That Was His... Dragon Pearl
Ji Chaoyun fell into unconsciousness just like that.
Between sleeping and waking, he could feel someone holding him tightly the entire time. A warm, familiar presence lingered around him, driving away every trace of cold.
He did not know how much time had passed before Ji Chaoyun slowly woke.
Feng Qi sat with his back against the stone wall, his eyes slightly closed as though he had fallen asleep. Even so, he still held Ji Chaoyun tightly within his arms. He had removed his bloodstained outer robe and wrapped it around Ji Chaoyun, bundling him up securely.
The white tiger lay beside the two of them, shielding them from the cold wind blowing in from the deep pool.
“Feng Qi...” Ji Chaoyun tugged at Feng Qi’s sleeve. His throat was so dry he could barely make a sound as he murmured, “Feng Qi...”
Feng Qi’s lashes trembled slightly. A long while passed before he opened his eyes.
His face looked exceedingly pale. He raised a hand and lightly touched Ji Chaoyun’s cheek. “Finally awake. Do you still feel unwell?”
“You...” Ji Chaoyun caught his hand and asked anxiously, “Are you all right? How do you feel now?”
Feng Qi shook his head as though it were nothing. “I’m fine. What could possibly be wrong with me?”
“I’ll take you back to the Immortal Realm. They’ll have a way to save you.”
“There is no hurry.”
Ji Chaoyun had just tried to sit up when Feng Qi blocked him with one arm and pressed him back into his embrace. Nothing unusual could be seen in Feng Qi’s expression, yet his voice trembled almost imperceptibly. “There are still many demons on Mount Sumeru. It’s relatively safe to remain here. If we go out now, I... I won’t be able to protect you.”
“I’ve already sent word to the Immortal Realm. They will send people to rescue us soon. Don’t be afraid. We will be able to return before long.”
“But... but the poison in your body...” Ji Chaoyun’s eyes stung. He lowered his gaze. “It’s all my fault...”
For the first time, he hated his own insufficient cultivation so deeply. He had failed to avoid the enemy’s poisoned hidden weapons and had no way to take this man out of their predicament.
“Don’t think such nonsense.” Feng Qi’s palm lightly stroked through the hair at Ji Chaoyun’s temple, his fingertips brushing the reddened corner of his eye. “My little dragon is very capable. If you hadn’t wounded that demon, we still wouldn’t know what to do now. Everything you’ve been through, if it had been me instead, I wouldn’t have done any better than you... No one could have done better than you.”
Ji Chaoyun buried his head in Feng Qi’s chest. His fingertips rested over Feng Qi’s heart through the thin fabric of his clothes, and his voice choked. “It hurts badly, does it not... Y-you... should stop talking...”
Feng Qi gazed at him with affection. His lips, completely drained of color, curved slightly.
“What are you smiling about?”
“You’re hugging me.” Feng Qi drew in a shallow breath before smiling. “Getting to be held by you like this makes it worth it.”
“Fool...”
Ji Chaoyun’s heart clenched painfully. Without saying another word, he raised both arms and hugged Feng Qi tightly.
The two leaned against each other in the dark stone cave, surrounded by devastation and the heavy scent of blood. In the distance, all the blood had already drained from the headless corpse. Outside, the leaderless demons were still searching everywhere for traces of them.
Only the small space where the two of them sat remained extraordinarily peaceful and quiet.
They were like two wounded little beasts, clinging tightly to one another and warming each other with their body heat. For a time, only their gradually calming heartbeats and soft breathing could be heard.
Suddenly, a muffled groan of suppressed pain from Feng Qi shattered the silence.
He forced his head backward, his eyes squeezed tightly shut as cold sweat instantly soaked his forehead. He instinctively pushed Ji Chaoyun away, collapsed forward onto the ground, and pressed one hand hard against his chest.
“Feng Qi!”
“Don’t... don’t come over...” Feng Qi pressed his forehead against the rough ground, his entire body trembling uncontrollably. His eyes were bloodshot, and a thin line of blood slipped from the corner of his lips.
