No matter what, Zhao Lixuan had finally started living those grudge-free, light-hearted good days.
Truly, his mood was bright and cheerful, with clear skies and harmonious scenery every day!
Reconciliation was always a two-way street.
Since Immortal Lord Jiang had taken the initiative to show goodwill and start acting human, he naturally had to respond with sincerity.
Thus, on top of the routine gifts, he began tapping into the Zhao Clan Merchant Guild’s channels to scour rare forging materials and ancient flute melody rubbings for Jiang Chen. Knowing his sweet tooth, he even sent people to buy the most renowned lotus seed cherry grass cakes and pine nut lily puffs from the Unstained Immortal Realm, box after box delivered to the Maple Vine Courtyard.
At the victory celebration for the third Moon Hunt triumph, he straight-up grabbed that figure in black robes who always sat alone in the corner and shoved him into the crowd without a word: “Everyone, today we have to drink a proper cup with Immortal Lord Jiang!”
The effect was immediate.
With him warmly facilitating on the side, though Jiang Chen still wasn’t one for smiles or chit-chat, after a few rounds of drinks, when the crowd raised their cups in toast, he could already hold his cup in response. Gradually, no one felt that this Sword-Holding Immortal Venerable was unapproachable or distant anymore.
“People always said Immortal Lord Jiang was cold and inhuman… could it just be… prejudice?”
Even Zhao Lixuan had spent these past few days reflecting on himself. All those guesses and gripes he’d harbored about Immortal Lord Jiang since their reunion—weren’t they just preconceived biases?
How was Jiang Chen as petty, unreasonable, or grudge-holding as he’d imagined?
…
Thanks to the Nine Nether Lantern illuminating the Demon Realm, Immortal Leaders Xia Yunjie and Lu Ziyuan were finally freed from guarding the Vast Heaven Mechanism Mirror and could personally join the fourth Moon Hunt battlefield.
The lineup was unprecedentedly luxurious.
Unfortunately, after three rounds of thorough sweeps like plowing courtyards and raiding holes, the demon beasts on the outskirts of the Misty Crevice Abyss were down to one in ten. The fourth Moon Hunt was, in the end, just cleanup duty.
Many Immortal Lords chuckled and sighed: “Having the two Immortal Leaders come along is like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut!”
Before the battle, Zhao Lixuan sought out Jiang Chen specifically.
“Immortal Lord Jiang, for this Moon Hunt, I’d like to discuss… temporarily switching partners, because…”
When he arrived, Jiang Chen was sitting in the courtyard wiping his sword. The scorching summer sun fell on his lowered brows and eyes, softening them unusually. But Zhao Lixuan had barely gotten halfway when Jiang Chen’s gaze turned icy cold.
“No.”
“…Hear me out.”
“Not listening.”
Helpless, Zhao Lixuan sat down next to him on the stone steps: “Hear me finish first!”
During the first Moon Hunt, Zhao Lixuan had briefly fallen into a segment of his senior brother Shen Fengyan’s memory amid the Myriad Phenomena Demon Pupils’ illusion.
Unfortunately, that illusion fragment was too short to reveal causes or outcomes. Plus, after asking around with fellow disciples, he found everyone’s visions bizarrely varied: an Immortal Lord who never gambled dreamed of losing his fortune at the tables; a meticulous peer dreamed of streaking naked in public. Utterly absurd.
This had made Zhao Lixuan wonder if what he’d seen… was just some ridiculous demon pupil prank, not to be taken seriously?
Until a few days ago, when he casually mentioned it to Yu Rumu.
What Yu Rumu saw in the illusion was A’Tu—which wasn’t odd; she was always his greatest inner demon, so seeing her made sense.
The strange part? It wasn’t their past tender moments or the heartbreak of truth revealed. Just like Zhao Lixuan’s experience, he’d briefly “entered” Tu Ji’s perspective.
Through her eyes, he’d seen her origins, her homeland in the Demon Realm.
…
Since ancient times, whether in Immortal Realm classics or mortal tales, the “Demon Realm” was always depicted as a land of eternal night and depravity. Overflowing with unchecked desires, glittering opulence, endless wine, revelry, slaughter, and plunder.
But through Tu Ji’s eyes, it was a different scene entirely.
Endless gray-white icy plains stretched to the horizon, with dim skies howling winds whipping ice shards across the land.
The frozen soil was barren beyond measure, not a blade of grass, only dead black thorns scattered like bones across the snow.
