Originally posted on RBKTR Translations.
Author: The One Who Tells Stories Under the Bridge (天桥底下说书的).
Translated by: Yujuan
Ji Mo had always known the virtue of looking before he leaped, so when he pulled Ye Mingjun into the garden, the first thing he did was use Wuyan’s detection functionality to avoid the patrolling guards, making three whole sweeps around the entire place to make sure there was no one around before stopping to discuss proper business.
However, no matter how much he guarded against the enemy, he still underestimated his own teammate in the end. So when he turned his head, Ye Mingjun, whose own curiosity was completely piqued by this series of unknown actions had already entered troublemaking mode, asking him eagerly, “Humans gain the urge to cut their sleeves under the moon?”
No, we don’t have that physical habit.
Never expecting that a random excuse he had come up with would also fool Ye Mingjun, Ji Mo could only explain resignedly, “I just needed to speak privately with Xianjun for some important matters.”
Leading him to a secluded place at night, with important matters to speak in private, keyword: ‘cutsleeve’. In accordance with the regular pattern of human males, the purpose of doing something like this was usually…
After combining the lessons learned from his many years of observation, while Ye Mingjun didn’t understand why Ji Mo had suddenly changed his mind when he had been avoiding him all this while, he had absolutely no plans on refusing this offer, smiling, “Okay, I’ve wanted to try this for so long!”
Wait a minute, what do you want to try? Put away those bold ideas of yours!
Looking at the immortal’s exhilarated expression, Ji Mo instantly had a bad feeling about this. His mind revolving quickly, he immediately realized where the problem lay, and asked hurriedly, “Do you know what cutting your sleeve means?”
“Yeah, it’s a physiological activity between two humans of the same sex when they’re in a rut. From a survival viewpoint, it doesn’t seem to have a role in reproduction, but there are still many humans engrossed in the act. It’s a phenomenon that’s very difficult to understand, I’ve always wanted to study it!”
Why did this explanation sound like the voiceover of a wildlife documentary? He was wrong, Ye Mingjun’s danger levels weren’t on the same grade as a bratty kid, at least the dreadful vocabulary such as ‘in a rut’ wouldn’t come out of a bratty kid’s mouth!
Ye Mingjun’s answer sent direct chills to Ji Mo’s heart, but the most nerve-wracking part about it was the immortal’s next movements. Caught off his guard, Ji Mo was pressed up against a tree, and until his palm made urgent contact with the coarse tree bark, that was when he realized what had just occurred.
The immortal had great strength, rendering Ji Mo unable to move with just a press of his shoulders, the bodies practically pressed up so closely against each other that even their slight breaths could be heard distinctly. Looking at the great interest glimmering in Ye Mingjun’s eyes, the gentle kneading of his palms told him that, this time, the immortal was not fooling around.
Wait, was this guy really planning on experimenting on him? This wasn’t right, were they about to get straight to the point without going through a process? System, why aren’t you coming out?
As if he had read his mind, Ye Mingjun grabbed onto Ji Mo’s fleeing hand, still smiling leisurely, “You invited me voluntarily.”
Which Overbearing CEO novel did you learn that from, it’s leading the younger generation astray!
Anxiously looking at the immortal’s face, which looked like he was thinking of what to do, Ji Mo’s mind raced. The first thing he did was use Wuyan to zoom into his groin area, and after making sure that there was absolutely no change in his most dangerous region, he took a closer look at Ye Mingjun’s expression. As expected, there was nothing more than curiosity on his face at the moment, and he comforted himself after breathing a sigh of relief,
Ye Mingjun didn’t understand desire, but any unfamiliar reaction could easily spark off his curiosity. Just like how cats and dogs pounced onto their owners to smell and lick their faces, it was merely behavior to express closeness.
The immortal wasn’t really planning on doing anything to him, his only goal was to make him blush by using these intimate actions, because he would never show this side of him on a daily basis. And Ye Mingjun loved this sense of novelty the most.
But, even if he didn’t have the intention, this guy had no idea which body parts couldn’t be touched – it wouldn’t be a laughing matter if he touched something he wasn’t supposed to touch! He had to put an immediate stop to this inciting behavior!
That’s right, Ye Mingjun had just started making trouble again, that’s all. As long as he took on a fierce look, this guy would instantly cower.
After rationally judging the current situation, Ji Mo did his best to suppress his panic, merely saying coldly with a stern expression, “Ye Mingjun, I don’t like this, please let go of me.”
Sigh, he had returned to his usual state, even though it was much more interesting to see the shocked look on his face when he approached. If he didn’t listen and went a step further, would he reveal many more different expressions for him to see?
Thinking of this, Ye Mingjun lifted his head a little hesitantly, and when he saw Ji Mo tightly gripping onto the tree bark to suppress his emotions, he ultimately let go, thinking,
Never mind, he didn’t want to hurt this person. Besides, if he frightened the little guy, he wouldn’t have the opportunity to touch him so easily in the future.
