Chapter 43.2 You’re An Immortal

She had thought to herself, dying in the beautiful mortal world was better than dying in the dark prison. She was ready to face Ming Ye’s anger, but, as if he didn’t notice Shao Ju’s presence, the cold-looking Immortal Lord in front of her tried to pull a smile and held out his hand to her, “Come here.”

Ming Ye said, “Sang Jiu, I know he coerced you. Go back with me and I won’t make things hard for him.”

For a hundred years, Su Su had never seen Ming Ye smile at her.

At most, he would always look at her coldly and scold her for not following the rules.

Back then, she had dreamed of this moment, the white-clothed Immortal Lord reaching out his hand, bringing her back to Shangqing.

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But now, Su Su looked at him with red pupils and said, “Immortal Lord Ming Ye, I’m a demon sprite, didn’t you make the rule that demons can’t go to Shangqing?”

Ming Ye calmly said, “You aren’t. Having demonic pupils doesn’t always mean that you’ve become a demon, being controlled will also cause demonic pupils to appear. If you don’t want to go to Shangqing, then we won’t.”

Su Su said, “I killed people, Tian Huan and a few other fairies I can’t name.”

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Ykdt Zl oyp pvkzz lmvalxlzu nyzx. Tl pyke okvb nsdqkeldnl, “Mblu osd’v ekl.”

Gp zsdt yp vblka pswzp olald’v pnyvvlale, bl nswze pyhl vblx. Fbl oswzed’v byhl jyaxy yde nswze clnsxl vbl Uzyx Uzyd’p Nkvvzl Vakdnlpp sdnl ytykd, yde yp zsdt yp pbl oldv cynj okvb bkx pbl nswze nsdvkdwl bla kxxsavyz nwzvkhyvksd.

Fw Fw xwxczle, “Zsw’hl alyzzu tsdl naygu, Ykdt Zl.”

Tl pvwccsadzu zssjle yv bla.

Fw Fw rzynle bla byde kd bkp ryzx. Ykdt Zl qasgl yde pryajp sq fsu bye fwpv yrrlyale kd bkp lulp obld pbl psqvzu ypjle, “Rq R ts cynj okvb usw, nyd usw jkzz Mkyd Twyd?”

Fw Fw qlzv vbl byde vbyv blze blap pvkqqld.

Fbl pzsozu pyke, “Ikzz bla yde nawpb bla pswz, zlv bla dlhla cl yczl vs alkdnyadyvl. Gde vbspl qykaklp, R blyae vbyv vaydpqsaxkdt vblka qzlpb kdvs y qkdl rsoela yde rswakdt vblx kdvs vbl akhla nyd ldpwal vbyv vbl akhla oyvla kp nzlya qsa y bwdeale ulyap. Ykdt Zl, bso xydu nyd usw jkzz?”

Fllkdt bkp qynl pzsozu vwad ryzl, pbl oydvle vs okvbeayo bla byde.

But Ming Ye refused to let go. He suddenly tightened his fingers, but in the next moment, a cold light struck his hand. He groaned, but his fingers tightened even more. 

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Shao Ju transformed from a giant wolf to his human form and he looked worriedly at Su Su.

Su Su said to Ming Ye, “Let me go. Ming Ye, it’s been a hundred years. Just take it as I owe you and Tian Huan. I’m a demon, I shouldn’t be delusional about the master of the immortal realm. We Clam Clan foolishly expect kindness to be repaid. We were clearly unworthy to associate with you but still stubbornly approached. Look, now I know I’m wrong, I won’t be an eyesore to you anymore.”

The pain in Ming Ye’s heart was unstoppable. He wanted to say that that wasn’t the case. It was him who had let these past hundred years slip by.

Su Su said, “From the beginning, it was my fault. I shouldn’t have met you, and shouldn’t have wished for what doesn’t belong to me. Now that the Mo River has flooded and the Clam Clan is dead, look at it as just the juvenile ignorance of the Clam Chan’s Sang Jiu. The Immortal Lord should be merciful1, either let me go, or kill me.”

Ming Ye’s face paled.

Su Su looked towards Shao Ju, “Let’s go.”

Shao Ju nodded. They didn’t walk far before Su Su heard a low and hoarse voice behind her, “So, did you regret, falling in love with me?”

He struggled to ask the question, as if her affirmation would be more painful than gouging a knife into his heart.

Su Su didn’t turn back, she just softly said, “Ming Ye, wouldn’t loving anyone else be better than loving you?”

Her pearls and tears, love and innocence, were all buried during these hundred years. But the price paid was too great, so great that only sorrow remained in her heart.

Su Su didn’t look back and couldn’t see Ming Ye stumbling to catch up, still wanting her to stay.

He couldn’t hold his trident or touch the hem of her clothes. The Immortal Lord, who wasn’t afraid of evil spirits or demons, was afraid of her turning back, but even more afraid of her not turning back.

