Leng Jin Yu stopped at once when his transmission stone started to pulse. He took it out with hasty movements and imbued his spiritual energy. Could it be that Jinde had already managed to reach the Liu He Alliance? Was he safe already?
He looked at the transmission stone with anticipation but the face that finally greeted him was that of the God of War, Qiang Yan. Leng Jin Yu's expression fell. So it wasn't Jinde. Either he hadn't managed to reach the Liu He Alliance at all or it wasn't convenient for him to reach out to him. Either way, he'd need to continue to worry. Until he saw Jinde for himself and heard him say that everything had turned out well, he wouldn't be able to rest his worries.
"Leng Jin Yu?" Qiang Yan raised his brows. He hadn't missed the disappointment in Leng Jin Yu's eyes. Just what had happened? Looking at him closer, it also seemed as if something was wrong. His skin was pale and there were dark shadows under his eyes. "Did something happen?
Leng Jin Yu sighed and shook his head. "Thank you for your concern but I'm afraid this matter isn't too convenient to talk about."
"Are you sure? Maybe there's some way I can help?"
Leng Jin Yu shook his head once again. "Actually, this is about my marriage. So …"
Qiang Yan's brows raised. Oh. He certainly wouldn't have expected this. Leng Jin Yu had always seemed amicable from the moment they first met. Who would've thought he'd have trouble in his marriage just shortly after the wedding? It really made him wonder just what kind of problem he had run into and if there really wasn't anything he could do to help. "Oh, you might not know but I was also married once. It was while I was on a trial but it went quite well nonetheless. Maybe there are some tips I can give you?"
Leng Jin Yu waved his hand. "Thank you for the offer but this is something we need to get through on our own. I guess the God of War didn't contact me to ask about my well-being. So what is the matter?" Even though he appreciated the offer, this wasn't anything he could tell somebody of the god race. After all, Jinde wasn't healed yet. And even if he was, he might not like the idea that the gods or anyone would find out that he was still alive. It wouldn't be a danger to him anymore by then but it could indeed prove difficult. And even if there wasn't Jinde, there was still Qiu Ling.
If Jinde reappeared, then his claim to the throne might actually weaken. And since that was one of the things that enabled him to marry the Son of Heaven, that was something he couldn't let happen. He had already let this son of his down in his past life. He couldn't commit the same mistakes a second time. Even though he wasn't Chun Yin anymore and even though no one could expect of him to do this, it was still something he felt he should. After all, he had also gotten together with Jinde again and Jinde regarded Qiu Ling as his family. So even if he himself didn't have any memories of his past life, Qiu Ling was his family.
Qiang Yan also sighed. "Actually, I'm sorry for bothering you. I know that you have gotten married and that you didn't want to have anything to do with these things anymore. You might be an ascended deity but you're not even living in the Nine Heavens. You don't have any position and I'm still always bothering you about things we require your help with. I'm truly sorry."
Leng Jin Yu sat down at the edge of the river where he had previously been searching for a special type of fish whose scales were part of one of the recipes and gave a sigh. "It's not a problem. Just tell me what it is that you need. If it's something I cannot do, then I will tell you so. But if it's something that can be done, then I'd gladly be of assistance." Actually, he would even try his best if it was something that was difficult. After all, Qiu Ling could more or less be counted as his son and the person he wanted to marry was the Son of Heaven. The God of War was the Son of Heaven's uncle, so in that case, they were somehow related to each other too. Not very closely, but still. And the gods were paying more attention to this kind of relationship than humans. At the very least, that was what he had experienced in the short time he had spent in the Nine Heavens.
Qiang Yan gave a relieved smile. "It's not that difficult actually. You know I actually have a son from the trial I just mentioned. He is in love with a human woman and we were thinking of letting her become a cultivator so that she could reach immortality. The problem is that —"
"Bai Mu and Nie Huang?"
Qiang Yan stopped and his eyes widened. "You know?"
Leng Jin Yu nodded. "The dragon king dragged me along with him to search for the ingredients. Actually, if that was what you were searching for, then they're with me. Longjun had something to do … somewhere else."
Qiang Yan leaped to his feet. "Really? Then … what about the recipe?"
Leng Jin Yu smiled. "I have the list with the ingredients at the very least. Would that be enough? Otherwise, we could bring that over later. Qiu Ling should be able to bring them with him when he comes back."
Qiang Yan sat down and rubbed his forehead. "The problem is that we didn't know how to reach Qiu Ling. Otherwise, I would've asked him. He gave his transmission stone to Bai Mu before. He still hasn't gotten it back."
Leng Jin Yu narrowed his eyes and smiled. "I gathered almost all the materials. How about this? I'll get the last few and then I'll hurry over to the Nine Heavens and bring them with me. You can take a look at the list of ingredients and see if it would be enough to refine the pill. If it isn't, then I can go and get the transmission stone and bring it back to Qiu Ling." That way, he would also have an excuse to go to the Yun Zou Sect and see what was going on there. After all, he was an ascended deity and the demon king should have heard that he had been working on the case of the Son of Heaven. So if he came and delivered something, then he shouldn't be able to find any connection with Jinde. In that case, he could go and take a look at things right now. He wouldn't need to worry anymore.