Chapter 124: Towards the Mortal World
“Can I marry you…”
“Afraid,” this word coming from Ning Ruoque’s mouth, always felt unreal.
After all, her style of doing things always had a kind of decisiveness that put life and death aside.
The first time Ning Ruoque had killed someone, the scarlet blood had splashed on her face, and she had not felt afraid. The first time she was so seriously injured that her consciousness was blurred, she had not felt afraid either.
She wanted to live, but that did not mean she was afraid of death.
Even when facing the Demon God, she was more “reluctant.”
But reality never made sense. Now, listening to Yin Buran plan their future, she had, without any warning, tasted the taste of “fear of death.”
Like standing barefoot in the grass, and suddenly something cold and slippery had slithered past her ankle.
For a moment, she was stiff and at a loss, not knowing what to do.
The water clock dripped. So Ning Ruoque looked at Yin Buran’s back, which was blurred by the night, and couldn’t help but speak.
She held the person a little tighter, and then slowly loosened her grip a little. Although she was much taller than Yin Buran, she still tried to bury her head in the latter’s neck.
As if only in this way, like talking to herself, could she describe her fear.
“I’m afraid of death. I’m afraid that I won’t come back. I owe you too much…”
Ning Ruoque’s voice was very light and muffled.
After a few breaths of pause, as if she had made a great determination.
She said haltingly and tremblingly, “But… but I still have no choice. I can’t turn a blind eye to the disasters I can stop.”
“I’m not saying I’m going to agree to Chen Suxin. I just—”
Ning Ruoque just wanted Yin Buran to be safe and sound, and she wanted her own family and friends, and even thousands of people, to be able to live and not have to face life and death.
What she wanted to say were those things that she had to do, the unpredictable accidents, and the final solution.
But her lips moved, but she could not utter half a word.
She found that no matter what she said, to Yin Buran, and to Chu Xuan and Si Mingyue, who were trying their best to buy her time, it was all like an excuse.
Especially Yin Buran.
Ning Ruoque felt that she was too greedy.
She stiffly let go of her embrace. “I’m sorry.”
She still lowered her head, not daring to look into Yin Buran’s eyes.
As if she had made a great mistake, her whole person was hunched over, and even the shadow on the wall exuded a thick sense of guilt.
After a long silence, she heard Yin Buran speak, “Why are you saying sorry?”
Her tone was peaceful, which instead made Ning Ruoque’s heart ache.
“You’ve paid so much for me, in exchange for my life, but I…”
Yin Buran tilted her head and suddenly pinched Ning Ruoque’s face.
Caught off guard, the latter was like a startled quail, wanting to dodge, but instinctively she paused.
Just like that, she was held by the cheek by Yin Buran and was pulled and kneaded. Ning Ruoque did not dare to resist in the slightest.
After finally waiting for her to finish, Yin Buran sighed softly and said slowly, “Do you still remember? You’ve also saved me.”
When she was at her most desperate, someone had grabbed her hand.
Although it was not their first meeting, in Yin Buran’s heart, this scene had moved her even more.
“Actually, at that time, I already understood that you have something more important than life and death in your heart.”
She lowered her eyelids. “I like you.”
The clamor of the crowd outside the wall passed over her words, but from Ning Ruoque’s suddenly held breath, she knew that she was listening seriously.
“If possible, I hope you are well, and don’t do dangerous things. I…”
She hesitated for a while, as if she were choosing her words.
Finally, she whispered, and with a hint of self-righteousness, she said, “I have a selfish heart. I want you to always be with me, and it would be best if your eyes were only for me.”
It was the first time Ning Ruoque had heard Yin Buran talk about her feelings, and her mind was still in a daze.
However, such a domineering statement, she did not dislike it at all.
Before she could reply, Yin Buran suddenly frowned.
“So when I learned that you had perished with the Demon God, I couldn’t accept it.”
Her eyes were as thick as ink, as if everything from that year was still vivid in her mind.
“At that time, your existence had not yet been erased by the Heavenly Dao. When Master’s wife learned that I was going to try a forbidden art, she scolded me on the spot.”
“She said, ‘How do you know that Ning Ruoque is not going to prove her dao?'”
“She also said, ‘If Ning Ruoque knew what you had paid to save her, she might not be willing to live.'”