Worse still, countless grotesque demon beasts crawled from deep rifts tearing the earth, fighting the starving, freezing Demon Clan for the last scraps of life in this harsh wasteland.
Hunger, cold, omnipresent death—it was as commonplace on the ice plains as breathing.
Tu Ji should have died like most Demon Clansfolk, starving quietly.
But due to her unique demon bloodline, she was taken from that hopeless ice plain.
The Demon Clan’s power center was a massive, grim black fortress built along a huge geothermal rift. No rumored gold and glamour, no fine wines and feasts—but at least stable heat, enough food to fill the belly.
There, Tu Ji became the Demon Emperor’s adopted daughter.
Demon Clan elders and prophets taught her spells and martial arts.
And told her that beyond the Demon-Suppressing Seal lay places called the Unstained Immortal Realm and Mortal Realm. Fertile lands stretching endlessly, abundant resources, pure spiritual energy flowing freely, eternal spring with inexhaustible spirit flowers and immortal herbs.
In the flickering candlelight of the stern Demon Realm hall, the elder’s voice echoed off the stone walls:
“Why should immortals monopolize paradise? Why should mortals enjoy the human world in peace? While our kind is exiled, abandoned to struggle in this cursed frozen hell?”
“You are the chosen descendants.”
“One day, you will lead the clan to break the seal, seize the Unstained Immortal Realm and Mortal Realm for the Demon Clan, and carry on our hope of survival!”
…
Yu Rumu felt this complete otherworldly vista couldn’t be a mere inner demon fabrication.
To that end, he’d obtained special permission from Xia Yunjie and Lu Ziyuan to delve into the Ten Thousand Bones Demon Abyss during the fourth Moon Hunt—as the demonic energy dissipated, the Misty Crevice Abyss would soon close again, the last chance.
“The abyss floor likely hides the Myriad Phenomena Demon Pupils’ nest.”
Zhao Lixuan explained: “If there are enough demon pupils, my senior brother and I might glimpse the full picture of that day’s illusion.”
But this was ultimately personal business.
“Xia Yunjie and Senior Sister Lu are indulging us out of sect fellowship. You and Chu Immortal Lord are honored guests of Liao Yuan Court; risking for Fu Xi Palace’s private matters would be improper.”
“That’s exactly why I want to switch partners this time. Yu Rumu and I dive into the abyss; you and Chu Immortal Lord follow the two Immortal Leaders…”
Jiang Chen cut him off: “What if the abyss bottom has beasts, dangers, and you can’t handle them? Or like last time, trapped by the Myriad Phenomena Demon Pupils?”
Zhao Lixuan’s face warmed, but he stubbornly pressed: “You’re overthinking, Immortal Lord Jiang. Yu Rumu and I may not match your war god fame, but we’re top-tier in the Unstained Immortal Realm. Plus, didn’t you forge us these Clear Heart Leather Rings to counter the demon pupils…”
He shook the leather ring on his wrist—then suddenly felt it tighten.
Looking down, a black-glowing tether had wrapped his wrist, the other end tied to Jiang Chen’s.
Zhao Lixuan: “…”
The tether looked ordinary, like something junior immortals played with.
But when he tried dissolving it with clear light, it wouldn’t budge.
Jiang Chen: “Don’t bother.”
Soon, Chu Fusheng was dragged over too. The golden-haired Immortal Lord fanned himself lightly, grinning as he eyed the group: “Rare chance; I’ve long wanted to see the true face of the Ten Thousand Bones Demon Abyss. Look at our team—”
His folded fan pointed at each in turn: “Mortal Realm’s strongest sword cultivator, Unstained Immortal Realm’s spell master, healing saint.”
Finally at himself: “Me, the Three Realms’ acknowledged top support.”
“Two immortals, two demons—offense and defense in balance.” He snapped his fan shut with a clap, golden eyes sparkling. “This lineup? Can’t lose.”
…
The depths of the Ten Thousand Bones Demon Abyss were naturally perilous, with bone-chilling baleful qi.
In theory, the four just needed to activate concealment spells, dodge tricky blocking demon beasts cautiously, and head straight for the Myriad Phenomena Demon Pupils’ nest. With their cultivation, retreating unscathed should’ve been easy.
But who could’ve imagined the true abyss below held such eerie horror—jagged stone walls on both sides embedded densely with countless gray-white demon eggs and pupae. The semi-transparent shells pulsed faintly like living things, linked by slick mucus, making the entire rock face seem to breathe in a hair-raising rhythm.
The intrusion of immortal energy instantly shattered the dead silence, awakening this sleeping incubation hive.
