“Daddy, don’t worry.” Taro Ball held Shen Tanqi back and quickly explained, “It’s because of the demonic Gu that was placed on Mian Mian to induce his birth, not because he strayed into the demonic path. My brother and I can help him clear the excess demonic energy every month. But for now, you can’t see him.”
If they went to see Mian Mian now, it might disturb his peace of mind. It was better for him to stay in seclusion in Shuoxia City.
Shen Tanqi suddenly remembered that Yan Ning and Xie Chi had mentioned planting a birth-inducing Gu in his body. He had thought it would only affect himself, but he hadn’t expected it to affect Sandan as well.
Feeling guilty, he asked in a low voice, “Will this demonic energy harm him?”
Taro Ball chuckled softly, “There’s no real harm. Demonic energy is just another form of spiritual energy. Though it’s dark, as long as he doesn’t use it, it won’t affect his mind or body.”
There are demons who don’t cultivate demonic energy, like Huo Yening at the bottom of Bloodthirst Cliff. He hadn’t cultivated demonic energy for a long time. But as a born demon, not cultivating it meant he couldn’t extend his life, so he would age and die like a human.
Shen Tanqi pondered for a moment, still unsure, and said sadly, “It’s okay if I can’t see him now. There will be chances in the future.”
He would return and change everything.
Taro Ball nodded, “Alright, I’ll take you to the Western Sea now.”
Just as he finished speaking, Goldfish suddenly grabbed Taro Ball’s sleeve, signaling him to wait.
“What’s wrong, brother?”
Goldfish rubbed his head and said, “I dreamt about this last night. I dreamt that you and Daddy went to the Western Sea but came back empty-handed.”
In the dream, he saw a grand undersea dragon palace. His brother and Daddy searched for a long time but only found an old woman. She had fish fins on her cheeks and hair like seaweed trailing on the ground. She told them, “The deep-sea mermaid pearl is only for those destined to have it. You have no fate with the pearl, so return.”
After saying that, a huge whirlpool swallowed them up and threw them back onto the shore.
Shen Tanqi clicked his tongue, “So, we can’t do anything then?”
But he also had a feeling that the medium the system mentioned wasn’t this deep-sea mermaid pearl.
The medium needed for crossing shouldn’t be that hard to obtain; it should appear in the storyline. The first time he crossed over, he slipped on a bottle of shower gel on the ground. Did he need to find something else to make him slip this time?
While Shen Tanqi was lost in his thoughts, Goldfish softly reminded, “Maybe… it’s some kind of love token?”
A love token?
Taro Ball pondered for a moment and said, “Brother’s intuition has always been accurate. I think it’s highly possible.”
Shen Tanqi paused. What kind of love token could it be? A ring, a hairpin, or a sachet?
He didn’t recall Yu Ce ever giving him any specific love token, nor had he given Yu Ce anything in return. Their relationship was as calm as water, with Yu Ce providing him with meticulous care.
After thinking for a long time, Shen Tanqi shook his head, “We don’t have any love token.”
“Such a token is usually given at very important moments,” Taro Ball thoughtfully said. “Daddy, try to recall, did Father give you anything before you left?”
As the words fell, Shen Tanqi suddenly remembered something Yu Ce had told him a long time ago:
—How did you find me?
—The jade pendant, passed down through the family.
—What is it used for? Can it command daemons, or can it enhance cultivation?
—Other than letting me sense you, it doesn’t have any other use.
He froze for a moment, then slowly reached into his collar and pulled out a warm jade pendant.
The moment Goldfish saw the pendant, his eyes lit up, “It has the cloud chi white dragon pattern, a symbol of the dragon race’s daemon lord. This must be the ancestral jade pendant passed down by the daemon lords of Hidden Dragon Valley. It’s Father’s pendant!”
It was the first time Shen Tanqi heard the name of the pattern on the pendant and the first time he learned it was the daemon lord’s jade pendant. Yu Ce had never mentioned its significance.
He had merely said, in an indifferent manner, that apart from letting him sense Shen Tanqi, it was useless.
Wasn’t he afraid that the uninformed Shen Tanqi might accidentally lose such an important item?
