The crimson nail lacquer dyed with phoenix grass shimmered, brushing lightly across his cheek, sending shivers down to his ears.

Shen Qiyuan frowned and looked back at her, anger swirling in his dark pupils.

They had been together for so many years, and this was the first time she wanted to leave with someone else. That Wei Zijue must be very capable or very suitable for her. Since it would benefit her cultivation, what right did he have to stop her?

“Have a safe journey, go early and return early.” He answered coldly.

Ruyi suddenly released him.

She straightened up, took out a handkerchief and carefully wiped her fingertips, her long eyes half-closed, smiling but not smiling: “Worthy of you indeed.”

If one day the sky collapsed and the earth cracked, what would survive last in this world would surely be his iron-hard mouth.

A thousand years ago she would have been heartbroken by this, but a thousand years later she absolutely could not be. Gathering her sleeves, Ruyi turned and walked toward the exit: “Until we meet again, sir.”

Shen Qiyuan kept his spine straight, not turning his head to look at her.

The flower hall door opened and closed, suddenly becoming empty and quiet all around.

He expanded his divine consciousness and could hear the whispered conversations of servants in the manor, the chirping of birds and insects in the garden, and even the distant sound of Song Zhenshan softly coaxing Li Zhaoying.

Only Liu Ruyi’s footsteps grew lighter and more distant, gradually fading beyond his range of perception.

Shen Qiyuan took a deep breath.

It didn’t matter. He thought she wasn’t the only divine cultivator in this world—he could find many people to temporarily replace her. A cultivation companion was just a support on his path to godhood; it made no difference who it was.

Though he said this, scenes that had never happened floated in his mind.

…

Lion River was the river he and Ruyi crossed most often. Though dangerous, they knew it well.

He traveled with Zhuzui, and when stepping on the suspended stone slabs, Zhuzui thought he would pull her along and took half a step less forward. He thought Zhuzui would keep up like Ruyi always did, so he didn’t look back.

That half-inch difference nearly cost Zhuzui her life.

After they reached shore, Shen Qiyuan suddenly said, “We should part ways. For the coming trials, I alone will suffice.”

Zhuzui felt wronged: “Just one small accident and you want to separate from me?”

“Not only that.” He said, “Re-adapting between us would waste hundreds of years, and after a hundred years, Ruyi should return.”

Zhuzui was indignant: “When she returns, I might not be inferior to her.”

“You will be.” Shen Qiyuan didn’t hide it, speaking bluntly, “We’ve cultivated together for a month, and I can perceive that the difference between you and her is too great. Even a thousand years wouldn’t be enough to catch up.”

Zhuzui’s face turned deathly pale. She pointed at him for a long time without being able to speak, finally turning and leaving in anger.

For the following hundred years, he truly cultivated alone.

Occasionally he would complain about the boring days, but thinking that time meant nothing to them, no matter how long, he would always wait for her return.

After a hundred years, he truly saw her again.

Only she didn’t run toward him as usual, but stood among broken walls and ruins, surrounded by a demonic aura, her red robes rippling. Watching from afar, he felt anger like a towering tree bursting from the earth, its branches and leaves explosively growing, ruthlessly strangling his heart.

She knew he hated demons most of all. She knew it.

Why did it have to be her?

With his demon-slaying sword in hand, he angrily thrust it toward her.

…

His heart suddenly ached. Shen Qiyuan opened his eyes.

He gasped roughly a few times, then rose in panic and confusion, stepping out of the flower hall.

Click, click, click—brocade shoes embroidered with cloud sparrows stepped across the corridor.

Shen Qiyuan quickened his pace, the floral patterns on his cloud boots blurring together.

Click, click, click—a skirt adorned with bright pearls swept past the moon gate.

His steps grew faster, his previously neat robes suddenly fluttering in the wind. He no longer cared about maintaining his composure, striding forward at a run.

The plum blossoms in Prince Pingbei’s manor were blooming beautifully, bright red dots among white snow. When the wind blew, their subtle fragrance drifted. Ruyi casually turned her head, wanting to take a look.

Suddenly, a force came from behind, grabbing her wrist and pulling her entire body backward.

The turning motion was forced to become larger. She raised an eyebrow and turned her face back.

Shen Qiyuan’s chest was heaving, his hands gripping her shoulders, his dark pupils showing some chagrin.

“Let me answer again.” He was somewhat out of breath from running. “If you go to Huizhou, I will be unhappy.”

Her light brown pupils contracted slightly. Ruyi tilted her head: “Hmm?”

“I don’t believe he’s more capable than me, nor do I believe you’d rather travel with him.” He gritted his teeth. “If that’s truly the case, then I’ll compete with him.”

“Whatever he can give you, I can give as well.”

“Don’t go with him.”

It was rare for Shen Qiyuan to speak so urgently and disjointedly. He no longer resembled a formidable person who had cultivated for a thousand years, but more like a young man experiencing his first stirrings of love.

Ruyi wanted to laugh, but she couldn’t. Her chest inexplicably contracted into a ball, her fingers trembling along with it.

It was as if grievances accumulated over thousands of years suddenly collapsed in this instant, accompanied by countless scenes of his silence, mixed with her every unrequited devotion, gradually crushing the rationality she had been struggling to maintain.

Sourness filled her throat. She asked hoarsely: “Where were you earlier?”

If this were truly two thousand years ago, if he had spoken so openly then, their ending wouldn’t be what it is now, would it?

Shen Qiyuan looked at her reddened eyes, becoming even more at a loss: “I, I don’t know.”

No one is born understanding matters of love. He had been raised as a divine cultivator from childhood. Everyone only told him how to become more excellent, how to become a god more smoothly. No one told him what to do when he met someone who made his heart flutter.

In his understanding, romantic entanglements were poison that wasted divine cultivation. He avoided them, so how could he actively embrace them?

But now he understood. The pain she brought him by becoming a demon in that prophetic dream was heavier than anything else. If so, as long as he kept her by his side, as long as she didn’t leave his sight, perhaps there was still hope.

Shen Qiyuan reached out his hand, slowly but firmly covering her palm. The warm, moist sensation, along with the movement from his heart meridian, beat loudly like a drum.

Ruyi smiled and crouched down, burying her head in her arms.

“As long as it’s real.” She murmured hoarsely.

Shen Qiyuan thought she didn’t believe him and tightened his grip: “This is real. You’re not dreaming, and neither am I.”

“Mm.”

Powerless exhaustion swept through her entire body. Ruyi let out a long sigh.

“Are you still going to Huizhou?” He crouched down beside her, frowning as he asked.

“Let me think.” She turned her face playfully, revealing a beautiful curve of her eye. “To go or not to go?”

Shen Qiyuan was annoyed: “You clearly said if I answered properly, you’d reconsider.”

“Yes, reconsider, but the result of reconsideration isn’t necessarily not going.” She curved her lips, wickedly teasing him.

Shen Qiyuan was so angry that his teeth itched. He simply lowered his body and scooped her up.