Chapter 88 Tenderness "I like you, and I will always like you..."
When Mu Qingheng opened his eyes again, it was a dark and gloomy night outside the window.
The light inside the palace was bright yet exceptionally soft. Mu Qingheng stared blankly at the top of the bed curtains, blinking gently—no matter how much time had passed, he would never forget that this was the place where he had lived since childhood, his palace.
He moved slightly, and the person guarding the bedside reacted immediately, standing up and bending down to look at him: "Heng'er, you're finally awake."
It is the Heavenly Emperor.
For a moment, Mu Qingheng felt a little uncomfortable. He was no longer a child and was extremely unaccustomed to having an elder by his side, especially since the person protecting him was the Heavenly Emperor.
He propped himself up on the bed with one hand, but he didn't know how to face the Heavenly Emperor, nor what to say. He could only give a soft "hmm".
The Heavenly Emperor didn't think anything of it, and turned to pick up the porcelain bowl beside him: "This medicine has been kept warm. Now that you're awake, drink it quickly."
After saying that, he took the spoon with one hand and actually wanted to feed him. Mu Qingheng was startled and quickly took the bowl with both hands: "Thank you, Your Majesty, I can do it myself."
After drinking the medicine, Mu Qingheng put the bowl aside. The Heavenly Emperor gazed at him for a long time, finally letting out a soft sigh: "Heng'er, I know you will never forgive your father again..."
Mu Qingheng was slightly taken aback, and after a moment of blankness, he slowly raised his head: "You...you still acknowledge me as your son?"
"Of course, of course I acknowledge you," the Heavenly Emperor nodded hurriedly, his eyes welling up with tears again, which he quickly wiped away. "Good child, all the blame lies with your father. I've made you suffer so much..."
He looked at Mu Qingheng with a pained expression, his gaze sweeping over the scars on his face, his fingers, and his mutilated left leg. He felt as if his heart was being boiled in oil: "You have suffered so much. When we reach Tianhe in the future, I will have no face to face your father."
Mu Qingheng said in a hoarse voice, "How can you say that? It is he who has wronged you, he should be the one who is ashamed to face you, as for me... all of this is my own fault, I deserve it. You have no need to feel guilty."
“No, that’s not how it is. Who would say that about themselves? It’s my fault for not taking good care of you,” the Heavenly Emperor said, his voice choked with emotion as he carefully examined Mu Qingheng’s young yet broken face. “I was too arrogant back then, thinking that no one could see through my disguise. I never imagined that you, at such a young age, could see right through me, yet you endured it all without complaint. How much pain you must have felt back then…”
Mu Qingheng listened quietly. After a moment, he slowly lifted the covers and got out of bed. The Heavenly Emperor was startled and quickly tried to stop him, but Mu Qingheng was very stubborn and insisted on getting out of bed and standing in front of the Heavenly Emperor.
The next moment, he knelt heavily on the ground, ignoring his broken knees, and kowtowed again. Then he rose and looked up at him: "Your Majesty, I—"
The Heavenly Emperor was terrified. Before Mu Qingheng could speak, he quickly reached out to help her up. He was very strong, but Mu Qingheng insisted on not getting up, only saying softly, "Please let me finish... Father, can I still call you that?"
"Of course, of course. You've always been my child. If you don't call me Daddy, what do you call me?"
Mu Qingheng smiled faintly and said in a low voice, "Father, please let me kneel. I was young and ignorant back then. I didn't know the injustices you suffered, nor could I see your good intentions. I made all sorts of mistakes and really don't deserve to be forgiven."
The Heavenly Emperor was about to retort when Mu Qingheng shook his head and said softly, "I didn't understand when I was young, and it's even more unthinkable after the heart transplant. I only understood when my physical heart gradually became perfect. Back then, you could have returned to rule the Heavenly Clan in your own form, but you were afraid that if the evil deeds my father had committed were made public, I, as his child, would not be able to face him and would be criticized. You were also worried that I would be lonely and isolated after losing my father at a young age. Therefore, you gave up your appearance and identity and concealed the truth. You became Mu Ciyue for my sake."
With tears in his eyes, the Heavenly Emperor sighed softly and placed his old, withered hand on Mu Qingheng's head, stroking it gently twice. "Get up, Heng'er, get up quickly."
He never expected that his painstaking efforts, which he thought he would never let the boy know, would be seen through by this clever and perceptive child.
