Unseen Immortal of Three Hundred Years - Chap 64
Chapter 64
Xiao Fuxuan did not hear, lowered his head much closer “what”.
He slightly side of the face, half-lowered eyebrows, as if just attached to the ear over.
This side of the eaves but suddenly have the meaning of a private place, even the wind are bypassed.
At that moment, there was a little boy in the courtyard asking “Sir, why is there the sound of swords on the roof, what happened?”
The voice was far away and vague, but Wu Xingxue had the illusion that he had been spied on. His heart skipped a beat, and then beat faster and faster. Favoring that all of this was soaked in thin, lazy alcohol, so he didn’t move, letting those unseen and untouchable things grow wild.
He heard Xiao Fuxuan answered the little boy, “Nothing, I’m waiting for guests.”His voice was so low that the boy didn’t hear it, but it rolled in Wu Xing Xue’s ear.
When he said the last two words, he finally turned his eyes and looked at Wu Xingxue.
Wu Xingxue in the heavy heartbeat lazy voice said “no one put the guest against the house like this”.
Xiao Fuxuan’s eyes fell in his eyes, “Uh-huh.”
Wu Xingxue added, “Moreover, the guests to be set up wine, you did not bring up.”
Xiao Fuxuan finally moved his lips and said, “The wine you drank with others.”
Wu Xingxue “I can drink with you again.”
Xiao Fuxuan said, “No need.”
He said not necessary, but his voice is not half cold tone, perhaps because it is too close, close to the breath interlacing.
WuXingXue eyes are almost hazy “then how can I coax TianShu happy”.
Xiao Fuxuan “Why do you want to make me happy.”
WuXingXue wine on the head, licked his lips and said “because”.
He actually has not yet thought of how to say, but also do not need to think about it.
Because he half narrowed his eyes, suddenly felt his fingers were clasped tightly, and Xiao Fuxuan side head down!
The tip of their noses were touching each other, Xiao Fuxuan pinched his chin and made him open his lips.
He also dreamed of the place where no sparrows land.
It seemed like just a moment ago he was under the eave by the south window, being kissed by Xiao Fu Xuan, and the next moment he found himself by the window where no sparrow lands, so much so that even Wu Xingxue in his dream felt bewildered.
He saw the courtyard outside the window covered in snow, reminding one of spring breezes that freeze branches on the eaves. But inside the house, there were no longer young boys setting up cups and dishes, nor were there people disregarding the night to admire the view.
The snow in the courtyard was thick, chilling to the core just by looking at it for a while.
And he was indeed cold. The coldness spread from the gaps in his bones, a kind that couldn’t be eased by huddling around a warm stove, boiling a soup warmer, or lighting a basin of charcoal.
He was wearing a thin, plain robe, leaning by the window, seemingly just got up from the couch.
He saw Fang Chu hurriedly running into the room from the next one, holding a fur overcoat in his hands, which seemed to have been warmed up by something, radiating warmth even before being draped over.
“City Lord, please put this on,” Fang Chu unfolded the overcoat.
Wu Xingxue, however, waved his hand and replied, “I don’t need it, put it back.”
Fang Chu muttered, “But it’s very cold during the calamity period.”
Wu Xingxue said, “Is it? I think it’s alright.”
Fang Chu was speechless.
Fang Chu persuaded, “We’ve only just entered the period for less than two days, it will only get colder.”
Wu Xingxue glanced at the overcoat and said, “I never needed it.”
Fang Chu’s lips moved a few times, “The City Lord indeed does not like to wear much, but”
Wu Xingxue, “But what?”
Fang Chu hesitated, glancing at his fingertips.
Following his gaze, Wu Xingxue looked down and saw a faint blue at his fingertips. When he looked up again, Fang Chu had already averted his gaze, daring not to look any further.
Wu Xingxue gently twirled his fingertips, circulating the qi within his body.
During the calamity period, circulating qi was indeed extremely uncomfortable, every inch of it stagnated, like frozen rivers. The process of forcing it through felt like being pricked by needles, densely and intensely.
The pain was like needles pricking through his meridians and acupoints, a dense discomfort.
Yet, Wu Xingxue did not show it on his face at all. After a cycle of circulating his qi, the blueness on his fingers receded, leaving them pale and clean at a glance, with not a single anomaly.
He spread his hand open for Fang Chu to see clearly, “Look again.”
Fang Chu, holding the overcoat, had nothing to say.
Wu Xingxue added, “It was just because I had just woken up.”
Fang Chu managed a weak “Oh,” appearing as if he wanted to object but couldn’t.
In fact, it’s normal for demons facing their calamity period to not want to show any weakness. After all, Zhaoye City, surrounded by demons, has never been a safe place.
