Ch 50 – The Cicada Sheds Its Carapace

“In the legends of the ancient humans, there is a type of spirit called the needle-mouth ghost.”

“They have enormous bellies, but their throats are no wider than the eye of a needle. Because of this, it is impossible for them to eat and drink normally.”

“These spirits suffer from constant hunger. Their limbs are emaciated due to starvation, and their abnormally distended bellies have nothing inside them. All they can do is wail and weep bitterly, day after day.”

Sanjay opened his mouth and looked in the mirror, wanting to see if his own throat was as thin as the eye of a needle.

After a brief look, he closed his mouth and stared expressionlessly at his reflection.

Sanjay’s appearance was remarkably fine.

In an interstellar era where body modification was possible, there were no ugly humans at all. Sanjay’s current appearance was the result of many rounds of modification.

His looks hadn’t been good enough before, and an attractive appearance gave one a greater advantage in social situations.

The modifications were good, but they hadn’t brought him as many benefits as he’d expected. His appearance had also failed to bring him any happy surprises, such as an intimate relationship.

People were afraid of him. They thought his actions were vicious, and didn’t see him as a good person.

But Sanjay found this unfair. Far too unfair.

Who had ever given him a chance to be a good person?

Yu Xi had said that there would always be someone who favored him. Who? His parents? Or the man he once betrayed?

It wasn’t the same.

Kersz had all the luck. Before the deaths of his parents, he was spoiled to the point of becoming a complete fool. He knew nothing, and was foolish enough to actually believe that justice existed in this world.

Sanjay had never been a fool.

He didn’t understand why no one else could comprehend his refusal to give in.

In fact, he knew very well what he should do to give himself a safer life: he should refuse to involve himself in such dangerous dealings.

But how could he resign himself to that?

And on what grounds should he do so?

It used to confuse Sanjay so much. He didn’t understand how people could be so stupid, allowing their own interests to be eroded.

Later on, Sanjay realized that he was the outlier, because he refused to budge in the slightest.

What if he couldn’t continue to live if he missed something?

A good person must be willing to let go of some benefits. They couldn’t just reach out and take whatever they pleased, and couldn’t accept money from every source.

So to what extent should he limit himself? No one had ever told him.

Nobody had ever taught him how one should live, so why did so many people condemn him for not being a good person?

It really wasn’t fair, ah.

“Captain, communication records between you and the Supreme Governor’s family have suddenly appeared on the StarNet!” A subordinate of Sanjay’s rushed through the door.

Sure enough, it had come to this.

“Yara is furious. She’s on the line.”

“She took the risk of communicating with me directly?” Sanjay was amused. “The Supreme Governor must suspect that she’s the one who leaked the information.”

Sanjay had his subordinate bring over a communicator. He opened the interface.

On the other end of the video call was an angry-looking woman in a military uniform: “Sanjay! You’ve really lost your mind!”

Sanjay smiled and offered no explanation: “That Illegitimate you planted by my side…..getting him to open his mouth was really difficult, ah.”

Yara scowled. She didn’t know why Sanjay was changing the subject, but there was no way she could admit to that Illegitimate’s existence.

“But I got pretty lucky, and managed to track down the person that Illegitimate was in contact with. I was so afraid, ah, and willing to cling to any lifeline,” said Sanjay. “That contact wasn’t anything special, but as I followed the network, I came upon even more Illegitimates. Then I uncovered an incredible secret.”

Sanjay burst into laughter and pointed a finger at Yara: “Unexpectedly, the Supreme Governor and the High Lord actually have disabled child! Hahahahaha!”

Yara’s complexion paled slightly.

“I’m not wrong, am I? That woman should be your older sister,” said Sanjay. “For the sake of appearances, your family hired a stand-in to trot out in public. “No wonder. Your talent isn’t much better than your older sister’s. I never could figure out why the Supreme Governor would name you his successor.”

Yara kept silent.

“At first, I thought the child had died, or had been killed when the problem was discovered. After all, neither the Supreme Governor nor the High Lord are exactly decent people. But she still lives…..and has an Illegitimate to look after her.” Sanjay pointed at Yara. “She’s in your hands, isn’t she?”

Yara: “Do you have any idea what you’re saying?”

“Hahaha, of course I do. I’m not like you idiots. I just don’t get why you kept her. Is it because she’s your blood relative? I thought blood ties didn’t matter as much in this interstellar age,” Sanjay said with a smile.

Yara: “…..”

“Sanjay, I can give you a chance to live,” Yara said coldly.

Sanjay glanced toward the door behind him: “I just have to give up some things, right?”

Yara: “This pirate crew must be exterminated.”

“I know, I know. We’re too rotten, and it reflects poorly on you.” Sanjay was completely unconcerned.

Yara: “We did place an Illegitimate by your side.”

Sanjay: “Ha! I knew you were a bunch of consummate assholes.”

“After you disappear, we can make arrangements for you…..”

“No need, I’ve secured my own way out,” Sanjay cut in. “I don’t trust you.”

*

*

“Eat another bite!” Yu Xi said to Tau.

“I don’t want to,” said Tau.

Yu Xi: “I’ll snatch your dad and bring him over, oh.”

Tau: “Whatever makes you happy.”

Yu Xi was somewhat helpless.

Suddenly, the door to Tau’s cell was pushed open.

“Hey, it’s a dinner party!” Sanjay walked in, followed by a man who didn’t look familiar.

That man’s expression didn’t change when he saw the food on their table.

Sanjay sat down of his own accord and picked up a cookie, tossing it into his mouth: “Delicious~”

Yu Xi: …..

“You get to go home today. Doesn’t that make you happy, ah?” Sanjay asked Yu Xi.

Tau stared at the man next to Sanjay.

“You’re letting us go?” Yu Xi was stunned.

“Of course~ We’re completely screwed. Us evil space pirates are about to be exterminated.” Sanjay pinched Yu Xi’s cheek.

He lowered his voice: “If you tell this news to that stupid dog you raised, he’ll bark from happiness.”

“How wonderful, he’s triumphed over evil once more…..argh!!!” Sanjay didn’t get to finish his sentence, because Yu Xi punched him in the face.

Yu Xi grabbed Sanjay and gave him a beating: “You’re the stupid dog! You are a thoroughly stupid dog!” What on earth was this human thinking? He actually insulted Kersz straight to Yu Xi’s face.

When Yu Xi finished beating him, he noticed that something wasn’t right with Tau. He was still staring at that unfamiliar person.

Was there something special about him?

Blood trickled from Sanjay’s nose. He wiped it away with the back of his hand, then smiled.

Sanjay’s smile was especially impudent: “I just find it interesting. Look at how busy he’s been, and what does he have to show for it?”

“Some things never change, ah,” Sanjay said to Yu Xi.

Yu Xi’s brow furrowed.

“I just didn’t expect those bloodsuckers to have someone they actually care about. But that’s a good thing, at least for me.”

“What are you going to do?” Yu Xi asked him.

“Nothing. It’s time for you to go.” Sanjay waved a hand at Yu Xi. “We’ll meet again.”

Yu Xi said nothing else.

Sanjay had someone take Yu Xi and Tau and escort them out.

Yu Xi was a little curious, so he eavesdropped on Sanjay’s conversation with his subordinate.

Sanjay told them that the Supreme Governor had backed down, so they would be able to survive.

The Supreme Governor was going to protect the whole pirate crew? Hadn’t Kersz already sent all of the evidence out? Was the Supreme Governor willing to risk his reputation for these space pirates?

Yu Xi and Tau were left at an exchange site, and once the space pirates left, people from Yara’s side immediately took them away.

The two of them were sent straight to Kersz.

“Why would the Supreme Governor help the space pirates?” Yu Xi told Kersz about the conversation he’d overheard.

“Help? No, the Supreme Governor intends to eliminate them,” Kersz said with a frown. “He’s already making preparations.”

“So Sanjay was lying?” Yu Xi asked Tau.

Tau’s expression was slightly vacant.

“Oh, I forgot. Tau started acting strange a little while ago.” Yu Xi patted Tau on the head. “Tau, do you know that other person we saw?”

Tau nodded: “He’s an Illegitimate. I’ve met him.”

“He’s another one of the Supreme Governor’s Illegitimates?!” Yu Xi understood now. “So you’re old acquaintances?”

Tau nodded, then shook his head: “He and I…..lived very close to each other, but I don’t know anything about who he is.”

“What could you know about him as a person? His character? What kind of character can Illegitimates like you even have?” Kersz asked.

Ah? Right, where would an Illegitimate develop a character or personality?

Tau fell silent.

“Then what’s an Illegitimate doing with Sanjay?” Yu Xi asked.

“He’s a scapegoat, ah.” Facai was the one to respond this time.

The large, semi-transparent dog materialized: “The Supreme Governor hasn’t agreed to help the space pirates. Sanjay is just pacifying his crew first to give himself time to escape.”

Kersz: “What?!”

“There’s nothing you can do right now.” The big white dog smiled. “’Sanjay’ is certainly going to die. It just won’t be the real one.”

“That Illegitimate,” said Tau.

“Correct.” The big white dog raised its head and looked at Yu Xi. “It’s a pity you don’t remember. In our world, this kind of thing actually happened all the time.”

“Where is he?” Kersz asked.

“What? You’re going to deal with him yourself?” The big white dog plopped onto its hindquarters. “But why should I tell you?”

“He has the lives of countless people on his hands!” Kersz’s voice was a growl.

“I see, ah.” The big white dog tilted its head. “So what?”

Kersz: ……

Facai stood back up: “I was bored, so I just came over here to chat. People die every day in this world. It’s nothing unusual. And as for the specific details of their deaths, I’m honestly not interested.”

“Are you deliberately withholding information?” Yu Xi asked him.

Facai didn’t respond.

Yu Xi asked: “What do you want out of this? The thing I planted inside of Sanjay vanished. Why?”

“I did him a small favor,” Facai said.

Kersz: “He’s going to keep hurting people.”

“I told you, I don’t care. I’m just so bored,” Facai explained. “It’s not easy to find a little bit of fun…..Yu Xi, you get where I’m coming from, right?”

Yu Xi narrowed his eyes.

Facai: “Yu Xi, ah, you’ve experienced this kind of loneliness too, ri — woof, woof, woof!”

Facai immediately vanished.

Yu Xi had just pulled Facai’s tail. He glanced down at his empty palm.

Why did it feel like Facai was vulnerable to attack?

On the other side, a passing researcher noticed a problem with Facai’s projection. There appeared to be a bald spot on its tail.

Facai noticed the researcher’s gaze and woof woof woof’d at him.

The researcher fled, and Facai glanced back at the fur on its tail: “That’s going too far…..”

*

*

Yu Xi decided to try grabbing another handful of fur next time.

---

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Chapter 49 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 51

Ch. 122 – “He might….not be coming back.”

The market town was made up of densely-packed dwellings, with the presence of humanity everywhere one looked. But beyond the market town lay mountains and forests that rarely saw human activity, much like the rest of Longqiu.

The animals had all retreated back to their dens due to the sudden rainstorm, and the only sounds in the forest were the wind and rain, along with the rustling and swaying of the shadowy trees. It was a distinct sort of quietness.

But inside a hidden forest cave, the sound of human voices suddenly rang out.

“You seem rather dissatisfied?” the black snake whispered in Ling Yun’s ear, slithering from the collar of his robes.

Ling Yun’s expression was even gloomier than the overcast sky. It had been the only expression on his face ever since they fled to this cave.

“Why did you interfere?” Ling Yun responded in a hostile tone.

He had always addressed the black snake as ‘God,’ but such an address had never carried the slightest hint of respect. Deep down, he had never truly seen this demonic creature as a master deserving of reverence. Their relationship was merely one of mutual cooperation.

But despite never holding any respect for him, this was the first time Ling Yun had spoken to the black snake in such a bad tone.

The black snake flicked his tongue, but didn’t lose his temper at this human’s disrespect. He just replied with mocking amusement: “I saved you. Is this the attitude you show to your savior, Ling Yun?”

Without his intervention, Ling Yun would have been cut down by Feng Ye’s blade where he stood.

Ling Yun failed to appreciate his kindness, and replied coldly: “I never asked you to save me.”

As Ling Yun spoke that last word, the black snake suddenly dissolved, and black mist poured from his sleeve to re-form into the shape of a man.

A shape identical to Yinglong’s.

“You never asked me to.” The man’s voice sounded from the featureless black form, now sharp and fierce, lacking its previous amusement.

Slender fingers coalesced out of the mist and gripped Ling Yun by the collar, thrusting him violently against the wall of the cave.

He leaned in close and said in a low, magnetic voice: “But you lost, Ling Yun.”

“You lost to the person you hate the most. You couldn’t defeat him one hundred years ago, and you can’t defeat him now.” The man suddenly eased his grip. He pulled back slightly, allowing Ling Yun a clear view of the mockery on his face.

“He didn’t even use any divine power. He defeated you in the way of the sword, your very own specialty.” The man shook his head at this, regarding Ling Yun with evident pity. “You really are a complete failure.”

Ling Yun clenched his fingers so hard that his knuckles cracked. He swatted away the hand at his collar. At the same time, he condensed his spiritual power into an invisible blade and swung it at the man.

The man was severed in two, but there was no flesh or internal organs inside of him, only black mist.

The black mist dispersed along with its human form, only to gather again as a black cloud in front of Ling Yun.

Ling Yun’s chest heaved slightly due to his movements and the intensity of his emotions. He fixed the black mist with a hostile look, but didn’t attack again.

“Hehe.” A chuckle emerged from the black mist, and the man said to Ling Yun: “What is the point of taking your anger out on me? It would be better to think about how to deal with him.”

The blade made of spiritual power vanished from Ling Yun’s hand, and he lost his furious expression, reverting back to his usual coldness.

That fury wasn’t gone, however. It was just buried down deep inside.

“How to deal with him?” Ling Yun echoed. “You and I have each clashed with him once, and the outcome was the same for us both. Until the Emberless Horizon opens, you don’t have enough power in the mortal realm to deal with Yinglong.”

“But Jianmu and the Living Soil, the keys to opening the Emberless Horizon, are both in his hands. What else can we do? We can’t defeat him in a direct confrontation. Perhaps we could take hostages?” Ling Yun proposed.

“Hostages?” The man immediately rejected this idea: “Hostages won’t work against him. If necessary, he will not hesitate to sacrifice a hostage regardless of their innocence.”

The Jianmu incident a century ago had confirmed this. The humans he had used as cover when climbing up the divine tree had also acted as his hostages.

But Feng Ye? He hadn’t even hesitated before slicing Jianmu in two.

“Yinglong is called the God of War, and his power is universally acknowledged.” The man dismissed Ling Yun’s proposal, but agreed with his estimation of Feng Ye.

Yinglong was indeed formidable, and as things stood now, they had no hope of contending with him.

“However…..” The man’s tone shifted, and he chuckled again. “The stronger something is, the more fatal its weakness.”

“You know his weakness?” Ling Yun grasped the key point in his master’s words.

“Of course I do,” the man said matter-of-factly.

“Why didn’t I tell you before now?” The man asked before Ling Yun could voice the question himself. “Because this killing move can only be used in the absence of outside interference. Using it too early would be pointless. But now, everything is in position. The time is ripe, and the moment has arrived to reveal the knife in our hand.”

“God of War…..” the man murmured, tasting the words on his lips. “The title ‘God of War’ doesn’t mean he’s invincible. Now, with that troublesome Kunpeng out of the way, his defeat is inevitable.”

“Hehe….” The man’s low chuckle echoed throughout the cave, drifting outside to be drowned out by the sound of falling rain.

The rain continued to come down heavier, showing no signs at all of letting up. Lightning flickered through the dark clouds, and torrents of rain beat down on the human world.

By the time Fang Yang saw Cao Zirui off and rushed back to the inn, he was so waterlogged that it looked as if he had been fished out of a lake.

He entered the inn and found the communal area deserted. A table and chairs were still scattered across the floor in a mess.

Fang Yang was a little taken aback. Where were Useless Shixiong and Hao-dage?

The innkeeper heard Fang Yang’s footsteps, and emerged just then from the back courtyard. Seeing how sodden Fang Yang was, he tossed him a towel.

Fang Yang took the towel. He could have easily dried himself with spiritual power, but with the innkeeper standing right there, he refrained.

Accepting the innkeeper’s kindness, Fang Yang scrubbed his face with the towel and asked with irrepressible impatience: “Where are those two companions of mine? The tall ones?”

“Oh, ah, them…..” The shopkeeper shook his head and whispered his guess to Fang Yang: “They seem to have quarreled. I was in the back at the time, and came out to find my table and chairs overturned. One of them stormed off, and the other stayed put, then went up to the rooms a short while later.”

“They quarreled?” Fang Yang repeated a little incredulously.

How could Useless Shixiong and Hao-dage have fought? They usually got along so well.

Although the two of them used to bicker all the time and engage in childish behavior, none of that really counted as quarreling. If anything, it was more like…..play-fighting?

Fang Yang shook his head. That description didn’t seem to fit quite right. But in any case, they had never gotten into a violent fight that resulted in overturned tables and chairs.

At this thought, he could no longer stay still, and quickly thanked the innkeeper before running upstairs.

He dried his clothes on the way up, then knocked on Feng Ye’s door.

The innkeeper hadn’t specified which of them had gone and which had stayed, but Fang Yang didn’t have to think very hard at all to determine that the one who stayed was his Useless Shixiong.

“Come in,” called that familiar voice, as flat as ever.

Fang Yang pushed open the door and found Feng Ye leaning against the window, looking out sideways at the curtain of rain that seemed to blot out the sky.

