Chapter 34: A Place to Stay Part 1

After saying that, Wenren Sheng nervously gripped the edge of the wooden box and took several deep breaths.

He Mu seemed to sense something. His pupils contracted slightly as he lightly gripped Wenren Sheng’s wrist.

“Shengsheng, you—”

“D-Don’t touch me.”

Wenren Sheng’s heart was already racing out of control. This grab made him even more nervous, his voice trembling.

“I’m so nervous. Can you please not say anything right now?”

He paused, then softened his voice. “Please, let me finish. I have a secret I’ve been hiding from you. I want to tell you myself.”

He Mu pursed his lips and gripped Wenren Sheng’s wrist even tighter.

Seeing this, Wenren Sheng steeled himself. He pushed He Mu’s hand away and shoved the wooden box containing the thumb ring into He Mu’s arms.

Then he quickly pulled his hand back, clutched the hem of his clothes, and said softly, “The clan leader said that when rabbits from the Rabbit Clan confess to their beloved, they always bring a gift. This is a jade piece I picked out at the silver shop and had ground for you. Here, take it first.”

Wenren Sheng kept his head lowered, not daring to look into He Mu’s eyes. His fingertips kept rubbing the edge of his sleeve nonstop.

“Th-Though it’s not as precious as the one the Mountain God gave you, it’s… it’s still good.”

Wenren Sheng was so nervous that his breathing grew short, his fingertips even starting to tingle. His chest felt like it housed a fledgling bird, desperately trying to burst out and deliver his feelings straight into He Mu’s palm.

Normally, Wenren Sheng would have fled long ago.

But today, he wanted to say it. He wanted to say it desperately. He’d wanted to say it from the very first moment he laid eyes on He Mu.

He liked him. He wanted him so badly.

These words had been bottled up in his heart, like tender sprouts taking root in feelings, making Wenren Sheng think of him day and night, unable to forget. Now, he could no longer hide them.

Just as his master had said, why keep love locked away to torment himself? He’d rather have the Mountain God hear it, so they could suffer together, than swallow these emotions and bury them forever.

He Mu, off to the side, didn’t know what to think.

He looked at Wenren Sheng with complex eyes, his voice trembling slightly. “But between you and me… what’s really different from before?”

The question seemed less directed at Wenren Sheng and more at himself.

What was different? What had changed?

He had always cherished Wenren Sheng as before. He wanted him happy and carefree, free. They’d lived like that for seven years.

Why had his dao heart become unstable?

Why had the way he looked at Wenren Sheng changed? Why couldn’t he suppress his own feelings? Why, after a hundred years of pure cultivation, had all sorts of obscure desires sprouted in his heart?

What… had changed?

“It’s just different!”

Wenren Sheng thought He Mu still didn’t get it. His tone grew anxious.

“I’ve never felt like this before. When you kiss me or touch me, my whole body goes numb and my heart races nonstop. I feel like I’m melting.”

With that, he took the initiative to pull He Mu’s hand to his cheek and looked up at him.

“Like this. When you touch me, my heart beats so fast.”

Thump, thump.

It pounded wildly.

Startled by the frantic heartbeat, Wenren Sheng squeezed his eyes shut and shouted as if going all out.

“I really like you! Not like before. I want to be dao companions with you. That’s why my heart’s acting up like this! Of course it’s different!”

He’d said it!

Wenren Sheng panted twice in a hurry, quickly letting go of He Mu’s hand. His whole body burned like a freshly steamed white bun, steam rising faintly.

He’d confessed his feelings.

Next, he just needed to come clean about being a demon. Like just now—close his eyes and blurt it all out. It wouldn’t be that hard.

But what would the Mountain God think? How would he respond to his feelings?

Would he…

Just as the words fell, He Mu suddenly shot to his feet.

Wenren Sheng blinked and looked up. He realized He Mu’s face was deathly pale. He let out a muffled grunt, pressed the heel of his palm to his forehead, and staggered back a few steps.

The wooden box in his hand remained unopened, its silver clasp still glinting faintly, stinging Wenren Sheng’s eyes.

Following the reflection, Wenren Sheng squinted and suddenly saw his own appearance from above. A pair of wolf ears clearly protruded from his head.

The transformation technique…

When had it undone itself?

No, he hadn’t—

Time seemed to freeze in that instant.

Perhaps from his racing heart, Wenren Sheng’s vision blurred white. The surroundings smeared into patches of light, overlapping in a dazzling array. For a split second, it felt like a dream.

“Sixteen years. I’ve finally waited.”

Such a voice rang abruptly in his ears.

Waited for what?

Who was speaking?

Wenren Sheng felt a stabbing pain at the back of his neck. He frowned, took two short breaths, then turned to look.

The moment his gaze landed, Wenren Sheng’s pupils shrank sharply.

“…Butterfly?”

That blue butterfly.

It hovered at the door like a wisp of ghost, slowly fanning its wings. A few flecks of glow drifted from its tail with each flap, making it stand out starkly from its surroundings.

Wenren Sheng then remembered seeing it at the mountain gate too.

But He Mu had appeared suddenly then, interrupting his thoughts, so he hadn’t dwelled on it.

Why was it following him?

Had the fox demon returned to Fragrant Ze Mountain?

Wenren Sheng’s ears buzzed. The scenery around him shifted back into focus as time resumed.

He Mu had summoned Color Kill at some point. He stood in the shadows, the sword’s edge glinting coldly.

For a moment, Wenren Sheng thought the blade would swing toward his neck.

His gaze froze. Instinctively, he touched his head.

When his fingertips brushed the soft ear fur, Wenren Sheng’s heart sank.

The transformation technique had truly undone itself.

He Mu knew he was a demon now—not from his own mouth.

