“I can’t believe even you’re here to see me, Palace Lord Li.”
Li Fangyin smiled as he glanced over his teacup at Gui Yin. “Well, it’s been a long time. And I should apologize for what our Yin Hua Palace has done to Gui-qianbei in person.”
“Yin Hua Palace? Or your own father?” Gui Yin said. He leaned forward as he lowered his voice. “Speaking of which, what happened to…”
“Can I ask a question first?”
“Go ahead.”
“What happened to your hair?” Li Fangyin asked.
Gui Yin’s expression immediately pinched. His fan snapped open as he began to ferociously fan himself. “It looks bad, doesn’t it?”
“It doesn’t,” Li Fangyin said without hesitation. His smile widened. “You look very, very handsome. I almost feel like I’ll develop a crush on you.”
Gui Yin groaned. “I miss my black hair.”
“Was this due to stress?” Li Fangyin asked. He reached over the table and ran his fingers through the lower half of Gui Yin’s hair.
“Mn,” Gui Yin said. “There were a lot of reasons it ended up like this.”
“I can only imagine,” Li Fangyin said. “I hope you don’t mind, but Linghuo filled me in a little bit.”
“Even if he didn’t, I would have told you,” Gui Yin said.
Li Fangyin smiled pleasantly. “Am I part of your inner circle, Gui-qianbei?”
“We’ve fought alongside each other for so long, I already consider you my friend,” Gui Yin said.
“I’m touched,” Li Fangyin said. “Gui-qianbei, you are also a very valuable friend to me.”
Gui Yin waved the niceties away. “Alright, alright, let’s stop this. It’s giving me goosebumps.”
Li Fangyin chuckled. He watched Gui Yin for a moment as the other man looked out at the passing crowd below.
“You asked what happened to my father, yes?”
Gui Yin turned his attention back to Li Fangyin. “Oh, yes. What happened to him?”
“He’s not doing well. My mother also received a shock after finding out all that has happened and she has fallen ill. It seems that Yin Hua Palace was masterless, so I was quickly rushed up to the seat.”
Gui Yin was silent for a moment. “The old Palace Master is unwell then?”
Li Fangyin nodded. “He refuses to accept visitors as well. I’m not sure why he’s acting like this.”
Gui Yin had sensed this the last time they had met up, but Li Fangyin had really changed. He wasn’t sure if he should be glad that the naïve boy who had only wanted to protect his little sister had grown up or if he should be worried that Li Fangyin would run off onto the wrong path.
As if sensing Gui Yin’s concern, Li Fangyin’s smile became a little sunnier. “I did nothing, Gui-qianbei. It was my father’s own doing. Let’s just call it karma. The details are quite gruesome. If you really want to see for yourself what has happened, I could invite you over some time.”
Gui Yin hummed. “As long as you didn’t do anything.”
Li Fangyin lowered his gaze. “Even if I had, he would have deserved it.”
“Fangyin.”
“It isn’t enough that he slept around and never even batted an eye when his own daughter died, he also went to collude with demonic cultivators for just a bit of greed,” Li Fangyin said. His gaze darkened. “If you ask me, he deserves to be tortured more.”
“Fangyin!”
Li Fangyin’s gaze snapped up.
“If you continue this way, your cultivation will be affected.”
Li Fangyin’s eyes widened. He took a deep breath and nodded. “Fangyin knows. Don’t worry, Gui-qianbei, I…I’m careful.”
Gui Yin’s brows furrowed. “You’re welcome to stay at Shuangye Pavilion any time you want.”
Li Fangyin averted his gaze. He lowered his head and forced a laugh. “You’re too kind to me, Gui-qianbei.”
“It’s difficult to run a sect,” Gui Yin said. “You and Shan Yu can bond over that.”
Once Gui Yin’s disciples were mentioned, Li Fangyin’s countenance seemed to lighten. He laughed. “We do. We’ve gone out for a few drinks over the years. Though, it’s mainly her complaining while I listen.”
“It’s good that you two have each other. In terms of sect leaders, you two can be counted as a new generation,” Gui Yin said with a nod of approval.
“Don’t worry, Gui-qianbei, I’ll watch over her.”
Gui Yin shook his head. “I don’t need you to take care of her. I just want you two to be peers.”
Li Fangyin chuckled. “That will be even easier.”
“Oh, right,” Gui Yin recalled. “How has the political situation been? Palace Lord Sun seems like he’s been busy with Kunlun and Yunjing Pavilion is usually focused on their own affairs, so Sect Master Lin had little to tell me.”
