Chapter 112

Song Jincheng’s parents arrived at the Tianwu Sect. Having been previously informed of the Medicine King Immortal’s identity by Mr. Yue, they immediately performed the grand ritual of three kowtows and six bows upon seeing Song Qingshi, thanking the Ancestral Master for his life-saving grace. Then, they used a stick to drag their still-rambunctious child back home.

Song Qingshi finally understood Mr. Yue’s true identity and was momentarily bewildered. But what could he do about Yue Wuhuan? This was his beloved cultivation partner, a peerless prodigy, someone he cherished above all else—no matter what he had done, Song Qingshi would always choose to forgive him…

Most of the injured at the Tianwu Sect were not seriously harmed. A few severely wounded patients were taken back to Medicine King Valley by Song Jincheng’s parents for treatment. Yu Wenyu, worried about his friend, initially intended to follow but was beaten by his father again and sent away for cultivation training.

Song Qingshi reminded Madam Nian not to forget sending him the test papers, then boarded the magic boat with Yue Wuhuan, carrying his caged research specimens, and returned to the Indestructible Peak.

He had originally planned to visit the Endless Abyss to check on An Long’s condition. However, An Long’s madness had transformed all his former affection into homicidal rage. Without reason or means of communication, Song Qingshi’s presence would likely provoke An Long, escalating the situation dangerously.

Fortunately, Yue Wuhuan, having collaborated with him on medical research for years, had developed excellent experimental habits. He meticulously recorded An Long’s demonic transformation using Rune Arrays and written notes, preserving them in the archives of the Indestructible Peak.

Song Qingshi couldn't stop praising his thoroughness.

At night, the magic boat approached the Indestructible Peak. Guided by Yue Wuhuan, Song Qingshi sat by the window and gazed outside. The cliffs were illuminated by countless lights, merging with the starry sky above. The golden and jade palaces, alongside gem-studded floral trees, formed a dazzling spectacle, like the most fantastical dream.

He marveled joyfully for a long time, thinking he’d never worry about research funds again—until he noticed something amiss with the beautiful lights. Upon closer inspection, each lantern contained a tormented soul writhing in agony. They were all soul lanterns?

Song Qingshi asked in shock, "Whose souls are these?"

"Don't mind them. They're all unforgivable scum. Keeping them here to suffer day and night brings me some joy," Yue Wuhuan embraced him from behind and smiled. "The soul lanterns you once gave me are among them. Beautiful, aren't they?"

Song Qingshi fell silent for a long while before murmuring, "Three thousand years... and the soul lanterns still haven't extinguished?"

He had once gifted Yue Wuhuan two soul lanterns to vent his rage, making a pact: if Yue Wuhuan could let go of his painful past and cease self-torment, he would extinguish the lanterns, annihilating the damned souls and allowing everything to start anew.

Hundreds of thousands of soul lanterns, each representing Yue Wuhuan’s deep-seated resentment and hatred for the world.

The more soul lanterns, the deeper the hatred.

Yet after all these years, he hadn't let go of a single one...

"How could I ever forget those things?" Yue Wuhuan replied gently, smiling. "As long as I live, the soul lanterns will never extinguish, and the hatred will never fade."

Song Qingshi hesitated. "Never?"

Yue Wuhuan affirmed, "Never."

Song Qingshi fell silent again.

"Don't worry," Yue Wuhuan, noticing his distress, kissed his lips reassuringly. "This world is too filthy. Apart from you, nothing is pure. The very air stinks of corruption, and garbage is everywhere. It's not worth starting over for."

After a long pause, Song Qingshi nodded obediently.

...

The magic boat docked. Cultivators of the Indestructible Peak, having received the news, arrived bearing lavish gifts to pay homage to the Divine Lord's partner. The lovebirds eagerly suggested hosting a grand ceremony to declare the Divine Lord's bond with his partner before the entire world.

Knowing Song Qingshi's aversion to being stared at by strangers and dislike for ceremonies, Yue Wuhuan accepted the gifts on his behalf but rejected all proposals. He sternly reminded them, "Medicine King Immortal is a man. Never call him 'Divine Consort.'"

