36 A Touch of Irony

"...Qi Shun!" Xu Jiyu announces with a light nod of his head. "'Qi' as in 'arising' and 'Shun' as in 'obedient, legendary ruler'! I think it fits you well, what do you think?"

Although the King doesn't know how to read or write, he's fine with whatever Xu Jiyu decides to name him. After all, as long as it's Xu Jiyu, he will always accept. He is not really 'obedient' to others—only to Xu Jiyu. But it seems that Xu Jiyu doesn't realize this himself.

Nonetheless, it's the name that this human gave him, so he doesn't have any opposition towards it.

So without any further delay, he quickly hums in agreement: "Mm."

Taking this as a sign of approval, Xu Jiyu's golden hues brighten up considerably. "Then, Qi Shun it is!"

The forgotten crow that still lies upon Xu Jiyu's head thus far finally caws, as if voicing its approval as well.

"Qi Shun, I just want to apologize for our last parting," Xu Jiyu's smile falls, and the atmosphere becomes serious. He's been wanting to apologize ever since he found out that he'd banished the King himself. "I didn't mean it when I said I hated you. You see, it's just that… my parents died because of the evil spirits that had managed to break free from the Spirit Realm. It was after you abandoned it to come to our realm, during The March of Wrathful Spirits… that's when my parents died."

Slowly, he releases Qi Shun, removing himself from his arms. With a solemn expression, he continues, "The moment I found out they were dead, I immediately blamed the King of Spirits. It was your job to stay in the Spirit Realm and keep those evil spirits there, so why did you leave and let them wreak havoc? Because of you, my parents died! That's… why a deep hatred for this 'King of Spirits' was rooted in my heart."

Qi Shun listens silently, with no trace of emotion upon his blank countenance.

"I believed that with all of the killings going on, the King of Spirits was a terrible and evil spirit. That's part of the reason why I left the Song Sect to go on this dangerous journey—I wanted to vanquish the King myself, so I could avenge my parents." Xu Jiyu bites his bottom lip, sighing deeply afterward. The youth slowly reaches over to entwine his fingers with Qi Shun's.

He brings their interconnected hands up and looks up at the King of Spirits with brimming golden hues. "But, who would have thought that the King of Spirits was actually capable of being a kind spirit? A spirit that is capable of making me feel this way towards him… I'm so pathetic, aren't I?"

The King doesn't say anything, but he lightly squeezes Xu Jiyu's fingers. He stares at Xu Jiyu intently with his striking platinum orbs.

Seeing as the King doesn't answer, Xu Jiyu lets out a soft, resigned chuckle. "...Haha, who would have thought I would fall for a spirit that had murdered so many people, and even indirectly killed my own parents? The world is so cruel… honestly, just being able to hold your hand like this is like…"

Xu Jiyu brings their intertwined hands up to his lips, and he gently kisses their fingers. Qi Shun is silent throughout the entire exchange, but his pupils dilate and a soft sapphire hue emits from his eyes. It's unclear whether or not he understands what Xu Jiyu is saying, but he doesn't question anything.

"...It's like a touch of irony, you know?" The youth says softly, barely a whisper. The corners of his lips are curled upward as he shows a gentle appearance. Although his parents had died because of the spirit in front of him, he had already made up his mind that he'd still love the King. Although he had felt deep hatred before, when he thinks about all of the moments he'd spent with the King, his heart can't help but melt into a puddle at his feet.

In the end, love really does conquer hate…

Xu Jiyu takes a deep breath, "King, no—Qi Shun."

He peers deep into the King's eyes, squeezing their hands.

"I lov—"

...BAM!

Wen Po rushes into the room, "Are you Liu Jian? Find the doctor quickly!! Fang Lei is… Fang Lei is…!!"

Startled out of his wits, Xu Jiyu quickly retracts his hands from the Qi Shun's, untangling their fingers. He stares, wide-eyed, at Wen Po's frantic outburst.

"H-Hold on, senior brother, what's wrong with Fang Lei?" He had assumed that everything would be fine between the two when he said 'good luck', but did something really worrisome happen? Could it be that Wen Po was too rough that Fang Lei fainted?!

...The King sends a deathly glare over at the sudden interruption, but Wen Po doesn't notice this abnormality and rushes over to 'Liu Jian' without answering Xu Jiyu's inquiry. He reaches over and shakes the handsome male's shoulders.

"Find the doctor! Fang Lei stopped breathing! His heart isn't beating!" He refuses to believe that Fang Lei had just died for no reason!!

Qi Shun only harrumphs coldly, before using a hand to thwack Wen Po's hands off of him. "Fang Lei will be fine. He's not dead. He'll return in a couple of hours, so leave."

Of course he knows who this insolent man is. He's Fang Lei's only 'friend', if one could even call him that. He's seen it all.

He had managed to return to the mortal realm to see Xu Jiyu for a few hours, he absolutely won't let this man ruin the precious time he has with Xu Jiyu.

Wen Po's eyes narrow. This couldn't be Liu Jian! Coldly, he retorts, "And who the f*ck are you?"

In that moment, Xu Jiyu felt as if he was being crushed between two massive, opposing forces. He nervously shifts his gaze between the two men, unsure of what was to come. Should he… should he stop them?

"Why would that be any of your business? I told you to leave." Qi Shun icily replies, reaching over to the youth and pulling Xu Jiyu over to his side. "I told you Fang Lei will be fine, so he will."

"And why should I trust anything you say? Are you a doctor? You haven't even looked him over." Wen Po's blood is starting to boil.

"Aren't you the only one who wants to look at his body anyway?" Qi Shun shoots back. "I have no interest in him."

Xu Jiyu has a feeling this confrontation wasn't going to end well…

"And why would that be any of your business?" Wen Po mocks him, scrunching up his face and sticking out his tongue.

The King doesn't even understand what mockery is, so he doesn't say anything. Instead, he calmly dismisses the action as something irrelevant and ignores Wen Po's comment. "Xu Jiyu, what were you going to say earlier?" His previously cold tone melts into a soothing calm, platinum eyes softening upon seeing Xu Jiyu's person.

Xu Jiyu feels as if the room suddenly became colder. He anxiously glances over at Wen Po, and upon seeing his scary expression, he answers, "I-I'll tell you later! First, let's go check on Fang Lei…"

The King immediately becomes irritated. He knows that Fang Lei is fine, so why does he have to go check? This is clearly all because of that annoying Wen Po barging in on them! He wants nothing but to destroy the man in front of him, but he refrains from doing so because of Xu Jiyu's worried expression.

Although he doesn't quite understand the youth's expression, he follows his own instinct and decides that he prefers it when Xu Jiyu smiles.

"...En." Qi Shun finally answers, eyes shooting daggers at Wen Po.

"Phew…" Xu Jiyu lets out a relieved breath, and nods. "Okay, lead the way, senior brother Wen Po!"

Wen Po had already turned away and began walking out of the room without another word.

"...Coo." The crow on top of Xu Jiyu caws lowly, as if saddened by the entire ordeal.