GB Chapter 41

“The Heavenly Master’s Mansion holds a significant position in the righteous path. If this matter were simply about the Joy God invading the mortal realm, the Heavenly Dao Alliance could easily call upon cultivators to resist. However, Ling Sui Daoren secretly entrusted me to investigate. Why do you think that is?”

As soon as Qian Ren opened his mouth, Zhuge Qingtian knew he was going to talk business, but he didn’t expect the question to be so different from what he imagined. When Qian Ren’s gaze swept over him, he was somewhat surprised and said, “Huh? Asking me?”

A cultivator’s greatest tribulation in life is the heavenly tribulation during advancement. After seeing Yu Qing again, Qian Ren finally regained the mindset he had when he first established his path. Last night, the bottleneck faintly loosened. He didn’t know when he would face his heavenly tribulation, nor was he certain he could successfully transcend it. Therefore, before that happened, he had to properly arrange things for his disciple, at least ensuring that Zhuge Qingtian could live safely without him.

Without revealing this news that would surely panic his disciple, Qian Ren spoke to him with a rare stern tone, only saying, “Think hard with your true abilities. Don’t blame me for punishing you if you try to be slick.”

Seeing that he was serious, Zhuge Qingtian did not disobey his master’s instructions. For the first time, he earnestly pondered the affairs of the cultivation world, “Master, you said that the reason for the confrontation between the righteous and demonic paths is, firstly, because the Demonic Cult has been hiding in the northern desert, rarely setting foot in prosperous areas, and secondly, because the Heavenly Dao Alliance is unsure if Grand Master will return to the demonic path, they don’t dare to act rashly. But the three Ghost Gods and Grand Master, who has the support of the Xuanmen, are different. If they were to attack the Ghost Gods, the Xuanmen would definitely participate, and there would be no need to act in a low-key manner. So, the old Taoist’s only reason for doing this is that the force behind this matter is not led by the Ghost Gods, and it is a force that the Heavenly Master’s Mansion cannot directly confront.”

Zhuge Qingtian originally thought that since he had no memories, he wouldn’t be able to analyze these things. But who knew that when he truly started to think, all sorts of information would naturally come out of his mouth, as if he were very familiar with all of this in the past.

Various images flashed through his mind, and he suddenly had a flash of inspiration. His tone became certain, “The Ghost Domain has been very peaceful under the management of the God of Lamentation these years. If a large-scale war were to break out, the Xuanmen, who advocates maintaining peace in the world, would definitely not agree. But if it’s an offensive launched by the Joy God, then the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s participation would be justifiable. The biggest variable in this Zhong Yuan Festival is not the Ghost Gods, but the Heavenly Dao Alliance!”

He didn’t expect that he could analyze it to this extent. Qian Ren couldn’t help but be a little surprised, thinking that this way, he didn’t need to worry that his disciple would be abducted if he wasn’t there. After feeling a little relieved, he only advised, “As expected, you can do it if you want to. Don’t waste your energy on how to provoke me with such pointless matters.”

Not only Qian Ren, but even Zhuge Qingtian was very surprised by the clear and organized relationships of the factions in his mind, but for some reason, he was instinctively unwilling to get involved in the conflicts of the cultivation world. Even now that he had been praised by his master, he still secretly muttered, “I think my lifelong happiness is more important.”

His disciple’s words naturally fell into Qian Ren’s ears. He lowered his head and glanced at his fingers, thinking about the pure black demon blood flowing beneath his skin, he ultimately didn’t respond. Pretending not to have heard, he continued to discuss the serious matter, “Ling Sui Daoren can’t be sure if this matter is related to your Grand Master, so he used you to lead me to Wanguishu Academy. If it really was your Grand Master’s doing, then probably only I, as his disciple, can save the God of Lamentation. If it’s not related to him, then even better. It’s natural for the Demonic Cult to oppose the Heavenly Dao Alliance, so they wouldn’t mind stopping them from ‘exterminating demons and defending the righteous way’ along the way.”

Now that he confirmed that Yu Qing and Zhao Huai’an were on the Joy God’s side, Qian Ren knew that this matter was definitely not related to He Huan. It was likely the righteous factions that couldn’t stay idle in recent years that were secretly making moves. As for how Zhao Huai’an played a role in this, and how the Demonic Cult should take advantage of the chaos to obtain maximum benefits, that was something he, as a protector of the Demonic Cult, should consider. Now, he just patted his disgruntled disciple and asked calmly, “Then, what do you think about your own identity?”

“As soon as I see him, some past images flash through my mind. It’s also very uncomfortable walking in that palace. This isn’t the kind of emotion one should have towards one’s own brother. Perhaps my death was related to him.”

After the previous reflection, Zhuge Qingtian had regained some of his former composure. Faced with this question, he was also much calmer than before. He honestly stated his feelings when he was in the palace, but his expression suddenly relaxed, “But when I see Master, I don’t feel like that at all. On the contrary, I’m very happy. It seems that at least when I was alive, Master and I weren’t enemies. That’s somewhat reassuring.”

This experience of using reason to reassure himself was a first for Zhuge Qingtian, who had lost his memories. However, seeing that he was actually a little happy when he deduced that he was killed by his brother, Qian Ren still couldn’t quite understand, “Are you sure that this is the appropriate reaction at this time?”

“No matter what the reason, the things of the past are already lost. Even if I feel sad, they won’t come back. But not losing you makes me very happy. Life has too many variables, so cherishing the present will always be more satisfying.”

Rarely becoming sentimental, Zhuge Qingtian leaned against the man’s body out of habit, but he didn’t allow the sudden sadness to dominate him. He just smiled lightly, “Master, do you like me being much calmer like this?”

