Tian narrowed his eyes, his own thoughts wandering. He wasn’t willing to wait forever and, right now, the situation was perfect. He might never have circumstances as favorable as this even if he got more involved in setting things up. He simply couldn’t pass up on this chance.

Tian tightly furrowed his brows, feeling some urgency that he hadn’t felt even once in all this time. Yes, from the very beginning when he made his promise to Xing, he had known it would take a long time until he found somebody suitable. But now, this person was here. Only the last step remained to be taken.

Beside him, Jing He watched silently as his father forced him to meet one of the marriage candidates he deemed suitable. He looked miserable in the projection but in Tian’s palace, his eyes slowly filled with tears. Maybe it was because he had watched his whole life unfold in front of his eyes again in the past week or maybe his emotions were simply more volatile as a fallen god but he couldn’t keep the tears back at all.

Thankfully, that meeting was soon followed by his final encounter with Qiu Ling before he fell the next day. Then, the surface of the water mirror returned to the crystal-clear appearance it had shown in the beginning.

Jing He stared at it in a daze, the tears continuing to run down his cheeks. The things he had been shown were in the past and now, not even their projection remained. Unfortunately, the good things that had been mixed with the bad ones were also a thing of the past now and the beautiful love he had once shared with Qiu Ling had come to an end. That thought only made him tear up further.

Tian had originally shown him all of this to prove that there was a good reason for his fall and also to give Jing He time to slowly even out his mood. He wasn’t sure how successful the latter had been but it at least seemed to have worked to a degree. Right now, that was all he asked for.

He turned to look at him, his expression not changing in the slightest at the sight of Jing He’s tears. “Now, do you believe that you had good reason to turn into a fallen god?”

Jing He was finally pulled out of his thoughts. He also turned to the side, looking at Tian whose figure seemed slightly blurred through his tears. He tried to wipe them away but new ones would simply follow right after. Just like when he remembered that Qiu Ling was not a pure-blooded dragon and realized what this might mean for their relationship or when he originally saw the sign that he was now a fallen god, unable to be with the one he loved forever, he saw no way forward and the only thing he could do was to express his powerlessness in these tears.

Just like before, he felt embarrassed being seen like this by anyone, even more so by the supreme sovereign. But the pain in his heart overshadowed this feeling. Anyway, what did it matter? He was even a fallen god now. Showing his emotions this directly seemed like nothing in comparison.

Tian didn’t care about those tears. Even though he treated fallen gods slightly better compared to others, even they couldn’t reach his heart. That place was reserved for Xing alone. Wasn’t that why he was doing all of this? Either way, he tried to strike while the iron was hot. “You have fallen but that is not a failure of character. Still, I can see why this would have you distraught. As a fallen god, you would be hunted in the Nine Heavens and even living in the dragon realm would be difficult.”

Jing He lowered his head, once again thinking of Qiu Ling. Judging by that letter before, he knew what had happened and had even seen him. He still seemed like he wanted to be with him. That was just how Qiu Ling was. But he … he didn’t have the face to even think about it. After all, what Tian said was true. “Nobody would accept me.”

“Save for your lover, yes.” Tian reached out and grasped Jing He’s chin again, making him raise his head. “Then let me tell you what I have already told him when he came here in search of you: A trueborn god falls because they find themselves in a situation that is too much for them to bear. An obsession is born and their soul shatters, opening up their full potential in terms of skills while also contorting their view of the world.

“They are the most powerful people in this world and yet, they are also the most vulnerable. Their tempers are volatile and if their obsession is touched, nobody can predict how they will react. This is why they are feared and why the gods want to see them dead at any price.

“But …” His gaze deepened and the strength with which he was holding Jing He’s chin seemed to become heavier. “What the immortal races are unaware of is that the fallen gods are not beyond redemption. Their … condition is based on their obsession and if they manage to overcome that obsession, they can turn back into a trueborn god with no sign of what happened previously. Do you understand what that means?”

Jing He stared at him in a daze, unable to believe what he had heard. “Become … a trueborn god again?”

“Yes.” Tian finally let go but his gaze still rested on Jing He just like before. “You can shake off the identity of a fallen god as long as you overcome your obsession. There is nothing more to it than that. Nobody who didn’t see you in your previous state would ever know that you once were a fallen god. It’ll be as if nothing has ever changed and you could be with the one you love without issue. Now, the question is … do you want to give it a try?”