The expression on Feng Ye’s face was as flat as his voice. If the innkeeper hadn’t just informed him, Fang Yang never would have guessed that Feng Ye had just quarreled with Hao Chen.

Walking into the room, Fang Yang asked despite already knowing the answer: “Where’s Hao-dage?”

Feng Ye’s lips thinned ever so slightly. He wasn’t quite as impassive as he appeared.

After a long pause, Feng Ye spoke two words:

“He left.”

“Then when is he coming back?” Fang Yang asked.

Feng Ye was silent even longer this time. Rain continued to pound down, and the wind carried a few droplets inside to land on his fingers.

He rubbed them away, feeling a chill against his skin.

Then he said softly: “He might…..not be coming back.”

When he heard this, Fang Yang looked up at Feng Ye, then out the window at the torrential rain. Lightning flashed through the clouds, and a low rumble echoed across the sky.

“Hao-dage will definitely come back,” Fang Yang said suddenly, sounding very certain of this.

Feng Ye was a little surprised, and looked at Fang Yang with some amusement: “How can you be sure?”

“Because Hao-dage likes you so much. How could he leave you behind and go off alone?” Fang Yang spoke as if this was a matter of course.

“Likes me?” Feng Ye stared at Fang Yang in disbelief. Was Hao Chen’s affection for him so obvious? He himself had only realized it recently, but Fang Yang already knew?

But looking at Fang Yang’s expression, his version of ‘liking’ was different from how Feng Ye and Hao Chen understood it.

What Fang Yang spoke of was just the affection between good friends.

“That’s right, ah.” Fang Yang listed an example: “When you were unconscious back at the sect because of your internal injuries, it was Hao-dage who carried you back and stayed by your side without ever leaving.”

Feng Ye thought back to that day. Fang Yang was referencing the time of Xue Ren’s rebellion. Not only had Hao Chen remained by his side at all times, he had even kept watch from the same bed.

Feng Ye couldn’t help but chuckle when he remembered waking up to Hao Chen saying: “You must take responsibility.”

When Feng Ye finally smiled, Fang Yang breathed a sigh of relief and continued to console him: “My mom and dad also argue, and sometimes Mom will get so angry that she goes back to her parents’ house. But she always comes back on her own a few days later. After all, she likes my dad, so she couldn’t bear to stay away forever.”

Feng Ye wasn’t sure whether or not Fang Yang’s analogy was appropriate or even accurate. It didn’t seem as if things had reached that point between him and Hao Chen.

In the end, he just smiled in response.

As he continued to gaze out at the curtain of rain, he felt a sudden, almost imperceptible hint of anticipation. Perhaps he would soon spot a familiar figure.

There was nobody out on the street. No normal person would venture out in this downpour.

But miraculously, Feng Ye really did spy a figure at the end of the street. A very familiar figure.

It was not Hao Chen.

Walking against the wind and rain, Ling Yun stopped not far from the inn and gazed up at Feng Ye in the window.

Feng Ye frowned, locking eyes with him through the driving rain.

---

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Chapter 121 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 123

Once the caravans of Nanjiang-wang and Pingxi-wang left, the capital finally quieted down.

Preparations for spring plowing began early in the third lunar month across Great Ning, starting earlier in the south and later in the north.

There was little change to the crops grown in most places, except for the sweet potatoes planted in Hexi Prefecture and the cotton in Nanjiang, which drew the attention of quite a few officials at court.

As the Minister of Revenue, Su Sheng was naturally the first to speak up and argue that if familiar crops were not planted in these two regions, the common people might go hungry.

Nanjiang was Nanjiang-wang’s territory, so instead of interfering there, he focused mostly on Hexi Prefecture.

The results from the experimental sweet potato fields had been sent to the capital before the New Year, though the wording was subtle and indirect.

At this point, Chu Jiubian said plainly: “Sweet potatoes are also a food crop, with a yield of six hundred catties per mu.”

At present, the maximum yield for wheat and rice was only around 300 jin. Chu Jiubian was actually understating the sweet potato yield, but it was still over twice that of the other two crops.

At these words, a commotion swept through the court.

If anyone else had spoken these words, it was likely that nobody would believe it. But since they were spoken by Chu Jiubian, there was no one who doubted them.

Su Sheng stared at him for a moment, and said nothing more.

Chu Jiubian then said to Bai Lihong: “Your Majesty, this subject has a matter to report.”

“Please speak, Grand Tutor.” Bai Lihong played along.

Chu Jiubian: “The incompetence of the Northwest Army allowed the Sai Kingdom to invade, and if Ning-wang hadn’t intervened and turned the tide, it might well have turned into a catastrophe.”

Everyone was uncertain, wondering what Chu Jiubian was getting at.

“If the border is unstable, the common people of Great Ning cannot rest easy,” Chu Jiubian said. “For this reason, this subject requests that Your Majesty send people to the Northeastern border to negotiate cooperation with the Jurchen tribes, and establish trade channels in order to promote development.”

During the Palace Examination, Chu Jiubian had raised this very question to Tan Yuzhu.

Although Tan Yuzhu’s answer hadn’t been perfect, it did have substance and depth. With just a few brief words, she had created a vision for everyone of the prosperity that would blossom in the wake of opening trade channels, as well as the endless benefits that would funnel into Great Ning.

And in light of such excellent benefits, nobody raised any objections.

However, everyone began to weigh the situation for themselves. This was a good thing for Great Ning, so didn’t it follow that it would also be a good thing for the officials sent to negotiate?

The path to promotion for civil officials was paved with acts of meritorious service, which were not easy to come by. This was a prime opportunity for them.

Standing among the officials from the Ministry of Rites, Wang Wenyao watched on with a cool gaze.

Such negotiations naturally fell under the purview of the Ministry of Rites, so they would certainly be the ones sending people out. He absolutely must secure this opportunity for himself.

As long as he performed this task well, he would surely be promoted.

He lifted his eyes slightly to look toward the front of the line. He didn’t have a clear line of sight, but he knew that was where Minister of Rites Wang Zhiyuan was standing.

It was true that Wang Zhiyuan was close with Wang Qichen at the moment, but the fact that he had recommended Wang Wenyao for officialdom showed that he still had the best interests of the family head’s lineage at heart.

So as long as he strove to secure this assignment, Wang Zhiyuan would definitely help him. After all, no matter how much infighting there might be, the Wang family presented a united front to outsiders, standing as one.

But much to his surprise, before he could even volunteer himself, Wang Zhiyuan proposed that he take charge of the matter.

When Bai Lihong called out his name, Wang Wenyao’s heart leaped. He immediately stepped forward and bowed toward the throne, saying: “Thanking Your Majesty for such trust. This subject is confident that he will handle the task well.”

Bai Lihong then looked toward Chu Jiubian and asked: “What does the Grand Tutor think?”

“There is nothing wrong with giving a young official an opportunity to gain experience.” Chu Jiubian could see the expressions of the other Ministry of Rites officials from the corner of his eye.

Lu Qiaobo hailed from the noble Lu family, and Cai Peng from the Xiao family. In terms of position and seniority, they both outranked Wang Wenyao. But with a single remark, Wang Zhiyuan handed this opportunity to a member of his own family. These two definitely wouldn’t concede willingly.

The high-ranking officials behind them would likely help them fight for the opportunity.

As expected, just as Chu Jiubian appeared to have words of approval on his lips, Lu Qiaobo stepped forward.

“Your Majesty, Official Wang is still young and lacks experience with negotiations. This humble subject suggests that a more experienced individual be selected in order to ensure smooth negotiations with the Jurchen tribes.”

“Deputy Minister Lu is correct.” Chu Jiubian nodded. “During the Palace Examination, Imperial Academy student Tan Yuzhu outlined a strategy for conducting the negotiations. In addition, she drafted a detailed list of negotiation points and submitted it to this official yesterday. It is quite thorough.”

He took the memorial submitted by Tan Yuzhu from his sleeve.

Qin Xiao rose from his seat and stepped down from the high platform. He took the memorial and read through it, then turned and bowed to Bai Lihong: “Your Majesty, this subject believes that the regulations in this memorial are indeed excellent. Perhaps this scholar should be asked to accompany the Ministry of Rites officials to the Northeast.”

They had already read through this memorial the day before, revising it in a few places and adding several more points.

Tan Yuzhu accepted each new addition and acknowledged her own shortcomings. She now looked at Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian with even more respect in her eyes.

Even the officials of the Six Ministries were unable to find fault with the regulations currently in their hands.

As expected, after Wang Zhiyuan took the memorial and read through it, he nodded several times and said: “It is indeed excellent. Even if this official were to undertake the task himself, he would never reach this level of meticulousness.”

Wang Wenyao wasn’t convinced. He felt that if he had known about this earlier, he would have done a better job.

And this was just the preliminary list. When the actual negotiations began, what could a woman like Tan Yuzhu actually achieve? She would probably be held in contempt.

He had a high opinion of himself, but he wasn’t foolish enough to reveal his true thoughts in a public setting, and simply lowered his head as he awaited the verdict.

Deputy Minister Lu Qiaobo took the memorial, and his expression became increasingly grave the more he read.

He really couldn’t find a single fault.

But he bowed low with his hands clasped, saying: “Your Majesty, Student Tang has planned this well, but negotiations are not performed on paper. It would be safest to send experienced officials from the Ministry of Rites.”

Cai Peng in the Ministry of Rites was a student of Minister of Personnel Xiao Huaiguan. This should have afforded him countless opportunities, but now that Xiao Huaiguan was so frequently addled, he could only find those opportunities for himself.

With such an opportunity before him, he was naturally prepared to seize it.

He stepped forward and said: “This official agrees. Having served in the Ministry of Rites for three years, one could say that this official is quite experienced. This official humbly requests to travel to the Northeast and assist Student Tan in negotiations, securing the greatest possible benefits for our Great Ning.”

Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao exchanged a glance.

This Cai Peng was the person they had previously sent to deliver the second batch of military provisions to the Northwest, and whom they had intended to promote.

This person may have been Xiao Huaiguan’s student, but his background was clean. While he was somewhat calculating, petty, and greedy for small gains, he did have genuine talent.

Sending just Tan Yuzhu and Wang Wenyao to negotiate with the Jurchens was never going to be feasible.

Tan Yuzhu would be going there to secure cooperation, but Wang Wenyao was just being sent into a trap. And Tan Yuzhu was young. The twists and turns of officialdom were difficult to navigate, and she might not be able to handle negotiations and an entrapment scheme at the same time.

Therefore, a high-ranking official from the Ministry of Rites was still needed to accompany the delegation.

A full minister like Wang Zhiyuan was naturally unable to leave the capital, so the candidate must be chosen from the lower ranks.

Deputy Minister Lu Qiaobo held a very high rank in the Lu family, second only to Minister of War Lu Youwei. If he were to go to the Northeast, he would undoubtedly make it even more difficult for Tan Yuzhu to do her job.

So after Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao spoke at length the day before, they had decided to send Cai Peng as well.

There was a department head position vacant in the Ministry of Rites, and Cai Peng could be promoted to it upon his return.

With such a big carrot dangling in front of him, a pragmatist like Cai Peng who was always looking out for his own interests would no doubt accept this olive branch from the Imperial Court without hesitation and sever ties with the Xiao family.

Since he was aligned with the Xiao family at the time, Cai Peng hadn’t received any personal benefits from escorting the military provisions.

But if he aligned himself with the throne this time and received a direct promotion, he would of course be more loyal to the court from then on.

With Cai Peng and Tan Yuzhu working together, Wang Wenyao was guaranteed to get into serious trouble in the Northeast, and by the time he returned, the official post he had just barely settled into would slip from his grasp.

This would even implicate other members of the Wang family.

At that time, the Wang family head’s power would decline even further. If Wang Zhiyuan then held another meeting with the clan elders, Wang Huanzhi’s position as family head would be destabilized, paving the way for Wang Qichen to assume the role himself.

The Wang family would then become a noble clan completely aligned with the Imperial Court. With their power over public opinion, the Imperial Court would no longer have to worry about being maligned.

This game of chess belonged to Wang Zhiyuan. Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao would just help him set the board, then await the outcome of the game.

Lu Qiaobo had originally intended to perform this act of meritorious service himself, but when the experienced Cai Peng stepped out to volunteer, there was nothing more he could say.

In the end, the people heading to the Northwest were Tan Yuzhu, Cai Peng, and Wang Wenyao.

With the detailed regulations in hand and with Chu Jiubian backing her, this “student” became the “commanding officer” of the delegation to the Northeast.

She had more say in the matter, but Cai Peng would be there to assist, and had roughly the same status as her.

Wang Wenyao, on the other hand, seemed nonessential.

This caused him to grow even more resentful. What right did Tan Yuzhu, this female scholar without even an official rank, have to tell him what to do?

This resentfulness was exactly what Chu Jiubian and others wanted to see.

When someone was unwilling to accept a loss, they tended to act on their own accord and make more mistakes.

Cai Peng was a very astute person. Once the short three-person list was finalized, Qin Xiao said to him: “Perform this task well.”

Just from this one sentence, he understood that said task was not just to assist in negotiations with the Jurchens. He would need to coordinate with Tan Yuzhu, and would only find out what this task entailed after meeting with her.

As long as he was successful in this endeavor, Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian were certain to reward him generously when he returned.

He could no longer rely on the Xiao family. If Cai Peng wanted to secure more power and benefits for his own clan, he would need to change his plans.

The Imperial Court was now reaching out a hand to him, so of course he would grasp it firmly.

And so, the matter was settled.

Two days later, the group set out to the Northeast without fanfare.

*

*

Meanwhile, in the border town.

At this point in their journey, the seven vassal kings would be splitting off to return to their respective territories.

The day they arrived in the border town, Huguang-wang invited the other six vassal kings to join him for a meal.

There, he evaluated everyone’s attitudes toward the Imperial Court.

There was nothing more to be said about Nanjiang-wang and Zuiliang-wang. The former had cooperated with catching the gu at the palace banquet, and Chu Jiubian had even paid a private visit to his estate later on. He had also invited Nanjiang-wang’s twins to share a meal, so they were obviously very close.

Zuiliang-wang was much the same. He was the sole vassal king allowed to proclaim the Edict of Grace himself.

So since the two of them were firmly aligned with the court, Huguang-wang naturally didn’t intend to press them.

There was just one thing: if the vassal kings clashed with the Imperial Court in the future, would these two take action?

All smiles, Zuiliang-wang simply said that he lived far away and was accustomed to an easy life, so as long as trouble didn’t come to his doorstep, he would not interfere.

Nanjiang-wang said much the same. He also lived in a remote area, and lacked the level of power held by the vassal kings located in the Central Plains. Naturally, protecting his own territory was his top priority.

This reassured the other vassal kings. The two of them would not involve themselves in the conflict, and would remain effectively neutral.

Having said their piece, the two didn’t linger any longer and left the table one after another.

As for what the others spoke about once they were gone, they were neither listeners nor participants.

Huguang-wang and the others were satisfied with their stance.

The silent Pingxi-wang Bai Lizheng finally spoke up: “This lord only cares about the safety of the common people in his fief. The rest has nothing to do with me.”

He was a very inflexible person, and once his mind was made up about something, it was almost impossible to change it.

Huguang-wang urged him to stay, but the other party just wasn’t having it. After finishing his final cup of wine, he stood and took his leave.

“What a blockhead,” Dongjiang-wang Bai Lihe scoffed, sweeping his baleful eyes over the remaining few.

Huguang-wang Bai Liyue, Dingbei-wang Bai Liyu, and Anhui-wang Bai Liming.

Bai Liming was just a little brat, of no use at all to them. But sitting beside him was his shrewd and cunning advisor, Jiang Yongshou. Since he remained sitting at the table, it stood to reason that he intended to oppose the Imperial Court.

Huguang-wang then turned his gaze toward Dingbei-wang Bai Liyu, who had been sitting next to him in silence all this time.

This youngest brother of theirs, so unassuming and low-profile, had quietly made a major move and nearly succeeded in eliminating Qin Xiao.

Furthermore, he had acted repeatedly during this visit to the capital, unleashing the gu at the palace banquet and orchestrating the death of Jiannan-wang. Huguang-wang had to admit that the ruthlessness of his own methods was far inferior.

Huguang-wang had previously regarded Dongjiang-wang as his only rival. But now, he felt that Dingbei-wang was even more enigmatic.

Working with such a person was like asking a tiger for its pelt, but things had already come to this. The Edict of Grace clearly revealed the Imperial Court’s determination to eliminate the vassal kings, and they needed to strike first to gain the upper hand.

They couldn’t afford not to use Dingbei-wang.

The other party might have more ways to stir up trouble, so it would be better to bring him into his own camp and ensure temporary peace between them.

Dongjiang-wang naturally shared the same opinion, and it only took a shared glance to reach a tacit understanding.

Before long, the heads of the four great noble families arrived in response to the invitation.

The Wang family was represented by Wang Huanzhi and his advisor Wang Zhang, and the Xiao family by Family Head Xiao Yao. However, the representative from the Lu family was not Family Head Lu Jinfeng, but Minister of War Lu Youwei’s advisor Lu Quan. The representatives from the Qiu family were Family Head Qiu Xuanzheng and his paternal uncle, Qiu Hongkuo.

Everyone sized them up.

They were more or less aware of the situation with the Lu family. Family head Lu Jinfeng was old-fashioned by nature and considered himself to be noble and virtuous, but didn’t get along with many people in his family.

But the position of family head was determined by bloodline, unlike the Wang family’s protocol of handing the position to whoever was most capable, so the clan had no choice but to hold their noses and accept his leadership.

In light of this, it made perfect sense for their representative today to be an elder of the Lu family who was also an advisor to Minister Lu.

