CH 27

As he escaped from Ozer’s bedroom, Ji Ning didn’t have time to look back to see the Emperor’s reaction. As soon as he found himself back in the starry sky restaurant and slammed the door behind him, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Looking back, there was no vengeful monarch behind him, only the door of the lounge, but Ji Ning had no desire to open it again to check. If he accidentally entered Ozer’s palace again, he was certain he would die. 

Gu Chen still sat in the position he had left him. Glancing down at his terminal, Ji Ning found that only five minutes had passed in this world, despite the long period of time he had spent in Ozer’s embrace.

Ji Ning didn’t care about the time difference between the two worlds. What bothered him was that Ozer hadn’t used his spiritual power to stop him, allowing him to escape. When had he ever been so lucky?

Could it be that Ozer had other means of tracking him, so deliberately let him go this time? He vaguely recalled hearing movements behind him as he struggled to escape. Had Ozer done something to him?

Ji Ning had a lot of worries in his heart and wanted to immediately conduct a comprehensive physical examination. Unfortunately, this world didn’t have special abilities such as spiritual power. 

「Future, can you help me?」

Given that his relationship with Future had become closer recently, Ji Ning tried asking Future for help as the system would be able to scan his body.

This was not Future’s responsibility and there was no loss if he refused his request, but if he agreed Ji Ning would owe him later.

Ji Ning shared his concerns with Future and after a slight pause, Future responded,【Actually…】

「What?」asked Ji Ning.

【Ozel has not used any tracking methods on you.】Future finished speaking, then paused again and added,【But your escape was not accidental. There are other forces at work, be careful.】

The hint from Future was a bit vague, but Ji Ning understood it. Future was warning him that his escape was aided by someone else.

But who could it be? 

After cutting off their communication, Ji Ning pondered as he approached Gu Chen.

Herinos did have a blood contract with him, but if it was Herinos, Future wouldn’t have warned him as the vampire would never harm him.

Could it be Huo Wuling? Unlikely. Why would Huo Wuling save him? If Ozer killed him then Huo Wuling could capture his soul.

Who else? Could it be Lai, Ying Qianqiu, or one of the others? 

Although he considered several options, Ji Ning couldn’t think of who it would most likely have been, so he temporarily put aside the question and focused his attention back on Gu Chen.

However, after the stress of Ozer and his worries for the future, he was unable to completely conceal his anxiousness. Although it wasn’t obvious, Gu Chen could tell that Ji Ning’s mood wasn’t as good as before and he seemed tired, so he considerately ended the dinner early.

Before he left, Gu Chen said sincerely to Ji Ning.

“I hope I can meet you again on set, Senior.” 

Ji Ning nodded his agreement and the two parted ways. After returning to his villa, Ji Ning still felt uneasy. Before taking a shower, he carefully checked the mirror’s reflection but couldn’t find anything unusual so could only give up and go to sleep.

After a nights rest, Ji Ning let Future transfer his soul to Ying Qianqiu’s world. As soon as he was inside the Xuanhuan world, he could feel that his power seal had broken and immediately felt a weight off his back.

In the cultivation world Ji Ning found the sun was shining through the window of the speeding carriage and the sky was already bright.

He had originally fallen asleep leaning against Qin Ruwang, but was now lying flat, his body tucked into the bed and tightly swaddled by the blanket. He had obviously been carefully taken care of. 

Ying Qianqiu and Yun Dao had gone to Tiandu city and stayed overnight. No one else had permission to enter the carriage, only him and Qin Ruwang, who was guarding him.

The young Emperor sat to his side holding a sword, the sunlight shining on his face. His skin was sheet white and his eyes pitch black and gloomy, fixed onto Ji Ning.

Seeing him wake up, Qin Ruwang, who had been sitting motionless like a china doll, finally moved and called out in a low voice.

“Master.” 

Ji Ning climbed out of the quilt and smiled at Qin Ruwang. Looking down at his hands, he wiggled his fingers slightly. They felt different than before, more powerful now that the seal had been lifted.

By unsealing his powers, he could use any of the abilities he gained in each world. The only drawback was that their strength would be lessened and he couldn’t use skills beyond this world’s power system.