But at this moment, they were in their own residence, near the sparrow-less window, where customarily no one comes, and no one would see. Wearing one more overcoat could surely make one a bit warmer, so why not do it?
Fang Chu didn’t understand.
But Wu Xingxue refused to wear it.
He did ask Fang Chu, “Is there any wine?”
Upon hearing this, Fang Chu thought that not wearing the overcoat and instead drinking some warm wine could work. So, he quickly nodded, “Yes, City Lord. Please wait a moment, I will get the wine.”
He was about to hang the fur overcoat on a wooden rack inside the room, but Wu Xingxue stopped him, “Don’t hang it there. Wherever it was found, return it there.”
Fang Chu looked puzzled but dared not ask more.
The calamity period was hard enough; even the most temperate people could become gloomy and unpredictable. He dared not provoke the City Lord’s bad mood. So, Fang Chu had to return the fur overcoat to the side room and properly place it back in the cabinet.
Thus, it seemed as if the sparrow-less window had never felt cold and unbearable, and the fur overcoat had never been taken out.
Fang Chu quickly brought over two pots of wine and cups, also sneakily warming the wine with a palm fire.
Thus, when Wu Xingxue took the wine pot, he felt a touch of warmth.
He looked up to see Fang Chu suddenly spring back, shrinking into the corner of the room, sheepishly saying, “City Lord, I… I heard this wine tastes better warm.”
Wu Xingxue did not blame him this time, only saying, “Then have you heard that warm wine is easier to get drunk on?”
Fang Chu opened his mouth, then hurriedly shook his head, “I didn’t know.”
“I was wrong, City Lord,” Fang Chu admitted his mistake.
Wu Xingxue tossed the wine cup back, saying, “I don’t need this.”
This was not the Jade Brew of Xian Du, which was rich upon entry, unlike the Jade Brew’s sweetness. Here, there was no one to share wine by the window, so there was no need to hold a small cup for a leisurely and shallow toast.
He was just looking at the ice branches in the courtyard and the high eaves under the green mist in one corner, and suddenly he felt like drinking.
The wine in the Night City was indeed different. He used to drink Jade Dew for half a day and only felt a thin sense of drunkenness. Now, two pots had already made him somewhat lazy.
He closed his eyes for a while and then opened them, his eyes filled with the clear moonlight, not muddled, but covered with a layer of light fog.
Leaning against the window sill, he suddenly asked Fang Chu, “Are these windows on the north side, where the sparrows don’t fall?”
Fang Chu was stunned for a moment, confused by this abrupt topic. After a moment, he said, “Yes, they are on the north side.”
In the human world, people’s homes always prefer to face south to catch the sunlight, and doors and windows are also preferred to be on the south side. But the Night City is, after all, a demon’s lair, always contrary to the human world.
The demons don’t care about facing the sun; they only care about their own comfort. The entire layout of the Night City is rebellious, and most of the mansions here face south to north.
The southernmost part is where the Sparrows Do Not Fall.
Wu Xingxue could not possibly be unaware of this, so his sudden question seemed a bit strange.
Fang Chu wondered, “Why does the city lord suddenly bring this up? Is there something odd?”
Wu Xingxue’s gaze still fell outside the window, saying, “Nothing odd, just suddenly remembered and mentioned it in passing.”
He rarely took the initiative to talk about these things before, probably the wine was getting to his head now.
He was quiet for a while, his gaze moving from the eaves back to the window, and suddenly said softly, “Fang Chu, is there anything special under that window of yours?”
Fang Chu shook his head.
“There’s nothing, just some mud, short flowers, and small stones under the window. Nothing special.”
Wu Xingxue took another sip of wine, swallowed it, and looked down at the low plants, saying, “Then why would someone be concerned with what’s under the window?”
Fang Chu was stumped, not because the question was difficult, but because it was rare and strange to hear such a question from the mouth of his city lord.
After thinking for a long time, he said, “It’s probably because it’s high up.”
Wu Xingxue laughed, not turning his head, feeling that this answer was like an unnecessary platitude.
Fang Chu, insisting, said, “Being high up, the things under the window are different. A casual glance downward, and you see more and further. Perhaps it could become a view, so having some concern for it is not unjustified.”
Listening, Wu Xingxue suddenly had some vague thoughts flash through his mind.
The thoughts flashed so quickly that he almost couldn’t react, just slowly losing his smile, holding the wine pot by the jade rim, and standing by the window in a daze.
“Being high up.”
His lips moved slightly.
In that moment, he seemed to see a lingering fog again, a giant tomb within it, and a tall tower.
