“——In azure clouds, I wear a white silk robe, drawing my long arrow to shoot at the heavenly wolf.”
Wan Shao recited a line dramatically, half-teasingly turning to her friend, “I heard that during your recent battle with that snake demon, you really used a bow and arrow, hitting it right in the seven inches. You’re really becoming more and more like ‘Dong Jun.'”
“…What are you talking about?” At the end of the year, Shang Can suppressed an eye roll towards the visiting demon lord, smiling helplessly. “It was because that troublesome demon was acting up, and for some reason, it turned tail and ran when it saw me. I had no choice but to use heavenly fire as an arrow to chase it. What does that have to do with Dong Jun?”
“Isn’t that what everyone on the street is calling you now?”
Recalling recent events, Wan Shao squinted with amusement, adding, “It’s only natural for the snake demon to run away from you; your fame is skyrocketing. Anyone with a bit of skill must have heard your name. You can’t still think of yourself as that obscure Shang Can from before.”
She straightened her face, sighing, “Also, I suspect you haven’t noticed, but I’ve already figured it out. When your eyes turn golden, the demon clan gets really scared of you—back when we were by Qinglian Lake in Tianwaitian, I was quite frightened myself. It felt like I couldn’t hold my head up high when I saw you, like a mouse seeing a cat.”
“Perhaps it’s the bloodline suppression. The difference between demons is quite significant,” Wan Shao pretended to frown in distress. “Originally, the elders of Biluo Huangquan were eager for me to bring Dong Jun back to be a Can Zhe again, but when I told them, they realized it was hopeless. After all, we can’t let our enforcers scare off the demons before they even make a move.”
The two exchanged glances, and Shang Can smiled along with her. Then, lowering her eyes, she shook her head, “…I truly won’t return to being a Can Zhe. I’m sorry.”
Wan Shao’s brows furrowed deeply at this. She slammed her hands on the table, exclaiming, “What do you have to be sorry for? Biluo Huangquan doesn’t have a sun to begin with. Just getting one from the outside is already lucky; it was bound to return to its rightful place. I don’t think you owe me anything—are you planning to stab me with a sword or something?”
The implication in the latter half of her sentence was very clear. Shang Can raised an eyebrow, following her lead to change the subject. “Have you been to the Ghost Realm lately?”
“What would I go there for?” Wan Shao quickly became sullen, lightly huffing. “I heard from Yuan Ge that there’s a wandering soul by the banks of the River of Forgetfulness every day; it’s not worth my time to go see the view.”
“As for my mother…”
Her gaze lingered in the air for a moment, and with a nonchalant demeanor, she shrugged. “I heard she successfully reincarnated a while ago. I didn’t bother asking Nan Shuang about her whereabouts; she might just be one of the lotuses in the pond I planted last spring, blooming happily.”
The family ties among demons are likely different from those of mortals. The sudden appearance and disappearance of Ji Lian made it impossible for Wan Shao to say even half a sentence. Yet in Shang Can’s eyes, it seemed Wan Shao didn’t mind too much; rather, she faced her mother’s true liberation with a calm attitude, feeling genuinely happy for her.
That’s good, Shang Can thought. Viewing life and death with indifference is easy to say, but even powerful cultivators struggle to achieve it.
“—What about you?”
Lost in thought, Shang Can was jolted back to reality by Wan Shao’s voice. Uncertain where the topic had gone, she looked up to find the flower demon’s gaze flickering oddly, leaning in closer and lowering her voice.
“…You’re a half-phoenix demon; who knows how long your lifespan is. Although right now, you’re under the puppet technique of Yun Duan, your soul is still here, but, but even if Yun Duan’s cultivation is strong, she’s still just a mortal. Sooner or later…”
Perhaps out of concern, Wan Shao didn’t finish her sentence, but the worry evident in her expression revealed her fears—concern for lifespan.
Indeed, the demon lord’s worries seemed a bit premature. After all, the higher the cultivation, the longer the lifespan. Yun Duan was still young and hadn’t reached the point of worrying about this matter. However, understanding that Wan Shao was sincerely considering their long-term future, Shang Can smiled reassuringly and joked, “Didn’t they say Yun Zhongjun is the most likely cultivator to ascend?”
