Embraces Under Golden Petals

With one final explosion, the last dragon-shaped lightning bolts went out in one final roar as the tribulation came to an end. Leaving behind a rain of golden petal-like flecks, the sky cleared as the blinding light faded. 

Blinking the vision back into their eyes, the three masters and three disciples all squinted. With the clouds disappearing faster than they came, the setting sun shined back down onto the area. 

With her eyes fluttering open, Lin Songmei looked around as the world was basked in a faint golden glow. The tribulation had hurt so much. It wasn't pure physical pain either, it was a tearing sensation of sorts. It emanated from her core, threatening to rip the very fiber of her being. Songmei was glad she didn't bite her lip as Liu Xueli instructed after having clenched her teeth during the tribulation. If she had bitten her lip, Songmei was pretty sure she'd have no lower lip anymore. 

Her Qi, though, flowed better than ever. Pushing herself up and off the ground, Songmei's eyes looked for, of course, Yan Mingqing. Making eye contact, Songmei stumbled over, making her way through the slow shower of golden flecks. 

Ignoring the new changes she felt in her body, Songmei crossed over the small rock Xueli had stood on earlier and jogged the last few steps into Mingqing's already outstretched arms. "We did it..." 

"We did!" Mingqing laughed as she returned the tight embrace. "You look so beautiful right now!" 

"Do I?" Songmei raised an eyebrow, leaning back a touch while staying in their embrace. "You're the one with the wings right now..." 

By wings, Songmei meant... real wings. As she cracked her eyes open and searched for Mingqing, Songmei was stunned. 

Mingqing, unlike before, had a pair of faint wings made out of Qi. Coming into existence just behind her shoulder blades, Mingqing's wings were made of a sky-blue ice. Yet, with each bit of the wings dotted with shimmering stars, Songmei couldn't help but feel as if an entire constellation stretched out behind Mingqing. 

"Wait, I have wings?" Mingqing turned her neck to look. "I was about to say the same for you..." 

"I have wings?!" Songmei yelped, turning her head to find a pair of wings sprouting out of her own back. 

Unlike Mingqing's wings which seemed to take a more bird-like form—which Songmei felt was quite consistent with her whole... kunpeng heritage—Songmei's own wings took on a butterfly shape. 

Gleaming under the golden glow of the setting sun, Songmei's eyes widened as her own wings were made out of iridescent crystals—the same she had been using to make arrows out of. 

"Well, you're always the most beautiful one in my heart," Mingqing booped Songmei's nose with a teasing grin. 

"I think you're more beautiful..." Songmei trailed off, trying to pry Mingqing's hand away. "That doesn't matter though! I'm just glad you're okay..." 

"You keep beating me to the punch," Mingqing shook her head with a fake sigh. "But, yes, I'm more than glad you're okay. Is everything feeling alright? Are you in pain?" 

"I'm a little sore," Songmei looked down, checking herself over. "Other than that, mostly fine. How about you?" 

"Same situation for me," Mingqing shrugged, pulling Songmei into a half-waltz for a second. "See? Perfectly fine." 

Laughing as she danced along for a few moments, Songmei pulled Mingqing back closer as their wings began to flicker. Sharing another long embrace, Songmei and Mingqing paused for a moment while making eye contact. 

Reaching up through the middle of their hug, Songmei picked a golden fleck out of Mingqing's dark blue hair. "It matches your eyes... I feel like I have something that matches better though..." 

"Oh? Really?" Mingqing smiled, letting another golden fleck land on the tip of her finger. "I'd like to know." 

"I'm pretty sure you have a good idea already," Songmei slung her arms over Mingqing's neck, swaying along with Mingqing as a faint breeze blew through the area, tousling their hair. 

With the setting sun casting a glow on the area as little golden flecks sank bit by bit from the sky, Songmei and Mingqing stood there as a warm silence fell between them. Watching a small grin blossom on Mingqing's face, Songmei felt a mirroring one appear on her own. "It's my lips. They match yours." 

Sharing a laugh, the two pulled each other in. Sharing a hug and kiss, the two both wished this moment would never end as the wind blew a wave of golden petal-like flecks around them. 

With the kiss going on for a little longer, Mingqing pulled back. "I love you..." 

"I love you too," Songmei sighed as a faint pink tinge appeared on both their cheeks. 

Sitting in their silence and embracing a little longer, the two squeezed each other in a hug once more. Unable to stop herself from laughing, Mingqing wiped a tear as she broke the silence. "I agree though, I do think your lips match mine quite well." 

"I'm a genius like that," Songmei grinned as her own bout of laughs lightened the atmosphere they had. "I'm sure we'll be able to match our lips plenty more in the future." 

Pulling Songmei in for another peck on the lips, Mingqing nodded. "I'm sure of it. To the ends of the world." 

"And back, of course," Songmei added as their wings faded out of existence for the last time. 

---

"I see what you mean now." Yuan Muyun sighed as she looked onto the scene playing out between the two girls. "I... I understand." 

With everyone else at the table laughing, Xueli gave Yuan Muyun a few pats on the back. "You'll get used to it." 

Raising her voice a touch as her eyes remained glued to the scene in front of her, Xueli relaxed her still clenched hands. "Let's not disturb them for now. Let them enjoy themselves and their youth. They're still so young after all." 

Feeling a wistful smile sprout on her face as she looked on the scene, Xueli suppressed her hearing to give the two a little more privacy. Her two little disciples were so cute, and so lovely, and so... everything. 

She just had no words to describe how much they meant to her. 

Han Youhong, Wang Taigang, and Zhao Liying, on the other hand, were already numb to the two lovebirds and their lovey-dovey antics. Instead, the three of them exchanged hushed murmurs as they looked at the scene before them. Songmei and Mingqing had told them about the tribulation Xueli had gone through, but for reasons none of them really knew, this tribulation had much more flair to it. 

"We're really going to be going through that..." Liying fidgeted with a napkin while letting out an amazed sigh. "Crazy..." 

"I know, right?" Youhong trailed off, a temporary olive branch of peace being extended between the two during the important moment unfolding before them. "Your master is coming soon, yeah?" 

"Yeah," Liying tapped her foot, already imagining the day. "It'll be exciting." 

"Definitely," Taigang piped up, still speechless after the power, grandeur, and sheer majesty behind the tribulation.