The sudden agony seemed to exhaust all his strength. Feng Qi’s rigid body abruptly went slack. He rolled onto his back and lay motionless.
“F-Feng Qi, Feng Qi!” Ji Chaoyun threw himself beside him, only to feel Feng Qi’s breathing gradually weakening. “How could this happen? Why...”
His voice stopped abruptly.
He suddenly remembered that this poison had originally been specially developed by the Demon Clan to deal with Feng Xiao. Even that ancient heavenly god had been forced to lose all his cultivation because of this demonic poison. How could the body of a mere immortal withstand it?
Ji Chaoyun raised his head and looked toward the bloodless headless corpse.
Xi Chen had intended to kill him from the very beginning.
That was why the hidden weapons had been coated with the very demonic poison once prepared for Feng Xiao. It was revenge against Ji Chaoyun for saving Feng Xiao back then and ruining the Demon Clan’s plans.
Ji Chaoyun drew a deep breath. Half-kneeling beside Feng Qi, he lowered his head and said softly, “Don’t worry. I won’t let you die.”
He bent down and pressed his cheek tightly against the back of Feng Qi’s bloodstained hand. “We cannot wait for rescue. I’ll leave now. No matter what it costs, I’ll escape this place and return to the Immortal Realm to find someone who can save you. Feng Qi, endure a little longer. Immortal Venerable Tianshu will definitely have a way to save you.”
Ji Chaoyun turned his head and briefly pressed his cold lips against the back of Feng Qi’s hand. Then he stood, picked up the sword lying on the ground, and walked toward the cold pool.
The spirit tiger suddenly caught his sleeve in its jaws.
“Awoo...” The spirit tiger looked at him with damp eyes and whimpered quietly.
Ji Chaoyun looked at it and said in a low voice, “Take good care of him. Within one shichen, if I have not returned and no rescue has arrived...”
He paused, his voice becoming extremely hoarse. “...Take him out of here. Return to the academy, return to the Phoenix clan, go anywhere that might be able to save him. You must save him.”
The spirit tiger shook its head. “Awoo, awoo...”
Ji Chaoyun reached out and stroked its head. “It’s a pity you can’t speak. You can’t pass along a few words for me.”
He turned to look at the unconscious Feng Qi and smiled gently. “It does not matter. If I can return, I’ll tell him myself.”
“Awoo! Awoo... woo!”
The spirit tiger stubbornly caught Ji Chaoyun’s sleeve again and pulled backward. Ji Chaoyun lost his footing and staggered as it dragged him back to Feng Qi’s side.
Ji Chaoyun asked, “Do you... want to tell me something?”
“Awoo, awoo...” The spirit tiger lowered its head and rubbed anxiously against Feng Qi, calling softly.
Ji Chaoyun lowered his gaze and looked at Feng Qi again.
Feng Qi’s breathing was no longer weak. His breaths were gradually becoming steady.
Ji Chaoyun’s eyes shifted slightly as he vaguely realized something. He took Feng Qi’s wrist and once again sent his spiritual power into Feng Qi’s meridians.
This demonic poison clashed with the spiritual power already within the body. The two forces fought against one another internally, causing the poisoned person to lose their cultivation and suffer unbearable pain.
Within Feng Qi’s body now, however, there were not merely two forces.
Another familiar, pure, and powerful spiritual force was emerging from his dantian core. Like a clear stream, it flowed through every meridian and organ.
Under the influence of this power, the demonic poison gradually settled and ceased its rampage.
Ji Chaoyun abruptly raised his head and stared at Feng Qi in disbelief.
That power had circulated within his own body for more than two hundred years. There was no possibility that he could mistake it.
It was his... dragon pearl.
“It is you... It really is... it really is you...” Ji Chaoyun’s lips trembled, yet it felt as though something had lodged in his throat. His voice was so hoarse it hardly sounded like his own. “You came back. You came back...”
“Awoo.” The spirit tiger lowered its head and gently rubbed its furry face against Feng Qi’s cheek.
