Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I snapped back to my senses and looked at the crowd, specifically at Xie Yunji.

“I won’t,” I said, raising my hand to swear an oath. “If I go back on my word, may heavenly lightning strike me dead, and may I never-”

“Shut up!” Xie Yunji interrupted, his face ashen.

When he was still mortal, he never allowed me to make reckless oaths. He used to say, what if a god actually heard me? Now that he had become a god himself, he knew that gods truly existed and that oaths could indeed be fulfilled.

I thought about it and decided not to be so harsh on myself. In my past life, I had only enjoyed a few years of good fortune before I died; in this life, I intended to live well.

So, I crouched down and began picking up the treasures I had swept onto the floor. In my previous life, I hadn’t looked at these things closely, but now I recognized many of them. I knew that the items Xie Yunji had offered were rare treasures.

The Jade Dew Vial contained a liquid that could extend a mortal’s lifespan. The Heart Protection Mirror was impervious to blades, fire, and water, and kept demons and ghosts at bay. The Nine-Cycle Soul Restoration Pill could bring back the dead and regrow flesh on bone.

Any one of these items would cause mortals to flock like birds, fighting until they were bloody and bruised just to possess it. I gathered them all into my arms and looked up at Xie Yunji. “Is there anything else?”

His expression was cold and hard, his thin lips pressed tight, and his hand gripped his sword firmly. Fine, this was enough. I wasn’t greedy.

I waved my hand dismissively. “You can go now, Xie Yunji.”

Then I addressed the others. “The rest of you immortals may leave as well. I need to tidy up the house.”

Luo Cai clutched her sword and snorted. “A mortal is a mortal-greedy by nature and blinded by profit. Just a moment ago she was acting all indifferent, and in less than fifteen minutes, her true colors are revealed.”

Greedy, lowly, stupid, ignorant of the heavens… she had always spoken of me that way. In my past life, whenever I argued with her, Xie Yunji never took my side. Yet, before he ascended to the heavens, he used to praise me for being kind and intelligent, the finest woman in the world.

Stop thinking about it. In this life, the past is dust to dust.

Right now, my only thought was to get this great deity, Xie Yunji, out of my house as quickly as possible.

However, Xie Yunji changed his mind. He respectfully saw the other immortals off first, saying he would leave a moment later. I looked at him, and he explained, “I will repair the house for you.”

That was fine. It would take me a long time to fix this mess alone, but for him, it was just a wave of the hand. To my surprise, he rolled up his sleeves and set to work manually, without using any immortal arts or magic.

I leaned against the wall and watched him. So, this was how things would have turned out in my past life if I hadn’t been so clingy. He would have repaired the house properly and wouldn’t have spoken so harshly to me.

Actually, thinking back, Xie Yunji treated me reasonably well when I first arrived in the Immortal Realm. Yunhua Hall was built entirely of glazed jade; even sleeping meant lying on stone. Since I wasn’t used to it, Xie Yunji had someone make a soft bed for me. I couldn’t practice inedia, so he brought vegetable seeds from the mortal realm and used spiritual liquid to grow a garden for me.

I don’t know how we eventually reached the point where we couldn’t stand the sight of each other.

Xie Yunji was strong. Even without magic, he restored the house quickly. His pristine white robes were stained with a bit of dust, and for a fleeting moment, he looked like his old self again.

Xie Yunji and I were both orphans, raised with the help of our neighbors. We had saved money for years to build this house for our marriage. On the day the new house was finished, I touched every corner, filled with joy from head to toe. In the center of this very room, Xie Yunji had picked me up and spun me around several times.

I had giggled against his shoulder, and he promised me, “In the future, I will build you a manor ten times larger than this.”

I urged him again, “It’s all tidied up now. You really can go.”

Xie Yunji didn’t move; his brow furrowed again. He stepped closer, grabbed my wrist, and tapped his fingertip against my forehead. Instantly, a warm current flowed through my body as if searching for something.

After a long while, Xie Yunji withdrew his hand. He finally asked the question that had been weighing on his heart: “Why did you suddenly decide you didn’t want to go to the upper realm?”

Seeing that he hadn’t discovered anything, I breathed a sigh of relief. “Why does there have to be a reason?” I looked at him calmly. “Since it’s clear we aren’t destined to be husband and wife, I naturally wouldn’t dare to force it. I am a mere mortal; how could I dare to fight against fate?”

I thought Xie Yunji would be satisfied with my compliance, but he didn’t look happy. As he prepared to leave, he turned back once more. “As you wish.”

“Once I leave this time, I will not return for thousands of years. Just make sure you don’t regret it.”

It wouldn’t even take thousands of years. A day in heaven is a year on earth. Likely, by the time he thought of me again, I would already be buried in the dirt. I watched him from a distance and raised my hands in a respectful bow. “I wish the Divine Lord a smooth path to immortality and eternal youth.”

Xie Yunji, I wish you a life free of attachments and a clear path to the Great Dao. It’s just that none of it has anything to do with me anymore.

***

Xie Yunji stood atop a cloud, looking down at the woman in green in the courtyard. Her farewell was open and honest, without a hint of lingering attachment, as if the past eighteen years had vanished like smoke.

Luo Cai had repeatedly reminded him to erase her memory. Otherwise, there was no guarantee she wouldn’t regret it later and find some way to the upper realm to demand her status as his wife. But as his fingertip touched her brow and his immortal power was about to spread, Xie Yunji had suddenly stopped. A strange tightness gripped his heart, and he hesitated after all.

Fine, he would leave her with her memories. If her obsession truly remained and she braved all dangers to find him, he might-just might-make an exception for her.

Given her personality… besides, she had no one to rely on in this world, and she feared loneliness most of all. Xie Yunji knew her best; he suspected that in a few days, she would come to her senses and be filled with regret. It didn’t matter. When that time came, she would only need to bow her head and ask. He would find another place to set up a residence for her. When he descended to the mortal realm, no one would ever know.