Qiu Ling leaned closer and kissed him again, the anxiety in his heart lessening slightly.

As their lips met, Jing He quietly repeated those words to himself and silently added to the promise in his mind: Let’s be together and never separate. Whether it’s in this life or the next. I will always … only love you. There will never be another man in my heart or at my side. There will only be you. Forever only you. To that, I swear in Heaven’s name.

When Qiu Ling finally pulled back, both of them felt calm. Jing He brushed his lover’s chest with his fingers and faintly turned to the side. “We should probably sleep.” He would have liked to stay up all night with Qiu Ling but … it hadn’t been that long since he engraved his soul. He still needed more rest. The tiredness he felt wasn’t just physical, after all, but something deeper. Considering that his actual soul would be the one descending to the mortal realm for his trial, he didn’t dare to take it lightly.

Qiu Ling also nodded. “Yes, let’s sleep.” He still leaned in again though and his lips found Jing He’s forehead, leaving a short kiss on his skin. “Goodnight, my love.”

“Goodnight.” Jing He hurriedly closed his eyes, his heart beating fast again. This kiss on his forehead was a lot less outrageous than what had happened before but the gentleness it showed still made his thoughts wander.

Qiu Ling waited for a moment and then lay down again, gathered Jing He into his arms, and simply held him. He didn’t intend to sleep tonight. No, this was the last night he could spend with Jing He before the trial. After that, even if he followed him and spent time with his mortal reincarnation, it wouldn’t be the same. The two of them would only see each other again in two or three months. It was a long time. Naturally, he had to make use of the last opportunity he had to hold Jing He in his arms and look at him. He definitely couldn’t sleep.

Jing He couldn’t calm down for some time but even though he had slept in this morning, he still felt tired. So when Qiu Ling lay next to him quietly and only held him without saying a word, he slowly drifted off into sleep, his breath evening out.

Qiu Ling stared at him and hummed. There was something beautiful about this moment. Just being able to lie on the same bed and hug each other, listening as Jing He fell asleep, and knowing that tomorrow morning, when they woke up, the first thing they’d see would be each other … wasn’t that magical?

He … he wanted life to always be like this.

Qiu Ling’s heartbeat sped up to the point where he felt that it had to be so loud that you could hear it throughout the whole palace. He and Jing He … they were meant to be and they were meant to stay with one another for eternity. Since this was the case, that should be made clear.

He reached up and gently grasped Jing He’s hand. “My love?” He only dared to whisper and his voice even trembled a little. The thought that had just struck his mind couldn’t be ignored but the impact it had made him shiver with excitement.

It was a pity that Jing He was already asleep and after the torture he had put himself through the prior day, he wasn’t easily woken up.

Qiu Ling called his name once again but when he realized that Jing He was so exhausted that this couldn’t wake him up, he didn’t try again. He simply lay there in the darkness, his heart beating fast.

With the urge being there, he couldn’t press the thought down again. He had fleetingly thought of this in the past but had held back at the last moment. At that time, he had felt that maybe they hadn’t come that far yet and history was proof that this shouldn’t be done hastily.

Now though, they were already engaged and after they separated for the trial, they would finally come together in marriage. Well, maybe being separated beforehand was even more of a reason that he currently felt as he did.

Dragons could only fall in love once during their lifetime. But even if you had found your fated lover, there was something that could bring you even closer together, something that their people regarded as the ultimate proof of love: binding your soul to that of your partner.

The souls of every race differed slightly with the dragons being firm but flexible enough to detach parts of it. When they had found the one they loved, they would take a piece of their soul and attach it to that of their partner as a sign of their feelings. This was called soul-binding. When it was done, it couldn’t be undone and that pair of dragons would live and die together from then on out.

Because they couldn’t live without their partner after the soul-binding was complete, it wasn’t recommended to do so easily. Still, each of them felt the urge to do it when they had found the one they loved. Right now, Qiu Ling was precisely in this position. He just … couldn’t imagine a reason why he shouldn’t do this.

Was it dangerous to bind his soul to Jing He’s? Absolutely. If something were to happen to Jing He or if he ever fell out of love with him and left, he wouldn’t be able to go on. But then, if that happened, would he even want to continue living? That didn’t seem very likely.

Qiu Ling hummed faintly and then raised a hand, igniting a faint light and looking at his beloved’s face. Jing He’s expression was peaceful and even though he shifted slightly when the light shone on his features, he didn’t wake up. He might even sleep through the whole thing.

Qiu Ling leaned down and kissed his temple before lying down again. Usually, one would do this while both partners were awake. It was an important moment, after all, and enjoying it together seemed to be half the beauty of it.

But then, he didn’t think he could bring himself to wait until the next morning. He just … felt that it should happen right now. His heart squeezed at the thought that he wasn’t yet bound to his beloved in this way. It was long overdue so since he had thought of it, he should do it.

Anyway, Jing He was a god and they couldn’t detach parts of their soul. So maybe it was better to do this while Jing He was asleep. After all, he might feel bad about the fact that he couldn’t show his love in the same way. His beloved was very sensitive, after all, and always thought about things for his sake as well.

Qiu Ling hummed again, his heart swelling with happiness just at the simple thought that soon enough, they would be connected in this way. It was almost as happy of an occasion as their wedding would be whenever it finally occurred. Yes, in a way, this seemed to be a special moment that told of what was soon to come.

He probably should have worried. After all, his own father had found a premature death in part because he had bound himself to someone when he shouldn’t have. But, honestly, he only felt excitement and joy at the prospect of being bound to Jing He. Anyway, they would certainly have a beautiful ending.

Thinking of the future together that lay before them, Qiu Ling reached up to his chest and focused on his soul. It wasn’t the prettiest but Jing He loved him so much, he might be able to overlook that. He hesitated for a while and then chose the spot that looked the nicest, carefully pulling it off.

It was as black as ink without the slightest blemish. Among the dragons, this would be considered a nice appearance. After carefully checking it over, Qiu Ling nodded to himself and then leaned closer to Jing He.

He had the light hover in the air and then gently reached up, brushing his forehead with his fingers. Usually, he should ask permission to do this but Jing He clearly didn’t have his guard up against him. When Qiu Ling pried lightly, he managed to find the position of his soul with his spiritual sense.

The souls of the gods were nebulous and this specific one was a beautiful white soul that even seemed to shimmer lightly. Just as expected of his beloved. Qiu Ling smiled to himself after seeing it and gently inserted the piece of his soul into Jing He’s body, adding it to the side of Jing He’s soul.

The black piece twisted a little and then carefully entangled with the shimmering white fog, entwining until they were fully joined.

Qiu Ling watched the whole process and his own soul seemed to tremble with joy. He couldn’t help but hum again and when he finally retracted his spiritual sense, he felt even less sleepy than he had before. At this moment, he could have watched Jing He sleep forever. This was the one he loved, the one destined to be with him, the other half of his soul. No matter how they spent time together, it brought him an unprecedented sense of joy and it would do so for all eternity.