Mu Qingheng pursed his lips slightly, not getting up as instructed. He paused, but still couldn't resist the stinging sensation in his nose, his bright eyes glistening with tears: "Father, I... I've come to this point, I don't know... I don't know how to make up for my mistakes..."
"That's enough, that's enough, Heng'er, you don't need to do anything more," the Heavenly Emperor said, supporting Mu Qingheng's arms and helping him up without further ado. He said in a deep voice, "Good child, do you know why your father insisted on adding a character to your name back then?"
Mu Qingheng gazed at him quietly, her eyes clear and pure.
“Firstly, my late father instructed that the names of the next generation of males in my lineage must include the water radical. Although you already have the character Heng given to you by your father, I still have selfish desires and want you to be my child, just like my own son, so I added a character for you. Secondly, your father hopes that you can be as clear as the breeze and bright as the moon, surpassing all others in the world.” His voice was low, but with a hint of a smile. “Heng’er, you don’t need to blame yourself anymore. Although your life path has been bumpy and rugged, you have ultimately lived up to expectations and are your father’s pride.”
Mu Qingheng suppressed a sob and silently turned his head to the side.
The Heavenly Emperor, with a clear mind, waited a while before gently smiling and saying, "Father has restored your Heavenly Clan identity. From now on, you should no longer wander around. Just stay at home and take care of your health, okay?"
At home?
Words that evoke a sense of warmth just by hearing them.
Mu Qingheng couldn't help but smile, but the smile was tinged with bitterness—home was ultimately not meant for him. If he stayed here, what would happen to Mengmeng?
He was once the Crown Prince of the Celestial Clan, and he has since become involved in so many things. Even other members of the Celestial Clan would feel awkward around him.
Since I don't have much time left to live, there's no need for me to stay here and bring bad luck to such a beautiful place.
Just as Mu Qingheng was about to speak, the door creaked open, and Mu Meng's petite and gentle figure walked in. She closed the door familiarly and glanced over, then was momentarily surprised: "Huh... why are you already on the ground?"
The Heavenly Emperor smiled slightly, inwardly chuckling and sighing: his youngest daughter was truly unlucky; she had stayed by someone's bedside for three days and three nights, and he could only spare a short while to relieve her pain, and Heng'er had to wake up at this very moment.
But it's hard to say who's less fortunate. I suppose the first person Heng'er wants to see when she opens her eyes isn't herself.
Thinking this, the Heavenly Emperor gently patted Mu Qingheng's shoulder, then walked towards Mu Meng and said with a smile, "Mengmeng, now that you're here, you two can have a chat. Your father will go out first."
Mu Meng obediently nodded in agreement, watched the Heavenly Emperor leave, and then turned to look at Mu Qingheng again.
He was at a loss, nervously clasping his hands together, not daring to look at himself, looking extremely distressed.
Although she still looked the same, Mu Meng felt no anger at all, only a deep and lingering heartache. In the past few days, her sister had told her about what had happened. Back then, she had given Mu Qingheng a Soul Shattering Dream pill, which was probably still effective to this day.
He is a demon who has developed a fleshy heart.
That's a dream of shattered souls.
This is truly terrifying. The hearts of these demons who have fallen in love are so fragile that even a cold look from their lover can cause them excruciating pain, let alone such an extreme illusion as the Shattered Soul Dream.
The reason Mu Qingheng has become like this must be because the Shattered Soul Dream has truly tormented him to the point of near death.
Mu Meng walked over without saying a word. Seeing Mu Qingheng staring blankly at him and cautiously taking a half step back, she felt helpless and pity. She grabbed his wrist and asked, "Where do you think you're going to retreat to?"
Mu Qingheng pursed his lips, his mouth forming the shape of something as if he wanted to call her name, but he didn't dare, and in the end he didn't say a word.
Although she knew that his chest wound was almost healed and the excruciating pain from the Drunken Soul Dream should have passed, Mu Meng was still a little worried and first pulled Mu Qingheng to sit down by the bed.
"Don't keep your head down. Lift your face and look at me," Mu Meng reached out and pinched his chin, wanting him to clearly see the expression in her eyes and make him figure it out. "You've gone too far. That day I said I was going to settle accounts with you, why didn't you even look at my face before getting upset?"