Li Fangyin took a sip of tea. “Shuangye Peak was always the one in charge of information, wasn’t it? It’s natural that no one would know enough to satisfy Gui-qianbei.”
Gui Yin snapped his fan open and fanned himself. “I wouldn’t quite put it like that.”
“It’s no matter,” Li Fangyin said. “The political situation, hm? I will start off with the basics. As if right now, in terms of political balance, Zhengyang Shan Sect is at the helm of everything, but it seems that the public favors Yunjing Pavilion more because they do not trust Zhengyang Shan Sect’s young sect leader. Yin Hua Palace has fallen from grace, thanks to my father. Although we still have the economy, we are no longer in the people’s good graces. Numerous smaller sects have fallen, due to having a connection to Yin Hua Palace. Honestly, that saves me the work of having to tidy up.
“Due to the three most influential sects in the Beidou Alliance falling in terms of either reputation, economy, or power, in the public eye, Beidou Alliance has become a smaller power. And after the last war, the cultivation sects of the upper realm have agreed to funnel resources into the lower realm, just to make sure nothing of the scale of Qiao Ceng’s sudden uprising ever happens again. In the south of the Upper Realm…well, I’m sure Palace Lord Sun can inform you on this one.”
“In the south? You mean the desert?” Gui Yin raised a brow.
“Yes, in Devil’s Desert. The nameless towns are being cleaned up one by one,” Li Fangyin said with a small smile. “Someone is putting down an iron fist.”
Gui Yin hummed in understanding. It seems that Langxia, or at least Huigu Palace, has been quite busy.
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.
“Ktja’r pera atf alq bo atf lmfyfgu,” Ol Mjcuslc rjlv. “Po sbe kjca, P mjc rfcv bnfg atf olifr ws qfbqif tjnf xfqa.”
“Ktja kbeiv yf j ylu tfiq,” Xel Tlc rjlv atjcxoeiis.
“Of course. Whatever you need, Gui-qianbei. You’ve helped me a lot in the past as well,” Li Fangyin said.
Xel Tlc tewwfv ktlif tf rtbbx tlr tfjv. “P kbeivc’a ub atja ojg.”
“Tbe tjnf,” Ol Mjcuslc mtemxifv. Llr ujhf oilmxfgfv yftlcv Xel Tlc. “P atlcx beg alwf abufatfg lr eq.”
“Huh?”
Li Fangyin stood. “I will send some of my people over with the files. We should have tea together again some time.”
“Wh—wait, Fangyin,” Gui Yin turned.
Li Fangyin bypassed Gui Yin and headed for the door. He politely bowed his head at the newcomer, and quietly slipped out.
Gui Yin rolled his eyes when he realized why Li Fangyin had left in a hurry. “Why are you scaring the children?”
“He isn’t a child,” Langxia said. He walked across the room to where Gui Yin was sitting. “He’s a man.”
Gui Yin looked at Langxia skeptically. “Are you…jealous?”
Langxia averted his gaze before looking back at Gui Yin. “What if I am?”
“You’re…ridiculous,” Gui Yin laughed. He sat straighter and poked his fan into Langxia’s chest. “I was living and eating with Qiao Ceng for so many years. I even confessed that I’m not sure if I hate him or if there was something else and you hadn’t even flinched. But I have a cup of tea with a junior and you’re getting riled up?”
“Those two things are different.”
“How are they different?”
“Trash that’s been used should be thrown aside. Li Fangyin is someone you have favorable impressions of, so naturally,” Langxia’s voice trailed off. He looked at Gui Yin’s trembling form with displeasure. He huffed. “Forget it.”
“No, no, where are you going?” Gui Yin asked with a burst of laughter. He pulled Langxia back over by his hand. “I think it’s cute. I never expected you to get jealous. I’ll be more careful next time.”
“I don’t care what you do with other men,” Langxia said as he intertwined his fingers with Gui Yin’s. He glanced at Gui Yin. “You won’t leave me anyway.”
The one look was more like he was looking for confirmation, despite his confident voice. Gui Yin nearly melted into his seat. He restrained himself and nodded seriously.
“How could I ever think about leaving you?” Gui Yin asked as he hugged Langxia around the waist. “No one is as handsome as you or as powerful as you. And no one knows me as well as you do.”
Langxia’s tense expression relaxed slightly. He hummed and ran his hand through Gui Yin’s loosely bound hair. “As long as you know.”
Gui Yin laughed at Langxia’s pouting tone. “Why are you back so early?”