Having regained his past-life memories in the Mo Yuan Magic Formation, Yue Wuhuan knew Song Qingshi was sensitive about his male identity. To him, their same-sex relationship held no symbolic meaning in terms of roles.

Once, a foolish person had called Song Qingshi "the Sword Master's wife." Unable to speak at the time, Song Qingshi had sulked for three days without eating, endlessly questioning what about him seemed "wifely."

In short, titles implying femininity were strictly prohibited.

Absolutely never to be uttered in Song Qingshi's presence.

Yue Wuhuan meticulously compiled fifty-six new prohibitions and distributed them to the subordinates of the Indestructible Peak. These included: no disturbing Song Qingshi's research, no touching experimental equipment, no gawking at Song Qingshi, no unauthorized speaking, no improper forms of address, and so on...

Hao Long, unable to comprehend, blindly supported, "Mother knows best!"

Everyone else was baffled...

The Indestructible Peak had long prepared a laboratory, and Medicine King Valley had dispatched skilled assistants. Song Qingshi buried himself in research without emerging.

He analyzed the structure of the Defilement Demons with instruments, researched various toxins effective against them, dissected several corpses, and observed their disappearance. Then, he commissioned Yue Wuhuan and the Tiangong Pavilion to design a fully sealed transparent chamber. Inside, he placed a Defilement Demon bound by Blood King Vine, injected it with fatal venoms, and observed how the corpse decomposed and where it vanished after death...

On average, the demon corpses disappeared within twelve to twenty-four *shichen* (a traditional Chinese unit of time, equivalent to two hours).

In the sealed chamber, the corpse persisted for seventy-two hours before vanishing—a clear slowdown.

Fascinated, Song Qingshi decided to further refine the chamber, adding warding formations to block all potential interference: spiritual energy, energy fluctuations, scents, magnetic fields, and more.

Both the sealed chamber and warding formations were high-grade magical implements. Combining them into a large, transparent, and sturdy device capable of containing Defilement Demons increased the difficulty exponentially. The master of the Tiangong Pavilion, along with his disciples, racked their brains endlessly, only to have their proposals repeatedly rejected by the Divine Lord. The strain turned his hair gray overnight.

While waiting for the artifact's completion, Song Qingshi buried himself in books.

Having been absent from this world for three thousand years, he discovered a wealth of new discoveries, including advances in medicine. Some problems he had once deemed unsolvable now had new medicinal solutions and research approaches. He read voraciously, his mind consumed by learning and research.

Song Qingshi sighed, "If the effects of Longevity Sand had been discovered earlier, we wouldn't have had to search so hard for the Millennium Turtle."

When Yue Wuhuan restored his memories, he mentioned that the three of them had revisited the depths of Moon Feast Lake, encountered the Water Monster, and triggered the Nightmare Mind-Devouring Formation. After breaking the formation, they found traces left by Mo Yuan Sword Sovereign and Phoenix Blood.

Recalling this, Song Qingshi sensed inconsistencies. When he and Yue Wuhuan went to Moon Feast Lake to slay the turtle, they hadn't obtained the Phoenix Blood, nor was Yue Wuhuan's Sword Technique so refined...

Had Yue Wuhuan returned to the Nightmare Mind-Devouring Formation after his death?

Song Qingshi voiced his doubt.

"Yes," Yue Wuhuan admitted, discomforted by the memory. "I was half-mad back then, acting without reason. After you left, I missed you so much that I returned to the Nightmare Mind-Devouring Formation... Though the formation forced me to re-experience the torment of losing you repeatedly, at least I could see you in my dreams and enjoy fleeting moments of joy."

Song Qingshi didn't know how to respond. He tightly grasped Yue Wuhuan's hand, as if to confirm his own existence.

"It's rather pathetic," Yue Wuhuan said self-deprecatingly. "I stayed in the Nightmare Mind-Devouring Formation, my mind increasingly muddled, until I grew accustomed to it. When the formation could no longer conjure nightmares to torment me, it expelled me, barring re-entry. Enraged, I hacked wildly at the formation a few times in frustration, then wandered off in a daze, somehow losing both the Phoenix Blood and the note you left."

Song Qingshi asked, puzzled, "Note?"