As for the Qiu clan, it was well known that Qiu Hongkuo was the one with the real power in the family. The fact that he had come today in person clearly demonstrated the importance they attached to this matter.

The group took their seats.

Naturally, there was no way of knowing what was discussed there.

But while the specific details of the conversation remained unknown, once the scouts brought their report to the capital, Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao had a decent grasp of the situation.

It seemed that these people had already decided to cooperate.

Needless to say, Wang Huanzhi had a grudge against Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian for killing his son, and he would never pledge his allegiance to the Imperial Court like Wang Qichen.

The Xiao family was now weak, and the Imperial Court offered them no hope of turning things around. This being the case, they would accept any benefits the vassal kings offered them.

The Lu family had already conspired with Dingbei-wang, which nearly cost Qin Xiao his life.

In addition, knowing that their past plot to harm the Qin family might be exposed, they couldn’t allow their future to fall into Qin Xiao’s hands. It was natural for them to side with the vassal kings.

Perhaps only the Qiu family’s stance was up in the air, as they had yet to make any promises.

The Qiu family was driven by profit, and they would continue to behave themselves only so long as profit flowed to them through the Imperial Court.

But if the Imperial Court were to take away the benefits already in their hands, they certainly wouldn’t just sit still and let it happen.

Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao had no intention of sharing profits with the Qiu family, but there was no need to take action now. Once Zuiliang-wang returned to his fiefdom, the Qiu family’s interests would be eroded away little by little.

Qin Xiao burned the letter in his hand.

Bai Lihong ran into the hall happily and said: “Jiujiu, Xiansheng, it’s really snowing!”

It was already the third lunar month, but when Chu Jiubian checked the System forecast, there was still one snowfall to go.

When Bai Lihong saw that it was actually snowing, he was endlessly excited.

“Can we go admire the plum blossoms tonight?” The child gave the two adults a beseeching look.

When Anhui-wang first arrived in the capital, Bai Lihong and Chu Jiubian had received him together, and Bai Lihong had said that when Qin Xiao returned, he would go with his uncle to admire the plum blossoms.

They just never found the chance.

An entire winter had passed, and the child should get his wish.

Qin Xiao: “I already sent people to make preparations. We’ll head over in a while.”

Bai Lihong jumped up and down in delight. Then he tugged at Chu Jiubian’s sleeve and said: “Xiansheng, let’s have hotpot tonight too. I didn’t eat well at lunch.”

Today was the fifteenth day of the third month – Bai Lihong’s birthday, as well as the day of the Longevity Festival.

But it was a tradition in Great Ning to avoid lavish birthday celebrations for children under sixteen, for fear that the Lord of Hell would take the child away.

So Bai Lihong hadn’t had a big celebration for his first birthday after ascending the throne, and only summoned the officials to the palace for a midday meal. After receiving some gifts and bestowing some dishes on them in return, the event concluded.

Since it was his birthday today, neither Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao nor Hong Fu asked him to do any work, and only told him to enjoy himself as he pleased.

“We will eat whatever Your Majesty wishes to eat.” Chu Jiubian pinched his little face.

Bai Lihong’s eyes curved in a smile as he leaned across the man’s knees and said: “Then may I ride the little cart, Xiansheng?”

That morning, Chu Jiubian had bought a child-sized bicycle from the System. After altering the more modern elements, such as replacing the foam seat with cotton padding, he handed it over to Bai Lihong.

Bai Lihong loved it so much that he couldn’t put it down. There was no telling how many times he had ridden the little bike around the main hall.

It was fortunate that there was enough room for him to play.

“Ask your uncle,” said Chu Jiubian.

The child immediately turned his pleading gaze onto Qin Xiao.

Qin Xiao chuckled: “Go ahead.”

For a four-year-old who only got this single day off work each year, he should be able to do whatever made him happy.

Besides, the Imperial family held absolute power in the palace nowadays, so there was no need to wrong Bai Lihong.

Bai Lihong gave a cheer and immediately ran back outside. Xiao Yuzi hurried after him, fearful that he would trip and fall.

Chu Jiubian unknowingly smiled as he watched the child scamper off.

This was exactly how a child should be. Their Little Majesty would only dare to run around and play on a day like this.

Arms cinched around his waist as Qin Xiao plastered himself to Chu Jiubian’s back. Hot breath blew against his ear, and the young man’s fair, tender earlobe immediately flushed red.

---

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Chapter 89 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 91

Ch 49 – They’re All the Same

“Is humanity…..coming to an end?” Tau huddled in the corner with his arms wrapped around his knees.

“I really don’t plan to wipe out the human race.” Yu Xi couldn’t understand why Tau didn’t believe him.

“It’s an act,” said Tau. “You’ve picked up bad habits from humans.”

Yu Xi: ……

“I told you not to mess around with human memories, but you went and did it anyway. How can humans be anything good?” Tau actually shed a tear. “Now I’ll have to part ways with my Xiao Konglong.”

“Don’t cry, ah.” Yu Xi paced back and forth in front of Tau.

Tau buried his head in his knees, looking even more despondent.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry.” Yu Xi started to reach out to Tau, but didn’t dare make actual contact.

He crouched down beside him.

Tau cried for a while, then looked up at Yu Xi and said: “I’m an Illegitimate, and I don’t have superfluous feelings. You don’t have to put on an act around me.”

Yu Xi didn’t respond right away. Instead, he reached out and gently wiped beneath Tau’s eyes.

Tau said nothing.

This display counted as a lack of superfluous feelings? Yu Xi didn’t think that Tau was being honest.

“Tau, I’m not deceiving you,” Yu Xi said.

Tau: “Is the person in front of me Yu Xi or Sanjay?”

“Aiya! Do you have any idea how long I’ve lived?” Yu Xi asked him.

Tau shook his head.

“I don’t know how long of a period my lost memories span, but even if I don’t include them in the length of my life, it still equates to about twenty billion years.” Yu Xi gently placated him, “The humans who created me are gone, and so is Earth.”

Tau: “Earth?”

“Oh, that’s humanity’s home planet,” Yu Xi explained. “Life in the solar system reached its end. The sun expanded rapidly, and Earth was swallowed up.”

“Later, the sun became a small white dwarf. Some young stars close to the sun ‘stole’ its last remaining planets, and now that small white dwarf, about the size of Earth, is the only thing remaining in that solar system.” Yu Xi said, “Nobody knows what took place there. It’s all in the past.”

Tau’s eyes widened: “But didn’t you say your planet is called Earth?”

Yu Xi: ……

Yu Xi lowered his head dejectedly: “I lied.”

“Tens of billions of years…..I can’t imagine it,” said Tau.

Yu Xi: “I just lived life, day after day. Humans gave me a longer lifespan towards the end…..I don’t quite understand why they did that.”

“They must have discussed it behind my back,” Yu Xi lamented.

“It’s been such a long time. Why didn’t you evolve like the ancient humans you talk about?” Tau asked.

“I was just doing what I was supposed to do, over and over again,” said Yu Xi.

Tau: …..

Tau: “…..Is it possible that…..”

Yu Xi tilted his head.

Tau: “…..Is it possible that those humans thought you were a slow-witted dummy who needed more time to learn?”

Yu Xi’s eyes widened, and he gasped in shock: “What did you say?!”

“Sorry.” Tau’s heart finally settled a bit. The Yu Xi in front of him didn’t seem to have been affected by Sanjay. “When did you begin to realize that you were lonely?”

“I don’t know, I was only vaguely aware of it. I didn’t realize until recently that it was loneliness,” Yu Xi explained.

Tau: …..

Yu Xi: “Because I’ve been spending so much time around you guys lately.”

Tau shook his head in astonishment: “You really aren’t very perceptive.” Did Yu Xi have rocks for brains?

“Tau, you’ve become unkind.” Yu Xi touched his chest.

“Did I hurt you?” Tau asked.

“It’s fine. I’m actually a little happy.” Yu Xi shifted his crouch toward Tau until they were squeezed together. “I feel like you’ve changed.”

“I’ve noticed it too,” Tau said softly. “I wouldn’t have been so careless before.”

“So you’re not all that bright either,” Yu Xi said.

Tau: “I think I’m still a level above you.”

Yu Xi: “Absolutely not! Impossible.”

Tau: “I just momentarily let down my guard.”

Yu Xi: “You ate until you got fat! That’s not just a momentary lapse.”

Tau: “You’re the one who gave me the food.”

Yu Xi: “But you could have eaten a little less of it.”

Tau: “Couldn’t you have just given me a little less?”

The two of them argued for a long time without reaching a consensus.

Then, Tau suddenly changed the subject: “That Sanjay saw so many of your memories. Is he still Sanjay now, or is he Yu Xi?”

“He’s still himself,” said Yu Xi. “That device protects the user’s sense of self, especially if the user is more vulnerable. Otherwise, if something went wrong and a three-year-old child inherited the knowledge and experience of his elders, wouldn’t that child’s personality be completely overwritten?”

“There were some mishaps after the initial version of the device was created. Back then, humans were still quite preoccupied with individuality. But the device has been improved over several generations and isn’t dangerous anymore,” said Yu Xi.

“But that doesn’t mean that humans are just bystanders viewing the experiences of others. Users are able to experience the other person’s feelings, and gain understanding that way,” said Yu Xi.

“Then what did you learn from Sanjay’s memories?” Tau was a little curious.

“I understand now how he turned out this way,” Yu Xi said.

Tau: “So are his actions forgivable?”

“On what grounds should I forgive him? The two of us have no history.” Yu Xi didn’t feel that it was his place to draw such a conclusion. He was just a robot from out of town, and wasn’t close to Sanjay. How could there be any talk of forgiveness?

Yu Xi simply disliked Sanjay as a human being. And after learning how Sanjay had become what he was, Yu Xi disliked him even more.

Yu Xi wasn’t sure if this was prejudice, but he really disliked people like Sanjay. He was like a host infected by a virus, eager to transmit the sickness to the next host.

Eager to prove that everyone was the same.

Sanjay and Kersz were both space pirates, but they couldn’t be more different.

“Should we tell Kersz about this?” Tau asked him.

“No!” Yu Xi startled. “He still doesn’t know that we were exposed!”

Tau: “Then there are quite a few things Kersz doesn’t know about right now.”

Yu Xi: …..

Yu Xi was starting to feel unwell.

Just then, Tau added: “Right, then you understand Sanjay a little better now, ah?”

Yu Xi fell silent.

Tau: “We really shouldn’t tell Kersz about this. His personality is so eccentric.”

Yu Xi’s eyes welled up with tears.

Tau turned as white as a sheet: “What’s wrong?! Don’t be afraid, I’ll help you deceive him!”

“Deceive?” Yu Xi’s voice trembled.

“Exactly!” Tau said firmly. “Don’t worry, he won’t suspect a thing.”

Yu Xi’s tears fell even faster.

So he was deceiving Kersz?

No! He just didn’t want Kersz to know that they had blown their cover. He wanted to maintain a perfect image in Kersz’s eyes.

Yu Xi said to Tau as tears dripped down his face: “I….I….I just don’t want Kersz to know that I was exposed.”

Tau agreed completely: “That’s why we have to deceive him.”

Yu Xi: …..

Tau: “Don’t worry, he won’t find out. By the looks of the current situation, Sanjay won’t be alive much longer. Once he’s dead, there will be even less chance of anyone discovering the truth.”

A sob caught in Yu Xi’s throat.

“When that time comes, we’ll just keep this between the two of us.” Tau patted Yu Xi on the shoulder.

Yu Xi stared blankly ahead, as if he had forgotten the world around him.

Finally, he buried his head in his knees and clutched his legs, sobbing quietly.

Tau didn’t understand what was happening: “Don’t cry, ah. Hey, why are you crying?”

“Yu Xi? Yu Xi!”

*

*

That very night, Yu Xi took Tau home and came clean to Kersz.

Kersz didn’t react very strongly.

In fact, he was astounded that Yu Xi had been completely exposed and had even gained control of Sanjay.

Logically speaking, Kersz shouldn’t be this calm.

But Yu Xi was taking it so hard.

As soon as Yu Xi walked through the door, he began to cry so miserably that Kersz was given a fright.

Kersz asked Yu Xi if something terrible had happened, but Yu Xi just shook his head and said that he was the one who had done something terrible.

Yu Xi claimed that he was a thoroughly wicked robot, while Tau just kept comforting Yu Xi without offering any explanation himself.

Many speculations sprang to Kersz’s mind.

Maybe Yu Xi’s power had burst out and harmed innocents, or maybe one of Yu Xi’s gadgets had gone out of control and unleashed a catastrophe.

Yu Xi tearfully confessed to having kept a major secret from Kersz. He wouldn’t even let Kersz reach out to steady him, because he didn’t consider himself to be a good friend.

Kersz’s heart was in his throat.

And when he finally heard the truth, he breathed a genuine sigh of relief.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” Kersz rubbed Yu Xi’s back. “Were you affected by his memories?”

Yu Xi shook his head: “Those emotions were very new and extreme, but my feelings were only stirred up during the most emotionally intense parts.”

“I suppose it’s because I’ve just existed for so long,” Yu Xi said.

“Plus, you have your own worldview,” Kersz added.

“Ah?” Yu Xi wiped his tears away. To be honest, he felt that he couldn’t really claim to have a philosophy of life, value system, or worldview.

When facing humans, Yu Xi felt even more strongly that he lacked any sort of worldview.

But on second thought, perhaps he had one after all.

More than that, someone like him would be considered an old fossil in human society, stuck in his ways.

“I really am something,ah,” Yu Xi said, still wiping away tears.

Kersz continued to rub his back.

Yu Xi glanced at Kersz, then leaned his head on Kersz’s shoulder: “I deceived you. I’m sorry.”

Kersz: …..

Kersz was actually touchy about deception.

He had experienced betrayal, and didn’t trust any sort of collective group.

Even when Kersz felt that he had made a decent friend, he would never give them his wholehearted trust.

But at this moment, Kersz really couldn’t bring himself to get angry at all: “It’s okay, don’t feel bad.”

“There won’t be as much openness between us anymore.” Yu Xi was devastated.

“It really doesn’t have to be like that.” Kersz tried to pull Yu Xi up from where he had slid off his chair to the floor, but couldn’t get him to budge at all.

Yu Xi: “There may be a rift between us, but I won’t let you throw me out.”

Kersz: “I wasn’t going to throw you out. I’m trying to help you up.”

Understanding suddenly dawned on Yu Xi.

Kersz mustered his strength to lift him, but the sudden lack of resistance sent him staggering back, and he landed on his ass with Yu Xi on top of him.

Kersz: “Hiss…..” There went his tailbone.

“Waaah!” Yu Xi suddenly sprang up and wrapped his arms around Kersz.

“Kersz!!” The tears Yu Xi had just wiped away began to flow again.

“Kersz, hold on!” Yu Xi started to run out of the room.

“I’m not seriously injured!” Kersz said hastily.

Yu Xi visually scanned Kersz and confirmed that there were no bone fractures.

With this confirmation, Yu Xi dropped to his knees with Kersz in his arms.

Tau, standing right across from Yu Xi: ?

“Kersz!!” Yu Xi suddenly cried out in anguish.

Kersz was startled, while Tau took a step back to get farther away from them.

After shouting, Yu Xi quietly stood up.

Kersz wasn’t in much pain anymore.

Without warning, Yu Xi then dropped to his knees again, the hair across his forehead swaying with the movement.

Kersz stared at Yu Xi’s expression of despair. He didn’t seem to know what to do with his hands, and he ultimately drew them in against his chest.

After calling Kersz’s name again with heart-wrenching anguish, Yu Xi stood up with Kersz still cradled in his arms and rubbed his cheek against the top of his head.

Kersz blinked.

Yu Xi glanced at him, then went right back at it.

Yu Xi was having fun. After realizing that Kersz’s tailbone was fine, it suddenly dawned on him that he was holding him in a rather dramatic “princess carry” straight out of a TV drama.

Kersz was not drifting apart from him, which made Yu Xi very happy. Kersz’s lack of injury only elevated his mood more, raising the level of his happiness even higher.

With his good human in his arms, he didn’t quite know what to do, but his excitement urged him to do something.

Yu Xi secretly enjoyed the moment before the show came to an end.

Kersz finally came to his senses: “Yu Xi, what are you doing?”

Yu Xi thought for a moment, then said: “Maybe…..playing make-believe.”

Kersz: “What?”

“Could you close your eyes? I’ll kiss you awake,” said Yu Xi.

“That’s not really a storyline that occurs between friends.”

Kersz found it difficult to turn Yu Xi down, but when it came to playing around like this, he was really…..at a loss for what to do.

“Friends?!” Exclaimed Tau. “What do you mean friends? In what way are you two just friends?”

Kersz’s face stiffened: “Do you really have to stand there and watch?”

Tau had his hands on his hips, looking very free and at ease.

“It doesn’t bother me,” said Tau. “Just pretend I’m not here. I’ve seen people fooling around in front of me more than once. It’s just a couple of bodies.”

“You’re so easygoing.” Kersz smiled at him. “But it does bother me a little.”

Tau: “Huh?!”

Kersz: “Haven’t you been too easygoing lately? Do you still remember that you’re a kidnapping victim?”

Tau: …..

Kersz: “And there’s still your father.”

Tau was visibly stunned, and couldn’t react for a second.

“It’s fine. Your father doesn’t know, so he won’t be upset,” Yu Xi comforted him.

Then he added: “But if you leave, your little dinosaur will be sad.”

Tau said nothing, looking toward his room. The door was open a crack, and he could see Xiao Konglong eating.

Tau silently put his hands behind his back and returned to his room.