Everything was ruined.

The excitement from the confession vanished. Wenren Sheng looked at He Mu at a loss, his body shrinking back involuntarily.

“Mountain God…”

He Mu pressed his forehead. Color Kill spun in his hand toward Wenren Sheng. The depths of his eyes had turned blood-red, radiating intense killing intent.

Right now, he couldn’t even see Wenren Sheng clearly. Only a blurry shadow remained before him, the sounds in his ears a jumbled roar.

Wenren Sheng didn’t know this was a sign of qi deviation. He only knew He Mu’s gaze was terrifying.

He looked at him like he’d seen some demon or monster.

Wenren Sheng felt a bucket of cold water dump over him from head to toe. His heart chilled completely.

The Mountain God didn’t like him.

He sensed no affection—just sinister killing intent, unmasked, coiling around his limbs like serpents, pressing until he could barely breathe.

He swallowed and rasped, “Don’t be angry. I didn’t mean to—”

Before he finished, He Mu’s hand went slack. Color Kill clanged to the ground.

The sudden noise made Wenren Sheng flinch.

His gaze slowly shifted down to the sword on the floor. Its runes glowed with a subdued chill, reflecting his eyes.

“Color Kill…”

Before he could react, He Mu formed a hand seal. A heavenly wind swept through, scattering the room’s furnishings in chaos.

Wenren Sheng didn’t even think to shield himself from the wind. He stood frozen in place, that gaze of He Mu’s replaying endlessly in his mind.

He’d never seen He Mu look at him so strangely.

Even a single glance made Wenren Sheng want to abandon all his feelings instantly.

Did he hate him for being a demon?

Just because of an extra pair of ears and a tail, did he find him repulsive enough to kill?

He couldn’t voice these questions, nor get answers. In the next breath, He Mu vanished from before him.

Without a single word.

Wenren Sheng’s bangs lifted then fell with the wind. The room’s tumult died down, returning to silence.

“…………”

He’d left?

Wenren Sheng’s mind went blank. He slowly bent down to pick up the sword from the floor. Feeling the lingering warmth on the hilt, he belatedly chased after He Mu and rushed outside.

He Mu was long gone. Snow light reflected off the clouds across the sky, vast and empty skies stretching endlessly.

Wenren Sheng felt like that lost little wolf from years ago, unable to find home. He stared blankly at the sky, his wolf ears slowly folding back, pressing flat against his hair.

“Is this… rejecting me?”

Wenren Sheng muttered to himself.

He hadn’t slept all last night, imagining countless outcomes. He’d even steeled himself for rejection after confessing. He never expected He Mu to leave without a word.

If he didn’t like him, he could have just said so. They could keep being family. Wenren Sheng hadn’t cared that much anyway. He just wanted to be with the Mountain God.

Why abandon him outright?

He didn’t even feel like crying. His mind was a muddled mess, like gears long out of use, refusing to turn.

He couldn’t figure it out.

He struggled for breath, clutching his chest and hunching over to gasp for air.

Could it be some other reason?

The Mountain God had just ended his cultivation. His dao heart…

“What other reason could there be?”

A weight suddenly pressed on his shoulder, accompanied by a voice he didn’t want to hear.

The fox demon draped an arm over Wenren Sheng’s shoulder. A blue butterfly perched on its knuckles, held before him.

“He didn’t want to see you, so he left.”

Its gaze followed the butterfly’s movements, speaking casually like an old acquaintance.

Wenren Sheng gripped the sword hilt tight and hurriedly stepped back.

“You? Why are…”

Halfway through, enlightenment struck Wenren Sheng. He flipped his wrist, thrusting Color Kill at the fox demon’s neck without a word.

Gritting his teeth, he said, “Were you behind this just now?”

The fox demon pushed the blade away with two fingers and shook its head with narrowed eyes.

“Don’t you think he doesn’t like you?”

Wenren Sheng frowned. “What do you mean?”

The fox demon placed the butterfly on Wenren Sheng’s ear and said flatly, “There’s a kind of dao heart in this world that forbids budding love. If mortal feelings arise, you must eliminate them by any means to stabilize the divine graven.”

“That kind of dao heart is called the Emotionless Dao.”

The fox demon looked at Wenren Sheng pityingly. “If he were truly detached from everything, fine. But unfortunately, he developed a bit of lust for you.”

The sword in Wenren Sheng’s hand trembled.

“…Emotionless Dao?”

How had he forgotten?

There was such a dao heart in the world. He’d even once thought He Mu might cultivate it.

But back then, no feelings had stirred in him, so he hadn’t dwelled on it. Now, he’d forgotten it entirely.

“So…” Wenren Sheng’s gaze grew vacant. “Because he developed mortal feelings, that’s why he—”

The fox demon wagged a finger to interrupt. “If mortal feelings arise, there are only two paths. First, strangle those emotions—kill you or leave you, never to meet again.”

“Second,” the fox demon raised a second finger, “erase his name from the Emotionless Stele.”

“But that means stripping his divine graven, abandoning his title, and demoting himself back to a mortal. A century of merits and cultivation reduced to nothing, all for your little romance…”

The fox demon smirked mockingly at Wenren Sheng.

“You think that’s possible?”

Wenren Sheng fell silent.

Though he didn’t know his place in He Mu’s heart, he vaguely felt that given He Mu’s personality, he wouldn’t abandon his divine graven.

He Mu had told him he loved the freedom of being a god. He’d lived that way for a hundred years.

They’d only known each other seven short years—a mere dawn-to-dusk for a god, an instant in heaven and earth.

So Wenren Sheng believed that between him and the great dao, He Mu would choose the dao.

He lowered his head to look at the sword in his hand.

But… why leave Color Kill behind?