Its light slowly wavered, dragging out heavy shadows from the surroundings.
The person beside Yan Caiwei had to call out to her twice before she hastily withdrew her gaze from those shadows and responded. âShixiong.â
A moment before, one of the soul lamps stored in Peng Lai was extinguished. The corresponding fate plate had also shattered.
The white cranes on Qing Jing Peak wandered incessantly. Their cries shrill enough to pierce through the clouds, reflecting an endless despair.
Yan Caiwei nodded, but her mind was thousands of miles away. âI will go to investigate⌠Jiang-shidi must have had his reasons for undergoing his tribulation in Luo City.â
She pushed against the armrests of her seat to get up. Her thoughts were still sluggish as she struggled to accept the reality before her. The full force of the pain had not hit her yet.
Yan Caiwei brushed a hand over the bell artifact at her waist before meeting Zhou Zhengpingâs eyes again.
There was a deep fatigue in the lines of Zhangmen-shixiongâs face. He was like an unmoving statue. His whisk laid neglected on the table, its colour cold and desolate.
A heavy air hung over the usually bright and open Peng Lai Main Palace. An invisible pressure weighed on the hearts of those within.
In the following moment, dark, rolling clouds covered the previously clear sky outside. A lone figure descended from them and stepped into the palace.
Yan Caiwei stepped forward and looked at the approaching visitor.
Li Huanhan was still in his customary black robes that radiated darkness like a moonless night. Behind him was a long cloak lined with scarlet.
The cloak was stained with fresh blood that left traces on the palace floor.
Under Yan Caiweiâs gaze, he walked to the table and placed a silk wrapped object next to the whisk by Zhou Zhengpingâs hand.
In the compelling silence, only Yan Caiweiâs quiet and emotionless voice was heard.
âWhat is this?â
She watched as the man unfolded the plain, white silk to reveal the two fragments of a shattered sword within.
Wangchen was made of the hardest ice. It was only thanks to Jiang Yinghe that its edge became honed and its name spread throughout the world. Now it was nothing more than two cracked pieces of ice.
The hard ice hadnât completely melted yet, but faint traces of moisture could already be seen beading on its surface.
The sight of the shattered sword seemed to cause something within Zhou Zhengping to break. Finally moving, he coughed out a mouthful of fresh blood that had accumulated in between his organs. Yan Caiwei quickly supported him by the arm.
Zhou Zhengping looked up and watched as Li Huanhan took out the sword pendant that had once been on Wangchen and tied it to the sword again.
A mockery of what had once been flashed before his eyes.
This was his shidiâs heavenly tribulation as well as his love tribulation.
Zhou Zhengping closed his eyes. He heard Li Huanhanâs slight whisper.
âWe protected him as he reincarnated.â He lowered his head. His tone was devoid of any emotions, but it gave others a sinking feeling in their gut.
âI will find him⌠Sect Master, please return Wangchen to the White Crane Jade Manor.â
After Li Huanhanâs words trailed off, Zhou Zhengping looked at him for a long time before nodding silently.
He watched as Li Huanhan left and took a moment to collect himself before saying to Yan Caiwei, âRing the bell.â
Yan Caiwei was startled. She immediately argued, âSince Shidi may yet reincarnate, there is no need to ring the bell⌠He will still return to Peng Lai!â
âEn.â Zhou Zhengping said, âRing it twelve times then.â
According to the customs of Peng Lai, ringing the bell eleven times signified the fall of a Xianjun. Ringing it twelve times meant that one of the sect elders had entered closed door cultivation.
Yan Caiwei was once again taken aback. Then she nodded as relief spread through her. She spoke no more.
The Peng Lai bell chimed twelve times, the sound resounding throughout the entire cultivation world. All the people in charge of the various sects now thought Jiang Yinghe was distancing himself to further his cultivation.