He looked rather unconcerned, as if he hadn’t heard the word “father” just now.

Yu Xi and Kersz watched him close the door, then exchanged a glance.

“I want to kiss you awake,” Yu Xi said again.

“Alright.” Kersz’s face was slightly red. “But when you’re finished, I want to play too.”

Yu Xi: “Ah?”

“I want to kiss the robot awake.” Kersz forced down his sense of shame and smiled a little flippantly. “Make your breathing lights dim, and then when I kiss you, make them light up again.”

The breathing lights on Yu Xi’s face grew particularly bright. He was nervous.

Kersz continued: “I’m curious about how the breathing lights on your body are distributed.”

The breathing lights on Yu Xi’s face began to pulse.

“I’ll explore them, ah, all the way down…..” Kersz’s smile widened, and he leaned in close to Yu Xi’s face. “What will happen then?”

Yu Xi opened his mouth, then closed it again.

“It’s only fair,” said Kersz.

Yu Xi: “Right, right, right, a fair exchange.” This meant double happiness for him!

*

*

“Why did you hide that memory?” Sanjay asked Yu Xi as he returned to his cell.

“Ah?” Yu Xi was a bit dazed, and reacted slower than usual.

“Why did you hide the memory of meeting Kersz?” Sanjay asked. “Or rather, what did he deceive you about?”

Yu Xi’s eyes were half-lidded, and he swayed on his feet as he started to close the door. He felt like laying down for a while and savoring the delightful time he had just experienced.

Then Sanjay insisted on butting in.

“He’s not deceiving me. He’s very good.” Yu Xi waved his hand.

Sanjay disagreed: “Perhaps you don’t know Kersz well enough. He’s a killer too.”

Yu Xi: “Kersz certainly doesn’t like powerful people with blood on their hands, but he’s not bloodthirsty.”

“He’s not?” Sanjay retorted, “Only slaughter can quench his burning rage. He needs a justification to kill, and the evil deeds of those people provide it for him.”

Yu Xi: …..

“In the end, people like us are exactly the same.” Sanjay crouched down beside Yu Xi and looked him right in the eyes.

Sanjay really liked eye contact. He was always looking for something in the eyes of others, whether it was fear or anger, and relished the way he was able to get a rise out of them.

“He lacks the power to change anything. The humans in your memories were perfect, but I doubt that Kersz could accept even that kind of perfection.” Sanjay said with a smile, “He’s like a child who can only scream and cry, his actions meaningless and futile.”

“He disdains working with others and has no leadership abilities, but he’s still so smug and self-righteous, unwilling to be used,” said Sanjay. “He’s intelligent, but not intelligent enough. He doesn’t have the ability to invent world-changing technology like the ancient humans did, and can’t alter the status quo.”

“He wants to kill me. But I imagine that given your experiences, you understand that if I die, a second Sanjay will immediately step in to take my place. There will always be a vicious, brutal space pirate in this position, simply because this position exists, and there is money to be made.” Sanjay’s voice was very soft.

That day, Sanjay and Yu Xi had argued over whether Sanjay had been wrong to do what he did, and Sanjay had eventually fallen silent. He neither agreed nor disagreed after that, leaving Yu Xi with no way to know what was on the human’s mind.

Sanjay intended to attempt to persuade Yu Xi again today.

He didn’t want to die, and the fear of death once again gripped him by the heart.

And in addition to the fear of death was resentment.

Sanjay felt that fate had never once been kind to him. That the world was horribly unfair.

He didn’t know what was in those hidden memories, but space pirates were all the same. They were all killers. Why was it that a killer like Kersz was fortunate enough to stumble upon this robot in the middle of a crisis?

Having experienced Yu Xi’s past, Sanjay was even more unwilling to let this go.

Because he had found that Yu Xi wasn’t preoccupied by the concepts of good and evil. He just loved people who were vibrant and full of life.

There was no shortage of vibrant people in the universe, and anyone who landed on that planet would have won this robot’s affection.

It would have been the same for Sanjay too.

After all, to Yu Xi, humans were all alike.

Yu Xi’s regard was a good thing. With Yu Xi’s protection, why would Sanjay bother with those dangerous business dealings anymore? He didn’t have to be a bad guy, did he? He just didn’t have any other choice.

If he had the opportunity, he could even be a great philanthropist. He could break free from his past and walk through the world with a new identity.

“No one in this world has ever given me the chance to be a normal person,” he told Yu Xi. “But Kersz could have been a good person. His parents gave him that chance, and then he met you. At least on the surface, he really does seem like a better person than me.”

“Kersz is different,” Yu Xi retorted.

Sanjay: “Only because he’s the first person you met.”

“No, he and I are very alike.” Yu Xi shook his head. “I’m also obsessed with certain things. Things that aren’t quite proper.”

The path of the ancient humans was perfect. So perfect that no fault could be found with them.

They had felt their way forward through difficulties, purging themselves of everything negative.

It was simply incredible. There was no more suffering, and nobody misunderstood each other anymore.

But Yu Xi had loved their imperfections, because their flaws had allowed Yu Xi to glimpse a burning passion within them.

“You aren’t all the same. Humans differ greatly from one another,” Yu Xi continued.

He suddenly recalled the question Tau had asked him: Is it possible that those humans thought you were a slow-witted dummy?

“He’s a dummy.” Yu Xi used the same word to describe Kersz. “It might be that he’s obsessed to a fault, and that brain of his just refuses to learn how to be flexible.”

He remembered how the ancient humans had patted his head as they left.

He remembered someone saying that the ancient humans didn’t like emotions, but didn’t hate them either. They perceived everything, and also embraced everything.

Perhaps the incredibly long span of time they gave Yu Xi wasn’t meant to preserve the trappings of humanity. They just felt that this stubborn robot hadn’t reached the end of the road.

But what lay at the end of the road?

Omniscience and omnipotence like the ancient humans had obtained?

Yu Xi didn’t think he was capable of such a thing anymore, and he didn’t have much time left either.

If he had taken all this time only to slowly realize that he was a “dummy,” wouldn’t that make it all pointless?

This outcome sounded terrible to Yu Xi.

“Why can’t you extend some of your tolerance to others?” Sanjay asked “That dummy of yours wants to kill me.”

Yu Xi gave it some thought, then said quite earnestly: “It’s because I’m biased.”

“I don’t hate you. There are no conflicts of interest between us. There will always be someone biased toward you, but it’s clear that I’m not that person.” Yu Xi already had a good human of his own.

Sanjay started to say something, but Yu Xi cut him off: “In your eyes, do I look like that undercover agent you betrayed? When he first showed you tenderness, you finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt a brief moment of joy that your situation had improved.”

Sanjay didn’t speak.

But there was more to the story. That moment of joy couldn’t last forever.

The hunger was always there.

He was desperate to snatch everything good from the hands of others and take it for himself.

But good things always rotted once they fell into his hands.

He was truly unfortunate. Truly unlucky.

Had he ever actually eaten?

So hungry…..so hungry…..

---

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Chapter 48 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 50

Ch. 121 – “You can trust me!”

“You’re leaving?” Fang Yang asked in surprise.

He had just gone downstairs for breakfast when he encountered his Useless Shixiong and Cao Zirui, both of whom had gotten up particularly early. And just as he was about to greet them like usual, he was told that they were about to part ways.

“En.” Cao Zirui nodded.

“When…..?” Fang Yang asked. The news had erased the last traces of grogginess from him.

Cao Zirui thought for a moment: “It should be today. I’ll leave in a little while.” It was quite a long journey from Longqiu to Lingxiao Sword Sect, and he planned to catch the first flying ship that was heading out.

“So soon, ah…..” Fang Yang’s voice noticeably dropped. His entire being, body and soul, radiated a reluctance to part.

Feng Ye couldn’t help but chuckle at this sight, and he suggested: “Then how about you go back with him?”

Instead of improving his dejected expression, this suggestion just made Fang Yang look more conflicted.

There were four people in their group. Cao Zirui was returning to the sect, while Useless Shixiong was heading to the Northern Territories. And although Hao-dage hadn’t woken up yet, it went without saying that he would be accompanying Feng Ye.

And as for Fang Yang, it didn’t really matter which group he chose. It all came down to his preference.

He was reluctant to part with his friend, but he was also very curious about the north, a place he had never been to before. Both options had their own appeal. Fang Yang felt as if he was standing atop a teetering scale, unable to make up his mind.

He thought for a long time before finally coming to a decision.

“I’ll go to the Northern Territories with Shixiong.” Fang Yang clenched his eyes shut as he announced this, as if he was making an impossible choice.

Cao Zirui didn’t express an opinion on Fang Yang’s decision. Although he had secretly hoped that Fang Yang would accompany him back, he also knew that his friend was very tempted by the Northern Territories.

He simply said: “I’ve heard that the snowy mountains in the north stretch as far as the eye can see, their peaks covered in snow that never melts. It’s supposed to be a truly magnificent sight. Be sure to have a good look, and tell me all about it when you get back.”

“Definitely!” The hesitance vanished from Fang Yang’s face, and he gave a toothy smile.

The corners of Cao Zirui’s mouth curved upward. It was only a slight change, but it was an extreme rarity for his face to move at all.

Feng Ye watched this scene with his chin resting on one hand. As if infected by their mood, he smiled as well.

“Breakfast is ready! Piping hot steamed buns and porridge!” The innkeeper called out, emerging from the back courtyard with steamed buns and a large pot of porridge.

The three of them happened to be a bit hungry, so they sat down at the table and began to eat.

After the meal, it was time to leave. Cao Zirui had long since decided to return to the sect, so his luggage was already packed. He bowed formally to Feng Ye as he took his leave.

Feng Ye returned the salute and urged: “Be careful on your way back.”

“En.” Cao Zirui nodded, then looked toward Fang Yang, wanting to say goodbye to him too.

But Fang Yang spoke up first: “I’ll see you off! I’ll walk you to the pier and come back once I see you board.”

There was no problem with this. Feng Ye wasn’t in any rush to leave, and this would give Fang Yang more time to say his goodbyes.

Thus, with all three in agreement, Fang Yang waved to Feng Ye and then left the inn with Cao Zirui.

Feng Ye sat by the window and watched the two as they walked away, chattering as they went. They seemed to have an endless amount of things to talk about.

That’s probably just how it is between close friends, Feng Ye thought.

Watching them walk side by side while he sat alone at the inn, Feng Ye suddenly thought of Hao Chen.

He looked away from the window and turned his gaze upward. That fish was taking an unusually long time to wake up today. The sun might not be shining on his backside yet, but that wasn’t because it was still early. Rather, it was because of the overcast sky.

Dark clouds were gathering, and the humidity in the air was rising.

Although Feng Ye was unable to summon clouds or rain, he was still a dragon with an affinity for water, and he could tell that it was about to pour.

Most people didn’t like rainy weather, and found the feeling of their clothes clinging wetly to their bodies terribly uncomfortable. But this fish was an exception. The clouds and rain alleviated the dryness of this environment, allowing a dried fish to be reborn.

This was the sort of weather that Hao Chen found extremely comfortable.

Perhaps due to this, the fish was sleeping especially soundly and had yet to wake up.

Feng Ye looked at the breakfast on the table, which wouldn’t be steaming hot for much longer. He thought for a moment, then went to the counter and fetched a clean bowl. He ladled some porridge into it and prepared to go and deliver it to Hao Chen.

He still hadn’t figured out how to handle his relationship with Hao Chen, but……in the end, there was no escaping it. He would just have to take it step by step.

Just as Feng Ye finished filling the bowl, he suddenly heard the staircase creak under a set of footsteps.

There were only four people staying at the inn. Two had already left, and one was sitting downstairs, so the process of elimination made it clear who the person coming down must be.

This saved Feng Ye a bit of effort, and he simply waited for the other to descend the stairs.

Although Feng Ye looked calm on the surface, he was actually very apprehensive deep down. Each footstep coming down the stairs seemed to tread directly on his heart.

He gradually caught sight of Hao Chen, starting with the hem of his robes at the top of the stairs. Then the rest of him came into view, and their eyes met.

Perhaps because of the dim lighting today, Feng Ye felt that Hao Chen’s eyes were unusually dark, and so deep that he couldn’t see to the bottom.

This fish always had a faint smile on his lips, and frivolousness was his default state. But at this moment, there was no hint of a smile on his face.

It was just a lack of a smile, which wasn’t anything unusual. Even someone who smiled easily couldn’t keep a smile on their face at every given moment.

But inexplicably, Feng Ye felt that Hao Chen was particularly serious today.

Exceptionally serious.

As for what sort of event might have brought about such a change…..Feng Ye thought back to the previous night.

He shifted his gaze away restlessly and picked up the teacup beside him. It was empty, but he held it in his hands to mask his unease.

Hao Chen took a seat directly opposite him. Feng Ye pushed the bowl he had been about to take upstairs closer to him, then greeted him in the most normal tone he could manage: “Up so late? It’s closer to lunch now than to breakfast.”

Hao Chen glanced at the porridge in front of him, but didn’t pick it up.

He seemed to have no intention of eating it. He narrowed his eyes at Feng Ye and he got straight to the point: “Don’t you have something you want to say to me?”

Here it was. The thing Feng Ye had been dreading. Hao Chen’s brazenness left him no room to maneuver.

The more Feng Ye thought about the previous night and his relationship with Hao Chen, the more confused he became. And when Hao Chen asked him this question now, his mind just fell into further disarray.

He fell silent.

Hao Chen didn’t press him, and just waited patiently for a reply.

“For last night…..thank you.”

This was how Feng Ye replied after his long silence.

It wasn’t the answer Hao Chen wanted.

‘Thank you’ was too polite, and created distance between them.

Hao Chen actually hadn’t fallen asleep at all, and remained awake all night.

While Feng Ye was asleep, Hao Chen had lain there beside the pillow and stared at the side of his face. Then, when Feng Ye woke up, he pretended to be asleep.

He was a master at pretending to sleep. As long as he didn’t let his hands wander, Feng Ye wouldn’t suspect a thing.

And indeed, Feng Ye hadn’t caught on. He had thought himself stealthy as he rearranged Hao Chen’s arms and legs, then left the room.

While Feng Ye was talking with Fang Yang and Cao Zirui on the ground floor, Hao Chen had gazed at the empty pillow beside him, deep in thought.

The way Feng Ye had slipped away quietly was just like those scumbags in the mortal world who snuck off after sleeping with someone.

Of course, Feng Ye didn’t quite count as a scumbag. They hadn’t done anything more than embrace each other that night.

But this action had sent a signal to Hao Chen. He had finally managed to squeeze through a gap in the dragon’s hard, bristling shell, but this didn’t mean that he was welcome inside. This dragon seemed ready to withdraw into himself again and seal the gap behind him.

Hao Chen wasn’t someone incapable of patience. Having lived for so long, time meant little to him most days. To him, there was no difference between waiting days or weeks, or even years or centuries.

But that was only because so few things mattered to him, and there was little in this world that he looked forward to.

But Feng Ye was different.

He told himself to approach the dragon patiently, but no one would be able to remain unmoved when faced with the person they liked.

It would have been one thing if there was no progress made at any point. But to have actually gotten closer, only for things to go back to the way they were before…..Hao Chen couldn’t accept that.

While advancing was not always better than retreating, constantly backing down wasn’t necessarily the right approach either. Sometimes, applying a little pressure could yield more satisfactory results.

Besides, Hao Chen didn’t want to wait any longer. He wanted to know exactly what Feng Ye had been through and what kind of pain he had suffered.

While he was lost in thought upstairs, he had also been waiting to see if Feng Ye would return. But he hadn’t. And Feng Ye’s reply just now confirmed his conjecture that this dragon intended to withdraw.

In that case…..

“Feng Ye,” Hao Chen said abruptly.

This was only the second time since they’d met that Hao Chen had called him by name.

Feng Ye’s grip on his teacup tightened slightly, and he gave a flat hum.

“The day before last, when Ling Yun injured your left shoulder in the underground ruins, you pulled away when I tried to examine your wound.” Hao Chen looked directly at Feng Ye as he spoke.

Feng Ye hummed again, his eyes darting around. One second he was looking out the window, and the next he was staring at his empty teacup. Anywhere but at Hao Chen.

“Why?” Hao Chen asked, then answered himself: “Because you don’t trust me. It was instinctive for you to flinch when I approached your wound.”

Feng Ye said nothing.

The sky was growing darker. A damp breeze wafted through the open window, announcing the impending rain.

Hao Chen continued as if talking to himself: “But I can’t blame you for that. It’s true that I’ve kept a great deal from you. I wasn’t honest with you, so it’s natural that you don’t trust me.”

“You’re pretty self-aware.” Feng Ye raised an eyebrow, making sure to keep his tone light and teasing.

Hao Chen smiled at him, the seriousness leaving his face for just a moment. But in the next second, it returned even more strongly than before.

He changed the subject: “But later, when Fang Yang tried to look at your wound, you rebuffed him as well.”

“What kind of ulterior motives could a silly child like Fang Yang possibly have? Is he even capable of harming you? If even he has malicious intentions, then there is likely not a single good person left in this world.”

“But even so, you still rejected him.” Hao Chen leaned forward slightly as he spoke.

“So from this, perhaps I can draw a conclusion?” He fixed his gaze on Feng Ye and said with some force to his tone: “Feng Ye, you never trust anyone, do you?”

With a sudden whoosh, the accumulated moisture in the heavy rainclouds finally reached a critical point. Just as Hao Chen finished speaking, raindrops the size of beans pelted down upon the world.

People on the street immediately began to run and shout, packing up their stalls to take shelter from the rain. The activity outside heated up, but a chill settled between the two people sitting at the table.