Ji Chaoyun asked quietly, “You recognized him at first glance, did you not? How could I have been so foolish? How could I fail to recognize him...”
Suddenly, a disturbance came from the depths of the pool.
Ji Chaoyun was exceptionally sensitive to changes in the water. He raised his sword and stood protectively in front of Feng Qi, watching the suddenly churning surface with vigilance.
Figures began emerging one after another from the center of the pool.
“Found him!”
“His Highness is here! Hurry!”
“Go outside and tell the Phoenix Lord! We found His Highness!”
...
Several young men wading through the water wore pale-gold robes and carried long swords. Familiar phoenix patterns were embroidered along their hems.
They were members of the Phoenix clan.
The corners of Ji Chaoyun’s lips curved into an exceedingly faint smile of relief. It was as though all the strength in his exhausted body had finally been drawn away. His hand loosened, and the sword fell to the ground.
He sank wearily to his knees and struggled to reach one hand toward Feng Qi. “Feng...”
That faint call was drowned beneath the sounds of water, shouting, and hurried footsteps. Ji Chaoyun looked at Feng Qi one final time, then allowed his consciousness to sink into deep darkness.
☁
When Ji Chaoyun woke again, he was in a completely unfamiliar place.
He stared blankly at the gauze canopy above him, then suddenly turned and sat up.
A tearing pain in his head and a wave of dizziness forced him heavily back onto the bed. He gave a muffled groan and gripped the edge of the bed, struggling to straighten himself.
“You must not move recklessly right now.” A voice sounded within the room.
Ji Chaoyun raised his head. A tall figure passed through an intricately carved wooden cloud screen and walked to his bedside.
The newcomer was still young, with a gentle smile on his face. He wore pale-gold brocade robes, jade pendants at his waist, and a hair crown upon his head. His appearance was unmistakably noble, and his bearing extraordinary.
Ji Chaoyun frowned tightly. Pressing his fingers against his throbbing temple, he asked quietly, “You are... His Majesty the Phoenix Lord?”
“You and I are of the same age. You may simply call me Feng Ji.”
“I wouldn’t dare.” Ji Chaoyun lowered his eyes. “Where is Feng Qi?”
“He woke a day before you. He should have just fallen asleep now.” Feng Ji said, “Your injuries aren’t serious, but you developed a fever and remained unconscious for three days. Your immortal body is weak, and your mind and spirit were greatly depleted. It would be best for you to remain in bed and recuperate.”
Feng Qi’s elder brother was completely different from him in temperament. His manner of speaking was calm and unruffled, without the slightest display of sharpness.
Feng Ji continued, “After receiving Feng Qi’s message, we immediately rushed to Mount Sumeru. It was only that the outer barrier proved extremely troublesome. Even with his spell guiding us, it still took considerable effort to enter. II hope you won’t blame us.”
“I... I want to see him.”
“You may.” Feng Ji said, “Before that, however, there are some matters I think ought to be explained clearly to you.”
Ji Chaoyun sat up. “Please speak, Phoenix Lord.”
Feng Ji met his gaze for a moment before slowly saying, “I believe you have already guessed that Feng Qi is Divine Lord Feng Xiao.”
Ji Chaoyun’s fingertips trembled. He closed his eyes. “I know.”
Feng Ji said, “When Divine Lord Feng Xiao sealed the Demon Realm, he exhausted all his divine power and fell amid the flames. My father found a phoenix egg in the wilderness where he had fallen, formed from the ashes left after his phoenix flame burned away, and brought it back. You may not know this, but the Phoenix clan has carried legends of rebirth through nirvana since ancient times. No one had ever actually witnessed it until Feng Qi was born.”
“Perhaps the ancient heavenly gods truly possess the ability to neither die nor perish. That was what gave him this second chance at rebirth.”
“After Divine Lord Feng Xiao was reborn, however, he had no memories at all, and all his cultivation was gone. He truly grew up again like an ordinary child. The Phoenix clan had never encountered anything like this before and did not dare reveal the matter lightly, so we have kept it secret until now.”
