Chapter 52 Chapter 52 "That's it, let's not move on." ...
Perhaps because refining his natal feather consumed too much of his immortal energy, Jiu Zhao slept soundly and dreamlessly that night.
When I woke up again, it was already noon.
She sat on the bed and thought about yesterday's conversation. She decided to follow Zhu Ying's advice and have a good talk with Fuxu with an open heart.
She sent someone to the Pimeng Palace to pass on the message that Fuxu had agreed to go with her to release the bird of paradise if he came out of seclusion.
Within an incense stick's time, the maid came back to report, and the Taoist god soon followed.
This unexpectedly smooth start was completely different from what Jiu Zhao had imagined, where the other party would refuse and he could only use his status as a monarch and a subject to force them to obey.
While secretly breathing a sigh of relief, she couldn't help but wonder, that day had been very embarrassing, but Fuxu still treated her the same as before. Does this mean that he didn't care from the bottom of his heart whether she cried or made a fuss, was sad or happy.
It is useless to speculate secretly and it will only cause trouble.
Jiu Zhao tossed and turned in bed, but still couldn't get an answer, so he simply kept himself busy.
After washing, she ordered someone to braid her hair and put on makeup.
…
When Fuxu was led into the back garden, Jiuzhao was struggling over whether to release the pair of birds of paradise that Zhu Yan had given him as a gift.
As she pondered, she thought about it again.
The discord between him and Meng Chu was already exposed, and it was probably impossible to repair the relationship. Zhu Yan was more intelligent, calm and sophisticated than his brother, so he must be no ordinary person. Keeping his gift might be useful in the future.
So, she gave up the idea of putting the birdcage in front of her into the storage ring and slowly walked out of the inner hall.
"Your Highness."
When Fu Xu, who was waiting outdoors, saw her, he immediately bowed and saluted.
After all, it is not a direct name, but a respectful title.
Jiu Zhao's heart twitched.
There were many people around talking, so she could only respond calmly, walked around him, and then began to cast a spell to form a formation.
According to Jiu Zhao's current strength, he can teleport within a certain range.
To travel from Lihentian to the northern border of Yiqingtian, one needs to use the immortal formation.
Fuxu followed her silently and stepped into the huge circular formation suspended from the ground.
After a moment, the fairy light still obscured the vision and had not dissipated, and the strong wind and snow unique to the north were already blowing on the face.
The terrain in the north is mostly snowy mountains. Looking around, except for places where people live, there is endless white snow.
The frost and snow are devastating, and the cold is biting.
The immortals living in the north even hold festivals to celebrate the rare sunny days without snow.
Jiu Zhao came to release the bird of paradise and did not choose a special day.
She had looked up the habits of birds of paradise in ancient books and knew that they lived in the wild and liked to sip the cold dew of melted snow that was scented with frost rock grass, so they often built nests next to frost rock grass.
Frost rock grass always grows on steep cliffs, so she chose a valley where the wind was less strong as her home.
The sky and the earth are vast, and the sound of howling wind is everywhere.
Fuxu restrained his radiant divine aura and stood beside Jiuzhao like a dark shadow.
If Jiu Zhao had not glanced at the black hem of the dress, he would have felt that he was abandoned alone in the wind and snow.
She took out dozens of bird cages from her storage ring.
As soon as they saw the dark blue grass swaying in the wind on the mountain walls in the valley, the birds of paradise immediately flapped their wings against the cage door and chirped excitedly.
If you want to be open and honest, you must always be mentally prepared.
At first in Changxi Palace, surrounded by servants, Jiu Zhao was still able to act like a goddess and handle things with ease.
Now they were alone, and the indescribable embarrassment and awkwardness once again choked their tongues and throats.
She squatted down and gave up the idea of using magic to dissolve the birdcage and release the bird of paradise together. Instead, she used her hands to unlock the cages one by one.
——Did you sleep well last night?
——Is your exploration of the divine realm going smoothly?