The River Styx in the Underworld gushed as countless ghosts rushed to the opposite bank. The ferryman in a straw raincoat pointed out a pleasure boat floating by to the ghostly maiden beside him. He told her that their Patriarch resided there.
Wanyao City was still bustling with activity. A snow fox from the Frozen Plains, Xue Qianqian, stopped by the market to listen to the wondrous tales of a deer demon merchant. One of which was about their omnipotent King and his beautiful rabbit devil companion.
At the Tian Mo School, the black snake coiled at the side of the Blood Pond opened its bloodshot eyes. Something compelled it to look up, but all it could see was a dense curtain of pearls and jades.
The chanting of sutras at Lan Ruo Temple never stopped day in and day out until the moment when the bell rang. The little monk, Kong Jing sat opposite Chan Qing copying sutras when he saw the beads circling in the Abbotâs hand suddenly still.
âAbbot?â The little monkâs dark, round eyes widened, âWhatâs wrong?â
Chan Qing was silent for a moment. He shook his head without saying a word.
â-
Three hundred and seventy-five years laterâŚ
Jinghua, Prince Ruiâs ManorâŚ
Neatly dressed maids shuffled to and fro. The scent of incense slowly wafted from the small furnace to fill the room with a soft fragrance.
A maid with her hair in a snake tail closed the door and quirked her lips to her fellow maids. She walked a little further away before saying, âHis Highness Prince Rui is still feverish. Heâs just laid down to rest after taking his medicine, so you should all move further away so as to not disturb him.â
The little girls nodded obediently and left. Satisfied, the first maid also started to leave. However, she only took two steps before she heard the door creak open.
She turned around and caught a glimpse of a furry, snow-white cat tail.
âHis Highnessâ cat mustâve gone in.â She thought as she closed the door once again.
The space within was strongly perfumed with camphor incense which held the smell of medicine.
The little white cat took a few steps forward and licked its paws before jumping onto the bed. It stretched and laid down on a corner of the quilt as its tail caressed the long, scattered strands of hair belonging to the man resting there.
His hair was dark and soft, a stark contrast to the pale quilt it was arranged across.
After being unceremoniously woken up by this kitten, Jiang Yinghe slowly gathered it into his arms. His feverish cheek pressed against the soft and fuzzy cat ears as he whispered, âIâm tired. Donât fuss anymore.â
The little white cat stared at him with its dark eyes as it lounged against him. After a moment, the kitten nuzzled against his ear. The affectionate action raised the temperature of their surroundings.
Jiang Yingheâs mind was muddled due to his fever. He seemed to suddenly hear a quiet, yet pleasant voice. âAre you sick? Your body is burning.â
âOf course Iâm sick.â Jiang Yinghe thought with his eyes closed. He was the youngest brother of the current emperor. If he wasnât constantly sick, he wouldâve been killed already in the brutal power struggles of the palace.
âDonât rub against meâŚâ he quietly murmured, âIâm so sleepy after taking my medicineâŚâ
Something seemed to lightly brush past his ear. Jiang Yinghe could hear the wavering restraint in the other personâs careful words.
âDo you wantâŚto leave here?â
âŚLeave here? By faking my own death? That was already part of my plans.
Jiang Yinghe fell into a daze as he considered this. He slowly opened his eyes a crack, only to suddenly jerk awake as he saw the other person in the room.
In his bed was a youth completely dressed in red with a mask covering half his face. The other half was a flawless and beautiful masterpiece. A pair of cat ears adorned his head while a thick, yet soft tail was wrapped around Jiang Yingheâs waist. The youth was currently staring at him with bright eyes and a smile that slightly revealed his sharp canines.
âŚWhere did my cat go?
Where did the cat that was about this big and this wide that I just put here go?
Jiang Yingheâs mind went blank. He struggled to keep a straight face as he asked with all the calm he could muster. âAnd you areâŚ?â
âIâm a devil.â Chang Ye didnât even blink.
