The skies had turned crimson at some point in time. The winds that whipped through the robes of the cultivators were vicious and poisonous. Black fog lingered in their view as the cries of war echoed through the air and as blood seeped into the soles of their shoes. The fallen demonic and righteous cultivators alike laid on the ground, nearly indiscernible now that they had passed.
In the distance, an eerie horn signaled the beginning of a new wave. The righteous cultivators looked at each other in dismay, but many picked themselves back up again. Rest was little, but they knew if they didn’t continue to push forward, the common people would lose their lives as well.
Comrades helped each other up. Like a group of mechanical warriors, they didn’t fear any injury. The elixirs of the healers on the front lines worked wonders, especially with the help of Lord Caowen, who had perfected nearly every recipe.
Just as they were ready to fly back into the battlefield, something horrific happened.
Today was not like any other day. Instead of the mocking cackle of demonic cultivators, echoing from every which way, there was, instead, a distant rumble. The rumble wasn’t like that of thunder, but something more earthly. The cultivators looked down at the ground as it began to shake. Those who could stand on their own helped those who were still injured.
The group of thousands turned their heads to the reddened skies as a black dragon appeared on the horizon.
Dragons were normally a sign of auspiciousness. They represented the emperor in ancient times and were now a symbol of the Heavenly Emperor in the Celestial Realm. Of all enlightened beasts, the dragon stood above all—including the cultivators of the upper realm. However, this dragon was different.
At first, the cultivators had been in awe. It was rare to see a dragon in its original form after all. But soon, this awe turned into horror.
The black dragon was shrouded in demonic Qi. Its eyes had long been shrouded in red. It flew towards them erratically with its teeth bared. Following closely behind was a swarm of black. It could have been mistaken as clouds, but upon a closer look, they were clearly demonic cultivators.
A hand grasped at Li Fangyin’s shoulder.
“Young Palace Lord, what do we do?”
Li Fangyin pursed his lips. He turned to Lin Cangyuan, who was staring up at the oncoming carnage with a dark expression. “Sect Master Lin—”
“It isn’t impossible to kill a dragon,” Lin Cangyuan said with a shrug. “Just a little unheard of, that’s all.”
The statement caused the surrounding cultivators to smile a little. The dragon was supposed to bring fortune to all, yet here it was, about to start its rain of terror.
Li Fangyin took a deep breath and nodded. He turned to the disheartened crowd. “Lord Immortal Liaosu is right. We’ve all faced many types of horrors before. It’s just a demonic dragon this time. Let’s finish this up so we can all go home!”
The cheers in the crowd would have made any passerby think that it was a victory banquet. The cultivators who were still able gathered their strength and geared up to fly towards the front line.
The demonic dragon was fast approaching. They had to meet at the battlefield, or else the towns behind them would get completely obliterated. The cultivators had to act fast now.
Lin Cangyuan’s commanding words came to a half as a dark shadow fell over their camp. A sense of dread fell over him. There’s no way they had something else up their sleeve, was there?
“Sect Master Lin!”
Lin Cangyuan’s head snapped up. He watched as Yankui sprinted over with a bright grin on his face. He glanced around worriedly, but still caught the young man as he tripped and nearly fell.
“What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be with Lord Yue and Linghuo in Kunlun!”
Yankui waved his hands frantically. “Kunlun is fine now!”
“Kunlun…is fine?”
“Mn! Look up!”
The cultivators looked up and watched as a dragon-like creature circled their base camp. It was much different from the demonic dragon that was closing in on them. This creature lacked horns, but its scales were an albino white. Its eyes, that were only briefly seen, was red, but it shimmered delightfully like a ruby jewel. A figure soon descended from the creature and landed beside Yankui.
A disapproving look crossed the man’s face, but everyone’s heart hammered in their chest when they realized who this man was.
“Palace Lord Sun,” Lin Cangyuan squeezed out the name. He was glad to see a familiar face, but his heart still clenched tightly. There was still no word of Gui Yin.
“Sect Master Lin,” the man curtly greeted. “My apologies for arriving late, I just woke up.”
“Just…”
“We went to the desert to get backup too,” Yankui quickly said.
Li Fangyin’s eyes widened. He looked up at the dragon-like creature and exclaimed, “Th—then is this that legendary serpent that sleeps under Devil’s Desert?!”
“That?” Palace Lord Sun raised a brow. “No, she’s a distant relative of mine. Either way, she isn’t the serpent from Devil’s Desert. She’s…on loan.”
The words Huigu Palace’s Palace Lord spoke were an enigma, but the surrounding cultivators were just glad that they had a mystical beast on their side as well. If the two dragons could keep themselves busy, the cultivators would have a much easier time.
“I’ll have to trouble you to watch Xiao Kui while we’re on the field,” Palace Lord Sun said, putting Yankui right in front of Lin Cangyuan.