The weight was finally lifted off Ji Mo’s mind when he was released. He had no way of resisting the immortal, and even though this was something he knew all too well, he had still come here alone with Ye Mingjun without any worries. In hindsight, such trust caused Ji Mo’s blood to run cold; if he was ever betrayed, he might not be able to trust anyone else so easily from then on.
Fondness and deep attachment was the scariest thing of all, and perhaps it was because the immortal had acted much too harmless, as if he would always comply with his every wish. Before he knew it, his defenses against Ye Mingjun had broken down to this point – this wasn’t good news.
Yet, just as Ji Mo was about to restore his ‘Private Ye Mingjun Firewall’ that had been uninstalled without his knowing, this immortal started up again with his unswervingly astonishing words, “But you can’t go back on your word, you have to cut your sleeves since you said you’d cut your sleeves!”
This bratty immortal must have gotten addicted! I—
Before Ji Mo could finish channeling his inner rage, he heard a tearing sound, and his beautifully embroidered sleeve fell into the immortal’s palm.
“Alright, it’s cut.”
Swaying the sleeve that he’d obtained back and forth, Ye Mingjun gave a bright and innocent smile, looking in satisfaction at the colorful emotions flashing across Morning Star Priest’s face, who had turned into stone once more.
Since he couldn’t achieve his goal using the methods Ji Mo detested, he would then switch to a method he didn’t hate. Ye Mingjun was a flexible immortal.
Hehe, this was certainly the real deal, physically cutting his sleeve.
Ye Mingjun was still that Ye Mingjun, he’d lost for using common sense to estimate the immortal.
Lightly touching his own forehead, Ji Mo was still completely unable to understand his mindset, and could only helplessly, “Xianjun, what sort of enjoyment do you gain from doing this sort of thing?”
However, Ye Mingjun’s enjoyment was something an ordinary person couldn’t possible imagine, and at present, he looked at his other sleeve, saying eagerly,
“It’s quite interesting, can we do it again tomorrow?”
Tell me, will you die if you don’t get up to mischief for one day? Will you?!
It was at this moment that Ji Mo realized that there was a price for making Ye Mingjun stay put at the banquet; the immortal was sure to erupt twofold for suppressing his urge to misbehave for so long. If he didn’t take Ye Mingjun on regular walks, this guy wouldn’t just tear off the roof tiles, he’d dismantle the entire house!
His bare arm was evidence of how terrible Ye Mingjun’s lethality would get if he became bored. Ji Mo thought for a bit, and nevertheless warned coldly, “Forgive me for not being able to satisfy the material conditions for Xianjun’s strange habits, I only brought two sets of priest robes with me.”
“Then I’ll stitch it back up after tearing it off?” With just this one sentence, Ye Mingjun made a show of his boundless imagination once again.
You want to whip the corpse after tearing it apart? What grudges do you have against my sleeves? Have mercy, it’s just an innocent sleeve!
Choking down his urge to avenge his sleeve, Ji Mo exhaled slowly, before finally pulling away from Ye Mingjun’s odd rhythm. After choosing to ignore this weird topic, he asked seriously:
“Xianjun, I remember you mentioning stopping by to study this world after discovering something strange about it, can you tell me what was so strange about it?”
To stop a certain someone from rocking the boat even more, he decisively tacked on expressionlessly, “If you mention the sleeves again, I swear I’ll leave.”
Sigh, he already dared to intimidate him, knowing that he liked him, so why was he still unwilling to reciprocate? Even he knew that threats only worked against the people who cared.
Blinking helplessly, Ye Mingjun, who could even cause the immortals headaches, actually listened to him for once, saying truthfully, “I cannot sense this world’s Way of Heaven.”
The Way of Heaven was the basis to operating the rule of all things, but he couldn’t hear the Way of Heaven’s voice in this world. Perhaps this was the reason why the underworld had yet to intervene in the war the Celestials had recklessly set off, because the feedback given by the Way of Heaven had been forcefully severed from the outside world.
This was Ye Mingjun’s first time encountering such a situation, and spoke this piece of news with a slight furrow of his eyebrows, “Actually, it’s not just the Way of Heaven, I can no longer use the messenger talisman the Immortal Emperor gave me, the Ascension Stone that Laojun[1] told me to take along, the Access Bell that the Judicial God somehow stuffed into my Interspatial Storage… including the emergency contact email equipped with the System.”
So in the end, nobody believed that you would undergo your trial like a well-behaved child, they were fully prepared to clean up your mess at any time!
After listening to that whole string of ancient and modern facilities for communication, Ji Mo could almost envision the endless number of greying old dads worrying their heads off about this big baby. Nevertheless, Ye Mingjun had still messed up, he had still run into a world with no signal.