“But you were dead. I didn’t know what you were thinking, and naturally, I couldn’t ask for your opinion.”
Thus, Yin Buran lightly came to a conclusion on this matter. “Therefore, what I did and what I asked for were all my own wishes.”
The Medicine King was in seclusion, and no one in Azurefall Creek could stop her. She had washed away her years of cultivation technique and had reshaped her spiritual veins.
She had studied those obscure ancient books on her own and had estimated the price she could bear.
Of course, it could only be her, following the path that Ning Ruoque had once walked, traveling all over the Nine Provinces and the Four Seas, just to summon a wisp of a remnant soul.
Even to this day, Yin Buran could still recall the indelible obsession she had at that time.
“I wanted to ask if you had ever put me in your heart, and how you could leave me behind. I wanted you to come back to me alive, and I wanted to make up for the regret of not being able to save you.”
“The obsession is in me,” she explained calmly, “When I saved you, I was actually fulfilling my own wish.”
“At that time, I thought, if the ‘common people’ were indeed your dao, then the consequences of rashly pulling you back to the human world should be borne by me alone.”
Ning Ruoque looked up in astonishment and hurriedly interrupted, “It’s not like that—”
However, Yin Buran did not give her a chance to continue.
The two of them’s gazes met briefly, and in just a moment, Yin Buran first turned her head away.
She was still frowning, and her robes were blown by the wind, outlining a thin silhouette.
“So you don’t have to apologize for this matter.”
Yin Buran smoothed the messy hair by her temples, took a deep breath, and her tone became even more firm. “I admit, I really don’t want you to put yourself in danger.”
“But you don’t have to always meet my expectations. You can be yourself.”
Finally, perhaps because Ning Ruoque had no movement, she still tried to add in a small voice.
“What I mean is, you can do what you want to do. Just take care of yourself.”
“…”
It was the most lively time of the lantern festival. The crowd holding flower lanterns walked through the long street, and the mottled light shone on Ning Ruoque’s dazed face.
She suddenly realized that she had been completely wrong.
Looking back, Yin Buran had actually never stopped her from doing anything.
When she was worried about the border and was planning to go to the ancient battlefield, Yin Buran had just wanted to follow.
When she wanted to cover the rear and stop the beast tide for Chu Xuan, Yin Buran had not stopped her, but had just told her to take care of herself.
Even when she was hesitating in front of Chen Suxin, Yin Buran had not forced her to take a stand, but had instead wanted to bear it with her.
It was she who had always been trapped in her guilt, spinning a cocoon around herself, so much so that she did not dare to take a step.
And in the hundred years that Ning Ruoque had lost, Yin Buran had already walked a long way.
She was much softer than Ning Ruoque had imagined, and of course, also much stronger.
So strong that it made Ning Ruoque feel that there was no one in the heavens and on earth who could be better than Yin Buran.
And there would be no one else who would place her so properly.
Ning Ruoque’s heart was racing, and it was as loud as a drum in her ears. A surge of emotions welled up in her throat, paralyzing her tongue, and her breathing and speech became uncontrollable.
What was even more fatal was that her mind was also a blank.
So much so that she stared at Yin Buran. “I…”
She blurted out, “Can I marry you?”
Yin Buran tilted her head.
Ning Ruoque: “…”
Oh no, she had spoken too fast and had directly said what was on her mind.
The fireworks outside the wall had not yet exploded, but she herself was about to explode!
How could she say such a rude thing to Yin Buran!
The time was not right, and there was no gift prepared. It also made her seem very frivolous. It was wrong in every way.
A certain sword cultivator quickly turned her head away, covered her face, and said in a hoarse voice, “I’m sorry… just pretend I didn’t say it.”
“And just now, thank… thank you. You… I…”
She racked her brains to try to express her feelings, such as warmth, peace of mind, and sincere gratitude, but the more anxious she was, the more she couldn’t speak.
She felt that she must be very stupid now, and she didn’t even dare to look into Yin Buran’s eyes.
Until Ning Ruoque heard a pleasant chuckle, “Alright.”
Ning Ruoque thought she had misheard. “What?”
“I said, marriage,” Yin Buran quickly grabbed Ning Ruoque’s sleeve. “There’s no better day than today. Let’s do it tonight.”
Ning Ruoque was instantly as if she had been grabbed by the scruff of her neck, her whole body stiff.
