Chapter 27

A Nebula's Promise

Of course, I didn’t let him see my tear-stained face. Since I was a child, my mother had warned me: a daughter doesn’t cry easily, and tears are worthless. If I really did cry, I would definitely figure out the reason behind it and avoid that source next time.

Therefore, it didn’t take me long to understand the root of those tears: Master didn’t play with me.

Fortunately, after our quarrel, he treated me much better. He took me wherever he went and personally taught me immortal arts. It was sweeter than grapes from Loulan. And whenever we went out, whether it was to the heavens or the earth, it was always easy for him. With a casual glance, demons and monsters would vanish into smoke.

As long as he was around, monsters couldn’t even touch a hair on my head. I always had the illusion that I was becoming a god too.

He also asked me and Fu Chenzi about Su Zhao. After learning about the immortal art my father used, he pondered for a long time and suddenly said, “Is your hometown, Su Zhao, built under the blue moon?”

I nodded honestly. He sighed lightly, “I was so careless. I never thought that Su Zhao was the Moonlit Empty City that I built back then.”

“Yeah, that’s why I said Master is like our ancestor. You still get angry with me.” Speaking of this, I noticed the air around me turned cold again, so I cleared my throat and pushed Fu Chenzi, “Master is so wise and powerful, how could he be the ancestor of our small Su Zhao, don’t you think so, brother?”

Yin Ze said, “Speaking of this city, Chenzi, I built it for your mother.”

Fu Chenzi was stunned, “My mother?”

Yin Ze said, “Yes. She loved the moon and she liked peace and quiet. In those years, she cried her heart out for your father, so I led the divine realm’s Luo River and built this city under the moon so she could go there to relax from time to time.”

“Wow, the legend is true!” Hearing this story again, and from the person himself, I clapped my hands, “Master, Master, is my brother’s mother your sister?”

“She’s older than me, but she’s not my sister. We’re just old friends.”

“No matter what, this story is so beautiful and moving! My whole hometown was actually built by Master himself. Master, you really are our ancestor, the first god in my heart!”

I was originally kneeling in front of him, massaging his legs, but now I stopped and looked at him with longing, making him bewildered. He glanced at me and pushed my forehead, “Making that face again.”

I hugged his leg and wriggled like an eel, “Master is so amazing, Master is so amazing. I admire Master the most.”

Fu Chenzi said, “Master, can you still not tell your disciple who my father is?”

Yin Ze categorically said, “No. You won’t see him for a while anyway, so there’s no point in knowing.”

“Alright.”

Since Yin Ze started taking me out, I’ve become particularly clingy to him. And two months later, that fox fairy disappeared from our sight, just as he had said.

However, as I spent more time with him, I gradually understood the true meaning of Fu Chenzi’s words, “Master is also a man.” That is, Master is essentially a big flirt!

Of course, I wouldn’t dare say that even in front of my brother. But the women around Master changed every two or three months, and each one was more beautiful and more flirtatious than the last. They were so seductive that they overshadowed everyone else. I really don’t understand, Master looks so handsome, standing there from afar, even as a ethereal immortal, he would instantly become an ordinary mortal. Why does he like this kind of woman, could it be to complement himself?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t figure it out, so I stopped thinking about it and simply adapted to his taste. Occasionally, when I passed by his bedroom and heard a woman’s coquettish laughter, I could simply ignore it.

Yin Ze’s behavior with these women was no different from his usual self. He never showed any of the nervousness or sneakiness that other men did when flirting with women. I often saw him walking on clouds and mist, drinking alone under the moon, climbing Bai Di Mountain, or descending to the Floating Pagoda Star Sea. Except for me occasionally shamelessly following him, he always acted alone.

How should I say it, I often felt that Master was a lonely person. But he was very tolerant of loneliness, preferring to let women sleep in his bed rather than let them into the depths of his heart.

In this way, time flew by, and another ten years passed quickly.

This year, Fu Chenzi’s rank jumped two levels, and now we all had to call him “True Person Tian Heng,” he was as imposing as a fluttering battle flag.

Of course, as someone from outside the immortal realm, I couldn’t be promoted, but under Master’s guidance, my immortal arts had become quite extraordinary, and even my hair had turned lighter. If one day I could find Su Zhao, I would definitely surprise everyone.

