Having finished that, the three of them continued on their way to the Long kingdom’s capital city.

Wu Ya used the opportunity to tell them about his journeys, mentioning how he had met Xin Lan and Hua Lin Yu and followed them to the mortal realm from the spirit beasts’ territory before he focused on everything else. Admittedly, most of it was dedicated to his search for a lover so the topic soon got back to Hong Bao.

Qiu Ling gave him a helpless look, feeling that this was really out of his expectations. Not even mentioning that he had a lover of his own and couldn’t fall in love again as a dragon, he simply couldn’t see the appeal of that woman no matter how he looked. But then, if it made Wu Ya happy, he also wouldn’t say anything. Instead, seeing as he seemed to be serious about this, he finally decided that he should ignore the identity of the other party and encourage him in his endeavor.

“Well, she’s going to be at the gathering as well and she will be in the Hei Dian Sect in the meantime. Jing’er promised one of the disciples there that he would help him out until next week so that he can get everything done in time to attend. After we find a spot for the gathering, we could totally bring you there so you can spend some more time with her and hopefully woo her.”

Even though he hadn’t shown it, Wu Ya had naturally noticed that Qiu Ling was less than thrilled about his feelings for Hong Bao. Hearing him say this, his eyes lit up for more than one reason. He was naturally happy at the opportunity to spend more time with Hong Bao, but he also cherished the fact that Qiu Ling was trying to look out for him. After all, this meant that he cared and that, in turn, was a sign that they were getting closer. “That would be incredibly kind of you but if you still have a lot to do, then I’d rather help you. Anyway, this seems to be very important to the two of you.”

Jing Yi smiled and shook his head. “Even though it’s important, we’re friends, and helping friends is even more important than preparing something like this. Also, to be honest, this isn’t a difficult task to accomplish. In fact, Qiu Ling and I will probably enjoy strolling through the Long kingdom’s capital city and simply look for a suitable place at the side. He probably sees this as a romantic outing more than anything else.”

He glanced at Qiu Ling who immediately gave a hum of approval. Being called out for this wasn’t something that he minded. Especially not when it was in front of Wu Ya who was currently head over heels for a person himself. If he didn’t get it, he didn’t deserve a partner!

Wu Ya chuckled but then hastily cleared his throat so Qiu Ling wouldn’t feel that he was making fun of him. “Ah, I guess I should not intrude then. Actually, I do happen to know where the Hei Dian Sect is. I could go there on my own as well. But then, it would probably make sense to send me over with the message instead.

“Well, how about this? We’ll go to the Long kingdom’s capital city together, I will get a room somewhere, and the two of you can start your stroll. After you find a place, you can tell me where it is, and I’ll bring the news over to the Hei Dian Sect tomorrow morning. Then, you can enjoy the last few days by yourself while I can go and try to win Hong Bao over.”

Qiu Ling immediately nodded. “I’d be on board with that!”

Jing Yi looked from one person to the other, smiling faintly. “Well, if the two of you have already agreed, I guess I don’t need to say anything else. Let’s hurry up then! The sooner we find a suitable spot, the sooner Wu Ya can go and see Hong Bao again.”

Encouraging themselves like this, they sped up and soon arrived at the city that Jing Yi remembered. It was just that … compared to back then, he felt that it didn’t look the same even when he looked at it from the outside.

For a moment, he was completely in a daze. Then, he turned to Qiu Ling, looking at him in puzzlement. “This was the right way, wasn’t it?”

Qiu Ling nodded and then sighed. “Yes, that was indeed the right way. But this is the mortal realm and not a cultivation sect either but the secular world. Here, even though time moves the same, in fact, things change aster. A thousand years … I’m afraid that you can call it lucky that this place is even still called the Long kingdom.”

Jing Yi furrowed his brows but finally, he could only sigh. “Well, I guess I should have expected that. No matter what, I wanted to see it. And I think that this is something I should see.”

He didn’t want to say it in front of Wu Ya but if he was already shocked after not seeing a place for a thousand years, then he was afraid that he would be in even deeper trouble after waking up again whenever Jing He passed away. After all, with Jing He and Qiu Ling living in the immortal realms, much more time would pass in the mortal realm.

When he returned, the whole world might look different. At that time, don’t mention the village where he had grown up or the capital city of the Long kingdom, even the cultivation sects that he had once been to may not exist anymore. That was a thought that he needed to get used to now. Otherwise, the shock would really be too big when the time came.

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