Help, I’m Being Forced to Marry a Frail and Sickly Immortal Doctor! 123

Chapter 123: Towards the Mortal World

“She is actually fond of this mortal world…”

Perhaps because Ning Ruoque’s comfort was really effective, Si Mingyue gradually stopped crying. It was just that she was still pressing her lips together, looking sullen.

Chu Xuan still wanted to persuade her.

A fluctuation of spiritual energy suddenly came from a distance, as if it were some kind of reminder.

Immediately after, a red shadow swept over and stopped a few steps away from them.

A woman dressed in the attire of the Forging Fire Sect bowed and said cautiously, “Sect… Sect Master, the outpost has reported that there is an abnormal demonic aura on the border.”

It was clear that she had only rushed to report after seeing that the commotion on this side had ended.

Chu Xuan reacted in an instant and instructed with an extremely fast speed, “I know. Inform everyone to be prepared, and then send a part of the people to count the losses and treat the wounded.”

The woman nodded. “Yes.”

She quickly disappeared from everyone’s sight, and then Chu Xuan and Yin Buran looked at each other.

The latter directly responded, “This matter cannot be hidden, and it should not be hidden.”

Jiang Ai’s identity had already been exposed. It was impossible for her not to have a backup plan. They had to warn the major immortal sects as soon as possible.

Chu Xuan took a long breath.

She shouted with a sonorous voice, “Then don’t just stand there foolishly. Let’s act separately. I’ll go and finish up the grand formation first. Mingyue will go and contact the Immortal Alliance, and in the end, we’ll meet at Azurefall Creek.”

After a long string of words, she directly rolled up her sleeves with a bright gaze, clearly preparing for a big fight.

This energetic and completely tireless appearance made Si Mingyue extremely envious.

In comparison, she could only rub her own face and try her best to sort out her emotions.

Yin Buran nodded. “Mm, keep in touch.”

They had not been together for long, and it was another hurried farewell.

Chu Xuan stretched her back, and her joints cracked. She sighed and complained.

“There’s so much to do. Ah, when can I rest—”

Although she said so, her steps did not stop as she went towards Little Silver River, and in the blink of an eye, only a back was left.

Si Mingyue, on the other hand, rubbed her face and waved at Ning Ruoque and the others with a small arc. “Goodbye!”

Her voice was sonorous, and compared to being polite, this was more like a wish filled with strong emotions.

After seeing her friends off, Ning Ruoque took Yin Buran and returned.

Compared to the desolate border, the major immortal sects had many books, and there were also many helpers to be found. To find a solution to Taotie, of course, they needed to brainstorm.

Afraid that Yin Buran would be sad, Ning Ruoque had originally wanted to talk to her.

Who would have thought that from Little Silver River to Azurefall Creek, Yin Buran would be resting most of the time? Occasionally, when she woke up, she would also lean against the couch and read.

Her gaze would sometimes be fixed on the pages, and sometimes it would be vacant. Or, while Ning Ruoque was cultivating, she would turn her head to observe her.

She was too lazy to move, but if Ning Ruoque gave her a jujube cake, she would hold it and eat it slowly. If she was given a cup of hot tea, she would also take small sips.

She was dazed, as if no matter what she was fed, she would eat it obediently.

So Ning Ruoque handed her a steamed bun with a tonic—

“Slap!” A crisp sound.

Yin Buran’s eyes were full of disgust, and she slapped Ning Ruoque’s hand away.

Seeing this, Ning Ruoque could only put away the pill with regret and eat the steamed bun.

Suwen Peak was quiet, and the morning mist was rippling in the mountain valley.

She hesitated for a moment, and finally asked softly, “Ranran, are you in a bad mood?”

Yin Buran moved her gaze from the page and looked at Ning Ruoque.

The latter’s eyelids immediately drooped, and she frowned in annoyance.

This was clearly a superfluous question. Anyone who encountered such a thing would probably not be in a very good mood.

Yin Buran replied nonchalantly, “A little.”

And this “a little” in Ning Ruoque’s ears became “a lot, a lot.”

She tried to put herself in Yin Buran’s shoes, and she felt a sense of powerlessness as if she had fallen into an abyss.

The lover she had finally saved was about to embark on a journey of life and death. This was as if it were a trick of fate.

But Yin Buran did not have a single complaint.

She just calmly lit a lamp, blew away the dust on the ancient pages, and flipped through them slowly.

The more it was like this, the more Ning Ruoque felt that she owed her.

She could give too little, and she wanted too much. So she was worried about gains and losses, and she was hesitant. She didn’t even dare to reach out and hug her.

Just as she was in a daze, the Nameless sword suddenly trembled, and it was about to fly away. Ning Ruoque was startled and scrambled to suppress it.