A teeth-grinding chorus of crunch-crack sounds erupted as countless malformed, underdeveloped demon beasts burst from their shells, shrieking as they emerged.
Most were crippled—limbs incomplete, bone wings slimy and stuck, some evolved only massive jaws of fangs—but driven by primal hunting frenzy, they surged like a black tidal wave, blotting the sky as they pounced on the four.
Day one, they handled it with ease.
Ember Life Sword Intent churned like an ink dragon, the Nine Heavens Immortal Sash became a silver starry river, immortal light fierce, spells flying. Everywhere they passed, demon beasts annihilated.
But by day two, the tide turned sharply.
Eggs kept hatching endlessly from the walls. Newborn demons trampled their kin’s corpses, charging even more madly, roaring as they forced the group deeper into the abyss step by step.
Worse, strands of pure demonic energy seeped from bottom rifts like a bone-marrow parasite, infiltrating relentlessly, slowly eroding and grinding down their protective immortal power.
By day three, exhaustion crashed like a mountain.
Demons endless, unkillable. Every swing of Zhao Lixuan’s Immortal Sash left his arms leaden, immortal essence no longer flowing smoothly. By nightfall, they’d been cornered into a narrow natural stone cave. Chu Fusheng quickly set a defensive barrier, its glow barely blocking the frenzied assaults outside, buying a moment’s breath.
By the midnight campfire, demonic energy clouded Zhao Lixuan’s mind into haze.
Half-dreaming, a warm demonic energy flowed in, like clear spring soothing his parched meridians.
He wanted to tell Jiang Chen to conserve strength, but exhaustion stole even a whisper.
All night, that man not only steadily channeled qi to heal him but tended meticulously—warming spring water with spiritual power, carefully feeding him sips multiple times.
Day four, things worsened.
Outside the barrier, demon impacts hammered like endless storms, the shield flickering wildly, shrinking until it barely covered the four, teetering on collapse.
“It’s all my fault… all my fault…” Yu Rumu’s face was paper-white. “If not for my wishful thinking, insisting on probing deeper… If we’d pulled back decisively on day one when things felt off… how would we end up trapped in this desperate strait…”
Chu Fusheng saw it differently: “Rumu Immortal Lord, that’s not right. All is fate and karma; each has their lot.”
“If we truly perish here today, it’s a sacrifice probing the Demon Realm for the greater good, a warning for posterity—noble cause. If we luckily survive, it’s heaven’s grace, fate not yet done. Win or lose, it’s no loss; all upside.”
Zhao Lixuan slumped weakly in the corner, still feeling that steady demonic power from Jiang Chen flowing in.
“Immortal Lord Jiang, enough… you can’t keep… wasting your energy…”
No response.
“Jiang Chen.”
“…”
“Do you regret it?”
Without him, with Jiang Chen’s peerless talent, he’d have summited peaks, achieved greatness. No unhappy entanglement, no getting dragged to death after finally letting go years later.
The steady demonic flow paused faintly.
Jiang Chen lowered his eyes: “No regrets.”
Just two simple words, yet they rippled through Zhao Lixuan’s heart like stones in a lake.
His nose stung.
In this life, his skills lacked polish, love path bumpy—couldn’t keep family, find his senior brother, unravel the Demon Realm mystery. Failure after failure, utterly embarrassed.
But at least…
In this hopeless, devouring darkness of the Demon Abyss, the little Jiang he’d poured all his passion into warming—always feeling it never quite took—still stayed by his side.
Still comforted him, saying he’d never regretted it.
…
The next day, the barrier could hold no longer.
Zhao Lixuan embraced death’s resolve—kill as many as he could. They fought from day into night, immortal power near depleted. So much so, they didn’t notice the surging demon tide thinning unknowingly, attacks growing scattered and feeble.
Until one moment—
Dead silence.
The ceaseless shrieks and assaults cut off abruptly; the thick demonic miasma receded like a tide.
A fresh, crisp breeze unlike any before brushed across their cheeks. The perpetual gloom over the Demon Abyss dispersed, revealing a bright moon shining clearly in the sky.
Chu Fusheng gasped for breath, disheveled and incredulous. “Hah… We, we just… cleared the entire Demon Abyss?”
Though in the end, they hadn’t found a single Myriad Phenomena Demon Pupil, nor unraveled any mysteries.
But if lighting the Nine Nether Lantern to illuminate the Demon Abyss was already an unprecedented feat, then utterly emptying and leveling this nest of demon beasts spanning dozens of li—what kind of earth-shattering accomplishment was that?
