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The dungeons of the Demon Palace were so dark it was impossible to tell the passage of days. Shen Qingqiu did not know how long he had been locked up, but what was fortunate was, he felt that his final limit had arrived.
Finally he didn’t need to see that little beast anymore… Shen Qingqiu thought foggily.
The dead must travel to the nine hells, this was something even three year old children knew. Yet Shen Qingqiu discovered his soul was slowly drifting up, his whole body enveloped in a warm flow of energy accompanied by foreign memories.
“Xiliu[1], it’s time to wake up.”
Someone sighed softly by Shen Qingqiu’s ear. It was a familiar voice but with unfamiliar emotions.
“Lianqiu…”[2]
The faint voice gave Liu Qingge a shock.
“Xiliu, you’re awake.” Liu Qingge was ecstatic. Ever since three months ago when Shen Qingqiu’s spirit returned and successfully ascended to shenzun[3] status, he had been unconscious. He sought out countless immortal doctors but all of them said there was nothing wrong. Liu Qingge had been worried out of his mind.
Shen Qingqiu opened his eyes to Liu Qingge’s face, as beautiful as the afternoon sun but not as coldly arrogant as he was at Cang Qiong Mountain Sect. Rather, it was a lot gentler.
Shen Qingqiu extended his arm and Liu Qingge helped him sit up without needing to be asked. He let him lean against him, then fed the warm bowl of sweet dew by his side to Shen Qingqiu.
Sweet dew was created by the minor gods of Baihua Palace[4] to fortify the spirit. Normally such a thing had no effect on Liu Qingge and Shen Qingqiu, but Shen Qingqiu’s spirit had just returned. This sweet dew that was personally concocted by the Baihua Palace Master was perfect for Shen Qingqiu right now.
Only after a full bowl did Shen Qingqiu feel slightly more comfortable. Looking around the interior of the palace, the slightly green bamboo furnishings were scattered with some bits of carved white jade.
It was still the Lianli Palace[5] from his memories.
While Shen Qingqiu was still dazed, he suddenly heard a soft laugh from behind him.
He didn’t turn around, just closed his eyes slightly and asked in a cool tone, “What are you laughing at?”
Liu Qingge didn’t mind, he knew this person was always this cold, “I just remembered the two of us being as incompatible as water and fire while we were undergoing our calamity[6].”
“Thinking back, at the time I would never have imagined we actually had such an intimate relationship.”
Remembering their contentious relationship during the calamity, the corner of Shen Qingqiu’s mouth curled up and he said, in a tone with a few degrees of amusement[7], “At the time Liu-shidi disdained me in a hundred ways.”
Liu Qingge smiled and said, “Likewise, likewise, Shen-shixiong you also scorned me in ten thousand ways.”
Liu Qingge suddenly rubbed his face against Shen Qingqiu. “Apologies, you had to stay there for so long.”
“I was simply undergoing a calamity, how could it be easy?” Shen Qingqiu held Liu Qingge’s hand and spoke with a comforting tone.
Liu Qingge smiled, but when Shen Qingqiu couldn’t see his gaze was rather icy.
Shen Qingqiu had just woken up and was still rather tired, so Liu Qingge took off his outer robe and lay down embracing him.
“Go to sleep, Xiliu. I’m here.”
Maybe because his cultivation partner was by his side, but Shen Qingqiu slept very deeply.
Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge were originally two shenjun[8] from outside the nine levels of heaven, who entered the cycle of reincarnation in order to undergo a calamity and ascend to shenzun status. This was the origin of the two humans Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge. Their original names were Xiliu and Lianqiu, a pair of cultivation partners known to everyone in the the heavenly realm[9]. But after reincarnation they turned into a pair of enemies, truly an interesting topic of discussion.
And now that both of them had ascended to shenzun, even the the Heavenly Emperor[10] had to respect them. In that moment their futures were bright and limitless and worthy of fear. An endless stream of visitors came, but every single one was kicked out of the Lianli Palace by Liu Qingge, using the excuse that Shen Qingqiu’s soul had yet to fully settle.
“I am outside dealing with people, but look at you, so carefree.”
Liu Qingge saw Shen Qingqiu sitting in the pavilion drinking tea, and felt it was a bit unfair.
When Shen Qingqiu caught sight of Liu Qingge, his cold gaze warmed considerably.
“But Lianqiu shenzun, you said Xiliu shenzun’s soul has not settled and cannot receive guests. How could I pull the rug out from under you[11]?”
