The Tribulations of Love (Part 1)
Ying Yuanjun's eyes are completely blind.
Yan Dan still remembered that he had a pair of clear and beautiful eyes. But now he could only close his eyes and strain to hear the sounds around him. Sometimes he would open his eyes, but those eyes were no longer dark and clear; they were slightly gray and unfocused. His appearance was ruined, his immortal powers were imprisoned, and he would sometimes lose his mind during the day. He had lost almost everything.
Yan Dan had seen him once before when he lost his mind, as if seized by a nightmare, clenching his teeth tightly, yet stubbornly remaining silent. Upon first witnessing this scene, she was slightly frightened, but despite her fear, she didn't leave. When Ying Yuanjun recovered, he looked up and smiled weakly: "Why are you still here? You shouldn't come here again."
Yan Dan hesitated for a while, then muttered, "Very few people come here. If no one comes to talk to you, wouldn't I be bored to death?"
There are already many handsome celestial beings in the Heavenly Court, and Ying Yuanjun was never the most outstanding. Now that his appearance is ruined, he would be frightening to see at first glance. Yan Dan, however, doesn't think he looks bad. Physical appearance is something you can't choose whether you're beautiful or ugly.
Ying Yuan paused for a moment, then said with a hint of helplessness, "Fine, just be careful when you see me have a fire poison attack in the future."
Unfortunately, Yan Dan preferred to focus on trivial matters: "Fire poison? What's that?"
“They are blood eagles from the demonic realm. They are formed from the blood of evil gods, and when they attack, they unleash raging flames. That's why my eyes are blind…” He spoke in a low voice, slowly opening his eyes, staring blankly ahead. He would probably never forget this day. The light before him gradually dimmed, and the darkness grew ever deeper. He knew that soon his eyes would be unable to see anything at all, but he could only pretend that nothing was wrong.
It wasn't until the Demon Realm collapsed that anyone noticed something was wrong.
However, the Blood Eagle's fire poison had already seeped into his body, causing him to frequently lose his mind. He almost killed several of the fairies and immortal lords under his command once, so he had no choice but to trap himself here.
Yan Dan thought for a moment, then couldn't help but ask, "Can't this fire poison be cured?"
“Perhaps it is possible, but even the most skilled physician, Linghua Yuanjun, is helpless…” He said calmly, “It’s alright, I’m not in such a bad state as I am now.”
Yan Dan didn't think this was bad enough. After returning to the edge of the earth, she searched through ancient books, but she couldn't find any record of the Blood Eagle.
The bamboo curtain swayed gently in the breeze, and the wind chimes tinkled, their clear sounds echoing in the quiet courtyard.
As Yan Dan turned her head, she saw a sandalwood incense burner with a mythical beast design placed by the window. Wisps of pale white smoke billowed from the burner, filling the room with fragrance.
She recalled that her master had been inexplicably irritable for several days after returning from the Demon Realm. How could a well-mannered immortal suddenly become so irritable? She walked over, picked up the sandalwood incense burner, and felt slightly bewildered.
Her master was the person she respected most, and even if she plucked all the petals and leaves from her body for him, it would be the least she could do. But what was Ying Yuanjun to her? Just an irrelevant person. Wouldn't it be strange to hurt herself for an irrelevant person?
Unable to understand, Yan Dan wandered towards Suspended Heart Cliff. From afar, she saw the Antarctic Immortal standing by the lotus pond, muttering incantations. As she approached, she heard him say, "Alas, it's almost time for him to transform into human form. I hope this Nine-Finned One doesn't cause any trouble and would rather remain a fish for life..."
Are there fish in this world that like to throw tantrums?
Yan Dan couldn't help but ask, "Immortal, how much longer will it take for this Nine-Finned One to transform into human form?"
"It'll probably be another six months or so. You have no idea how much effort I put into snatching the last nine-finned fish from the Jade Emperor. I've worked so hard and devoted myself to raising it for so many years, and it hasn't even laid an egg. All that effort I put into keeping it company with a whole pond of female fish has been for nothing." The Antarctic Immortal, having been touched on a sore spot, said with a pained expression, "Yan Dan, look at this pond. There are all kinds of female fish—long ones, flat ones, short ones, and slender ones—but not a single one of them has achieved enlightenment!"
“…Cough cough!” Yan Dan couldn’t help but choke, and said carefully, “We still need to take it slowly. Besides, maybe the nine-finned ones have different preferences than others and don’t like females.”
"I thought he might be a homosexual, so I put a male fish in, but nothing changed. On the contrary, the male fish seemed to like flirting with me."
After the old man from the South Pole finished his rambling, he felt much better and left contentedly.
Yan Dan squatted by the lotus pond. After a short while, she saw the little black fish with red eyes peek its head out of the water. She couldn't help but smile: "Another day, I didn't bring any books today."
As soon as she finished speaking, she saw the little fish flick its tail and dive to the bottom of the water, ignoring her completely.
Yan Dan was annoyed: "Hey, I've read dozens of books to you, at least I've put in the effort, right? What kind of attitude is this?"
