[To Become a River of Stars] Dong Xiange - Chapter 72
The light in Xuanqing’s eyes completely faded, and his body rapidly cooled. Only the blood still gushing from his chest retained any warmth.
The blood flowed freely, the intense crimson slowly soaking into Hongluo’s blue cloth skirt, inch by inch dyeing over its original color.
He did not die with dignity. Until his heart stopped, he remained in this form—neither fully demon nor human, the fur on his face not even fully receded.
A teardrop fell onto the mixed brown-red fur.
Hongluo could no longer restrain herself. Ignoring her own disheveled state, she tightly embraced Xuanqing’s already cold corpse and wept openly.
Whether on the drizzly Broken Bridge or in this desolate temple, Hongluo had always maintained some distance from everyone, always observing the world’s joys and sorrows with compassion and detachment.
Yet, at this moment, she truly resembled a human.
No longer aloof, no longer distant, tossed and tormented in this mortal dust, shedding the most commonplace yet most sincere tears.
When Hongluo looked up again, her body trembled, pain wavering in her eyes as if she might vomit forth her soul.
Suddenly, she spat out a blood-tinged pearl from her mouth. Copious blood overflowed from her lips, but Hongluo didn’t bother to wipe it. She simply caught the pearl and tried to press it into the bloody hole in Xuanqing’s chest.
He Chong’s eyes flashed with worry, and he urgently advised, “He’s already dead. Even if you give him the inner elixir you’ve condensed with so much good karma, you can’t bring him back. Defying heaven like this will only waste all your years of cultivation for nothing. Why torment yourself?”
Hongluo seemed completely deaf to his words, firmly pressing the pearl entirely into Xuanqing’s body until its light completely vanished.
She gazed into Xuanqing’s lightless eyes, a trace of pitiable tenderness surfacing in her gaze—not a god’s tenderness, but that of a mere demon with seven emotions and six desires.
“I begged the Lady of Mount Tai. She promised me that once I cultivated a hundred good deeds, you could escape the path of the wild fox. Then, we could both become two ordinary little foxes again and start cultivating from the beginning.”
“Why couldn’t you wait for me a little longer? I was almost at a hundred.”
“But it’s alright. My inner elixir will protect your reincarnation. You won’t become a lonely ghost. This time, I’ll come find you.”
Hongluo coughed up blood continuously, as if falling into delirium, softly speaking these words to Xuanqing that he would never have a chance to hear.
He Chong’s couldn’t stand it. He had heard how difficult celestial fox cultivation was. Once achieved, it meant a chance to change one’s destiny and ascend to immortality. To abandon it just like that…
Even a Taoist priest like him, accustomed to subduing demons, felt stirred. But then an indifferent voice came from behind.
“Let’s go.”
Li Xuanci held Shiliu horizontally. He had watched this tacky entanglement long enough and was utterly uninterested, considering it merely a boring affair of two fools ruining each other.
Unlike Jin Zhan and He Chong, who were deeply moved by the scene and struggled to let it go, the two exchanged a glance, their eyes full of mutual recognition and self-affirmation of each other’s tender hearts beneath tough exteriors.
Just as Li Xuanci stepped out of the room, a weak call came from Hongluo behind him.
“Young master, you and Shiliu have both shown me kindness. Involving Shiliu like this was truly my fault. That day, I gave Shiliu a piece of advice, but subsequent events were unforeseen. Now, I give these words to you, believing you will surely grasp their meaning.”
“What you seek lies not in the north, but in the south. The calamity stems not from demons, but from humans. Treating the symptoms while neglecting the root is unwise.”
Hongluo forced herself to finish, nearly out of strength, unable to say more.
Li Xuanci’s back paused slightly. After hearing this, he coldly tossed back, “Take care of yourself before offering advice to others,” and left without looking back, carrying Shiliu.
He Chong and Jin Zhan were stunned for a moment, then hurriedly followed.
The rain falling from the sky lightened somewhat. He Chong glanced back. Through the endless, continuous drizzle, the two lonely figures of Hongluo and Xuanqing leaned together, nestled against each other with no distance left between them.