“I got sick of the people in Kunlun,” Langxia said. He sighed as he toyed with Gui Yin’s hair. “Just because I awakened my bloodline, they think I want to be a part of their charades. I couldn’t care less. I’m more human than spirit anyway.”
“Is that why you’re repairing Devil’s Desert?”
Langxia raised a brow. “Did that brat tell you?”
Gui Yin pursed his lips to keep from laughing. “Mn. That brat told me.”
“Well, it’s some of this and some of that,” Langxia said. “I was happy in Kunlun when no one bothered me, but now everyone is bothering me. They want me to take Qiao Moyu’s place.”
“Who is that?”
“He’s some dragon that was in charge of the securities around Kunlun, to put it loosely. He was apparently killed by a demonic dragon ages ago and was replaced by him,” Langxia said with a roll of his eyes. “I’m Huigu Palace’s Palace Lord. Why would I want another position?”
“So, you’re lazy.”
Langxia raised a brow. He pinched Gui Yin’s nose. “I’m also the owner of Hongmian Tower in Yongxiu. I’m very busy. How else will the great Lord Immortal Ninglan get a continuous flow of information while sitting there with his arms crossed?”
Gui Yin grinned. He pulled away from Langxia’s grip and kissed his hand. “My husband is the best.”
Langxia stilled for a moment before he scoffed. He folded his hand behind his back and rolled his eyes. “Who’s your husband?”
“Shuangye Peak’s Madam is so virtuous,” Gui Yin changed his tune without batting an eye. “Madam, shall we head back home now? I promised the children I would eat with them.”
Langxia took a step back and hummed as he followed Gui Yin with an exasperated expression.
When Gui Yin returned from his outing with Langxia at his side, the disciples began to panic.
“I don’t think we made enough,” Shan Yu said.
“I—I’ll go get something from the dining hall,” Qin Siyi offered.
“How could we feed them dining hall food?” Yankui said.
“Then, I’ll go buy something from outside?” Gui Linghuo suggested.
Gui Yin looked at their frantic scrambling and turned to Langxia. “Look at what you’ve done. They’re panicking.”
“Is there still any ingredients left over?” Langxia asked.
His one question immediately quieted the scrambling disciples.
“There is!” Yankui quickly said. “New groceries were delivered as we were finishing.”
“Alright. Then, I’ll be borrowing your kitchen,” Langxia said as he pinched Gui Yin’s cheek.
The disciples watched as Langxia tied back his sleeves and headed into the kitchen.
“Shizun, is this—”
“Your Shimu is a very virtuous housewife. Just leave it to him,” Gui Yin said.
Langxia returned just half an hour later with more dishes to place onto the table. The visuals contrasted the dishes the disciples made, but no one bothered pointing it out.
“Shizun, are you leaving tomorrow?” Gui Linghuo asked.
“Mn. I’ll be back soon though,” Gui Yin promised. “Your Shimu doesn’t want to stay in Kunlun right now.”
They all looked at Langxia curiously, but the man only ate silently.
“I’m only going back to ask Lord Xun a few questions. I might even return the same day,” Gui Yin explained.
Gui Yin looked around the somber expressions of the disciples and nudged Langxia. “Look at them. They’re acting like I’m not going to come back.”
“You don’t have the best track record,” Langxia said.
“Huh?” Gui Yin glared at him.
Langxia glanced at Gui Yin and cleared his throat. “What I meant to say is that even if your shizun is too drunk to come home tomorrow, I’ll still carry him over.”
Gui Yin’s glare became more poignant, but Langxia ignored him. “You—”
“Eat dinner,” Langxia said as he fed Gui Yin a piece of fish. “I made the sweet and sour fish for you.”
Gui Yin harrumphed and turned back to his food.
The disciples, who were sitting across the table, watched as their shizun and…shimu force-fed them dog food. They lowered their heads without making a comment on it, but in their hearts, they praised Langxia for being able to handle Gui Yin’s teasing.
Kunlun was as Gui Yin had remembered it. Despite all the changes throughout the world, it almost seemed as if Kunlun had just gone through a short scandal. The roads were complete, not beaten and battered like the roads Gui Yin had passed to get to Kunlun. The higher up the stairs he climbed, the further removed from the mortal world he was.
He glanced back down at the forest below as he made it up the last step.
“Oh? Who is this stranger?”
Gui Yin turned and met Xun Yunding’s gaze. He clasped his hands together and immediately bowed. “Lord Xun.”
“Lord Immortal Ninglan, you’re finally back?” Xun Yunding sang.
Gui Yin smiled softly as he followed Xun Yunding towards his residence. “Lord Xun, you seem to be in a good mood.”