Mu Qingheng's lips were slightly parted as her warm fingertips touched his cool skin. Although she still couldn't figure out Mengmeng's thoughts, the fact that she was willing to touch him meant that she didn't hate him that much.
"And you're upset because you know what I'm going to settle with you? Let me ask you—after Father announced the news to the Six Realms, I told you to wait for me obediently in the courtyard in the Human Realm. Why didn't you listen and instead ran off to the Celestial Realm?"
Mu Qingheng said softly, "If you want to resolve this matter..."
"Alright, stop. I know what you're going to say just from those words. To avoid making me angry again, you'd better not say anything. I'll ask you again—I already said back then that your heart was no different from a normal person's, so why did you insist on cutting your heart out for everyone to see?"
Mu Qingheng looked at her, his eyes clear and bright: "You testified for me, ultimately getting yourself into trouble. If there's any further trouble in the future, it will also be—"
“Brother,” Mu Meng suddenly said.
Mu Muqingheng trembled, staring at Mu Meng as if he had misheard, his blank and bewildered expression revealing a hint of foolishness.
Mu Meng lowered his eyes and smiled, looking utterly foolish: "Why aren't you answering me? I'm calling you."
Mu Qingheng slowly found his voice: "Mengmeng, you just now... you just now..."
“I’ve thought about it. Since you have your own name, it’s not quite right to call you Zheqing anymore. But if I call you by your name directly…” Mu Meng smiled, “that’s not good either. So I’ll just call you brother.”
She smiled and steered the conversation away from the topic, but Mu Qingheng wasn't confused. He asked blankly, "Mengmeng, you still call me brother? You don't hate me anymore, you don't blame me?"
Mu Meng smiled at him, slowly raised her hand to stroke his scarred cheek, and whispered, "Hate you? Blame you? Haven't I told you that I like you very much?"
Mu Qingheng murmured, "But that's Zhai Qing..."
Mu Meng said, "I like you, not the name Zhe Qing, and it won't change because of the name Mu Qingheng. The point is you, not who you are."
The focus is on you, not on who you are.
The luckiest thing in the world is to have a dream you can't have, and even luckier is that when you wake up, reality continues to be this beautiful dream.
But have I woken up from the dream?
Mu Qingheng suspected that he was probably still in an illusion, but he also felt that it didn't make any sense at all—even if it was an illusion, there had never been such a gentle and beautiful scene. His illusions were always cold and piercing, and Mengmeng would never say such things to him.
No... no, this might indeed be a hallucination he's having a fit of madness.
Mu Qingheng said softly, "Mengmeng, you know..."
Do you know? I even had a dream with such a delusional thought. In the dream, you said such touching words to me. Even though I know I shouldn't, I still couldn't help but want to believe it.
If you don't want me anymore in the future, my heart will be torn to pieces and can never be repaired—at that time, I will definitely not be able to live.
But Mu Qingheng only started speaking before stopping. He smiled slightly, a joyful and satisfied light appearing in his eyes: he had once heard such a sentence, "Even if I die, what is there to fear?"
Even if it was just an illusion, he had no regrets in this life.
He didn't continue, but Mu Meng persisted, leaning closer and looking up at him, asking, "What do you want to say? Don't leave it half-said, finish it quickly, I want to hear it."
Mu Qingheng said happily, "Mengmeng, I know I must be dying soon. I once read in an ancient book that the Shattered Soul Dream would give the poisoned person some beautiful illusions on their deathbed, allowing them to die with a smile. Looking at it this way, it really is true..."
Mu Meng stared in disbelief: "What nonsense are you talking about..."
"Mengmeng, can I..." Mu Qingheng seemed a little nervous. His Adam's apple bobbed as he cautiously asked, "Can I hug you before I die?"
So all her words were for nothing; this person didn't take it seriously at all and thought she was about to die. Mu Meng put her hands on her hips, about to angrily tell him that he wasn't dreaming, but the words suddenly stopped.
Shattered Soul Dream, look at his joyful appearance. He's actually quite grateful to the thing that tormented him to the point of near death, and grateful for the "illusion" it finally wove.
After this thought crossed her mind, Mu Meng's anger dissipated. She gave Mu Qingheng a light glare and opened her arms, saying, "Hey."
"Come and hug me."
Mu Qingheng burst into laughter.
Although his face is no longer as ethereal and handsome as before, replaced by crisscrossing scars, his smile is still breathtakingly beautiful. There is no smile in the world more beautiful, more heartbreaking than this one.
