The Prince Can Always Hear The Secret Servant Chanting The Qingxin Mantra Before Going To Bed

Chapter 131: Now That It’s All Over, You’re Not Willing To Take Responsibility?

The more Qi Ci tried to avoid remembering it all, the clearer the fragments of last night became. 

The delayed embarrassment made Qi Ci’s cheeks turn bright red, making him grow uncomfortable and wishing he could disappear on the spot.

‘How could I have said all those things? How could I have done all that? And yet….?’

‘Aaahhhhh!’

As Qi Ci was collapsing from his own actions, the man next to him suddenly moved….

Bian Zhonghua let out a long sigh and slowly opened his eyes, finally waking up.

‘Ah, my back hurts a little. Qi Ci must have scratched me last night. I should ask Qi Ci to help me apply medicine on my back, and in the meantime, tease him a little.’

Bian Zhonghua turned to look at Qi Ci, only to find that the beautiful face was covered with a blanket. Not only that, but Qi Ci’s entire body was curled up against the corner of the bed. Bian Zhonghua was unsure whether Qi Ci was awake or not.

‘That sleeping position is a bit unnatural.’

Bian Zhonghua raised his eyebrows, turned fully towards Qi Ci, and approached him. However, as he did so, he discovered that Qi Ci had also moved slightly towards the corner.

Bian Zhonghua: “….”

Bian Zhonghua reached out to pull the thin quilt covering Qi Ci’s body, when all of a sudden, he heard the muffled voice coming from the quilt: “Don’t talk to me yet. Ignore me and stay away from me….”

Bian Zhonghua helplessly laughed, approached anyway, and wrapped his arms around the bun under the covers. After resting his head on Qi Ci’s body, his eyes curved into a smile: “Little Gongzi, you’re so merciless. Now that it’s all over, you’re not willing to take responsibility? Oh, you’re breaking my heart.”

Although Qi Ci didn’t say anything, the hand that held on to the quilt loosened a little.

Bian Zhonghua asked again: “Do you feel any discomfort in any part of your body?”

“N-no.” Qi Ci’s voice sounded so tiny that it could be mistaken for a mosquito’s.

“That’s good.” Bian Zhonghua kissed Qi Ci twice through the quilt, then softly said: “Little Gongzi, didn’t you use to tell me back then that you wanted to travel through the Mortal Realm? Now that we finally have the freedom to do so, where would you like to go first? To the West, where the Phoenixes reside at Pingding Mountain; to the East, where sea serpents abound in the depths of the blue sea; to the North, where the great desert where Yinglong1 awakened lies; or to the South, where the Magpie Mountain2 stands proudly displaying its majestic beauty? Wherever you want to go, we will go.”

Bian Zhonghua’s tone was gentle, and his words were soothing and comforting, reaching deep into Qi Ci’s heart through his ears, thereby gradually relieving his tension.

Then, Qi Ci removed the quilt from his head, stopped crouching against the corner, and turned around to look at Bian Zhonghua.

Bian Zhonghua, seeing that Qi Ci’s cheeks and ears were still flushed with embarrassment, made him love him even more. Unable to help himself, Bian Zhonghua leaned over to give him a tender kiss: “Have you thought about where you want to go yet?”

Qi Ci nodded and whispered: “We, we can go to Mount Dushuo. To pay our respects to my elder siblings.”

Bian Zhonghua became momentarily stunned upon hearing this.

‘I believe that the matter of the Ghost Domain has always been, and will always be, a painful wound in Qi Ci’s heart. A wound that has failed to heal even after obtaining a new chance in life.’

Bian Zhonghua suddenly felt a surge of agony grow within him, so he hastily replied: “Alright, I’ll accompany you.”

…

Mount Dushuo, located in the East Sea, was surrounded by a white mist, while its peak lay sealed due to the Ghost Domain.

The  mountain was covered with lush vegetation, and the nine ponds were still as clear and calm as ever. Even after so long, the place remained untouched by either humans or wild animals.

“Truly, nothing has changed here.” Qi Ci observed around and said to Bian Zhonghua, who stood beside him.

The familiar atmosphere brought back the memories of the past that have been hidden deep inside him for such a long time. The laughter and antics of his older siblings, the patient teaching words on how to control the water, and even the day when his eighth brother let out a heartbreaking and desperate roar…..

Qi Ci felt a shiver suddenly run through his entire body, which made him shake involuntarily.

“Are you alright?” A hand pressed Qi Ci’s shoulder, as if trying to give him strength.

Qi Ci looked up and met Bian Zhonghua’s eyes, noticing that they were filled with worry.