She was pulled forward by Yin Buran. “Wait… wait a minute. Isn’t this too casual?”
“It has to be tonight.”
Yin Buran raised her chin, looking as if she would not allow Ning Ruoque to refuse.
She even poked Ning Ruoque’s shoulder. “Let’s find a place that’s empty and high.”
There were many mountains nearby, and this request was not difficult to fulfill, unless Ning Ruoque did not want to become her Dao companion.
Ning Ruoque lowered her eyes, and in the end, she did not refuse.
She directly carried Yin Buran, stepped on the wall and leaped onto the roof, and like a flying bird, she swept past the market without alerting anyone.
Most of the people who were watching the fireworks were gathered by the riverbank, and in addition, the road was not easy to walk at night, so the mountain was empty.
Ning Ruoque chose a slope with a good view, where she could see the river, and put Yin Buran down.
“Not bad.”
After turning a small circle with her hands behind her back, Yin Buran expressed her satisfaction.
Ning Ruoque slowly followed behind her, her whole person so tense that she couldn’t be more so. “If Senior Medicine King finds out, will she hunt me down?”
As soon as her voice fell, Yin Buran had already stuck three incense sticks into the ground.
With the incense as a signal, it would reach the heavens, and thus a vow witnessed by the Heavenly Dao could be made.
She was serious.
Ning Ruoque was speechless for a moment, only hearing her own heartbeat, vigorous and powerful, but she was in a daze, as if she were still in a dream.
Yin Buran frowned. “What are you standing there for?”
Ning Ruoque was pulled by her to half-kneel, her gaze wandering at a loss. “But… there’s no wedding candle…”
“Isn’t this?”
Yin Buran pointed to the sky, where a bright moon was in the sky, generously scattering its brilliance on the human world.
So the bright moon could be the candle, and the mountains and rivers could be the quilt.
She slowly tidied her clothes, bowed, and kowtowed to the heavens and the earth.
“With the heavens as a witness, I and Ning Ruoque are hereby united as Dao companions, for three lives and three worlds, until our hair turns white, without regret, in the netherworld, we will follow each other.”
Almost without any hesitation, every word was sonorous. This vow seemed to have been silently read in her heart thousands of times.
Ning Ruoque carefully chewed over every word and stared at Yin Buran without blinking.
Just as the fireworks in the distance rose and exploded, instantly illuminating the entire sky.
Her thoughts, both sayable and unsayable, were like the wild grass on this slope, which could not be blown away.
A sword cultivator’s five senses were sharp. She could see the lights in the city flowing like a river, the fireworks falling like stars, the bright moon hanging high, and the lonely mountain shadows.
What she saw was the human world.
And now, they had all fallen into Yin Buran’s eyes.
Without much thought, Ning Ruoque also kowtowed.
“With the earth as a witness, I and Yin Buran are hereby united as Dao companions, through a thousand calamities and ten thousand dangers, even if my sword breaks, I will not fail you. To the ends of the earth, we will go together and return together.”
As the last word fell, the three incense sticks burned out in an instant, and the agreement witnessed by the Heavenly Dao was made.
From now on, they would share their luck, and share their blessings and misfortunes.
Ning Ruoque stared at the gradually fading fireworks in a daze for a while, then turned her head and carried Yin Buran up. “Let’s go back.”
So Yin Buran hooked her arm around her shoulder.
“Where to?”
“The wood workshop we passed by just now. Didn’t you say that the sword rack was not bad?”
All her hesitation had been dispelled. Now she just wanted to buy the furniture that Yin Buran liked before the shop closed.
She avoided the bumpy flagstone path, and the wind swayed the flower lanterns and red silk above her head.
Occasionally, when there was a particularly beautiful lantern, she would stop for a while so that Yin Buran could have a good look.
Taking this opportunity, Yin Buran asked as if nothing had happened, “Are you still afraid now?”
She was worried that Ning Ruoque’s heart was not yet settled.
Who would have thought that the corners of Ning Ruoque’s mouth would twitch. “Yin Buran.”
“Hmm?”
Ning Ruoque immediately bloomed into a brilliant smile. “It’s so good to have met you.”
Yin Buran: “…”
Yin Buran reached out and covered the sword cultivator’s sparkling eyes.
What a mismatch. The sword cultivator is really so stupid!