Inwardly sympathizing with the crowd of immortals who had probably gone mad from losing contact with an ancient artifact, Ji Mo continued to ask, “Xianjun, would it be possible for you to bring Su Ge and the others to creation?”
“I’m not equipped with that function.”
Shaking his head slightly, Ye Mingjun felt that this made him seem particularly useless, and added, “It isn’t difficult to create life – what’s difficult is the ability to bring those infinite variety of strange powers to creation. The application system of each power needs to be studied for many years before forming their specific laws. You say that there are many other Celestials in this world which are still being continuously born to this day. To establish so many individual power systems alone, I believe that is something that can only be done by a being on par with the ancient artifacts, who have knowledge of how the world began.”
This was something Ji Mo had never considered, being a person who couldn’t cultivate, but this was exactly the reason why the Celestials, who were well-aware of this difficulty, firmly believed that there were multiple gods. Now that he had learned this from Ye Mingjun, Ji Mo realized that there might really be a mastermind behind the scenes, and it was probably an existence the Celestials couldn’t withstand.
Yet, compared to this, there was a question he cared more about— “Which means that you discovered a world unconstrained by the Way of Heaven, occupied by some sort of powerful being, but you let the System seal off your cultivation, leisurely completing your missions day after day?”
Although his manner of speaking was a little odd, there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with what he said?
Looking at the solemn-looking Ji Mo, Ye Mingjun thought for a bit, then replied with a brilliant smile, “You’re so smart.”
Hello, 110? How many years in jail do I get for beating up an ancient artifact?
Unfooled by that gorgeous smile, Ji Mo’s tone was as serious as ever, “Xianjun, you should really learn how to write the word ‘danger’.”
He was always running off on his own, unguarded towards strangers, it was no wonder why the immortals were so worried, Ye Mingjun was really just too easy to damage. But he didn’t seem to have the awareness of protecting himself at all, so much so that it seemed as if he was expecting to vanish in midst of his journey.
Perhaps Ye Mingjun wasn’t looking for love, but a reason to continue existing. But, as the one he had chosen, could he really fulfill the immortal’s wish? On this matter, even Ji Mo himself believed that it was a long shot.
“Don’t feel sad, it’ll pass on to me.”
Just as he was feeling downhearted by this discovery, something rapped gently onto Wuyan, and the jolt to his field of view caused Ji Mo to immediately raise his head. Ye Mingjun’s smile had yet to change, but there was some additional confusion to his voice, “But, why is it that you’ve never felt genuinely happy when I smile at you? Is sadness the only infectious emotion to humans?”
No, the chief culprit of making me worry to the point of getting a stomach ache most of the time is you!
Though, before meeting you, I was close to even forgetting how to express that kind of emotion. This held true in the present, where he couldn’t even feel disappointment from knowing just how troublesome the world was, probably because he didn’t have too much hope in the first place… Only rationality and indifference could let you live a little longer, but surviving and living well were two completely different things.
Looking at the immortal’s puzzled look, Ji Mo did not return a false smile, as he knew that Ye Mingjun could actually sense his true feelings, but did not call him out on it. However, he still couldn’t muster a smile, at last sighing in resignation, “Maybe because I’ve grown up… It feels really hard to feel genuinely happy.”
This was a Ji Mo he rarely saw on a normal day, and while it was uncommon and very new, this wasn’t the side of him that Ye Mingjun wished to see, so he spoke softly, “I give you permission to use me once.”
“What did you just say?”
Facing Ji Mo’s bewilderment, Ye Mingjun approached silently, so quickly that his snow-white hair practically brushed against the mask that the Morning Star Priest never removed, but this time, his expression was finally serious, “Humans will become happier after receiving presents, and I want to see you smile from your heart, so I give you permission to use Emperor Xi’s Venus Pearl once.”
The godly artifacts chose their own users; while Ye Mingjun liked running wild, he had never drawn on his own power at will. But if this could be given in return for this person’s smile, he was willing to use it again.
The ancient artifact, guarded by the immortals, had the power of an ordinary immortal after unsealing just 5% of his cultivation— Ji Mo was well-aware of how powerful such an existence he was. He wasn’t sure what Ye Mingjun’s ability was, and although he was utterly confused, he still gave a sensible response, “Even if you say that, I don’t have any power—”
“The way of using me is very simple, hold me in your palms, then make a devout prayer.”
Should I sing ‘Devout Love’ for you[2]? You must be kidding me.
Such an unreliable method of application caused his distracting thoughts to instantly vanish, and he said coolly, “Xianjun, do you have some sort of misconception about your own size?”
With his reminder, it was then that Ye Mingjun recalled that with his sealed state, he couldn’t return to his true form. Lowering his head to look at his body, which clearly couldn’t be used for ceremonial purposes, he said helplessly, “Then touch me in a way that you think will convey your feelings. In any case, just give it a try, I won’t backfire on you even if it fails.”