Originally, Qian Ren wanted to comfort him when he saw his expression, but who knew that this person would say something like this again? He could only say helplessly, “Can you keep your calmness for even a moment longer?”

“No, acting like that is super tiring.”

Like a spoiled child, he rubbed his head against his master’s shoulder. The feeling of fatigue that surged from the depths of his memory washed over his entire body. He seemed to have lost his strength and fell into the man’s arms. He only opened his palm, looking at the empty palm, he said faintly, “But, I have a vague feeling that for a long time in the past, I was living in such a false way. Even if I kept forcing myself to do what others wanted, I still wouldn’t be loved. It’s so tiring, so lonely. I really want to meet someone who can love me without me having to put on any pretense. At least this feeling, whether it’s ‘me’ or Zhuge Qingtian, is the same.”

Perhaps this was the reason why he was able to completely accept Zhuge Qingtian’s memories. But unlike that village boy who had already given up, he clearly knew that the connection between people was based on benefits. Only by becoming useful to others would one be loved, and once they were no longer useful, they would be abandoned. Yet, he still yearned for someone to deeply love him, who had now become useless. Since he was still staying in this world, if he worked hard to move forward, there would always be hope, right? Although it was a somewhat naive wish, he didn’t want to give up now that he was not in his right mind.

He didn’t know what kind of experiences had turned him into a Ghost God, but no matter how much he had been hurt in the past, he could heal again as long as this person held him tightly. Only this point, Zhuge Qingtian had no doubt about.

Therefore, he would no longer escape. He had to regain the power that belonged to a Ghost God.

Finally making the decision to face his memories, he reached out and touched his master’s cheek. He didn’t voice the determination in his heart, only smiled, “Master, I don’t know how to be liked, so I can only try my best to do anything you want me to do. You’re a demon, isn’t it right for you to take such an easily fooled Ghost God home immediately?”

Ever since he came into contact with the past, Zhuge Qingtian’s vitality had been gradually fading. Qian Ren didn’t want to see his disciple’s troubled appearance. Seeing that he was a bit sleepy, he put the man on the stone bed to rest. He spoke frankly for once, “It’s true that young people are so easily fooled that they make one’s heart flutter, so the demon took you back to be his disciple.”

Oh, so being a little downcast could lead to such good things? His master liked weak young people? Should he learn how to pretend to be sick?

But Zhao Huai’an and He Huan were of the same generation. He didn’t count as young now. What should he do? No, he should really just throw his mind away and pretend not to have thought of that.

Various thoughts rolled through his mind. In the end, Zhuge Qingtian still responded as usual, “Since you’re moved, then praise me more! You only need to say some nice words and you’ll have me completely devoted to you!”

“You’re quite good as you are now, with the heart of a child and the agility of a rabbit.”

His expression wasn’t very good, so Qian Ren rarely responded to his disciple’s request, but this didn’t stop Zhuge Qingtian from instantly understanding the true meaning behind it, “You’re actually mocking me for being childish and restless, right?”

Thus, he received another compliment from his master, “Disciple, you’ve become smarter.”

He was actually able to make praise sound like such a powerful mockery. This master was indeed the great demon who had a huge bounty on his head. Even criminals were given chicken legs before their execution! He was about to delve into his painful memories, couldn’t he have been given a few sweet words to coax him into dying peacefully?

Secretly complaining in his heart, Zhuge Qingtian naturally wouldn’t give up. He decisively decided to verify his master’s assessment of him on the spot. If he couldn’t get any sweets, he would search his master’s pockets and let him see what a truly unruly disciple was like.

No sooner said than done, the Ghost God, who was originally weak, grabbed the black-clothed man sitting by the bed and pulled him towards him. He then lay on his lap and said, “Master, you’ve hurt me, so I’ve decided to stay on your lap and not get up.”

After speaking, afraid that Qian Ren, who had thin skin, would kick him away, he quickly added, “Just deceive me casually. Anyway, I can’t feel human warmth. When I enter hibernation, you can just throw me aside, as long as you’re still here when I wake up, then I can pretend that I’ve always been held by you.”

“If you are deceived once, it will be difficult to trust that person wholeheartedly again. A disciple must completely trust his master, and I won’t deceive you.”

Zhuge Qingtian believed that this request wasn’t excessive, but Qian Ren still lifted him up with one hand. Just as he was secretly feeling dejected, he was surprised to find that half of his body was now in the man’s embrace. His heart was in turmoil, while Qian Ren’s expression remained unchanged. He only made the person in his arms change to a more comfortable position and said calmly, “The Ghost Domain is dangerous everywhere. No matter what you want to do, I will stay here until you wake up.”

This master, though he spoke harshly, had actually never refused his requests. If this wasn’t love, he really couldn’t imagine what kind of precious feeling love must be.

Leaning against his master’s chest, he slowly closed his eyes. Those memories that had been locked deep inside finally broke free. He didn’t know why he had initially chosen to forget, but before falling into memories, he mumbled in his sleep, “I might have some nightmares, but I’ll wake up soon, as long as Master is here…”

Yes, it was okay. Although he felt uncomfortable when he saw Zhao Huai’an, it wasn’t to the point where he couldn’t handle it.

But, why was it that every time he picked up a brush to draw himself, the face that appeared in his memories was Zhao Huai’an’s?

Were there any mistakes in their assumptions?

The author has something to say:

Qian Ren: My intuition tells me that the Heavenly Dao is about to come down with lightning.

He Ku: It has to choose this moment, is it part of the FFF group?

He Huan: I only know that all the cultivators who successfully transcended their tribulation at that time were single.

Zhuge Qingtian: Heavenly Dao Daddy, love me again!

Heavenly Dao: Humph, don’t think you can avoid being struck just because you called me Daddy.

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