Ji Chaoyun asked, “Did you never try to restore his power?”
“We tried, but it could not be done.” Feng Ji shook his head. “Feng Xiao was a god, after all. If the Divine Realm had not been sealed, perhaps we could have sought help there. In the present circumstances, however, there is truly nothing we can do.”
Ji Chaoyun’s eyes flickered as he understood Feng Ji’s meaning. “You hope... that I will not tell him the truth?”
“Yes,” Feng Ji said. “Within the clan, only my uncle and I know of this. We cannot guarantee that Feng Xiao will truly recover, and now with the Demon Clan watching for an opportunity to strike, if word of this were to spread, it would certainly bring lethal danger upon him.”
“Divine Lord Feng Xiao came here in those days to save the world. The Immortal Realm owes him, and so does the Phoenix clan.” Feng Ji sighed softly and continued, “Before my father passed away, he left behind one final wish. The Phoenix clan was to protect Feng Qi at all costs and ensure that he grew up safe and untroubled. Even if he never recovered his divine power, we were still to let him live a carefree and joyful life in the Immortal Realm. In that way, we would at least not fail the grace Divine Lord Feng Xiao once showed the Immortal Realm.”
Ji Chaoyun lowered his eyes. Each breath pulled at the aching pain in his chest.
Feng Ji hesitated for a moment before saying, “You saved Divine Lord Feng Xiao back then. By rights, the Phoenix clan should have protected you, but...”
“I understand. If you had brought me back to the Phoenix clan early on, I would have discovered Feng Qi’s identity sooner, and other clan members might also have noticed something unusual.” Ji Chaoyun’s voice was extremely rough, as though speaking alone consumed tremendous strength. “The more people who know the truth, the more dangerous it becomes for him. I understand all of it.”
For the Phoenix clan, it had therefore been better for Ji Chaoyun to remain in the mortal realm.
Feng Ji looked deeply at Ji Chaoyun, then suddenly stepped forward and bowed to him. “The Phoenix clan wronged you. On behalf of all our clan members, I apologize.”
Ji Chaoyun did not move. He accepted the bow before calmly asking, “May I go see him now?”
“You may. It’s just...”
“What is it?”
A hint of helplessness crossed Feng Ji’s eyes as he smiled bitterly. “The residual poison in Feng Qi’s body has yet to clear. It will still take several days for his cultivation to recover. Several of the clan elders... they’ve watched him grow up since he was little. Even the slightest bump or scrape pains them terribly. Over the past few days, they’ve taken turns coming to lose their tempers at me several times. Even when I try to visit him, if I say more than a couple of sentences... the immortal physician scolds me right out of the room.”
He spread his hands. “Otherwise, with Feng Qi’s temperament, he would have rushed here long ago to stand guard beside you. Why would he need to send me to check on you?”
Ji Chaoyun finally smiled faintly. “Don’t worry. I... only want to see him once. Just one look is enough. I won’t stay long.”
Feng Ji led Ji Chaoyun outside.
Fengming Valley was situated within a mountain valley. This was Ji Chaoyun’s first time here, but he had no mind at all to appreciate the scenery. He followed Feng Ji through long palace walls until they reached a splendid bedchamber gleaming with gold.
Before they even entered, a vigorous voice rang out from inside. “All of you, get out! If you still refuse to let me leave, I’m going to start hitting people! Even without my cultivation, I can still beat you. If you have the nerve, fight back!”
“...”
Feng Ji smiled bitterly and pressed a hand to his forehead. He cast Ji Chaoyun a helpless look and pushed open the doors.
Feng Qi stood with a small vase raised in one hand, one foot planted atop the table. Before him, a row of attendants knelt trembling in fear.
The doors opened, and his gaze happened to meet Ji Chaoyun’s. His entire body jolted, and he abruptly froze where he stood.
Feng Ji coughed lightly. “All of you, leave.”