Mu Qingheng carefully and gently embraced the pure and beautiful girl in front of him, as if holding a fragile bubble, knowing that any more force would shatter this beauty.
Mu Meng sighed and let him hug her quietly for a while before she hugged him back.
After a while, she asked, "Are you awake? Can such a realistic illusion really exist in this world? When you hold me, can you feel my warmth?"
Mu Qingheng shifted his body in a daze, the dreamy words still ringing in his ears. He regained a little clarity: Yes, is there such a real illusion in this world? You can touch the other person's body and even feel their soft warmth.
Mu Meng guessed that Mu Qingheng must be stunned, so she smiled and said, "Brother, do you remember that day when you and Father were at an impasse, and you wanted him to produce the late emperor's edict, but he refused no matter what. Later, I went over and said a few words to him, and he finally agreed. Do you want to know what I said to him?"
Mu Qingheng's mind went blank, and he asked almost instinctively, "What did you say?"
“I said: Father, please don’t insist anymore. Only if you are the Heavenly Emperor can you better protect my brother. And please don’t hide the fact that he has flesh and blood from his stone heart for my sake. He won’t cause trouble for your daughter, because we are already in love.”
Mu Qingheng slowly loosened his arms, gradually releasing Mu Meng. He gazed at her beautiful face, and finally seemed to wake from a dream: "Mengmeng?"
Mu Meng nodded and said gently, "It's me, brother. From the moment I came in until now, it hasn't been an illusion; it's real. I like you, and I will always like you."
She gently raised her hand, cupped Mu Qingheng's cheeks, and said softly, "Don't cry. I didn't say all this to make you cry."
Mu Qingheng then realized that he had been in tears all along.
He lacked confidence and choked out in a low voice, "Mengmeng, do I really deserve to be treated like this by you?"
Mu Meng nodded: "You deserve it."
Through her blurry, tear-filled eyes, her gaze was so tender that Mu Qingheng could no longer hold back and once again reached out to hug Mu Meng tightly.
"Mengmeng, I will never let you get hurt again."
“I know, I’ve known that for a long time.”
Mu Meng moved her head in his arms, her fluffy hair brushing against his neck, bringing a tingling, itchy sensation: "Brother, don't cry."
Mu Qingheng slowly curved his lips into a smile. Although there was only a faint and gentle smile on his face, the immense joy and boundless pleasure rising in his heart was unprecedented.
"good."
He thought he would never cry again.
...
The fact that Mu Qingheng regained his identity as the son of the Celestial Clan did not cause much of a stir.
First of all, this was ordered by the Heavenly Emperor, and no one in the imperial family had any objections. Even the Princess and the King of the East Sea accepted it readily and expressed their welcome.
Needless to say, the little princess was someone everyone could see that day; there was definitely something going on between the two of them.
Secondly, Mu Qingheng had already died once. Many people still vividly remember his tragic appearance at the Endless Cliff that day. In addition, he had made great contributions to the Celestial Clan. Considering both of these factors, his survival and return to the Celestial Clan can be considered to be in accordance with the will of Heaven.
Of course, most importantly, Mu Meng personally reprimanded a few individuals who held strong opposing views. From then on, Mu Qingheng's return to the Celestial Clan became a natural progression, and no one raised any further objections.
However, the peaceful days lasted for less than half a month before turmoil broke out again in all parts of the six realms.
"That damned monster is incredibly troublesome! How could he come up with such a despicable trick to disgust us!" Mu Meng slammed his hand on the table, his eyes filled with malice.
Mu Qingheng glanced at it and couldn't help but feel a little sorry for it: "Take it easy, why are you patting it so hard?"
When the Heavenly Emperor saw the two of them like this, he knew that the encirclement and suppression had failed again: "This monster is mysterious and unpredictable, and its spiritual power is unstoppable. It knows that it will not be easy to take your Crimson Heart Pill now, so it has no chance to make a move. It simply ignores everything and stirs up trouble in the Six Realms. It is really hateful."
It turned out that after the monster escaped that day, it only stayed quiet for a few days before starting to wreak havoc all over the Six Realms—and each time it made a move, it was no small matter; its methods were cruel, and it slaughtered entire families.
For a time, the people of the six realms were filled with panic, but there was no way to escape. This monster's attacks were completely illogical, it came and went freely, and it killed people on a whim.