The long sword, for some reason, was in a temper and was actually trying to break out of its scabbard. It was a good thing that Ning Ruoque had grabbed the hilt in time and had forcefully stuffed it back.

The long sword hummed non-stop, as if it were venting its dissatisfaction.

Just then, a cool and icy gaze fell on her face.

Ning Ruoque lowered her head, and cold sweat was almost breaking out on her back. She didn’t know how to explain the abnormality just now to Yin Buran.

A sword cultivator’s life-bound sword was extremely sensitive to the changes in a sword cultivator’s state of mind.

And the strange state of the Nameless sword, compared to being out of control, was more like a warning.

It was warning her that if she were to face the Demon God in her current state, it was likely that she would be in great danger.

But how easy was it to change one’s state of mind? Ning Ruoque took a deep breath and did not dare to look at Yin Buran.

“I’m going out to practice my sword for a while.”

She turned and was about to leave, but Yin Buran suddenly called out to her, “It’s almost the Spring Prayer. I heard that there will be fireworks in the human world. Do you want to go and see them together?”

Her tone was unexpectedly gentle.

Ning Ruoque was stunned for a moment. “Now?”

“Mm.”

Ning Ruoque couldn’t guess Yin Buran’s thoughts at all and just said in a fluster, “But the Demon God—”

She was interrupted before she could finish.

Yin Buran squinted her eyes and unceremoniously poked Ning Ruoque’s waist.

“Mingyue has spread the news. Now the entire cultivation world is on high alert. It won’t choose to make a move at a time like this. Chu Xuan and the others still need some time.”

“Besides, there will definitely be a few tough battles in the future.”

The book in her hand had been put aside at some point. Her tone changed, and she suddenly climbed onto Ning Ruoque’s shoulder.

As if she were looking down at her, she said, “Before that, won’t you say goodbye to me properly? Or is it that…”

“You’re thinking of leaving without saying goodbye again?”

Yin Buran’s gaze had already turned cold.

With such a big pot on Ning Ruoque’s head, she shivered and explained without thinking, “No… it’s not—”

She was afraid that if she were late, she would be misunderstood by Yin Buran.

But when she looked closely, the corners of the person’s mouth were curled up in a faint arc, and it was clear that she was secretly laughing after she had gotten her way.

It was just a whim, to scare her.

Ning Ruoque pressed her lips together and answered in a muffled voice, “Alright.”

*

The Spring Prayer, as its name suggests, was a festival in the human world to worship the flower god and pray for a year of favorable weather and a good harvest.

The last time Ning Ruoque had come to the human world was to hunt down a great demon that had escaped.

And although the current human world was in turmoil, the town closest to Azurefall Creek was still stable.

The common people did not know about the revival of Taotie and had still prepared a lantern market and fireworks to celebrate this hard-won peaceful life.

The market was crowded, and Ning Ruoque held Yin Buran’s hand, carefully protecting her by her side.

She stole a glance at Yin Buran out of the corner of her eye.

For the festival, Yin Buran did not wear plain white, but had changed into a light and elegant green.

A crabapple white jade hairpin held half of her full head of white hair, leaving only a strand hanging in front of her chest.

She lowered her eyebrows and browsed the different stalls lazily.

Like a sleeping lotus with water and dew, she stretched lazily at this dusk.

“Miss, take a look at the flowers. They’ve just been picked!”

As soon as the little girl selling flowers shouted, Yin Buran followed her gaze.

The bamboo basket was filled with several bouquets of fresh flowers, peonies, peach blossoms, and fragrant jasmine, all crowded together.

Seeing this, the little girl persuaded even more eagerly, “Buy a bouquet of flowers for your sweetheart.”

The Spring Prayer had its own customs, and one of them was to give flowers to form a love bond.

Whether it was love at first sight or a long-standing affection, one could give flowers to the other to express their feelings in a subtle way.

Yin Buran tilted her head slightly.

These words were indeed very effective. Before she could say anything, Ning Ruoque had already taken out a few copper coins and handed them over.

“A bouquet of peonies, please.”

The little girl’s smile was even more brilliant than the flowers, and she quickly wrapped a bouquet of white peonies.

The flowers were indeed very fresh, and the petals were tender and delicate. Ning Ruoque turned her head and gave the little girl another copper coin.

She stuffed the peonies into Yin Buran’s arms and very naturally led her forward.

The current Ning Ruoque would no longer blush when she gave Yin Buran flowers.

Yin Buran spoke softly, “Hmm?”

Ning Ruoque thought that something had happened and quickly asked, “What’s wrong?”

Who would have thought that her palm would suddenly be rubbed? Yin Buran seemed to have inadvertently glanced at her, and her tone was also indifferent.

“So you have such thoughts about me.”

