“Mm!”
Wenren Sheng’s hand struggled weakly for a moment.
He had been kissed!
That person pinched his chin and forcibly pried open his tightly clenched teeth, pressing against his lips. His hand then slid to Wenren Sheng’s lower back, pulling the two of them intimately close together.
Beneath the Yellow Springs, only souls as light as gossamer wings could pass, yet Wenren Sheng could somehow hear the other’s powerful heartbeat and feel the scorching heat of his body.
All his strength melted away in that kiss.
The surrounding water currents remained turbulent, forcing his eyes shut. He could only whimper as he was compelled to accept the spiritual power the other passed to him.
Perhaps because he had choked on two mouthfuls of water earlier, his throat felt tight and dry, and his mind was a complete blank. He offered no resistance at all as the man held him and kissed him for a long time.
Only when the water pressure around them dissipated and his toes finally touched the ground did Wenren Sheng feel the strength on his lower back slowly withdraw. His lips parted as well.
His cheeks were flushed red from the kiss, and his expression was somewhat dazed. He blinked blankly before finally lifting his head to look at the face of the man before him.
As expected, it was Murong He.
…He had clearly rejected him just an hour ago, yet now he was pushing his luck and daring to kiss him directly?
He had never been kissed by anyone else!!
Wenren Sheng hurriedly rubbed his lips hard with the back of his hand and glared at He Mu in shame and anger.
“What are you doing!”
He Mu showed no awareness at all that he had been presumptuous with Wenren Sheng. He took another step forward on his own and reached out to gently touch Wenren Sheng’s temple.
“Are you alright?” he asked warmly. “I arrived just in time to see you get pulled under. In my panic, I passed qi to you like that.”
Wenren Sheng: “…”
He felt aggrieved inside and wanted to vent his anger at He Mu, but upon hearing that it was to save him, he suddenly had nothing to say. All his grievances got stuck in his throat.
“Th-then, you, you shouldn’t have held me either, or grabbed my wrist. I clearly said…”
He Mu made a helpless expression. “The currents were too fierce, and your soul too light. It was unavoidable.”
It actually sounded reasonable…!
This scoundrel!
After spending time with Murong He, Wenren Sheng had gradually realized how wicked his personality was. He often mixed truth and lies in his words.
But he himself was clumsy with words and couldn’t come up with any retort!
After stewing in silence for a long time, he finally gritted his teeth and forced out a fierce-sounding “Thank you.”
He Mu smiled and ruffled his hair.
“No need to thank me.”
To thank someone after being forcibly kissed—probably only a little demon like Wenren Sheng would do such a thing.
He Mu admitted that there had been a bit of personal motive in passing qi to him earlier, but he had to say, Wenren Sheng kissed just as nicely as he had imagined.
Wenren Sheng had no idea what He Mu was thinking.
He touched his lower lip with his hand and stared glumly at the tips of his shoes.
First kiss…
This… didn’t count, right?
It was only to save his life, not out of any other feelings.
When Wenren Sheng was young, in those humid dreams, he had also kissed the Mountain God, with skin pressed to skin in mutual consent. He believed that kind of intimate contact was what truly counted as a first kiss.
This forceful one from Murong He didn’t count.
“Right, it doesn’t count.”
After fooling himself like that, Wenren Sheng finally mustered the courage to look up at He Mu again.
“Where is this place?”
After being swept away by the currents, they had landed inside a desolate, abandoned temple with no sign of human life. In front of them stood a mud statue covered in moss, with red candles toppled haphazardly on the altar before it. The air was thick with damp, musty odor.
“This is a land god temple,” He Mu explained. “The Underworld only accepts souls in pairs. You were too close to the river earlier and got swept in as a lone soul.”
“Only pairs…” Wenren Sheng said. “That’s too strange. If there’s no companion soul, doesn’t that mean they’d never enter reincarnation?”
He Mu chuckled lightly. “That’s why most souls wait here for their loved ones, then reincarnate together in pairs.”
Wenren Sheng asked, “Since the clan leader isn’t here, he must have gone in with his family, right?”
He Mu nodded and was about to speak when a gust of eerie wind suddenly arose around them, swirling twice around their bodies.
Several more rows of red candles toppled before the mud statue. Wenren Sheng felt a chill all over, and his body grew so light it seemed about to float away.
He flailed around front and back. Just as his feet were about to leave the ground, He Mu suddenly grabbed his hand.
The moment they touched, the weightless sensation vanished. Wenren Sheng steadied himself on the ground and glanced up slightly at He Mu.
He Mu threaded his fingers through Wenren Sheng’s, lifting their intertwined hands in front of Wenren Sheng’s eyes and shaking them lightly.
“Your fate is too light; your soul doesn’t weigh enough,” he said. “Hold on to me tightly so you don’t get lost.”
Hearing this, Wenren Sheng hesitated for a moment before slowly curling his fingers, gripping He Mu’s hand in return.
“Don’t get any ideas,” Wenren Sheng warned him. “We’re just cooperating right now.”
He Mu wasn’t pleased. He deliberately said, “So vigilant. Are you still thinking about your beloved?”