——Thank you for accompanying me to the North.
——After returning home yesterday, I thought a lot.
Countless opening remarks flashed through Jiu Zhao's mind, and her hands unconsciously slowed down. It took her a long time to open the first cage door.
The bird of paradise that was perched inside immediately poked its little head out of the cage and rubbed her knuckles with its beak before flying away.
In the wind and snow, there was a sudden rustling sound of divine magic being released.
A green light rose from the pure white snow, supporting the hem of Jiu Zhao's clothes and skirt to prevent them from being wetted by the snow.
Jiu Zhao was half surprised and half delighted by Fuxu's thoughtfulness. She stopped moving her hands and turned to look at him, noticing that the tall figure had also crouched down. He didn't question why the time-saving method wasn't being used, but simply joined her in undoing the cage door without a word.
Then, Jiu Zhao remembered Zhu Ying's words again.
Maybe Zhu Ying is right.
Perhaps this is the teaching that Fuxu received since he was a minister.
You must not be jealous, narrow-minded, or possessive of the monarch you serve.
Being tolerant and generous doesn't mean he doesn't love himself.
She selectively ignored Fuxu's heartbreaking words yesterday about whether she loved her lover or her identity. After releasing the bird of paradise and using her magic to dissolve the silver birdcage, she patted her skirt and stood up facing Fuxu: "I have something in my heart that I want to tell you."
Fuxu was not surprised by her action: "Your Highness, please."
At this moment, he didn't bother to investigate the young man's cold words that were inconsistent with his behavior.
Jiu Zhao lowered his eyes and rolled the ground back and forth with the soles of his shoes. The ice and snow that broke inch by inch made a crackling sound similar to that of a campfire.
After a few moments of hesitation, she looked up into his eyes and said, "Ever since I was born, I have never seen the Mother Goddess. When I was young and naive, I lived in the Three Pure Heavens of the Father God. Every day when I opened my eyes, I only saw those silent fairy maids.
"When I grew up a little, Father God used his divine power to open up a realm for me called the Heaven of Separation and Hate.
"It was also at that time that Lan Qi came to me as my adopted brother."
Before Fuxu arrived, while Jiuzhao was being helped and dressed by Jiangyu Xiangbi, he thought it would be difficult to dissect himself.
Recalling the past, recalling that naive heart that was ignorant of the immensity of the world.
When it is translated into words and spoken out, it seems as if it is covered with a thousand pounds of gravity.
However, when she was truly immersed in the past and only needed to focus on herself for the time being without having to care about the other person's expression, her expression gradually became smoother: "Father God is too busy. It always takes ten days or half a month for him to find time to meet with me. In the past tens of thousands of years, only Lan Qi has been with me.
“Father God said that Lan Qi is my adopted brother and my only family besides him and Mother God.
“Shouldn’t family members always rely on each other?
"I always think that if the Mother Goddess could come back to life, I would be willing to stay with her and the Father God forever and ever.
“So, when Father God asked me if I was willing to marry Lan Qi, the first emotion that came to my mind was fear.
"If I shake my head and say no, will he start a family with another woman and leave God the Father and me forever?
"So I promised Father God that I would marry Lan Qi."
Putting aside the regret of the Mother Goddess's early death, Jiu Zhao suddenly felt that her childhood and adolescence could indeed be described as complete and happy.
He was dressed in fine clothes and fed with delicious food, and was surrounded by servants.
Although I feel lonely sometimes, I have Lan Qi to confide in.
However, when she thought about what happened after she agreed, her slightly bright eyes dimmed again.
Fuxu knew everything about his past with Lanqi. Jiu Zhao omitted it and talked about the obsession that had lasted for thousands of years, and how it finally changed after he met Fuxu and fell in love with him:
"When Lan Qi first broke off the engagement, my heart was filled with hatred. He had humiliated me and made my status as a Divine Concubine a laughing stock.
