CHAPTER 460: CHAPTER 460 DREAMING BACK 100,000 YEARS AGO_1

"Alright."

For a five or six-year-old child like Xu Yiyi, CDs were already a rarity.

Qian Xiao mysteriously pulled a CD from his backpack and inserted it into Ruan Tang’s computer. After fiddling with it for a long time, he couldn’t get the movie to play.

He scratched his head. "That’s odd... I remember my parents playing movies just like this..."

"Just tell us what it’s about," Little Glutton Yun Jin, being direct, asked anxiously.

"I don’t know either." Qian Xiao scratched his head again. "They always watch it behind my back, saying it’s not suitable for children. Could it be a horror movie?"

Yun Jin’s face instantly turned red. How could something ’not suitable for children’ be a horror movie!

Although she was also a child, she was much more mature than Qian Xiao and Yiyi. She hesitated. "Could it be... that kind of thing?"

There was no internet in the Immortal Domain, but there were ways to preserve video footage. The Jade Slip that Fairy Qing Yuan had given to Xu Lai not long ago, for example, contained recorded images.

In the Immortal Domain, there was a place called the ’Fengyue Pavilion’ that specialized in selling such objects and Jade Slips. It was extremely famous throughout the Immortal Domain, yet it was also despised by many cultivators.

But the strange thing was, despite being boycotted by all cultivators, its business was ridiculously good. In less than ten thousand years, its brothels had spread throughout the Four Immortal Domains. It had become a vast Tao Lineage that stood firm without any Quasi-Emperor Realm powerhouses.

The reason Yun Jin knew so much about the Snowmoon Pavilion was that a young member of her clan had recently become addicted to its wares, and she had scolded him for it.

Thinking of this, Yun Jin slapped Qian Xiao on the back of the head. "Cultivate more and watch less of this rubbish!" she said, annoyed.

Qian Xiao was completely baffled. How are horror movies rubbish...?

"Go cultivate!"

Without spelling out what was on the CD, and not caring what Qian Xiao thought, Yun Jin kicked him toward the back of Mount Haitang.

In the biting winter, Qian Xiao’s small, naked body was battered by the waterfall. He shivered from the cold, but there was nothing he could do. He had come to the sad realization that he couldn’t beat Yun Jin.

Weakness is a sin. I must become stronger! Someday, I’ll show Yun Jin who Big Sister’s number one enforcer really is! Qian Xiao thought indignantly.

"ACHOO."

In Haitang Court, Beibei, Xiao Hei, and Xiao Hai—the Dragon Spirit formed from Mount Haitang’s Dragon Vein—all sneezed at the same time.

As for the CD, it seemed to have been forgotten by everyone, still lying forlornly inside Ruan Tang’s computer.

***

It was winter, on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, and the seaside was sparsely populated.

But there were still a few couples like Xu Lai and Ruan Tang who wanted to feel the cold breeze, holding hands and strolling along the beach, whispering sweet nothings to each other. There was even one couple sitting on a bench, making out without any regard for passersby.

Xu Lai sniffed contemptuously. "Look at those people, completely disregarding their public image. What if they hurt the feelings of us single people?"

Ruan Tang’s beautiful eyes twinkled as she smiled at Xu Lai. "Kiss me."

"...Okay."

Xu Lai immediately forgot what he had just said and leaned down to kiss her.

As another couple passed by, the man shot them a disdainful look, shaking his head and lamenting the decay of public morality.

Since they were in public, Xu Lai didn’t do anything more. The kiss was just a light peck.

Holding Ruan Tang’s hand as they walked, Xu Lai asked, "By the way, honey, should we hold the wedding banquet in East Sea City or...?"

"Either is fine. It’s up to you," Ruan Tang said gently. "Xu Lai, for our marriage... don’t we need the approval of your elders?"

Xu Lai’s expression stiffened.

He was an orphan, taken in by his master to cultivate at the sect. His family consisted of his Senior Sister and Senior Brothers. His master was both a teacher and a father to him.

