When He Heng woke up again, he felt a bit dizzy. The sensation beneath him was icy and hard, while his memories lingered in the pitch-black corridor of space-time just moments ago.
In his mind, the system’s last words echoed repeatedly,
[Congratulations, host. You have successfully cleared all mission worlds. Now you can return to the real world.]
The real world?
This term, sounding both unfamiliar and familiar, suddenly snapped He Heng’s thoughts back.
Now fully awake, He Heng opened his eyes and found himself lying on the chilly floor. His phone had also fallen alongside him, displaying a prominent “Defeat” symbol on the screen.
Instinctively, he picked up the phone and exited the game interface. Immediately, he received the AFK warning from the system and “concerned private messages” from the remaining four teammates.
At this moment, He Heng’s hazy thoughts returned to the split second when the chandelier fell during the live broadcast.
With that in mind, he abruptly looked up, only to see the chandelier hanging securely from the ceiling with no signs of falling. The bedroom’s arrangement remained unchanged, showing no traces of any alterations.
The room appeared to be the apartment He Heng and his university roommate, He Zhixiao, shared. He remembered that 996 had told him that if he successfully completed the missions in the four worlds, Qiao Ran would return with him to the real world. However, as He Heng looked around, there was no sign of Qiao Ran anywhere. Anxious, he called out,
“996? Are you still here?”
“You said he would come back with me. Where should I look for him?”
However, this time, there was no response echoing in He Heng’s mind.
The room fell into an eerie silence for a moment.
After a while, He Heng unconsciously clenched his fingertips and pushed the door open, stepping outside. At the exact moment he opened the door, he collided with his roommate He Zhixiao, who had just returned.
Upon seeing He Zhixiao, He Heng blurted out, “What’s the date now?”
Upon hearing this, He Zhixiao tossed his backpack onto the sofa and gave He Heng a look that suggested he thought He Heng had lost his mind.
“Did you get too engrossed in playing games? It’s the 16th today. Don’t forget we have club recruitment tomorrow.”
However, He Heng’s thoughts were nowhere near the club recruitment. He absentmindedly touched his chin and looked at He Zhixiao, saying, “Um… I’m looking for someone.”
He Zhixiao raised an eyebrow, somewhat puzzled. “Who? What’s their name?”
At this question, He Heng was momentarily taken aback.
Because Qiao Ran’s name kept changing in those four quick-transmigration worlds, He Heng wasn’t certain of his name in the real world. Faced with He Zhixiao’s question, he could only shake his head, “I don’t know.”
He Zhixiao responded, “…Then, what does he look like? Is he a guy or a girl? Is he from our school? Do you have a photo or a social media account for him?”
He Heng pondered for a moment, “He’s a guy. I know what he looks like, but I don’t have a photo of him.”
As he said this, he suddenly remembered something, turned around, and walked back into the room, saying, “Wait a moment, I’ll draw it for you.”
After saying that, He Heng returned to the room, picked up a pencil from the table, and began to draw on a blank sheet of paper, envisioning Qiao Ran’s appearance in his mind.
After a while, He Heng showed the drawing to He Zhixiao, saying, “He probably looks like this. Anyway, he has fair skin, long eyelashes, and is handsome.”
As He Zhixiao looked at the drawing featuring a distorted, almost sky-reaching chin, excessively long eyelashes, and mismatched eyes, he exclaimed,
“The heck, is this a Picasso painting?”
Saying that, He Zhixiao shoved the paper into He Heng’s arms, “If you can find him with this, it’ll be a miracle. At least give me a name.”
At this point, He Zhixiao wasn’t in the mood to continue the banter with He Heng. He grabbed the backpack from the sofa and headed towards his room. While walking away, he turned back to say,
“Seriously, stop messing around with this stuff. Prepare well for tomorrow’s club recruitment, alright? I heard there are many pretty junior girls in this batch.”
After He Zhixiao left, He Heng stood there, absentmindedly holding the paper in his arms.
In his thoughts, he wondered how he could find Qiao Ran.
On the second day of club recruitment, He Heng was clearly preoccupied. After welcoming the new members to the club, he briefly introduced the club’s weekly activities and schedule. Following that, he called a few senior members to demonstrate some basic moves, while he sat on a chair near the training area, lost in thought, dressed in a karate uniform.