As an ancient artifact, can you be any more spontaneous? The unreliable air is oozing all over your body!
Upon hearing the word ‘backfire’, Ji Mo pursed his lips, but when he saw the eager look in Ye Mingjun’s eyes, he ultimately gave in.
Fine, I’ll trust you just this once.
Could he really feel it? What should he do right now?
There were many ways a human made contact to convey their feelings, and after looking hesitantly at Ye Mingjun, Ji Mo slowly raised his right hand, using his fingers to press lightly on the position where the immortal’s heart lay. His powerful heartbeat could be felt through his fingertips. He did not say anything, merely standing quietly in front of Ye Mingjun as if he was quietly anticipating something, yet wasn’t holding out any sort of hope.
Ye Mingjun had done a similar move to him in the past, and at the time, the immortal had told him that he wanted to take a look into his heart. Ji Mo wasn’t sure why he had subconsciously chosen this method, but maybe it was because he had yet to forget those words, or perhaps, the present him finally had the courage to speak the words he hadn’t dared to ask then.
Then, do you dare to place me in your heart?
But, how different were they now compared to then? An immortal who didn’t understand emotions and a mortal who had abandoned his emotions, wasn’t it better to maintain their current relationship of guest and host? Were they really supposed to take this so-called cutsleeve relationship seriously?
If even he was unclear about his own complicated feelings, how much would Ye Mingjun comprehend, as someone who didn’t understand the human heart?
Ji Mo thought, a godly artifact couldn’t read a human’s heart no matter how spiritual they were. However, just as Ye Mingjun softly grasped onto his fingers, the immortal’s eyes, which were already as bright as jewels, suddenly flowed with light and color. The instant their eyes met, mountains fluctuated as the stars shifted, the vicissitudes of time flashing past like a trotting horse lamp. At last, the voice that only belonged to Emperor Xi’s Venus Pearl echoed in the distance, “As thou wish.”
As his words fell, moonlight sprinkled into the courtyard. At this moment, all the dark clouds in the sky were scattered, and the stars had lost their splendor, as if all the brilliance in the sky was focused on that full, bright moon. It was not the morning sun, carrying a source of light for the world, but it forcefully removed the darkness which shrouded the night, placing a layer of silver coating on the devastated mountains and rivers.
Glancing at the clear night sky, Ye Mingjun looked a little puzzled, “Why did you make this wish?”
Facing his question, Ji Mo did not give a direct answer, saying softly, “This is enough. I told you, an exchange should be equal.”
Then, let me have a look, at the most beautiful moonlight.
This was Ji Mo’s earlier wish; he could even calmly betray someone for anything that needed him to rationally weigh the pros and cons, but the one he wished for was a bright moon that would give no benefit to his life.
But, Ye Mingjun, this is just how feelings are to humans – humans can still live a good life without a relationship. On the contrary, going out of your way to pursue it will cost you a lot. In the end, you might not even have the chance to see the day where the clouds clear and the bright moon appears.
A human’s naked eye has its limits, so they are afraid of touching the things they cannot see. Before walking into another’s heart, you have to realize your own first. When will you ever catch on to this?
But, even if neither me or you are able to foresee what sort of ending we’ll get, at least for now, thank you for fulfilling my wish so diligently. It’s been so long since anyone expressed so much concern for me, and regardless what sort of feelings you had while doing it, the present me is incredibly happy.
“Ye Mingjun, humans do feel happy upon receiving gifts, but what really makes them smile from the bottom of their heart is ultimately the intention behind the gift.”
Lifting his head to gaze at the bright moon that seemed close enough to touch, Ji Mo smiled softly at the immortal. This time, it wasn’t out of rational constraint nor was it out of politeness— the angle of his smile was not friendly enough, even carrying a hint of sly mischief, but it was a smile that came truly from the heart,
“You still have plenty to learn about humans, silly immortal.”
The bellflower patterns on Wuyan glinted with a different effulgence under the moonlight, yet, although he was unable to see Ji Mo’s full features, Ye Mingjun could sense an entirely different emotion from him, compared to anything he’d felt in the past during their interactions.
He didn’t understand. He’d just granted a wish for his user as he had in the past, so why did he feel so delighted, as if he had been gifted a treasure? This was just too unusual, there was nothing more precious in this world than an ancient artifact…
Emperor Xi’s Venus Pearl could read human hearts, guiding them into fulfilling their wishes. But the present him was still unable to gain an insight to Ji Mo’s thoughts, just like how he could faintly sense something seemingly hidden behind boundless moonlight, but had no idea how to search for it.
What a dishonest little guy, this Ji Mo.
But even so, it was a little adorable too.
TL Notes
[1]
‘Laojun’ – 老君; translated as ‘elderly lord’.[2]
‘Devout Love’ – the name of a song (愛的供養) in which the starting verse contains the lyrics ‘holding you in my palms, devoutly burning incense’.