This year, the senior brothers and sisters from Qinghong Mountain also successfully ascended and moved to Tian Shi City. In early spring, with a drizzle and the fluttering of vermilion birds, the flying catkins clung to our sleeves.

Fu Chenzi and I went to the foot of Bai Di Mountain to welcome the senior brothers and sisters who were coming on a great peng bird. While they were still in the mist, we could see Rou Li waving to us excitedly. Before the great peng bird even landed at the station, she had already flown over and smiled like a blooming flower, “Third Senior Brother, it’s been ten years. Have you missed me?”

Fu Chenzi said, “Of course, I’ve always missed the senior brothers and sisters from Qinghong Mountain.”

“Third Senior Brother, you’ve grown taller. Oh no, I should call you True Person Tian Heng now.” Rou Li bowed to him, obviously ignoring my existence, “True Person Tian Heng, please accept my greetings.”

Just then, the other senior brothers and sisters also came over and greeted Fu Chenzi one by one. Although they did so, their eyes kept glancing at me. After a round of greetings, they finally came to talk to me.

The second senior brother said, “Junior Sister Luo Wei, long time no see, how have you been?”

The skinny monkey’s opening line was as unpredictable as ever, “Is this really Luo Wei? I almost didn’t recognize you!”

Rou Li scanned me with her lips curled up and snorted, “Luo Wei, are you really a disciple personally taught by Master? Why are you even more like a demon than before?”

The second senior brother said, “Ai, Rou Li, don’t talk like that...”

No matter how long it had been, this girl’s mouth was still so annoying. I twitched the corner of my mouth and held Fu Chenzi’s arm, “Brother, brother, I want to go buy a hairpin later, will you accompany me?”

Fu Chenzi didn’t hesitate, “Okay.”

“I don’t have any money, can you buy it for me?”

“Okay.”

Seeing Rou Li almost vomit, I smirked at her triumphantly. Rou Li pointed at me and said, “Luo Wei, you, you, you’re getting more and more disgusting.”

I said, “Senior sister, do you know that my brother loves me the most? If you want to be my sister-in-law, go ahead, but first you have to pass my test. If you don’t flatter me, my brother won’t pay any attention to you.”

Seeing Rou Li so angry, I was already laughing in my heart. Following Master, there are benefits. She still thinks I’m that little kid who she can bully.

I turned around and walked away with Fu Chenzi, looking back at them and winking at Fu Chenzi, “Brother, thank you. Look at them, they’re all glaring at me. I feel so relieved.”

Fu Chenzi said, “They’re not glaring at you, they’re staring at you.”

“Isn’t that the same thing?”

“Of course not. They’re staring at you because you... forget it.”

I blinked at him innocently, looking like I was about to cry, “Brother, tell me quickly, I really don’t understand.”

“I don’t want to talk about it. Figure it out yourself.”

Seeing Fu Chenzi sulking, I couldn’t help but cross my arms and laugh loudly, “Hey! Little Tian Heng, do you think you can hide everything by not saying anything? They’re staring at me because I’m as beautiful as a flower, and I look like the Queen Mother! But the beauty of the little princess of Su Zhao is not something that ordinary mortals can covet! Hahahaha... ah, ouch! Brother, big brother, I was wrong...”

In short, what Peach Blossom Buddha said was partially correct. In the past ten years, this little princess of mine has had countless suitors. To put it in a way that would make all the fairies want to kill me, it’s like this: being chased by so many people is quite tiring sometimes. But I don’t think it’s because I’m good-looking, but because I’m Yin Ze Divine Lord’s most beloved disciple.

And so, I had to run errands for Master again.

After helping Fu Chenzi settle the new disciples, I went to Yangshui Port and found a figure with a slender waist and a swaying willow. There was a delicate beauty, dressed in colorful silk, attracting the attention of many passing men.

“Miss Rousang,” I patted her shoulder and handed her a bottle, “This is the Hundred Flowers Pill given to you by Master. After taking it, you can increase your cultivation for a hundred years. Be careful on your journey, it’s still quite far from the Demon Realm. You, remember to look after her.” These words were addressed to her servants.

“Divine Lord... is he really so heartless?”