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In this world, there was no other way to change a person’s appearance. If he was in the Western fantasy world he could brew a potion, but here he didn’t have the correct materials, so had to rely on his profound qi.

Ji Ning converted the energy that was faintly thrumming through his body into qi. Facing his reflection in the mirror that had fallen to the ground, he used his fingertips to trace the curves of his face, covering it in a faint layer of profound qi. He very slightly changed the shape of his skin and bone structure to modify the details of his facial features.

His craftsmanship was comparable to that of an accomplished plastic surgeon, without the need to operate. It was unfortunate he was uncertified, otherwise he could have become a famous doctor.

Ji Ning amused himself with these thoughts as he adjusted parts of his face. He still had the appearance of a pretty child (he refused to be anything else) but it was very different to Ji Ning’s real appearance. 

Once the adjustments were complete, Ji Ning stared at his face for a long time. As far as he could see, there were no traces of his original face. Qin Ruwang sat and watched the whole process without saying a word.

Ji Ning could finally relax, but in order to not arouse suspicion, he once again folded the veil into a triangle shape and tied it across his face. He didn’t wear the veil as it should be worn, across the bridge of his nose and attached to a hair piece, but tied it messily at the back, the way an inexperienced child would.

After he finished dealing with his own problems, Ji Ning turned to Qin Ruwang again. He gathered qi into the tips of his fingers and rested them on Qin Ruwang’s forehead, slowly transferring the energy.

In the Xuanhuan world, Ji Ning had learned how to convert energies. He circulated his profound qi through his own body, then moved it into Qin Ruwang’s. Once the qi flowed into Qin Ruwang’s body it began to neutralise the death aura that clung to him, bringing the corpse back from the dead. 

It was a slow process. It would take at least three or five months to slowly awaken Qin Ruwang’s lifeforce and memories, but Ji Ning didn’t think these merged worlds could last that long. Therefore, in addition to inserting his profound qi into Qin Ruwang, he also needed to get his hands on the corpse refining texts Yun Dao took. Taking a two pronged approach would speed up Qin Ruwang’s recovery.

Ji Ning was happy to see that the qi infusion was effective. Even though it was just for a moment, the death aura faded slightly from Qin Ruwang. The Emperor’s expression sharpened, as he stared intensely at Ji Ning.

Suddenly he stretched out his hand and gently stroked Ji Ning’s face through the veil.

Ji Ning didn’t understand why but the flow of qi through his hand stopped as Qin Ruwang said in a low voice. 

“Master, why are you hiding your appearance?”

That was…

His excitement quickly overtook his shock. Qin Ruwang had asked him a question, meaning a small part of his awareness had returned.

This was in line with what Ji Ning expected. The first qi insertion would have the greatest impact, but he was still ecstatic and happily answered Qin Ruwang’s question, “Because I want to hide my identity.” 

“Why?” asked Qin Ruwang.

“Ying Qianqiu and Yun Dao that you met before are friends of mine. I left them a long time ago and they thought I was dead.”

“I thought I could never come back here, but by chance I returned using a different identity. However, I know that one day I will have to leave here again and I don’t want them to be sad.” Ji Ning said.

He said a lot of things in one breath but wasn’t sure if Qin Ruwang could understand in his current state, so he asked again, “Do you understand what I’m saying?” 

Qin Ruwang nodded and withdrew his hand, “That’s why you don’t want to show your true face in front of them.”

“That’s right,” Ji Ning replied.

Qin Ruwang lowered his head, as if in deep thought. After a while he said, “Your original appearance is more beautiful.”

Ji Ning was taken aback by such a straightforward remark. Just as he was thinking how to answer, Qin Ruwang moved a pale and cold hand to the back of his head, gently cradling it. 

“When you leave,” he stared into Ji Ning’s eyes and asked earnestly, “Will you take me with you?”

“…”

Ji Ning opened his mouth, a little lost for words. When he explained to Qin Ruwang that he would be leaving in the future, he had hoped he wouldn’t grasp the meaning of it. Unexpectedly, Qin Ruwang, who had only just regained his consciousness, was already so sharp and asked him this question.