Ruan Tang, being incredibly astute, saw Xu Lai’s expression and recalled what he’d said before. She understood instantly.

She hugged his arm and said softly, "Yiyi and I are your family. So is Ruan Lan."

A warmth spread through Xu Lai’s heart. "In a little while, I need to go offer incense to my master and the others and deliver their wedding invitations," he said softly. "You and Yiyi... should come with me."

"Okay." Ruan Tang sounded a little worried. "I just wonder if they’ll like me."

"Don’t worry," Xu Lai chuckled. "If they were still alive, they would definitely like you. Especially my Senior Sister. She would surely hold your hand and say, ’Our Little Junior Brother is only good at peeling grapes, so how did you fall for him? Did he threaten you?’"

Speaking of his Senior Sister, Xu Lai went on to imitate the voices of his two Senior Brothers and his master. However, Ruan Tang didn’t hear anything after the first few sentences.

*If only.*

Those two words made Ruan Tang’s heart ache even more for Xu Lai.

How much sorrow must a person hide in their heart to only be able to speak of it in jest?

At this moment, in Ruan Tang’s heart, Xu Lai was no longer Yiyi’s indomitable, seemingly omnipotent father. He was just an ordinary man. A man who seemed small, someone she wanted to pull into her arms and comfort.

Ruan Tang asked softly, "Do you need a hug?"

"Don’t worry, I’m not that frag—" Xu Lai cut himself off, then coughed. "Actually, a hug would be nice. My emotional fortitude is very low."

Ruan Tang sat on a seaside bench, and Xu Lai smoothly laid his head on her lap.

He had expected his dear wife to chide him coquettishly, but instead, Ruan Tang simply reached out and gently ran her fingers through his hair.

Xu Lai froze, his gaze growing hazy.

For an instant, he felt as if he had dreamt his way back to the rear mountain of the Heavenly Court, a hundred thousand years ago.

That year, a ten-year-old Xu Lai had repeatedly made mistakes in his cultivation technique, angering his master enough to give him a beating. Refusing to be disciplined, Xu Lai packed his bag and threatened to run away from home. None of his Senior Brothers could talk him down.

At the time, his Senior Sister had just turned sixteen.

She had Xu Lai lie on her lap, and as she stroked his hair, she said with a chuckle, "You’re not allowed to go. If you leave, who will peel grapes for me? What will I do if I get bullied after I get married? Your two Senior Brothers are so gentle and weak; I’m worried they won’t be able to fight my husband’s family."

"Then I’ll leave after Senior Sister gets married!" The ten-year-old Xu Lai’s thinking was simple: If anyone dares to bully my Senior Sister, even if I can’t beat them to death, I’ll still take a couple of bites out of them!

"Alright, that’s a deal. When that time comes, I won’t stop you," his Senior Sister had said gently.

But the wait lasted eight years.

Xu Lai had long forgotten about running away and instead watched his Senior Sister get married.

On that day, his Senior Sister, forced into marriage by a disciple of the Hehuan Valley, stood in a white wedding dress stained red with blood as the Heavenly Court’s gates crumbled.

From that day on, Xu Lai never ate another grape, nor did he ever again lie in a woman’s lap to have his hair stroked.

Today... was the first time in a hundred thousand years.

"Did I hurt you?" Ruan Tang asked with self-reproach when she saw his reddening eyes.

"No, I was just remembering some things from the past."

"Can you... tell me about them?"

"Alright."

Sparing no detail, Xu Lai told Ruan Tang all about his life in the Old Heavenly Court.

Brewing wine with his master.

Taking the blame for his trouble-making Senior Sister.

Helping his stammering Second Senior Brother find love.

Sneaking down the mountain with his Senior Brother—the one who was always out of tune when playing his instrument—to drink in the mortal realm. They would get drunk and play the part of wandering heroes, only to get a beating from their master after being found out. This was because they were supposed to be in seclusion, forbidden from leaving until they achieved a breakthrough in their cultivation.

Listening to all these amusing stories, Ruan Tang couldn’t help but smile, feeling a sense of longing for such a life.