Originally posted on RBKTR Translations.
Author: The One Who Tells Stories Under the Bridge (天桥底下说书的).
Translated by: Yujuan
Ji Mo had always known the virtue of looking before he leaped, so when he pulled Ye Mingjun into the garden, the first thing he did was use Wuyan’s detection functionality to avoid the patrolling guards, making three whole sweeps around the entire place to make sure there was no one around before stopping to discuss proper business.
However, no matter how much he guarded against the enemy, he still underestimated his own teammate in the end. So when he turned his head, Ye Mingjun, whose own curiosity was completely piqued by this series of unknown actions had already entered troublemaking mode, asking him eagerly, “Humans gain the urge to cut their sleeves under the moon?”
No, we don’t have that physical habit.
Never expecting that a random excuse he had come up with would also fool Ye Mingjun, Ji Mo could only explain resignedly, “I just needed to speak privately with Xianjun for some important matters.”
Leading him to a secluded place at night, with important matters to speak in private, keyword: ‘cutsleeve’. In accordance with the regular pattern of human males, the purpose of doing something like this was usually…
After combining the lessons learned from his many years of observation, while Ye Mingjun didn’t understand why Ji Mo had suddenly changed his mind when he had been avoiding him all this while, he had absolutely no plans on refusing this offer, smiling, “Okay, I’ve wanted to try this for so long!”
Wait a minute, what do you want to try? Put away those bold ideas of yours!
Looking at the immortal’s exhilarated expression, Ji Mo instantly had a bad feeling about this. His mind revolving quickly, he immediately realized where the problem lay, and asked hurriedly, “Do you know what cutting your sleeve means?”
“Yeah, it’s a physiological activity between two humans of the same sex when they’re in a rut. From a survival viewpoint, it doesn’t seem to have a role in reproduction, but there are still many humans engrossed in the act. It’s a phenomenon that’s very difficult to understand, I’ve always wanted to study it!”
Why did this explanation sound like the voiceover of a wildlife documentary? He was wrong, Ye Mingjun’s danger levels weren’t on the same grade as a bratty kid, at least the dreadful vocabulary such as ‘in a rut’ wouldn’t come out of a bratty kid’s mouth!
Ye Mingjun’s answer sent direct chills to Ji Mo’s heart, but the most nerve-wracking part about it was the immortal’s next movements. Caught off his guard, Ji Mo was pressed up against a tree, and until his palm made urgent contact with the coarse tree bark, that was when he realized what had just occurred.
The immortal had great strength, rendering Ji Mo unable to move with just a press of his shoulders, the bodies practically pressed up so closely against each other that even their slight breaths could be heard distinctly. Looking at the great interest glimmering in Ye Mingjun’s eyes, the gentle kneading of his palms told him that, this time, the immortal was not fooling around.
Wait, was this guy really planning on experimenting on him? This wasn’t right, were they about to get straight to the point without going through a process? System, why aren’t you coming out?
As if he had read his mind, Ye Mingjun grabbed onto Ji Mo’s fleeing hand, still smiling leisurely, “You invited me voluntarily.”
Which Overbearing CEO novel did you learn that from, it’s leading the younger generation astray!
Anxiously looking at the immortal’s face, which looked like he was thinking of what to do, Ji Mo’s mind raced. The first thing he did was use Wuyan to zoom into his groin area, and after making sure that there was absolutely no change in his most dangerous region, he took a closer look at Ye Mingjun’s expression. As expected, there was nothing more than curiosity on his face at the moment, and he comforted himself after breathing a sigh of relief,
Ye Mingjun didn’t understand desire, but any unfamiliar reaction could easily spark off his curiosity. Just like how cats and dogs pounced onto their owners to smell and lick their faces, it was merely behavior to express closeness.
The immortal wasn’t really planning on doing anything to him, his only goal was to make him blush by using these intimate actions, because he would never show this side of him on a daily basis. And Ye Mingjun loved this sense of novelty the most.
But, even if he didn’t have the intention, this guy had no idea which body parts couldn’t be touched – it wouldn’t be a laughing matter if he touched something he wasn’t supposed to touch! He had to put an immediate stop to this inciting behavior!
That’s right, Ye Mingjun had just started making trouble again, that’s all. As long as he took on a fierce look, this guy would instantly cower.
After rationally judging the current situation, Ji Mo did his best to suppress his panic, merely saying coldly with a stern expression, “Ye Mingjun, I don’t like this, please let go of me.”
Sigh, he had returned to his usual state, even though it was much more interesting to see the shocked look on his face when he approached. If he didn’t listen and went a step further, would he reveal many more different expressions for him to see?
Thinking of this, Ye Mingjun lifted his head a little hesitantly, and when he saw Ji Mo tightly gripping onto the tree bark to suppress his emotions, he ultimately let go, thinking,
Never mind, he didn’t want to hurt this person. Besides, if he frightened the little guy, he wouldn’t have the opportunity to touch him so easily in the future.
