Close Your Eyes. I’m Going to Kiss You.
Undercurrents stirred beneath the seemingly tranquil spring. Ji Chaoyun’s body continued to sink, and before long, he could no longer see what was happening above the surface. The suffocating pressure of demonic qi disappeared, along with the sounds of slaughter and roaring.
A gentle current wrapped around him like a pair of warm, soft hands, supporting him as he slowly sank to the very bottom.
At the depths of the spring was a cave.
No water flowed inside. Ji Chaoyun leapt onto the bank, his soaked clothes and hair dripping steadily. Before long, a small puddle had gathered at his feet.
Yet he did not feel cold at all.
The interior of the cave was dry and warm. Deep within, a scarlet-gold flame burned atop a stone platform. Even after several hundred years, it had never gone out.
“Feng... Feng Xiao...”
Ji Chaoyun hurried forward and stopped beside the stone platform. Gazing at the flame that had burned ceaselessly for centuries, he whispered, “You let me in. You sensed that I came, didn’t you?”
The flame flickered lightly, as though offering a faint response.
The fire reflected in Ji Chaoyun’s eyes as his voice trembled. “What exactly happened three hundred years ago... Where did you go? Did you really... did you truly return to the Divine Realm?”
His only answer was the soft trickling of water within the cave and the shifting glow of the gently dancing flame.
Ji Chaoyun lowered his eyes and drew a deep breath before speaking steadily. “The Demon Clan has found this place, Feng Xiao. I need to take your divine artifact away. I cannot let them have it. Give it to me, all right? I will protect it.”
The light of the phoenix flame before him suddenly dimmed. Then, slowly, it went out, revealing the object hidden within.
It was a long sword, its blade narrow and slender. A scarlet-gold phoenix was painted upon the scabbard, as though it were about to spread its wings and take flight.
Ji Chaoyun had seen this sword before.
During the three months they had spent together, Feng Xiao would occasionally take it out and carefully wipe it clean.
It was his personal sword.
The swords of ancient heavenly gods were bound to their masters’ souls. Even if lost, they would automatically return to their masters and never leave their side.
Unless...
Unless its master was already dead.
Ji Chaoyun stared blankly at the sword as tears traced down his cheeks.
“You lied to me...”
“You said you would come back. You promised...”
“I waited for you for three hundred years...”
Over those three hundred years, how could he never have considered this possibility?
However, he had never believed it. He had never dared to believe it.
He would rather convince himself that Feng Xiao had abandoned him and returned alone to the Divine Realm. He would rather believe that Feng Xiao was alive and well in that unreachable Divine Realm than consider even the slightest possibility that the man had never survived the war.
Only at this moment were the countless days and nights of self-deception finally torn apart by the cruel truth.
Ji Chaoyun gripped the edge of the stone platform with both hands and nearly exhausted all his strength forcing himself to take the sword.
Feng Qi was still outside. With so many members of the Demon Clan out there, there was no time for him to grieve.
His slender body trembled uncontrollably, and his hands were so weak he could barely hold the sword. He hugged it to his chest, raised his sleeve to wipe his eyes, then turned and headed out of the cave.
He had only just reached the edge of the pool when the tranquil surface suddenly began to tremble violently. Specks of crimson spread through the clear water.
Ji Chaoyun’s steps halted.
Several pitch-black blades suddenly pierced through the water and shot toward him.
It happened too quickly. Instinctively protecting the sword in his arms, Ji Chaoyun hurriedly retreated several steps. He only managed to avoid being struck in his vital points, and the blades still left several bloody gashes across his arms and legs.
The blades embedded themselves deeply into the stone wall. At the same time, a black figure slowly emerged from beneath the water.
Xi Chen.
He looked far more disheveled than before. His clothes had been slashed open in several places, and a long, thin sword wound across his forehead was still bleeding, staining half his face crimson.
He walked ashore one step at a time. Ji Chaoyun quickly hid the sword behind his back.
“You found the divine artifact so quickly? Chaoyun really is impressive.” Xi Chen spoke gently and extended a hand toward Ji Chaoyun. “Give it to me, and I can spare your life.”
Ji Chaoyun looked at him coldly. “Where is Feng Qi?”
“I am standing here before you. Where do you think he could be?” Xi Chen smiled and said leisurely, “This Second Highness of the Phoenix clan is far inferior to your old flame. Some supposed descendant of an ancient heavenly god. With that little talent and cultivation of his, he is only capable of throwing his weight around in an academy filled with juniors of the Immortal Realm. Against a true demon, he could only fall beneath my sword.”