Lin Cangyuan’s brows furrowed. “Palace Lord Sun, what do you mean? I also have to—”
“If Qinle found out that his beloved son-in-law was hurt or dead, then I would have to be the one to deal with the consequences,” Palace Lord Sun said breezily. “So, make sure Xiao Kui isn’t hurt.”
Lin Cangyuan’s expression loosened a bit. “This…do you know where Qinle is?”
“He’s probably watching us now,” Palace Lord Sun said with a mysterious smile. “Don’t worry. Once I make sure Yunjing Pavilion is okay, I’ll bring him back.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Lin Cangyuan felt his nose sour, but he was soon nodding. “Alright…I’ll watch Xiao Kui.”
“Ktjcx sbe, Vfma Zjrafg Olc,” Ujijmf Obgv Vec rjlv klat j riluta ybk bo tlr tfjv.
“Master, that thing is coming closer and closer.”
“P xcbk, P xcbk,” Ujijmf Obgv Vec rjlv. Lf uijcmfv ja Ol Mjcuslc. “Cgf sbe lc mtjguf?”
“P—sbe mjc yf,” Ol Mjcuslc rqieaafgfv bea.
“Ktfc, P klii yf,” Ujijmf Obgv Vec jugffv rkloais. Lf aegcfv ab atf jgws yfobgf tlw. “Gbc’a fnfc ibbx ja atja yijmx kbgw, la’r cba kbgat sbeg alwf. Mbiibk Alcsec jcv vglnf atf vfwbclm meialnjabgr yjmx. Vtf’ii yf ifjvlcu atf mtjguf. Tbe wluta ibrf rluta bo tfg obg j yla, yea vbc’a kbggs jybea atja. Vtf tjr tfg bkc wlrrlbc ab jmmbwqilrt. Aera obmer bc olutalcu atf vfwbclm meialnjabgr. Ccv lo la rffwr ab yf ufaalcu j ilaaif vloolmeia, vbc’a yf jogjlv ab gfagfja.”
The cultivators were thrown off by the sudden change in command. A few of them were almost unwilling. The war had been going on for months now, but now this unknown man just showed up and was trying to tell them what to do? It was ridiculous!
“Then, what are you going to do, Palace Lord Sun?” someone from within the crowd asked.
“Me?” Palace Lord Sun raised a brow. He scoffed. “Obviously, I’ll be playing with the black worm you’re all so afraid of.”
Without another word, he took to the skies. As distance between them grew further, the man suddenly changed forms. Very abruptly, there were suddenly three dragon-like creatures in the skies. This new dragon was a shimmery white gold. Its eyes, that flashed back briefly, encapsulated a rare gold of the stars beyond.
A soft grunt was heard over the base camp. “Show off.”
The word was thrown out before the albino serpent flew into battle as well.
The arrival of two enlightened beasts and one mythical beast threw everyone for a loop, but it soon filled them with confidence. Li Fangyin gathered his sect members first and flew off to join the battle. The two sides clashed in the middle. The white gold dragon clashed with the black dragon in a dance of carnage.
An excitement and unexplainable anxiety filled the invisible bystander. He felt as if he should do something, but he knew nothing could be done. He wanted to get closer to the fight between the dragons, but his body wouldn’t move. He could only watch as the black dragon tore at the white gold dragon and as the white gold dragon fought back just as viciously.
Then…
Ding-dong.
Gui Yin opened his eyes.
He stared up at the ceiling and slowly sat up. His head turned to his mess of a bed and then to the blankets that were on the floor. He scratched his head and slowly stood. He haphazardly threw the covers back on the bed and yawned as he went to get the door.
Last night, he had slaved over Miss Shen’s new outline. It detailed the conclusion of her story, which most likely made him dream of such a gruesome scene.
But it was weird, Gui Yin thought as he started to open the door. None of the stories he was working on right now had anything to do with dragons.
“Did you just wake up?”
“It’s the weekend,” Gui Yin yawned as his uninvited guest waltzed in on his own accord. “Of course, I would sleep in.”
The man rolled his eyes as he set the freshly made breakfast down on the kitchen counter. He turned to Gui Yin. “Honestly, why have you gotten lazier and lazier as you’ve gotten older?”
“Listen,” Gui Yin leaned on the kitchen counter as he watched his friend unpack the food. “You can’t mouth off at me, Mr. Went-to-Live-Abroad. You have a cushion-y life as a business owner, but I’m just a little lower rank employee, alright?”
“Which is why I said you should just join my publishing agency.”
“Forget it. I like editing web novels more,” Gui Yin said with a wave of his hand. He got on his tiptoes and watched as the food spilled out onto a new plate. “Hey, Qiao Ceng, shouldn’t you be resting? This is your vacation time, isn’t it?”