The weight was finally lifted off Ji Mo’s mind when he was released. He had no way of resisting the immortal, and even though this was something he knew all too well, he had still come here alone with Ye Mingjun without any worries. In hindsight, such trust caused Ji Mo’s blood to run cold; if he was ever betrayed, he might not be able to trust anyone else so easily from then on.
Fondness and deep attachment was the scariest thing of all, and perhaps it was because the immortal had acted much too harmless, as if he would always comply with his every wish. Before he knew it, his defenses against Ye Mingjun had broken down to this point – this wasn’t good news.
Yet, just as Ji Mo was about to restore his ‘Private Ye Mingjun Firewall’ that had been uninstalled without his knowing, this immortal started up again with his unswervingly astonishing words, “But you can’t go back on your word, you have to cut your sleeves since you said you’d cut your sleeves!”
This bratty immortal must have gotten addicted! I—
Before Ji Mo could finish channeling his inner rage, he heard a tearing sound, and his beautifully embroidered sleeve fell into the immortal’s palm.
“Alright, it’s cut.”
Swaying the sleeve that he’d obtained back and forth, Ye Mingjun gave a bright and innocent smile, looking in satisfaction at the colorful emotions flashing across Morning Star Priest’s face, who had turned into stone once more.
Since he couldn’t achieve his goal using the methods Ji Mo detested, he would then switch to a method he didn’t hate. Ye Mingjun was a flexible immortal.
Hehe, this was certainly the real deal, physically cutting his sleeve.
Ye Mingjun was still that Ye Mingjun, he’d lost for using common sense to estimate the immortal.
Lightly touching his own forehead, Ji Mo was still completely unable to understand his mindset, and could only helplessly, “Xianjun, what sort of enjoyment do you gain from doing this sort of thing?”
However, Ye Mingjun’s enjoyment was something an ordinary person couldn’t possible imagine, and at present, he looked at his other sleeve, saying eagerly,
“It’s quite interesting, can we do it again tomorrow?”
Tell me, will you die if you don’t get up to mischief for one day? Will you?!
It was at this moment that Ji Mo realized that there was a price for making Ye Mingjun stay put at the banquet; the immortal was sure to erupt twofold for suppressing his urge to misbehave for so long. If he didn’t take Ye Mingjun on regular walks, this guy wouldn’t just tear off the roof tiles, he’d dismantle the entire house!
His bare arm was evidence of how terrible Ye Mingjun’s lethality would get if he became bored. Ji Mo thought for a bit, and nevertheless warned coldly, “Forgive me for not being able to satisfy the material conditions for Xianjun’s strange habits, I only brought two sets of priest robes with me.”
“Then I’ll stitch it back up after tearing it off?” With just this one sentence, Ye Mingjun made a show of his boundless imagination once again.
You want to whip the corpse after tearing it apart? What grudges do you have against my sleeves? Have mercy, it’s just an innocent sleeve!
Choking down his urge to avenge his sleeve, Ji Mo exhaled slowly, before finally pulling away from Ye Mingjun’s odd rhythm. After choosing to ignore this weird topic, he asked seriously:
“Xianjun, I remember you mentioning stopping by to study this world after discovering something strange about it, can you tell me what was so strange about it?”
To stop a certain someone from rocking the boat even more, he decisively tacked on expressionlessly, “If you mention the sleeves again, I swear I’ll leave.”
Sigh, he already dared to intimidate him, knowing that he liked him, so why was he still unwilling to reciprocate? Even he knew that threats only worked against the people who cared.
Blinking helplessly, Ye Mingjun, who could even cause the immortals headaches, actually listened to him for once, saying truthfully, “I cannot sense this world’s Way of Heaven.”
The Way of Heaven was the basis to operating the rule of all things, but he couldn’t hear the Way of Heaven’s voice in this world. Perhaps this was the reason why the underworld had yet to intervene in the war the Celestials had recklessly set off, because the feedback given by the Way of Heaven had been forcefully severed from the outside world.
This was Ye Mingjun’s first time encountering such a situation, and spoke this piece of news with a slight furrow of his eyebrows, “Actually, it’s not just the Way of Heaven, I can no longer use the messenger talisman the Immortal Emperor gave me, the Ascension Stone that Laojun[1] told me to take along, the Access Bell that the Judicial God somehow stuffed into my Interspatial Storage… including the emergency contact email equipped with the System.”
So in the end, nobody believed that you would undergo your trial like a well-behaved child, they were fully prepared to clean up your mess at any time!
After listening to that whole string of ancient and modern facilities for communication, Ji Mo could almost envision the endless number of greying old dads worrying their heads off about this big baby. Nevertheless, Ye Mingjun had still messed up, he had still run into a world with no signal.