This wasn't the first time Mu Meng and his group had tried to kill him, but the monster's trail was incredibly difficult to find. He would kill someone and then immediately disappear, leaving no trace and making him impossible to track. By the time they had a general idea of his location, another massacre would occur before they could even find him. Then, he would vanish again.
Mu Meng pinched the bridge of his nose, his expression grave: "Originally, we had already made preparations after tracking down his clues, and finally he ran into our hands. Although the combined strength of my brother, sister and I was enough to wipe out this monster, he was no pushover. Knowing that he couldn't win, he ran away without even fighting."
The Heavenly Emperor hurriedly asked, "So, he didn't have time to kill anyone this time? Sigh... it's a good thing, all things considered."
Mu Qingheng shook his head and said in a low voice, "Although the result this time was acceptable, it is not a foolproof method. There will always be times when we cannot defend against it. To resolve this matter, we must have an overwhelming advantage to wipe out this monster in one fell swoop."
"It's not that we're not strong enough, it's just that even with outside help, we're not strong enough to kill this monster immediately. This monster not only has abundant spiritual power, but it's also extremely skilled at using it. It doesn't fight us, but focuses all its power on escaping. We can't break its Instant Movement Technique in a short time."
"Just thinking about it gives me a headache," Mu Meng said, stroking his chin with worry. "There's no good solution right now. Unless I spend another hundred years to completely refine the Crimson Heart Pill, I might not lose in a one-on-one fight. But if I really spend a hundred years, I don't know what kind of suffering will befall the Six Realms."
This obviously wouldn't work, and for a moment, the atmosphere in the room became rather bleak.
While rubbing his temples, the Heavenly Emperor pondered deeply. Suddenly, his eyes lit up: "If spiritual power is insufficient, we can use spiritual artifacts to assist us."
This wasn't an idea they hadn't considered, but Mu Meng pursed her lips and said, "But Father, there are no such powerful spiritual artifacts in the world today."
The journey of a hundred miles is only half complete at ninety. Although her Crimson Heart Pill is only one step away from being fully refined, her spiritual power will likely double once it is completely perfected. However, in the world today, there is absolutely no spiritual artifact that can match her current spiritual power.
“Yes,” the Heavenly Emperor said confidently, “Wait a moment.”
He returned to his chambers and emerged shortly afterward, carrying a stack of paper as thin as cicada wings, each with a bright red dot in the lower right corner.
The Heavenly Emperor placed the paper in front of Mu Qingheng and Mu Meng and explained in a low voice: "You both know about my third brother. He was thrown off the Endless Cliff back then. I thought he was dead, but one day I suddenly received a spiritual message from him. He is a clever and interesting person. He invented this spiritual message himself. Only the two of us in the world know about it."
"Over the past few thousand years, although he refused to go home, he wrote me several letters. He once mentioned that there was a peerless sword in the place where he lived, but it required a master to wield it. However, its spiritual power was no less than that of the Crimson Heart Pill."
As he spoke, he cast a spell, making faint writing appear on the paper. There weren't many letters, each with only a few words on it, making them easy to find.
A moment later, the Heavenly Emperor smiled with satisfaction and picked up a card: "Indeed, it's quite good. He said that his Seventh Realm has the perfect conditions for forging a long-lost sword according to the records in the ancient books. Your third uncle is most interested in these kinds of things."
The Heavenly Emperor carefully calculated the time and nodded, saying, "At least a thousand years have passed since this letter was sent. This sword should have been forged long ago."
After he finished speaking, he licked his lips somewhat uneasily and looked at Mu Qingheng tentatively, asking, "However, Heng'er, you... and your third uncle, the Seventh Realm you mentioned should... should be right below Endless Cliff, right?"
As soon as he heard the Heavenly Emperor mention the existence of this spiritual sword, Mu Qingheng's brows relaxed and his face showed relief. When he saw him ask a question, he nodded: "That's right. In that case, why don't you give me a token, Father? I'll set off now to... borrow the treasure from my third uncle."
Under the smiling gazes of the Heavenly Emperor and Mu Meng, he finally called him "Third Uncle".
The Heavenly Emperor was a little worried: "But... but what if something happens when we go down to the Endless Cliff?"
Mu Qingheng laughed and said, "How could that be? I know the way and I know how to get there. Nothing will happen."
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