âŚHow forthcoming. I didnât even get a chance to ask what you are.
While Jiang Yinghe was still reeling from current events, the red-clothed youth brushed his fingers across the seal on his own forehead and quietly said, âWhat do I need to do for you to remember me?â
There was a faint cinnabar birthmark that resembled a flowing cloud between Jiang Yingheâs eyebrows. It was the reason he was so doted upon by the previous emperor and empress when they were still alive. They had even considered making him the crown prince.
But he had no desire to fight for the throne. That was all in the past anyway.
The question struck something deep within Jiang Yinghe. Something without shape or form chaotically circled the most vulnerable part of his heart.
At the same time, the system that had accompanied him since birthâŚno, since transmigrating, suddenly lit up with a notification.
[Target acquiredâThe Little Jiang Purification System is at your service.]
The Little Jiang Purification System⌠It sounded like a program that cleaned up pornography and illegal activities. But this was the first time in all these years that Jiang Yinghe had seen it pop out like this.
The system repeated its purpose to him every year, something about purifying and merging the broken fragments of a capture target. It also came with a blackened status bar.
The status bar of the red-clothed youth in front of him was only half filled.
Jiang Yinghe didnât know whether to ponder the sudden change in his worldview or scream for help as the person in front of him came closer.
The other partyâs lips gradually approached in this brief moment of hesitation.
Jiang Yinghe blankly stared at him. Surprisingly, his first reaction wasnât to push this person away when their lips inevitably touched. His heart, which had been beating wildly for a while, appeared to still as their kiss grew deeper. Something stirred in his subconsciousness.
The half of the demon core in his body suddenly reacted to its counterpart, the combined force of which seemed to break through a barrier. Jiang Yingheâs originally calm and consistent thoughts began to unravel as memory fragments rose to the surface and flooded his mind.
He held onto Chang Yeâs shoulders as the white cat turned devil pressed him into the bed while kissing him. But that wasnât even the most astonishing thing. Rather, it was the blurred memories that seemed to come to life for a moment during the kiss.
The corners of Jiang Yingheâs eyes reddened as the lack of oxygen began to take its toll. When he was on the cusp of suffocation, the other person suddenly parted their lips.
He looked at the youth with cool and clear eyes that seemed to glow with hidden starlight. His eyes were rimmed with red and his breathing was unsettled.
In his empty soul that was adrift, a question seemed to come from far away.
His eyes shook as he whispered, âYe-er?â
Chang Yeâs entire body jerked.
âDo you remember me?â
His subconscious mind only surfaced for a moment. Jiang Yinghe rubbed his temples and pondered this. âA bit⌠Itâs still quite blurry.â
His memory ended at the moment of his death when he was struck by lightning. As a result, his recollections also stopped there.
Damn, all he could think about right now was getting struck by lightning. Just what did he do to deserve a death like that?
Most people would need quite a bit of time to accept this revelation, but luckily Jiang Yinghe had been indoctrinated since birth about shocking things like transmigration and the system. He was still surprised at remembering his previous life, but it didnât bother him as much as it could have.
More importantly, if he really had reincarnated, why did he still have his memories of Earth before he transmigrated? Were those like protected files unaffected by reformatting?
His mind drifted as he considered this. He only saw the almost hilariously careful way the other person gazed at him when he looked up again. The white cat had looked at him this way during their first meeting as well.
âYe-er.â The affectionate nickname now rolled off his tongue easily.
Not unlike when he first met the white cat, Jiang Yinghe tapped on his forehead again. âAre weâŚcultivation partners?â
That portion of his memories were too muddled. The only thing that remained clear was his sincere and pure feeling towards each of them. Yes, there were three of âthemâ⌠Jiang Yinghe gradually started accepting this new influx of information. He felt his mind being slowly purified as the dust from his time in the mortal realm was swept away.
Chang Ye froze and stared at his shizun.
