No matter how much others were grappling with the revelation of his mixed heritage, Qiu Ling didn’t regret exposing his dragon form for the first time. He had come a long way in accepting who he was and now that he had finally married Jing He, he didn’t need to fear the repercussions of actually living this truth. Since this was the case, he didn’t want to hide any longer. Not to mention … being able to let his beloved experience something that was as unique to the dragon race as the dragon form just seemed right.

With the speed this form gave him, the Nine Heavens were soon left behind. Qiu Ling used this as his cue to somewhat slow down, wanting to let Jing He see a little more of his realm. After drifting along with the clouds for a moment, Qiu Ling felt that doing it this way actually wasn’t quite suitable. Where was this as romantic as their wedding day should be?

He hesitated for a moment but then quickly changed his form, catching Jing He off-guard. He hurriedly caught him before Jing He could fall, gently cradling him in his arms. “Sorry about that. I just thought that we should use the opportunity now that we’re alone and enjoy the moment a little.”

Jing He’s heartbeat couldn’t quite calm down. He tightly held onto Qiu Ling’s shoulders, afraid of falling down. He couldn’t even get a single word out.

Seeing him like this, Qiu Ling felt somewhat guilty. He … probably should have given a warning at least. Obviously, he had spooked his beloved quite a bit. He coughed and then waved his hand, making a few clouds drift toward them. Fluffing them up a little and adding some magic to ensure they were safe, he carefully sat down in the middle but didn’t put Jing He down. Don’t kid him! He finally had the chance to be alone with his newly wedded husband. He’d be an idiot if he didn’t cradle him tightly in his arms to do some sightseeing from above.

Jing He’s eyes widened. In theory, he knew that this was possible but he had never done it himself. It just seemed like the kind of action that was bound to go wrong for him. But Qiu Ling was doing it with so much ease that it seemed as if he regularly traveled this way, making him feel a lot more secure than he would on his own.

He hesitated a little but then leaned further into Qiu Ling’s arm while also turning his head to look into the distance where the landscape of the dragon realm unfolded beneath. “Is this in the dragon realm already?” To be honest, he wasn’t entirely sure. Just like when he had left the High Heavens and needed to navigate the unknown territory by himself, he was unable to tell where exactly he was even though he knew the maps.

Qiu Ling nodded. “Yes, we just passed the border. That body of water in the west is the Qishi Sea. We’ll follow the shoreline and then travel a little further to the west to reach the capital city.”

Jing He nodded and looked at the sea down there. On the map, the Qishi Sea looked small in comparison to the Western Sea or the Great Ocean that surrounded the immortal realms in the other three cardinal directions. But now, being up here, he realized for the first time that even this sea spanned a large area.

He turned to look to both sides and then motioned toward where he could see a faint shadow in the distance. “Is that … where the Tian Shan is?”

Qiu Ling looked over there and nodded. “Yes. The outer reaches of the mountain range surrounding it touch the northern coastline of the Qishi Sea. In the future, I can take you there and show you. I will show you the whole dragon realm.” He lowered his head and kissed Jing He’s shoulder, sighing faintly. “My love … we’re married now. Going forward, I am your husband.”

Jing He retracted his gaze and instead looked up at Qiu Ling, a smile adorning his lips. “Husband.” It still felt unfamiliar to call him this way but he liked doing it. This address alone was proof that they had overcome everything that stood in their way and fulfilled that long-cherished dream of a future together.

Qiu Ling looked at him, his gaze softening. “Yes, I am.” He took a deep breath and then sighed. “Are you happy with the celebration in the Nine Heavens?”

Jing He paused for a moment but then nodded. “Of course, I wish my father would have come around but … all things considered, it went better than I had thought it would. At least the ceremony wasn’t interrupted. I mean … not too much at least.” Tian’s appearance had caused quite the stir but since he explained himself immediately, things had also calmed down just as fast. “I was surprised the Supreme Sovereign would do that.”

Qiu Ling raised his brows. “Oversee our wedding ceremony or take that darned curse off your bloodline?”

Jing He looked at him in shock. “That …” He wanted to say that they shouldn’t say such things or they would anger Tian but then, he understood where Qiu Ling was coming from, and … it didn’t seem right to reproach his husband like this. In the end, he ignored the choice of words and simply focused on the content of the question. “Both, I suppose. Although I can see why he did it.” At the very least, he could to a point. Taking the curse off him was likely because he intended to take their first child from them. As for his appearance in general … it might have been simply a way to facilitate that and make his choice known.

Qiu Ling nodded. “I can’t say I expected it either. But it’s good that he did. Our children … will grow up happier for it.” Even if that was still very far into the future.