"But as I struggled again and again in the demonic world of my heart, recalling the past that I had deliberately buried, witnessing my own bullying, contempt, and misunderstanding of him, the layers of hatred peeled away, freeing me from my one-sided, betrayed obsession.
“When the love I thought I had turned out not to be right, I started to feel lost.
"So what is the right kind of love?"
Strangely, even as Jiu Zhao asked, her expression shifted from the pain of being abandoned by Lan Qi to a resolute determination to find the answer. She looked at Fu Xu, a deep tenderness welling in her eyes. "I think if you hadn't appeared, I probably would never have understood the true meaning of love."
"Love filled with obsession and generating countless inner demons will only destroy each other.
“Only love that makes people want to become better is positive and correct.
"It's not just my status that matches yours. I want to work hard, I want to become the top of the immortal exam, I want to change the image of the unlearned and unskillful goddess in the hearts of the immortals. I want you to be proud too. I want them to acknowledge that the position of the wife of the Supreme God Fuxu is the only one worthy of me, Jiu Zhao—"
Jiu Zhao's voice merged with the wind from all directions, echoing through Fuxu's ears over and over again.
Through her stubborn eyes, he saw himself standing invisibly outside the martial arts field for many days and nights, accompanying her until dawn.
He had fallen countless times from great heights, and even though it wouldn't endanger a god's life, the pain he felt was real. He would often hear the pampered Jiu Zhao groaning in agony.
It was at this time that he wished he could rush into the training ground and take his place.
There is no need for Jiu Zhao to express his feelings.
As early as she chose to grit her teeth and persevere, he already felt proud of it.
In Jiu Zhao's desperate confession after putting aside his pride, Fu Xu's determined will was shaken again.
But it has come to this.
Even if he believed in Jiu Zhao's love, what could it matter?
Ultimately, love is more painful than not loving.
In the Huitian Mirror, Jiu Zhao's behavior was either to commit suicide for love with Lan Qi, or to exchange her life for his because she truly loved him.
Fu Xu only knew one thing for sure: as a god of war, he would most likely die on the battlefield.
At least when Jiu Zhao didn't care about him or hated him, he would never sacrifice his soul to save him.
After realizing this, Fuxu finally gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to hug Jiuzhao in his arms.
He half-closed his eyelashes to hide his violently trembling eyes.
He forced himself to harden his heart, and with an attitude that was troubled by repeated entanglements, he asked: "What do I need from you, Your Highness, to understand? You are backed by countless subjects of the Three Pure Heavens, and the responsibility on your shoulders is so heavy. Why do you want to be trapped in the fickleness of love and hate?"
"Whether it's you or me, or whether there's any love between us, it's nothing compared to the longevity and stability of Sanqingtian. If you're still so stubborn, perhaps we should avoid meeting and let each other cool down for a while."
…
Cut open the chest and expose the flesh.
Overcome all emotions such as embarrassment, shame, pain, weakness, etc., and show your true heart to your loved one——
But this is the result.
At a certain moment, Jiu Zhao, who had exhausted all possible means, didn't know how to react.
No matter how hot the flame is, it will gradually turn into ashes when it encounters ice and snow that freezes everything.
Jiu Zhao stretched out his hand and caught the cold crystals falling from the sky.
She felt the temperature in her heart cooling down little by little.
After the pain of being broken, it completely returns to nothingness.
…
a long time.
She took out the brocade box containing the soft armor from the storage ring.
The power of the Phoenix's true blood was released to the extreme, and the scorching flames instantly swept across the gorgeous box.
"Your Highness, what are you doing——"
Fuxu still didn't know what was burned, and only thought that she was driven by emotions and acted impulsively and willfully.
Jiu Zhao gave a calm smile.
"You look down on my naiveté in love, and I don't understand your ambition and forbearance.
“It is true that people with different ideals cannot work together.
"Fuxu, since you and I are taking different paths, let's just say goodbye."
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