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He couldn’t let her go or kill her.

He followed them for a long time, watching the wolf demon take her across the mortal world— passing through autumn fields, meadows full of blooming mountain flowers, and clean waterfalls and streams.

They walked further and further away and eventually disappeared.

He stood alone. What stopped him wasn’t the wolf demon, or because she had said, Ming Ye, wouldn’t loving anyone else be better than loving you?

Rather, what stopped him was the rare smile she’d revealed after she was properly placed into the stream.

He didn’t dare to step forward. For the first time, he clearly understood that Sang Jiu didn’t love him anymore.

*****

Ming Ye didn’t return to Shangqing.

He returned to that small deserted bamboo forest. One day, the small Earth Immortal returned. He looked at Ming Ye with fear, “T-true Lord.”

Ming Ye nodded.

Before, he couldn’t see, so now, when he closed his eyes, everything felt familiar.

He stayed for a while until he felt like couldn’t stay any longer, so he left.

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After helping the mushroom and butterfly sprite to settle down, the small Earth Immortal mumbled, “What a strange person.”

For Ming Ye, a relationship couldn’t occupy his entire life. From the beginning when they unlocked their spiritual sense, every demon sprite’s dream was to become a god.

They evaded the ruthless laws of heaven and earth, gradually able to turn stone into gold and condense water into ice, and no one would give up halfway unless it was their last resort2.

Ming Ye’s cultivation was lonelier than everyone else’s. He had earned so many achievements and virtues that even the Dao of Heaven treasured him. 

Now, he was on the verge of becoming a god. He set up a mountain dwelling3 by himself and cultivated day and night4. 

A flood dragon was only one step away from transforming into a divine dragon. There were very few gods left in the world, so if he really achieved godhood, he would be their hope for a new dawn after the war5.

The legendary dragon’s roar could often be heard above Ming Ye’s mountain dwelling.

Tian Hao came to visit and said, “Tian Huan has lost her spiritual marrow, it’ll be incredibly hard for her to cultivate the Great Dao from now on. I promised you that I wouldn’t issue the Three Realms Execution Order. If you really become a god, then protect her.”

Ming Ye indiscernibly nodded his head and took the Three Realms Execution Order.

Tian Hao looked enviously at the faint6 divine mark in the middle of his forehead and left without another word.

Everyone thought that Ming Ye was about to become a god, but only he himself knew that the divine mark between his forehead was growing dimmer day by day. Flood dragons only had two claws, but when he transformed into his original form, he had eight.

His Dao had started to leave him.

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That night, for the first time, he tried to track down the Clam Princess.

The paper crane he sent out returned with flapping wings, saying, “She is at the Unchanging Peak with the wolf demon, finding rebirth stones.”

Ming Ye calmly nodded his head.

“Rebirth stones” were often prepared for the birth of little demons. He was silent for a long time and the divine mark between his forehead grew dimmer and dimmer.

Ming Ye had forgotten how many years he had lived, but no one had ever told him why he had become like this. He took the rebirth stones in his mountain dwelling and tied them onto the paper crane. When it was about to fly away, he coldly caught it back.

At that moment, for the first time, he thought about killing the wolf demon.

The paper crane watched with fear as the divine mark on his forehead turned black. He lowered his eyes, his voice like crisp jade, “I’m sorry.”

The divine mark turned back to a holy white.

In the end, he didn’t let the paper crane take the rebirth stones away.

At the beginning of spring, he suddenly remembered that it was the third year since Sang Jiu had left him, and his paper cranes flew back chattered non-stop——

“Clam Princess is doing well.”

“She wasn’t as unhappy as the Immortal Lord expected her to be.”

“Immortal Lord, Immortal Lord, there’s no way you can go get her.”

“They found a lot of rebirth stones.”

He raised his hand and destroyed the paper cranes, and the atmosphere suddenly became peaceful.

But his heart couldn’t calm down.

These past two years, Tian Huan had come twice, but he had never seen her.

Paper shredded into pieces in the air. The last one clumsily brought out a small piece of honey. The paper crane must have stolen it from somewhere as it had almost been stung  into a sieve.

He lifted his hand, looked at it for a long time, then let it go. The paper crane flew further and further away, and finally left him as well.

Ming Ye knew that this couldn’t go on. He had many achievements and virtues. By right, he should’ve ascended and gone through his tribulation, but the sky was quiet, the tribulation thunder didn’t come, and he finally understood— his tribulation wouldn’t come.

He knew that perhaps, he might never be able to ascend. He stepped out of the mountain dwelling and somewhat hated the Clam Princess, to the point that he wanted to go find her. He wanted to ask her how she could stop loving him right after she said it.

The life of an immortal was too long and the appearance of Sang Jiu was as short as the broad-leaved epiphyllum7.

It’s just a little girl’s love, he thought to himself. How short-lived and cheap. Because of a wolf demon, she didn’t even look back when she left him.