Ji Chaoyun’s face instantly turned pale.
Xi Chen drew a long sword and pointed its blade toward Ji Chaoyun. “Chaoyun, I will say this one last time. Give me what you are holding, along with the phoenix golden feather, and I will spare your life.”
Xi Chen forced Ji Chaoyun backward step by step until his back soon struck the cave wall.
After the phoenix flame went out, the temperature inside the cave gradually fell. Ji Chaoyun was chilled to the bone, yet amid that cold, his thoughts gradually became clear.
Ji Chaoyun looked directly at the sword point before him and asked softly, “How do you know that what Feng Xiao left me was a phoenix golden feather?”
Xi Chen’s eyes darkened.
Ji Chaoyun continued, “The phoenix golden feather is protected by a divine pact. Even the higher-ranking members of the Phoenix clan only suspect that I possess something Feng Xiao left behind. They don’t know what it is. Why do you know? Who told you?”
“Does asking such things now have any meaning?”
“You refuse to tell me, but I can guess.” Ji Chaoyun closed his eyes, his voice cold. “Third Prince Jun Jue of the Lingyuan Sea Dragon clan. Am I right?”
Xi Chen stared at him, the corners of his lips slowly curving upward.
“As expected of the former Crown Prince of the Dragon King. Truthfully, if you had not lost your dragon pearl and become entangled with Feng Xiao, I would much rather cooperate with you.” Xi Chen said, “How about this? Submit to me and help the Demon Clan conquer the Immortal Realm and storm the Divine Realm. I will personally kill Feng Xiao for you and retrieve your dragon pearl. What do you say?”
“...When that time comes, I’ll support you in becoming the Dragon King of the Lingyuan Sea. Every person who ever looked down upon you will kneel before you, and you may deal with them however you please.”
The fingers Ji Chaoyun hid behind his back trembled faintly, yet his expression revealed nothing. He even curved his lips into a smile. “Oh? Such a generous offer? Then what about Jun Jue? Didn’t you promise him the same?”
“Whether in cultivation, talent, or conduct, that man is far inferior to you. With a precious jade before me, why should I care whether he lives or dies?” Xi Chen stepped half a pace closer. A faint smile appeared on his bloodstained face, making him look especially terrifying. “Chaoyun, I truly like you. Will you not consider my proposal?”
Ji Chaoyun had nowhere left to retreat. The rippling light from the water reflected in his eyes, making his face appear deathly pale.
His gaze seemed to sweep instinctively across the tranquil surface of the water before he looked back and sneered. “Thank you for thinking so highly of me, but I don’t like you.”
Xi Chen’s expression darkened.
“Also, do you really think I am so easy to fool?” Ji Chaoyun said. “If Feng Qi truly were no match for you, as you claim, you would not be wounded like this nor would you have entered this place alone.”
“You never believed me from the beginning? You were stalling for time!”
Before Xi Chen even finished speaking, the cave suddenly began to shake violently.
That momentary disturbance distracted him.
A flash of sword light streaked through the cave, followed by the sound of a blade piercing flesh.
Ji Chaoyun drew Feng Xiao’s sword and drove it straight into Xi Chen’s waist.
The sword was a divine artifact. With a single strike, it pierced straight through Xi Chen’s demonic armor.
Fear flashed across Xi Chen’s face. He roared furiously, seized Ji Chaoyun’s arm, and exerted his strength, violently hurling him against the stone wall on the opposite side.
Ji Chaoyun’s back slammed into the wall. The taste of blood immediately filled his throat as darkness washed over his vision in waves. Powerless, he rolled to the ground and curled up trembling in the corner.
The cave shook even more violently as chunks of stone continuously collapsed from above. A whirlpool formed in the depths of the water, sending spray everywhere.
Ji Chaoyun struggled to lift his head.
The seemingly bottomless cold pool suddenly parted down the middle, and a white tiger leapt from the water.
Feng Qi rode atop the white tiger. His golden brocade robes were nearly soaked crimson with blood, impossible to tell whether it belonged to him or his enemies.
One glance was enough to know that he had just endured an extraordinarily brutal battle. Flecks of blood stained his face, and a chilling, vicious aura lingered between his brows.
However, the moment his gaze landed on Ji Chaoyun, it softened. “Chaoyun, how are you?”
