“Ah?” Jing He couldn’t utter anything more intelligible than that. His mind was completely blank at the moment, unable to grasp what was going on. Hadn’t they been talking about his upcoming wedding? Why was his father suddenly …

The hope that had ignited in his heart suddenly extinguished and he lowered his head. Right. He hadn’t said yet that he wanted to get married. He had tried to broach the topic in a general way to give his father time to adapt to the thought that he was indeed not a child any longer. He had thought that this way, his reaction when he realized what this was about wouldn’t be as big.

Now, it seemed that this plan had misfired. His father hadn’t actually understood. He hadn’t already been thinking about his marriage. No, they had talked about two completely different things. Realizing this, he suddenly felt tired.

He should have expected this. He absolutely should have. There was just no way for his father to think about his marriage this early on. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have rejected Qiu Ling’s advances toward him as violently or at least would have brought up alternative candidates. It wasn’t like his father would spare his feelings in this regard. So yes, of course, he had been talking about something else.

Jing He didn’t dare to raise his head again. He tightly clenched his hands, trying not to show on his face just how disappointed he was. “Father’s meaning is … I should go on my first trial?”

Yes, this matter, it had actually slipped his mind. When he originally came of age, it had been at the forefront of his thoughts and he had believed it would be good to take care of this immediately.

At that time, the fear from the way his childhood played out hadn’t subsided yet and a trial that allowed him to live out another life in the mortal realm, with none of his original memories to weigh him down, had actually sounded like a pleasant experience. Even though that life wouldn’t be without hardship, it couldn’t be worse than what he had already lived through.

He had never admitted this in front of anyone but … he hated this life he had. Growing up, which day had he not been terrified? He still remembered all those times he had barely escaped death. That day when a storm suddenly erupted just when he was hiding away, making him fall so sick he couldn’t open his eyes for two weeks, that moment when the ground beneath rumbled and split, almost causing him to fall inside, or the time when the palace around him burst into flames, the falling debris threatening to strike him if he took just one wrong step.

Those had just been a few of the many dangers he had survived. Two thousand years of such things … naturally, it had caused him to become scared. He had started not to go where he wasn’t expected to be because he knew that he couldn’t be saved in time if he did and something happened again. He wouldn’t easily trust other people because he could never be sure if they wouldn’t suddenly turn against him, threatening to maim or kill him.

Such a life … He had often wondered if it was even worth living. But he also knew that this was only temporary. It was the effect of the curse placed on his family and as long as he managed to reach his coming-of-age ceremony safely, it would be over. He simply had to hold out. Just two thousand years of this and he would be done.

Anyway, it hadn’t been easy but he had managed to pull through. When the ceremony was over and he looked up at the blue sky, he had hardly been able to believe that he was now free though. At that time, he had thought that it would indeed be good to descend to the mortal realm for his trial. He could live another life there from beginning to end. One that was filled with hardship but not with mortal danger. When he returned and then slowly regained his memories, maybe it could calm the fear in his heart.

It was a pity … his parents had also worried about him and from his father’s attitude, he could see that he wouldn’t allow him to do so. In the end, he never brought it up but his mind returned to this idea every now and then, wondering when it would be time to finally have that peaceful life.

When was it that he forgot about this? It seemed to be when he met Qiu Ling and slowly fell in love. Yes, at that time, he stopped feeling as if descending to the mortal realm would be such a good thing. Anyway, those two thousand years had passed. There was no danger any longer and he … to be honest, for the first time, he was content with his life.

Yes, there were still many things that were difficult. He had doubted Qiu Ling’s sincerity for a long time, he had feared what it would mean to accept this relationship, he didn’t know how to convince his father that the dragon king would make a fine candidate for his spouse. But even with all of these problems, there was something to look forward to every day. He wasn’t alone any longer, he didn’t feel trapped in his own palace. Instead, he felt as if it was a world for just the two of them that gave him a feeling of comfort and security. Why would he still want to go on a trial?

But now, now that he had decided to marry Qiu Ling and make those secret feelings public, his father suddenly brought up his previous wish. And the worst thing was … he couldn’t reject it. After all, the trials were mandatory and while there was some flexibility in when they were to be done, it was indeed about time for him. If he didn’t do his first trial now, the consequences would not be pretty.

When his thoughts arrived at this conjecture, Jing He sighed lightly. “If this is the case, then I should naturally do so. In fact, it might be best to start early so it can be finished early as well. Let’s just set the time for next week if it is convenient for the Palace of Fate to finish the fate until then.”

As for his wedding to Qiu Ling … it could only be held after the trial. Well, time flowed differently between the mortal and immortal realm so it wouldn’t matter much. He would be gone for a few weeks at most so this wasn’t too bad. Instead, he was more worried about the content of the trial.

For the trial, the god’s soul would descend to the mortal realm while their bodies remained in the Nine Heavens. Down there, they would be reborn as a human child, grow up, live a life, and finally welcome death before their souls returned to the Nine Heavens and their original bodies. Such a life in a trial naturally contained everything that one would encounter in their life as a god as well. This also meant … matters such as falling in love. But in his case, that naturally could not be permitted. Not when he was already in love with Qiu Ling and had promised himself to him. This problem, he had to consider it carefully.

Making up his mind, Jing He finally raised his head and gave a faint smile. “Father, you talk to the Fate’s Scribe alone and see if it is possible. While I will not remember, I believe I shouldn’t be too involved in this. Instead, I will use the opportunity to prepare myself since I will be gone for a few weeks. At the very least, I should accompany you and mother a bit more. Since you’re going to be busy now, I will go and see her first.”

Even though Rong Su would have liked to keep his son at his side, he also understood what he meant and at the very least, he was going to see his mother and not that unreasonable dragon king. Thinking of that, he finally agreed and the two of them bid farewell, both starting the preparations for Jing He’s trial.