Shiguan looked up, her expression desolate and lonely, as her clothes fluttered in the wind. Xuanyuan didn’t like seeing Shiguan so sad. She slowly turned around, her sad gaze fixed on Xuanyuan one last time, as she walked away.
When faced by such a sad sight, Xuanyuan didn’t want Shiguan to face the royal family alone. While the trip may be dangerous, Xuanyuan was determined to accompany her.
“Shiguan, hold on.”
Shiguan stopped and looked back expectantly. “Mister Xuanyuan?”
“If you insist on going, I shall accompany you. However, I’ll be the one making the decisions. If that’s not okay with you, I’ll ask the pig to send you back to the Mo land.” Xuanyuan said decisively. Since Shiguan was not going to change her mind, the only thing Xuanyuan could do was protect her, and make sure she never got hurt.
“Are you serious, Mister Xuanyuan?” Shiguan asked, tears in her eyes. She was overjoyed. She didn’t think Xuanyuan would help her, especially in front of Yin Zhenluo. Wasn’t he afraid that Yin Zhenluo would be angry. Based on her intuition, the relationship between Xuanyuan and Yin Zhenluo was complicated. She knew that she shouldn’t try to jump in between, but she couldn’t help herself.
Seeing her face light up, Xuanyuan said, “Of course. I never lie to you. When do you plan on leaving?”
The Emperor frowned, since he wasn’t too fond of the plan. While the Northern Dynasty may be in disarray right now, when faced with a common enemy, they would unite. But he knew that nothing he said would change Shiguan’s mind. And Xuanyuan would not be swayed unless Shiguan dropped her plan of going to the capital. Shaking his head, he bid them farewell and walked away with the two people by his side.
The Lark Garden once again was calm since the dispositions had deactivated themselves. Only Yin Zhenluo, Shiguan, and Xuanyuan were present.
“I promise I’ll listen to you.” Moved by his kindness, Shiguan walked forward and hugged Xuanyuan. “Thank you for everything, Mister Xuanyuan.” Saying that she released Xuanyuan; she didn’t want to overstep her bounds. After all, Yin Zhenluo was also present, and she should take care to consider her feelings as well.
Satisfied that she got to hug him, she thought to herself, “I’m glad I took this opportunity, for I don’t know when can I next embrace him.”
Yin Zhenluo looked at SHiguan, the smallest trace of indescribable bitterness in her eyes. She envied Shiguan who could act so simple and kind. Despite her being almost killed, she still dared to come back to the lion’s den. She wasn’t afraid of death. She always did her best to please everyone, not calculating the benefits and losses whenever she did something.
Yin Zhenluo couldn’t act like this. Ever since she was born, she was taught to gain the maximum benefit for the smallest sacrifice. While sometimes she hated this aspect of herself, there was nothing she could do. Her nature had already been set, and she couldn’t break away from the fetters that were placed on her due to her status.
It wasn’t until she met Xuanyuan that she realised that people could live so unrestrained, but by then it was too late.
“You don’t have to thank me. Now that the matter has been settled, you should go back and rest. I also need to prepare for the journey. Zhenluo, what do you plan to do now?” Xuanyuan turned to Yin Zhenluo and asked. Naturally, he didn’t realise that Yin Zhenluo was unhappy.
“Well,” Yin Zhenluo paused, and then said with a chuckle, “Since I’m already here, I’ll accompany you. After all, the more people, the safer you will be.”
Xuanyuan slowly said, “Zhenluo, that’s not safe. As a member of the Yin Family, there’s a lot of friction between the Eastern Dynasty and the Northern Dynasty. It’s not safe for you to accompany us. As it is, Shiguan and I are embarking on a fool’s errand. Why don’t you return to the Eastern Dynasty?”
“Xuanyuan!” Yin Zhenluo raised her voice. Calming herself, she said softly, “Xuanyuan, am I that unbearable in your eyes?”
“I never meant to insinuate that, Zhenluo! It’s just that I’m worried about you. I feel it’s unnecessary to take on this risk. I have to go because I cannot let Shiguan walk into the lion’s den all by herself, but there’s no need for you to risk yourself as well.”
“You say that I don’t need to do this, but I owe Miss Shiguan. After all, she saved my life.”
“What?” Xuanyuan froze. Turning to Shiguan, he asked, “What does she mean?”
Shiguan glanced at the pig and slowly said, “When the pig emperor sent me back to the Mo Land last time, I arrived at the Northern area. I saw Miss Yin being attacked by fierce animals, and I helped her kill them. To be honest, it’s an exaggeration to say that I saved her. Her strength was enough to easily escape, at best I helped her.”
“Regardless, the fact remains that she helped me once. It’s my turn to help her back, and thus I shall accompany you.” Yin Zhenluo said determinedly. She could sense that Shiguan liked Xuanyuan as well.
“Very well then. We shall all leave together.” Xuanyuan sighed. He knew that Yin Zhenluo was stubborn as well, and she wouldn’t change her mind. Luckily, the pig had broken through to the xian realm, which meant it should be safer to travel. It would not be tough to escape if the need arose. “Let’s all go back to our rooms and rest. We’ll leave in the morning tomorrow.”
When Shiguan and Yin Zhenluo left, Xuanyuan thought to himself, “How strange. To think that Shiguan saved Zhenluo. It’s like everything is connected in this world.”
“Haha, you have the pig emperor to thank for that. Were it not for his transmission sending Shiguan to save Miss Yin, the two of them would have fought at first sight.” Greed tried to stir Xuanyuan up.
“Why don’t you marry both Shiguan and Yin Zhenluo as soon as possible? I don’t think either of them would be opposed to it.” The pig laughed.
“I’ve not finished with you, bastard.” Xuanyuan rolled his eyes at this pig, and sat cross legged on the bed. The pig, who now looked like Guxing, spoke telepathically to him.
He, Greed, and the pig were linked telepathically. He couldn’t hide anything from the two of them. It was no surprise that the pig had appeared exactly when he had found the rare treasure at Cheng Men. Greed must have alerted him.
“Boy, what do you want from me now. Anyway, hurry up and give me the Devouring Source. I can use it better than you.” The pig said arrogantly.
“Do you want me to kick you down the ladder? Don’t even think about it. I’d rather sell it before giving it to you. You, who took the form of Guxing and had me excited for a brief second?”
The pig grinned a bit, and thought back on his actions. Even he felt that he had gone too far. He shrugged as he shook his heavy silver fur. He was strong, and looked almost like Guxing.
“Haha, I just wanted to ease your pain a bit. As I said, I can assume a human from once I reach the seventh circle of the xian realm. Now hurry up and give me the Devouring Source.”
“If I give you the source, then you have to make sure that you are well prepared for our journey. I don’t want any excuses for any eventuality. Otherwise, I’ll lock you up.”
The pig looked at Xuanyuan. He seemed to be speaking seriously, so the pig replied seriously.
“Don’t worry. You think I’ll lose to anyone who’s in the xian realm or below? Don’t worry, my dispositions are unbreakable.”
“In that case, you take the lead tomorrow.”
Xuanyuan and the pig continued to make plans for tomorrow.