Ye Cangyan had not shown up for several days. Every night, He Qing could hear the wolf howls that shook the entire valley coming from outside Wolong Valley.
Although Mount Yu is the habitat of various demon tribes, wolves are the largest after all. One wolf howl can cause countless wolves to howl in response, high-pitched and loud, long and shrill.
He Qing could generally sense Ye Cang Yan's hesitation and annoyance through his howling, and expressed his understanding. But Su Guang was different, he couldn't stand it for a whole night, so he signaled Qing Niu to make a deeper and more powerful moo.
The cries of the blue bull were interspersed among the howlings of the wolves, and the fight went on back and forth, which aroused the noise of the monster tribe in Mount Yu, so that the nights in Mount Yu were extremely lively in the past few days.
He Qing still dreams at night, even if she meditates, she will still be haunted by nightmares. In the dream, she experiences death again and again, over and over again.
He Qing knew that this was God's way of wearing down her will and reminding her to return to the "right path".
Of course, thanks to the fights between the wolves and the blue bull every night, the torture would not last too long and he would be woken up after a while. However, the few minutes outside the dream were enough for He Qing to die two or three times in the dream.
Whenever He Qing was woken up, he would find Su Guang standing by his bed. In the darkness, he could not see his expression, and he did not say a word.
Two days later, perhaps Ye Cangyan could no longer shout, or perhaps he was annoyed by the noise, and that night, the wolf howls finally stopped, and He Qing "successfully" completed his eighteen journeys to death.
When she woke up, she was still covered in cold sweat and felt exhausted. Suguang was still sitting beside the bed, looking at her silently.
He Qing lay on his back on the bed and let out a long breath, then said weakly, "I'm so tired..."
Su Guang was silent for a long time, and then said quietly: "I have explored your soul, but I couldn't find where it went."
He Qing was not surprised by this. She had known for a long time that if Su Guang stayed with her all night like this, he would find out something was wrong with her sooner or later. He Qing wiped the sweat off her forehead with her sleeve and said with a forced smile, "It's great that you can't do something too."
Su Guang took He Qing's left hand and rubbed it gently: "Do you have anything to say to me?" His voice was very soft and no emotion could be heard.
He Qing turned over and faced Su Guang, saying, "No."
Su Guang was silent for a moment, let go of her hand, but was held again by her backhand.
He Qing asked: "Suguang, do you like me?"
In the darkness, He Qing heard Su Guang sigh, "You always ask this question lately."
He Qing smiled: "That day you said that Ye Cangyan would be threatened by you, not only because of his feelings, but also because of his selfishness. If you also had feelings and selfishness, would you also be threatened?"
Su Guang did not answer but asked: "Are you asking if I will be threatened by others because of you?"
"Um."
"I will not be threatened by anyone." Su Guang answered this question quickly, and waved his sleeves to light the candle in the room so that He Qing could see the determination in his eyes: "Even the way of heaven cannot do that."
"…"
He Qing saw clearly the resoluteness in Su Guang's eyes. That was not self-confidence, but the determination to die in glory rather than live in disgrace.
Su Guang was held hostage by the Heavenly Dao for tens of thousands of years, but was abandoned after the dust settled. The goal of fighting against the Heavenly Dao has been integrated into his bones and blood, and it has been his only belief over the long years.
He Qing looked back at him tenderly and whispered, "You are immortal, but my life is limited."
Su Guang's eyes softened, and he stepped forward, gently holding He Qing in his arms, letting her rest her head on his legs. He stroked her forehead and said, "As long as I am not dead, I will always be able to find you. I will find you in your next life and every life of yours."
As long as he does not return the divine power, Heaven cannot execute him. Even if he is sealed, those long times are just a meaningless number to him.
People will always be reincarnated. With the ability of Tracing the Light, even if she is trapped in the Sanzu River, Tracing the Light can pull her out. Finding her every life will naturally be a piece of cake.
This is the reason why Suguang believes that he will never be threatened by others because of her. He Qing couldn't help but let out a series of low laughs, until tears rolled down and quickly disappeared into his hair.
For a moment, He Qing really wanted to tell Su Guang immediately that she would not have reincarnation, let alone an afterlife. In this way, would a surprising and different expression appear on Su Guang's face, which was always fearless and calm, and always in control of everything?
But He Qing held back.
She didn't want Su Guang to be affected when he was about to break through.
The Heavenly Dao would never have imagined that the mental torture it inflicted on He Qing with death every night would actually make He Qing's will even stronger.
He Qing is afraid of death, but he is more afraid of living like a puppet, and maintaining a clear consciousness while being controlled.
She can no longer return to her original world. If she compromises with the Way of Heaven, she will have to be like everyone else in this world, following the path set by the Way of Heaven, living in a muddle-headed state until the end of her life.
When she first arrived, she treated everyone as paper people. After meeting Suguang, she was dissatisfied because Suguang could not "honestly" be a paper man, which affected her survival plan.
But now, she was extremely grateful that there was a Su Guang in this world.
It has nothing to do with love between men and women, it's just because Su Guang is the only real and powerful existence that can break the self-righteous destiny of heaven.
It's exciting just to think about it.
The only regret is...
About...
She is the only one who may never know whether Su Guang likes her or just possessive of her...
I really can't accept it. No matter how I ask, I can't get the answer...
Thinking of this, He Qing rubbed his cheek against Su Guang's leg and said gently, "Then you have to really find me."
Su Guang held her face in his hands, lowered his head and placed a kiss between He Qing's eyebrows: "Silly words."
※
On the night when the wolf howls stopped, after dawn, Ye Cangyan was finally willing to talk to Su Guang again. This time, although He Qing still didn't want to show up, Ye Cangyan didn't force it and went to talk to Su Guang alone.
He Qing, with her hands in her pockets, strolled to the entrance where she and Su Guang came from, as if taking a walk.
According to the hint given by Heaven, it will be today.
After today, the heavens will understand her attitude, and the countdown to her death will begin.
Sure enough, after forcing the wild boar to play with him for a long time, He Qing heard a voice coming from outside the entrance -
"It's right in front. I've been here many years ago, so I shouldn't be in the wrong place." It was Yue Qingru.
Then Qi Guanrui's voice came again: "I heard that your father slaughtered his fellow disciples and was hunted by the immortal sect for many years. Will he help us?"
Yue Qingru said: "Of course he would. Although my father does not associate with the immortal sect, he is not indiscriminately hostile to them. Otherwise, I would not have joined Lingshan."