Wenren Sheng denied it vehemently. “I am not!”
“Then why can’t I get any ideas?” He Mu pinched Wenren Sheng’s hand. “Anyway, you’ve already parted ways. You don’t want to forgive him anymore, do you?”
He paused, then added meaningfully, “Or could it be that you haven’t let go yet? If you see him again, you’ll fall in love all over?”
Wenren Sheng had no idea what this guy was competing over.
He looked at He Mu in annoyance, his tone impolite. “Even if I never see him again for the rest of my life… I still won’t be with you!”
He thought saying this would hurt Murong He and make him behave, stopping his covetous pursuits.
But not only did the man show no sign of sorrow, his smile deepened, his eyes narrowing into slits as if he had heard the best news ever.
“Good,” He Mu said happily. “I understand.”
!
What the hell!
Wenren Sheng was so angry he wanted to bite him.
As he pondered where to bite to make Murong He suffer the most, the yin wind around them abruptly stopped, and white mist drifted down gently.
Then, a kindly old lady suddenly appeared before them, dressed in red clothes and embroidered shoes, looking like a matchmaker.
“Hey!” Wenren Sheng jumped in fright. “A ghost?”
The matchmaker kept her eyes closed and slowly bowed to them. “In this land god temple, have the two of you come to reincarnate?”
Wenren Sheng nodded. “Yes, granny. Do you know the way to the reincarnation area?”
Only then did the matchmaker slowly raise her head upon hearing Wenren Sheng’s voice.
Her eyes remained closed, but for some reason, Wenren Sheng still felt a sharp gaze land on him, making his skin crawl.
“You two,” she said in an aged voice, “share the same quilt in life, the same grave in death—companions on the road to the Yellow Springs.”
Wenren Sheng exchanged a glance with He Mu.
“What does that mean?”
The matchmaker didn’t answer. She pulled out a small booklet from somewhere, frowning as she flipped through a few pages, murmuring, “Six relations… wife-wealth palace…”
“Men…”
Wenren Sheng had no idea what she was muttering. He wanted to step forward and wave in front of her face, but He Mu held him back.
“Don’t rush,” he said. “She’s looking for the red threads between us.”
Wenren Sheng said in shock, “Red threads? We’ve only known each other for two days. How could we have any—”
“Have the two of you already married?”
Before he finished, the matchmaker interrupted slowly.
He Mu didn’t hesitate at all, smiling as he answered, “Our hearts are connected, but we haven’t married yet.”
?!
Wenren Sheng’s eyes widened. He couldn’t help but pinch him hard, thinking, “You’re at it again?”
“Have you had physical intimacy?” the matchmaker asked next.
He Mu stroked his chin thoughtfully before replying, “Does the one just now count?”
The matchmaker let out a “Ho!” and put away the booklet.
She examined them for a moment before saying slowly, “In that case, the land god temple will fulfill the wish you two left uncompleted in life. With blessings, may you forget past grudges on your path to reincarnation and enter the cycle with pure souls.”
Wenren Sheng murmured, “…Wish?”
The matchmaker didn’t answer his question.
She clasped her hands in front of her and bowed deeply and respectfully.
Then, her body dispersed like smoke blown away, slowly fading before them.
“Wishing you both a smooth journey.”
Hearing the lingering voice by his ear, Wenren Sheng’s eyes widened slightly.
He instinctively gripped He Mu’s hand tighter, but the firm grasp that had held him vanished abruptly, leaving him clutching at empty air.
Wenren Sheng’s expression changed in alarm. He looked around quickly—Murong He had disappeared from his side at some point.
Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums exploding and firecrackers crackling burst in his ears. When he turned back, the mud statue of the bodhisattva was gone, replaced by a high hall draped in thick red hangings.
An ancestral tablet and incense candles sat on the platform before it, with two grandmaster chairs to the side. It looked exactly like they had stumbled into someone’s wedding ceremony.
Wenren Sheng took half a step back.
“…Huh?”
He hesitated.
“Who’s getting married?”
As soon as he spoke, something was thrown over his head, turning his vision completely red. He couldn’t see a thing.
“Mm!”
Wenren Sheng hurriedly reached up to yank off the inexplicable cloth, but a crowd of nosy people had appeared around him at some point. They grabbed his arms with hands all over and dragged him somewhere.
Before he could react, he horror-struck discovered his body moving on its own, bowing deeply toward the front.
At the same time, a drawn-out voice rang out by his ear: “First bow to the heavens and earth!”
It was his own wedding!
Wenren Sheng panicked. “W-wait, I don’t want—”
No! Who was he bowing to?
Murong He? Or that old lady??
He didn’t want either!
But no matter how much he resisted in his heart, Wenren Sheng was still forced through “second bow to the heavens and earth” and “couple’s bow to each other,” completing the rites with whoever it was.
Before he could even cry, several hands pushed at his back, chattering noisily as they herded him toward somewhere.
Along the way, people kept throwing inexplicable fruits, grains, and flower petals over his head, pummeling him until his head hurt.
This was disastrous. If everyone had to go through this after death, he absolutely had to ascend to immortality.
