TIC Chapter 9: Throwing Grain Into a Boat to Cross the Sea of Fog

The sea was prone to fog.

Thus after two hours of traveling, a vast expanse of white appeared all around them, completely covering the surging sea surface below.

Song Youdu summoned two mecha from his Qiankun bag, entered the control cabin, and remained there. The remaining four martial siblings had nothing to do, so they gathered together to chat.

The main cabin had a small mahogany table with tea and snacks placed atop it.

Ye Huaguo laid her upper body on the table, on the verge of tears. “Da Shixiong! Does the Golden Osmanthus Challenge require- require fighting? What should I do? I-I am just a medicine cultivator. I don’t know anything…”

Lin Fuqing sipped his hot tea leisurely and said soothingly, “Don’t panic. You are actually very good at swordsmanship. As long as you don’t get stage fright, you’ll be fine.”

“Da Shixiong, you are so bad.” Ye Huaguo let out a sobbing noise. “You’ve never forced me to fight before…!”

Fang Zhiyuan sat cross-legged with his back to them, his face full of disappointment. “What a good-for-nothing…”

Xun Mingsi was talking to Shen Xiaojiang, and he asked with a smile, “Are we different from what you imagined?”

Shen Xiaojiang was still nervous. His limbs and tongue were stiff and he could only nod.

“You don’t have to be afraid of us.” Xun Mingsi didn’t avoid him and even introduced the others to him. “Look at your da shixiong. Although he’s lazy and does whatever he wants, he is definitely a very caring da shixiong. As for the second shixiong, although he has a bad temper and likes to beat people, he will won’t cause too much injuries. Fourth shijie has no other shortcomings except that she is timid, clumsy, and stutters. The fifth shixiong is also a good person, but he’s just a little eccentric…”

“You also have a little shijie named Yu Hongtang, who is a little witch spoiled by your da shixiong and second shixong…Unfortunately, she is still in seclusion, and so you won’t see her for the time being.”

“……”

Shen Xiaojiang didn’t know whether Xun Mingsi was praising or scolding the others. He didn’t dare to ask, nor did he dare to respond…

“And I,” Xun Mingsi pointed at his own nose and said with a smile. “I am the most normal person acknowledged by da shixiong. If you have any confusion about our journey, or whether about life or cultivation, feel free to come to me.”

Shen Xiaojiang nodded in shame. “Disciple will remember it.”

Then he silently added, although the third shixiong is a sharp-tongued and smiling tiger, he is generally very kind and gentle… right?

After arguing for a while, they started to eat snacks. It was all due to Lin Fuqing. Although they could fast, they preferred to satisfy their appetite instead.

Soon after, Ye Huaguo finished eating, picked out a portion, and said she was sending it to Song Youdu. She was the first to leave.

Then, Xun Mingsi also took his leave, saying that it was a rare sight to see the fog in the sky, and he wanted to try to see if he could comprehend new ideas for playing the guqin.

Once he left, Fang Zhiyuan glanced at Shen Xiaojiang coldly. The child was so frightened that he trembled and hurriedly escaped under the pretext of cultivation…

Finally, there were only two people left in the main cabin.

Lin Fuqing was still sitting safely in his seat, wrapped in a soft white fur coat, his eyelashes half-closed in lazy contentment.

Suddenly, a sound came from beside him. Fang Zhiyuan had come over to sit next to him. He handed him a spiritual jade slip and said, “Shige, take a look.”

The spiritual jade slip was a top-grade universal magic weapon, usually used to record a large number of books or inheritance of skills. Lin Fuqing took it from him and used his spiritual power to explore it. His laziness immediately disappeared when he saw the vast amount of information inside.

“You…” Lin Fuqing raised his eyes in surprise. “When did you make this thing?!”

The thin piece of spiritual jade slip actually stored a record of the details of dozens of immortal sects and a hundred powerful independent cultivators.

Which sect had cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and beyond, which signature move did each have, which people have complicated relationships in secret, which people had weaknesses and which had leverage, and even the future prosperity and decline of each family and each person…

These details were all listed, clear and succinct.

My goodness, if this thing was written down, it would have at least a million words. If it fell into the hands of someone with bad intentions, the entire immortal world would be turned upside down.

It had only been a few days since they were reborn, and Fang Zhiyuan was with him every day. He really didn’t know when this man had secretly sorted all this information out.

The fact that he was even able to withstand this sheer amount of information was because he’d reached Tribulation Crossing in his previous life, which had made his soul one of the most powerful in all the three realms.