Wan Shao was infuriated by Shang Can’s flippant attitude and admonished her earnestly, “Oh come on! Ascending is so uncertain; the last successful one was from legends!”
“I’m just joking. Whether she ascends or not is of no consequence,” Shang Can blinked, answering lightly. “As long as she’s alive, I’ll be alive too.”
Wan Shao froze, unable to discern from Shang Can’s demeanor whether her words were serious or just a joke. But soon enough, she heard Shang Can slowly continuing, her words eerily familiar.
“‘When the time comes, I will just die with the memories of this life. There’s bound to be a way.'”
Shang Can repeated this slowly, her dark eyes gentle and smiling, her tone as usual but somehow conveying a solemnity as if reciting an oath.
“Did you all think I was joking back then?” She smiled softly, her eyes sparkling like evening stars. “I was being as serious as I could be.”
Viewing life and death with indifference—Shang Can asked herself if she could truly do that.
Sometimes she found it easy to let go. In this crowded world, bustling with life, simply brushing past someone is already an incredible connection; just getting by day by day can be seen as following the natural order. Viewed this way, life and death are merely a cycle of fate; the ephemeral mayfly lives and dies, and that is a complete life. They are merely mayflies that live a little longer.
She was the only half-phoenix demon in the world, having experienced countless reincarnations and different lives, able to view the life and death of all people, even her own, with indifference—
But for that one person, Shang Can could not.
From afar, seeing the white-robed figure etched in her heart, Shang Can walked over, wrapping her arms around the slender waist from behind, burying her face into the neck of the person in her embrace. She nuzzled against the delicate, porcelain-like skin, noticing a few dark red marks peeking out from under the neatly arranged collar that stirred some ambiguous emotions.
“…It tickles.” Yun Duan tilted her head slightly but had no intention of genuinely pulling away. Having just washed up, she spoke softly, “Why didn’t you stay with Wan Shao and talk for a while longer?”
“She just left.” Knowing Yun Duan had stayed up late the previous night, Shang Can didn’t press the issue, responding, “She came just to invite us to Biluo Huangquan for the New Year, and she didn’t plan on staying long.”
Yun Duan remained silent for a moment. When she spoke again, her tone carried a hint of shyness, “…You should have called me out to meet her. I thought she would stay for a meal…”
“Not necessary; there will be plenty of opportunities to see her.” Shang Can, having thicker skin than Yun Duan, asserted confidently, “She came so early, and it hasn’t been long since you fell asleep. There was no need to wake you up on purpose.”
In that moment, the one responsible for disturbing her sleep sounded quite adamant. Feeling the warmth of Shang Can’s breath brush against her neck made Yun Duan’s cheeks heat up, and she turned away, glancing at Shang Can with unsteady words, “…Stop talking nonsense. Weren’t you asleep at the same hour as I was?”
“Yes.” Shang Can nodded earnestly, her expression appearing quite innocent. “But maybe because I’m a half-demon, I benefited from the flawless immortal body, and I feel more energetic—oh.”
Yun Duan pinched her cheek, and Shang Can, with a joyful expression, wrapped her arms around Yun Duan, lifting her onto a stool. She placed the blushing Yun Zhongjun onto her lap, her flirtatious banter becoming even bolder. “You can’t blame me; if you really wanted me to stop, I, as a puppet, couldn’t possibly disobey you. But last night, you only said you didn’t want me to, yet in reality, you didn’t—”
At that, the shy Yun Zhongjun was thoroughly provoked. The half-demon Dong Jun was swiftly subdued. Without hesitation, she surrendered, pleading with a garbled voice while tightening her grip around Shang Can’s waist, refusing to let her go.
The smile radiating from Shang Can’s eyes was too apparent, and Yun Duan could never manage to argue with her. She feigned annoyance, pinched her one last time, and awkwardly changed the topic, “…Since Wan Shao invited you, do you want to go to Biluo Huangquan for the New Year?”
Shang Can saw the opportunity to withdraw, sighing softly, “I haven’t thought it through.”
