Qin Huaiqiu was dead.
His body lay beside the Great Wilderness Marsh, near the East Sea, and was swallowed by the huge waves.
Si Kongting was covered in blood. Lying above the clouds, he watched Qin Huaiqiu's body being gradually engulfed by the sea waves, but he couldn't even lift a finger.
Tears welled up in his eyes. The dying Dragon Prince let out a earth - shattering wail. Heaven and earth trembled, and even the land of the Nine Provinces quaked.
The Heavenly Emperor's crown was shaken askew. Pointing at the Star Lord Xuanji, he said, "Go down to the mortal world and have a look."
Xuanji received the order and descended to the mortal world. He saw that the East Sea had already changed its color. The blue sea was dyed red by the blood of the demons. The scarlet color stretched from the shore to the horizon. A black dragon hovered over the East Sea, emitting a mournful dragon cry.
The tragic death of Qin Huaiqiu, the Crown Prince of the Phoenix Clan, caused a great stir in the East Sea. After the black dragon wailed over the East Sea for forty - nine days, finally, due to lack of strength, it plunged down.
Xuanji helped up the injured Si Kongting and said, "Your Highness, if you want to save Young Master Qiu, I may have a plan."
Qin Huaiqiu died in the battle with the demons. His body had sunk into the East Sea and could no longer be found, but his soul could be found in the Underworld. As long as his soul was gathered, he could be reshaped into a human.
Si Kongting's eyes were blood - red. He asked, "What does 'gather' mean?"
"If the soul enters the East Sea, it will not pass the Stone of Three Lives. The seven souls and six spirits will be scattered. Some may enter the animal path, and some may enter the human path. Your Highness, have you thought it through?"
Si Kongting broke into the Underworld.
He transformed into his original form and made a ruckus in the Underworld. He snatched the Book of Birth and Death.
The Underworld was in turmoil, and the Heavenly Court trembled again. The Heavenly Emperor supported his crown and asked Xuanji, "Do you know that this method requires the Dragon Prince to exchange his lifespan?"
Xuanji nodded and said, "The Prince said that he doesn't seek to accompany each other for eternity, but only to be together for one lifetime."
The Heavenly Emperor didn't say a word. He just sighed, "Such an infatuated child."
In the first life, one of Qin Huaiqiu's souls was reincarnated as a grasshopper.
The grasshopper ate grass carefree. When people came, it would jump away and hide in the grass. It thus escaped the capture of many children. One day, it saw a handsome young man. When the young man stepped forward, the grasshopper jumped away in fear, and the man didn't move anymore. Instead, he stood there looking at it.
As a grasshopper, it naturally didn't know what the human's look meant.
Suddenly, the young man squatted down, took out a tender grass from his bosom, put it in front of the grasshopper, and then stepped back several steps and stood aside watching.
The grasshopper was attracted by the fresh grass. Seeing that the young man was far away, it jumped back and slowly ate it.
From then on, the young man came every day, and the grasshopper waited for him in the same place every day. One day, when the young man came, he saw a well - fed mantis instead.
In the second life, Qin Huaiqiu was reincarnated as a fish.
It struggled in the fishing net and was bought by a young man before being put on the chopping board. Then it was put into a delicate porcelain bowl.
It was very afraid of humans because it always remembered the fisherman who had caught it and wanted to kill it. Although the young man came to feed it every day, it never ate.
One day, the young man came again and saw the fish jump out of the bathtub by itself and lie motionless on the ground.
In the third life, Qin Huaiqiu was a golden oriole.
It lived in the forest and sang loudly every day. One day, a young man came. He sat under the tree where the oriole was standing, closed his eyes, and listened carefully.
The oriole flew away in fear. But the next day, he came again, and then the third day, the fourth day... The oriole believed that he was not a threat. One day, singing, the oriole landed on the young man's shoulder.
The young man trembled all over. The oriole hopped on his shoulder, stretched out its head to rub his cheek, and felt something wet.
The next day, the young man came again, but under the tree where the oriole always was, there was only a pile of torn yellow feathers left.
In the fourth life, Qin Huaiqiu was reincarnated as a snake that was caught and forced to perform. It was bought by a human who was very kind to it and would even hold it to sleep. But one day, when it was lying on a tree basking in the sun, it was carried away by an eagle.
In the fifth life, Qin Huaiqiu was reincarnated as a cat, but was caught and eaten by hungry people.