Zhao Lixuan’s head buzzed. He wanted to laugh, but he didn’t have a shred of strength left.
This situation felt just like the story of his life.
He never got what he wanted, yet he always stumbled into compensations elsewhere—lose something in the east corner, only to gain in the mulberry grove.
“…”
He couldn’t hold on any longer. His body swayed, and his vision blurred with waves of blackness.
Once again, he fell into that familiar embrace. Faint strands of demon power flowed into him intermittently. This time, even Jiang Chen was clearly exhausted; the demon power came in fits and starts, sluggish like an arrow at the end of its flight. For some reason, Zhao Lixuan found it amusing.
Jiang Chen ground his teeth in the shadows. “Laughing at what?”
Though Zhao Lixuan couldn’t see his face, he could fully sense that familiar disdain.
But after a moment, Jiang Chen said nothing more. Only that warm palm gently stroked his shoulder, his voice low and hoarse. “If you’re sleepy, sleep… a little more.”
Everyone needed to sleep a little more.
Just a moment’s rest, and they’d have enough strength to head back. Xia Yunjie and Senior Sister Lu were probably already waiting anxiously.
Zhao Lixuan could even clearly picture the scene.
With Xia Yunjie’s personality, he’d rush forward and hug them tightly, bawling, “Thank goodness you’re okay—otherwise, how could I ever explain?” While Senior Sister Lu would stand there with arms crossed, snort coldly, and chide Xia Yunjie for being too soft-hearted without properly scolding them herself.
Zhao Lixuan chuckled to himself in silence.
“…” The arm around him tightened. Jiang Chen lowered his head, his breath brushing Zhao Lixuan’s ear. “But… uncomfortable? Can’t sleep?”
Zhao Lixuan shook his head.
The arm pulled him even closer. Warm body heat seeped through their damp, cold clothes, transmitting clearly.
At their pressed chests, two hearts beat steadily in near-perfect sync. Thump. Then again. Thump.
In that instant, for no reason at all.
It was as if some shackle shattered. Past memories flooded his heart like a breached dam.
Youthful infatuation, the heartbreak of parting, endless nights of tossing and turning in longing, until his heart grew cold and he stopped thinking of it altogether.
Even before their reunion, Zhao Lixuan could barely remember how many years he’d spent sourly badmouthing him behind his back, saying the grapes were sour because he couldn’t reach them.
Then, since reuniting—one awkward scene after another, grudges, tests.
Yet in this moment, it was all quietly washed away and reshaped by this intimate warmth and synchronized heartbeat.
Though raised in the idyllic perfection of the Unstained Immortal Realm, once Zhao Lixuan stepped into the Mortal Realm, he was utterly dazzled by its myriad worldly temptations.
Because the Mortal Realm had so many things different from the Unstained Immortal Realm.
The winds, flowers, snow, and moon of the Unstained Immortal Realm were born flawless and ultimate. But the Mortal Realm brimmed with differences.
Zhao Lixuan had eaten a persimmon in the Mortal Realm.
Vibrant red fruits hung from bare winter branches like little lanterns, utterly tempting.
Back then, he’d bitten into one eagerly, only to be hit by such intense astringency that he’d nearly burst into tears.
Yet that tongue-numbing bitterness, after careful picking, stringing, kneading, and long drying by patient hands… after time’s passage, turned into honey-sweet persimmon cakes.
In his chest, his heart beat powerfully, scorchingly hot.
Zhao Lixuan slowly lifted his lashes. His gaze tenderly traced the face inches away, outlining Jiang Chen’s sharp, cold-jawed features.
Just like the one-sided love he’d lavished in his youth, bearing bitter green persimmon fruit.
Who would’ve thought, after all these years, through time and change, even bitter fruit could yield a lingering, warm sweetness.
Wasn’t this the moment?
Once bitter enemies who’d wounded each other, now after years, they could lean together without resentment.
Perhaps, when the Moon Hunt ended and they parted ways, they could even become old friends who messaged once in a while, occasionally thinking of each other.
Wasn’t that a perfectly beautiful resolution?
The world said “orchid cause yields silk result”—a beautiful beginning ending in tragedy.
But he and Jiang Immortal Lord had walked it backward—
A ridiculous, messy start, yet a calm, smooth finish. Even with a touch of contented release.
So yeah, being an immortal is great.
Immortals live so long. Sure, they’re doomed to endure the world’s many helpless grindings, but they also get to witness the profound wonders of so many karmic ties.
