It was dinner time. In the Tianxuan Sect, although some cultivators had reached the state of fasting and could survive without food, Xie Qi, who had just entered the Tianxuan Sect, still needed food to fill his stomach.
Xie Qi walked out of his room and headed briskly towards Yu Zexianzun's room.
As he pushed open the slightly rustic door, he called out, "Master, I'm going to the dining hall. Do you want to eat? I can bring some back for you."
However, when he pushed open the door, he was surprised to find that the room was empty. Xie Qi couldn't help but feel puzzled, and just as he was about to turn around and leave, there was a slight noise at the door.
"Awake? I was just about to come find you." Yu Zexianzun's voice was as gentle as the morning breeze through bamboo leaves. He gently placed the plate on the table, and a few wisps of hot steam rose from the bowl. "Since you're here, please have dinner in my room."
"Did the master cook this himself?"
"The ingredients are limited, so I can only prepare simple things. Master will prepare more next time and make other delicious dishes for you." His eyes were always fixed on Xie Qi, so gentle that they almost solidified into substance.
Xie Qi lowered his head and drank a few mouthfuls of porridge, but he felt that gaze becoming increasingly scorching. When he put down his bowl and spoon, the porcelain clinked together with a crisp sound.
"Master, why don't you eat?" Xie Qi's fingers unconsciously stroked the edge of the bowl.
"I'll just watch you eat." There was an imperceptible nostalgia in Yu Zexianzun's voice.
Silence stretched between the two. Xie Qi finally couldn't help but look up: "You... remember what we went through before, right?"
From the moment they met, Yu Ze's familiarity with him puzzled him. Especially since a Celestial Venerable would never personally cook for his new disciple. His natural familiarity was as if he had known him for a long time.
Yu Ze's eyes suddenly became deep, as if he had seen through a thousand years of time. "Yes, I have recovered my memory now. I remember all the worlds I experienced with you before."
Xie Qi looked up at him: "Then... when did we meet?"
Yu Ze raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a faint smile, and said slowly: "Well... we met when you were five months old."
Xie Qi: "Five months?! So young? How old were you then?"
The other party chuckled: "I must have been a thousand years old at that time, or even longer, I can't remember."
Xie Qi: "Is the difference so big? Then how did we meet? Why don't I have your memory? Do I also have some missing memories?"
Yu Ze's smile gradually faded. He was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "I can't tell you these questions right now."
Seeing this, Xie Qi became more and more confused and asked quickly, "Why?"
Upon hearing this, Yu Ze reached out and smoothed Xie Qi's unconsciously furrowed brows, saying in a low voice, "Because I'm afraid of any uncertainties. You've died three times already. This is your last chance, and I don't want to make any more mistakes."
Xie Qi didn't expect that he would die so many times in his life. This really surprised him.
But seeing the other person's depressed look, Xie Qi didn't think about it anymore. Instead, he pulled the stool next to him, held his face, and said seriously: "Although I don't remember how I died so many times, if it scares you, then I won't ask. Wait until I finish my mission, then tell me."
Xie Qi gently kissed him on the cheek, soothing his depressed mood tenderly.
Yu Ze stretched out his arms and wrapped them around Xie Qi's waist, burying his head deeply in his chest. He said in a muffled voice, "When you complete your ascension mission, you will remember your own memories."
"Really?" Xie Qi's voice was filled with anticipation.
"Um..."
After a brief silence, Xie Qi lowered his head, gazing at the other person with a burning gaze: "So... are you still practicing the Way of Mercy?"
"My heart for the Tao is broken, and I've long since given up cultivation."
This sentence made Xie Qi suddenly loosen his arms, and ripples of grievance appeared in his eyes: "Broken? Could it be true, as the rumors say, that it was because of your fallen apprentice?"
"I guess so..."
"What is your relationship? Are you closer than us?"
Yu Ze hesitated for a moment, his eyes flickering. After all, he couldn't say this yet, so he explained with a guilty conscience: "Don't think too much. He was just my apprentice. After teaching him for many years, it's inevitable that I would feel sad when he suddenly passed away..."
Xie Qi snorted coldly and turned his face away in anger: "Then no one is allowed to mention him again."
"good."
Seeing that the atmosphere had eased, Xie Qi moved closer, a cunning glint in his eyes: "Since you don't want to practice the ruthless way anymore, why not try another way of cultivation?"
Yu Ze nodded slightly in agreement, then said casually, "I don't care."
Xie Qi couldn't help but smile when he heard this, and said jokingly: "Why don't we practice dual cultivation? Maybe I can ascend to heaven soon."
Yu Ze didn't show any surprise when he heard this. His eyes were as calm as water, and he seemed to agree with this matter very much: "Okay."
Xie Qi was slightly startled, then burst out laughing: "You agreed so readily?"
"Why not?" The other person looked calm and composed, as if discussing the weather. "This isn't our first time."
Xie Qi was amused by this frank answer and couldn't help but hold the person in his arms, his chest shaking slightly with laughter.
Yu Ze's ears were burning from his laughter, so he simply buried his face in his shoulder and said in a muffled voice, "Stop laughing, the food is getting cold."
"I'm full," Xie Qi said, suddenly stretching out his arms and picking him up. Yu Ze subconsciously put his arms around Xie Qi's neck to prevent himself from falling.
Xie Qi didn't care. He strode towards the bed with a hint of mischief in his voice: "Disciple, I think it's more important to seize the time to practice."
Yu Ze was gently placed on the bed by Xie Qi. He looked up at him with a hint of inquiry in his eyes: "Do you know the method of dual cultivation?"
Xie Qi raised the corners of his lips slightly, and stroked the bed curtain with his fingertips: "Whether I can do it or not, isn't it all guided by you, Master?"
Before he finished speaking, Xie Qi shook his wrist and the heavy curtain fell down, isolating the two from the outside world.
Clothes fluttered from the tent, landing one by one on the carpet. The temperature in the tent gradually rose, and two figures could be vaguely seen overlapping in the dim candlelight.
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