Futile Devices Scans

Chen Yixin cast Wenren Li a slightly surprised glance. Yet when he remembered the latter’s identity as a Soul Transformation realm demon lord, it no longer seemed strange that he knew such things. What did surprise him, however, was the unmistakable disdain in Wenren Li’s expression and tone toward the so-called Divine Son of the Upper Realm.

No—more precisely, he was looking down on Jing Zhihua himself.

Chen Yixin felt the same contempt.

But at present, neither he nor Wenren Li could afford to do anything too excessive to Jing Zhihua. Otherwise they would become the enemies of every Soul Transformation realm cultivator in the entire Taixuan world who was desperate for a chance to advance their cultivation.

In Chen Yixin’s view, “not too excessive” meant simply this—leave Jing Zhihua alive.

Even if he truly wished to kill him, it would have to be done when no one could possibly know. To become the target of every cultivator’s pursuit throughout Taixuan for this man alone was hardly worth it.

“Jing Zhihua… no,” Chen Yixin corrected coolly. “Zhihua was the name I gave Ah-Hua. Jing Shishan—remember this well. If you ever see Ali and me again, stay far away. Otherwise, next time it won’t be as simple as making you kneel.”

(Elio’s notes: Shishan literally means the number 13 but if you add another character 点 (dian) to it, it becomes shishandian which means fool/blockhead. I think this is what A-Rong was implying (*^o^*))

Jing Zhihua’s face twisted slightly.

Chen Yixin was truly ruthless. Once he confirmed that he was not Ah-Hua, even the name he had given him was taken back.

“To you, Chen Yixin… what am I, exactly?” Jing Zhihua asked hoarsely.

Ah-Hua… Ah-Hua…

The name Chen Yixin had once spoken with sincere affection now only filled Jing Zhihua with revulsion. It had always been so.

Chen Yixin’s smile did not fade in the slightest. It remained as dazzling as ever. Releasing Wenren Li’s hand, he stepped forward toward Jing Zhihua, who still knelt upon the ground.

He bent slightly, meeting Jing Zhihua’s gaze.

“I believed you were Ah-Hua’s reincarnation. I protected you wholeheartedly and raised you carefully,” Chen Yixin said calmly. “Yet you used my trust to tamper with my pills.”

“What does that make you? Even a wolf fed with kindness might show more gratitude.”

After speaking, Chen Yixin straightened.

Then he lifted his foot and kicked Jing Zhihua to the ground.

Of course, he could only do so because Wenren Li silently cooperated.

Chen Yixin turned back with a smile toward Wenren Li before looking again at Jing Zhihua. The warmth vanished from his expression, replaced by icy indifference.

“You are not my Ah-Hua. Naturally I could never become Dao companions with you.”

“I raised you and protected you for more than thirty years. After forming my Nascent Soul, I intended to accept you as my disciple… Fortunately I did not.”

“For a white-eyed wolf like you, one bite is already enough. How could I possibly keep you by my side any longer?”

Jing Zhihua froze for a moment.

He had never known Chen Yixin once held such intentions.

All this time he had believed Chen Yixin heartless—ready to cast him aside the moment he discovered he was not Ah-Hua.

But a mere master-disciple relationship—how could that ever be enough?

From the moment he first met Chen Yixin at seven years old, he had been told of his supposed past identity.

Chen Yixin had asked him then:

Would you be willing to renew the bond of our past life?

The bond offered by the youngest Golden Core Master in the entire sect—how could he possibly refuse?

So he accepted.

From that day forward, he became Chen Yixin’s betrothed Dao companion.

Every cultivation technique, every pill he received was the best available. When he attempted Foundation Establishment, Chen Yixin personally guarded him.

By the age of twenty he had successfully built his foundation, becoming the most talented disciple in the history of Jade Cauldron Sect, second only to Chen Yixin himself.

On one hand, he felt humiliation at being treated like a cherished possession—a man kept almost like a favored concubine.

On the other, Chen Yixin’s special attention filled him with a strange, secret delight.