The attendants could not have been more eager to obey and hurriedly fled.
Feng Ji looked up at his troublesome younger brother and said briefly, “I’ll wait outside and hold off the immortal physician and the elders. Don’t talk for too long. If you do, even I won’t be able to save you. Understand?”
Still holding the vase, Feng Qi obediently nodded. “Understood.”
Feng Ji glanced at Ji Chaoyun again, sighed helplessly, and withdrew from the bedchamber, pulling the doors closed behind him.
Only Feng Qi and Ji Chaoyun remained inside, staring at each other from across the room.
Feng Qi had recovered well. His complexion looked excellent, and he was lively enough to jump around, showing no sign whatsoever of someone who had suffered severe injuries and poisoning.
Ji Chaoyun, by contrast, had grown much thinner, his figure appearing even more slender than before.
After a long silence, Feng Qi hurriedly put the vase back where it belonged and asked awkwardly, “You... you are all right now, are you?”
Ji Chaoyun stared at him without answering.
Feng Qi had spent the entire day worrying about Ji Chaoyun, yet now that Ji Chaoyun had suddenly appeared before him, he found himself at a loss for what to say.
He did not dare come any closer. In a small voice, he asked, “Chaoyun, what’s wrong?”
Ji Chaoyun’s gaze greedily traced every line of that face. Suddenly, he smiled softly. “Do you know what I’m thinking right now?”
“What?”
“Come here. I’ll tell you.”
Feng Qi hesitated before walking over to Ji Chaoyun. Rare uncertainty appeared on his face as he carefully said, “I know. About Feng Xiao, you must... However, he is a heavenly god. How could anything happen to him so easily? He will return. He definitely would not lie to you. He definitely—”
His voice stopped abruptly.
Ji Chaoyun had suddenly wrapped his arms around him.
Ji Chaoyun’s arms circled Feng Qi’s waist and tightened with all his strength. His entire body trembled faintly.
I know.
I know he will return.
I know he would never lie to me.
Ji Chaoyun buried his head against Feng Qi’s shoulder and whispered the words silently within his heart.
He has already come back.
☁︎₊˚⊹ The Author’s Jade-Slip Aside ⊹˚₊☁︎
He finally recognized him~
Next up is happily showering everyone with sugar and falling in love. At long last, the time has come for me to prove that this is a sweet novel【?】
The phoenix will also regain his memories later, so there won’t be any regrets left behind.
————
I’m really sorry for missing yesterday’s update. Actually, when I updated the previous chapter, I was already feeling pretty unwell. Starting around noon, both my neck and lower back began hurting. After I finished writing that chapter, I lay on the bed for half an hour and couldn’t move.
By evening, I started running a fever. It went above 39°C at its highest, and I spent the whole night feverish and groggy, barely able to sleep.
When I got up yesterday, the fever was gone, but I was in terrible shape. So terrible that I couldn’t even write a single logically coherent sentence. (Yes, it really was that bad. It was so bizarre that I started wondering if the fever had fried my brain.)
So to make sure the quality didn’t suffer, I could only take the day off and skip the update. Thankfully, I’ve recovered today.
I’m not really in good enough shape lately to add any extra updates, so I’ll send everyone red packets in the comments of this chapter as compensation instead. Thank you all for your concern. Everyone, please take care of your health too. Mwah mwah.
IsitRo: Honestly, I think I’m also coming down with something. I’m still trying to stop it thooo 😭 I only remembered the multivits and other concoctions when the sniffles and itchy throat already started, ackkkkkkkk Everyone in our office started feeling it too, omfg orz
Anyhooo, that’s not gonna stop me from making this poll tho, hohoho Rest well cattos, and take care of yourselves! Don’t be like me!! Huhuhuhu
Jade-Slip Fortune Draw
Feeling brave, catto? Unroll the jade slip and see what the heavens have decided to bother you with today. ♡
One fortune per browser day, catto. The Heavenly Dao accepts no complaints, refunds, or angry phoenixes.
0 Comments