Chapter 127: All I Care About Is You.

Qi Ci felt a little uneasy and embarrassed. He thought that after understanding the meaning behind those words, he would be able to understand why Bian Zhonghua had felt so disappointed at first and thus be able to comfort him.

But now, having already received an answer, he still didn’t understand.

‘The human world is really as complicated and incomprehensible as my elder siblings have told me.’

“I just….” Qi Ci, embarrassed, bowed his head so that he didn’t have to look at Bian Zhonghua, and mumbled incoherent words for a long while before he could finally form a complete sentence: “I just wanted to thank you.”

Bian Zhonghua firmly pressed Qi Ci’s wrists with one hand, while with the other, he gently stroked his chin, forcing him to look him in the eyes. With a broad smile, Bian Zhonghua said: “Is thanking me really all you want to do?”

Qi Ci thought that Bian Zhonghua suspected that he had some ulterior motive, so he hurried to explain: “I just want to thank you. I have no other intentions.”

Bian Zhonghua laughed helplessly, then said: “I don’t want your gratitude. What I want….”

As he spoke, Bian Zhonghua leaned closer to Qi Ci and whispered something in his ear.

Qi Ci, at that moment, showed a slightly puzzled expression. But then he nodded.

Bian Zhonghua released Qi Ci, bowed his eyes, and stood there waiting in silence.

Qi Ci, in the meantime, rubbed his slightly numb wrists. Then, he rested his hands on Bian Zhonghua’s shoulders with some hesitation and kissed him.

Bian Zhonghua’s smile widened even more as he wrapped his arms around Qi Ci’s waist, taking away any chance he had to move back.

However, Qi Ci was so nervous that his entire body stiffened, while his lips were tightly sealed, not daring to move at all. Because of this, Bian Zhonghua had no choice but to say: “Open your mouth.”

Qi Ci, however, instead of opening his mouth, pressed it even tighter. Remaining completely motionless.

Bian Zhonghua kissed Qi Ci for a while, but it felt as if he was kissing a stone. This left him feeling somewhat frustrated and helpless.

Suddenly, Bian Zhonghua had an epiphany, so he sat up and searched for something.

Qi Ci focused his gaze on Bian Zhonghua, only to see him pull out a packet of candied plums.

Bian Zhonghua picked one, shook it in front of Qi Ci’s eyes, and then said with a smile, “Come and take it from me.”

“Take it from you? Take it away?” Qi Ci asked twice, as if to confirm it.

Bian Zhonghua nodded, still with a smile, and stretched out his words: “But you have to use your mouth.”

Before Qi Ci could react, he saw Bian Zhonghua put the candied plum between his teeth. Bian Zhonghua looked at him with a smile.

Qi Ci took a couple of deep breaths, while his gaze was glued to Bian Zhonghua’s. Then, Qi Ci clenched his fist, grabbed Bian Zhonghua’s shoulder, and kissed him again with closed eyes.

The tip of Qi Ci’s tongue trembled slightly as it brushed against the candied plum, when all of a sudden, a bittersweet explosion filled his lips and teeth, tickling his palate.

Qi Ci’s breathing went from calm to agitated, but Qi Ci couldn’t understand why he was having such a reaction.

Bian Zhonghua embraced him in his arms as their breaths intertwined with each other, and their lips endlessly rubbed together. Qi Ci’s heartbeat increased like the beating of drums, yet he felt inexplicably at ease.

After a moment of tranquility, Qi Ci began to feel a certain sense of disappointment. After all, Qi Ci’s intention was to express his gratitude to Bian Zhonghua, but for some reason, he began to feel that it was Bian Zhonghua who was comforting him.

However, that reassurance did not last long.

For Qi Ci soon began to sense that something was amiss. A strange, unfamiliar sensation spread throughout his chest, followed by a stab of pain.

Qi Ci, startled, abruptly pushed Bian Zhonghua away.

Bian Zhonghua, caught unaware, ended up falling backwards. Right when he was about to ask what had happened, Bian Zhonghua frowned.

Qi Ci squeezed his chest, gasping for breath, and uncontrollably sobbed in sorrow. Bian Zhonghua rushed over to help him: “What’s wrong….?”

Bian Zhonghua’s voice came to an abrupt halt.

The back of Qi Ci’s hands and cheeks were covered with cyan-colored scales! His pupils had shrunk to the size of a needle, and his chest began to glow with a golden light. Immediately after, the mournful whimper gradually turned into a roar.

‘Demonization?!’

‘How can this be happening?!’

Bian Zhonghua’s eyes widened considerably: ‘I thought that as long as Qi Ci wasn’t trapped in the Ghost Domain, he wouldn’t be at risk of undergoing a demonic transformation!’

‘Does this mean that it was inevitable for the son of the Dragon to transform into a demon?!’

“Chiwen!” Bian Zhonghua walked over with the intention of helping Qi Ci restrain the demonic transformation, but to his surprise, Qi Ci slapped him away. His hand, which was already completely covered with cyan scales, had sharp claws. If Bian Zhonghua hadn’t reacted in time, narrowly dodging the blow, Qi Ci would have ripped a chunk of flesh from his body.

By that time, Qi Ci had completely lost his sanity and even came close to running away.

Bian Zhonghua had no other choice but to summon the glowing iron chains and bind Qi Ci’s wrists, securely tying him to the bed.

“Wake up, look at me!”

Bian Zhonghua pressed Qi Ci’s shoulder and urgently called out to him several times. Surprisingly, it actually worked.

