When Gu Bai returned to the starry space, it was the same as before, the same boundless darkness.
But the difference was, in the past, the mysterious master who had never appeared before Gu Bai was standing in the starry space. It wasn't like the shadowy figure it used to appear as, but was in a state of a real soul.
The mysterious master appeared wearing a pointy helmet that had shielded his face, black armour, and xiangyun boots. The faceplate of the helmet that had covered the mysterious master disappeared, showing a sharp, steadfast, and handsome face.
Inexplicably, Gu Bai thought that his face looked very familiar.
At the same time, he felt a strong sense of familiarity from the mysterious master who appeared in his real body, a sense that was stronger than the one from his man's body.
There was no doubt that the mysterious master really was his man… Realising this fact, Gu Bai stood in the same place, not knowing whether he felt complicated or delighted after this understanding.
If Gu Bai had found him before knowing this, he would have rushed to him without any hesitation, but now he knew his own man was his master. His mood was very complicated, and as he stood in the same place without moving, he kept quiet.
Even as the other person came up to touch his cheek, Gu Bai backed away.
"You're angry…?"
Such obvious resistance from Gu Bai made Ye Cang's hand hover in the air. After a short standstill, the hand continued on its path, stretching out. Holding Gu Bai's hand firmly, he asked helplessly.
"Master, I'm not…"
Gu Bai replied in a low voice with his head down. Although he had said no, his action of lowering his head and resisting contact had betrayed his mood.
"I said that you can call me by name…"
Seeing how Gu Bai was clearly angry yet saying he wasn't made a smile appear on Ye Cang's resolute and steadfast face. Even though his appearance and scent were hidden, in the end it was still him, and his habits and temper hadn't changed at all.
He stepped forward, reached out, and pulled Gu Bai in front of him. As he controlled Gu Bai's struggling with one hand, he stroked Gu Bai's face with the other. He looked deeply into Gu Bai's eyes.
"It's not that I didn't want to tell you, but you'll eventually know when the right time comes. Remember the beast you saw in the light barrier that day? It's called Taotie. It's the beast that follows me. Now even it had been attacked. I'm afraid that if you're exposed, something might happen to you..."
"..."
Gu Bai still didn't make a sound, but his complexion had softened quite considerably. During the days he had spent throughout the different worlds, he repeatedly thought about it and actually guessed some things.
From the way that the beast had acted, along with the few words it had spoken about, as well as the white clothed man who looked like an immortal but had a fierce hand, it wasn't hard to guess that others might have a grudge against Ye Cang.
It was just that the fact that his Master was his lover was really shocking. Clearly, the "Master" had strictly told him not to fall in love, but now that such a big reversal had appeared, no wonder his frame of mind couldn't be calm.
Though Gu Bai didn't speak, all his thoughts were revealed through his eyes, allowing Ye Cang to clearly see them.
In fact, he was also very upset. He had no idea that Gu Bai was the one he had been waiting for, for so long. And then finding out that versions of himself he had hidden in various worlds had fallen in love with Gu Bai, he really couldn't accept it.
But it turned out that he and Gu Bai were predestined to be together. In any case, they were bound to meet each other. No one could stop their intertwined fate!
"Bai, don't be angry…"
Ye Cang hugged Gu Bai tightly to his chest, with his tone of voice softening to that of being careful of offending the other. The cold eyes once hidden under the war helmet were full of deep tenderness, which could make one's heart feel moved.
"..."
Gu Bai stared at Ye Cang's face, still speechless. He didn't know whether he was still angry or just unable to speak.
Looking at Ye Cang's face, he suddenly became aware of an obscure feeling in his heart, as if there was a feeling of a grievance, one which he had been pressing down for a thousand years, that he wanted to say to the other.
But he didn't know what he wanted to say. It seemed that when he touched upon something, his mind would suddenly go blank.
Enduring that strange and sour emotion, Gu Bai took a deep breath. At last, his voice finally came out.
"Let go of me first. I have a few questions to ask you…"
Ye Cang didn't release Gu Bai, and instead tightened his hold on him. In addition, he couldn't help but lower his head and kissed Gu Bai's forehead. "Go ahead, speak…"
"I want to know what is going on with you in those worlds…"
Ye Cang still didn't let go, leaving Gu Bai with no choice but to give up and ask the questions that he had been struggling with in the last world for more than a decade.
He didn't understand. If all those people were the reincarnations of his man, then why didn't they remember their past lives? If his man remembered everything, then that was too hateful, having him chase him in every world! Ye Cang smiled and kissed Gu Bai's forehead a couple of more times before explaining.
"The me in those worlds don't have any memories. They're all my reincarnations. Before I reincarnate, although they are all me, they don't have any memories of their past lives, just like a normal person…"
"Reincarnations?"