As the training session progressed, various sounds echoed endlessly in the spacious hall, creating a noisy atmosphere.
Coincidentally, while He Zhixiao was in the midst of his training, he happened to grab a bottle of water from the table next to He Heng. Observing He Heng’s troubled expression, he teased, “Hey, what’s going on with you? Since yesterday, you’ve been wearing a frown. Caught a lovesickness, huh? Is it just because you couldn’t find that little snake spirit you drew…”
As He Zhixiao was halfway through his sentence, He Heng couldn’t take it anymore and kicked him.
He Zhixiao immediately took a few steps back, “Damn! Why are you getting physical?”
“Fine, I’ll continue my training. You can stay here and keep pondering,” he said, turning to leave with his water bottle.
However, at that moment, the door at the edge of the hall suddenly opened, pushed by someone from outside. A student-looking guy walked in.
When He Zhixiao got a clear look at the newcomer’s face, even he was momentarily stunned.
The newcomer had a genuinely attractive appearance, with a slender waist, long legs, rosy lips, and pearly white teeth. Besides, a beauty mark adorned beside his amber-colored eyes.
Inwardly, He Zhixiao couldn’t help but sigh, “Good-looking people even know how to choose the right spot for a beauty mark.”
Upon seeing He Zhixiao and He Heng, the newcomer visibly froze. After a moment, he suddenly remembered his purpose for coming and quietly asked, “Is there a club recruitment event today? Sorry, I think I might be late.”
However, as he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on He Heng.
He Zhixiao didn’t notice the subtle atmosphere between the two. “No problem, you can join now. I’ve just finished demonstrating the basic moves to the new members. They are currently practicing in groups, but it seems like we don’t have any extras…”
As he spoke, he suddenly paused, turned to look at He Heng, and said, “President He, aren’t you just sitting around? How about giving our new member some guidance?” At that moment, He Zhixiao realized that He Heng was staring intently at the new student, as if his gaze was fixed on him and couldn’t be diverted.
Seeing that He Heng didn’t respond and continued to sit there in a daze, He Zhixiao turned his head to look at the new student. With a closer look, he noticed a subtle resemblance.
Why does this person look a bit like the little snake spirit that He Heng drew for him yesterday?
Seeing both of them still standing there in a daze, He Zhixiao immediately pushed He Heng forward and said to the new student, “This is our president. Although he looks pretty idle right now, he’s quite professional. At least, no one in this club can beat him. Enjoy yourselves, I’m off to continue training.”
With that, he turned and left in a carefree manner.
Once He Zhixiao left, He Heng finally snapped out of his daze. He looked at the person in front of him, whose appearance and figure were reminiscent of the snake spirits from the previous worlds, and he almost blurted out, “Ranran.”
However, at this moment, he suddenly remembered that the person in this world might not be named Qiao Ran, and there was no guarantee that he remembered He Heng. So, He Heng had to restrain his excited emotions and calmly asked, “What’s… your name?”
Upon hearing this, the other slowly lifted his eyes, and beneath his long, dense eyelashes, there was a complex emotion that was difficult to describe.
He looked at He Heng and spoke each word slowly, “Yan Jiu.”
“He Heng, do you still remember…”
He Heng blurted out, “Ranran?”
Yan Jiu nodded, “It’s me.”
Since returning to the real world, memories from past lives flooded in along with the experiences from those four transmigration worlds. Yan Jiu was equally eager to find He Heng.
However, finding someone based only on a name and a mental image proved to be no easy task.
It wasn’t until today, during the club recruitment, when Yan Jiu saw He Heng’s name on the registration form that he hurriedly rushed over.
At this moment, the emotions he had suppressed for a long time burst uncontrollably. Yan Jiu’s amber eyes were veiled with a mist, and his voice trembled, “Do you still remember?”
Seeing his eyes reddening, He Heng quickly looked around at the densely packed crowd, then led him to a quiet room away from the others.
As the door to the lounge closed, the person in front of He Heng suddenly embraced his waist and nestled into his arms.