“I promise that when I leave here, I’ll take you with me.” 

He considered his answer carefully before making such a promise to Qin Ruwang. The longer he stayed with Ying Qianqiu, the more likely he was to be discovered. Now that he had recovered his powers, he wanted to find a suitable time to slip away, therefore it made sense to bring Qin Ruwang along so he could continue to help him recover.

The reason why he didn’t leave immediately was because he knew that Ying Qianqiu was suspicious of his identity, but he hadn’t yet recognised him. If he left now, it would be confirming his identity as Ji Ning, which would be troublesome as Ying Qianqiu would definitely send people after him.

Another reason was that he needed to steal the corpse refining texts from Yun Dao to help with Qin Ruwang’s recovery.

Ji Ning deliberately did not inject too much qi into Qin Ruwang. If his changes were too obvious then Ying Qianqiu would become suspicious. 

Another half a day passed until finally a convoy of guards approached the speeding carriages. It was Ying Qianqiu and Yun Dao, returning from Tiandu city.

When she came back, Yun Dao immediately dropped her Saintess persona, removing any semblance of gentleness or grace as she tore off her headpiece and veil and rushed to the back of the carriage. Seeing Ji Ning, she broke into a smile, waving excitedly.

“Xue Tuan, we’re back, did you miss your elder sister?”

“Sister!” Ji Ning’s exposed eyes curved up as he waved back to her. 

Until Ying Qianqiu arrived, the two rushed round the carriage together, leaving the inside in a mess.

Only then did Yun Dao recall how she and Ying Qianqiu had left in such a hurry that she forgot to call someone to clean up, leaving Xue Tuan in this jumble. Looking around, she felt distressed.

Hurriedly she called for a maid to clear up the carriage, giving the silver haired demon an angry glare.

She hadn’t forgotten that Ying Qianqiu still owed her an explanation. Previously, when he left the carriage he hadn’t explained his unusual reaction, just whispered, 

“It’s him.”

Yun Dao hadn’t understood his meaning and badgered him with questions, but he just walked away.

In the end, what was he thinking? And what did it have to do with Xue Tuan?

Her suspicious eyes flicked between the young boy and the silver haired man, her eyebrows furrowed. 

Seeing Ying Qianqiu again, the cub that had only recently become a boy seemed a little uneasy. The animal ears on top of his head trembled slightly as he lowered his head and gripped at the hem of his clothes awkwardly, whispering, “Qianqiu…”

He called him Qianqiu.

Ying Qianqiu lowered his eyes to stare at the boy, his expression unchanging and breathing regular, without any visible reaction.

After staying up all night, he had firmly calmed his mind. No matter who stood in front of him, he would not reveal a thing, even if he knew without a doubt that the person he was facing was Ji Ning. 

Yesterday, when he heard the news of Yingxue’s transformation, he had frantically rushed back to see his appearance. The boy had hidden behind the murderous corpse and tried his best to cover his face, but he had known his identity just by looking into the boy’s tearful eyes.

It was his Ji Ning.

His Xiaoxiao

It was not only the doubts and sufferings of recent days that settled, but the hope and loss, the pain and sorrow of all those years that turned into sudden ecstasy in that moment. 

His frozen heart finally thawed, beating again with the pain of joy, the blood from his heart turning into warm tears, blurring his vision.

He didn’t want Ji Ning to see his tears, so the next moment he turned to leave. The heartache still hadn’t stopped and after the initial joy was an endless stream of sadness and pain.

He didn’t understand why his little one had returned to him but didn’t want to recognise him, and even deliberately concealed his identity, hiding his sharp character with a soft and gentle persona.

Was it because he had fallen onto the devil’s path, committing mindless slaughter and bloodshed? He had been despised by the entire world but now, did even Xiaoxiao wish to abandon him? 

But Xiaoxiao looked at him with such mournful eyes, how could he hate him?

He couldn’t ask. He didn’t dare to ask. He didn’t even have the courage to tell Xiaoxiao that he had recognised who he was, for fear that once he was revealed, his little one would flee and never return.