"Yes, countless reincarnations. I left them in the worlds to absorb power when all the hosts have changed the worlds' trajectories. As you may have guessed. I've absorbed these forces to recover."
"You… Someone is after you…"
Gu Bai's heart tightened as he thought of the beast in the light barrier that had clearly been tortured.
"They're not chasing to kill me. They aren't able to kill me. I'm just trapped. Right now, what you're seeing is just my soul…"
Ye Cang smiled faintly. He didn't care about anything else, and he only paid close attention to the person that stood in front of him. Reaching out, Ye Cang caressed Gu Bai's face in a show of comfort, trying to appease the worry that had shown on Gu Bai's face.
"Don't worry. I'll be out soon. For now, you aren't required to know what's going on. So long as you wait for me to come out, you'll understand clearly… Before that, I'll still accompany you in the task worlds. No matter if I still have my memories or not, my soul will only feel for you alone, so you have to believe in me…"
As the last sentence was said, Gu Bai felt a stab in his heart. He nodded.
"There's another thing. The original hosts of those tasks exchanged their souls with you. After the task is completed, they… What will happen to them?"
This was also a problem he had been struggling with in recent years. Although he left after finishing his task every time, he actually sympathised with the original hosts.
Those who were the targets of the tasks were punished, but the original hosts used their souls as payment. The other side would suffer for a lifetime, but in the end, the original hosts couldn't reincarnate ever again.
Just like Su Yu, the original host from the previous world. He was a stupid and pitiful child, and in the brief ten years of his life, it was all dark, but he still had to die without getting the chance to reincarnate.
He didn't know when it began. Gu Bai found that his indifferent heart had become more and more emotional. Unlike before, where he had never sympathised with anyone.
He looked straight at Ye Cang, holding his breath and waiting for an answer.
Being looked at with such a gaze, Ye Cang couldn't help but lower his head and sidle over, answering, "They indeed have no way to reincarnate, but they only went somewhere they should go to… Are you still angry? Can you call me by my name? You still haven't said it…"
The hot breath and the absolute powerful aura completely enveloped him. It was different from the other's strong appearance, as his words and movements were full of tenderness.
Gu Bai felt his heart was beating erratically as he realised he was attracted to that powerful aura. The inexpressibly sweetness surged into his heart, and the corners of his mouth uncontrollably raised up.
He took a deep breath as he expelled the distracting thoughts out of his mind. Finally, he reached out to hook his arms around Ye Cang's neck and revealed a smile. In a soft voice, he called out his man's name.
"Ye Cang…"
It was spoken in such a natural way of softly calling Ye Cang's name, in such a familiar tone, as if he had called him this way thousands of times.
Ye Cang was shaken by the call, and he couldn't help but kiss Gu Bai's brows again. Subsequently, he then began to kiss downwards, starting with Gu Bai's eyes, then down to the tip of his nose, along with his cheeks, and at last, Ye Cang finally stopped on Gu Bai's lips.
Ye Cang's hand touched the side of Gu Bai's cheek, clasping his head so that he couldn't slip away. His tongue slipped into Gu Bai's mouth and entangled with the other's tongue, and in a pleasingly affectionate and forceful way, he began to kiss Gu Bai.
Gu Bai soon sunk into that familiar kiss. Holding onto his man's shoulders with both hands, he responded enthusiastically, allowing his man to kiss him wildly.
It took a long time for Ye Cang to stop, and his eyes were fixed onto Gu Bai.
"Although it's safe here, I can't stay for too long. I'll take you to your next task world…"
Then he kissed Gu Bai's forehead again. Only then did he send away the still panting Gu Bai.
After Gu Bai's figure disappeared, a dark shadow flashed through the void. A fierce-looking Taotie appeared and fell behind Ye Cang. It was the beast from the light barrier.
"Master, is he really our master? Why don't I feel anything? How did Master become like this…"
Ye Cang did not answer, and he stood in place taking in the scent that Gu Bai had left behind for a while. He then shook his head and touched the beast's head.
"I don't know… but why were you tortured like that this time? Although that guy is disgusting, he's incapable of harming so many human lives. This is enough to affect the order of the six realms, and the spirit of the golden immortal has no information…"
"Master, I don't know, but it must be one of those people! As soon as you left, they chased me. When I return, I'll eat them all!"
The beast shook his head and spoke angrily, and his hair was all puffed up in anger.
"Well, when I recover, I'll catch those people, one by one for you to eat slowly…"
"Really? All for me?" Taotie's eyes lit up as he licked his teeth greedily.
"All for you!"
Ye Cang nodded, and his eyes had a sinister glint to it as his face portrayed a bloodthirsty appearance.