Liu Qingge was a bit annoyed at having his own words used against him. Looking at Shen Qingqiu’s softening gaze, he scooted over to kiss him on the lips. Shen Qingqiu did not resist, and this docile and calm attitude made Liu Qingge feel a little out of control.
“Why do I feel,” Shen Qingqiu huffed slightly, “that you have been a bit off lately?”
Liu Qingge hugged Shen Qingqiu and rubbed his face agains the other’s head. Without much care, he said, “Really?”
Shen Qingqiu furrowed his brows slightly. “Is it because of my calamity?”
Liu Qingge was silent for a moment, but he still laughed slightly. “I can’t hide anything from you.”
Shen Qingqiu escaped from Liu Qingge’s lap and met his gaze seriously.
“That Luo Binghe is a ruler of all three realms, with extraordinary power and fortune. He has the potential to become a god, and his cultivation talent is comparable with the two of us. He is not a good enemy to make.”
Liu Qingge rubbed Shen Qingqiu’s serious face. “I am aware. In your eyes, am I really someone who is so unaware of what should be done?”
Shen Qingqiu instantly saw through Liu Qingge’s not quite honest words, “I know you have the right considerations, but you are still angry in your heart, correct?”
Liu Qingge was silent, clearly having had his thoughts exposed.
Shen Qingqiu sighed, “Lianqiu, don’t let these small things upset you. It was Shen Qingqiu who tormented Luo Binghe first, and received Luo Binghe’s revenge. It is merely the cycle of causes and results[12].”
Liu Qingge looked at Shen Qingqiu for a long time, before kissing him on the forehead and saying softly, “I am aware, I understand all the facts.” But, the person he held in his heart was tortured in a hundred ways by Luo Binghe, even being carved into a human stick. Whenever Liu Qingge thought of what he saw in the reincarnation mirror the killing intent in his heart increased dramatically.
Shen Qingqiu cultivated the emotionless path — his seven emotions and six desires were almost entirely gone. All the feelings he had left were entirely for Liu Qingge, so he didn’t really understand why Liu Qingge was so furious about mortal affairs that were in the past.
“Let’s not talk about that. The Heavenly Emperor has prepared a banquet for us, shall we go?”
Liu Qingge changed the topic on Shen Qingqiu very quickly, “If the emperor prepared it, it would be bad to miss it. He has always been wary of us, and now he will only take more precautions.”
Liu Qingge laughed a little. “Let him be wary. If the two of us aren’t even in the the heavenly realm, I would like to see who he is guarding against.”
Shen Qingqiu looked at Liu Qingge in shock.
“During this calamity I certainly saw much of the hundred states of the mortal world. The mortal world is also pretty interesting, I wonder if Xiliu shenzun would be willing to accompany me on a trip?”
Looking at the warmth and emotion in Liu Qingge’s eyes, Shen Qingqiu smiled, “Willing to the utmost.”
The days passed one at a time, the date of the banquet grew ever closer. Shen Qingqiu experienced a few degrees of the rare feeling of anticipation.
Because it was to celebrate the ascension of two shenzun, the Heavenly Emperor invited all of the gods, powerful and minor.
The minor gods looked at the rich and sumptuous banquet with admiration in their eyes, but the experienced ones had hearts full of considerations. The Heavenly Emperor had always been wary of Xiliu and Lianqiu, why would he go to such effort to arrange such a feast for them? It better not be a bloody one[13].
No matter what everyone was thinking, the banquet had finally begun. According to propriety, the Heavenly Emperor praised the two of them, and they respectfully returned the gesture. Just as it seemed everything was normal and everyone had just let out a sigh of relief, the emperor suddenly spoke, and his words were shocking.
“Speaking of which, while the two shenzun were undergoing the calamity, this emperor discovered a good sprout and was planning to make an exception and appoint him as a god. Perhaps the two of you might take a look?”
Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge looked at each other, and Liu Qingge suddenly had a bad premonition.
“Luo Binghe, come out.”
Hearing this name, Shen Qingqiu furrowed his brows slightly but soon relaxed them, as if this name did not have much effect upon him. Liu Qingge’s reaction was rather large, his brows were drawn tightly together and the frost in his gaze couldn’t be hidden.
Two people strode out from the screen behind the Heavenly Emperor. The first was a young man wearing black robes, handsome and divine, clearly it was that demon lord of three realms Luo Binghe!