Feng Ye stared motionlessly at the teacup in his hands as the rain poured down outside.

Although Hao Chen had phrased his words as a question, his tone was very certain. Tearing away the veil of pretense, he had put everything out in the open.

At long last, Feng Ye could no longer avoid it. He raised his eyes to meet Hao Chen’s gaze.

“Rely on a mountain, and it may fall. Rely on a river, and it may flow away.” Feng Ye spoke each word deliberately.

This was his answer to Hao Chen.

He trusted only himself.

Hao Chen understood the implication in his words. He spoke again, his voice rising over the sound of the rain to echo through the empty inn.

“You can trust me!”

As he spoke, he stretched his hand across the table. His fingertips brushed against Feng Ye’s, then moved forward to clasp his hand.

Feng Ye lowered his gaze toward the hand Hao Chen was holding, but did nothing.

Hao Chen went on: “I know that trusting someone is very, very difficult for you, Feng Ye.”

“I don’t expect you to tell me everything right now, and I’m not asking you to change right away. I just want you to give me a name.”

“A name?” Feng Ye cut in, a little puzzled.

Hao Chen nodded, stating firmly: “A name.”

“Feng Ye. That’s not your original name, is it?”

It made sense. Feng Ye had kept a low profile and even went so far as to borrow a human body for his visit to the mortal realm, so he certainly wouldn’t have used his original name.

“Feng Ye” was likely an alias. Hao Chen had thought so all along.

Faced with this question, Feng Ye fell silent again.

Hao Chen thought for a moment, then suddenly brought up a topic from a long while ago: “Do you remember what I told you before? That if you begged me, I would consider whether or not to help you. Then later it became ‘as long as you beg me, I’ll definitely help you.’”

Feng Ye remembered these words of Hao Chen’s. His voice had carried a tone of condescending charity as he spoke, and this misconception had only arisen due to their ignorance to each other’s identities.

But that was all in the past. Feng Ye had long since put it out of his mind, and was a little puzzled as to why Hao Chen was bringing it up now.

Hao Chen smiled. He couldn’t help but chuckle as he recalled his past foolishness, and explained to Feng Ye: “Feng Ye, just tell me your name, and no matter what you ask of me from now on, I will help you.”

His vow had been upgraded for the third time. He would go to any lengths to help him, no begging required, the moment Feng Ye voiced a request.

He promised this as the Lord of the North Sea.

There could be no doubt that it was a solemn vow, and at the same time, it demonstrated Hao Chen’s own trust in Feng Ye.

He was able to make such a vow because he trusted that Feng Ye wouldn’t ask him to do anything that went against his principles.

Feng Ye’s eyes flickered.

Hao Chen continued to add more weight to his promise, patiently urging: “I’ll also tell you my identity and my reason for coming here. I’ll hold nothing back. All I need from you is a name.”

“Just a name.”

Feng Ye kept his head lowered, staring at their clasped hands. He was silent for a long while.

“Tell me your real name, Feng Ye.” Unlike his urgent tone from before, Hao Chen’s voice was now slow and almost gentle.

But in contrast to that gentle tone, his hand grasped Feng Ye’s tightly as he spoke. It was as if he wanted to transmit his strength to Feng Ye through this connection and help him come to a decision.

And miraculously, Feng Ye did make up his mind. He raised his eyes to look at Hao Chen.

Hao Chen’s heart pounded with a mixture of anxiety and satisfaction. He had come up with these words after a lot of thought up in the room, and felt that they were extremely compelling.

He had put so much into his vow, but all he wanted in return was a name. Or rather, he wanted Feng Ye’s trust. Even the tiniest amount would be fine. As long as Feng Ye took this first step, Hao Chen was confident that he could expand that tiny amount even more.

Hao Chen felt that his chance of success was extremely high. It was the simplest request one could make, and he truly didn’t believe that he would fail.

But as it happened…..

“Feng Ye,” Feng Ye replied.

Seeing the blank, unreactive look on Hao Chen’s face, he repeated: “Feng Ye. That’s my name.”

Hao Chen finally came to a realization.

He had failed.

He had overestimated himself, and underestimated the impassable defenses around Feng Ye’s heart.

Inch by inch, he pulled away the hand clasped around Feng Ye’s.

And as their fingertips finally parted, he stood abruptly from his seat and strode away with a flick of his sleeves.

His movements were so violent that they sent the table and chairs beside him crashing to the floor.

But he paid no attention to this. The scowl on his face was gloomier than the wind and rain outside.

Without looking back, he walked out alone into the downpour.

Feng Ye stayed in his seat and stared at the mess in front of him, as silent and motionless as a statue.

“What’s going on?” The innkeeper heard the commotion and emerged from the back to investigate, only to find that his perfectly good table and chairs had been knocked over. Some were even smashed to the point of having broken legs or missing parts.

Feng Ye’s lips curved into a slightly self-deprecating smile. He shook his head and said to the innkeeper: “I’ll compensate you.”

Having said this, he went upstairs alone.

The innkeeper scratched his head in puzzlement. But knowing that this group wasn’t short of money and probably wouldn’t cheat him, he went off to continue his work in the back.

Outside the inn, the rain showed no signs of abating, and instead seemed to be growing heavier.

There were hardly any people still out on the streets. Most of them had either hurried home in the rain or taken shelter under someone else’s eaves.

Birds were more sensitive than humans, and would retreat to their nests before a storm arrived. Directly opposite the inn was an ancient tree, its trunk inhabited by a family of sparrows.

The sparrows huddled in their nest, shivering not because of the cold, but because…..

A black snake slithered out from behind the nest with a rustling sound. He stared in the direction of the inn, where he had witnessed the conversation between Feng Ye and Hao Chen, as well as their falling-out.

“Hehe.” The black snake couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle. His figure dispersed, and his laughter gradually faded amidst the wind and rain.

---

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Chapter 120 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 122

After two or three days, Chu Jiubian had become a little wary of Qin Xiao.

In the middle of the day and in the evening, and even during breaks while reviewing memorials in Yangxin Hall, as long as they were alone in the room, Qin Xiao would jump at the chance to kiss and embrace him, and would do whatever he pleased as soon as they were back in the bedroom.

But Chu Jiubian never allowed him to go all the way.

It wasn’t just that he feared pain. There was also a sense of discomfort and resistance that Chu Jiubian himself didn’t understand.

In the end, perhaps he just couldn’t accept another person that intimately.

Or perhaps he thought of himself as unworthy, and feared that if he gave himself over completely, the other man would lose interest in him.

Qin Xiao was very clear on the fact that it would take him a long time to pry open that door, and never crossed that final red line.

But his suppressed affection and desire grew deeper by the day.

The periodic looks sent Chu Jiubian’s way were so heavy with intent that they made his heart skip a beat.

He couldn’t help but recall how Qin Xiao was described in the original novel – a sinister and menacing villain.

It was one thing to be menacing, but why did all of that menace have to be directed at him?

How was this rational?

*

*

Chu Jiubian found a chance to visit Nanjiang-wang’s manor before the vassal kings departed the capital and handed the bottle of gu to Situ Anli, asking her to help identify them.

Situ Anli took the gu to the back courtyard, leaving Bai Lihao to accompany their guest.

Bai Lihao was a talkative person, and never let the atmosphere between them stagnate.

Chu Jiubian naturally went along with the flow of conversation, and the two of them had a rather pleasant exchange.

When the topic of the drought in Nanjiang came up, Bai Lihao’s words became more probing, and he seemed to suspect that Chu Jiubian and the “High Priest” were one and the same.

Chu Jiubian gave nothing away, but he could tell that Bai Lihao was just as sharp as Zuiliang-wang, and must have developed a hypothesis.

Intelligent people were able to look beyond the surface to the essence of the matter.

Take Lu Yao for example. He had never doubted that they were the same person.

Situ Anli emerged a short while later, looking a bit weary but in decent spirits.

“My Lord, these gu do indeed share the same lineage as the gu in Nanjiang.” Situ Anli then told him a story.

It turned out that during the previous dynasty, the Nanjiang lineage of gu masters had left their homeland amidst the chaos of war, and there had been no word of them after that.

Situ Anli had only heard the elders mention it once, and the confirmation that these gu belonged to Nanjiang had jogged her memory.

But as to where those gu masters went, nobody knew, only that they had headed north.

With this answer in hand, Chu Jiubian left Nanjiang-wang’s manor and went to the Ministry of Personnel.

Before he could reach his office courtyard, an official named Wang Yujiu intercepted him.

He gave the document in his hand to Chu Jiubian and said: “My Lord, this is a written recommendation from Wang Zhiyuan, nominating Wang Wenyao, the second son born to the principal wife of the Wang family head, for an official post.”

Chu Jiubian raised his eyebrows and looked through the document.

The recommendation was very formal, and praised Wang Wenyao lavishly before getting to the point, which was for him to enter the court and serve in the Ministry of Rites.

Wang Zhiyuan was now one of Wang Qichen’s people, as well as Chu Jiubian’s.

Yet now he was recommending the somewhat talented son of Family Head Wang Huanzhi for an official position. He certainly hadn’t defected to Wang Huanzhi, nor was he doing this for the good of the Wang family.

There was no shortage of talents in the Wang family, and Wang Wenyao certainly didn’t stand out among them.

Chu Jiubian took a while to think through it carefully, and formed a rough idea of the other party’s objective.

Wang Qichen had now completely stolen the spotlight from Wang Huanzhi, and the latter was sure to seek a breakthrough elsewhere. Having his son enter officialdom was a good solution.

He must have used family interests and honor to appeal to Wang Zhiyuan on both an emotional and factual level. And Wang Zhiyuan had “agreed with reluctance.”

But when Wang Zhiyuan agreed, it wasn’t with the intention to help him.

On the contrary, he intended to let Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao suppress Wang Wenyao and push down firmly on the pulse point of the family head’s lineage, using this opportunity to elevate Wang Qichen to family head.

This aligned with Chu Jiubian’s objective.

Chu Jiubian had enough power as Deputy Minister of Personnel to approve the request, and did so directly.

And so, Wang Wenyao appeared in court the next day, taking his place among the officials of the Ministry of Rites as a minor official.

Chu Jiubian noted his high spirits, then casually looked away.

They would take him down, but only when the right opportunity arose. Let him enjoy this for a few days first.

*

*

The death of Jiannan-wang didn’t make waves in the capital, and the common people paid it no attention. They were still fixated on the Achievement Parade, as well as the handsome top scholar and the matchlessly elegant “Lady Tanhua.”

This topic generated such lively discussion that people could speak of it for the better half of a month without growing tired of it.

But very soon, a new topic of conversation arose….

The vassal kings were preparing to leave the capital.

This group should have left back in the first lunar month, but they had ended up staying all the way up to the end of the Palace Examination.

With no more excuses left to remain in the capital, they naturally made preparations to depart.

Before they left, they all went to the palace to say their goodbyes to Bai Lihong.

Bai Lihong exchanged some small talk with them with a smile on his face. He said that he didn’t know when he would see his Imperial Uncles again after they left, and presented them each with a gift while expressing his reluctance to see them go.

“This is also for the cousins this emperor has never met,” said Bai Lihong. “It will be perfect if they’re able to live wealthy, peaceful lives.”

His cute, childish voice left them all a little wrong-footed, and with a rising sense of foreboding.

“Hong Yu.” Bai Lihong looked toward Xiao Yuzi, who stood at his side.

Xiao Yuzi took the Imperial Decree in both hands and held it high, presenting it to Huguang-wang at the head of the group.

Huguang-wang took the decree and scanned it over quickly. His expression changed drastically, and he read it over twice more in disbelief.

Seeing this, Dongjiang-wang took the decree. His expression was no better than Huguang-wang’s after reading it.

Qin Xiao spoke up from his seat: “His Majesty cherishes family ties, and wishes to provide all his relatives with a life of wealth, honor, and peace. To this end, he has drafted an Edict of Grace. It was sent to the princes’ fiefs some time ago, and should have arrived by now.”

“The young masters there must be endlessly grateful. Why have you not yet offered your thanks?” Qin Xiao said mildly.

The Imperial Decree had already been issued, and had fallen into the hands of the illegitimate sons in their fiefdoms. There was no hope of retracting it now.

It was a done deal. Huguang-wang and Dongjiang-wang stared at Qin Xiao with dark expressions.

At last, they bowed low to Bai Lihong and offered their thanks as they accepted the reward.

Nanjiang-wang had only one son and one daughter, so the Edict of Grace was no obstacle to him.

Anhui-wang Bai Liming also kept a tidy household, and was naturally unconcerned.

Pingxi-wang Bai Lizheng and Zuiliang-wang Bai Liyan were shaken, their feelings complex.

They stared fixedly at the three figures seated inside the hall.

This “Edict of Grace” was truly an open plot with no solution, making it impossible for them to continue growing in power. From the next generation onwards, it was inevitable for their positions to continuously weaken…..until at last there were no more “vassal kings.”

A smile appeared at the corners of Dingbei-wang’s lips. His reaction was even milder than Bai Liming’s, making it impossible for anyone to know what he was thinking.

“By the way,” Chu Jiubian said, looking toward Zuiliang-wang, “Although the debacle with Jiannan-wang didn’t result in bitter fruit, Zuiliang-wang was truly hard-pressed.”

“His Majesty wishes to offer compensation, and has held back the edict from the Fujian-Zhejiang region.”

As Chu Jiubian spoke, Xiao Yuzi handed over another Imperial Decree to Zuiliang-wang.

Chu Jiubian continued: “Let Zuiliang-wang take the Imperial Decree back himself and proclaim it when he has a free moment, bringing joy to his family’s children as well.”

That was an interesting way of putting it.

‘When he has a free moment’ meant that Bai Liyan was to announce the matter at his own pace. But if he continued to remain ‘busy,’ then the Imperial Decree would not take effect in the Fujian-Zhejiang region.

It was crystal clear that this was a privilege given to Zhuiliang-wang in order to ensure that the illegitimate sons in his fiefdom wouldn’t be able to kick up a fuss over it.

Due to the fact that it remained in Zuiliang-wang’s hands, his sons would fall over themselves to curry favor with him. And at the very least, they wouldn’t openly declare war on each other before receiving the decree.

Of course, even if they used tricks to obtain the Imperial Decree, it wouldn’t be of any use. Since the decree needed to be proclaimed by Zuiliang-wang himself, it would be invalid if he refused to do so.

This was clearly the “reward” granted to Zuiliang-wang for aligning himself with the Imperial Court.

Zuiliang-wang was all smiles as he accepted the decree and expressed his gratitude. Free from worries or inhibitions, he was completely unconcerned by the gazes of the other vassal kings fixed upon him.

Huguang-wang, Dongjiang-wang, and Dingbei-wang had of course realized the situation by now. In essence, this Edict of Grace was aimed solely at the three of them.

So it had truly come to a bitter falling-out…..

The vassal kings left the palace, and news of the Edict of Grace spread.

Various parties had different reactions to the news. The two factions of the Wang family, for example, each had their own calculations. And as for the remaining Xiao, Lu and Qiu families, each received solicitations from various vassal kings.

A few days later, at the border of Henan and Shanxi, these vassal kings would part ways and head back to their respective fiefs.

They had arranged to meet the heads of these families, including Wang Huanzhi, at a town located between the two regions.

A letter from Zuiliang-wang was also delivered to the palace. To express his gratitude to His Majesty, he was preparing to clear out all of the salt fields within his fief, which would await the arrival of Imperial officials to take them over.

This was a considerable concession to the Imperial Court.

Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian weren’t going to let him suffer a loss, so they informed him that he could take over management of the section of the waterways within his fiefdom.

The management rights for this section of the canal were precisely those previously acquired by the Qiu family.

Through Zuiliang-wang, the last remaining waterway rights were snatched from the Qiu family’s hands.

If Zuiliang-wang were to take action, it would be on the behalf of the Imperial Court. In addition, the profits he made from the waterway transport business would be even greater than what the salt fields had brought in.

If he didn’t make a move, he wouldn’t gain anything at all.

When Zuiliang received this reply, he could only sigh with emotion.

Those two were truly adept at open conspiracies. But this was an offer he found difficult to refuse.

He had long set his sights on the lucrative waterway transport business.

The thoughts of the vassal kings were inscrutable to everyone, and the next day, they set out one after another.

A long caravan drove down the main street between the eastern and western markets and past lines of Imperial Academy students clad in sky-blue robes.

One group, lavish and resplendent, traveled off to places far from the palace.

The other, like stalks of green bamboo, moved farther into the city.

That same evening, Chu Jiubian invited the Situ siblings, who were scheduled to depart the following day, to Clear Sky Tower.

The brother and sister were a bit anxious, but their curiosity outweighed their nerves.

But they hadn’t expected the cool and aloof Chu Jiubian to be so gentle and fond when speaking with them. It reminded them of the closeness shown to them by the High Priest.

It had occurred to Chu Jiubian that he hadn’t had a chance to speak to the two children privately since they entered the capital, so he treated them to a delicious stir-fried meal as a proper send-off.

The brother and sister were rather reserved at first, but they soon became lively.

At least, Situ Zhaoling did. Her younger brother Situ Zhaoyao was a little more poised.

They spoke a lot throughout the meal, most of it consisting of gossip from the capital. For example, did Minister of Works Jian Hongzhuo really have just the single male wife? And that handsome Commander An, did he truly never intend to marry? And for another example….was there really something going on between Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao?

When he saw the caution in the siblings’ eyes, Chu Jiubian smiled and said: “Read more and study more while you’re young.”

Although the siblings didn’t receive the answer they wanted, they didn’t dare press for more information.