Then he learned of his identity as the Divine Son from the Upper Realm, a figure who might determine the fate of Taixuan itself.

And the ambition buried in his heart began to burn.

Yet Chen Yixin’s reaction was far more resolute than he had imagined.

The marriage agreement was cancelled outright.

But why?

Why should the years he endured in silence be erased simply because he was not Ah-Hua?

A single thought can give rise to countless evils.

When Zhou Yan approached him, they struck an immediate understanding.

He had even given Chen Yixin a chance.

As long as Chen Yixin was willing to become his male concubine, he could remain within Jade Cauldron Sect—sustained by medicinal elixirs to prolong his life. Once Jing Zhihua’s cultivation reached greater heights, perhaps he might even help Chen Yixin cultivate again.

But Chen Yixin would rather die.

Rather return to the small island of the Chen Clan of Zhenhai, be squeezed dry of whatever value remained to him by his family, and eventually be sent to the Demon Palace as a male companion—

Anything but yield to Jing Zhihua.

“Chen Yixin,” Jing Zhihua asked stubbornly, “setting aside Ah-Hua—have you ever felt anything for me?”

The moment the question left his mouth, he himself was startled.

So this was the resentment buried within his heart.

Chen Yixin merely lifted a brow, his expression cold.

“If I hadn’t mistaken you for him,” he said flatly, “what do you think you would amount to?”

Whatever lingering affection once remained had long been worn away by Jing Zhihua himself.

To Chen Yixin now, Jing Zhihua was nothing but something revolting—even if he truly was the so-called Divine Son of the Upper Realm.

“Then what about him?” Jing Zhihua demanded, his expression twisting further. The once elegant, immortal-like demeanor had completely vanished.

“For over thirty years you felt nothing for me. That man—Wenren Li—you’ve known him for less than a year. How much feeling could there possibly be?”

Chen Yixin looked at him with undisguised disgust.

“Truly not a trace of Ah-Hua’s character in you,” he said coldly. “Even now you’re trying to sow discord between A-Li and me.”

“Let me make this clear.”

“I have feelings for A-Li.”

“Ah-Hua belongs to my past.”

“Wenren Li is my present—and my future.”

He had once loved deeply enough to carve the memory into bone. He had suffered heartbreak so profound it nearly killed him.

Whether he wished to let go or not, he had to move forward.

Jing Zhihua had once been a kind of consolation for him—a reminder that the one he had loved still existed in some form.

But Wenren Li was his true rebirth.

His true beginning.

Wenren Li stepped forward and took Chen Yixin’s left hand.

With his other hand he gently brushed Chen Yixin’s hair before turning his gaze toward Jing Zhihua.

He extended his hand slightly.

The jade pendant hanging at Jing Zhihua’s neck flew into his palm.

With another wave, Jing Zhihua’s storage pouch also landed in his hand.

“A-rong,” Wenren Li said softly, “see which of these are yours.”

One item after another flew out.

Chen Yixin recognized them at a glance. Every talisman and artifact he had personally crafted was reclaimed—along with even the trivial mortal trinkets he had once sent as gifts.

Throughout the process, Jing Zhihua and Xiao Zhe—along with the others pinned helplessly to the ground—remained silent.

Not by choice.

They simply could not speak.

Xiao Zhe, however, quietly released a breath of relief. It was clear that neither Wenren Li nor Chen Yixin intended to kill Jing Zhihua.

At least he would not have to answer for that.

“That’s all,” Chen Yixin said, glancing once more at Jing Zhihua. The man had been sensible enough to keep everything Chen Yixin gave him in his storage pouch.

Wenren Li nodded.

Then he pointed lightly toward Jing Zhihua.

Jing Zhihua immediately spat out three mouthfuls of blood.

His cultivation plummeted from late Foundation Establishment to early Foundation Establishment.

“Everything belonging to A-Rong,” Wenren Li said calmly, “is reclaimed today.”

Jing Zhihua continued coughing blood.