But it was the young woman with a veil over her face that gave Liu Qingge a shock.
The Heavenly Emperor said lightly, “It seems these two have some connection with the two shenzun.”
A host of confused and curious gazes turned towards Liu Qingge and Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu saw Liu Qingge pinning Luo Binghe with his gaze and knew he could not depend on him to answer.
“That woman’s name is Liu Mingyan, she was Lianqiu’s younger sister during his calamity, and that Luo Binghe previously was my disciple in the mortal world.”
The assembled suddenly came to a realization, it seemed these two’s origins were far from mundane. But some close listeners heard the word “previously”.
“Hmm, why ‘previously’?” The Heavenly Emperor, fearing that there was not enough chaos, asked with a smile.
“Dijun[14] himself brought them here, surely there is no need to ask the reason?” Liu Qingge said coldly.
The Heavenly Emperor said innocently, “Lianqiu shenzun there is no need to be enraged, I simply experienced the joy of a hunter finding a good catch, and only know a little bit about the two of them.”
Liu Qingge ground his teeth. He had long known that the Heavenly Emperor was wary of them, but he never imagined that he would be waiting for them at the banquet. This event could not truly affect them, it was just created to bring them annoyance!
Shen Qingqiu grabbed Liu Qingge’s hand. “Since dijun does not know, then Xiliu will explain.” Shen Qingqiu was completely unbothered, his tone was cool as usual, as if the person across from him was not the one who had tortured him to death. “That Luo Binghe entered Cang Qiong Mountain Sect at age five as a disciple of Qing Jing Peak Xiu Ya Sword Shen Qingqiu, which was my mortal persona. Shen Qingqiu was jealous of Luo Binghe for receiving the love of an adopted mother, for having extraordinary cultivation talent and for entering a major sect at the perfect age. Because of this he occasionally beat and scolded Luo Binghe, and allowed the other disciples to bully him, even casting Luo Binghe into the border between the demon and human realms. Luo Binghe had the bloodline of heavenly demons, and after five years he returned unscathed from the border region. Afterwards he captured Shen Qingqiu, massacred the Cang Qiong Mountain Sect, and united all three realms. Three months ago, Shen Qingqiu passed away, Xiliu returned to his place.”
The listeners were shocked time and time again. What sort of master and disciple relationship, this Luo Binghe and Xiliu shenzun were life and death enemies!
Luo Binghe laughed lightly, but his smile was full of darkness, “Shizun, constantly saying Shen Qingqiu, it’s as if Shizun you yourself aren’t Shen Qingqiu?”
“I am and I am not.”
Shen Qingqiu turned towards Luo Binghe, and when Luo Binghe saw Shen Qingqiu’s clear gaze, he was a bit stunned.
“Shen Qingqiu is Shen Qingqiu, Xiliu is Xiliu, Xiliu has Shen Qingqiu’s memories but is not Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu was a real living person, but for Xiliu Shen Qingqiu was simply the red dust he dreamed of during his calamity.”
“The red dust you dreamed,” Luo Binghe said with a cold smile. “You dreamed of red dust and ascended to shenzun, but I had my life destroyed by Shen Qingqiu. Xiliu shenzun, I would like to ask you, how is this fair?”
“Why is it unfair?” Shen Qingqiu was still very calm in the face of Luo Binghe’s interrogation. “If Shen Qingqiu was a kind and fair shizun, you would be little more than a disciple with slightly higher ability. At most you would inherit the position of Qing Jing Peak Peak Master, or perhaps when your demon heritage was revealed, they would be unable to protect you. But today you have the accomplishment of uniting all three realms. Luo Binghe, you cannot deny that this was the result of Shen Qingqiu pushing you into the Endless Abyss. It was because of Shen Qingqiu that you were able to attain such heights. No matter his motivations, Shen Qingqiu was the original reason.”
“You say Shen Qingqiu destroyed you, but you also destroyed him. Shen Qingqiu was tortured by you for years — you paid him back long ago for the torment you suffered at Qing Jing Peak. This is the cycle of cause and result.”
Luo Binghe’s expression was dark. “All these words, yet you are just trying to escape your own crimes.”
“Crimes?” Shen Qingqiu was a bit confused. “Those are Shen Qingqiu’s crimes, not mine. With death these causes and results are released, when Shen Qingqiu died all his rights and wrongs with you were erased. The one who has entanglements with you is the dead Shen Qingqiu, and not I, Xiliu.”