He Heng held the person in his arms and gently patted his back, “I remember, of course, I remember. Why are you still so prone to tears?”
Yan Jiu sniffled, wiped his eyes, and said, “I… I won’t cry anymore.”
He Heng smiled, using the back of his hand to touch Yan Jiu’s cheek, “I was so worried yesterday. Fortunately, I found you today.”
“Mm.” Yan Jiu pressed his face against the man’s chest, hugging him tightly without saying a word.
Unbeknownst to the two, the door to the lounge quietly opened a crack, and He Zhixiao, like a mischievous thief, half-crouched by the door, sneakily observing the scene inside. Behind him, a group of melon eaters1gossipers tagged along.
Someone behind him urged, “You’ve been watching for so long. Tell us, what secret of the president did you discover that made you create such a commotion?”
He Zhixiao waved his hand at the person, signaling them to be quiet. The next moment, he suddenly exclaimed, “Damn!”
“Your president seems to have just made someone cry.”
The people behind He Zhixiao: “…?”
Before they could express their surprise, He Zhixiao continued, “Damn, really. That new junior seems to be crying in his arms right now. How tough did he hit to make him cry like this…”
However, as He Zhixiao spoke, a sudden shadow cast over him, completely obstructing his view.
He Zhixiao paused, then looked up and locked eyes with He Heng:
“Have you seen enough?”
Seeing this, He Zhixiao gave He Heng a foolish smile, feigning ignorance.
Immediately, He Heng slammed the door shut with a resounding “snap!”, leaving him locked outside without any mercy.
On the afternoon of the club’s gathering, He Heng found an excuse to decline the event.
He Zhixiao couldn’t quite understand what had gotten into He Heng these past few days. Although the two of them usually had a carefree relationship, he knew that He Heng was an organized and planned individual. He rarely backed out of commitments on short notice.
However, today he unexpectedly declined the club’s dinner gathering. What could be the reason for this?
Could it be…
Thinking of this, He Zhixiao furrowed his brows. Could it be that he’s secretly in love?
That evening, He Zhixiao and the club members had dinner until late, and they had a bit to drink. By the time he returned to the apartment, it was nearly midnight.
When he opened the apartment door, the living room lights were on, and there were two pairs of shoes at the entrance. He Zhixiao immediately knew that He Heng was home.
He thought it was good that He Heng never went out and socialized much.
Because He Zhixiao had drunk a bit too much earlier, he felt a bit thirsty now. So, he put down his backpack and walked to the refrigerator, thinking of finding something to quench his thirst.
Upon opening the refrigerator, the most eye-catching item was a box of Want Want milk placed in the middle.
It was bought a few days ago when He Zhixiao and He Heng went to the supermarket together. After all, they believed… a real man should drink Want Want milk.
Looking at the “Want Want” milk cans smiling at him from the refrigerator, He Zhixiao casually picked one up.
Just then, there was a “creak!” sound behind him, and He Heng’s room door opened. It seemed like someone was coming out from inside.
He Zhixiao turned around naturally while holding the Want Want milk can. “He Heng, do you want to drink some Wan…”
The next moment, upon seeing the person standing behind the door, the attractive junior they met in the club earlier that day, He Zhixiao’s hand holding the Want Want milk can froze in mid-air.
At this moment, Yan Jiu was only wearing one of He Heng’s white T-shirts. The shirt was a bit too loose on him, revealing a large area of red marks on his knees and neck. His lips also looked red.
Upon realizing someone was outside, Yan Jiu was startled, instinctively clutching the hem of his shirt and quickly stepping back behind the door.
Behind him, He Heng, with one hand on the door frame, had his upper body exposed, and his black hair appeared a bit disheveled.
In the split second of locking eyes with He Zhixiao, He Heng, as if protecting a cub, pulled Yan Jiu into his arms and promptly slammed the door with a resounding “snap!”
At that moment, He Zhixiao’s mouth hung open in astonishment, and he finally completed his interrupted sentence, “Awesome!”
Back in the room, He Heng placed Yan Jiu on the bed.
“That was my roommate. He’s a good guy, just a bit silly sometimes.”
“Mm.” Yan Jiu softly responded, burying his face in He Heng’s chest and nuzzling against him.