Chen Yixin, however, merely turned to Wenren Li with a smile.

“Shall we go back?”

“Alright,” Wenren Li replied.

Hand in hand, they slowly walked out of the courtyard.

A full quarter of an hour passed after their departure before Xiao Zhe and the others finally regained the ability to move.

Xiao Zhe immediately rushed forward, helping Jing Zhihua up and feeding him healing pills. Several other disciples gathered around.

Only Shen Xiang and Lin An remained where they were.

But their attitudes no longer mattered to Chen Yixin.

In the upheaval that had nearly destroyed him, Jing Zhihua and Zhou Yan were not the only ones who betrayed him. Many sect elders had silently approved of what happened.

Chen Yixin even suspected that his own master—Yunya Zi, still in secluded cultivation—might have known.

Perhaps from the very beginning they had intended to exploit his feelings for Ah-Hua—to escort Jing Zhihua’s rise and pave the path for his future.

But Chen Yixin was not so easily used.

Since he had encountered Jing Zhihua once more, he would certainly reclaim the debt.

After leaving the inn, Wenren Li wrapped an arm around Chen Yixin and flew straight back to the residence.

Inside the bedchamber, Wenren Li used spiritual power to refine the jade pendant anew, cleansing away all traces of Jing Zhihua’s aura.

Chen Yixin simply watched him.

After another quarter of an hour, he finally spoke.

“A-Li… don’t you have anything you want to ask me?”

Even Jing Zhihua had been so concerned about Ah-Hua. By all rights Wenren Li should care as well.

Unless he simply hid it too well behind that expressionless face.

Wenren Li lifted his eyes briefly before lowering them again, continuing his work. A soft blue-white glow flashed across the jade as he threaded it with a dark green cord.

Then he reached out, drew Chen Yixin closer, and placed the pendant back around his neck.

“A-Rong,” he said quietly, “don’t lose it again.”

This jade pendant had appeared at the moment of Chen Yixin’s birth. It held extraordinary meaning for him.

He had once intended to give it to the most important person in his life.

But he had given it to the wrong one.

Chen Yixin had come to the inn with Xiao Zhe and the others precisely to retrieve it. Otherwise he would never have wished to face anyone from Jade Cauldron Sect while his cultivation remained unrecovered.

He held the pendant, looking down at it… then up at Wenren Li.

Leaning forward, he rested his head lightly against Wenren Li’s shoulder and wrapped his arms around his waist.

“What I said earlier was all true,” he murmured. “I like you, A-Li.”

Having loved before, he knew what that feeling meant.

And the feeling he had for Wenren Li was something he had never felt for Jing Zhihua.

“I know,” Wenren Li replied.

A trace of hesitation crossed his face. He gently stroked Chen Yixin’s hair and sighed inwardly.

“A-Rong,” he said softly, “don’t rush. And don’t blame yourself. When we reach the Burning Heaven Nether Palace, I will help you remember everything.”

He lowered his head and pressed a gentle kiss to Chen Yixin’s forehead.

“We leave tomorrow.”

Only when Chen Yixin remembered on his own would it truly matter—because that would also be the moment his damaged soul was completely restored.

Chen Yixin’s lashes trembled slightly.

“Alright,” he said.

Wenren Li lifted him from the couch and placed him upon the bed woven from cloud-silk. Then he lay down beside him.

Reaching over, he slipped the jade pendant beneath Chen Yixin’s inner robe.

Before he could withdraw his hand, Chen Yixin caught it—and leaned forward to place a soft kiss upon Wenren Li’s lips.

Only then did he close his eyes.

Wenren Li looked down at him quietly for a moment.

Then he leaned closer and returned the kiss, lightly brushing Chen Yixin’s lips.

Seeing Chen Yixin’s eyes still closed but the corners of his mouth lifting slightly, Wenren Li smiled as well.

Chen Yixin loved fiercely and hated just as fiercely.

That unwavering heart was one of the reasons his cultivation had always far surpassed that of his peers.

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