“Trust me, being a house husband is much nicer than being the owner of a company,” Qiao Ceng said. He placed the bowls and plates onto the kitchen counter and frowned slightly. “Why don’t you have a dining table?”
“My apartment is tiny, where would I fit a dining table?” Gui Yin asked with a roll of his eyes. “I either eat here or over there. I don’t need a dining table.”
Qiao Ceng clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “The life of a bachelor.”
“As if you aren’t single either,” Gui Yin scoffed.
“I wouldn’t be if…”
“If what?” Gui Yin raised a brow.
Qiao Ceng shrugged. “You know if you know.”
Gui Yin shook his head and decided to ignore this college friend of his.
“Right, I had the weirdest dream just now,” Gui Yin exclaimed as he accepted the chopsticks that Qiao Ceng offered him.
“What happened?” Qiao Ceng asked with a raised brow.
“You know I…don’t quite remember. I just remember that there was a battle,” Gui Yin said as he nibbled at the end of his chopstick. “And there was a really cool dragon. It was this white gold and it had the prettiest pair of eyes.”
“That’s all you remember?” Qiao Ceng scoffed.
“Yeah! If I could draw, I would draw it out for you,” Gui Yin said. He fell silent as he stared off into the distance, as if reminiscing on his dream. “They were really pretty. It was like looking at the night sky.”
“Alright, alright,” Qiao Ceng lightly tapped Gui Yin’s bowl. “Eat first before you daydream.”
Gui Yin pouted a little but did as he was told. “How long are you gonna stay here for?”
“Probably a while,” Qiao Ceng said. He glanced at Gui Yin. “I missed you quite a bit.”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Gui Yin mumbled.
Qiao Ceng chuckled, as if he was unbothered by Gui Yin’s dismissiveness. “Isn’t your birthday coming up soon? Have you decided what you’re going to do about it?”
“I was originally going to spend it alone,” Gui Yin said. “But since you’re back, you’re probably going to buy me a cake or do something annoying.”
“Annoying? I just want to show you that you’re loved.”
Gui Yin laughed.
The laugh made Qiao Ceng still slightly. It was a kind of laugh that was mocking. It grated on Qiao Ceng’s ears and made his heart hammer against his chest. He glanced at Gui Yin, but the man didn’t seem out of sorts in the slightest.
“I’ll just buy you a cake. What flavor do you want?”
“My tastes don’t really change,” Gui Yin said.
“Chocolate?”
“Mango,” Gui Yin said with a roll of his eyes. “Why can’t you remember even the smallest things?”
Qiao Ceng smiled awkwardly. “I’ll remember for next year.”
Gui Yin showed an expression of disbelief, but didn’t bother pointing out that Qiao Ceng had said something similar every year.
After a beat, Qiao Ceng spoke again, “You like apples, right?”
“I’m allergic,” Gui Yin said.
“Why’d you always eat apples with me when we were younger?”
“Because you’d always cut them,” Gui Yin said. He frowned slightly. “Just thinking about it makes my throat a little itchy. Why did I even do that back then?”
Qiao Ceng lowered his gaze as Gui Yin scarfed down the rest of his food. Gui Yin stood to put the dishes in the sink and was stopped by Qiao Ceng.
“What else do you like?”
Gui Yin raised a brow. “Why are you suddenly asking me this stuff?”
“Why not?” Qiao Ceng smiled. “Otherwise, how would I know what to do for your birthday next year?”
Gui Yin scoffed. He took Qiao Ceng’s empty bowl. “Forget it. When have we ever bothered about that kinda stuff? You especially. You’ve always just done your own thing and I’d just go along.”
“Is that…how it’s been?”
Gui Yin glanced over his shoulder at Qiao Ceng skeptically. “Are you okay? Were you that homesick?”
“I must have been,” Qiao Ceng said. “I’m suddenly sentimental about a lot of things.”
“You can be sentimental, but don’t bring that to me, alright? It’s weird,” Gui Yin said with a pretend shudder.
He expected Qiao Ceng to laugh, but the man just sat in silence and watched him until he had to shift to the other foot.
“You…uh…are you really okay?”
Qiao Ceng hummed. “I was just thinking that you’ve changed a lot these past few years.”
Gui Yin rolled his eyes and went back to doing the dishes. “Stop it. You sound more and more like my exes.”
Gui Yin paused a moment before smirking. “Or maybe I really did act differently around you back then.”
“Huh? Why?” Qiao Ceng asked, straightening with a frown.
“Because you were my first love,” Gui Yin said. He looked at Qiao Ceng with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Surprised, right?”
“But why would that make you act differently around me?”
“I don’t know, just because…well, I guess my personality isn’t exactly pleasant, right?” Gui Yin said. He fell silent for a moment before he went back to washing the dishes again. “And I was young. I thought if I showed a better side of myself, you’d fall for me. But you didn’t. What was I lacking, huh? I have looks and everything. You have no taste.”
