lot to do with the loyal dogs in Tian Du City and Qi Guanrui’s constant pampering.

Having a cleanliness obsession took effort, right? Back when Gu Bai was still a bit lazy, he would sometimes try to slack off. But now, he didn’t even need to do anything—there was always someone taking care of everything for him. Naturally, his standards had only grown stricter over time.

So, little by little, he had become like this.

Qi Guanrui knew Gu Bai’s thoughts very well. He quickly finished handling the beast’s corpse, wiped his fingers meticulously clean, and then walked over.

Gu Bai took a step back.

Qi Guanrui sighed and stretched out his hands. “Gege, there’s no smell.”

Gu Bai felt slightly embarrassed. “…Mm.”

Qi Guanrui said helplessly, “Gege, don’t worry. If we walk a few hundred more steps, we should reach a water source.”

Gu Bai’s eyes lit up, but his face remained stoic. “…How do you know?”

Qi Guanrui paused.

Could he say that over the past few days, after seeing Ziche Shubai so eager to bathe, he had secretly released his snake gu to scout ahead for him?

Even though he still trusted Ziche Shubai for now, snake gu were simply too sinister. He knew that ordinary people would be wary of them.

—Even if Ziche Shubai didn’t mind, his instincts told him that he had to keep it a secret.

As if revealing it would lead to some kind of consequence.

Something that he dared not risk.

But Qi Guanrui was a natural at deception, so he immediately found an excuse. “Gege, did you forget? When I was young, I lived in a town near the mountains. There were springs in the mountains as well. I often trained there, so I learned how to recognize terrain that might have water sources…”

As someone completely clueless about geography, Gu Bai believed him without question. He became eager at once. “Hurry up and take me there.”

Qi Guanrui smiled gently. “Alright.”

The information from the snake gu was very clear. Qi Guanrui had been subtly guiding Gu Bai along this path for the past few days.

Now, presenting this as a favor made Gu Bai happy.

After walking another hundred steps or so, a jagged rock formation blocked their way, forming what looked like a natural gateway.

From beyond the gateway, the faint sound of water could be heard.

Gu Bai quickened his pace, now a little impatient.

But just as he reached the rocks, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“Xiaoshan, go in and check first,” he said, expressionless.

Qi Guanrui was puzzled. “Gege, what do you mean…?”

Gu Bai replied, “See if there’s anyone in the water.”

It wasn’t paranoia—Gu Bai simply had terrible luck.

The first time he went to a lakeside for a walk, he ran into the perverted protagonist’s fiancée.
Taking a carriage on the road, he encountered the perverted protagonist’s man-eating flower girl.
Staying in an inn, he bumped into a member of the perverted protagonist’s harem.
Even staying in his own dorm and not going out, he still got visited by the perverted protagonist’s murderous sister!

For some reason, no matter what he did, he always ran into the perverted protagonist’s women.

And he didn’t even want to push these women down! What was the point of encountering them?!

Gu Bai had a feeling that if he went to bathe, he would probably run into yet another situation.

In TV dramas, the male lead would always happen to see a woman bathing, drinking from a stream, accidentally wandering into a lake, or washing his face in the wrong place. Even in martial arts, fantasy, or magical worlds, the male protagonist would always somehow end up seeing a woman’s naked body near water.

Even in the harem novel he wrote, the perverted protagonist constantly ran into various women bathing, leading to steamy encounters.

But Gu Bai himself had absolutely no interest in such things.

Forced romantic encounters were actually quite a headache!

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Pinky says: Tell me about it, ugh, sexual harassment is soooo annoying.