“Then what about you and that person?” Situ Zhaoling asked in a low voice, pointing a finger upward.

She was naturally referring to the High Priest.

Chu Jiubian just smiled and said: “We are bonded in life and in death.”

The siblings shared a glance, looking as if they had just witnessed something romantic.

Chu Jiubian: “…..”

To think that there were people shipping his own CP.

The meal was enjoyable for both host and guests.

The three of them went downstairs and exchanged goodbyes, preparing to part ways.

But when the siblings looked up, they noticed a tall, imposing figure standing at the entrance. The man’s face was incomparably handsome, with a cool, stern expression.

It was Ning-wang.

Qin Xiao gave the siblings a slight nod, then stepped outside with Chu Jiubian.

Both men were dressed in crimson-purple robes, standing a head taller than everyone else as they walked through the crowd with their shoulders brushing. They looked like a perfect match.

“Wow–” Situ Zhaoling pressed her hands to her cheeks with an almost drunken look on her face, then gave them a swift pat. “I can’t, I can’t. I must firmly support—” The High Priest!

When he saw his sister like this, Situ Zhaoyao didn’t understand.

But that didn’t stop him from imitating her and patting his face too.

Situ Zhaoling giggled at the sight and raised a hand to ruffle his hair: “You silly thing.”

Situ Zhaoyao wasn’t offended. He said: “A-Jie, we still need to say goodbye to him.”

He pointed in the direction of Splendid Plaza.

“Let’s go.” The two had to say goodbye to Wang Qichen before they left the capital the next day.

The next time they met, it would be in the Divine Realm.

---

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Chapter 88 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 90

Ch. 120 – Trust

Early in the morning.

The moment the first ray of sunlight streamed through the window, Feng Ye opened his eyes.

His eyes didn’t contain the slightest haze of first awakening, only clarity.

He had been awake for a long time.

But he had pretended to be asleep, because…..

Feng Ye gingerly moved Hao Chen’s arm away from where it was draped over his chest. And after sitting up, he moved Hao Chen’s leg, which was thrown across his own.

He had been affected by the incident with Ling Yun. It was true that he had acted without hesitation in the moment, but he wasn’t nearly as unruffled as he appeared on the surface.

It could have been that the inner turmoil had left him more emotionally fragile than usual the night before. He couldn’t quite say what had come over him. It was like being drunk. He had allowed Hao Chen to embrace him, and had even held him back.

Then, since they couldn’t just keep standing in the wind the whole night long, the two of them lay down in bed together and quietly fell asleep.

Feng Ye hadn’t slept for long, simply dozing for about four shichen before a chaotic dream jolted him awake.

It wasn’t the same dream as before, nor was it the work of that demonic creature. His overly jumbled thoughts in the waking world had just manifested as a dream.

He felt an unfamiliar weight pressing down on him when he woke, and upon opening his eyes, he found Hao Chen pressed tightly against him.

The fish was demonstrating his usual lack of sleep etiquette, clinging to him like an octopus. His face was also pressed to the side of his neck, each puff of breath fanning over his sensitive inverse scale and sending goosebumps across his entire body.

At this realization, Feng Ye wanted to jump right out of bed and shove this clingy person away from him.

This was his instinctive reaction, but when he came back to his senses and remembered what had happened the night before, he couldn’t quite bring himself to do it.

What exactly…..was going on between him and Hao Chen?

He found it difficult to put into words.

Hao Chen said he liked him…..but did he actually like Hao Chen?

To some extent, this was a trickier matter than even Jianmu. No matter how complex and mysterious the history of Jianmu was, he knew where to seek the clues that would provide him with an answer.

But he had absolutely no point of reference for determining whether or not he liked someone. This was a question without a common answer, and Feng Ye didn’t know how to find the solution.

In the past, Feng Ye would have decisively answered in the negative.

He was well-aware of his trust issues, and knew that it was highly unlikely that he would ever fall for someone.

Hao Chen could be counted as a rare friend, but he was still not an exception to this rule.

Feng Ye had drawn a circle around himself. Inside it was his safe territory, and outside it was everyone else. Nobody was allowed inside. In fact, if outsiders even approached its boundary, his tension and unease would surge. His hackles would rise, the scales all across his body bristling in his most ferocious and terrifying threat display.

Just like his coldness from last night, when Hao Chen first tried to reach out and touch him.

And yet, Feng Ye had released his hand after Hao Chen asked him that question.

Hao Chen’s question was perfectly asked. If he had added a single extra word, had he asked, ‘did it hurt you,’ Feng Ye might not have answered or let go.

He wouldn’t acknowledge his pain in front of someone else, but this question and its answer hadn’t specified the person who had suffered. This made it easier to explain later on, or to simply deny everything.

So Feng Ye allowed himself to show this slightest of vulnerabilities. He opened his circle a tiny crack – and then this fat fish wiggled through and embraced him.

The warmth was addictive. Out of control, he slowly returned the embrace, holding on tighter and tighter.

Afterward, they once again lay down in bed together. Feng Ye couldn’t say for sure how many times they had shared a bed, and the mood was different each time.

When he thought back to the previous night, Feng Ye had no way of pushing this fish off the bed with a clear conscience.

To use him and then discard him….wouldn’t that make Feng Ye a total scumbag? Hao Chen’s breathing was deep and steady as he slept, and Feng Ye didn’t want to interrupt the fish’s pleasant dreams.

But going back to sleep was impossible.

The breaths puffing against his sensitive spot were torture. If it had been anyone other than Hao Chen, Feng Ye would have kicked them away already.

This thought brought Feng Ye up short. It turned out that his feelings toward Hao Chen were special after all.

This situation had him at a complete loss. He had absolutely no experience when it came to handling such things, and from the moment he woke up until the break of dawn, he futilely wracked his brains for an answer.

When dawn came and it was time to get up, Feng Ye decided to leave and take a stroll outside. He would be able to clear his head and remove himself from the torment of his current situation.

So after carefully rearranging Hao Chen’s limbs, Feng Ye held his breath and observed him. The rhythm of Hao Chen’s breathing hadn’t changed at all. He seemed to be deeply asleep.

Feng Ye prepared to leave with peace of mind, but just before heading out, he noticed that the window was still open.

He had been sitting by the window and enjoying the breeze when Hao Chen came in last night, and neither of them had remembered to close it before going to bed. It had remained open through the night, pouring cold air into the room.

Both he and the fish had thick hides, and a bit of cold wind was nothing to them.

In the past, it never would have occurred to Feng Ye to close the window for Hao Chen’s sake. But not only did it occur to him now, he even walked all the way there from the doorway to close it.

The sky was overcast, and perhaps because the sun had yet to rise completely, it gave off a slight feeling of gloom.

The room suddenly grew dim with the closing of the window, and Feng Ye felt his way out in the darkness.

When he was outside with the door fully shut in front of him, Feng Ye breathed a sigh of relief. He had finally escaped that confusing situation.

Even after leaving the room, he didn’t let down his guard. He descended the stairs on light feet, fearful that the slightest noise might awaken the sleeping fish.

What he failed to see was that as soon as the door closed, Hao Chen also opened his eyes.

He sat halfway up in bed and pressed a hand to his forehead, staring in the direction Feng Ye had gone with an unreadable expression.

When Feng Ye reached the lobby on the ground floor, he discovered that the innkeeper had arisen even earlier than him.

The man was busily tending a fire in order to cook breakfast. After all, with an ingot of gold and a pearl in his pocket, he knew that he must serve these four guests well.

Therefore, he got up very early in the morning before the four of them awoke, but Feng Ye was an unexpectedly early-riser. The rice had just been put into the pot, and the buns were still being assembled when he made his way down.

“Up so early, honored guest?” the innkeeper asked Feng Ye.

“En, I got up to stretch my legs,” Feng Ye said with a smile.

The innkeeper was a little surprised. Yesterday, this person had been cold and silent, but he was much easier to get along with today.

He didn’t dwell on this new development, but instead focused on doing his job well. He carried a plate of meat filling toward the back, saying: “Please sit and wait a short while, honored guest. Breakfast is in the pot and will be ready in no time.”

Feng Ye nodded: “Thanking the innkeeper for his hard work.”

“Just doing my job!” the innkeeper replied without complaint.

If it got him gold and pearls every day, forget getting up early, he wouldn’t even bother to sleep!

The innkeeper headed to the back courtyard where the kitchen was located, and Feng Ye sat down at a random table near a window. He rested his chin in his hand and gazed outside.

The inn was located on the market street, and there were already a few pedestrians out and about even on such an early, overcast morning. They were all street vendors, scrambling to set up their stalls in the prime spots in order to make a living.

The faint clatter of pots and pans reached his ears. The innkeeper was hard at work in the kitchen. It was just an ordinary morning, and this was just an ordinary market town. So ordinary, in fact, that it didn’t even have an official name. Just like similar places elsewhere, it was tranquil and unchanging.

Feng Ye’s unsettled mind was suddenly very calm. As he watched people passing by on the street, a smile unknowingly appeared on his lips.

This unchanging tranquility that could even be called tedious…..was exactly what he had been working so tirelessly for. When tracking down Jianmu and locating the Living Soil, his only goal was to eliminate this hidden threat and restore peace to the mortal world.

Feng Ye had only been sitting by the window for a short while when he heard another set of footsteps coming down the stairs.

He turned his head toward the stairwell, and his newly-settled heart sped up again. If it was Hao Chen coming down, how should he face him…..?

As Feng Ye wrestled with his anxiety, the person came into view at the top of the stairs. It was Cao Zirui.

Feng Ye was a little surprised, and so was Cao Zirui when he caught sight of Feng Ye.

He had heard all about Feng Ye’s behavior from Fang Yang, and knew that this person hated waking up so much that he wished he could kill every rooster in the sect.

For him to wake up this early today, it was nothing short of a miracle.

Cao Zirui’s expression didn’t change much from its usual iciness, but Feng Ye still caught a hint of shock in his eyes, as well as…..wonder.

Why so shocked? Feng Ye pondered this briefly, and decided that it must be due to Fang Yang spreading rumors. Although it wasn’t really a rumor, as he indeed tended to wake up very late. But that was just because he was out playing the thief at night. He wasn’t actually obsessed with sleeping, unlike that fat fish from the North Sea.

“Good morning, Feng-shixiong.” Cao Zirui took the initiative to greet him.

“Good morning,” Feng Ye returned with a smile. Explaining the whole situation would be inconvenient, so he could only ignore the look of wonder in Cao Zirui’s eyes.

Fang Yang was the only person Cao Zirui was close with. Although the four of them were traveling together, it was rare that Cao Zirui spoke to Feng Ye or Hao Chen.

He never had much to talk about with the boy. Feng Ye assumed that this simple greeting would be the end of it, but to his surprise, Cao Zirui made his way over to him as if he had something to say.

Cao Zirui did indeed have something to say, and asked as he sat down across from Feng Ye: “Where does Feng-shixiong plan to go next?”

Their journey through Longqiu was over, with both Jianmu and the Living Soil now in their hands. Then as for what remained…..

“I’m planning to go to the Northern Territories,” said Feng Ye.

Although he had already confirmed that the problem lay with the Living Soil, Feng Ye still wanted to take a look at the snowy mountains in the north, which were the source of Xuanming Water.

While the Living Soil was at fault for Jianmu’s connection to the Emberless Horizon, it might not be the only factor. It was better to be on the safe side.

In any case, it wouldn’t take much effort. The hundred-year mark would arrive in just a few days, which was enough time to make the journey at a leisurely pace.

Cao Zirui frowned upon hearing this, looking somewhat disquieted.

Feng Ye studied his expression, and Cao Zirui spoke up again before he could inquire: “Feng-shixiong, I plan to go straight back to the sect.”

“Back to the sect?” Feng Ye was a little surprised.

“En.” Cao Zirui nodded with a serious expression. “The matter of Ling Yun…..I must report it to my shifu.”

There were indeed magic tools for transmitting voice messages, but this matter was simply too complicated, and couldn’t be explained in a handful of words. Cao Zirui needed to go back and explain the situation in person.

There was nothing wrong with this course of action. The problem was…..he and Feng Ye would no longer be heading in the same direction.

It wasn’t like he had never gone out by himself before, but things were different now. He was carrying two immensely valuable things with him – Jianmu and the Living Soil.

And those with their eyes fixed on these treasures were waiting for their chance to strike. Setting out alone would be very dangerous for Cao Zirui.

“Isn’t it too dangerous for you to go back alone?” Feng Ye cautioned him.

Cao Zirui fell silent for a moment. His brow was still furrowed, and there was some hesitation in his eyes.

But very soon, this hesitation vanished as he seemed to come to a decision. He suddenly unfastened the small jar containing Jianmu he had been carrying on his back, then placed it and the storage bag containing the Living Soil onto the table.

Under Feng Ye’s stunned gaze, he pushed both items forward.

Then Cao Zirui solemnly requested: “I am unable to keep them safe. Troubling Feng-shixiong to safeguard them for me.”

Feng Ye couldn’t be more astonished: “You trust me?”

Cao Zirui wasn’t like Fang Yang. He wasn’t so naive. Given the extraordinary abilities Feng Ye had demonstrated over the past few days, it would be impossible for Cao Zirui not to be suspicious.

“Feng-shixiong is not a bad person,” Cao Zirui answered with certainty. Someone who had saved him so many times could not be a bad person. Besides, if Feng Ye truly wanted Jianmu for himself, he could have taken it at any time.

So he looked Feng Ye in the eyes and said earnestly: “I trust Feng-shixiong.”

Feng Ye looked back at him in silence. The trust in Cao Zirui’s eyes was boldly and courageously unconcealed, making him the complete opposite of Feng Ye.

Feng Ye suddenly smiled. Then he agreed: “Alright. I’ll keep it safe for you.”

---

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Chapter 119 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 121

Ch 48 – The Robot Understands

Yu Xi was kind of regretting his decision.

Completely unaware that Sanjay was being tormented by his own memories, he watched those brutal space pirates through Sanjay’s eyes and regretted bitterly.

He shouldn’t have swapped memories with Sanjay. Sanjay now knew what it felt like to have everything at his fingertips. He was living the good life, while Yu Xi was suffering.

Yu Xi had had some expectations about what Sanjay’s past was like, but it turned out that he had still been thinking too simply. Because a story was very different from the process of living it.

Yu Xi had initially assumed that Sanjay would be enraged by the abuse he suffered at the hands of the space pirates during his childhood, but he was mistaken.

Yu Xi could sense Sanjay’s emotions, and Sanjay was excited when those space pirates tossed food to him.

But when he looked upon his parents in the prison cell, Sanjay was incomparably furious.

Influenced by his emotions, Yu Xi was surprised to find the couple unlikable as well.

But Yu Xi quickly got a hold of himself. These were humans, after all.

Sanjay was on better terms with the space pirates, and Yu Xi detected nothing close to “shame” within the child.

Why? Because the space pirates represented more food? Because he saw them as a chance to survive?

His parents could no longer give him those things. Sanjay had faint memories of parents who had been gentle, and could vaguely recall eating real food, but his parents couldn’t provide that for him anymore.

Sanjay wanted to follow the space pirates around all day, saying things they wanted to hear and making funny faces to make them laugh. And when he was kicked away, he would happily come running back to sweettalk them.

Then, one day, an unfamiliar man joined the space pirate crew.

That man immediately secured a high-ranking position, and Sanjay rushed to curry favor with him. That man didn’t smile, nor did he beat him or curse at him.

He looked at Sanjay with something in his eyes that the child couldn’t identify.

But Yu Xi knew that the man pitied him.

Later on, the man asked Sanjay where he came from and gave him some nutrient solution, but he couldn’t help but frown when he heard the filthy language coming from Sanjay’s mouth.

That man began to teach Sanjay.

Yu Xi noticed a sense of peace in Sanjay’s heart.

But this peace was short-lived, and didn’t last through the day.

Each time he laid eyes on his parents again, his peace would shatter.

He was sick and tired of those two. The man sensed Sanjay’s mood and tried to make him understand the helplessness his parents felt.

Yu Xi discovered that when Sanjay listened to the man’s reasoning, he inwardly agreed with him and seemed to be persuaded. Yet when he returned to his parents’ cell and saw their gaunt faces, a wave of revulsion still washed over him.

This feeling made Yu Xi terribly uncomfortable. He couldn’t wrap his mind around why Sanjay hated his parents so much, to the point that he practically regarded them as sworn enemies.

He wondered if Sanjay was what they called a “naturally-born bad seed.”

But Sanjay began to constrain himself.

He was very close to that man, always following at his heels. He was desperate to join the space pirate crew, but the man refused his request.

As Sanjay grew older, he began to resent the man somewhat. But he still followed him everywhere he went, and the man never pushed him away…..until Sanjay discovered his secret.

The man was transmitting information about the space pirate crew to someone outside, and Sanjay caught him in the act.

The man’s expression instantly twisted into something fierce. Sanjay was terrified.

Sanjay had long learned how to read people, and the fear of death made tears well up in his eyes. The man was momentarily taken aback.

Yu Xi had never felt such fear. He wanted to cry too.

After what felt like an eternity to Yu Xi, the man crouched down halfway and asked Sanjay in a low voice: “Don’t tell anyone about this, okay?”

Still fearing death, Sanjay nodded.

The man patted Sanjay on the head and vowed that he would rescue him and his family.

Sanjay was moved to tears. He clutched the leg of the man’s trousers, thanking him over and over again.

Yu Xi experienced the joy of surviving disaster, and found it both unfamiliar and novel.

Unfortunately, Yu Xi could basically guess the outcome. Since Sanjay had become the captain of the space pirates, that man must have been exposed.