Blood and qi churned violently in Ji Chaoyun’s chest. He struggled to prop himself up and shook his head with difficulty. “You came so late, yet you said you would take me out of here.”
“You cannot blame me for that!” Feng Qi bounced the long saber in his hand and complained aggrievedly, “How was I supposed to know that weapons from the Immortal Realm cannot kill demons of his rank? I had no choice but to steal one of theirs to use. It doesn’t suit my hand at all.”
“...”
Feng Qi smiled and winked at him. “Do not be afraid. I’ll take you back very soon.”
Only after saying this did he turn toward Xi Chen on the other side of the cave.
Xi Chen seemed to have been badly wounded by Ji Chaoyun’s strike. He pressed hard against the wound at his waist and leaned against the stone wall, breathing softly. When Feng Qi approached, he neither fled nor dodged, merely meeting his gaze calmly.
The spirit tiger slowly approached Xi Chen, growling low in its throat and baring bloodstained jaws and sharp fangs.
“You are wounded?” Feng Qi frowned, then turned toward Ji Chaoyun in surprise. “You did that?”
“...It wasn’t him. It was Feng Xiao.” Xi Chen pressed against his endlessly bleeding wound and gave a soft, derisive laugh. “I never expected that the divine artifact Feng Xiao sealed here would actually be his personal sword.”
Feng Qi froze, finally realizing what that meant.
“After taking a strike from a divine artifact, it seems I will not escape today. Still, dying like this is hardly unjust.” Xi Chen’s eyes were bloodshot, his laughter low and grating. “The sword of an ancient heavenly god is here. That proves Feng Xiao... is already dead, his soul extinguished.”
Feng Qi shouted furiously, “Shut up!”
“Afraid?” Xi Chen’s smile widened. “Yes, you should be afraid... Feng Xiao is dead, and the Divine Realm has abandoned you. The Immortal Realm... is finished!”
Feng Qi swung the saber in his hand and severed Xi Chen’s head with a single strike.
The head rolled weakly across the ground several times before falling into the deep pool with a splash.
The cave finally returned to silence.
Feng Qi casually tossed the saber aside, jumped down from the spirit tiger, and hurried to Ji Chaoyun.
He crouched beside him and lowered his voice to a whisper. “Chaoyun, it’s all right now... I killed him.”
Ji Chaoyun did not respond.
He lay curled up on the ground, his expression hidden from view.
“Chaoyun, you... don’t listen to him. How could anything have happened to Feng Xiao? He’s still waiting for you in the Divine Realm. You... what’s wrong?”
Feng Qi’s brows drew tightly together. Finally realizing something was amiss, he pulled Ji Chaoyun into his arms and discovered that his body was trembling faintly.
“What happened? Where are you hurt? Let me see...”
“No... no need...” Ji Chaoyun’s face was pale. The excruciating pain ravaging his organs and meridians left him barely able to speak. “I know what this is...”
He knew this feeling all too well.
During the three months he had spent with Feng Xiao, he had witnessed countless times what the other man looked like when the poison flared.
Demonic poison.
He raised his head toward the sharp blades embedded deeply in the stone wall, still gleaming with cold light, and gave a faint smile. “So this is what it felt like for you back then...”
Ji Chaoyun soon began to lose consciousness. Through the haze, he felt Feng Qi take hold of his wrist and send spiritual power into his meridians.
“Don’t be afraid. The poisoning is not severe. I can help you.”
...What are you going to do?
This is demonic poison. How could you possibly cure it?
Ji Chaoyun instinctively struggled, but Feng Qi restrained his limbs and pulled him firmly into his embrace.
Feng Qi lowered his head and whispered beside his ear:
“Do you remember what you promised me earlier? I killed those demons, so you have to let me kiss you once.”
“Even if you don’t want to, there’s nothing you can do about it now. You can’t move right now, so you’ll just have to let me take advantage of you.”
“Close your eyes. I’m going to kiss you.”
Before completely losing consciousness, Ji Chaoyun felt something cool and soft press against his lips.
The taste of blood spread through the lingering kiss, while the demonic poison surging violently through Ji Chaoyun’s body was transferred, little by little, entirely into Feng Qi.
Jade-Slip Fortune Draw
The road feels a little quieter today, catto. Unroll the jade slip and see what the heavens have already written for you. ♡
One fortune per browser day, catto. Even beneath quiet skies, the Heavenly Dao does not rewrite what has already been drawn.
0 Comments