Luo Binghe felt as if he had been smacked in the head.
The one who has entanglements with you is the dead Shen Qingqiu, and not I, Xiliu…
The dead Shen Qingqiu…
He did not want to acknowledge that Shen Qingqiu was dead, so in his foolishness he wanted to forcefully think of Xiliu as Shen Qingqiu. But, the one who had a history with him was Shen Qingqiu. Even if he was Xiliu’s alternate form, Shen Qingqiu was not Xiliu. Shen Qingqiu was a real living person, the one who had entanglements with him…
Luo Binghe stood there dazedly looking at Xiliu, as if his spirit had been lost.
These words of Shen Qingqiu’s not only shattered Luo Binghe’s attempts to fool others by fooling himself, but they also caused Liu Qingge to come to his senses. It was he who had thought too much. After all, Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge were just the red dust they had dreamed, why treat them as real?
Lianqiu bowed to the Heavenly Emperor, who was a bit shocked. “Lianqiu shenzun, what is this?”
“Xiliu and I plan to enter the red dust, from today on we will not return to the heavenly realm.”
“What?” The Heavenly Emperor went pale with shock. Heaven finally had two shenzun, and now they planned to leave? Just as he was panicking, he was also relieved.
“This… Xiliu shenzun will you not speak with Lianqiu shenzun?”
Xiliu looked at Lianqiu and smiled slightly. “Lianqiu’s intentions are my intentions.”
The two of them retrieved the jade pendants at their waists and crushed them. These pendants were the keys to the heavenly realm — without the keys they could not return.
The Heavenly Emperor finally fully relaxed. “Since the two of you have made your decision, then this emperor will not keep you any longer.”
The two of them bowed to the Heavenly Emperor for the last time, and turned to leave.
Lianqiu suddenly paused in his steps, and turned to look at Liu Mingyan. Just at that moment, Liu Mingyan was also looking at Lianqiu.
Lianqiu tossed a jade pendant to Liu Mingyan. “This has my divine power in it. If there is danger, it can protect you.”
Liu Mingyan squeezed the jade pendant, ten thousand laments in her heart. Although she was looking at her elder brother, that was no longer her elder brother. She did not see in Lianqiu’s eyes the warmth that Liu Qingge had for her.
Alas, just as Xiliu shenzun said, the dead are already dead. To the two shenzun, they were but a dream of red dust.
[1] 熙柳 熙：bright 柳：willow, Liu Qingge’s surname but this is Shen Qingqiu’s name[return to text]
[2] 连秋 连：connect 秋：fall, autumn, last character of Shen Qingqiu’s name but this is Liu Qingge’s name[return to text]
[3] 神尊 a relatively high rank of god[return to text]
[4] 百花宫 Hundred Flower Palace[return to text]
[5] 连理宫 Tangled Branches Palace (sort of) This is a reference to (part of) a very famous poem: 在天愿作比翼鸟 在地愿为连理枝 In the sky we wish to be birds who fly wingtip to wingtip, On the earth we wish to be tangled branches. The rest of the poem is actually about the angsty love story between Tang Taizong and Yang Guifei, but those two lines are often quoted out of context.[return to text]
[6] 历劫 also called a trial, but I think calamity does a better job at getting across how severe it is. Once you reach a certain level of ascension/divinity/immortality, you have to undergo trials/calamities to “level up”.[return to text]
[7] 三分笑意 three degrees, actually[return to text]
[8] 神君 a lower rank of god[return to text]
[9] 神境 the realm were the gods live[return to text]
[10] 神帝 the emperor/ruler of the gods. He’s not really an emperor and there aren’t as many rules around him, but that’s the best translation I could come up with.[return to text]
[11] 拆台 this literally means “dismantle your stage”, which I love, but alas I had to use an English saying instead.[return to text]
[12] 因果循环 could also be translated as the cycle of karma but I dislike using the word karma, especially since most people don’t really understand it in its original religious context. Also it’s a Buddhist term and this is mostly Taoist based mythology. I didn’t say “cause and effect” because that also is kind of an established phrase... so it just sounded weird to me.[return to text]
[13] 鸿门宴 this is a reference to literature, but the basic idea is you invite people to a banquet but you’re actually plotting against them and the banquet is a trap of some sort.[return to text]
[14] 帝君 a way to address the heavenly emperor, since he’s not a “real” emperor the terms of address are somewhat different.[return to text]