He took one last look but ultimately moved forward, leaving them alone in that small world separated by the rain and mist.
When they finally reached the inn in the town, Li Xuanci carried Shiliu into the room and placed her on the bed.
He Chong leaned in closer, conducting a more thorough examination, yet still found nothing unusual. His brow furrowed, and after a long silence, he finally said, “How about… dangling a piece of braised pork in front of her nose? Once, she fell and knocked herself out, and that’s how we woke her up.”
Jin Zhan stood to the side, his expression somewhat indescribable. Brother Shiliu’s life experiences were truly… colorful.
Li Xuanci didn’t speak. He Chong began to worry that his absurd method was too embarrassing, but then he saw Li Xuanci directly use his sword to slice open Shiliu’s precious little bundle of belongings, which was full of her assorted snacks.
Li Xuanci dipped his index finger in some honey, then parted Shiliu’s lips, tangling his fingertip with her hidden tongue, letting the honey moisten her mouth.
He Chong’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. However, Jin Zhan, ever loyal despite his lack of wit, diligently and silently positioned himself in front of He Chong to prevent him from disturbing Li Xuanci’s “excessive” actions.
While the other two were still staring each other down, a faint smile surged in Li Xuanci’s eyes.
His fingertip was enveloped in wet heat. He could feel the previously still tongue gradually winding around it, the sucking force becoming increasingly obvious.
Such an unorthodox method actually worked. The corner of Li Xuanci’s mouth quirked up for a moment. Controlling the pressure, he slowly withdrew his finger. The further out he pulled, the tighter she sucked. When his finger finally completely left her mouth, Shiliu’s eyelids fluttered a few times.
Her eyes finally opened.
Shiliu was still somewhat dazed. Subconsciously touching the large bump on the back of her head, she struggled to sit up.
And the first person she saw upon opening her eyes was Li Xuanci before her.
Those eyes of his were beautiful and sharp, yet now they were fixed unwaveringly on her, seemingly holding emotions she couldn’t quite decipher.
Shiliu’s mind was in turmoil, as if she had secretly drunk several large vats of extremely potent osmanthus wine—everything was spinning. She closed her eyes, but those eyes remained etched in her mind in the darkness, as if trying to see into her very soul.
Shiliu shook her head vigorously, feeling somewhat dizzy as she opened her eyes again, only to still see those eyes locked onto her, entangling her.
“Your Highness,” she called out groggily.
Li Xuanci straightened up, his gaze cooling, like heavy clouds gathering before rain.
“Your Highness?” he repeated her form of address in a dangerous tone.
Under this gaze, Shiliu instinctively shivered, belatedly becoming a bit more consious, but she only looked at Li Xuanci cowardly, not daring to speak further.
Both He Chong and Jin Zhan silently swallowed, sensing the tense atmosphere. Without waiting for Li Xuanci to personally glare them away, they quietly and soundlessly retreated.
Of course, the slightly more conscientious He Chong was dragged out by Jin Zhan with a hand over his mouth.
Shiliu timidly surveyed her surroundings and asked in a small voice, “Your Highness, what’s going on?”
Li Xuanci didn’t speak, only looked at her carefully. After a long while, he said, “What? You don’t remember anything you did?”
“I… what did I do?” Shiliu also swallowed hard and asked, steeling herself.
“Nothing much.” Li Xuanci wore a slight smile, answering in an eerie, calm tone.
Then, before Shiliu could sigh in relief, he continued.
“You just insisted on calling me ‘brother’ all day long, took advantage of your impaired state to pester me endlessly, and even stripped completely naked, trying every which way to seduce me, that’s all.”
Li Xuanci showed not a shred of guilt, raising an eyebrow and fabricating lies effortlessly.
Finally, disregarding Shiliu’s already wide-eyed stare, he added one last thing, “Oh, right, just before you knocked your head, you cursed, ‘Damn it all!’ I wonder, who were you cursing at?”
His eyes sparkled with deep malice as he watched the helpless Shiliu jump into his trap.