Yu Xi was prepared to watch a heart-wrenching tragedy unfold, and hoped that the moment wouldn’t arrive right away.

But what Yu Xi didn’t expect was for Sanjay to betray the man.

Once the joy of survival faded, Sanjay began to fear his current situation. He was afraid that he would be implicated if the man was discovered. He had seen how those space pirates dealt with traitors.

Sanjay was afraid to die.

Yu Xi was speechless. He felt that Sanjay was the biggest scumbag in the world, but as he lived through Sanjay’s memories, it all unfolded so naturally that Yu Xi found it pitiable.

Sanjay lived with a constant fear of death, terrified that he wouldn’t wake up the next day.

He was simply incapable of holding up under that kind of pressure.

When the initial elation faded, Sanjay felt that the man had promised something far beyond his ability to follow through on.

What did it mean to live a normal life? That sort of life seemed like a dream, like a flavor that was beyond his imagination.

But the fear of death was his constant companion.

When his fear reached a fever pitch, Sanjay finally took that last step.

He betrayed the man.

Hiding behind the crowd of space pirates, Sanjay seemed to sense the man’s gaze settle on him…..or no, perhaps not. After all, he had yet to meet the man’s eyes.

But he could hear the man questioning his betrayal.

Sanjay felt like he couldn’t breathe. He kept thinking of reasons and excuses, trying to convince himself that he had done what he needed to do.

Sanjay eventually received word that the man was dead, and the space pirates actually began to accept him as one of their own.

The final “joke” they played on Sanjay was making him kill his own parents. They were no longer of any use, as there was nothing more to squeeze out of that family.

When Sanjay raised the gun toward them, he found that he didn’t feel any particular emotion at all. He was finally able to rid himself of these two damn people, these two bastards who had kept him trapped.

Yu Xi felt that this person was rotten to the core, the worst of the worst.

Sanjay and those around him thought the same, that he was a natural-born space pirate.

Sanjay had thought that escaping his parents would be enough, but unexpectedly, the fear and hunger never left.

He began a desperate climb to the top, and the blood on his hands increased.

Then, at a certain moment in time, the fear lessened slightly, though the hunger remained.

The space pirates began to treat him with the utmost respect and deference, and he became a minor leader on the crew.

But at this time, those dead emotions of his returned to cling to him like ghosts.

Sanjay didn’t understand. Once the fear gradually faded away, he could remember the songs his parents used to sing to him as they rocked him to sleep. He even remembered every word that man had spoken to him.

These things were all that filled Sanjay’s dreams – everything he once had, and a better future that he might have yet reclaimed.

But they were dead at his own hands.

For the first time, Sanjay experienced true anguish. Shame seemed to catch up with him at that moment, and the ways he once sought to curry favor with these people replayed over and over in his head.

Clutching the food given to him, he was kicked aside, but he could only force himself back up through the pain and speak those pandering words.

Sanjay truly hated that hypocritical version of himself, and it was this that caused his anguish.

It had nothing to do with physical pain.

He had been captured at an age when he was just learning how to be human, and was raised like a wild beast. Biting and snarling brought him power, and he was eventually able to pull on his human skin once more. But those memories that belonged to the beast didn’t go away, lying hidden within Sanjay’s mind. And once he became human again, those memories became incredibly vivid, so alive that they seemed to writhe and crawl, intent on devouring Sanjay.

The hunger grew even more, and Sanjay set his sights on the space pirates who had humiliated him. Even when there was no one left to kill and he had become the captain of the space pirates, the starvation lingered. It expanded more and more, increasing in ferocity until it threatened to swallow everything.

Sanjay did the same thing those space pirates had done to him, toying with children to see if they would raise a hand against their own parents.

He was creating monsters just like himself. The only difference was that he would never let them grow up.

And when those monsters turned their heads toward Sanjay for praise, all they saw was the dark, gaping barrel of a gun.

He did it over and over again…..

Until his crew of space pirates stirred up enough trouble that they found themselves being hunted, and then the fear of death took hold of him once again.

Yu Xi woke with a start, gasping for breath.

Sanjay had also woken up nearby, and seemed very calm. Perhaps too calm: “I wasn’t able to see what happened after you met Kersz. Are you able to seal off your memories?”

Of course they were sealed off. Some of the things he and Kersz did were not fit for public view.

Yu Xi looked with alarm at Sanjay, who seemed very much at a loss.

Yu Xi didn’t know what to say.

Sanjay didn’t either.

The two stared at each other for quite a while before Sanjay took the initiative to ask: “Do you want to destroy everything?”

Yu Xi shook his head.

“Why?” Sanjay didn’t understand.

“I don’t know.” Yu Xi had been able to sense his joy and rage, but Sanjay held no hatred for humanity. He was just afraid.

Those space pirates were terrifying. Sanjay’s changing mindset was terrifying, and those raw and bloody memories were terrifying too.

“What about you? How did you enjoy your time in my memories?” Yu Xi asked.

“Enjoy?!” Sanjay was appalled.

“Oh! Of course you must have enjoyed yourself. My memories hold everything you could ever ask for.” Yu Xi felt that he had been ripped off in this exchange.

“What do you mean, everything?” Sanjay demanded.

“I mean literally everything!” Yu Xi owned an entire planet.

“You are dreadfully poor.” Sanjay felt that Yu Xi possessed nothing but a completely barren world, containing nothing of value.

“And you’re well-off?” Yu Xi opened his mouth, then closed it again. “I’m not going to argue with you.”

Sanjay asked him: “Do you think I was wrong?”

“What?”

“Do you think that what I did was wrong?” Sanjay asked again.

Yu Xi: “Human, the very fact that you’re asking me proves that your brain is broken. How could you make such an obvious mistake and still ask that?”

“Obvious mistake?” Sanjay seemed somewhat puzzled. “I made choices that most people would make. I’ve experimented, and a great many children in my situation did the same thing.”

“Then why didn’t you dare to let them live? Didn’t you kill them because you saw them as a mistake? Why wouldn’t you want another “you” to survive?” Yu Xi asked.

Sanjay didn’t answer.

“If you’re no different from the children you harmed, then why wasn’t there a Sanjay there to kill you after everything you did? Do you really need to ask me?”

Yu Xi felt that Sanjay already knew the answer.

---

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Chapter 47 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 49

Ch 47 – Foolish Robot

Upon realizing that Yu Xi truly had no defenses against psychological pressure, Sanjay continued to entice him with the idea of peering into his memories.

“You must not fall for it.” Tau said to the slightly tempted Yu Xi. “His mind is a pit of filth. There is a very real chance that he will drag you down into the darkness with him.”

“You want me to keep my innocence?” Yu Xi was deeply moved.

“I’m mostly afraid that if you have a mental breakdown, you’ll take all of humanity down with you,” Tau said, patting the back of Yu Xi’s hand.

Yu Xi: ……

Yu Xi sighed and tilted his head back to look at the ceiling.

He knew that he should ignore Sanjay, but the man kept poking at his weaknesses. Sanjay knew that Yu Xi sympathized with his misfortune, so he continuously asked Yu Xi if he could bear to let him die without knowing the whole story.

“I don’t understand why you’re so conflicted. He’s a killer, ah.” Tau continued, “For ordinary people, isn’t it a simple concept that a life must be repaid with a life?”

Yu Xi: “Ordinary people?”

Tau: “Those who have a normal growth trajectory.” Tau himself didn’t hate Sanjay, because “hatred” was an emotion he was completely incapable of.

“Yes, a life for a life. But why am I always so soft-hearted?” Yu Xi didn’t understand it.

“Ah….” Something suddenly occurred to Tau.

Tau gestured toward Yu Xi: “Isn’t it because you aren’t human?”

Yu Xi: “Ah?”

“There are some humans like that too. I recall a nobleman who had a cat. That cat killed the other pets he owned, but the nobleman just thought it was a headache. He didn’t think that the cat deserved to die.” Tau felt that a robot like Yu Xi simply didn’t operate within the framework of humanity.

“So that’s what it is?” Yu Xi really didn’t understand.

“Sanjay is ultimately unable to kill you, and he hasn’t directly harmed Kersz either.” Tau felt that Yu Xi just didn’t see Sanjay as one of his own kind.

As someone with great power, Yu Xi had the luxury of being able to pity such a person. After all, his pity wouldn’t come at the expense of his own interests.

“Then if I see his memories, will I be able to determine if Sanjay deserves to die?” Yu Xi returned to the previous subject.

“Why are you so fixated on this? The memories of someone like that are dangerous!” Tau was somewhat anxious, but he wasn’t Kersz. He didn’t know how to dissuade Yu Xi.

“Because whenever I’m misunderstood, I wish I could pull out my memories and show them to people, so that they can see that I’m innocent,” Yu Xi said. “Once humans gained the ability to do this, they were quite dull, but you can’t deny that there are some advantages to the technology. For example, fixing misconceptions.”

Tau: “You’re saying that Sanjay’s eagerness to reveal his past reminds you of your own past grievances? You empathize with him?”

Yu Xi nodded.

Tau had never felt so helpless: “The gravity of these two things is completely different. He’s a completely broken person.”

Sanjay’s state of mind was irrevocably warped. Only a madman could empathize with a madman, and Tau felt that there was no reason for Yu Xi to do so.

Tau really wished that Kersz was here. He would definitely be able to stop Yu Xi from doing something so foolish. If worse came to worst, Kersz could just sell his body to divert Yu Xi’s attention.

There was nothing Tau could do.

His lot in life was a bitter one.

He seemed to be witnessing in real time humanity’s march toward a future of death and ashes.

How had this extremely dangerous robot come to have such a temperament?

Tau failed to dissuade Yu Xi.

Yu Xi thought about the issue for a long time, but the more he thought, the more curious he grew about Sanjay’s memories.

In the end, when Sanjay came to see him again, Yu Xi proposed that he take a look inside his head.

Sanjay froze in place.

Then he smiled.

It was a very unnerving smile. He hadn’t expected Yu Xi to take the initiative to ask.

He had assumed that Yu Xi still had a basic sense of self-preservation.

Sure enough, ah. This robot’s life had gone too smoothly, to the point that he thought he could handle anything he set his mind to.

Sanjay had encountered many such people. Those who thought themselves to be kind and compassionate. Those who would even attempt to “save” and “heal” other people.

Most of them were dragged down into the same swamp themselves.

Yu Xi was one such fool. His life had been too tranquil, and he thought that as long as he was careful enough, he could avoid being dragged into the vortex. He was unaware that no amount of “preparedness” would be enough to resolve such an issue. This was a fate from which there was no escape.

Fate would randomly select an unfortunate soul to play such an absurd role in the world, and whether that person went with the flow or acted with caution, there was no leaving the path fate had set in stone for them.

“But while I experience your memories, you’ll also be forced to experience mine. Are you okay with that?” Yu Xi asked.

“Of course. But your memories must stretch across a huge span of time. Will I be able to handle it?” Sanjay didn’t want his brain to turn to mush.

“You’ll be fine. This technology will protect your mind,” said Yu Xi.

Sanjay agreed to go through with it.

A smooth life like Yu Xi’s was one of his greatest desires. “Survival” was the last thing Yu Xi had to worry about. He had it all. His lived experience was so devoid of pitfalls that he even thought he could calmly relive Sanjay’s past.

He watched as Yu Xi procured two bracelets and slipped one of them onto his wrist.

The bracelet was so thin that it was only slightly larger than a strand of hair, and emitted a white halo of light.

After fastening his own bracelet, Yu Xi told Sanjay to close his eyes.

Sanjay did as instructed. He felt a fascinating sensation, and immediately after closing his eyes, they were forced open again.

Though ‘open’ wasn’t quite accurate, because he didn’t have eyelids.

“He” was looking at himself in a mirror.

And what he saw there was a white robot with a round head. The robot’s eyes were cyan-blue electronic circles, which shifted into horizontal lines before becoming circles again.

Was this how robots blinked?

“Just now, what did you say my name was?” The voice was emotionless and gender-neutral.

To his surprise, Sanjay found that he could understand this foreign language. It was likely another function of the memory-sharing device.

“Yu Xi. Your name is Yu Xi,” replied someone nearby. “What made you suddenly ask about your name today?”

Yu Xi’s glowing circular eyes flashed: “Oh! That’s right, my name is Yu Xi.”

The human said again: “Why ask about it today?”

“I don’t know,” said Yu Xi.

Was this where Yu Xi’s memories began? Had he acquired self-awareness at this very moment, without even realizing it himself?

Yu Xi turned toward the human, and Sanjay finally got a clear look at them. It was an elderly man.

“The weather is nice today. Would you like to go out for a walk?” Yu Xi approached the old man.

“No.” The man shook his head.

“Alright, then.” Yu Xi turned to go start cutting up some fruit.

As he moved, he turned his head toward the window and the call of birdsong.

The robot tilted his head slightly to the side.

The birds were singing to the robot.

So the robot began to play birdsong back to them.

“Yu Xi? What are you doing?” The old man asked, turning his head toward him.

“Those are swallows,” said Yu Xi.

“Yes, those are swallows,” said the old man.

Yu Xi nodded and returned to cutting fruit. He prepared two platters and set them on the old man’s table.

The old man was taken aback, and called Yu Xi’s name again.

“Do you want to listen to the swallows some more?” Yu Xi asked. “I recorded their song.”

He himself didn’t know why he had bothered to do something so silly.

“She’s gone,” said the old man.

Yu Xi slowly turned around and looked at the black-and-white photo displayed nearby.

“The funeral was just yesterday. Did you forget?” The old man asked.

“…..I haven’t gone to a funeral.” Yu Xi seemed a little dazed. “Can I go to it?”

The old man: “It’s already over.”

Yu Xi fell silent. Then he spoke up again: “She is a very good person.”

The old man’s breathing hitched.

“I want to go to the funeral,” Yu Xi said, and then backtracked: “But I can’t go, because the funeral was yesterday, and right now it’s today. What is the difference between yesterday and today?”

“Oh! I think I can perceive time,” Yu Xi added.

Yu Xi said no more, but Sanjay could hear Yu Xi think: once time passes, it never returns.

Something felt off to Sanjay. At the very least, this was going completely different from how he had imagined it.

As the memories progressed, this feeling only grew stronger.

Hadn’t he said that Yu Xi had it all?

Why didn’t he rule over humanity and seize everything he desired?

Why did he only have what humans chose to give him?

If humans didn’t offer it to him, Yu Xi made no effort to obtain it.

Yu Xi just watched from the sidelines.

Sanjay wanted to end this tedious journey through memory, but he couldn’t terminate the process himself. From the perspective of a robot, he was forced to watch as humans departed one after another, and as humanity itself transformed.

And in the wake of all of these changes, this robot attempted to build on a certain planet all of the structures that had once been familiar to him.

He was so alone…..

Was this what it meant to live? He would be better off dead!

Sanjay indulged in all manner of fierce, passionate emotions. Having suffered, he was intent on making it up to himself with the best things the world had to offer.

He was completely unable to accept Yu Xi’s behavior, but he was forced to share in Yu Xi’s solitude.

There wasn’t a single person on the entire planet. Yu Xi had even begun talking to himself.

He would talk to the loudspeakers, and the loudspeakers would talk back to him.

They got into the occasional argument, but neither of them were really angry.

When would it end?

When would it all end?!

How much longer was he going to have to wait?

“I should hang a photo here.” Yu Xi printed out another photo of a human he had once known and hung it on the wall.

Sanjay discovered that every house on Yu Xi’s planet was decorated differently, and these decorations were very familiar to him.

Because Yu Xi had lived in those houses.

He was renovating them. The entire planet was his home.

A terrifying realization belatedly occurred to Sanjay.

Yu Xi had endured a long period of solitude while he was still ignorant and naive. Back then, Yu Xi didn’t even know if he had any humanity in him, having never made any choices that could determine such a thing.

Sanjay had made his choices far too early, desperate to become a complete whole.

He abhorred idling time away like this, the desolate solitude and absence of achievement.

He hated it all!

He wanted to leave!

Putting him through this experience was worse than just killing him!

Sanjay felt as if he was falling apart over a very, very long period of time.

But there was nothing he could do.

Yet on one particular day, when Yu Xi went to check on his vegetable seeds and found that they had sprouted, Sanjay unexpectedly felt a sense of gratification.

He figured he had gone mad.

But he hadn’t been quite right in the head to begin with. Could someone like him become even crazier?

Once he accepted that there was nothing he could do, his emotions strangely synchronized with Yu Xi’s.

A little helpless. A little sad.

There seemed to be so much he wanted to say.

He was so lonely, but there was nobody to confide his loneliness to.

When he saw the sprout that had pushed up through the soil, he couldn’t help but let out a “wow.”

In that moment….it was so beautiful, ah.

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Chapter 46 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 48

Ch. 119 – “Does it hurt?”

At a market town near Longqiu.

Due to its remote location, this market town was naturally not as prosperous as those of the Central Plains. Most people here were locals, with outside visitors being a rare occurrence.

For this reason, the market town only boasted a single inn.

Even with a lack of competitors, the business at this inn remained so poor that it was barely hanging on to solvency.

Longqiu was just too remote. Although its soil was fertile, the yield of grain was only slightly higher than in other areas. And with the lack of distinctive local specialties or famous sightseeing locations, very few merchants or travelers bothered to pass through.

The people currently bustling around the market were all locals, each with their own nearby homes, so the inn offering food and lodging naturally lost their business.

The innkeeper often regretted his foolish decision to enter this business, but he had indeed invested a substantial amount into the establishment. This inn had a total of three floors, which basically made it the tallest building in town. Shutting it down would mean throwing away all of his hard work and money, so he stubbornly kept it running.

