Xin Lan whirled around with his claws extended, prepared to impale whoever was behind him. He got the vague impression of a pale face and a pair of especially dark eyes and stopped just before his claws injured the skin. He stared at him, only to get stared back at.
The fallen god tilted his head. "Please. Go ahead. I'm sure you could take a curse."
Xin Lan took a deep breath, retracted his claws and lowered his hand. "What are you doing here?"
The fallen god turned to the side and silently walked a circle around him before he faced him again. "Taking a look."
"At what?"
The fallen god didn't answer and just stared at him with those black eyes. He didn't even seem to blink.
Xin Lan waited. He wanted to turn away but he didn't dare to. How long had he stood behind him? How much had he heard? How much had he seen? And would he talk about this?
The fallen god's gaze slid down to the pendant that was still hanging above Xin Lan's robe. He reached out and lifted it, looking at the transmission stone embedded in the middle as if he could still see the people inside. "So that is the person you pretend to love."
Xin Lan's gaze flickered. So he had really seen him. "What are you talking about?"
"A beauty. No wonder." He let go of the pendant and turned away, looking down the corridor.
Xin Lan also shifted to the side, no longer looking at him. This guy wasn't talkative, normally. Maybe he would see and then just forget about it? He probably wouldn't —
"Mn, golden hair …"
Xin Lan frowned and glanced at him. "What do you want to say?"
"He had golden hair."
Xin Lan narrowed his eyes. "Yes, that … isn't that uncommon for dragons."
The fallen god turned to him and raised his brows. "Really not that uncommon. Doesn't the demon king's beloved also have golden hair? I think I've heard him talk about it."
"What do you want to say?"
"Such a coincidence." The fallen god turned away and silently walked down the corridor.
Xin Lan frowned and followed him. "What do you intend to do now?"
The fallen god didn't answer and just continued to walk as if he hadn't heard at all.
Xin Lan sped up his steps until he was right behind him. He reached out, grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. "You —"
A hand swished toward his face. Xin Lan evaded barely and stepped back, letting go of the fallen god.
Once again the two of them stared at each other.
The fallen god harrumphed and turned away, letting Xin Lan remain alone in the corridor. His gaze flitted around before he ran after him. He finally saw him again at the next turn.
"Don't talk about it."
The fallen god didn't react and just continued to walk. Xin Lan gritted his teeth. Why did this have to happen? If this guy said something in front of Jin Ling …
"He's a dragon and he already has a partner. You wouldn't want to destroy that, would you?"
The fallen god finally stopped and remained standing at that spot.
Xin Lan relaxed slightly and stepped closer. "He saved my life. Yes, I love him. Yes, Jin Ling also loves him. But he already has someone else. And he will stay true to that man forever." Xin Lan hesitated but still added on. He couldn't just stop there. "You've also seen them. They are together right now. You wouldn't want to destroy that, would you?"
The fallen god didn't answer. He stared ahead, not moving a single muscle. Finally, he looked at the ceiling, his black hair cascading down his back, shimmering on top of that equally black robe.
"You don't love anyone. The demon king doesn't love anyone either. An old dragon. Half a demon. You don't even know what true love is."
"That might be true. But he loves that man. And that man loves him. He bound his soul to him, he reincarnated for him. Do you want to jeopardize their love? For a demon?"
"I wouldn't do anything for a demon."
The fallen god started walking again but this time, Xin Lan didn't follow him. There was no way to force a fallen god to do anything. There wasn't any easy way to kill him either and definitely no way to kill him without facing the consequences. And if something happened to him … Who would protect his Master? Chun Yin's reincarnation? But he was a mere mortal right now. He couldn't rely on him for that. He could only … hope that that fallen god wouldn't say anything.
He sighed and turned away, lifting the pendant again. He wanted to imbue his spiritual energy to reach out to his Master but hesitated at the last moment. Finally, he slipped the pendant back below his robe.
What was he even thinking about? With how his Master had warned him, that man had certainly woken up. Right now, he would be reassuring Jinde. If he tried to contact him now … He would just be disturbing them.
Xin Lan sighed and withdrew deeper into the palace, searching for a place from where he could have an eye on Jin Ling without having to deal with his temper.
The person in question was sitting on his throne, staring at a black crystal, and waiting for news from the Yun Zou Sect. Seeing that Crystal Xin Lan narrowed his eyes. He didn't know yet that Jin Ling had already found someone from the Yun Zou Sect to supply him with information but he did have some suspicions.
Jin Ling normally wasn't very interested in anything. Holding onto the demon realm's throne had entirely been for Jinde's sake because he knew that Jinde would have wanted him to become the demon king and stay in this position for as long as possible. That was his only impetus. Nothing else. Well, maybe dealing a blow to Qiu Ling was part of the reason too but it definitely paled in comparison to the motivation the memory of Jinde gave him.
So why was he staring so intently at this crystal? Don't tell him he was already on to something?