“I quite like Biluo Huangquan, and it’s been a while since I visited.” As Shang Can spoke, her gaze fell, her brows slightly furrowed. “…But then again, I still have concerns. If I were to go alone, that would be fine, but if you come with me—”
Noticing the person on her lap had gone cold, Shang Can quickly explained, “I didn’t mean to leave you behind. What I meant was… you are a flawless immortal body; I can’t rest easy letting you be around too many demons. Even though the two of us will definitely stay together, it’s still likely to be more dangerous than elsewhere.”
“Moreover, the rumors about my identity are already a mix of truth and falsehood,” she spoke thoughtfully in a low voice. “I’ve used heavenly fire quite a bit this year; those who can tell must have noticed. However, I haven’t done anything bad, and since I sealed the ghost realm with you, I’ve gained some reputation. The current leader of the immortal sect, Qing Yu, is so careless that no one wants to be the first to stir up this conflict. But…”
“Why are you thinking about these things again?” Knowing Shang Can was worried, Yun Duan interrupted her hesitations lightly, her tone calm. “Let them say what they want.”
Yun Duan cupped Shang Can’s face, gazing intently into her clear, bright eyes, and softly said, “Yun Zhongjun has formed a bond with you, Shang Can. I like you, and I’m not afraid of what others say.”
Her voice was gentle and her tone was light, yet it always conveyed a deep love that Shang Can could perceive. Shang Can understood that Yun Duan didn’t care about others’ opinions; her Yun Zhongjun had already achieved what she desired, and everything else was no longer a concern.
Feeling warmth spread in her heart from the clarity in the eyes before her, Shang Can smiled and spoke softly, “But we should go visit Master. This is the first New Year since announcing our identities; if we don’t go, Master will definitely scold us.”
Yun Duan smiled back at her, a faint smile gracing her lips, looking ethereal and unparalleled. “Then let’s go. Biluo Huangquan and Qingyu will be there too.”
“Chu Ming said before that he wanted to drink with me, insisting we wouldn’t return unless we were drunk. It wouldn’t be good to get drunk at Qingyu, right?”
“Don’t listen to him; just drink a little less.”
“Oh, fine, I’ll listen to you. But what about here in Yun City? We should celebrate the New Year at home too, right?”
“…”
As Shang Can finished speaking, she waited a while but heard no response from Yun Duan. She glanced over to find her lover’s lips gently pressed together, her elegant eyebrows slightly furrowed, and a misty look suddenly clouding her eyes.
“…Duan’er?”
Instinctively lowering her voice, as if trying to catch a handful of snow, Shang Can carefully lifted her hand to touch the corner of Yun Duan’s eye, only to have Yun Duan grasp her hand and slowly press her face into Shang Can’s palm.
“Ah Can,” Yun Duan called her softly, her dark, jade-like eyes filled only with the figure of this one person. “In every New Year to come, every festival, every day… you will always be by my side, right?”
Shang Can raised her gaze to meet Yun Duan’s, their bodies radiating warmth, feeling a bit heated. Everyone said that Yun Zhongjun had a cold demeanor, but only she knew the intense love hidden beneath Yun Duan’s elegant and serious exterior.
Perhaps Yu Jiu was right; she would always care, and her Duan’er could have done even better. But as long as she could see that kind of look in Yun Duan’s eyes, Shang Can would never regret it. She admired the clouds in the sky, and so the celestial being meant to be far from the mundane world had fallen into her arms, willingly loving her and committing to a lifetime together.
Shang Can chuckled lightly, taking hold of Yun Duan’s other hand and, under Yun Duan’s unwavering gaze, guided her hand to rest against her own neck.
“Of course.”
She could feel her throat vibrating slightly when she spoke, fitting snugly in Yun Duan’s palm. This spot was a vital point, fragile for both humans and demons; if controlled, it could easily lead to death. Yet Shang Can smiled warmly, her eyes clear and focused.
“I will never leave you again. We will share life and death together.”
These were just a few simple words, and Shang Can didn’t know if Yun Duan understood the true meaning behind them, nor did she intend to clarify. Instead, she leaned in to kiss Yun Duan’s palm, then kissed her wrist where the pulse beat, and finally, she kissed the corner of Yun Duan’s lips, tenderly rubbing against her soft, slightly parted lips with reverence.
They still had plenty of time, enough for Shang Can to fulfill these words, enough for Yun Duan to understand all her feelings.
As the years stretched on, they spoke of love, not just of romance.
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