The lotus pond was completely still, save for the fierce tiger-whisker leaping and bounding about. As Yan Dan stood up, she thought to herself, "Before, no matter what I said, that delicate little fish would at least give me some response, even though I felt completely despised. Lately, even that disdain has disappeared. This little fish, though clever, is really not endearing."
When Yan Dan turned around, she couldn't help but think that what she wanted to do was none of other people's business, so why should she care whether the other party agreed?
The next day, when Yan Dan went to see Ying Yuanjun, she brought along a sandalwood incense burner.
A calming lotus fragrance filled the air.
Ying Yuan seemed to really like the scent of agarwood, and even asked, "Have the lotus flowers by the Jade Pool bloomed recently?"
By this time, the lotus blooming season had long passed, and he had been trapped here for so long that he couldn't even remember the exact date.
Yan Dan gave a soft "hmm," then thought for a moment and asked, "Would you like to see the lotus flowers?"
Ying Yuan smiled slightly: "Even if the lotus blooms beautifully, I won't be able to see it."
“But you can smell the fragrance of lotus flowers, hear the wind, and touch them. Even if you can’t see the color of the flowers, you can still remember them if you’ve seen them before.” Yan Dan felt there was no need to comfort him that his eyes might get better one day. She was the reincarnation of a four-leaf lotus, and was naturally more skilled in healing magic than ordinary people. She felt that Ying Yuanjun would never be able to see again.
Ying Yuan still smiled: "Actually, the best lotus I ever saw was two hundred years ago."
That day, the four-leaf clover transformed into human form. Perhaps because it was still far from adulthood, it turned out to be a naughty brat who couldn't even speak clearly and could only crawl around on the ground. He originally thought he had forgotten, but now he found that he still remembered it very clearly.
The little devil he remembered as so wicked had changed quite a bit after a hundred years. One day, after finishing reading official documents, he wanted to take a walk in the Yanxu Palace to stretch his muscles and bones. As a result, he saw a fairy wearing a snow-white silk robe holding a book and standing under the lamp reading. Judging from her attire, she should be Zhi Xi, the fairy second only to Lu Jing.
As he walked over, Zhixi hurriedly hid the book in her hands behind her back and gracefully bowed, saying, "Your Majesty."
Ying Yuan glanced at the book title and smiled knowingly: "This play excerpt from 'The Four Dreams of Linjiang' was brought from the mortal realm by Emperor Zixu. It's a unique copy, so don't damage it."
Zhi Xi opened her mouth, but in the end she lowered her head: "Yes, Your Majesty."
Ying Yuan took a few steps away, then suddenly turned back and asked, "Do you think the love entanglements between men and women described in these mortal plays are real?"
Zhixi held the book and thought for a long time before saying, "Your Majesty, I believe that such infatuation and sorrow do exist, and are real. There are many things that cannot be done as one wishes, which is why there are so many bitter mistakes in the story."
Ying Yuan simply smiled and remained silent.
He actually believed that even a play must have had similar stories behind it. However, in Heaven, openly discussing mortal emotions was contrary to the path of cultivation. Zhi Xi was still too young, but given time, she would surely understand more. He, on the other hand, had lived too long and no longer knew what lasting love truly meant. Mortal emotions and longings would certainly not remain unchanged with the passage of time.
Several days passed, and as Yan Dan saw that her true form was almost bald, she finally couldn't help but ask, "Have you really never thought about leaving here?"
"Why do you want to leave?" Ying Yuan asked, slightly surprised.
“Here’s what I’m thinking: anyway, this is the end of the Heavenly Court, and hardly anyone comes here on weekdays. There’s an empty house behind the Earthly Palace, so living there is better than being tied to a tree, right? Besides, I checked some ancient texts a few days ago, and they said that the Kunlun Divine Tree grows by absorbing spiritual energy, and in the end you’ll be drained to skin and bones, and you’ll be wasting your time on such an ugly tree.”
Ying Yuan remained silent.
Yan Dan was delighted. She knew that her reasoning and persuasion would eventually convince him. This was also due to the benefits of the agarwood; at least Ying Yuanjun had been more lucid lately and rarely had seizures. She also felt it would be a pity if he were to die here in isolation.
Ying Yuan thought for a moment and slowly said, "Then let's give it a try. If it doesn't work, we can come back."
"How could it not work? You've been having fewer and fewer seizures lately, so maybe it will get better in a while."
Ying Yuan laboriously raised his wrist, without even using a trace of magic, and the branches binding his hands and feet immediately loosened. Yan Dan was dumbfounded; it seemed that if he wanted to break free, he really wouldn't need to put in any effort, but he simply didn't want to. Ying Yuan bent down and felt around on the ground, picking up the long iron lock: "This Immortal Lock must never be removed; don't forget that."
Yan Dan responded, stepped forward, took his arm, and led him forward.
Ying Yuan must have been in great pain wearing the Immortal Binding Lock, but he never mentioned it.
Yan Dan thought to herself that she had been enjoying talking to him lately and was hoping for his speedy recovery. If this was just out of sympathy, then why was she doing it so willingly?
She felt like something was off about her; she seemed to have suddenly become very understanding and gentle.
And the conclusion, it seems, will not be the one she wants.
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