Rousang’s face was full of tears, and my heart ached. It was all Master’s fault. His taste has changed a bit in the past two years. He used to like beautiful women with black hair and red lips, but now he’s not interested in fox spirits, demon mirrors, pipa spirits, or peacock fairies anymore. Instead, he likes pure and fair-skinned girls like Rousang. Before, every time he parted ways with various enchanting women, I would inevitably have to fight with these women at the dock.

I remember a firebird once resolutely said, “Tell Yin Ze, don’t send me any letters from now on,” and I honestly said, “Don’t worry, Miss, Master won’t,” and she spat fire at me and burned me.

After Master changed his taste, most of the pure girls were relatively gentle, but I had to waste my breath every time for his ruthlessness. Just like Miss Rousang, she had a jade butterfly hidden beneath her shell, and her heart was so fragile.

I scratched my head and apologized with a smile, “Actually, Miss Rousang, you’ve been with Master for long enough. I’ve never seen him stay with anyone for more than two months. Besides, when you first met him, didn’t you say that you didn’t like him at all, you just wanted to improve your cultivation?”

“I did say that...” Rousang wiped away her tears, “But I never thought that Divine Lord was such a good person... I know I’m not worthy of him...”

She didn’t cling to him, leaving behind a silhouette like ink, she sang “Yangshui’s parting, even heaven would grow old if it had feelings” and floated away. Seeing her so pitiful, not to mention me, even Xuan Yue’s eyes were filled with pity.

I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I went to the八卦峰 (Bagua Peak) on the outskirts of the city and found Master.

八卦峰 got its name because the mountain range was shaped like the八卦 (Bagua) diagram, with two dots, one real and one virtual, naturally formed, which was quite interesting. This place was dangerous, but it gathered the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, making it a good place to raise animals.

When I arrived at the peak, Yin Ze was just coming out of a cave with a group of gods and looked at me indifferently, “Wei’er, what are you doing here?”

Before I could speak, one of his divine realm friends spoke first, “Divine Lord Yin Ze, your taste is excellent. This girl is truly stunning.”

“Wei’er, you’re so intimate,” another young man pointed at me with a folding fan, “It’s rare to see the Divine Lord bring his lover out. Why don’t you introduce her, which fairy maiden is she?”

Yin Ze just looked to the side and sighed. I slapped my forehead hard, wishing I could bury myself in the ground. It was also because of the incidents in the past two years that whenever I went out with Master, people would mistake us for a couple.

Once, I couldn’t take it anymore and asked one of the mistaken fairies why, and she said, “Divine Lord never lets anyone get close to him, but he’s so intimate with you, and your ages are similar, it’s hard not to misunderstand. If you grow up a bit, you’ll definitely be a better match.”

Can someone give me a reason? Do these people even have eyes? Similar in age? Am I that old? Master looks like a young man on the outside, but he’s an old ancestor on the inside. It’s fine for ordinary scattered immortals to be mistaken, but even these high-ranking gods in the divine realm can be mistaken? He calls me Wei’er, which is clearly a call from an elder to a younger person, but they misinterpreted it as something else.

After thinking about it repeatedly, I realized that it was all because of Master’s appearance.

Yin Ze said, “Wei’er, come back to my residence first, I have something to tell you later.”

The young man tapped his fan on the palm of his hand and looked at us playfully, “Hiding a beauty. Interesting.”

“Okay, I’ll go back. But before I go, I still have to say...” I took a deep breath, “I am Divine Lord Yin Ze’s disciple, don’t misunderstand, everyone.”

Seeing their disappointed expressions, I finally left with peace of mind. In the afternoon, I heard Rou Li and the others arguing about going to the Fahua Cherry Orchard, but I was not interested in joining them. I just lay on the windowsill, looking at the endless night sky, feeling heavy-hearted.

Age is really a troublesome thing. I’m only fifty-two years old now, which is the age of a young girl, and I should be carefree, but because of my age, I have to be careful of many things. For example, ten years ago, I could kneel at Master’s feet and hug his legs like Xuan Yue did, but now I can’t do that at all.

I used to follow behind him like a little tail, and people would at most think I was his little maid, they would never think otherwise. Now I don’t even dare to stand too close to him. It’s the same with my brother, I have much less physical contact with him than before. I just don’t know why, but I and my brother are rarely misunderstood, maybe others can tell that we are senior and junior siblings, but with Master...