Such an important thing, and Yu Ce had given it to him so easily.
Shen Tanqi kept it with him not just because it was beautiful but because it was given to him by Yu Ce on the day they parted after the birth of Goldfish and Taro Ball.
If this was the love token Yu Ce had given him, did it mean that Yu Ce had feelings for him since then?
Yu Ce had told him everything so early, yet he had realized it so late.
Shen Tanqi held the jade pendant in his palm, gently rubbing the meticulously carved white dragon pattern. It felt as if, through the pendant, he could touch Yu Ce’s hand across time, cool and smooth, just like the jade itself.
He closed his eyes and silently prayed.
If you can truly sense my presence, take me back.
I want to see you too. I want to return to your side, so much.
Yu Ce.
Take me back, please?
Opening his eyes, Shen Tanqi pressed the jade pendant to his lips, seeking comfort, and gently kissed it.
In an instant, the dust in the air stilled, birds and fish tangled and plunged into the lotus pond, their wings and the splashing water frozen in midair. Everything fell silent. Shen Tanqi stood dazed for a moment before the system’s urgent voice rang in his ears,
“Host, the time and space vortex is opening! Time is suddenly out of sync. There might be a bug. You need to hurry…”
Before the system could finish, a massive vortex appeared under Shen Tanqi’s feet. Caught off guard, he fell into it, losing all his senses, with only one thought remaining in his mind—
Yu Ce is coming to take him back.
Shuoxia City, Peach Blossom Grave.
The sky was overcast, the first spring rain knocking blossoms from the trees.
Everyone from the Shen family gathered outside the temporary ancestral hall at the Peach Blossom Grave, none daring to speak, standing silently in the drizzle.
Seven days had passed.
Lin Tanjiu personally brought the coffin back to the Shen family.
It was her first visit, but she hadn’t expected it would be to deliver Shen Tanqi’s coffin.
“The time is almost up,” Consort Shen, dressed in plain white, said with sunken eyes tinged with faint darkness, clearly having not slept at all last night. “Master, don’t make the young master wait too long.”
Hearing this, the family head slowly lifted his eyes, gazing at the endless stretch of verdant hills, the sky clear, and the air filled with a faint drizzle.
This would be his son’s final resting place.
Not burying him after seven days would break tradition.
His gray hair, no longer concealable, spilled out in disarray. Turning his head, he spoke with a numb expression, “I leave it all to you.”
Consort Shen watched his desolate figure as he walked away, her voice trembling, “Master, won’t you see him one last time?”
The family head hesitated for a moment, then shook his head slowly, walking away silently.
By not looking, by not seeing, Shen Tanqi still seemed alive somewhere, playing and laughing.
When Shen Tanqi was born, he didn’t cry but reached out his tiny hand to grasp his father’s finger, holding on tightly with a smile.
As he grew, he learned to walk and run, often sneaking off to play with the family’s swords and knives. When caught, he’d stubbornly refuse to admit it, biting his lip to keep from crying when punished.
As he grew older, when disciples from the Rongyun Sect visited the Shen family, the little rascal held a long sword and boldly declared that he would become the most formidable cultivator in the world. He swore to eradicate all injustices and protect the world from evil, vowing never to inherit the Shen family business.
This infuriated him so much that he chased after the little rascal all over the courtyard with his jade cane.
In the end, neither convinced the other. They were both out of breath, sitting in the courtyard, the little rascal tearfully insisting that it was his dream, his one true aspiration in life.
He laughed and scolded, “You’re just a child, what do you know about life’s true aspiration?”
The child wiped away his tears and insisted that he knew, he understood.
Reluctantly, against his every wish, he personally escorted the little rascal to the Rongyun Sect. Since his wife’s death, he had done everything in his power to ensure Shen Tanqi’s happiness and safety, just as he and his wife had dreamed.
Even though outsiders criticized him for being overly indulgent and spoiling, he paid no heed.
Because he firmly believed that his and his wife’s child could never go astray.
In his heart, Shen Tanqi was always that little boy who toddled after him, calling out cheerfully, ‘Dad.’
