Well, for the time being, there was nothing the two of them could do. Whatever Qiu Ling could try and however the Heavenly Emperor might react to them, all of that was a thing for the future and likely not one that would come to pass anytime soon.

Qiu Ling simply continued to hold Jing He in his arms, gently brushing through his hair. He didn’t say anything else, knowing fully well that there was nothing that he could say that would make a difference. They both knew how Jing He’s father was and they had to live with that while hoping for the best. Since they couldn’t change it, it was a lot better to simply focus on Jing He getting better. Everything else could wait until later.

Jing He had similar thoughts about the situation. He hugged Qiu Ling back, trying not to think about the future too much. Of course, this was the one topic his thoughts revolved around these days so it wasn’t easy to suddenly push it off. Still, having talked about it for a while, there would be no new insight to be had even if they continued to speak about this.

Qiu Ling had promised that he wouldn’t stop trying which was all he could ask for. As for the rest, they’d have to see what happened. Not just with his father but also about his own situation. Depending on whether he recovered his identity as a trueborn god or not and when it happened, his father’s behavior might also be influenced. He didn’t want to believe that his father was so callous that he could completely ignore his disappearance.

So far, his father still didn’t believe Qiu Ling that he had become a fallen god. Instead, he was still insisting that all of this was a plot and that Qiu Ling was behind it. It was just … if this was the truth, then why wasn’t his father doing more to get him back? Shouldn’t he be coming up with a plan instead of just keeping an eye on Qiu Ling? Or did he at least trust Qiu Ling enough to be sure that he wouldn’t hurt him?

No matter how he thought about it, he wasn’t sure what to make of his father’s behavior. He closed his eyes, trying to get rid of that thought, but he couldn’t quite find any peace. With Qiu Ling staying silent, his thoughts couldn’t help but wander, and with the situation he was in, they would always return to either his father’s attitude or his own situation in general.

After a while of trying fruitlessly, Jing He looked up at Qiu Ling. He couldn’t take the silence any longer but he also felt that he had nothing left to say. The topics regarding his situation had been exhausted and everything else seemed so far away that he couldn’t bring himself to even mention it. In that case … “I … I should probably go back soon.”

He had only come to the Nine Heavens to speak to Qiu Ling about the sacrifice he could make and find out what his thoughts were. Of course, he had also wanted to see him and spend time with him for a while, no matter what they talked about but that had been the reason he decided to open the portal. Now, that original goal had been achieved. As for the rest … Even though he wanted to stay and spend more time together, he probably couldn’t do so for much longer.

Tian was still waiting in the High Heavens for him to return. Even though he wasn’t keeping an eye on him all the time, he had still made it clear that he was paying attention to him. Since he hadn’t wanted him to go to Qiu Ling to ask for advice too often and had even said so directly, he didn’t think that Tian would react positively if he knew that he had come here and stayed for another full night. Since that was the case, it would indeed be best to return sooner rather than later, even if that wasn’t what he himself wanted.

Qiu Ling didn’t know what was going through Jing He’s mind at this moment but he could still guess some of it. Anyway, his beloved’s situation was complicated. He was very well aware of that. So even though he loathed to part ways again after just being able to spend a little time together, he knew that he had to accept this.

He sighed and nodded faintly. “Alright. Then I suppose it’s time to say our farewells again.” He looked at him with a complicated expression, wondering if it was better to express his heartache so Jing He knew how he felt or to keep silent about it so he wouldn’t feel more reluctant to leave.

In the end, he leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “You go and do what you have to. I will wait for you to come back whether that is for a temporary visit or because you have reached your goal. I will always wait for you.”

Jing He nodded and hugged Qiu Ling more tightly. “I will hurry.” He couldn’t bear to leave him either. Just like last time, now that he was finally at his side again, it was hard to find the strength to let go and leave him again. If only time could stop at this moment so they could stay like this forever …

Qiu Ling hugged him back but finally forced himself to retract his hands. “I …” He wasn’t sure what to say and could only look at Jing He with the same complicated expression. Finally, he opened his spatial ring and pulled out another stack of envelopes. “I don’t know if you read the previous ones but do you want to take these along?” This seemed to be the only thing he had left he could do for him: To reassure him that he had been thinking about him all the time.