Inwardly sympathizing with the crowd of immortals who had probably gone mad from losing contact with an ancient artifact, Ji Mo continued to ask, “Xianjun, would it be possible for you to bring Su Ge and the others to creation?”
“I’m not equipped with that function.”
Shaking his head slightly, Ye Mingjun felt that this made him seem particularly useless, and added, “It isn’t difficult to create life – what’s difficult is the ability to bring those infinite variety of strange powers to creation. The application system of each power needs to be studied for many years before forming their specific laws. You say that there are many other Celestials in this world which are still being continuously born to this day. To establish so many individual power systems alone, I believe that is something that can only be done by a being on par with the ancient artifacts, who have knowledge of how the world began.”
This was something Ji Mo had never considered, being a person who couldn’t cultivate, but this was exactly the reason why the Celestials, who were well-aware of this difficulty, firmly believed that there were multiple gods. Now that he had learned this from Ye Mingjun, Ji Mo realized that there might really be a mastermind behind the scenes, and it was probably an existence the Celestials couldn’t withstand.
Yet, compared to this, there was a question he cared more about— “Which means that you discovered a world unconstrained by the Way of Heaven, occupied by some sort of powerful being, but you let the System seal off your cultivation, leisurely completing your missions day after day?”
Although his manner of speaking was a little odd, there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with what he said?
Looking at the solemn-looking Ji Mo, Ye Mingjun thought for a bit, then replied with a brilliant smile, “You’re so smart.”
Hello, 110? How many years in jail do I get for beating up an ancient artifact?
Unfooled by that gorgeous smile, Ji Mo’s tone was as serious as ever, “Xianjun, you should really learn how to write the word ‘danger’.”
He was always running off on his own, unguarded towards strangers, it was no wonder why the immortals were so worried, Ye Mingjun was really just too easy to damage. But he didn’t seem to have the awareness of protecting himself at all, so much so that it seemed as if he was expecting to vanish in midst of his journey.
Perhaps Ye Mingjun wasn’t looking for love, but a reason to continue existing. But, as the one he had chosen, could he really fulfill the immortal’s wish? On this matter, even Ji Mo himself believed that it was a long shot.
“Don’t feel sad, it’ll pass on to me.”
Just as he was feeling downhearted by this discovery, something rapped gently onto Wuyan, and the jolt to his field of view caused Ji Mo to immediately raise his head. Ye Mingjun’s smile had yet to change, but there was some additional confusion to his voice, “But, why is it that you’ve never felt genuinely happy when I smile at you? Is sadness the only infectious emotion to humans?”
No, the chief culprit of making me worry to the point of getting a stomach ache most of the time is you!
Though, before meeting you, I was close to even forgetting how to express that kind of emotion. This held true in the present, where he couldn’t even feel disappointment from knowing just how troublesome the world was, probably because he didn’t have too much hope in the first place… Only rationality and indifference could let you live a little longer, but surviving and living well were two completely different things.
Looking at the immortal’s puzzled look, Ji Mo did not return a false smile, as he knew that Ye Mingjun could actually sense his true feelings, but did not call him out on it. However, he still couldn’t muster a smile, at last sighing in resignation, “Maybe because I’ve grown up… It feels really hard to feel genuinely happy.”
This was a Ji Mo he rarely saw on a normal day, and while it was uncommon and very new, this wasn’t the side of him that Ye Mingjun wished to see, so he spoke softly, “I give you permission to use me once.”
“What did you just say?”
Facing Ji Mo’s bewilderment, Ye Mingjun approached silently, so quickly that his snow-white hair practically brushed against the mask that the Morning Star Priest never removed, but this time, his expression was finally serious, “Humans will become happier after receiving presents, and I want to see you smile from your heart, so I give you permission to use Emperor Xi’s Venus Pearl once.”
The godly artifacts chose their own users; while Ye Mingjun liked running wild, he had never drawn on his own power at will. But if this could be given in return for this person’s smile, he was willing to use it again.
The ancient artifact, guarded by the immortals, had the power of an ordinary immortal after unsealing just 5% of his cultivation— Ji Mo was well-aware of how powerful such an existence he was. He wasn’t sure what Ye Mingjun’s ability was, and although he was utterly confused, he still gave a sensible response, “Even if you say that, I don’t have any power—”
“The way of using me is very simple, hold me in your palms, then make a devout prayer.”
Should I sing ‘Devout Love’ for you[2]? You must be kidding me.
Such an unreliable method of application caused his distracting thoughts to instantly vanish, and he said coolly, “Xianjun, do you have some sort of misconception about your own size?”
With his reminder, it was then that Ye Mingjun recalled that with his sealed state, he couldn’t return to his true form. Lowering his head to look at his body, which clearly couldn’t be used for ceremonial purposes, he said helplessly, “Then touch me in a way that you think will convey your feelings. In any case, just give it a try, I won’t backfire on you even if it fails.”