He Heng: “Hungry or not? Do you want me to get something to eat?”
To his surprise, when he said this, Yan Jiu raised his head and teased, “What are you going to get me? Want Want milk?”
Just a moment ago, when He Zhixiao and He Heng were discussing Want Want milk, Yan Jiu was actually a bit surprised. It was hard to imagine two men in their twenties having so many cans of Want Want milk in the fridge.
“That’s just for fun.” He Heng smiled somewhat helplessly. “How about some noodles?”
“Sure.” Yan Jiu nodded and sat on the edge of the bed, swinging his legs, patiently waiting for He Heng to return.
After He Heng returned with the noodles, he noticed that Yan Jiu was intensely staring at a marriage charm on the table.
The marriage charm was made of red fabric, with the word “marriage” embroidered on it in gold thread.
When Yan Jiu saw He Heng come in, he suddenly remembered something and turned to ask him, “Do you still remember what happened before?”
“I remember.” He Heng didn’t understand why Yan Jiu brought it up again all of a sudden. He vividly remembered the experiences in those four little worlds; how could he forget?
He placed the noodles on the table and quickly said, “In the first world, you were an Omega; in the second world, you were a little emperor; in the third world, you were my mentor; in the fourth world, you were a little merman. How could I forget?”
However, after hearing his response, Yan Jiu lowered his head in silence.
After a moment, Yan Jiu asked softly, “What about… before all of this, do you remember anything?”
This question caught He Heng off guard. He only knew Yan Jiu in these four worlds; where did “before all of this” come from?
To prevent Yan Jiu from overthinking, He Heng placed a bowl of noodles in front of him and said, “Eat first; otherwise, it’ll get cold.”
“Oh.” Yan Jiu responded somewhat gloomily, focusing on eating his noodles.
Observing the way Yan Jiu buried his head in the bowl, He Heng smiled again. “If you want to hear the story of the marriage charm, I’ll tell you after you finish eating.”
Seeing this, Yan Jiu quickly swallowed the mouthful of noodles and said clearly, “Okay.”
The two of them had finished eating noodles and getting ready for bed, and it was almost midnight.
Now, He Heng lay on the comfortable bed, holding Yan Jiu in his arms. He looked at the marriage charm Yan Jiu held in his hand and began to speak slowly:
“This was when I was eighteen. My parents took me to a famous temple in another city for a trip. It was known for its accurate matchmaking, so my mother decided to seek a marriage charm for me. However, when the old abbot saw me, he furrowed his brows. He told me he couldn’t calculate my fate because my destined red thread seemed to be tangled with many others. So, he couldn’t determine my marital fate. But…” At this point, He Heng pointed to the marriage charm in Yan Jiu’s hand.
“The abbot used a red thread to tie this marriage charm and gave it to me. He told me to wear it around my neck, never taking it off. He said this charm might untangle the chaos and help me find my destined red thread, no matter what happened.”
“Since then, I have indeed worn it around my neck every day. However, one day I woke up, and I couldn’t find that red thread anymore. Now, all that’s left is this marriage charm…”
He Heng spoke until here, lowering his head to glance at Yan Jiu’s reaction. He saw Yan Jiu listening attentively with wide eyes, showing a hint of lingering curiosity.
Seeing this, He Heng gently touched Yan Jiu’s soft hair and said with a smile, “What are you thinking, Ah Jiu? It’s just a story. Listen to it and let it go. Anyway, I have found my destiny now.”
When mentioning the word “destiny”, He Heng looked at the person in front of him with great seriousness, and his deep eyes reflected the figure of the other person.
The directness made Yan Jiu blush. He lowered his head, leaned into He Heng’s embrace, and softly murmured, “Hmm.”
He Heng reached out to hold Yan Jiu, kissed his forehead, and whispered, “Stop thinking too much, go to sleep. Good night.”
“Good night.”
As the voice of the other person faded away, He Heng reached out to extinguish the last lamp in the room. Before long, the room echoed with the long and steady sound of breathing.
However, at this moment, Yan Jiu still hadn’t fallen asleep. In the darkness, he sighed softly, looking at the peacefully sleeping figure in front of him, and said, “Fool, you haven’t remembered at all.”