Qiao Ceng forced himself to laugh it off. “At least that narcissism of yours hasn’t changed.”
Gui Yin scoffed. “Some say it’s my charm.”
Qiao Ceng smiled to himself and quietly agreed. His gaze fell slightly as his smile also left. His fingers dug into his palms and he smiled wryly.
All those years they had spent together, Gui Yin had always been compliant and sweet. Who would have guessed that there was always a sharp tongue hidden behind his smile? This was the real version of Gui Yin. It wasn’t worse and it wasn’t better, but it made Qiao Ceng’s insides curl. So, it turns out, Gui Yin actually hadn’t changed.
“Hey, are you going to laze around my house again?” Gui Yin asked.
Qiao Ceng stood. “Why not? It’s the weekend.”
“I have a lot of work to do,” Gui Yin said. He made a shooing motion with his hands. “If you’re staying, don’t get in my way, okay?”
“Alright,” Qiao Ceng said with a smile.
“But I’m still quite kind,” Gui Yin sang. He walked to his bedroom with a grin. “I’ll grab my laptop and we can watch a movie in the living room.”
The television was quickly switched on. The living room was filled with the occasional typing and the dramatic shouting from a drama that was currently being shown. There was an odd peace that settled between the two men as the hours passed.
Qiao Ceng glanced at Gui Yin’s concentrated expression and smiled softly.
Gui Yin glanced at him with a raised brow. “Why are you—are you okay?”
Gui Yin’s question was swiftly interrupted by a series of horrific coughs. He quickly sat up and put his laptop aside. He slid to the ground beside Qiao Ceng and hurriedly handed him water. Qiao Ceng gently pushed Gui Yin’s hand away and signaled that he was fine. Gui Yin remained where he was, frozen as Qiao Ceng slowly retrieved his breath.
“You…are you sick?”
“I’m fine,” Qiao Ceng said with a weak smile. “It just sounds bad.”
“Have you been smoking again?” Gui Yin said with a frown. “I told you that was a bad habit!”
“It…it’s just an old cough, that’s all,” Qiao Ceng explained. “I’m really okay.”
Gui Yin pursed his lips. He put the cup down and glared at Qiao Ceng. “You need to get a checkup at some point.”
“I will, I will,” Qiao Ceng said.
Gui Yin glared at him. “I’m serious! You never know what’s wrong with your body. Especially you with your bad drinking and smoking habits. Even if you’re perfectly healthy, there might be something hidden that you didn’t notice. It’s safer to get a full checkup.”
“I know,” Qiao Ceng said.
“…I’ll make you an appointment at some point.”
Qiao Ceng smiled. “You nag so much.”
Gui Yin rolled his eyes. “Do I look like I want to nag? It’s just because you never take care of yourself. If you just took care of yourself an iota more than you do, I wouldn’t have been so worried when you went abroad.”
“That’s why I said you should have come with me.”
“And what? Be your babysitter? No thanks,” Gui Yin grumbled. He sat back on the couch and grabbed his laptop. “I’m glad I never confessed to you. Otherwise, I’d be spending the rest of my life taking care of you.”
Qiao Ceng chuckled. “It’s not too late now.”
“Please, don’t,” Gui Yin said, rolling his eyes.
Qiao Ceng fell silent for a moment before he leaned back against the couch. He smiled sweetly at Gui Yin. “A-Yin.”
Gui Yin didn’t pause his typing, but he glanced at Qiao Ceng. “Hm?”
“You still have that guest room, right? Can you let me stay there for the rest of my trip? The hotel fees stack up.”
Gui Yin’s expression scrunched up. “Are you going to clean after yourself?”
“Of course! I promise,” Qiao Ceng said seriously. “If I don’t clean up after myself, you can just kick me out into the streets.”
“Well, I won’t do that,” Gui Yin mumbled. “But I have one other condition.”
“Mn! Whatever you need.”
“Promise me that you’ll get a full body checkup.”
Qiao Ceng sighed exaggeratedly and nodded. “Yes, sir. I will book an appointment now.”
Gui Yin hummed and turned back to his work.
He didn’t know what kind of horrible crime he committed in his last life to be stuck with this disobedient, yet sticky bug in this life.
[shaking Gui Yin] you keep!! going back!!!! to that world!!!! to cope!!!!!!!!! …at least thats what i think is happening. at least Qiao Ceng is having Realizations (still a fantasy world tho to be able to schedule a doctor appointment for the next day akxhakdh)
In an ideal world where health care wasn’t a mess LMAO thanks for reading
you know what’s also funny, i just realized that i meant to delete that in the edit, but i totally forgot LSDKJFAS;LGH