As an ancient artifact, can you be any more spontaneous? The unreliable air is oozing all over your body!
Upon hearing the word ‘backfire’, Ji Mo pursed his lips, but when he saw the eager look in Ye Mingjun’s eyes, he ultimately gave in.
Fine, I’ll trust you just this once.
Could he really feel it? What should he do right now?
There were many ways a human made contact to convey their feelings, and after looking hesitantly at Ye Mingjun, Ji Mo slowly raised his right hand, using his fingers to press lightly on the position where the immortal’s heart lay. His powerful heartbeat could be felt through his fingertips. He did not say anything, merely standing quietly in front of Ye Mingjun as if he was quietly anticipating something, yet wasn’t holding out any sort of hope.
Ye Mingjun had done a similar move to him in the past, and at the time, the immortal had told him that he wanted to take a look into his heart. Ji Mo wasn’t sure why he had subconsciously chosen this method, but maybe it was because he had yet to forget those words, or perhaps, the present him finally had the courage to speak the words he hadn’t dared to ask then.
Then, do you dare to place me in your heart?
But, how different were they now compared to then? An immortal who didn’t understand emotions and a mortal who had abandoned his emotions, wasn’t it better to maintain their current relationship of guest and host? Were they really supposed to take this so-called cutsleeve relationship seriously?
If even he was unclear about his own complicated feelings, how much would Ye Mingjun comprehend, as someone who didn’t understand the human heart?
Ji Mo thought, a godly artifact couldn’t read a human’s heart no matter how spiritual they were. However, just as Ye Mingjun softly grasped onto his fingers, the immortal’s eyes, which were already as bright as jewels, suddenly flowed with light and color. The instant their eyes met, mountains fluctuated as the stars shifted, the vicissitudes of time flashing past like a trotting horse lamp. At last, the voice that only belonged to Emperor Xi’s Venus Pearl echoed in the distance, “As thou wish.”
As his words fell, moonlight sprinkled into the courtyard. At this moment, all the dark clouds in the sky were scattered, and the stars had lost their splendor, as if all the brilliance in the sky was focused on that full, bright moon. It was not the morning sun, carrying a source of light for the world, but it forcefully removed the darkness which shrouded the night, placing a layer of silver coating on the devastated mountains and rivers.
Glancing at the clear night sky, Ye Mingjun looked a little puzzled, “Why did you make this wish?”
Facing his question, Ji Mo did not give a direct answer, saying softly, “This is enough. I told you, an exchange should be equal.”
Then, let me have a look, at the most beautiful moonlight.
This was Ji Mo’s earlier wish; he could even calmly betray someone for anything that needed him to rationally weigh the pros and cons, but the one he wished for was a bright moon that would give no benefit to his life.
But, Ye Mingjun, this is just how feelings are to humans – humans can still live a good life without a relationship. On the contrary, going out of your way to pursue it will cost you a lot. In the end, you might not even have the chance to see the day where the clouds clear and the bright moon appears.
A human’s naked eye has its limits, so they are afraid of touching the things they cannot see. Before walking into another’s heart, you have to realize your own first. When will you ever catch on to this?
But, even if neither me or you are able to foresee what sort of ending we’ll get, at least for now, thank you for fulfilling my wish so diligently. It’s been so long since anyone expressed so much concern for me, and regardless what sort of feelings you had while doing it, the present me is incredibly happy.
“Ye Mingjun, humans do feel happy upon receiving gifts, but what really makes them smile from the bottom of their heart is ultimately the intention behind the gift.”
Lifting his head to gaze at the bright moon that seemed close enough to touch, Ji Mo smiled softly at the immortal. This time, it wasn’t out of rational constraint nor was it out of politeness— the angle of his smile was not friendly enough, even carrying a hint of sly mischief, but it was a smile that came truly from the heart,
“You still have plenty to learn about humans, silly immortal.”
The bellflower patterns on Wuyan glinted with a different effulgence under the moonlight, yet, although he was unable to see Ji Mo’s full features, Ye Mingjun could sense an entirely different emotion from him, compared to anything he’d felt in the past during their interactions.
He didn’t understand. He’d just granted a wish for his user as he had in the past, so why did he feel so delighted, as if he had been gifted a treasure? This was just too unusual, there was nothing more precious in this world than an ancient artifact…
Emperor Xi’s Venus Pearl could read human hearts, guiding them into fulfilling their wishes. But the present him was still unable to gain an insight to Ji Mo’s thoughts, just like how he could faintly sense something seemingly hidden behind boundless moonlight, but had no idea how to search for it.
What a dishonest little guy, this Ji Mo.
But even so, it was a little adorable too.
TL Notes
[1]
‘Laojun’ – 老君; translated as ‘elderly lord’.[2]
‘Devout Love’ – the name of a song (愛的供養) in which the starting verse contains the lyrics ‘holding you in my palms, devoutly burning incense’.