Immortal
The information was a bitter pill for the five to swallow. Should they have felt grateful they were saved or resentful? The smiles they gave each other were a form of acknowledgement that they weren’t special, just lucky.
“What happens if someone is born with a perfect balance between the five?” Mu Yu asked.
“If they aren’t killed, they will have eternal life, true immortality. There are unlikely more than twenty humans with that constitution. There are two right in front of you.” Xie Bulao draped his arm over Feng Haochen’s shoulder cockily.
Mu Yu turned to the other four to see if they were privy.
“Xie Bulao, there are some things you shouldn’t mention.” Feng Haochen covered his forehead.
“What, you afraid your disciples will covet your immortal body?”
“You know what I’m afraid of!” Feng Haochen frowned.
“Tsk, Third Heaven Palace’s people aren’t even around. Ku Mu already knew. Who cares if they know.”
“How old are you, then, Shifu?” Mu Yu questioned, bitterly. He figured that was where the grudge from four thousand years ago came from and why the fiend king claimed they were people that time had forgotten.
Feng Haochen blinked and gazed at the blue horizon. “How old? I can’t even remember.”
“The ten fiend kings are also immortal. Azure Dragon and I are old buddies. Your shifu is older than me. He’s… my grandpa if we’re talking age,” Xie Bulao proudly enthused.
“If Shifu is your grandpa in terms of seniority, doesn’t that make us your father in terms of seniority?” blurted Mu Yu.
Xie Bulao brayed, “You want to die? Is that it? I’m thousands of years older than you even if he’s hundreds of years older than me. I’m your great times a lot of grandpas!”
Mu Yu figured Illusionary Clear Rain had to be another immortal.
“Your shifu won’t have much longer to live since he cast the Heaven and Earth Formation. I told him not to cast Celestial Prison. I told him he was being a stupid. Who gets themselves killed when there are so many beautiful women left to bed? What sort of way to die is that? He didn’t give back my Sixth Sin, either, damn bugger,” complained Xie Bulao.
“A long lifespan isn’t necessarily a good thing. Once you can let go of everything, death isn’t so scary anymore.”
“Don’t tell him I told you this. He loved three women so far. Two of them are” – Xie Bulao performed a slicing motion with his hand across his neck – “that’s why he avoided investing himself in a romance. He said it pained him to see his loved one die. In my opinion, that’s like burning an entire forest because of one tree. If they die, just pick up another. With the power of eternity on your side, you have all the time in the world to search for upgrades. You know what I look down on him most for? Five hundred years ago, when his second lover, Hua Wujing, passed away, he wanted to follow her! Had I not stopped him, you wouldn’t see him today!” recounted Xie Bulao.
“You shouldn’t have stopped him,” Ku Mu remarked.
Feng Haochen sighed. “Xie Bulao, you done?”
“No. I’m about to resume. A couple of decades ago, he met Miao Yuyan and sprung to life after five hundred years. Man, he fell head over heels for her. Oh yeah, she had another pursuer at the time. She had no idea Dear Feng Haochen was immortal and chose him over Ku Mu. I don’t know what sorcery it is, but he gets stupider with each romance. He was going to spend his entire life with her. That’s why he turned himself into Celestial Prison’s formation foundation.”
Since Feng Haochen no longer had the power to stop him, Xie Bulao carried on. “Unfortunately, it didn’t end in fairy tale style. Miao Yuyan can’t be in a romance as the holy maiden of Secular World Sect. The detrimental effects of Celestial Prison began to affect our god of love and rob him of his cultivation. Consequently, he couldn’t elope with her. Third Heaven Palace went back on their promise. God of Love’s broken heart and guilt led to him deciding he’d perish with everyone at Moyun Mountains. Had you just returned Sixth Sin to me, I would’ve gone and kidnapped her for you. What did you even put yourself through all that for?”
“You abused Sixth Sin, turning innocent people evil for no reason. I can’t trust you with it,” said Feng Haochen, somewhat livid.
Ku Mu: “In other words, you could’ve had Xie Bulao rescue Yuyan, yet you refused to? Xie Bulao’s Sixth Sense is more precious than Yuyan. Is that what you’re implying? I thought you’d treat her well. I can’t believe how wrong I was. One finger instead of her happiness? I thought you couldn’t rescue her solely because of your cultivation regressing. All you have on your mind is justice this, honour that. You’d rather be the world’s hero than the husband of the woman you love? You’re not a hero; you’re a coward! Have some shame. I could set aside my personal prejudice toward you to rescue you. What have you done for her?”
Ku Mu hit a sore spot. Feng Haochen realised he was wrong, but he didn’t have the courage to face his mistake and make up for it. Feng Haochen’s response was, “I can’t protect her even if I could’ve rescued her. Secular World Sect’s mark on her will track her no matter where she goes. If I wanted to bring her into Celestial Prison, I would’ve had to force her to abandon her cultivation. What happened when you erased your cultivation? How long would you have lived if you didn’t have an origin restoration pill? How long do you think she would’ve survived?”
Ku Mu stabbed his fingernails into his palms and then released them. He had no counterargument. Ku Mu’s way of loving was not letting his loved one suffer. Feng Haochen’s style of love was to protect her life.
Shifu and shiniang’s situation is about to be repeated again with me and Tian Ran… How am I going to resolve the taboo, Mu Yu mused.
“Wow, so you’re both gods of love,” Xie Bulao joked scathingly. “I don’t want to see you die, God of Love. Third Heaven Palace’s formation guardian is a scoundrel. He’s been after something we have. Did you forget about that?
“I know he wants my immortality. He wants to use Ghost Gate’s ability to steal my body after my link with Celestial Prison is undone. My soul may die, but he can use my immortal body.”
Ghost Gate and Life and Death Sect were always pursuing immortality. That was why they sent people after Feng Haochen and the white ape fiend king. Mu Yu had no idea he stopped two conspiracies. One thing that the new knowledge revealed was that the formation guardian was allowing Ghost Gate and Life and Death Sect to hunt those with immortal bodies. Actually, he might’ve been the mastermind!
Third Heaven Palace might’ve wielded power and authority nobody could challenge, but death was a fate they couldn’t escape. Death would mean parting with the power they had grown attached to. To ensure they ruled for eternity, they required immortality.
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