He didn’t want to marry some inexplicable person!
After enduring it for a while, the raucous cheers finally faded. Wenren Sheng felt the force behind him disappear.
He tentatively reached forward and seemed to be pushed in front of a door.
“…………”
At this point, it seemed he had no choice but to push the door open.
He vaguely remembered seeing this scene in storybooks—the step after lovers bowed in a wedding ceremony was called…
Click.
Before he finished thinking, a gentle breeze blew before him, and the door seemed to open lightly.
Wenren Sheng quickly raised his arm to block in front of himself, alert. “I was forced into this. I don’t want to marry. Don’t you dare touch me!”
But after he said that, the person before him only chuckled softly.
“Shengsheng, having second thoughts?”
This voice, so familiar it couldn’t be more so, poured into his ears, making Wenren Sheng’s heart heat up suddenly. His body stiffened in place.
“…”
No way…
While he was dazed, the person before him suddenly grasped his arm and pulled him into his embrace with utmost gentleness.
Wenren Sheng offered no resistance at all. His mind blank, he simply leaned stiffly against the man’s chest.
This voice, this embrace—he wouldn’t mistake them even after a thousand years.
It was the Mountain God.
Wenren Sheng’s breathing grew short. He didn’t move a muscle, letting the man scoop him up horizontally and carry him to the bedside.
His body sank slowly into soft bedding.
After setting him down, He Mu sat down beside him as well. The two shared this bed that was neither too wide nor too narrow, just like those days on Fragrant Ze Mountain.
Wenren Sheng was so nervous he didn’t dare breathe.
That old lady had said she would fulfill his life’s uncompleted wish, allowing him to settle past matters and move on peacefully.
Though he wasn’t dead yet, looking at it this way, wasn’t the deepest desire in his heart…
To… to marry the Mountain God?!!!
How was that possible!!!
Wenren Sheng couldn’t catch his breath. In horror, he clutched his flushed face and shrank toward the other side of the bed.
Why was this his “heart’s desire”?
Clearly, over these past two years, he hadn’t liked He Mu as much anymore. He could barely remember what he looked like, and he rarely appeared in his dreams. How could it possibly…
He Mu sat quietly beside him for a moment, then leaned in and slowly lifted his veil with the back of his hand.
Moisture shimmered in Wenren Sheng’s eyes as he flusteredly lifted his gaze to meet He Mu’s.
“Mountain God…”
Wenren Sheng called out in a trembling voice.
He Mu looked exactly the same as in his memories: sharp irises, eyes tapering to a point like a razor-sharp blade, and the golden pattern between his brows…
No, why had it become so dim?
Wenren Sheng pressed his back against the wall, drawing his legs tightly in front of him, his eyes rimmed with faint red.
He couldn’t figure it out.
He had tried expressing his love, but it hadn’t gone well. It had left them both in excruciating pain. He didn’t understand why his heart would still give such an answer.
He had imagined marrying the Mountain God—or rather, this very scene matched exactly what he had once envisioned.
But now, everything was different. His heart was too…
He Mu let down the bed curtain with his free hand.
He drew closer to Wenren Sheng, who felt him inching nearer until he could faintly sense his breath on his lips.
He Mu wanted to kiss him.
Perhaps it was more than that—maybe other things too. Wenren Sheng found himself unable to think straight.
But as he himself had said, this kiss was different from the one with Murong He.
This was… his former love…
In that moment, Wenren Sheng’s breath all but stopped.
The air in the Underworld suddenly grew scorching hot. Even the touch of souls burned like fire, and his fleshless form now pulsed with a heartbeat.
The bed curtain fell.
With a faint breath, He Mu pressed his lips against Wenren Sheng’s.
Almost in that instant, Wenren Sheng closed his eyes in fear.
He Mu seemed to sense his tension and haste, so he kissed very gently—a light taste, barely lingering, as he nipped at his lip.
Wenren Sheng didn’t resist much—or rather, he simply didn’t know how to resist.
He could only accept the kiss uneasily: from the fleeting brush of lips, to He Mu’s gradual probing deeper, to their lips and tongues pressing together in intimate grinding of ears and temples.
Wenren Sheng’s body grew increasingly feverish. He Mu’s kisses deepened, taking on an impatient edge by the end that left Wenren Sheng hardly able to hold out.
As he kissed, one hand slid to Wenren Sheng’s neck, fingers tracing down the line of his throat to his collarbone, deftly undoing the clasps of his robe one by one.
After two clasps, He Mu finally paused the kiss. He rested his forehead against Wenren Sheng’s, breathing heavily.
“Shengsheng,” he murmured lowly, his fingertip brushing ambiguously over Wenren Sheng’s collarbone, “these kiss marks… who left them?”
At those words, a flash of bewilderment crossed Wenren Sheng’s eyes.
…What kiss marks?
He looked down at his half-open inner robe and realized that sometime unbeknownst to him, several faint red marks had appeared on his skin—passionate and blatant, scattered across his throat and collarbone, with deeper ones hidden beneath the still-fastened fabric.
The marks were very fresh, clearly left not long ago.
