Jing He tensed. Due to the way he had grown up under the curse on his family, he had developed a keen intuition. Even without knowing the full situation, he could sense if things were off. That was why he knew that there was danger ahead as soon as he remembered how he met Yong Hai during his trial while Jing Yi wasn’t able to tell at all that this person was targeting him. Several times, this intuition had saved his life.

Right now, it was once again alarming him. Something about the current situation was wrong. It might not be threatening his life but he should be careful with how he proceeded. Otherwise, who knew what the consequences would be?

The idea startled him and, for a moment, he simply stared at Tian blankly, his thoughts unable to catch up. The other person was the supreme sovereign, the one ruling over all realms, and also somebody who had helped him and Qiu Ling before. There should be no reason to fear his intentions and yet … he almost trembled because of the chill that crept up from the soles of his feet.

Jing He took a faint breath and slowly, the actual meaning of Tian’s words sank in: The supreme sovereign wanted to help him recover from his state of being a fallen god so he could become a trueborn god again.

That was what he had said and even when Jing He repeated the words in his mind, nothing about them seemed wrong. It was a generous offer and looking at Tian’s previous behavior, it didn’t seem impossible for this to be true.

Hadn’t he helped him during the trial to heal his soul and even warned him to pay attention to it in the future? Hadn’t he helped Qiu Ling recover his senses after he had to watch his mortal reincarnation die? Hadn’t he taken him away from the Nine Heavens and brought him to safety after he fell? Hadn’t he explained what he needed to know so he could make it through this time?

Yes, no matter how he looked at Tian’s previous behavior, all of it seemed to have been helpful. Without this, he would have taken a long time to heal his soul and Qiu Ling might not have managed to recover his wits, maybe even dying in that state before they could reunite. Looking at it this way, Tian was their benefactor, somebody they owed a lot to, likely even their lives. How could he suspect him? And yet …

Jing He looked at the man in front of him, trying to find any clues that could solve the riddle of what he had subconsciously taken issue with. Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be anything. Tian’s expression was as serious as usual, the words only seemed to indicate his willingness to help while still leaving the decision up to him. As for the situation in general …

His gaze slipped to the person next to him and then stayed on that beautiful face or, more precisely, on the black mark between Xing’s eyebrows. If a fallen god could recover … then why was Xing like this? Why was he laid out like this, his original identity as a trueborn god not yet recovered? What was different about their situations?

Jing He retracted his gaze and turned back to Tian, feeling that he had almost caught onto the issue. He hesitated but finally still spoke up. “Can I truly be helped?” He didn’t dare to ask his doubts directly, not before he had not grasped better what was going on.

Tian simply inclined his head. “Yes. Your obsession is not that deep and the circumstances are favorable. With my help, it should be easy to disentangle your thoughts and have you overcome this challenge.”

Jing He fell silent again. Had he overthought it? Was it simply that his obsession was not as deep as Xing’s and this was why he could be helped but Tian’s own lover couldn’t be? But … it didn’t seem to make sense. If it was Qiu Ling, he would never rest before he hadn’t done everything he could to help him. Tian shouldn’t be any different so how come Xing was in this state even after such a long time had passed? There had to be a reason.

Jing He’s hands trembled and he hastily clenched them into fists. Yes, this should be it. There was something about Xing, something that related to him. Thinking about it this way, it made sense. Why else would Tian help him? He didn’t care about the trueborn gods and certainly not about the Heavenly Family. If he did this, then it had to have other reasons. Maybe by helping him, he could help his own lover. That would explain his actions.

Coming to this conclusion, Jing He calmed down again. If Tian was using him for his own gains, that was acceptable. His family owed this person and … there was no saying that this wouldn’t also help him. Maybe both sides could receive what they wanted. Wouldn’t that be for the best?

He raised his gaze to Tian’s eyes and carefully put forth his doubts. “I indeed want to recover and your help would be very welcome as I wouldn’t even know where to begin with unraveling this obsession. It is just … you are the supreme sovereign and the past between you and my family is complicated at best. I wonder … why you would help me. Is it that you wish to receive something in return?”

Tian looked at the youth in front of him, his expression still unchanged. He wasn’t surprised. Somebody who loved to overthink so much naturally had a high chance to discover that something was amiss. But then, he didn’t seem against going forward despite that. In his eyes, it was likely worth it to make a deal with him no matter the price as long as it meant that he could recover his previous identity and be with the one he loved. Naturally, Tian understood.

“You are right. I am not helping you in a selfless bid of charity. I expect to receive something for my help.”

Jing He inclined his head, completely relaxing now that Tian had admitted to it. Just as the supreme sovereign had thought, he was willing to make a deal with him. He wanted nothing but to be with Qiu Ling and he needed to strip off this identity of a fallen god to do so. Naturally, he would agree if Tian had a way to help him achieve that. “Then may I ask … what is it that you want me to do?” He gazed at him deeply, well aware that this might be a turning point.

Tian only hummed faintly in response. “I want you to have my child.”