Years later, he sent Shen Tanqi off on the broad path to seek immortality, only to receive back a redwood coffin lying in front of the Shen family gate.
Red, his son’s favorite color.
Quite fitting.
He didn’t know whom to blame,
Whom to hate? Whom to blame?
The daemonic cultivator?
No, he hated himself more.
He blamed himself for not protecting Shen Tanqi. If only he had saved his wife back then, and his son too. If everything could change, perhaps there wouldn’t be the tragedy of a white-haired man sending off a black-haired one.
He didn’t do well enough. He doesn’t deserve to be a father.
In the next life, if there is one, let him be born into another family, far away from being his son.
As the head of the family left, Consort Shen keenly spotted several disciples of the Rongyun Sect coming down from the foot of Peach Blossom Grave Mountain. Among them, the last figure dressed in snowy white was Yu Ce.
Her voice suddenly deepened, tinged with anger. “What are you here for?”
The culprit who caused Shen Tanqi’s death, why did he come here?
Even with a thousand reasons and excuses, Shen Tanqi’s fate was sealed.
She thought, if it weren’t for her two young grandsons, they would have made Yu Ce accompany Shen Tanqi in death.
Upon hearing Consort Shen’s words, Xiao Qingyu and Fang Wenxun trembled all over, too afraid to speak first.
After a while, it was Lin Tanjiu who escorted them here who spoke up first. “Madam Qi, these are disciples who had a deep bond with cousin in the sect and wanted to see him one last time…”
Before she could finish her sentence, Consort Shen solemnly interrupted, “And what about Yu Ce?”
The old woman’s eyes were fierce as they glanced over Yu Ce’s face, filled with hatred. “Does he deserve to see the young master? Guards, throw him out!”
Out of respect for Goldfish and Taro Ball, Yu Ce couldn’t be killed for the time being.
But she hated him deeply. The hundred-year foundation of the Shen family was ruined by a daemonic cultivator!
As soon as Consort Shen spoke, Lin Tanjiu suppressed her brows and eyes, turning to Yu Ce and softly saying, “Did you hear? Madam Qi won’t let you in. You should leave.”
Yu Ce remained unmoved, letting the raindrops fall on his shoulders and drift into his eyes, like a silent, cold statue. After a long while, he turned and walked away.
“Madam Qi, Yu Ce has left. Could you please allow these two disciples from the Rongyun Sect into the ancestral hall to bid farewell to their senior brother? If he was still with us, cousin would surely wish to see them bid him farewell,” Lin Tanjiu pleaded earnestly. “Consider it… for cousin’s sake.”
Consort Shen’s face darkened as she watched Yu Ce disappear down the winding path from under the Peach Blossom Grave. She then turned her gaze back to Lin Tanjiu. “Be cautious with your words.”
Surrounding them were other branches of the Shen family, each with their own deceitful thoughts.
The true cause of Shen Tanqi’s death had not been disclosed to these branches of the family. Only she and the family head knew the truth.
Of course, if Lin Tanjiu hadn’t spoken those words herself, Consort Shen would never have believed that Shen Tanqi had actually allowed Yu Ce to strike him with a sword just to let his soul leave his body.
She didn’t know why Shen Tanqi had done this, but she had a vague sense that he wanted his soul to leave his body to meet someone.
Under the heavens, the only person Shen Tanqi wanted to see but couldn’t, and could only see by letting his soul leave his body, had died twelve years ago—the late lady of the Shen family.
Yet somehow, his attempt to let his soul leave his body had led to his inexplicable death.
Consort Shen was so angry she wanted to shake Shen Tanqi and force him to come back to life.
It’s ridiculous!
What did he make of the Shen family for so many years of his training?
But after thinking about it, Consort Shen felt that there was probably more to the story, and Shen Tanqi didn’t seem like the kind of person to make such a foolish decision.
Forget it, forget it.
Consort Shen sighed softly in her heart and looked toward the ancestral hall not far away, waving to Xiao Qingyu and Fang Wenxun. “Let them in.”