Someone flew to the top of the tower, standing with a lantern, looking down from the window. He couldn’t remember if that person was looking at him or towards the peaceful town further away.
Then the lantern light dispersed into the fog, and that figure raised a hand to strike the ancient bell.
Dong.
The sound of the bell almost rang in his brain.
In that instant, Wu Xingxue felt as if he had closed his eyes, his sensation of pain and cold suddenly intensified as if his tribulation period had suddenly reached its most difficult moment.
That year’s tribulation period was ferocious, more unbearable than any year before, colder and more painful. So much so that Wu Xingxue had a period of time that was almost blank, devoid of sensation.
He couldn’t remember how he put down the wine pot, how he asked Fang Chu to leave, nor how he closed the doors and windows and set the prohibitions on the main house.
The prohibition was two-way, difficult for others to enter and for him to exit, to prevent him from doing something irreversible in his dazed state.
He only remembered that the moment the prohibition was set, there was suddenly an extra presence behind him.
Someone had silently entered the courtyard, even his room, without alarming anyone else.
Driven by demonic instinct, he raised his hand to grab a weapon. But there were neither knives nor swords in his room. What he grabbed was, surprisingly, only a dream bell.
There were too many chaotic lines cut in that year’s rebellion, and the fragments of the divine wood from those lines fell into his hands. He originally planned to destroy them completely, leaving nothing behind.
Arriving at a moment of hesitation, then stripped off the white jade essence wrapped around the broken branch, creating the “Dream Bell,” a small item.
The bell resembled the clock on the high tower.
Since then, whenever he cut off a certain chaotic thread, he would always ring the white jade bell in his hand at the last moment, giving those who faded away because of the broken thread a beautiful dream.
Even if those people were not supposed to exist in the world, even if they were still going to die.
He created dreams for many people, making them forget some things or believe in others.
Just like the bell on the tower back then, the moment the bell rang, at least in dreams, there was no pain, and everything was peaceful.
But at this moment, the white jade Dream Bell was grasped in the hand of Wu Xingxue, its sharp tip pressing heavily against the palm, the cold, dull pain making him break free from the calamity for a moment, regaining some clarity.
He held the white jade essence, smelling the scent of the person behind him.
He was more familiar with that scent than anyone else, able to recognize it even with his eyes closed and back turned.
“Xiao Fuxuan,”
He turned around, holding the Dream Bell.
Xiao Fuxuan stood by the door, his dark eyes fixedly watching him.
“This is Zhaoye City,” he said.
This is the demon’s lair, Zhaoye City, not the open courtyard of sitting in the spring breeze, where you can come as you please.
He wanted to say, “Why did you choose to come at this time?” But somehow, the words seemed awkward, and he didn’t like it. Thus, he pressed his lips together, not voicing them out.
Xiao Fuxuan just looked at him deeply and said, “I know this is Night City, and I know you’ve set up restrictions, but I came in anyway.”
Not only did he come in, but he also wasn’t harmed in the slightest. It was as if all those restrictions had avoided him, not attacking him at all. When Wu Xingxue had set up the restrictions, he was nearly out of his mind, acting purely on instinct and subconsciousness.
His words laid bare those subconscious actions, impossible to hide or deny.
So, Wu Xingxue stopped speaking.
He clenched the object in his hand, confronting the person at the door.
That moment stretched extremely long, equally silent and filled with ambiguous tensions. It almost reminded one of the eaves under the southern window back in the day,
Yet, it was utterly different.
Back then, he was the Spirit King; now, he was a demon lord.
He had to go through the tribulation necessary for a demonic cultivator, but he didn’t want to face it in front of Xiao Fuxuan.
Any way was fine, just not in front of Xiao Fuxuan.
So, he spoke some provocative words, hoping to drive the other away. His hand, hidden behind his back, clenched a dream bell made of fine white jade, yet his face bore a smile, and he tilted his head to say to the person, “Do you know about the demonic cultivator’s tribulation? Have you seen what a demon lord looks like during their tribulation?”
“Have you heard about demons indulging in their desires?”
He knew Xiao Fuxuan dealt most with demonic cultivators, killed the most demons, and imposed the most penalties on them.
He could imagine without seeing what the Celestial Immortal of Heavenly Stay would despise, those unique traits of demons, unrestrained and debauched.
He spoke only of those things, waiting for Xiao Fuxuan to leave with a cold face.
It was actually very easy to provoke the Celestial Immortal of Heavenly Stay; he had genuinely provoked him countless times in half jest.
But this time,
After he had said all those things, even disgusting himself, Xiao Fuxuan didn’t move a step and continued to look at him deeply. After a long while, he finally spoke, “I’ve heard it all.”
Wu Xingxue suddenly fell silent.