Hazy light reflected off his long hair. The customary aloofness in his eyes was still there, but he seemed to have come out of his isolated shell in the years he spent in the mortal realm, revealing a heart bursting with gentle and pure intentions within.
It reminded Chang Ye of the cold drops of dew on a white plum blossom when the snow started to melt with the arrival of spring.
Despite this person spending decades in the mortal realm, Chang Ye felt Jiang Yinghe was even more crystal clear than before.
Chang Ye covered where his heart lay as countless voices rang in his earsâThis was a good opportunity. If he said yes, they would become genuine cultivation partners.
The him of the past would never let go of such a chance.
But behind these scattered voices, Chang Ye heard his own heartbeat as it calmed into a steady rhythm.
âNo,â He leaned in for another kiss. âyou are my shizun.â
He was becoming more and more similar to the other two. Even this calm and measured response wasâŚ
Who wouldâve thought that even a devil beast with an inherently greedy nature could one day learn to love and cherish another?
Chang Ye laughed at himself, but he hugged Jiang Yinghe close and buried his head in the other personâs shoulder. That fuzzy tail wrapped around his waist and constantly wriggled around intimately.
Jaing Yinghe couldnât find it in him to be angry with this shape shifting little kitten that had kissed him twice and hugged him. He even hugged back without thinking about it, stroking the other personâs back in a habitual manner.
It was a comforting gesture.
It was his ever constant gentleness.
Chang Ye endured and endured, but he was still overwhelmed by the sourness in his heart. He tried to muffled his crying by burrowing into Jiang Yingheâs shoulder, but his warm tears still soaked through the other personâs thin garment.
âI missed you so much.â
He couldnât help but be petulant and act cute like he used to, but now his act lacked even the slightest hint of deception. Every word was branded into his heart again and again and again, until it was almost carved into his soul itself.
âYe-er really missed Shizun⌠You w-were too small before so I didnât want to scare you, but IâIâŚâ
Chang Ye couldnât say anymore. He just tightened his hold.
âShizun, letâs leave this place. Isnât that something youâve always wanted to do? How much have you remembered?â
Jiang Yinghe actually didnât remember much. The finer details seemed to elude him like they were obscured underwater beyond the reflections of light off the waves. Only the moment of his death from the lightning was extraordinarily clear, as was the moment after the Lightning Tribulation when the giant beast morphed into a person and gave him half his devil core.
Hmph. And here he thought he was raising a kitten.
Like he had done a thousand times before, Jiang Yinghe stroked Chang Yeâs soft hair as he became immersed in his thoughts.
âI donât remember much⌠This might take a while.â
He also remembered that this purification system went by a different name before??
As Jiang Yinghe reflected on this, the red-clothed youth leaned down and pressed a hand to his cheek. His voice was tinged with concern. âYouâre still burning up. We should hurry back to Peng Lai. Based on my experience, cultivating to your previous level should be very quickâŚâ
But it was also easy to make the same mistakes.
Just like the three of them. Even after regaining their former power and cultivating to this day, they still havenât found a way to reach the Dao. Perhaps them being parts of the same soul disqualified them.
Shizun was the same. He needed to face his true feelings head-on to withstand the Daoâs questioning and break through.
The reaction of the two halves of Chang Yeâs devil core had cleansed the sickness in Jiang Yingheâs body. The remnants of his fever were nothing much. His disciple was just overly worried.
Chang Ye kissed his eyelashes. âShizun, rest for a while⌠Ye-er will keep you company.â
Authorâs Corner
HeHe: Petitioning to have the Heavenly Lightning grant me a super VIP account.
The Dao: Denied.
Going to update at 9:00am from now on. Or else I canât sleep after reading hateful comments at night. I have a heart made of glass okay QAQ
Rain
Yay our MC returned from the dead. Now his disciples wonât destroy the world lol.
Sahl
Our little Ye-er is all grown up! Canât wait for the other two to see their Shizun!