Yu Ce is guilty and cannot enter, but these two disciples from the Rongyun Sect had a deep bond with Shen Tanqi, so let them see him one last time.
Upon hearing Consort Shen’s words, Xiao Qingyu and Fang Wenxun quickly bowed in gratitude and followed the servant who opened the ancestral hall curtain for them, walking cautiously inside.
Seeing the two of them enter, Lin Tanjiu rubbed her temples, left with her sword, and walked away. When she reached the depths of the winding path, she saw Yu Ce’s figure and reached out, chanting softly.
In the blink of an eye, ‘Yu Ce’ transformed into a wisp of sand, and gathered into Lin Tanjiu’s palm.
She turned back silently sighed in her heart,
Go on, Yu Ce.
Say a proper farewell when you see him for the last time.
Inside the ancestral hall, Shen Tanqi’s coffin lay quietly on the ground.
It was a redwood coffin, the same one used by Shen Tanqi and Yu Ce during the Chen Gui Night at Shuoxia City.
As soon as Xiao Qingyu saw Shen Tanqi lying in the coffin, tears fell uncontrollably.
How could this happen? Just the other day during the sect’s grand competition, he was fine, talking and chatting with Goldfish and Taro Ball. How did he end up lying here all of a sudden?
He turned away, his eyes red. “Senior Brother, why did you… go to Bloodthirst Cliff?”
Lin Tanjiu said that Shen Tanqi fell to his death at the Bloodthirst Cliff.
That place had brought so much harm to Shen Tanqi. First, he was ambushed by the demons, then forced to father children, and now he ended up dead there.
Brother, in the next life, please don’t play near cliffs anymore. In the next life, you’ll still be my brother, and I’ll still be your little brother.
Xiao Qingyu wiped the tears from his eyes but suddenly noticed a faint glow coming from Shen Tanqi’s clothes. He froze for a moment—could it be a forgotten communication token?
Inside might be Shen Tanqi’s last words, and they could hear his voice again. Thinking this, he reached out, tentatively trying to retrieve the silver token from Shen Tanqi’s clothes inside the coffin.
Unaware behind him stood Fang Wenxun, eyes deep and murky, gazing steadily at the pale face of Shen Tanqi with closed eyes in the coffin, and at the faint glimmer of dragon breath on Shen Tanqi’s clothes.
His heart pounded faster and faster, his fingertips almost drawing blood as they curled tightly.
—It was the jade pendant.
The one he had given to Shen Tanqi.
In a haze, Shen Tanqi seemed to hear a voice whispering in his ear, as if someone was softly crying.
Was it Yu Ce crying?
He hadn’t expected Yu Ce to miss him like this, to think he was quietly crying.
His senses gradually returned. He felt a faint dragon breath lingering nearby, cool and soothing, as if a hand was slowly approaching him. Shen Tanqi became more convinced—it was Yu Ce beside him.
Yu Ce had brought him back. He needed to wake up quickly. The first thing he had to do when he woke up—tell Yu Ce just how much he liked him!
He heard the wind, the rain, his breathing slow and merging into the air. Sensing the hand in front of him, Shen Tanqi struggled to open his eyes, breaking free from the confinement of the system.
Finally, he broke free from the endless darkness.
Grabbing the wrist of the person in front of him, Shen Tanqi urgently shouted, “I like you. I came back just to tell you that I really like you. I…”
“Whom do you like?” a cold, piercing voice cut in.
The words abruptly halted.
The excited smile froze on Shen Tanqi’s face, his eyes fixed on a scene that slowly came into focus, revealing a face filled with fear and panic.
“Junior brother, it’s you!” Shen Tanqi gasped in shock, releasing his grip on the hand.
Xiao Qingyu was utterly stunned. “Senior brother, how… are you not dead??”
Incredulously stepping back, Shen Tanqi reached for the jade pendant on his chest. He had indeed felt Yu Ce’s presence just now and heard his voice, but where was Yu Ce?
Not far away, Fang Wenxun reached out and slowly lifted the mask from his face.
His voice was as cold as shattered jade, chilling to the bone.
“Whom did you come back for?”
“Ah Qi.”
“Whom do you like?”
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