Qi Ci slowly came back to his senses, revealing a puzzled expression. All of a sudden, he seemed to realize something and turned to look at his hands.

The hideous cyan-colored scales, which hadn’t disappeared completely, covered his skin while emitting an eerie glow.

Qi Ci trembled softly as a shiver ran through his body. Bian Zhonghua stepped forward, took his hand, and said with a gentle voice: “Don’t look there. Look at me.”

Instinctively, Qi Ci turned his head to look at Bian Zhonghua, only to hear him say: “Don’t be afraid. We will find a way, we will definitely find a solution to this.”

‘But, would there really be a solution?’

A day later, even though the scales had completely vanished from Qi Ci’s body, he still feared falling back into demonization and harming someone else. Therefore, Qi Ci asked Bian Zhonghua not to remove his chains, thus still remaining bound to the bed.

As the descendants of the Yellow Emperor, Emperor Hong’s Clan had inherited a rich cultural heritage, so it was natural for them to possess many ancient books. Although some of these texts had ended up destroyed due to the attack of the Four Fierce Beasts, most of them still remained intact.

After that ill-fated day, Bian Zhonghua brought a stack of ancient books to the house he shared with Qi Ci and stood by his side as he read them one by one.

Qi Ci’s moments of sanity began to grow shorter and shorter. In his lucid moments, he spent most of his time trying to resist the demonic transformation, which only filled him with pain. Throughout this period, Bian Zhonghua took it upon himself to hold Qi Ci’s hand and call his name over and over again, as if to remind him of who he was.

Eventually, Bian Zhonghua’s perseverance paid off, as he discovered through the ancient texts the clues as to why the Nine Sons of the Dragon had fallen into such a state.

It turned out that among the three thousand Evil Spirits sealed by the Yellow Emperor, the Dragon was one of them. After being defeated by the Yellow Emperor, the Dragon divided his bones into nine parts, which were then scattered throughout the valleys of Mount Dushuo.

By absorbing the essence of the sun and the moon, the bones of the Dragon gradually gave birth to the Nine Sons of the Dragon.

That was the true origin of the Nine Sons of the Dragon.

Therefore, all the demonic energy present inside Qi Ci’s body came from the Dragon bone inside him.

Right at that moment, Bian Zhonghua suddenly remembered how Fu Xi had absorbed his own spiritual energy, thus bringing him back to his senses little by little.

As a descendant of the Yellow Emperor, the qi and spiritual energy present in Bian Zhonghua’s blood could gradually purify the impurities. With that knowledge, an idea formed inside Bian Zhonghua’s mind.

Qi Ci remained in a groggy state for several days. Every time he experienced a demonic transformation, Qi Ci would feel that it was very likely for him not to regain his sanity that time. Each time this happened, Qi Ci was filled with pain and hopelessness.

By the time Qi Ci would open his eyes again, he would find Bian Zhonghua, who stayed faithfully by his side, accompanying him without the slightest remorse. This, of course, gave Qi Ci a renewed sense of hope, which caused him to not want to give up.

On this particular day, Qi Ci regained consciousness , which he rarely did anymore. As soon as he opened his eyes, Qi Ci found Bian Zhonghua beside him.

“I’m sorry for….” Qi Ci wanted to apologize for bothering him so much.

Bian Zhonghua shook his head, reached out to grab Qi Ci’s arm, and brought it to his lips to kiss the iron chain attached to his wrist: “I found a solution.”

Qi Ci revealed a disbelieving expression, and his voice trembled in excitement: “You did?”

Bian Zhonghua nodded and slowly explained the plan to him.

Bian Zhonghua’s solution would be to take out the Dragon bone from Qi Ci’s body and place it inside himself. Then, Bian Zhonghua would use his own flesh and blood to refine the Dragon bone with his spiritual energy until all the demonic qi present in the Dragon bone was completely erased.

After hearing the plan, Qi Ci objected adamantly: “No! If you do this, the only thing you will accomplish will be to be consumed by the Dragon bone!”

Bian Zhonghua shook his head and interrupted him: “I don’t care. All I care about is you.”

Qi Ci’s eyes turned red and tears began to fall from them. After choking on his words for a while, Qi Ci was finally able to say: “It’s not worth it.”

Bian Zhonghua replied: “It’s up to me to decide whether it’s worth it or not.”

Qi Ci was unable to find the right words to refute, so he lowered his head and choked back some silent sobs.

Bian Zhonghua took Qi Ci’s face and kissed the reddened corners of his eyes: “I’m a very greedy man. I wholeheartedly long for you to be with me forever, which is why I am willing to do this and more. Once we get over this hurdle, we’ll go visit the most prosperous and vibrant places in the world, alright?”

“Alright.” Qi Ci nodded solemnly.

However, unfortunately for them, they were unable to succeed.

Life is but a fleeting dream. How many new cold Autumns will it bring1?

Footnotes

世事大梦一场，人生几度新凉 shì shì dà mèng yī chǎng, rén shēng jǐ dù xīn liáng ; A sentence from the poem 《西江月·世事一场大梦》 by ( 苏轼 sū shì ) Su Shi [1037-1101] from the Song dynasty [960-1279]. This phrase laments the illusory and fleeting nature of life, setting a tragic atmosphere for the entire poem. By likening life to a dream, not only does it encompass the bitter past that’s unbearable to look back upon, but also encapsulates the doubts, weariness, and yearning for liberation and renunciation regarding the purpose and meaning of one’s entire life. “How many new cold Autumns will it bring” implies the arrival of autumn coolness, expressing the infinite regrets and sorrow for the passing of time and fleeting youth.