Do not run away
Ah Qiu heard that her few words hit the nail on the head, and couldn't help but turn around and ask, "Have you already guessed who that person is?"
Shangguan Yuqi's gaze, however, turned to the direction of the ruined Liyang Palace, not far from the two of them, and she smiled and said, "You already know the answer in your heart, so why bother asking me?"
Ah Qiu stammered, "Actually, I'm not entirely sure."
Shangguan Yuqi added, "But the first person you think of is him."
She scrutinized Ah Qiu's expression and chuckled, "The Grand Master of Music is someone who has even ventured into dangerous places like the Divine Hound Camp. Why would he want to go there, yet be afraid to see him?"
Seeing that Shangguan Yuqi had seen through her thoughts, A Qiu finally said, "Miss, do you still remember the question I asked you under the corridor of the East Palace?"
Shangguan Yuqi thought for a moment and said, "Back then, you asked, 'If there is someone who seems to come and go to me, never expressing their feelings, but who accompanies me, helps me, and protects me regardless of life and death, what should I do?' Is this the question?"
A Qiu was quite embarrassed when Shangguan Yuqi could clearly and accurately repeat every word of a casual question she had asked a few months ago.
Shangguan Yuqi said softly, "Actually, the person you asked back then was the Junior Tutor, right?"
Her extremely gentle words, however softly, resonated in A Qiu's ears like thunder.
A-Qiu stammered, "I never had any improper thoughts, I..."
Shangguan Yuqi showed no mockery whatsoever. She simply looked in the direction of the abandoned Liyang Palace and said in a deep voice, "A Qiu!"
A-Qiu had never heard Shangguan Yuqi address her by her name like this before, and she replied in surprise, "Yes! What are your orders, Miss?"
Shangguan Yuqi finally turned to look at her and said deeply, "We who cultivate the way of the sword will not take the false for the true, nor will we be pretentious. When it comes to feelings, if they are there, they are there; if they are not, they are not. If they are there, we will face them openly and take responsibility for them in the present moment; if they are not there, we cannot pretend to be, nor can we agree to a marriage contract against our conscience."
She continued, “At that time, your thoughts were focused on the Young Master, so that is who you are. If your thoughts change now, then there has been a change. People are alive, not dead, and their thoughts change like flowing water. All things arise and perish in a single thought. Just accept it with a sincere heart right now.”
A Qiu never expected that Shangguan Yuqi would point out her feelings so directly.
Shangguan Yuqi regained her composure and said, "Go! Face your true self, and do not run away."
Standing outside the ruined palace of Liyang, A Qiu saw the two tall stone pillars at the entrance again, and his heart trembled slightly.
For some reason, each time I come here, the unusual emotions in my heart become stronger. It is a tension and anxiety I have never felt before, and it is more like a different kind of fear of returning home.
There is also a complex feeling of warmth.
For a fleeting moment, a dim candlelight and a hazy figure behind a curtain flashed through my mind. All of this evoked a feeling that was both strange and familiar.
Because of these complicated feelings, she stood in front of the gate of Liyang Palace, but hesitated to go in, as if it would take a lot of courage for her to go in.
Previously at the Divine Mastiff Camp, she acted impulsively, only wanting to chase after that person and ask for clues.
But having come this far, she now realized that she had lost most of her courage. Although Shangguan Yuqi's earnest admonitions had made her more aware, the more aware she became, the more nervous she became. All the clues from their past interactions were vividly reflected in her mind.
He asked her to marry him, but she refused.
She asked him to teach her the "Shao" and "Wu" songs, and he did not refuse.
Even if I saw him now, what could I say to him?
If she were to ask him and find out that he was the one who saved her this time, would she just thank him again without any real explanation?
If it wasn't him, then what should she do? Go back to that person?
And then there was that question he asked before he left:
Who do you want me to be?
In her heart, the answer was originally clear. But now, it seemed less certain.
It seems unfair to him if she is expecting someone else.
She stood there, still troubled, unsure whether to muster the courage to go in or simply turn away. Then she heard a calm voice beside her say, "Come in."
He added, "I have a guest at the moment. Zhulong will take you to the side hall to wait."
Upon hearing this, A Qiu was stunned. Given how desolate and remote this place was, how could he possibly have guests?
Seeing her hesitate, he seemed to misunderstand her and softened his voice slightly: "Don't be afraid."
He added, "It won't hurt you."
The stone door opened slowly without any wind, revealing the emerald green eyes of the Candle Dragon, which, like lanterns, quietly observed A-Qiu.
For some reason, after Lord Liyang said "Don't be afraid," A Qiu seemed to have become much bolder and was no longer so afraid of it. She whispered, "Did your master send you to take me in?"
Zhulong glanced at her thoughtfully, then stepped aside, giving her room to pass.
A Qiu was taken aback, not expecting this spirit beast to be so intelligent. He slipped into the hall, and the stone door closed again.
After the Candle Dragon used its tail to push the palace door shut and locked it, it swam in front of her, leading her forward.