So he decided not to say anything, even though his heart was burning with questions.

Even if this was all just a fantasy, if he could remain with his Xiaoxiao, he would be willing to never wake up from this delusion. 

Ying Qianqiu looked into the boy’s eyes, and gently touched the top of his hair.“Don’t be scared.”

Ji Ning’s fluffy ears twitched. Seeing that Ying Qianqiu was back to normal he breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. Holding the back of Ying Qianiqiu’s hand that rested on his head, he smiled, “I won’t be scared of Qianqiu.”

Ying Qianqiu didn’t speak for a while, gently stroking his head, then replied in a low voice.

“…That’s good.” 

Yun Dao was a little put out by how easily Ji Ning forgave Ying Qianqiu, but she quickly got over it, saying to Ji Ning, “You haven’t eaten yet, are you hungry? Shall I take you to eat?”

“Okay.”

Ji Ning nodded, following Yun Dao out of Ying Qianiqiu’s carriage, Qin Ruwang closely behind him. Ying Qianqiu held a scroll in his hand. Seeing them leave, he didn’t make a sound to stop them, but his fingers tightened minutely across the paper.

He had all the time in the world, he can’t rush this. 

He reminded himself.

This time, he would never let go of his little one again.

Yun Dao took Ji Ning out to eat, but after being seated Ji Ning encountered a problem. He had to remove his veil to eat.

Although he had changed his appearance now, he had hysterically said only yesterday that he was hideously ugly. If he casually removed his veil now, his change in attitude would seem suspicious. 

Yun Dao sat quietly at the table but her eyes were completely focused on Ji Ning without blinking. Although she had promised Ji Ning that she wouldn’t force him to show his face, she was obviously still curious about his appearance. If there was a chance for her to see his face, she definitely wouldn’t miss it.

Ji Ning was struggling with how to deal with this little problem when Qin Ruwang moved forward, pulling a pale silver half-face mask from his clothes and presenting it to Ji Ning, “Master, please put it on.”

This was the mask Ji Ning had worn as the God son. After his death, the mask was buried with Qin Ruwang in his coffin. Even after he had become a murderous corpse, driven only by instinct, he had not forgotten to bring the mask with him. It was obvious how much he treasured it.

When Qin Ruwang had picked it up previously it had been stained with blood. Ji Ning didn’t know what Qin Ruwang had done with it in the past few days but the stains had vanished. The whole mask appeared as new. It was extremely beautiful, with exquisite workmanship. Even Yun Dao, who was not normally interested in that kind of ordinary thing, gave it several looks and praised it in her heart. 

At the same time, she was also a little surprised. She didn’t know the origin of the mask but it was evident that Qin Ruwang attached great importance to it, so she hadn’t expected he would be willing to give it to the boy, even if he was his nominal master.

“…Thank you.”

Ji Ning’s fingers touched the cool edge of the mask, recalling the ten years he spent in the Xia Empire. He didn’t want to relive those memories but seeing Qin Ruwang’s dark eyes he couldn’t bear to refuse him. He turned around, avoiding the others’ eyes as he put on the mask.

Wearing the mask revealed only a pair of beautiful eyes and a snow white jaw. Yun Dao put her hands on the table and tilted her head, tracing the gentle curves of the boy’s face. She didn’t understand why he said he was ugly, she couldn’t see a trace of ugly anywhere. 

“You must be beautiful, why do you insist that you’re ugly?” she muttered in a low voice.

“You could look better.”

Qin Ruwang stared at the masked boy’s face.

Did that mean he wanted Ji Ning to wear that mask with his original appearance? 

Ji Ning’s hand that was adjusting the mask paused. Looking at the young Emperor, his heart skipped a beat.

With the recovery of his life force, had his memories also returned?

“Come on, eat, eat!”

Yun Dao laughed and moved her chopsticks. 

“…”

Ji Ning looked at her and thought of Ying Qianqiu. Looking at Qin Ruwang beside him, he felt a sudden heavy pressure crushing down on him

I am president of the Qin Ruwang fan club, what an absolute sweetheart.

“Please take me with you.” I’m gonna die, he’s so cute!! <3