Xin Lan stayed in the courtyard, staring at the spot where Xiang Yu had just vanished. This whole matter … it was odd. The Son of Heaven having vanished, Qiu Ling being in that state, something being wrong with Jin Ling’s soul … Just what was going on recently?

It was almost like fate was toying with them. Or, well, fate … he’d rather put this on the head of Tian himself. That asshole should have the power to do this and who knew what was going on in his mind? Maybe this was just phase two of his revenge plot against, well, everyone in the world really.

Although … he had to give it to him that he had indeed helped Jinde out of his predicament after he asked him to. He still had no idea what exactly Tian had done in return but Tian had upheld his end of the bargain. And whatever that guy had come up with, it couldn’t be worse than killing him … right?

Xin Lan’s lips twitched. Actually, he wasn’t so sure about it and he felt uncomfortable not knowing what had happened to him. He couldn’t change it though and he also didn’t dare to march back to the High Heavens and ask. He had offended Tian many times already. If he continued … well, he would certainly get the short end of the stick.

Just look at how nobody but Tian had been able to help Jinde and you knew it wasn’t a good idea to get on his bad side. Not that he still had any chance of ending up on the good one. Tian despised him. That feeling was mutual but then, Tian didn’t need him so that guy didn’t have to get his approval or anything. He, on the other hand, might have to rely on Tian if the lives of the people around him continued to be like this.

Xin Lan raised his head to the sky and wondered if maybe this was what was going on: Maybe somebody specific related to them had gotten on that guy’s nerves and now, he was taking it out on everyone. He’d totally do something like that. After all, wasn’t that how the three immortal races had ended up cursed in the first place?

Thinking about it though, it didn’t seem like there was anyone important enough for Tian to put them in his eyes. Back then, he had cared about Xing so whatever happened to Xing, he paid attention to it. If you bothered that person, you ended up on his husband’s revenge list. It was as simple as that.

But now … Xing was … maybe dead or maybe just somewhere else but he didn’t seem to have anything to do with them. In that case, why would Tian care about them? The one person closest to him should be Xiang Yu but … he didn’t believe it was to this degree.

Xin Lan furrowed his brows. Xiang Yu … Yes, as a fallen god, he was getting some special treatment from Tian. For example, going and asking questions shouldn’t be an issue. Tian would probably patiently answer them for him.

That was good. In this case, it was really good. Otherwise, none of these things might be able to be solved and since he cared about Jinde, he naturally didn’t want to see that. He felt odd about the whole thing though. Seriously, why was Tian so patient with that guy?

He thought back to how Xiang Yu had looked when he left and hummed faintly. He really didn’t look bad. If not for being a fallen god and having ties to Hua Lin Yu, he might have entertained that thought. As things stood though … he really wasn’t in the mood.

He lowered his head and stared at the shell half-submerged in the water. He didn’t like children too much. Back then, Jin Ling had annoyed him to no end and he had only suffered his presence because he was enamored with Jinde and didn’t want to give up his place at his side. Having one of his own was completely out of the question.

This was one of those things that didn’t make him an attractive partner for many people. And that was on top of the thing with the curse which made other dragons not really trust in his commitment. Well, they weren’t wrong. Apart from Jinde and Hua Lin Yu, he had never even thought of committing to somebody long-term. Being in a relationship was, to him, just a way to pass some time. Often enough, it wouldn’t even be long enough to call it a relationship.

For the longest time, he had been alright with that but after falling for Hua Lin Yu, he now missed the time when they were together, just spending every day at each other’s side. He wanted that again but … it didn’t seem possible.

Xin Lan sighed and turned to look at the door leading to Qiu Ling’s room. Jinde had somehow managed to survive, meet his soul-bound partner again, get married, and now even have a child. The odds had been stacked against him and yet, he had managed to have all this. In that case, maybe he shouldn’t give up either.

It didn’t have to be right now. Anyway, he wasn’t over his Xiao Yu. When he closed his eyes, he felt as if he could still see him right in front of him and feel the soft touch of his fingers on his skin. He certainly still heard his voice, complaining and acting coquettish, being angry at him, or acting cute. There was so much he had experienced with him and at the same time, it had been way too little. How could it be that they had only gotten a few short years with each other?

He sighed, regretting how everything had started. He should have taken it more seriously. Maybe then, the time would have felt a little longer. Now, it was already over and he could only hope for his own future to contain a person that could make his heart beat again, however unlikely that might be.