“Me?” Xun Yunding raised a brow. He smiled. “You can say that. I—”
“Yunding, where do you want me to put the loquat…” the voice trailed off.
Gui Yin looked up and made eye contact with an unfamiliar man. The man’s hair was loosely held up by a single hairpin. His robes were pure white and his sleeves were tied back. He had soft facial features, but a pair of sharp eyes. When he saw Gui Yin, his expression cooled and he glanced at Xun Yunding unsurely.
“Lord Ninglan, this is a longtime friend of mine,” Xun Yunding said. “His surname is Chang.”
“Lord Chang,” Gui Yin quickly greeted.
Lord Chang hummed. His gaze flickered back to Xun Yunding. “I’ll head back in first.”
“We’ll be chatting outside,” Xun Yunding reassured him.
Gui Yin glanced at the man curiously as he fled back inside, but something tickled the back of his mind. Hadn’t he seen this man before?
Gui Yin followed Xun Yunding to the gazebo not too far off from his residence. As he sat, he finally remembered something.
“Koi.”
Xun Yunding looked at Gui Yin and slowly smiled. He sat down after pouring Gui Yin a cup of tea. “I didn’t think you two had met before.”
“I’ve only seen him in passing,” Gui Yin said. He paused a moment before looking at Xun Yunding. “But isn’t he just a koi spirit, why—”
“He is an incarnation of a friend of mine,” Xun Yunding said. His gaze flickered towards the residence. “His story is not mine to tell, so I won’t waste anymore words on this topic.”
Gui Yin nodded in understanding.
“Now, why did you come here? Could it be about your hair? I don’t know much about coloring hair.”
Gui Yin coughed lightly as he fanned himself. “It isn’t that. I was wondering if Lord Xun knows anything about…the Heavenly Trials I’ve been through.”
“The Heavenly Trials, hm?” Xun Yunding let out a long hum. “That’s always a tricky subject. But I suppose I can tell you a little.”
Gui Yin waited patiently for Xun Yunding to continue.
“In your life, you had two guiding stars,” Xun Yunding said. “One was a star of chaos, Qiao Ceng. The other was prosperity, which is our Palace Lord Sun. There was a turning point in your life that determined which path you’d travel down. Unfortunately, your attraction to the star of chaos was much stronger, so you ended up falling into Qiao Ceng’s plot. Contrarily, you were Qiao Ceng’s calamity as well.”
“I was?”
Xun Yunding nodded. “Although you would help him complete his revenge, there were a multitude of paths where you would end up bringing him down as well. However, if you died, he would have successfully become a demon god.”
Gui Yin frowned.
“From the beginning, this wasn’t meant to be your trial,” Xun Yunding explained. “But when you traveled to a different reality, things became different. Not only that, but that event was also a catalyst to Palace Lord Sun awakening his bloodline.”
“Because…he showed an ability beyond mortals by coming to find me?”
“Precisely,” Xun Yunding said. He took a moment to recollect his thoughts before continuing. “Your last trial was when Qiao Ceng took you to that other reality once more. If you had succeeded, you and I would have met in the Celestial Realm. But if you had died, Qiao Ceng’s subordinates’ plans would have succeeded.”
“But neither thing happened.”
“That is because you succeeded halfway. The emotions you felt towards Qiao Ceng were too strong. This was a Trial of Emotions, which was meant to test if you could truly do away with sentiments as a deity,” Xun Yunding said. “You failed. However, you still defeated Qiao Ceng in your own way. That is why you are now a half-ascended immortal, rather than a full deity.”
Gui Yin finally came to an understanding. His brows furrowed as he looked down into the reflection in his tea.
Xun Yunding observed Gui Yin silently for a while before let out a long sigh. “Well, it’s all over now.”
“…It is. I never even got a word in, but it’s all over.”
“…Did you have anything else to say?”
“…I wanted to ask him what his intentions were,” Gui Yin said. “He plotted all of this out, but in the end he died after doing nothing. He said he loved me, but I want to know what his definition of love was. If his intentions were just to get into my head as a last hurrah, then he’s accomplished it.”
“He was just a very selfish person,” Xun Yunding said. He looked at Gui Yin pityingly. “I’ve known quite a few of those types of people in my time.”
Gui Yin smirked slightly. “I’m sure.”
“Remember him fondly, or write him off as just another enemy you’ve defeated,” Xun Yunding said. “There is no guessing his intentions, Lord Ninglan. And it isn’t worth your time either.”
Gui Yin looked up at Xun Yunding, who was smiling at him tiredly. When he said he had met many selfish people, it seems that he hadn’t been lying.
