Chapter 41: Departure

The next two days were fairly peaceful for Ji Yunhe. She watched Lin Haoqing ascend to the position of the Valley Master. It was a warm and charming day. Lin Haoqing, dressed in formal black, walked step by step down Li Feng Hall toward the high seat. The breeze blew in from outside, stirring his robe and the hair on his forehead. He did not turn around and sit right away after reaching the chair. Instead, he silently stood in front of it for a while.

It was difficult for Ji Yunhe to guess the thoughts and emotions going through his mind at this moment. She stood in her usual position and watched him.

The crowd started to whisper amongst themselves, and Lin Haoqing finally turned around, flipped out his robe, and sat down. Ji Yunhe took the lead and bowed down onto one knee.

"Long live the Valley Master." The whispering voices slowly quieted down, and everyone knelt one after another.

"Long live the Valley Master." The sound of salutations consecrated him as their new leader.

"No need for such formalities." Lin Haoqing raised his hand and gestured for everyone to get up.

Under the contrast of light and shadow, the new master on the seat seemed to merge with Lin Canglan right before Ji Yunhe's eyes.

The same position, the same bloodline, and the same gaze. An eerie continuation of the cycle of life. And when Lin Haoqing's eyes fell on her face, she responded with a faint smile. After this, nothing in the Demon Valley, nor in the world, mattered to her anymore.

Ji Yunhe was now completely free of things to do. She wandered around the valley looking at familiar scenes that she had grown so tired of. But now they seemed a bit less annoying, some even felt precious.

Before leaving for the capital, she laid on her roof and watched the stars all night. When she woke up the next morning, she felt as if she had thought about many things, but also as if she did not have time to think about anything.

There had been some confusion and everything went by so quickly. The court general who came to pick up Changyi waited outside the main gate. When she went to the dungeon to get him, demon masters were already there with an iron lockbox. They were planning to use thick chains and shackles on him and put him in the lockbox.

"There's no need for this stuff." Ji Yunhe walked into the cell, took the chains from their hands and threw them onto the ground.

"And get rid of the box, we don't need it either."

"But..." The demon masters were uneasy. Ji Yunhe smiled and said, "If he runs now, can we even give him to Princess Shunde?"

The demon masters looked at each other and stopped talking. Ji Yunhe turned her head and extended her hand to Changyi.

"Let's go." Changyi glanced at her hand and rejected it. "It's inappropriate." He abided by proper etiquette even now.

Yes, he was a jiaoren who recognized only one companion for life. He had to give his future partner absolute dedication and loyalty. Changyi would never accept Princess Shunde as a companion, and right now he believed he would never be free again, so he would not consider Ji Yunhe a companion either.