Zhan Luo didn't hesitate for a second. He immediately set off toward the Demon Clan. As he approached the entrance, two guards stepped forward to block his path.
"War Deity, you cannot proceed further. We have not received permission to notify the Demon Lord of your arrival," one of the guards said firmly.
"Then notify him!" Zhan Luo commanded, his voice brokering no argument.
The second guard, still maintaining a professional demeanor, asked, "May we know the reason for your visit?"
"I came for my wife, Princess Ruo Yin," Zhan Luo stated, his tone leaving no room for misunderstanding. "Now, go quickly!"
"We will notify the Demon Lord immediately," the first guard replied, and with that, he vanished inside the gates.
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"Your Majesty," the guard bowed.
"Rise, what is the matter?" You Xie asked him with a bored tone.
"The War Deity is at the entrance of the clan. He says he desires to take his wife back home," the guard said.
"Hm...so what Ruo Yin said was true," You Xie said in a low voice to himself.
"Fine. Let him pass, but make sure one of you is always with him. Guide him immediately to where Princess Ruo Yin lives," You Xie commanded the guard.
"Yes, Your Majesty," The guard said as he went back.
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Ruo Yin had passed her days in the Demon Clan locked in her house. She really did not want to go back to Kunlun Mountain and face Zhan Luo.
She was in the backyard sitting and reminiscing their deal. She said, "Maybe if you broke your part of the deal and came, then I could ask you about the past and then I will finally be free from you. But that will also mean that maybe you care about me. You really are unfair," Ruo Yin said in an audible voice.
As she was deep in thought, she did not hear the soldiers knocking on the front door and the War Deity who broke in even if no one answered.
"Do you really think that about me?" Zhan Luo asked her as he had heard what she said.
The soldiers could not hear their conversation since they maintained their distance.
Ruo Yin immediately stood up and half shocked she said, "What are you doing here?"
"I came for my wife," Zhan Luo said. Closing the distance between them, "Si Ming already told me everything that happened on the Sky Clan."
Ruo Yin felt ashamed of herself. Who was she to throw this kind of tantrum? She knew she was only Zhan Luo's wife by name, and Xia Mei was Zhan Luo's true love, and now the War Deity knew about it. She would always be the Demon Princess and he the War Deity. Forever enemies, never lovers.
"I just told Si Ming that I needed to come back here for a few days. There was never an ulterior motive," Ruo Yin said.
Zhan Luo then closed completely the distance between them and put both of his hands in Ruo Yin's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Please, let me explain it all. Before you call the deal off. Just come back one more time to Kunlun Mountain with me. After that, you are free to choose."
Was Zhan Luo planning on telling her the same thing Xia Mei told her? She could not bear hearing it from him. But she also knew that You Xie would not let her stay in the Demon Clan for more days.
"Fine. I will go back but remember what you just said," Ruo Yin told him coldly.
"Tell His Majesty that I'm going back to Kunlun Mountain," Ruo Yin said to the two guards.
"Yes, Milady," The guards replied as Ruo Yin went back with Zhan Luo to a place where she thought she could call home.
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When Zhan Luo and Ruo Yin arrived back to Kunlun Mountain, none of them spoke a single word.
"..."
"..."
Finally, Zhan Luo broke the silence, "Please, follow me."
Ruo Yin thought that Zhan Luo was going to speak to her in his study or in the living quarters, instead, he took her to the waterfall.
Ruo Yin still did not speak. She just grabbed the hems of her dress tightly.
Zhan Luo knew that if he did not manage this situation well, he was going to lose his wife. He decided it was better to clear the misunderstanding about Xia Mei first.
"Ruo Yin, what did Xia Mei said to you at the Sky Clan?" Zhan Luo asked her.
"Nothing important," Ruo Yin said.
"Please, tell me. I'm trying to clear all the misunderstandings between us," He said.
"Just go to the point. Just tell me who is the one in your heart," Ruo Yin said trying to cut her pain short.
"You," That was the only word Zhan Luo said.
None of them spoke again.
The waterfall and the birds again, being the only noise around them.
Ruo Yin could not believe what she was hearing. Was this just his plan just so he could continue seeing her as a replacement for Xia Mei? She then remembered her mother's words to follow her heart. So, she asked Zhan Luo, "Are you just saying that because I'm similar to Xia Mei?" Ruo Yin asked. After all, she already had nothing to lose. Her heart was already broken.
Zhan Luo really wanted to laugh because he found it funny how little Ruo Yin thought of herself. She could not see how amazing she was.
"In what ways are you similar to her?" he asked.
Ruo Yin then answered him back trying to hold her tears, "She is also a skilled warrior, and..." Ruo Yin then realized that apart from that they had nothing in common, but she continued, "Xia Mei is pretty, regal. She is a skilled warrior, she is on good terms with the Sky Emperor and Empress, and most importantly, she is from the Sky Clan," Ruo Yin said in one breathe.
"And?" Zhan Luo said to her.
"You guys are basically a match made from heaven!" Ruo Yin shouted.
Zhan Luo then went and hugged her as he said, "You are much more than Xia Mei. Ruo Yin, stop not giving credit to yourself."
"I am just an orphan from the Demon Clan.," She said as she touched the red mark that circled her neck.
"So are we falling in love with people based on their clans or because of who they are?"
"..." Ruo Yin did not speak.
"I fell for you because of your stubbornness. I fell because I love seeing how to try your best. I fell because you are the first one who didn't see me as the great War Deity, but as a fellow immortal. I didn't realize it at first, but you being here with me has become something important. I want to have more days where we could spend it together. I still want to continue eating your horrible cooking, and most importantly, I don't want us to be husband and wife by name only," Zhan Luo said to her.
Ruo Yin could not stop her tears at that moment. She never thought that her feelings for the War Deity were mutual.
"You know, I'm not sure if you are trying to confess to me or insult me. You are so not a husband material!" Ruo Yin said half crying, half laughing.
"The point is...You are the only one. There was and never going to be a Xia Mei," Zhan Luo spoke.
"You still broke your part of the deal, you came chasing for me," Ruo Yin said with a smile.
"Yes, so what shall your request be?" Zhan Luo asked her, hoping that she was going to ask about the past. Still hugging her.
Ruo Yin did not need to think about it. She knew what Zhan Luo have meant about her being free to choose after he explained. He was not talking about Xia Mei. Because he and Xia Mei were never a thing. He was talking about the incident five thousand years ago.
"Please, then tell me what really happened five thousand years ago," Ruo Yin said.