With a severed head before them on such a fine night for killing, it was clearly not the best moment to discuss romance beneath the moon.
Anyone else might have been thoroughly confused by Ren Yijue’s abrupt proposal. A proud person might have made Ren Yijue pay dearly for it, while someone thin-skinned might have been too embarrassed to speak. Unfortunately for him, the person before him was Qian Xuelang.
More accurately, it was precisely because the person before him was Qian Xuelang that Ren Yijue dared speak this way.
Qian Xuelang’s expression did not change. Calm as though nothing unusual had happened, he moved his gaze away from the severed head and studied Ren Yijue’s face for a moment before speaking. “You have caused trouble outside, have you not?”
Ren Yijue did not answer. He merely smiled.
“You want my help, but you refuse to ask for it directly because you know asking would be useless.” Qian Xuelang ignored his silence and continued. “Hm… ‘something capable of moving another person.’ You understand that principle far better than I do. Now you have turned it back on me.”
Ren Yijue gave an “Oh,” his brows and eyes naturally romantic, faint affection showing in them. “Then does that mean my words truly moved the Jade Beauty?”
Qian Xuelang said calmly, “Yes.”
The desire to break through could not be begged from another person. Qian Xuelang had to comprehend it himself. He had no romantic feelings for Ren Yijue, but if he never tried, how could he ever learn to let go?
Even if he ultimately remained unable to develop feelings for Ren Yijue, perhaps descending the mountain and seeing the world would broaden his state of mind.
Besides, the experiences Ren Yijue had undergone in the Heavenly Mandate could themselves be considered a kind of trial.
Qian Xuelang had already agreed inwardly. Seeing Ren Yijue sit there with such calm confidence, as though victory were already certain, he felt no anger. Instead, he remembered something amusing about He Tianjun and could not help smiling slightly. “Looking at you reminds me of Master.”
“Ah?” For all Ren Yijue’s calculations, he had never expected that answer and could only stare in confusion.
Qian Xuelang said calmly, “Master was proud by nature. No matter how perfectly your words suited his temperament, the moment he saw you looking this certain of success, he would absolutely refuse.”
Ren Yijue froze, then slowly understood. “Dao Lord He must have refused to place himself beneath anyone in his life, even in a matter beneficial to both sides.”
“Correct,” Qian Xuelang said calmly. “Even in a matter beneficial to both sides.”
Ren Yijue could only smile bitterly. He wondered inwardly, Why bring up He Tianjun without reason? Is this a polite rejection?
Still unwilling to give up, Ren Yijue asked one more question. “And the Jade Beauty?”
“Master is Master,” Qian Xuelang said. “I am naturally myself. He would not agree, but I might.”
Ren Yijue gave a low laugh. “Agreement is agreement. Why does the Jade Beauty say ‘might’? Forgive Ren, but I genuinely cannot tell whether you agree or not.”
“You are straightforward, but your straightforwardness is somewhat irritating,” Qian Xuelang said. “If you want someone to agree, must you be so self-righteous about it? Very well. I will make it clear. I agree.”
At this point, the arrangement ought to have been perfect. Yet looking at Qian Xuelang’s ice-and-snow composure, a knot suddenly formed in Ren Yijue’s heart.
If Qian Xuelang had clearly promised only to protect him, Ren Yijue would have had no objection. But if Qian Xuelang truly agreed to try feeling love, only to later fall for someone else, Ren Yijue discovered he could not accept that.
Ren Yijue sighed softly. “Does the Jade Beauty truly understand?”
“What?” Qian Xuelang did not understand.
Ren Yijue said, “If you promise to develop feelings only for Ren, then from now on you must never look toward anyone else and never like anyone else. If you wish to end it, then you may end it only with Ren. When you said ‘might,’ I thought you had understood. But from what you said afterward, it is obvious you understand nothing at all.”
Qian Xuelang watched him quietly for a while. “You yourself feel nothing for me, so why are you being so strict? Even if you did feel something, you would still have no right to demand this of me. Besides, you merely asked for my help, and I have already agreed.”
“Ren Yijue, asking for my help is not enough for you,” Qian Xuelang said. “You also want to demand my true feelings. How can something like that possibly be forced?”
The words struck Ren Yijue like five bolts of lightning. His entire body jolted, and even his expression became unfocused.
“Exactly,” Ren Yijue said softly. “How… how could such a thing possibly be forced?”
It took only a moment for Ren Yijue to recover his usual elegant composure. The trace of melancholy vanished. He smiled faintly. “The Jade Beauty is right. Ren was greedy.”
Qian Xuelang watched coldly. “You are not greedy. You are simply too clever, clever beyond what is good for you.”
Many things could be sought and obtained. But emotion alone could not be forced, not even by the person experiencing it.
Ren Yijue did not answer and did not become angry. He merely sighed inwardly. You Jade Beauty were born seeing through everything, yet you do not know what emotion is. You are intelligent, yet you lack just that final shred of worldly shrewdness. Anyone shrewd enough would never willingly step into this sea of suffering. And yet you are a little beyond even them. You mean to step in only so that you may one day climb back out.
“Still, since the Jade Beauty has agreed,” Ren Yijue said, setting aside his troubled thoughts and making a joke to lighten the matter, “we ought to try, shouldn’t we?”
This time, it was Qian Xuelang who froze. He thought for a moment. “This… I truly do not understand. What should I do?”
He looked over with genuine uncertainty. His eyes were clear and filled entirely with confusion. In the blink of an eye, this detached man who saw through so much had become an ignorant child.
Ren Yijue laughed helplessly. “Mm… when you look at me…”
He had been about to ask Qian Xuelang whether he found him attractive, then abruptly stopped. Remembering that Qian Xuelang had already said he could not distinguish beauty from ugliness, Ren Yijue found it both funny and hopeless and decided not to humiliate himself.
“When I look at you, what?”
Ren Yijue’s gaze softened. “When you see me, if you feel happy, and when you do not see me, if your heart feels unsettled, then you have developed feelings.”
“Is it that simple?”
“Simple to say. Difficult to do.”
Qian Xuelang repeated those eight characters softly and found them unexpectedly elegant. He smiled. “Indeed. Everything under heaven is always simple to say and difficult to do.”
He had always acted decisively. Since he had agreed, he stopped struggling with the matter.
After finishing these words, Ren Yijue went over, picked up the severed head, wrapped an arm around the headless corpse, and prepared to carry both away.
“What are you doing?” Qian Xuelang asked.
“Ah, this man came because of Ren.” Ren Yijue sighed lightly. “If Ren does not deal with him, should we leave him here to rot and stink up the place, disturbing your honored master’s peace? Besides, demonkin possess all sorts of methods. Someone might use the corpse to track their way here.”
Qian Xuelang followed. “Then I will go with you.”
Ren Yijue did not refuse. The two carried the corpse outside, found an open patch of ground, and cast a simple fire spell. Flames rose with the wind and swallowed the body.
Before long, the demonkin had been reduced entirely to a pile of ash.
Ren Yijue suddenly said, “Ah, what a pity. I forgot to search him for magical treasures or money. With a fire like that, everything is gone.”
Qian Xuelang asked curiously, “Are you short of money?”
“Not especially.” Ren Yijue looked only at him. “It is simply that in the past, I needed only feed myself. Now I must also support one Jade Beauty, so naturally I ought to think of more ways to earn money.”