At this moment, the dim room lit up with a faint red glow. A semi-transparent red string was tied around He Heng’s left wrist, and the other end of the string was connected to Yan Jiu’s right hand, binding their destinies together.
Unaware of this, He Heng remained in the dark about the red string that he had been searching for a long time.
As Yan Jiu saw the red string, he opened the marriage charm in his hand.
In that instant, the symbol in his hand dispersed into a golden light, leaving two lines of words in the air,
“The cycles of four lifetimes have ended; return to the heavenly court swiftly.”
That night, He Heng had a long dream, recalling everything about his past and present with Yan Jiu.
It turned out that he was the celestial being in charge of the light, the Celestial Official of the Morning Star, in the heavens. Once, due to a twist of fate, he saved a little fox that had sneaked into the heavenly court.
The little fox, using unknown means, managed to sneak into the auspicious cloud of the Supreme Old Lord without being noticed. As a result, the Supreme Old Lord carried the little fox along with him to the heavenly court.
In the nine heavens, how cold it is! It is not a place where ordinary people can endure.
When the little fox “smuggled” into the heavenly realm, he had naturally been frozen to the point of almost losing consciousness. Moreover, he happened to be an all-white little fox. When he shrunk into the auspicious clouds, without careful observation, it was difficult to notice any difference.
The final result was that when the Supreme Old Lord returned to his Palace of Eight Views, he didn’t discover the fact that the little fox had sneaked into the auspicious clouds. It was only when He Heng asked to borrow the auspicious clouds that he found out.
He Heng brought the fox, nearly frozen into an ice block, back and “thawed” him. Unwilling to just throw him back into the mortal world, he managed to convince the relatively idle Matchmaker God to take him in. He even gave him a name, “Yan Jiu”. During his time in the mortal realm, Yan Jiu absorbed a large amount of spiritual energy from the heavens and the earth. He was on the verge of transforming into a human, and after reaching the Ninth Heaven, his cultivation progressed rapidly.
The Matchmaker God found him cute and spirited, growing fonder of him over time. Eventually, he even pleaded with the Heavenly Emperor to grant him celestial status. This way, when he achieved human form, he could come and watch over the Marriage Temple for the Matchmaker God.
As a fox named Yan Jiu, he enjoyed spending time with He Heng. Whenever the Matchmaker God wasn’t paying attention, He Heng would secretly take Yan Jiu along and escape to drink wine under the peach blossom forest. Sometimes, he would share various interesting gossip about other immortals that he had heard during his daily activities.
Continuing to associate with He Heng, Yan Jiu didn’t learn much else, but he certainly excelled at drinking. One day, when the Matchmaker God returned to his duties, he sensed an unmistakable aroma of alcohol in the palace. Realizing something was amiss, he walked inside and found the door to the wine cellar wide open. There, he discovered Yan Jiu, resembling an old drunkard, cuddling with his cherished wines and sleeping soundly, his snow-white belly still looking round.
It was evident that he had stolen quite a bit of the Matchmaker God’s wine!
The Matchmaker God immediately called He Heng, pointing at the unconscious Yan Jiu on the floor, reprimanding him for corrupting his fox. Now, the fox had turned into a drunken creature!
However, when He Heng saw this, he just smiled and then picked up the little fox. Feeling the warmth of the man’s embrace, Yan Jiu immediately adjusted his fluffy head in his arms, found a more comfortable sleeping position, and even made a couple of contented sounds, letting out a hiccup.
From then on, Yan Jiu’s hobbies increased from one to two: stealing sips from the Matchmaker God’s treasured wine and visiting the Marriage Temple to observe the red threads.
Inside the Marriage Temple, the giant bodhi tree was entwined with thousands of red threads. During the day, it emitted a translucent golden and silver sheen, while at night, it produced a radiant glow that filled the sky.
Yan Jiu would squat under the tree every time, tilting his small head to observe each red thread. He could see from the east to the west and then from the west to the east.
Every time the Matchmaker God returned from his duties, he would find the fuzzy figure under the bodhi tree.
The Matchmaker God thought Yan Jiu stayed there every day to quickly adapt to his future career. He thought, “This child is impressive, with insight and awareness. He understands the importance of gaining an advantage from the start. Before even officially starting the job, he’s already cultivating his professional qualities. Quite commendable.”