Fang Zhiyuan said in a low voice, “I made a simple one based on memory. I was in a hurry, so it might be a little rough…But it should still be useful for a Golden Osmanthus Challenge.”

“It’s very useful.” Lin Fuqing concentrated on reading the spiritual jade slip again and couldn’t help but admire it from the bottom of his heart.

His shidi was worthy of being the head of the Golden Osmanthus Palace. No matter how grumpy he was, he was always reliable when it came to serious matters.

Fang Zhiyuan seemed a little happy when he heard this. There was no one else in the main cabin, so he simply moved closer and hugged Lin Fuqing from behind.

Lin Fuqing smiled. “What are you doing? Are you acting like a spoiled child?”

He was just praising him for being reliable in his heart, and now he’s sticking to him again.

Fang Zhiyuan rubbed his chin against the crook of Lin Fuqing’s neck, and the two of them were so close that their ears were almost touching.

Fang Zhiyuan sighed softly, “I still feel more at ease when I hold you in my arms. You’re finally… not so cold anymore.”

“….…”

Lin Fuqing was slightly startled, and his fingers holding the spiritual jade slip suddenly tightened, to the point that even his fingertips turned a little white.

Yin qi was cold in nature. After he was attacked by the backlash in his previous life, he was tortured by it all the time. His whole body was cold to the bone and stiff as a corpse.

No matter how hard Fang Zhiyuan hugged him, no matter how hard he’d tried to warm him up… it was of no use.

What kind of character did Fang Zhiyuan have? He had been accused of being a disaster since he was young and had suffered inhuman abuse, but he was still a rebellious, unyielding, and fearless immortal leader.

Such a person was pushed to the brink of collapse several times by his senior brother.

Lin Fuqing knew that Fang Zhiyuan once cried while hugging him.

It seemed to be winter at the time. The leaves on the trees had all fallen off, and the branches were bare. He’d begun to vomit blood after sunset and was shivering with cold. By evening, even his mind was blurred.

Fang Zhiyuan had held him tightly, and he kept talking to him, begging him not to sleep. But he barely made it to the third watch, and he couldn’t hold on any longer, so he closed his eyes and fell limply into his shidi’s arms.

At that time, Fang Zhiyuan thought that he had fainted. But in fact, he hadn’t. Lin Fuqing still had a trace of consciousness, but he didn’t have the strength to wake up completely.

In his painful semi-coma, he could vaguely hear the wind blowing through the long grass, the insects chirping in the wilderness, and the crackling of the campfire beside him.

His body was still twitching unconsciously in pain, and dark blood was gushing out from his lips that were unable to close.

Finally, hot tears fell on his cheeks and were immediately wiped away by trembling fingertips.

Fang Zhiyuan was so desperate that his arms were shaking while he was holding him, and he couldn’t speak through his sobs, “Shige, why can’t I warm you up…”

Why can’t I keep you warm?

“….…”

Lin Fuqing lowered his eyes. His chest seemed to be stabbed through by a sharp knife, and his heart was a cold bloody mess.

He gritted his teeth and suppressed his emotions without leaving any trace. He placed his fingers on the back of Fang Zhiyuan’s hand that was resting on his waist, and whispered. “Zhiyuan, I promise you. This time, all of us will come back safe and sound after the Golden Osmanthus Challenge.”

“I’ll find a way to tell Jina the true situation of the immortal calamity in the previous life, and let Ziwei Pavilion worry about the rest. After that, we will have nothing to worry about, and whether you want to regain the position of the head of the immortals or stay in Taiqing Island for the rest of your life, I will accompany you.”

Fang Zhiyuan’s eyes brightened. “Shige, I’ll take what you said seriously.”

Lin Fuqing pursed his lips and smiled, as bright as the moon. The gloomy atmosphere instantly disappeared. “I’m serious.”

Fang Zhiyuan’s eyebrows became significantly more relaxed, and he asked again after a while, “Shige, aren’t you going to tell Xun San and the others about the impending disaster?”

Lin Fuqing shook his head. z’Let’s not talk about it for now. Mingsi and the others are young and full of vigor. It’s rare for them to attend the Golden Osmanthus Challenge. There’s no need to add to their troubles.”

After saying that, he turned around with a smile and pointed his slender index finger at his fellow apprentice’s forehead.

“These troubles are best left to an old man like you who is on the decline.”

Fang Zhiyuan was slightly startled, his eyes became momentarily confused, and the tips of his ears suddenly felt hot.

He coughed quickly to cover it up. “Only a hundred years old. Huh, is that considered an old man in my shige’s eyes?”

He quickly dealt with the conversation with a few words and then grabbed a cup of tea from the small mahogany table to drink, just to calm his nerves.

