Xiang Yu furrowed his brows in discomfort but contrary to Xin Lan's expectations, he didn't erupt. He didn't even try to shake Qiu Ling off and just let him continue with a bitter expression.
Xin Lan's brows rose in surprise. Had somebody exchanged this fallen god for another person? Was this really the same person that hissed and lashed out at him as soon as he got too close or at least went into hiding? How come this Qiu Ling was suddenly allowed to touch him?
He reached out to see whether something was indeed wrong but Xiang Yu's nails sunk into his arm before he even had the opportunity to brush his skin.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"I …" Xin Lan frowned. How come the result was still the same? Why was Qiu Ling getting preferential treatment? Don't tell him this guy really thought he was such a bad person? He scowled and tried to reach out again only to be met with the same reaction. "What are you doing? How come it's alright if he touches you but you'll get angry if I try?!"
Qiu Ling harrumphed. "What are you even talking about? That's a completely different thing!"
"How is that different?" Xin Lan stared at the two people in front of him. Hadn't those two only met just now? How come they were suddenly of the same opinion? Was this a conspiracy?
Xiang Yu didn't bother to explain his actions but finally moved out of Qiu Ling's grasp and turned to look at him, examining his face.
Qiu Ling didn't feel that there was anything wrong with being looked at like this. He knew he was very handsome. It was only right for people to look at him like this! Mn, it was just a pity that his beloved wasn't here to look at him. Jing He's gentle gaze was the most welcome to him.
He tilted his head. Eh, come to think of it … He should remind this guy. "You do you know that I'm engaged, right? There's no chance for you to get together with me. I'm very happy with my beloved."
Xiang Yu didn't bother to tell him that that wasn't what he had thought about. He just continued to look at him. This person … seemed like a good lover to have. Such a nice person! He even made sure that nobody would get any thoughts about him while his beloved wasn't there. He deserved to be with that boy from the demon realm. "I really saw your beloved."
Qiu Ling blinked. "Really?"
Xiang Yu nodded.
"Are you sure? You have to know that my beloved isn't just anyone. He's Jing He, the crown prince of the Nine Heavens, the most beautiful person in all the three thousand lower, middle, and higher realms. He has black eyes that look just as beautiful as the night sky, inky black hair that runs down his shoulders like a satiny waterfall, his waist is willowy and his limbs slender. Well, I think saying that he is the most beautiful person ever is enough to give you an impression. So did you see somebody like that?"
Xiang Yu tilted his head and pondered. In the end, he shook his head. "No, but I think the person I saw said that he's called Jing Yi anyway, not Jing He."
"Ah. That doesn't matter. You know my —"
"The two of you, could you stop the chitchat already? You know where the reincarnation of the Son of Heaven is. Great. Then tell him so he can go and get him back. And you can focus on healing His Majesty's soul in the meantime."
Xiang Yu pursed his lips. "How could that be? His soul is still injured. If they meet now, then what if it shatters completely?"
"Ah?" Qiu Ling grabbed Xiang Yu by the shoulders and pulled him back to face him. "What do you mean his soul could crack if we meet each other?"
Xiang Yu tilted his head. "Isn't your beloved's soul cracked?"
Qiu Ling nodded. "Yes, it's because he used the soul-engraving dagger to cut into it."
"No." Xiang Yu shook his head. "His soul was about to crack anyway. Using that dagger just made it … happen a little faster."
"How could that be?!" Qiu Ling let go of Xiang Yu and turned away, his gaze flickering. This couldn't be! Why would Jing He's soul … He whirled back around. "Are you sure about this?"
"Mn."
"But why?" He didn't understand. A soul didn't crack just like that! There had to be a reason. So why? It couldn't be … He furrowed his brows. "Could it be somebody attacked him? Could it have been some demon? Is that what happened?"
Xiang Yu shook his head again. "No. I mean something like that can happen but most of the time, things like that happen because a soul is unstable. It often occurs if a trial is happening in the Nine Heavens where it affects them directly."
"Ah? But … but Jing He reincarnated for his trial. How could that be the reason? No, you have to be wrong! Maybe he's actually alright. I mean sure, there were some cracks but those can be healed, no? It doesn't necessarily have to do with … anything else, right? It could just be … because of the dagger. It doesn't have to be anything else." He furrowed his brows and lowered his gaze. No, this was probably nothing but the result of using the soul-engraving dagger. It had to be! Because otherwise … something would have to be wrong with Jing He and if they didn't know what that was … then Jing He would continue to be in danger until they could find out the reason.