However, what he didn’t know was that Yan Jiu, day after day and year after year, squatted there to observe the red threads for one reason: to find the destined partner of the Celestial Official, He Heng.
Yan Jiu harbored a secret in his heart, one he had never shared with anyone—his feelings for He Heng.
He couldn’t pinpoint when it started, but the little fox noticed that every time he saw the man, he felt like he had consumed alcohol. His heart would pound rapidly, and his face would turn red.
Later, to conceal his nervousness, he began learning to drink with He Heng.
He thought that if he got drunk, the other party wouldn’t be able to figure out the real reason behind his blushing.
However, despite spending many years in the Matchmaker God’s Marriage Temple, Yan Jiu never found He Heng’s red thread.
In reality, looking at the countless entangled red threads, Yan Jiu was well aware that the probability of He Heng being his destined partner was incredibly low. After all, he was still a fox who hadn’t yet transformed into a human.
Foxes might not even have destined partners. However, with a glimmer of hope, the little fox diligently cultivated every day. He believed that if he could transform into a human sooner, his chances of being with He Heng might increase a little.
During this period, what made Yan Jiu feel fortunate was that the Celestial Official had not had any arranged marriage.
However, just before he was about to cultivate into human form, the Heavenly Emperor suddenly decreed that a fairy from the Moon Palace would be betrothed to He Heng.
On that day, the Heavenly Emperor held a feast to celebrate their engagement.
Perhaps due to dissatisfaction with this marriage arrangement, He Heng got extremely drunk at the banquet and even accidentally intruded into the Marriage Temple of the Matchmaker God, messing up all the red threads inside.
Upon hearing this, the Heavenly Emperor was furious, and as a punishment, He Heng was sentenced to descend to the mortal realm and undergo four lifetimes of tribulations before being allowed to return to the heavenly realm.
He Heng had no objections to the Heavenly Emperor’s punishment; his only request was to cancel the marriage arrangement.
Before leaving, he specifically instructed the Matchmaker God not to let Ah Jiu know about this. It would be better to come up with a random reason, such as saying that he was going to the mortal realm for a mission.
He thought that the little fox, Ah Jiu, was so naive. If he couldn’t see himself for so long, it might be difficult for him.
On that day, He Heng arrived at the side of the Ascension Platform in a very chic manner, with empty sleeves and nothing in hand. He leaped directly down.
However, the moment he leaped, a round and rolling figure suddenly ran out of the crowd.
The heavenly immortals saw that white figure rushing towards the Ascension Platform at an extremely fast speed, leaping down ahead of He Heng.
At the moment he jumped down from the Ascension Platform together with He Heng, he made a “squeak!” sound.
Someone puzzledly asked, “Was it my eyes playing tricks on me just now? How come there was a white ball jumping down with a Celestial Official?”
The next moment,
The Matchmaker God immediately rushed out from the crowd. He looked at the seemingly bottomless Ascension Platform and cried out, “Hey! My little fox! My fox! Why did you also jump down with him?”
However, taking advantage of the distraction of the crowd, he secretly sent down a red thread from his sleeve.
On the other side, in the moment of rapid descent, He Heng felt something fluffy slipping into his arms.
As soon as he recognized that the white fluff was Yan Jiu, he widened his eyes in surprise.
Then He Heng reached out to catch the flying little snow fox, furrowing his brow in confusion:
“Ah Jiu, why are you so silly?”
“What if I can’t find you when we reach the bottom?”
In the gap between his words, the rapidly descending cold stream enveloped the two layers by layers, and at the same time, their consciousness began to gradually dissipate.
The little fox didn’t say anything. He nestled his head into He Heng’s arms and softly “squeaked.”
That day, Yan Jiu finally transformed into human form in the moment of jumping off the Immortal Ascension Platform. He blocked the four-life calamities for He Heng, becoming the tragic protagonist in those small worlds. However, the red thread from the Matchmaker God also fell into the mortal realm with them.
It transformed into the System 996, binding the destinies of the two together in the cosmic order, helping them successfully overcome the four-life calamities.