A-Qiu found the situation both amusing and strange; Zhulong acted like a skilled doorman, ushering her inside. She couldn't help but ask, "Is it usually just you and your master here?"
Upon hearing this, Zhulong paused, pondered for a moment, turned around, nodded to her, then shook his head as if remembering something, and looked at her intently.
A Qiu was puzzled by its answer: Did it mean that what she said was right or wrong?
Zhulong probably also felt that it was quite inconvenient to turn his head to talk to her like this, so he simply waited for her to catch up and then walked side by side with her.
A-Qiu was still pondering the meaning behind its last look at her.
As she understood it, that look seemed to say, "Don't you still have me?"
Ah Qiu pondered for a moment, then blurted out, "I can't count, I haven't always been here."
To everyone's surprise, Zhulong glanced at her dismissively, then continued on its way, ignoring her completely.
The meaning is clear: if it doesn't count, it doesn't count, forget it.
A-Qiu suddenly came to her senses, her face flushing red: Could it be that Zhulong had overheard his master's intention to have her stay here, and therefore assumed she would stay with them from now on? Hence, he was quite dismissive of her refusal.
A-Qiu quickly caught up and stammered, "That's not what I meant. I was asking... before I came, were you and the Divine Lord always here?"
Zhulong turned around again, but this time he looked at her with the eyes of someone looking at a fool for a moment, and then did something that A Qiu never expected.
A claw covered in silvery-white scales tapped her forehead lightly.
This was also the first time A Qiu had learned that it didn't move around with its body like a snake, but that it also had claws.
It seems that Zhulong really wasn't a snake, because snakes don't have claws.
After Zhulong struck her, he ignored her and led her to a corner of the side hall, indicating that she should wait there.
This side hall was different from the one where she had woken up from her coma last time; from here, one could vaguely see the situation inside the main hall.
Candles were lit inside the main hall, and voices could be heard.
After leading her here, Zhulong swaggered away. It's unlikely it would have the patience to stay here with her until its master finished entertaining guests.
Before leaving, he circled around her with his body, as if to show goodwill, but also to tell her not to move.
Strangely enough, she fainted from a panic attack when she first saw Zhulong.
Looking back now, it's clear that when Zhulong suddenly rushed over to her, he didn't intend to harm her.
Based on the current performance of the Candle Dragon, although it is enormous in size, it is actually docile and extremely intelligent.
A-Qiu suddenly remembered something and felt extremely remorseful.
We should have asked Zhulong earlier if it eats people.
In the story of the Liyang Divine Palace told by An Gong, it was mentioned that there was a giant serpent in this place that often devoured people, leaving only bones. Later, the Divine Lord descended to this place and subdued it. This legendary giant serpent sounds just like Zhulong.
She actually wanted to ask Zhulong if he had ever swallowed a child.
She was lost in thought when the conversation in the main hall suddenly reached her ears.
"After I regained consciousness, I rushed here as soon as I heard you were back." The voice was hoarse and weak, but it was a voice she knew all too well.
She couldn't help but step back half a step behind the stone pillar before daring to look into the main hall.
Since Lord Liyang had instructed Zhulong to bring her here to wait, he had no intention of hiding the situation inside the palace from her.
Then, as expected, what she saw was Emperor Xie Lang, leaning on the ground with the Ancestral Dragon Heavy Sword, panting heavily, and wearing a dragon robe.
The figure behind the curtain showed a slight tremor, but ultimately did not lift the curtain to emerge.
Xie Lang suddenly gave a bitter smile, which grew louder and louder until it turned into a maniacal laugh. After laughing for a long time, he said bitterly, "Do you still remember the first time we met?"
The voices behind the curtain also lowered.
"Remember."
Xie Lang smiled bitterly, "It was right here. The situation that day was exactly the same as today."
A thunderous roar erupted in A Qiu's mind.
It turns out that Xie Lang knew Lord Liyang, and had known him for much longer than she had.
After a moment of silence behind the curtain, Lord Liyang's voice rang out softly: "From that time until later, I have fulfilled all my promises."
He tried to keep his tone completely flat as he said, "You have become the master of the world."
But by this moment, A Qiu could hear the suppressed bitterness in his voice.
Xie Lang smiled bitterly, "But can anyone tell me why we've returned to the state we were in when we first met?" He looked at himself, then at the figure sitting motionless behind the curtain, and said with a somber expression, "Is it because we're both like this now, neither human nor ghost?"
Lord Liyang said, "I have always been like this, and I have never hidden it from you all these years. But you... your current situation is something I did not know."
The more A Qiu listened, the more confused she became. It seemed that Lord Liyang was hiding something, something Xie Lang had always known. However, there was another side to Xie Lang that Lord Liyang was unaware of.
Therefore, it is clear that the friendship between these two people has been going on for a long time.
Xie Lang said sadly, "Not only do you not know, but even I myself may not have known that I would end up like this today."
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