In the evening, Yin Ze returned, but I had no intention of seeing him and discussing the matter of pitying the beauty. I just stayed in my room feeling upset. Until night, I finally came up with a brilliant idea.

“I heard that Yin Ze went to the Floating Pagoda Star Sea again, so I took Xuan Yue and went there. Xuan Yue has grown up a lot in these years, although he’s still not big enough to carry me, he flies more than twice as fast as before. So, on the way to the Floating Pagoda Star Sea, he was still biting the corner of my clothes, pulling me along quite fast.

That night, the flying mirror hung high in the purple void, the jade river flowed endlessly, the clouds and smoke swirled, and the stars shone as brightly as a drunk beauty’s eyes. Yin Ze stood on the edge of the cliff, his shoulders like eaves, his clothes like smoke, and he still said to me with his back turned, “Why didn’t you come during the day?”

I took a few steps forward and smiled sweetly, “Master is in a bad mood, so your disciple came to visit, is that not allowed?”

“When did I say I was in a bad mood?”

“Whenever you’re in a good mood or a bad mood, you come to the Floating Pagoda Star Sea. Today, you said goodbye to Butterfly Sister, it can’t be because you’re in a good mood.”

“Don’t think you understand me so well.”

“Speaking of understanding, your disciple does know a little about Master’s personality. But you are so powerful and deep, your disciple will definitely not be able to see through you. For example, why do you always keep changing women, your disciple is almost tired of just remembering their names. Is it really so easy to get bored of being with one person for a long time? Or are you afraid that if you stay with one person for too long, you will feel pain when you part?”

“Nonsense.”

“Even if you raise a beast, you will develop feelings after three or five years, let alone a person. Why do you deny it?”

Yin Ze was silent for a long time, then said, “This is not something you should ask.”

I said, “Disciple knows I’m wrong.”

“Your mouth is getting slicker and slicker, and you admit your mistakes faster and faster. I really haven’t managed you well.”

“Disciple just wants to say that if Master feels even a little bit lonely, you can find your disciple anytime, your disciple is here.” Knowing that he would definitely deny it, I quickly continued, “Oh, what am I saying, how could Master feel lonely. It’s the disciple who feels lonely, so the disciple often comes to talk to Master.”

Yin Ze turned his head and looked at me unhappily, clearly annoyed by my cleverness. But after following him for so many years, my face had naturally become thick. I continued to smile brightly and rubbed his shoulders for him. He was used to me massaging him, and as long as my hands were on him, he would sit down and relax. Just like now.

I rolled up my sleeves and massaged his shoulders and back, whispering sweetly in his ear, “Master, your disciple promises you that even if I leave, I will never leave Master.”

Of course, his response was not very good, “You’re still far from leaving, don’t daydream.”

“Disciple has no home to return to, and Master’s world is everywhere. We’re actually the same. Master, if one day I can find Su Zhao, you must wait for me. When I finish handling my hometown’s affairs, I will definitely come back to find you. By then, I won’t need to cultivate anymore, as long as Master is not so busy, you can call on me anytime. Maybe I can really become an immortal and then a god, and I will stay by your side forever, so you won’t be lonely.”

Yin Ze chuckled, “That sounds nice. But I told you before, it’s almost impossible for a spirit to become an immortal.”

“Disciple is willing to go through fire and water for Master, to sacrifice myself, I will definitely try.” I rolled my eyes and said, “There’s a book in the Nine Continents that says, ‘The disciple is the teacher’s robe.’ That means the disciple is the teacher’s little cotton jacket.”

“You made that up, didn’t you?”

“Eh, how did Master know?”

I thought he would say that he had read the Analects, but the answer he gave was, “I am an old friend of Kong Zhongni.”

“Master, we can’t continue this topic.”

Hearing him laugh softly, I didn’t know why, but I suddenly didn’t want to say what I was going to say. I took a deep breath and forced myself to continue, “But, after following Master for so many years, your disciple has always had one unfulfilled wish.”

After saying that, I carefully looked up at him. Yin Ze said, “Speak.”

I don’t know if it was because of the backlight, but although Master didn’t smile, his eyes were a little gentle... No, that must be my mistake, if he was gentle, then he wouldn’t be Master!

I lowered my head and said shyly, “Disciple wants to accompany Master and find a Master’s wife.”

The stars swirled in front of me, and the moonlight was endless. For a long time, I didn’t get his answer.