He paused for a moment, then said, “Since you’ve heard everything, know everything, and still chose to come today of all days.”
The lights inside the room shone in Xiao Fuxuan’s eyes, the flickering lights causing those eyes to dissolve into a bright expanse.
Wu Xingxue hesitated for a moment, avoiding eye contact. He turned his head toward the couch and nodded slightly, continuing, “So, you want to be a guest in the tent of this demon?”
The room fell silent.
After a moment, Xiao Fuxuan’s deep voice rose.
He said, “Yes.”
“I will be the guest in the tent.”
Wu Xingxue’s heart skipped a beat.
It was hard to describe the feeling of that instant; he stood frozen in place for a long while before suddenly turning back, only to feel a breeze sweep by as Xiao Fuxuan had already approached.
Wu Xingxue moved his lips but made no sound. Almost simultaneously as Xiao Fuxuan approached, he unleashed a fierce demonic energy that surged out like an unfathomable sea. The wild wind, carrying a frost-like killing intent, swept fiercely over, creating a huge disturbance that was astonishing yet remained locked within the doors and windows due to the prohibition.
This was a corner of the Night City, where a prohibition was placed by its lord, making it the most dangerous and also the most private place in the world.
And those killing auras capable of decapitating a person came to an abrupt halt upon touching Xiao Fuxuan. That moment of cessation foretold an outcome.
The world still spun, the sword qi still grazed vital points, still so close yet not harming a hair.
It seemed they always ended up like this.
Only, the Spirit King of those years was pressed against the roof, and now the demon was pressed against the couch.
The sword qi grazed Wu Xingxue’s neck, enveloped in the unique aura of the Heavenly Dwelling, sharp but not dangerous. Xiao Fuxuan, just like in the past, knelt halfway, looking down at him, his fingers curved and interlocked with Wu Xingxue’s.
Xiao Fuxuan’s gaze followed down his nose, his voice deep and slow, “You want to provoke me to leave.”
Wu Xingxue’s hand still hadn’t withdrawn its energy, the extreme coldness flowing down his fingertips, spreading white frost from his fingers to Xiao Fuxuan’s.
Though there was a clear intent to harm, strangely, there was a sense of intimacy entwined.
Wu Xingxue moved his lips, saying, “I was waiting for you to leave.”
Xiao Fuxuan looked at him, and after a moment, said in a deep voice, “After I leave, who do you want to spend your calamity period with?”
Wu Xingxue’s heart skipped a beat.
It was as if someone had lightly pricked him, enveloping his entire heart with an indescribable sensation in an instant. Suddenly, he found himself at a loss for words.
After a long time, he closed his eyes and said, “No one.”
“No one else,” he added softly.
The moment he uttered these words, the frost on his fingers slowly receded, and Xiao Fuxuan’s Qi flowed in through his fingertips.
It was like lighting a fire, fierce yet warm. The warm Qi flowed almost tenderly through his veins, warming his skin, no longer icy and pale, slowly regaining its color.
With his eyes closed, he was more sensitive than ever.
He heard Xiao Fuxuan say, “You’ve been drinking.”
For some reason, those simple three words made him somewhat startled, momentarily unsure of the time. It was as if he was still in the Celestial City, drinking the wine prepared early with someone else, which displeased the Heavenly Dwelling.
He went to apologize and coax, pinned under the jade-tiled eaves of the south window, kissed into silence.
The Heavenly Dwelling’s Qi flowed through his veins into his heart.
A faint blush under Wu Xingxue’s skin spread from beneath his thin clothes, visibly moving up his neck to his lips.
Recalling the past, he licked his lips and opened his eyes.
He said, “Xiao Fuxuan.”
“Hmm.”
The other just lightly touched his lower lip, half-closing his eyes and leaning in for a kiss.
Their breaths intertwined, Wu Xingxue slightly opened his mouth, and heard Xiao Fuxuan’s voice close to his lips.
He said softly, “Wu Xingxue, I dreamt of you last night.”
Long ago, people of the Celestial City often said they did not dream.
Because they always entered the dreams of mortals, always answered their requests, always aware that dreams are mostly illusions, and they were more wary of illusions than anyone.
Later, they said, dreams come from daily thoughts; perhaps their merits were complete, their thoughts not deep enough, not frequent enough, not heavy enough.
Eventually, they slowly admitted, perhaps becoming immortal meant no longer dreaming. No matter how deep, frequent, or heavy their thoughts, it was futile.
For them, this life might only afford them a proper dream under the influence of that white jade bell.
This, Wu Xingxue was clearer about than anyone.
In this world, immortals do not dream, but Xiao Fuxuan said, “I dreamt of you.”