Managing to calm himself, Qi Ci nodded: “Yes, I’m fine.”

Bian Zhonghua reached out and gently stroked Qi Ci’s back.

Qi Ci took out a blue cloth packet from his sleeve and unwrapped it with utmost care. Inside, there were all the stone talismans Qi Ci had carved for his elder siblings. After the accident, Bian Zhonghua gave the stone talismans to Immortal Lord Zhenwu for safekeeping, and now they had finally been returned to their original owner.

His older brother, Qiu Niu, was the first to enter the Ghost Domain when Qi Ci was still a baby, so he was the only one to not receive an amulet carved by Qi Ci. This time, however, Qi Ci made sure to make up for him by carving him one as well.

Qi Ci then took the eight stone talismans and threw them one by one into each deep spring. As he heard the splashing sound of the stone talismans dropping into the water, Qi Ci was unable to stop his eyes from welling up with tears.

Although many years had passed, he still found it difficult to fully let go of the pain and sorrow.

But the despair and resentment had already been replaced by the present and the future he would experience from now on.

Qi Ci suddenly said to Bian Zhonghua: “Thank you.”

Bian Zhonghua was taken aback, but then said with a smile: “What’s wrong, Little Gongzi? Why the sudden ‘thank you’?”

Qi Ci shook his head, didn’t explain, and simply said: “Let’s go back.”

Bian Zhonghua didn’t pressure him for an explanation either, and right as he was about to leave with Qi Ci, a mist began to rise in the valley.

The white mist was eerily strange. It had appeared out of nowhere and had engulfed the entire valley in a second. The mist was so thick that it covered everything in sight in front of their eyes.

Qi Ci couldn’t help but feel uneasy. After all, he had lived in Mount Dushuo for many years, and he had never seen such a dense mist in the valley.

In general, when abnormal things begin to happen, it must be related to a Demon. Anxiety surged within Qi Ci’s heart, and when he turned to urge Bian Zhonghua that they must leave at once, he discovered that there was no one beside him!

‘Bian Zhonghua is gone!’

Qi Ci panicked immediately, and as he called out for Bian Zhonghua, he desperately searched for him everywhere. Qi Ci had barely run a couple of steps, when all of a sudden, he discovered that through the white mist, there was a vague figure in front of him.

 Qi Ci called Bian Zhonghua’s name a couple of times, but no one replied. Qi Ci frowned and asked aloud: “Who are you?!”

However, the silhouette moved and went far away.

Qi Ci hurried to follow after it, but in his pursuit, he unexpectedly climbed to the peak of the mountain.

The mist at the peak of the mountain wasn’t as dense as it was in the valley, so Qi Ci was able to vaguely see the surroundings. However, no matter how carefully he searched, he couldn’t see any figure around.

In the blink of an eye, the figure in front of him had suddenly disappeared, but a strange laughter and the foul smell of blood reached Qi Ci.

Qi Ci’s scalp instantly went numb, and his entire body tensed and began to tremble. Qi Ci looked wide-eyed with disbelief and couldn’t help but mutter: “How can….?”

That laughter, that foul smell of blood.

He was all too familiar with it.

As soon as Qi Ci entered the Ghost Domain, where he had to deal with Evil Spirits in a sea of blood, that laughter and that foul stench of blood haunted him day and night without ceasing!

At the same time as Qi Ci stood stunned in place, the white mist gradually dispersed.

Immediately after, a large, dark, semi-invisible crack opened up in the air, right in front of Qi Ci’s eyes. All of a sudden, a putrid smell of blood and eerie laughter emanated from inside the crack.

Exactly, that was the door to the Ghost Domain!

Footnotes

应龙 yìng lóng; A mythological deity and creator god in ancient Chinese mythology. As a winged dragon, Yinglong is considered both a true Dragon and the ancestor of all Dragons. It’s also known as the Yellow Dragon or the Flying Dragon. According to legends, Yinglong resided in the Celestial Realm, created Earth, gave birth to the Phoenix and the Qilin, as well as it’s believed that fish and shrimp can transform into Dragons by drinking the urine of Yinglong. Looks something like THIS.鹊山 què shān; A mountain located in Ji’nan City, situated on the north bank of the Yellow River. According to legend, during the months of July and August, the mountain would be covered by black magpies. Additionally, it’s believed that (扁鹊 biǎn què) Bian Que [407-310 BC], a renowned physician during the pre-Qin Dynasty, practiced alchemy in this area and was later buried there, giving rise to the name “Que Mountain” or “Magpie Mountain”. The character “鹊 què” of Bian Que’s name, is the same character as “Magpie”.