Speaking of their wedding day, after the ritual at the Palace of Love, they were now one step closer to it. Since they wanted to — or more or less had to — finish all the rituals that were customary before the wedding ceremony in one day, they left after the God of Love finished giving his advice, heading to the River of Forgetfulness next.

This river was said to be the remainder of the Great River that once connected all the known realms of their world and was thus seen as their most direct connection to Tian, the Supreme Sovereign of all realms. During the preparation for a wedding, this was where the couple would come to pay respect and offer a sacrifice to him.

The group of six had once again split up to not attract as much attention. The young couple about to be married was the first to arrive. They quietly walked to the bank of the river and looked into the water where the red thread of fate could be seen winding at the bottom.

For Qiu Ling and Jing He, this place held special meaning, as did everything that was connected to the High Heavens. As unlikely as it may sound, both of them had met the Supreme Sovereign in the time since Jing He’s trial started. In fact, they had done so more than once and the impact hadn’t been small either of those times. Yes, without the intervention of Tian, maybe neither of them would still be alive.

It was still hard to believe that such things had happened. After all, in all the years since Tian had struck the three races with his curse, the number of people who had seen him personally could likely be counted on one’s hands and all of them seemed to have gone to seek him out by themselves. To meet this person … it was out of the ordinary and both of them were well-aware of it. Their feelings about it could only be called complicated.

As such, Jing He furrowed his brows as they stood next to the water. “It feels odd to come here, now that I have not only met Tian but also gained a deeper understanding of the High Heavens and fate.” Yes, entering the High Heavens, seeing the Supreme Sovereign, seeing more and hearing more of what the person, the place, and the fate that connected them was like … it couldn’t fail to impact their view of the truth of this world.

Qiu Ling nodded. “Well, even if things aren’t exactly as everyone believes them to be, at least for the two of us, it is impossible to deny the impact getting to know Tian had. If not for him …”

If not for him, they wouldn’t have this day so honoring Tian in the days leading up to their wedding was a matter of course.

Jing He nodded, thinking the same. “That is true. I suppose I just … don’t quite know how to deal with us being the only ones who are aware.” It might not matter or it could be called a big deal. With no one but them being in the know, he simply felt odd.

Qiu Ling pulled him into his arms. “Don’t worry about it. Knowing or not knowing hurts nobody. Even if it is not Tian who creates fate, it still exists and has some way of … judging what ought to happen, I suppose. We don’t know how that works. In fact, even the Supreme Sovereign himself doesn’t know. I think it’s better to let everyone continue to believe in what seems easy instead of making them aware of such a big mystery. Life … might be easier to go through in that case.”

Jing He nodded and hugged him back, closing his eyes.

Qiu Ling combed through his lover’s hair and kissed the top of his head. He was well aware of how much Jing He had always admired Tian and how inspiring he found the story of the love between him and the Heavenly Family’s Xing. Taking this into consideration, it was no wonder that even just meeting the Supreme Sovereign once would leave a deeper impact on him. In fact, comparing their two races … “You know, in the dragon realm, people don’t seem to believe in Tian’s involvement in fate as much as they do in the Nine Heavens.”

Jing He raised his head, some confusion showing on his face. If there was one thing he’d have never doubted the three immortal races shared, then it was the belief in Tian’s omnipotence and his ability to decree fate. Even if it might not have been this way originally, after the curse, there seemed no reason to doubt this. How come the dragons didn’t share this thought?

Qiu Ling could imagine what he thought and smiled in response. “It’s because our curse only affected something that was already there. Falling in love … it isn’t dictated by the curse, just … limited. We will still fall in love with the person meant for us and we will still be with them. It’s just that there is no way to have a do-over if it doesn’t work out. And the consequences of missing that love are a lot more dire.

“Still, Tian isn’t the one who makes us fall in love. That is our own heart that beats faster at the other person’s sight and our soul that calls out to them, telling us that there is absolutely no way this isn’t meant to be.” Just like he had felt when he met Jing He. This wasn’t the Supreme Sovereign’s work, it was only his heart or whatever fate had in store for them that caused all of this.

Jing He quietly gazed at him. The God of Love had indeed been right when he mentioned how direct the dragons were. His soon-to-be-husband had certainly never held back from uttering words of love. They seemed to come quite easily to him. Even now, when they were discussing such a serious topic, he could still turn around and turn it into a confession of his deep love.

In comparison to that, he was lacking. He couldn’t find the words to express his feelings and even if he did, he couldn’t be sure he’d dare to say them out loud. But then … He pursed his lips and hesitated. Right now, they were alone and there was no reason not to show what he felt to the one he’d marry in only three days.

In the end, Jing He craned his neck and gave his fiance a fleeting kiss in response, hoping that this could make up for where words failed him.