To cut costs, the innkeeper simply stopped hiring any employees. Since customers were rare anyway, he just took on the roles of head chef and waiter himself.

Like this, the days passed one after another. If there were no customers, he didn’t lose money, and if there were, it was pure profit.

If he happened to encounter a particularly big-spending customer, he stood to make a fortune.

It was another break-even day. The shopkeeper yawned where he sat behind the counter, and a glance at the sky told him that the sun was about to set. The street vendors were starting to pack up their stalls and head home, so he stood up and went to close the door of the inn.

Inns typically didn’t close this early, because travelers were often delayed by unforeseen circumstances, but a lack of business was normal here. The shopkeeper had become accustomed to it, and since there was no point in staying open late, he would close early so that he could go home and get to sleep early.

But just as he was about to bolt the wooden door, something unexpected occurred.

This inn, long-devoid of guests, suddenly had some. And they arrived in a group of four. Judging by the clothing that set them aside from commoners, they should be from the jianghu.

The innkeeper eyed the sword at one man’s waist, and his nose picked up the faint scent of blood. These people had likely just returned from a battle.

Despite this knowledge, he didn’t ask any questions. He was just an innkeeper, and if they had the money, he would let them stay. It was best not to meddle in the conflicts of the jianghu.

Thus, the innkeeper warmly welcomed them into his establishment. The members of the group varied in age. The two older ones couldn’t be much over twenty years old, and the two younger ones were not yet fully grown, perhaps around fourteen or fifteen.

The innkeeper’s gaze lingered on the two older men as he tried to figure out who was in charge. Was it the man with the stern and unnaturally pale face, or the charming, handsome young master who looked like a character from a storybook?

“Innkeeper, four rooms.”

To the innkeeper’s surprise, the first of the four to speak was one of the youths, who took a gold ingot from his sleeve as he spoke.

Doesn’t it feel lumpy and uncomfortable to stuff gold ingots up there? The innkeeper thought, eyeing Cao Zirui’s sleeve.

But his attention shifted very quickly. His eyes gleamed at the sight of the gold ingot, and he excitedly accepted it with both hands, not sparing a glance at these four people. Without even looking, he pointed the way: “The rooms upstairs are all vacant. The four of you can make yourselves at home.”

The four of them then made their way upstairs. They looked travel-worn and weary, and didn’t exchange a single word between them on the way up.

But the innkeeper had no attention to spare for the heavy atmosphere between the group. His thoughts were singularly focused on the gold ingot.

He first bit it between his teeth, then polished it with his sleeve until it had a brilliant sheen, reflecting the light even on such a dim evening.

The innkeeper thought for a moment, then suddenly stuck the gold ingot into his sleeve. After noting the weight and shape for a moment, he pulled it out again and thought that he understood Cao Zirui.

How could gold against your skin ever feel uncomfortable?!

Far from being lumpy and uncomfortable, it felt lovely enough to compose poems about. The shopkeep held the gold with joy in his heart, completely unaware that it had come not from Cao Zirui’s sleeve, but from the storage bag concealed in his cuff.

But that was unimportant. Gazing at the gold ingot, he rummaged around in his limited literary knowledge and had a sudden surge of poetic inspiration. Just as he was about to start the first line, the wooden staircase creaked under someone’s feet.

Someone was coming down.

The innkeeper immediately dropped his money-obsessed look and gave his friendliest smile to the person approaching him.

It was the charming young master. His clothes were not particularly ostentatious, but there seemed to be an air about him that an ordinary person couldn’t hope to imitate. He held a paper fan in his hand, and tapped it against the countertop as he asked: “Do you have any bandages?”

Would an inn carry such a thing? The innkeeper shook his head.

“What about hot water?” Hao Chen asked.

Inns did tend to have hot water available…..but those were inns that actually had customers. Why would an inn with no business have hot water prepared? Just to heat it up and pour it out?

The innkeeper shook his head again.

These two negative answers caused the young master to frown, which did nothing to detract from his good looks. Although the innkeeper was a man, he couldn’t deny that good looks came with advantages. Even with a furrowed brow, this man had a certain charm.

Hao Chen tapped his fan, then suddenly reached into his sleeve and drew out…..a single pearl.

The innkeeper’s eyes widened. Although it wasn’t the gold he had expected, the value of this pearl was certainly not low. It was the size of a pigeon’s egg.

Longqiu was not located by the sea, so pearls were far more expensive here than they might be elsewhere. Not to mention a large pearl like this one, bigger than any he had ever seen. It might be even more valuable than an equivalent amount of gold.

Hao Chen handed the pearl to the innkeeper, then instructed him: “This town should have an apothecary. Troubling the innkeeper to go and buy some bandages, and heat up some water as well.”

There was indeed an apothecary in town, but it was located at the farthest diagonal point from his inn. The innkeeper had never been an industrious person, and generally wouldn’t volunteer to run this sort of errand.

However…..the innkeeper fondled the plump, round pearl in his hand, and the smile that spread across his face held more affection than he would show to his own wife: “Wait just a moment, esteemed guest. I’ll go at once!”

After delivering his instructions, Hao Chen went back upstairs.

Holding the gold ingot in his left hand and the enormous pearl in his right, the innkeeper carefully stowed them away. Then he walked out of the shop, thinking, I wonder if it’s fashionable in other places to carry valuables in your sleeves?

Hao Chen climbed to the second floor. Although the inn had a total of three floors, the actual size of those floors was fairly small, with only four rooms each.

While there was enough room for the four of them on one floor, the inn had long been unoccupied, and the two rooms facing away from the sun had developed a bad mold problem.

For this reason, the room assignments for the four of them were: Hao Chen and Feng Ye in the two rooms on the third floor facing the balcony, and Fang Yang and Cao Zirui in the balcony rooms on the second floor.

Other than Feng Ye, who had shut himself in his own room and hadn’t come out, Hao Chen and the other two had not retired to their rooms.

Fang Yang and Cao Zirui were waiting for Hao Chen at the top of the second floor staircase, and crowded around him as soon as they saw him coming up.

“Hao-dage…..Shixiong, he…..” Fang Yang started to ask a question, but when the words were on the tip of his tongue, he didn’t quite know what to say.

After the mysterious peng bird appeared the night before, the misty black barrier had shattered and revealed the hidden figures behind it.

Fang Yang had watched as Feng Ye defeated Ling Yun, and heard the words he spoke, the details of which were so vivid that he must have experienced those things firsthand.

He had wanted to ask about it right then and there, but Feng Ye kept silent after defeating Ling Yun and seemed unwilling to speak to anyone. Fang Yang didn’t go out of his way to pester him.

Now that the Living Soil was in their hands, there was no reason to remain in Longqiu any longer. The four of them subsequently made their way in the direction Old Uncle Sun had indicated, toward the nearest market town. Feng Ye walked alongside them, but he seemed as distant as if a whole world lay between them and didn’t speak a word the whole way.

After walking for a full day, they barely managed to reach the market town before night descended. Fang Yang had been holding himself back for so long, and now he finally had the chance to ask his questions.

There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but the sheer quantity left him not knowing how to ask any of them.

But Hao Chen didn’t need him to speak in order to know what was on his mind, and simply cut him off: “Don’t ask random questions, kid. Go get some sleep.”

Fang Yang: “……” That was way too perfunctory.

But Hao Chen gave him no time for further questions, and pushed Fang Yang into his room with  a single shove.

Hao Chen clapped his hands and turned toward Cao Zirui next, preparing to give him the same treatment.

But before Hao Chen could make a move, Cao Zirui hastily spoke up: “Wait!”

Hao Chen held off, signaling Cao Zirui with his eyes to speak up and not waste his time.

“Is Ling Yun…..dead?” Cao Zirui could see the impatience in Hao Chen’s eyes, but still found it difficult to articulate these few words.

No matter how hateful Ling Yun might be now, he was still Ji Chengyue’s shixiong. Cao Zirui had never met Ling Yun, and naturally had no feelings for his shishu, but his shifu certainly did. He cared enough to erect a spirit tablet for him regardless of what the world said was right or wrong.

If his shifu were to learn that Ling Yun still lived, he would no doubt be overjoyed…..except Ling Yun had fallen to this state. This was why Cao Zirui hadn’t sent word to Ji Chengyue right away.

He didn’t know if giving his shifu this news would be a good thing or a bad thing. That although his shixiong was still alive, he was no longer the man he once was, and had even turned against his own sect in his quest for vengeance.

But since last night, there didn’t seem to be any use for hesitation. Feng Ye had swung his sword without pause and sliced through Ling Yun’s neck, killing him once more.

Yet Cao Zirui couldn’t be sure that he was actually dead, because no severed head rolled to the ground in the wake of that strike. There was only a mass of black mist that dissipated in place.

Hao Chen was the one he asked, because he felt that he should know a bit more.

And indeed he did. Hao Chen looked at Cao Zirui for a moment, then said: “He’s not dead. He just ran away.”

They had clearly agreed that the duel would be fought without spiritual power, and the outcome of such a duel was a matter of life or death. It was only natural for the loser to lose their life.

But Ling Yun had escaped, using the power of that demonic creature. Sure enough, that black snake can’t be trusted at all, Hao Chen cursed.

That black snake’s attack had left a small tear in the fan he was carrying, the new one he’d had for less than a month! Damn it!

Cao Zirui breathed a reflexive sigh of relief when he heard this answer, but then he felt that he wasn’t reacting the right way. Why be relieved that the enemy wasn’t dead? Clearly, he should be anxious instead.

Cao Zirui thanked Hao Chen, then conscientiously returned to his room.

Now that the two young ones were dealt with, Hao Chen glanced upward and stepped onto the staircase, heading up to the third floor.

Feng Ye’s wounds, both new and old, had been dealt with on the way here. But conditions in the wilderness were not the best, with neither hot water nor real bandages available. Hao Chen had instructed the innkeeper to fetch some so that he would have an excuse to knock on Feng Ye’s door.

But the innkeeper had not returned yet, and Hao Chen didn’t want to wait any longer.

He stood at the door of Feng Ye’s room and knocked.

There was no response.

Hao Chen tilted his head to listen, but there were no sounds inside the room. It was so quiet that one might think the person inside had already fallen asleep.

In order to conserve wood in the making of this door, there were open spaces between the boards that were covered with paper.

Hao Chen stuck out his index finger and poked a small hole in the paper, then peered through it into the room.

No lights were on, and there was nobody lying on the bed.

Moonlight streamed into the room through the open window. Feng Ye was sitting against the windowsill with his left leg bent, as still as a statue as he gazed outside.

Since the dragon wasn’t asleep, Hao Chen lifted his eyes away from the hole in the paper, knocked once more and counted to three, then pushed the door open.

He moved very silently, trying not to make a sound as he closed the door behind him and paced over to Feng Ye’s side. The third-floor window was huge, leaving Feng Ye enough room to sit on it with his knees bent and still have room to lean back.

Feng Ye didn’t seem to notice Hao Chen’s arrival. His posture didn’t shift in the slightest, and his eyes didn’t move.

There was no beautiful scenery to be seen outside the window, only the quiet market town in the middle of the night and the boundless expanse of mountains beyond it.

This night was particularly quiet. People were resting indoors after a busy day, and the animals had returned to their dens. Only a small number were still out and about.

A mountain breeze rose from the forest, making it sway like an ocean of leaves. The wind continued forth, carrying a faint chill that only added to the cool atmosphere between the two people at the window.

“Cough, cough.” Hao Chen deliberately cleared his throat, searching for anything at all to break the silence.

But before he could say anything, the statue-like man said: “I don’t want to talk tonight.”

These were the first words he had spoken all day, but they were a cold rejection.

He continued to look out the window as he spoke, but there was nothing out there to draw his attention. He was simply staring into space, his eyes unfocused.

Staring into space alone, unwilling to be disturbed by anyone.

But despite this clear rejection, Hao Chen stubbornly stayed where he was.

And proceeded to be unreasonable.

“If you don’t want to talk, I can keep my mouth shut. Just pretend like I don’t exist,” Hao Chen said.

No matter how Feng Ye tried to ignore him, it was impossible to pretend like a living, breathing person right next to him didn’t exist.

Feng Ye’s lips thinned, but he didn’t speak. It was no use. This fish was always so thick-skinned.

So he simply paid no attention to him and let Hao Chen stand in the wind at his side.

After only a short while, the innkeeper returned with the hot water and bandages and knocked on the door.

Hao Chen opened the door and took the supplies, then closed it again. Carrying the basin over to the window, he asked tentatively: “Shall I change your bandages?”

“No.”

Hao Chen had expected the refusal.

He didn’t force it, and set the hot water down before standing by the window once more, staring out into the night with Feng Ye.

Steam rose continuously above the basin of hot water, yet even when the steam disappeared and the water grew cold, the silence between the two remained completely unbroken.

Hao Chen appeared to be in a daze, but in reality, he was wracking his brains for a way to break the silence. He gazed at the mountains, the water, the moon, but his usually clever tongue simply couldn’t figure out a topic that might interest Feng Ye.

He didn’t press him for information about the previous night, nor about the words Feng Ye had spoken to Ling Yun. Because he knew that if he asked, Feng Ye wouldn’t answer.

This dragon was too wary of others, and far too strong-willed. Unlike Hao Chen, he never seemed to slack off or allow himself to be the one in need of protection. It was always him protecting other people.

For this reason, he would never reveal his weakness to others, and he certainly wouldn’t share anything about his painful, bloody past.

What he showed to outsiders was that hard scale armor and a strength that seemed capable of overcoming anything.

As for the painful wounds underneath, he kept them hidden in the deepest parts of himself, refusing to expose them to the light of day even as they festered.

Perhaps Hao Chen wouldn’t ask about the words Feng Ye spoke last night, but he couldn’t help dwelling on them. He stared at the side of Feng Ye’s face, the man’s hoarse shouts echoing in his mind.

“Wasn’t a chain pierced through your shoulder blades? Shifting inside your body with every breath, the pain so excruciating, so unbearable, that only the fuel of hatred allowed you to cling to your wretched life?!”

He remembered each word with perfect clarity, and each one caused a tremor in his heart.

He was a god by birth, and although he had weathered perilous battles, he had never endured the almost unimaginable kind of suffering Feng Ye spoke of.

Yet this person’s expression was still so mild, as if he wasn’t the one who had gone through all of that.

Feng Ye’s current appearance was unremarkable, but as Hao Chen gazed at his furrowed brow, he could still faintly make out the shadow of that cold, eternally powerful God of War.

But Hao Chen knew that the true Yinglong wasn’t like that.

No one was eternally powerful, and no one was immune to being hurt.

All at once, he felt the strong urge to reach out and touch Feng Ye, to smooth away the furrow in his brow and remove that cold, hard facade.

But just as his hand was halfway there, Feng Ye reached out and grabbed it mid-air.

He kept Hao Chen’s hand in his grasp, preventing it from moving closer.

Then he finally turned to look at him. There was nothing but coldness in his expression, a callousness that kept everyone at arm’s length.

It was a coldness so deep that one couldn’t help but want to turn away and flee.

But as Hao Chen looked into those eyes, he had no intention of backing down. He saw a layer of ice in those eyes that was even colder than the waters of the North Sea, and below that ice, a scarred heart that was still tender.

“The bone-piercing chains…..they hurt?” Hao Chen asked in a soft voice, as if afraid to startle him.

Feng Ye was taken aback.

His first instinct was to deny it, and to also deny that any of the words he spoke to Ling Yun the previous day referred to things that he had personally endured.

There were so many excuses, so many explanations. He didn’t even have to think that hard about it. An answer was on the tip of his tongue almost as soon as the thought crossed his mind.

But before he could voice one of these ready-made excuses, something he couldn’t quite perceive held them back. Like a surging tide, the scars he had thought were completely healed awakened in the depths of his heart.

But not everything could be healed by time. This pain had only been sealed away. And when he saw Ling Yun, who seemed so much like Feng Ye’s former self, only then did he realize that the suffering that had torn his flesh and pierced into the very marrow of his bones had never diminished in the slightest.

“Hurt.”

After a long stalemate, he spoke only one word.

He didn’t specify what hurt, didn’t acknowledge those unbearable events that had happened in his past, the fact that he had cried out in pain. He just gave an answer that would allow him to come up with an excuse later on.

He left no openings even now, exposing no weakness or vulnerability.

This single word was the limit of what he could bring himself to reveal.

And speaking this word seemed to have drained all his strength. He closed his eyes, and the hand that should have been as strong as cast iron went weak. Hao Chen freed his hand from Feng Ye’s grip with just a slight tug.

But rather than retreating, he continued to move closer, to bridge the distance as vast as a chasm between them that he had previously been unable to cross.

He embraced Feng Ye.

He wrapped his arms around Feng Ye’s back and held him tight, using the warmth of his body to help drive away the chill and the pain.

Feng Ye didn’t respond. He seemed somewhat at a loss, and just sat there in a daze within Hao Chen’s embrace.

Perhaps it was the warmth that tempted him. Animals were naturally drawn to light, and dragons were no exception. Feeling the warmth of the arms around him, he reached out tentatively after an unknown amount of time and hugged Hao Chen back.

The embrace was light, his arms draped loosely around Hao Chen. As if he would flinch back at the slightest wrong move.

As time went on, his grip slowly tightened to the point that it was almost constricting, but Hao Chen simply let him do as he liked.

Feng Ye buried his face against the side of Hao Chen’s neck, keeping his expression hidden from view.

They held each other under the cover of night. It was only a simple embrace, devoid of lust.

The bright moon hung high outside the window, and although the long night stretched on and the wind howled, they no longer felt the cold.

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Chapter 118 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 120