Qinglian’S Heart Is Covered, Fate Meets Chapter 38
byChapter 38
The Sorrow of the Primordial Lotus: Pan Lang’s Obsession, Only Longing for the Old Days (Wedge, Detailed Expansion, Five Thousand Words, Deep-Seated Obsession, Fading Memories)
On the third day since the fragrance of the purple lotus filled the Three Realms, before the Lingxiao Palace in the Zixiao Palace, the surging sea of clouds still held the lotus resonance you scattered upon your return. Even the incense in the bronze censer before the hall was mixed with a third of the fresh, moist purple lotus aura. I stood atop the Nine Dragon Jade Steps, the golden light of the Heavenly Dao spreading around me like a star river, yet I lacked any semblance of the Emperor’s majesty. Only the purple lotus mark you bestowed upon my heart was searing my soul consciousness with every beat, stirring up an uncontrollable dread.
Three days ago, you returned from a billion-year tribulation journey. Your compassionate lotus heart spread throughout the Three Realms. The beings touched by your lotus soul aura became the “children” you spoke of. From the initial three hundred spirit children in the Zixiao Palace, the number rapidly grew to thirty thousand, three hundred million, and now exceeds nine billion. You stood by the Purple Lotus Pond, your fingertips brushing the newly sprouted lotus buds, and the tenderness in your eyes was divided into nine billion parts for the common people. What was left for me was merely a glance from the corner of your eye.
I was afraid.
Afraid that the countless “children” of the Three Realms would eventually take you completely away from me; afraid that you would forget the lonely years when the lotus seed at the bottom of the pond and the Dao essence depended on each other during the chaos of creation; afraid that you would never again recall the old days when we only watched the sunset together by the Purple Lotus Pond, guarding only Siyi, Nan Za, and a few other blood relatives.
Therefore, at the dawn when the sea of clouds first rose, I decided to dissect my Dao essence and create avatars.
I raised my hand and summoned the origin of the Heavenly Dao. Golden light poured down from the dome of the Lingxiao Palace, enveloping the Dao essence around me, condensing into a massive light cocoon on the jade steps. The pain of dissecting the Dao essence far surpassed the time the remnant soul of the Demon God pierced my heart meridian. After all, stripping ninety percent of the Dao essence from the main divine soul consciousness was akin to severing my own immortal bones. But when the purple lotus mark in my heart transmitted the warmth of you brewing porridge in the Purple Lotus Pond, I gritted my teeth, allowing the Dao essence to be drawn from my limbs and bones.
The moment the Dao essence left my body, a metallic sweetness surged in my throat. Golden drops of blood fell onto the jade steps, transforming into tiny lotus seeds—proof of the fusion of our souls. Even my blood was imprinted with your image. I suppressed the excruciating pain of my soul consciousness tearing apart, spreading the ninety percent of stripped Dao essence across the sea of clouds. My fingertips formed the Heavenly Dao incantation, and I spoke in a deep voice, “Dao essence, take form! Divide and guard the Three Realms!”
As the words fell, the overwhelming golden light suddenly exploded. Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine avatars condensed into form from the golden light:
Three hundred transformed into Golden Armored Divine Generals, clad in profound iron battle armor and wielding demon-slaying spears, guarding the Nine Heavens Gates of the Celestial Realm. Their soul consciousness was imprinted with only one command—anyone who disturbs the peace of the Emperor and Empress shall be executed without mercy;
Five hundred transformed into Wenqu Star Officials, suspended in the Wenqu Star Domain near the South Heaven Gate, sorting through the Three Realms’ classics and maintaining the order of the Heavenly Dao. Their soul consciousness concealed my obsession—do not let the trivial matters of the Three Realms disturb the cultivation of the Emperor and Empress;
Two thousand transformed into the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas, diving into the Four Seas and Eight Desolations, guarding the Dragon Palaces and regulating the water veins of the Three Realms. Their soul consciousness was branded with my instruction—protect every water domain the Emperor and Empress have ever set foot in, and do not let floods harm her “children”;
The remaining seven thousand-plus avatars either transformed into Judges of the Underworld, guarding the Six Paths of Reincarnation, or became Mountain Gods and Earth Deities, stationed in the blessed lands of the Three Realms, or turned into Traveling Immortal Officials, inspecting the suffering of the four directions. A miniature purple lotus mark condensed on the brow of every avatar. That was the final constraint I placed upon them, using my main divine soul aura as the guide—they could protect the common people, but if the common people opposed you, they could abandon them all.
The avatars bowed and saluted the Lingxiao Palace. The golden armor clanged, the Star Officials held their tablets, the Dragon Kings flicked their tails. Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine figures wove the order of the Celestial Realm into an impenetrable net. They proclaimed in unison, “We respectfully obey the Imperial Decree, guard the Three Realms, and protect the Empress completely!”
The sound waves shook the sea of clouds, but I only looked toward the Purple Lotus Pond, lacking even the strength to raise my hand in response. The main divine soul consciousness, having shed ninety percent of its Dao essence, was so weak it was on the verge of collapsing. The golden light around me was dim like a dying candle, yet the purple lotus mark in my heart still glowed with a trace of warmth, thanks to the lotus fragrance emanating from your side.
The last avatar transformed into the Palace Guard Immortal Official of the Zixiao Palace. I specifically left a wisp of my soul aura on him, hoping that after I descended to the mortal world, he could guard the Zixiao Palace for me, guard the sleeping quarters we once lived in, and guard the pot of purple lotus you personally planted in the hall.