People who practice cultivation have a long life span, and seclusion and cultivation take up a lot of years. In the immortal world, a hundred years old could barely be considered a junior. However, Lin Fuqing sighed leisurely. “In the mortal world, a hundred years old is considered a long life.”

“I often think that it would be nice if I were a mortal. I would be content if I could live to be a hundred years old, and have the daily necessities of life, a wife and children …”

Fang Zhiyuan choked on his tea. “Cough, cough, cough…”

Lin Fuqing was startled. But Fang Zhiyuan raised his red eyes and said in a trembling voice. “Shige wants to—“

Lin Fuqing: “……?”

Fang Zhiyuan’s Adam’s apple rolled, and he stared at the bewildered Lin Fuqing while squeezing out five words with great difficulty, “Get married… and have children?”

Lin Fuqing was stunned for a moment. “Ah no, I’m just envious…”

Of those ordinary days with less worries and more warmth.

Fang Zhiyuan waved his hands quickly and interrupted him in a suppressed tone. “No, cough… it’s nothing, nothing. Getting married and having children…”

He forced himself to remain calm and muttered absentmindedly, “Getting married and having children is a good thing… This is naturally a good thing.”

After praising a few “good things,” Fang Zhiyuan suddenly stood up and walked around twice in annoyance.

—The image of Lin Fuqing holding his child and coaxing his wife with a kind face suddenly appeared in his mind.

……No.

Fang Zhiyuan suddenly felt a chill. He hardened his heart and said in a deep voice:

“Shige, you-do you know that Madam Cihua of Furong Pavilion has developed a medicine that is said to be able to… make men pregnant.”

Lin Fuqing abruptly raised his head. “…What?”

He suspected that there was something wrong with his ears.

The atmosphere gradually became strange. Fang Zhiyuan’s mind was buzzing, and he didn’t know what he was saying. He just gritted his teeth and said:

“You see… if you want to have children, you don’t necessarily have to marry. You see… nowadays there are also Daoist couples, such as men and men.”

He emphasized calmly, “There are many, and it was also written on the spiritual jade slip.”

Lin Fuqing looked at him strangely. “…What on earth do you want to say?”

Fang Zhiyuan said with difficulty, “Lord Lin, I remember… you had quite a few handsome men in your harem back then, right? I remember there were six of them, and you even gave titles to two of them.”

“…….”

Lin Fuqing was confused for a long time before he came to his senses. Harem… Yes, he really had such a thing in Snow Bone City.

Lin Fuqing didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “No, I…”

Fang Zhiyuan had a cold face and waved his hand. “Shige, you don’t have to explain this to me.”

Lin Fuqing had a headache. “Zhiyuan, listen to me, I was…”

Fang Zhiyuan blew up like a cat whose tail was stepped on. He slammed the table and shouted angrily, “Don’t tell me!!”

Lin Fuqing: “……”

Fang Zhiyuan held his forehead and closed his eyes. “…No, you…you leave me alone.”

He staggered and fled out of the cabin.

The outside wind blew in his face. Fang Zhiyuan closed his eyes, leaned on the railing, and took a deep breath.

He was so confused that he didn’t know what he was talking about. Now that the wind had sobered him up, he couldn’t help but feel regretful.

It was really annoying, his shameful thoughts…

After so many years, and he’d even died once.

How come there were still no improvements?

Fang Zhiyuan was so ashamed and angry, and he thought that it was all Lin Fuqing’s fault.

His senior brother looked so soft. He had taken care of him meticulously since childhood and always said things like “I like you” and “I will be with you all my life” every day!

How could this not attract people’s covetousness?!

Could you blame him for unconsciously developing inappropriate feelings?!

The restless thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps.

Fang Zhiyuan opened his eyes and saw Ye Huaguo running towards him in a panic, holding up the hem of her skirt. “Shi…shixiong!”

Fang Zhiyuan frowned. He was about to scold her, but suddenly he realized something and turned his head to look in front of the millet boat.

In the fog, there was a huge shadow faintly visible. It was also suspended in the air and was blocking their route.

The girl in green stuttered, “No, no, no, it’s bad! There’s a flying boat from another sect blocking the road ahead… That group of people is very domineering, and Little Fifth Song got into an argument with them!”

—————————-

Author has something to say:
Demon Lord Lin: (reacted)… No, you were a righteous immortal who was busy with all kinds of affairs, how come you still have the mind to remember how many men and women in my harem have been titled???

Immortal Sovereign Fang: (angry) I don’t want to hear it! Don’t tell me this!!!

 

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