Qiu Ling didn't care about the guarding disciples at the gate. Even though he had promised An Bai that he would be more serious in the future, he was still the dragon king who had come to the mortal realm. Did he really need to behave like a common disciple of the sect? Of course not.
An Bai and Xiang Yong also didn't say anything. In any case, being a little eccentric was to be expected of somebody of his status. If their king suddenly turned normal, they would also feel unaccustomed. Instead, the two of them looked around.
They did know that this was the Yun Zou Sect since they had both been here before and even though a lot of time had passed in the mortal realm since then not much had changed if they compared what they could currently see with their memories from the past. They were still surprised though.
It seemed that this wedding they had gone to was a big occasion in the mortal realm. There were many more people in the sect right now than they had noticed here before and their robes suggested that they came from many different sects. It really made them wonder just who the two people getting married were.
Qiu Ling had a quick look around, his gaze lingering on the bamboo hut where Jing Yi was probably still waiting for his return. After a moment, he turned away though and flew to the Sect Master's palace. He circled around the building and then waved for An Bai and Xiang Yong to follow him. Most likely, Jinde and Leng Jin Yu would still be in there, preparing themselves for the ceremony. Considering their relationship, he should probably go to greet them personally.
An Bai and Xiang Yong exchanged another glance and then followed him into the array, a little surprised when it didn't react when they tried to imbue spiritual energy but then suddenly lit up without either of them doing anything a moment after they stopped.
They were even more surprised when they arrived on the other side and saw a building in the distance that looked remarkably like the architecture of the dragon realm, with some hints of the past.
Especially An Bai narrowed his eyes and took a closer look. "This looks like the previous dragon king's palace." He had read about this in some ancient scrolls. The dragon king's palace had changed throughout time. Because of the constant wars with the demons, the building had been severely damaged and sometimes even collapsed completely. Afterward, the kings had always rebuilt it to fir their own taste a little more and take any new requirements they might have into consideration. This palace … it looked exactly like the one the dragon king had reigned from before the current one was built.
Qiu Ling glanced at him, smiling faintly. "It is that one. I grew up in there." Yes, this building had only been destroyed in the fight where Jinde had been injured with the soul-devouring dagger. He had still overseen the new palace being build. Qiu Ling had grown up in this building as well but Jinde was definitely more attached to it. Even Leng Jin Yu who couldn't completely remember that palace preferred it over the current one that he hadn't wasn't familiar with since his father had never seen it. So of course, they would want to live in this one.
Qiu Ling sighed lightly and then just went forward.
When the three of them entered the palace, Leng Jin Yu stepped out of the room. He was already dressed in the bright red robes that the mortals wore for their weddings.
Xiang Yong squinted when he recognized him. He didn't know why but since the first time he had seen him, he had had a strange feeling about this person. While he had been able to explain why he had come to the dragon realm previously, he still felt a bit strange. To see him here now … it really didn't help with that suspicion. In fact, it made him feel that all of this was even more mysterious, and worry crept up in his heart. It absolutely didn't help that Qiu Ling tensed as soon as he saw this person. Just who was he? What exactly was their relationship? He just couldn't figure it out.
Leng Jin Yu smiled wryly. "You came back. I wasn't sure if you would want to." He didn't know what else to say. To be honest, this was strange for him as well. While the soul being active right now was his own and Chun Yin was really dead for real this time, he now had all of his memories. And they were his real memories of the past, not something he had just seen but something he felt he had lived through. His feelings for Qiu Ling were really complicated. On the one hand, he was family, on the other hand, he was an irresponsible, even kind of irritating person that he would rather not interact too much with. Even if he had never said this before, that had kind of been his idea of Qiu Ling. It probably wasn't a wonder considering how they had met but it sure made things strange.
Qiu Ling also wasn't feeling too well with this either. He looked away, fixing his eyes on the door behind Leng Jin Yu. "I didn't come for you."
Leng Jin Yu nodded and then stepped back, motioning to the door. "He is inside."
Qiu Ling nodded and walked past him, stepping into the room.
An Bai and Xiang Yong looked from one person to the other, exchanged a glance between themselves, and then quietly followed Qiu Ling. In any case, their king hadn't told them to stay behind.
As a result, the two of them once again suffered a shock.