In the sixth life, he was reincarnated as a horse, but was shot by an arrow on the battlefield...
In the seventh life, he was a wolf, but was killed by his own kind...
In the eighth life.
Qin Huaiqiu opened his eyes and saw a familiar face.
"Remember me?" Si Kongting asked him softly, as if he had traveled through mountains and rivers and across time. His voice seemed to cross time, but still coincided with the voice in Qin Huaiqiu's memory, intertwining and merging into a warm spring, flowing into his already dry heart.
"Yes. I know you."
"Who am I?" His face got closer to Qin Huaiqiu's, their noses touching. He felt the warmth in his arms that he hadn't felt for nearly a century.
"You are my Crown Prince." He smiled, a smile that made all the flowers lose their color instantly. He looked at Si Kongting, and stars flashed across his eyes. As the long river of time slowly flowed, he walked alone, and all he wanted was this one person.
"How did you find me? I remember I had already scattered my soul."
"I searched bit by bit." He kissed Qin Huaiqiu's lips gently, as if he was holding a precious treasure in his hand.
Qin Huaiqiu held his face and asked, "Are you tired?"
Si Kongting was stunned for a moment, then suddenly kissed the palm of his hand.
"Not tired."
Grief and the joy of reunion hit him. Qin Huaiqiu couldn't hold back his tears anymore. He put his arms around Si Kongting's neck and kissed him passionately on the lips.
Intertwining and devouring, the sadness and loneliness of several lifetimes were all turned into this kiss. They lost themselves, holding each other with tears in their eyes.
This kiss spanned a century and went through eight lifetimes.
Qin Huaiqiu couldn't imagine what kind of mood Si Kongting was in when he accompanied him through eight lifetimes, and what kind of mood he was in when he watched him die in front of him again and again.
He didn't dare to think. He only knew that this person had shed all his tears, and he only knew that he now wanted to compensate him with this most primitive love and desire.
His fingers stroked Si Kongting's chest and covered his heart. He knew that this place had been severely broken and then glued back together again and again for eight times. With tears in his eyes, he trembled and asked, "Does it hurt?"
Si Kongting lowered his head and buried it in Qin Huaiqiu's neck socket. He whispered, "Don't talk about this."
They didn't talk about it. They both knew.
Qin Huaiqiu's tears fell like pearls. He hugged Si Kongting's back and sobbed.
Si Kongting patted his back with his hand and just whispered, "Don't cry. It doesn't hurt... I don't hurt..."
Qin Huaiqiu couldn't stop crying. He hugged Si Kongting's shoulders stubbornly like a child and just kept asking, "Does it hurt? Does it hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt... Be good... It really doesn't hurt."
He hugged him as if he was hugging the whole world.
The person in his arms was crying sadly, so he kissed his eyebrows gently, kissed away those bitter tears bit by bit, and finally kissed his lips gently, coaxing him carefully while kissing.
Qin Huaiqiu exerted strength with his arms and pressed Si Kongting on himself. Crying, he said, "Crown Prince, hug me."
There were tears hanging on his face, like the traces of spring rain, shining brightly in the candlelight.
He opened his body, touched Si Kongting's cheek, kissed his forehead, and cried, "Please, hug me, Crown Prince."
Si Kongting looked at the person in front of him. The memories of eight lifetimes flooded in like a tide and finally converged into the first time they were together. At that time, he was the Dragon Prince, and he was the young master of the Phoenix Clan.
They were together under the cherry - blossom tree. His raised neck was covered with a thin layer of sweat. The extreme feeling made his whole body turn pink. In the falling cherry blossoms, he was like the most beautiful scenery in the world, permanently fixing Si Kongting's sight.
After eight lifetimes, both of them were covered in wounds. Only the parts where they were close were hot and burning, like a raging fire and spring rain. Their hearts had never been so closely attached. The warmth of the person in his arms was like the erupting lava, as if it was going to burn out all his century - long loneliness.
The room was filled with an amorous atmosphere. Their lips and teeth met. They crazily used all means to express their love. Qin Huaiqiu's eyes were red and full of tears. He hugged Si Kongting's shoulders and kissed from his stubble to the corner of his eyes.
"I love you." He whispered.
"So do I." Si Kongting closed his eyes.
Outside the house, the spring thunder suddenly roared, and the rain pattered down into the mortal world.