I stood before the empty Lingxiao Palace. The lotus seeds on the jade steps had already taken root and sprouted tiny green shoots. The wind swept by, carrying the purple lotus fragrance, and only then did I realize I had been standing for three hours. The form condensed by the main god’s soul consciousness was as thin as a wisp of smoke, but I knew that as long as I could go to the mortal world to guard you, this weakness was nothing.
I dragged my broken body, step by step, down the Nine Dragon Jade Steps. Every step landed on the newly sprouted lotus shoots, yet I dared not use any Dao essence to harm them—they were formed from the fusion of our souls, proof of our billion-year bond.
When I reached the edge of the Purple Lotus Pond, you were squatting by the pond, watering the newly sprouted lotus seedlings. Your plain cloth skirt was stained with mud, and the wooden hairpin in your hair was askew, yet your eyes were curved in a smile. A dozen bowls of freshly brewed lotus heart porridge floated on the pond surface, which you intended to distribute to the “children” who had returned from their tribulations.
You heard my footsteps, turned to look at me, and a trace of distress flashed in your eyes: “Pan Lang, why are you so weak? Did you consume Dao essence again?”
I walked to your side, forcing a smile, and reached out to straighten the wooden hairpin in your hair. As my fingertips touched the warmth of your temple, the searing pain in my heart eased slightly: “It’s nothing. I just divided some Dao essence to guard the Three Realms. From now on, the trivial matters of the Three Realms won’t bother us.”
You frowned, reaching out to check my pulse. Lotus fragrance flowed into my soul consciousness, trying to soothe my chaotic Dao essence: “You are being reckless again. Dissecting your Dao essence harms your origin. How can you be so careless with yourself?”
I grasped your hand and pulled you into my embrace, resting my chin on the crown of your head, inhaling the lotus fragrance in your hair. My voice was hoarse, like a child begging for candy: “Lianhua, I just want the main god to be able to accompany you steadily.”
Your body stiffened, then you gently patted my back, saying softly, “I know you did it for me.”
“It’s not just for you.” I buried my face in your neck, my voice carrying a possessiveness I despised even myself for, “I’m afraid, afraid that those ‘children,’ afraid that the trivial matters of the Three Realms, will snatch you away from me. I only want you, not those nine billion common people. I only want our original nine children, only Siyi, Nan Za, Nan Ning, and the others we had at the beginning…”
I recited the names etched into my soul consciousness, one by one: Siyi, Nan Za, Nan Ning, Nan Yu, Nan Yu, Nan Jin, Nan Lu, Nan Yang, Zi Zhui… With every name I spoke, the purple lotus mark in my heart brightened a fraction, “And Zi Ge, Zi Yu, Zi Xun, Lianhua, Lian Yu, Pian Qu, Yiyi, Wei’er… These are our children. The rest, I do not acknowledge.”
You stared at me blankly, the tenderness in your eyes gradually tinged with surprise, then turning into a soft sigh. You raised your hand and stroked my brow, the lotus fragrance on your fingertips attempting to smooth the wrinkles on my forehead: “Pan Lang, why would you think this way? They are all living beings of the Three Realms, all carrying my lotus soul. They are all my ‘children,’ but you, you will always be my only Pan Lang.”
“But you give them more attention than you give me.” I turned my face away, not wanting you to see my reddened eyes, “In the Chaos, you only accompanied me; in the Zixiao Palace, you would still wait for me to finish court; when we lived in the mortal world, we could still watch the sunset together. But now, your eyes are filled with the common people, filled with ‘children.’ I’m afraid I won’t even be able to grasp the hem of your garment.”
You fell silent, your hands hanging by your sides tightening slightly. The wind from the lotus pond swept past, blowing your hair onto my cheek, carrying a faint lotus fragrance. After a long time, you finally spoke, your voice carrying a trace of imperceptible guilt: “Pan Lang, during the billion-year tribulation journey, I saw too much suffering. Those beings, they suffer too greatly. I am the Primordial Purple Lotus; I was born to benefit the common people, but that doesn’t mean I have forgotten you.”
“But I only want you.” I turned to look at you, my eyes filled with an almost frantic obsession, “I divided into thousands of avatars to stabilize the Celestial Realm because I wanted the main god to guard you. I don’t want you to save the world; I only want you to save me, save this heart of mine that is about to be crushed by dread.”
Your fingertips paused gently on my brow. The lotus fragrance suddenly intensified. I knew you felt distressed for me. You were silent for a moment, then suddenly curved your eyebrows, the tenderness in your eyes finally directed only at me: “Then I will comply with you. I will go to the mortal world with you, shed my divine status, and simply be a common couple, to watch our children undergo their tribulations. How about that?”
I looked up abruptly, staring at you in disbelief. The searing pain in my heart instantly vanished, replaced by the ecstasy of having recovered something lost: “Truly?”
“Truly.” You smiled and nodded, reaching out to wipe away the remaining golden bloodstain from the corner of my mouth, “But Pan Lang, you must promise me that when we reach the mortal world, you won’t be so obsessive anymore, alright?”
I nodded vigorously, pulling you tightly into my embrace, feeling the lotus fragrance in your hair, feeling the warmth of your palm. I knew that perhaps in the mortal world, within the constraints of a mortal body, you could temporarily put down those nine billion common people and be my lotus alone, looking only at me.
Holding you, I looked at the newly sprouted lotus shoots in the Purple Lotus Pond and silently vowed in my heart: Lianhua, this time, I will never let go of your hand again, and I will never let anyone take you away from me again.