Yue Wuhuan thought for a moment. "After your demonization, you seemed to realize your fate... You scrawled 'no solution' on a slip of paper and, in your final moments... crushed it into my palm, telling me to keep it. I searched endlessly for answers until, before my death, I caught a glimpse of heaven's secrets and inscribed 'no solution' on the tiger brace (*hucheng*)."

Song Qingshi felt discrepancies between Mo Yuan's true memories and the events in the formation. He wanted to understand the differences.

"The events and experiences were mostly the same, with minor deviations in details," Yue Wuhuan explained after careful thought. "Back then, you couldn't speak and were rather simple-minded, far from your current sharpness. When we first met, I thrashed you bloody with a staff for bringing medicine. You just stood frozen in place, crying from pain but not even trying to dodge..."

The Song Qingshi of that time was like a stone—oblivious to human emotions, joy or sorrow, and unable to speak. Yet he doggedly remained by Wu Huan's side, stubbornly taught him to read, stubbornly healed the sick.

Yue Wuhuan continued, "During our travels, I taught you many ways to live among people. You learned earnestly, becoming slightly more adaptable, your personality gradually resembling who you are now. I remember you'd never even tasted good food back then—it was pitiful. The first time I made you ice cakes, you wrote endlessly in my palm, calling it the best thing in the world. I polished all your phrasing when you spoke with patients, afraid your bluntness would get you beaten by their families. You didn't understand, thinking I was wrong, and persistently pulled at my sleeve..."

The memories of their past life held pain, but also countless instances of laughter and warmth—too numerous to name.

Leaning against Yue Wuhuan's shoulder, Song Qingshi listened intently, a hazy understanding forming in his heart.

"Wu Huan..."

"Hmm?"

"I suspect... it was you who shaped me into who I am today."

"Nonsense."

"Perhaps I was born for you?"

"Then I won't hold anything back."

"..."

The next morning, Song Qingshi woke up sore and exhausted. The night before, Yue Wuhuan had insisted on "not holding back" and left his marks all over him, which kept them up all night. Now, his body was covered in traces, his voice raw from crying. He resolved to work on his stamina—otherwise, the days ahead would be unbearable...

Yue Wuhuan, well-rested and energetic, went off to handle official duties, leaving Song Qingshi to rest in bed a while longer.

Song Qingshi lay in bed reading for a bit but soon grew restless, wanting to visit the research laboratory.

As he passed through the garden, he suddenly heard muffled sobbing by the pond...

He walked over and saw a very beautiful girl, disheveled, clothes askew, without shoes, as if she had just risen from bed. Holding an embroidered handkerchief, she sat by the pond, gazing at her reflection in the water, tears blowing in the wind—a heartbreaking sight.

A scratch was faintly visible on her collarbone, and her arms bore bruises.

Song Qingshi, his mind preoccupied with research, walked right past her. But after a few steps, he felt something was wrong and quickly turned back. Carefully examining the marks on her body and arms, he realized they were all brutal pinch marks, scratches, and even deep bite marks on her neck—clearly inflicted during intimate moments.

However rough he and Yue Wuhuan were, two grown men couldn’t possibly leave such injuries.

What kind of abuse had this girl endured? The way she stared at her reflection—was she contemplating drowning herself?

Alarmed, Song Qingshi got ready to intervene and quietly approached.

The girl noticed him and turned around, her reddened eyes sizing him up. "Who are you? What do you want?!"

"I just arrived," Song Qingshi replied cautiously. "Why are you crying?"

"I made Zihao-gege unhappy," the girl sobbed even harder at the painful memory, her words fragmented. "Last night was Zihao-gege’s birthday. I made him new clothes, did everything he wanted… and finally, he slept with me… But this morning, he suddenly got angry and kicked me out, saying he wanted to break up."

Song Qingshi was stunned. How could such a beautiful and devoted girl be abandoned?

The girl wept uncontrollably. "If I did something wrong, Zihao-gege can hit or scold me all he wants… I just don’t want to break up..."

Song Qingshi froze. "He hits you?"

The girl nodded pitifully. "Yes… It’s my fault for making him angry. He has every right to be upset..."

Song Qingshi was furious. This was textbook emotional manipulation!

How could there be an abusive scumbag in Indestructible Peak?!

He had to tell Yue Wuhuan immediately—this scum needed to be dealt with at once!