Ning Ruoque: “…”

A strange itching spread to her heart, and a familiar heat climbed up the tips of her ears.

It was clearly a fact that she knew very well, but when it came from Yin Buran’s mouth, it had a different meaning.

Like a little puppy wagging its tail, she didn’t know how eager she was until she saw herself in Yin Buran’s eyes.

She even heard her own heartbeat.

So she could only hope that the surroundings were noisy, and that Yin Buran would not discover it and let her teasing succeed.

The later the sky, the more lively the market became. The hawking of the vendors was endless, and even the rare treasures that were not often seen were put on the shelves.

But compared to the carefully cultivated doulü peonies, this time Yin Buran preferred practical objects.

She saw her stop in front of a small stall selling wooden combs and pick up a carved sandalwood comb.

The stall owner greeted her warmly, “Guest, the combs in my shop have been blessed in a temple. If you give it to your sweetheart, it will bless you with a long life together! It’s very effective.”

Unlike the usual patterns that represented a happy marriage, this wooden comb was carved with a pair of cranes playing in the water, which was very rare. And the carving was of good quality, and the crane feathers were lifelike.

Ning Ruoque turned her head and asked Yin Buran, “How is it?”

Yin Buran put down the comb, but she nodded reservedly.

“It’s passable.”

Ning Ruoque decisively paid the money, and after taking the wooden comb, she also handed it to Yin Buran.

She saw Yin Buran smile. “I feel like you would donate your own private funds to the Nuwa Temple.”

In folklore, not only did the goddess Nuwa create humans from clay, but she also controlled the marriages of the world.

In the dim lamplight, this time Yin Buran saw Ning Ruoque’s shyness clearly.

She saw her clench her fists, then turn her head away, her lips moving, and she didn’t know what she was muttering.

There were many people visiting the lantern festival, and Ning Ruoque pretended to be very busy, looking around.

She saw the fire splashing from the hands of the hundred-show artists, the all sorts of lanterns above her head, the steaming steam from the steamers, and the people tying knots and praying under the peach trees.

The praying woman’s expression was pious and solemn, but what she was asking for from the gods was just a simple “peace and safety.”

A child who was running and playing squeezed through the crowd and accidentally bumped into a waiter who was carrying a bowl of hot noodle soup.

With an “ouch,” the waiter was knocked into a stumble, and the bowl also slipped from his hand.

Just as the hot soup was about to splash on the child’s face, Ning Ruoque grabbed the child’s collar and pulled her to her side.

The bowl was also steadily caught by her, not a single drop was spilled, and she put it back into the hands of the astonished waiter.

The child was clearly startled and stood there with wide eyes, not daring to move.

By the time she had reacted, Ning Ruoque and Yin Buran had already walked far away.

She hurriedly chased after them and, without a word, hugged Ning Ruoque’s leg. “Th-thank you, sister!”

After the child finished speaking, she quickly stuffed something and ran away.

Ning Ruoque lowered her eyes, then opened her hand to Yin Buran.

In her palm lay a small flower folded from red paper, as simple as could be.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, and there was a rare gentleness in her features.

Yin Buran saw all of this.

She would sometimes think that Ning Ruoque actually liked this mortal world. If not, she would not have chosen to trade her life for it back then.

Even though the Heavenly Dao could be said to be harsh to Ning Ruoque, this point of her had never changed.

After strolling from the beginning of the street to the end of the alley, Yin Buran stopped in front of a wood workshop.

“Didn’t you say last time that you wanted to get some new sword racks? That one is not bad.”

She remembered that Ning Ruoque wanted to rebuild the small house on Mount Xuansu, the warehouse where she treasured her swords needed to be renovated, and the courtyard also needed to be transplanted with her favorite trees.

The two of them could live together in the future.

After turning past a screen, Yin Buran’s gaze swept between the different pieces of furniture, and she had already started to choose.

“The mirror is also very beautiful. We can buy it back to Mount Xuansu.”

“…”

Ning Ruoque did not respond.

The sound of the traffic on the street also seemed to be isolated behind the carved screen. Yin Buran heard Ning Ruoque’s breath catch for a moment.

But she did not point out Ning Ruoque’s abnormality and even said, “You don’t like it? Then forget it. We’ll look at other things.”

She tugged on Ning Ruoque’s sleeve, passed through the back door of the small shop, and just as she was about to continue back to the main street, the person behind her stopped.

Ning Ruoque’s shadow was printed on the wall, her head lowered, looking very lonely.

Yin Buran turned around, but was caught off guard and hugged by Ning Ruoque, and was held in her arms.

A fluffy head was then buried in her neck, like acting cute.

“Yin Buran,” she called out in a muffled voice, and then there was no more.

Until after a long while, as if it were hard to say, she took a breath and muttered in a very small voice.

“I… am actually a little scared.”