Chapter 103: Merely Curious...

In the forest, a pig and a monkey frolicked as they moved onward, and not far behind them three figures walked abreast, though each wore a very different expression.

On the left was a youth in red, his whole body radiating a fierce aura of blood and slaughter. Every magical beast that came near him was slain without hesitation; despite his young age, no one knew how many lives he had already taken.

Yet at this moment, the red-clad boy showed no trace of ferocity. Instead, his expression was oddly twisted. Now and then his gaze drifted toward the two beside him, filled with curiosity, confusion, and a whole tangle of other emotions. He seemed several times on the verge of speaking, only to realize he did not know where to begin, which left him deeply frustrated.

In the middle walked a young man in blue. His face was expressionless, though from time to time he would glance at the pair beside him. His brow would knit slightly, and he would let out a nearly imperceptible sigh, as though wrestling with some immensely troubling question.

On the right was another young man in red, but he differed somewhat from the one on the left. The left one’s red was the red of fresh blood; this one’s was the red of fire. Yet he showed none of fire’s ardor. Instead, his face was awkward, uncertain, and tinged with a strange lingering aftertaste, as if he were still replaying something in his mind.

“Ah... I can’t take it anymore. If this goes on any longer, I’m going to go crazy. You two haven’t said a word all day!”

Suddenly, the red-clad youth on the left stopped and spoke in utter frustration. His nature had never been one for silence; for him, walking in wordless stillness for an entire day was sheer torture.

“I think we need to talk.”

Glancing at Kairo, whose face was awkward and uncertain, Wang Luo spoke. His own heart was a jumble of conflicting feelings. Originally, he had planned to leave as soon as Kairo’s poison was cured, but Damon had suddenly intervened, and in the end things had become the embarrassing situation they were now in.

“Exactly. We really should talk. If this keeps up, I’ll be driven insane by you two. I honestly didn’t know what was going on at the time. I just thought you were making an awful lot of noise, and I couldn’t help coming over to take a look. I swear I will never sell you out or tell anyone what I saw. I swear!”

Damon, who had been holding it in all day, hurriedly blurted it all out. He truly had not meant to do it. He had only been curious. Who could blame him? Kairo had been crying out so... intensely; anyone would have wanted to look.

“Everyone has a curious streak. Actually, you’re still young. Being curious about sex is perfectly understandable.”

At Wang Luo’s words, Damon and Kairo both froze, then exchanged a helpless look and turned back to Wang Luo. Still young? They seemed about the same age, didn’t they? Of course, that excluded one certain person who had matured rather early in one particular way.

“Cough. What I’m about to say is very important to you both, so listen carefully.”

Only after sensing their gazes did Wang Luo realize the problem. He too was still only a youngster. To hide his embarrassment, he gave a small cough and then spoke with a solemn expression.

“The children of the Heavenly Profound Continent mature relatively early. By our standards, you’re basically already in adolescence.”

“Your world?” Damon and Kairo exchanged a glance, both showing puzzled expressions as they looked at Wang Luo.

“That’s not the point. In our world, research into development, sex, and related matters is far more advanced than here. You are now in the stage of sexual development, not yet fully mature, so it’s perfectly normal to be curious about it. There’s no need to feel burdened by it. You’ve both used a magic cannon before, haven’t you? It felt pretty good, right?”

Kairo seemed indifferent enough at those words. Their dormitory of four had already discussed this issue more than once. Damon, however, looked somewhat embarrassed. He was outgoing by nature, but his family upbringing had been strict, and he had never discussed such matters with anyone before.

“With sex comes desire, naturally. That’s why people use magic cannons. Every man does it. Of course, there are more than one way to release desire. Adult men usually do it with women. Women have sexual desire too; they have needs as well. But women are not tools for men to vent themselves on. You must understand that.”

“There are also some men whose thinking may be a little off, and who choose another man to release their urges with. I’m not saying that can be judged simply as right or wrong. But if they sink entirely into intimacy between men and never try intimacy between a man and a woman, believing the two are basically the same, then that is mistaken.”

“Love between a man and a woman is the harmony of yin and yang. You’ve probably heard of dual cultivation. The love between men and women is more pleasurable, more comfortable, than love between men. Don’t let your present feelings mislead you. You need to understand that you don’t actually like men—you’re only curious about sex, curious about intimacy!”

When he finished, Wang Luo looked straight at Damon and Kairo, sincerely hoping that the two, who had not yet truly entered that world of male-male desire, might one day be liberated from it. He himself was in immense torment. There were things he knew he ought not to think about, and yet at times he still could not stop himself.

“Let’s separate for a while. Think it over properly. Besides, tomorrow is the final day of the trial tournament. Let us see who will truly become this generation’s king of freshers!”

After saying this, Wang Luo did not wait for a reply. He turned and left at once. A flash of cold killing intent passed through his eyes and vanished in an instant; his ten fingers clenched tightly into his flesh, yet no blood appeared at all.

“Oh right, I forgot to ask Wang Luo whether he’d be willing to come home with me. Forget it. We’ll still see each other tomorrow anyway. I’ll ask then!”

Seeing Wang Luo disappear, Damon suddenly remembered the purpose for which he had saved him. After muttering to himself for a moment, he bade Kairo farewell and also vanished into the forest.

Watching the direction in which Wang Luo had gone, Kairo’s expression kept changing. His gaze was extraordinarily complex, and he was utterly bewildered now, not knowing what choice to make, nor where he should go from here.

“Help! Damn it, how did we run into a sixth-level magical beast?!”

The cry for help interrupted Kairo’s thoughts. A moment later, he saw three graceful figures dart out from the forest. One of them, like him, wore a fiery red mage’s robe, and it was she who had been shouting for help in a panic.

The three stopped not far from Kairo and examined him. Likewise, Kairo examined the three girls opposite him and was secretly startled to find that among them there was actually one at the peak of level five, while the other two were both at the peak of level four.

“So strong. The Heavenly Profound Academy really is full of hidden talents and extraordinary people.”

“Ah, your strength is quite good. You’ve actually reached level five. There’s a sixth-level earth-element magical beast behind us. How about joining forces?”

At the girl’s proposal, Kairo frowned, ready to refuse. Then he thought of Wang Luo’s words and nodded, agreeing.

“Hello, I’m Sili from the Southern Court. This is Lisha; she’s at the peak of level five now. And this is Fimi, at the peak of level four.”

Hearing that Sili came from the Southern Court, Kairo could not help but be slightly taken aback. He had not expected that these three little beauties, each of them outstanding in both appearance and bearing, would actually be in the same Northern Court as Wang Luo.

“Do you know Wang Luo?”

“Wang Luo? You’ve seen that guy? Where is he? How many magic crystals did he get? I refuse to believe we’ll still lose to him this time!”

Hearing Sili’s words and seeing the different reactions of the three girls, Kairo recalled what Wang Luo had just said. A thoughtful look surfaced in his eyes...