“You’ve been reborn. Congratulations,” Xun Yunding said. “I hope the Heavens are kind to you for the rest of your journey.”
Gui Yin laughed softly. “Thank you, Lord Xun. Next time we meet up, I’ll buy you a drink.”
“I don’t know when next time will be though,” Xun Yunding said.
Gui Yin raised a brow. “Why? Are you going somewhere?”
“I’m…well, who knows,” Xun Yunding said. “Maybe I will be gone for a few hours or maybe I will be gone for several millennia.”
Gui Yin’s eyes widened. “You’re going to a different reality?”
Xun Yunding smiled mysteriously. “When I return, I’ll go to you for that drink.”
“Then, safe travels, Lord Xun.”
“No worries, Lord Ninglan. I’m much more adept at traveling that road than you are,” Xun Yunding reassured him. He glanced towards the entrance of his residence. “Now, I think it’s about time you return to his side. He’s getting grouchy.”
Gui Yin laughed. He stood and cupped his hands together. “Thank you for answering my questions.”
Xun Yunding smiled. He watched as Gui Yin left before standing up himself. His gaze followed his feet as he walked back into his home. Who knew when the last time he’d see those two rascals would be?
“What’d he say?”
Gui Yin loosely recited everything Xun Yunding had said to him. After a beat, he added, “And he seems to be going on a long journey.”
“He often does,” Langxia nodded. “We were really lucky that he stayed in Kunlun for so long. Though, he most likely stayed for us.”
Gui Yin glanced at him. “You’re really not going to acknowledge him as your Shizun?”
“Trust me, even he doesn’t want that,” Langxia scoffed. “He just likes to put on an act so he seems more pitiful around you.”
“Why would he need to seem pitiful around me?”
“That’s just how he feels around,” Langxia said. After a pause he added, “It’s quite like you. I worry about him sometimes.”
Gui Yin raised a brow. “Like me in what ways?”
“He laughs a lot when he probably doesn’t want to and he takes care of everyone despite needing help himself,” Langxia said. He glanced at Gui Yin. “He probably sees himself in you too, which is why he stayed around for so long.”
Gui Yin’s eyes widened a fraction. “…Then, if that’s the case, I’m truly grateful for him.”
“Mn. He’s helped me out a lot too,” Langxia murmured. “If only I knew how to help him instead.”
“Is it something difficult?”
“It’s something us half-gods can’t do anything about,” Langxia shrugged. “Even full deities don’t dare mess with fate.”
Gui Yin hesitated a second before asking, “So, can you see what—”
“Nope. Deities are separated from humans. I can only see the fates of those who belong in the Mortal Plane,” Langxia said. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. He always mocks me for being slippery, but he’s just the same.”
Gui Yin hummed before falling silent.
The two men were nearly out of Kunlun before Langxia spoke again. “Qinle.”
“Hm?”
“How do you feel right now?”
Gui Yin met Langxia’s gaze and slowly smiled. “I don’t know. I need a kiss first.”
Langxia smirked, but still leaned over to give Gui Yin a gentle kiss. When he pulled back, his hand remained on the small of Gui Yin’s back. “How do you feel?”
“Happy,” Gui Yin said. “Very happy.”
“If I didn’t kiss you, would you still be happy?”
Gui Yin’s brows furrowed. “Why wouldn’t you kiss me? You’re the one who clung to me first. Don’t you dare think about leaving.”
Langxia laughed. He pulled Gui Yin into his embrace and rested his head against his shoulder. “Wherever you go, I’ll go. There’s nothing in this world that will make me leave your side ever again.”
Gui Yin patted Langxia’s head. “That’s more like it.”
After another deep breath, Langxia straightened. “Alright. Since our business is done here, we should be going home.”
Gui Yin took Langxia’s outstretched hand and smiled to himself as he let Langxia lead him out of Kunlun.
After such a long time, he could finally return home.
Gui Yin and Langxia are such a lovely couple (๑˃ᴗ˂)
and thank you Xun Yunding for the explanation ʕっ•ᴥ•ʔっ (ALSO EEEEEEEE THE KOI GUY!!!!!!!!!!! i ran to my notes and i see next to Lord Xun it was noting the lost lover bit and being bitter i got Feelings for a character i just met again akdhskhd)
hehe uwu Xun Yunding will have his time to shine (once i get around to writing it LMAO). Thanks for reading!!!
i’m looking forward to it 😀
Oooo so he’s a half-God! Who would want to become a God if that means giving up on ur emotions hmph