Work Text:
Nighttime in the Black Dragon World.
Song Shuhang had finally woken up.
After his Sixth Stage tribulation, he’d fallen unconscious for several days while he endured the mental pain of several dozen Eighth Level Saint Space Tribulations. Then, he had slept for another day or so just to recover.
Song Shuhang could endure quite a lot of pain, both physical and mental, but the pain of over 30 Eighth Stage tribulations all together was...really quite a lot.
The primordial souls of his seniors had been sent home safely. In fact, by the time Song Shuhang woke up, they had been safely back in the main world for several days.
When Song Shuhang checked the Dragon Network and saw his seniors’ access ports gathered there like little stars, he smiled a little.
It was unsure what kind of smile it really was.
In the end, his seniors had all made it through their accidental field trip to the Black Dragon World unscathed. Even though they had been dragged into Song Shuhang’s tribulation, they had somehow all gotten through it in one piece.
It was good that none of them had been hurt. He was glad.
He really was.
Soft Feather and Doudou were still there, however. They were there with their real bodies and couldn’t be sent back in the same way as the other seniors. Anyway, it seemed that Senior Yellow Mountain had instructed them to watch over him while he recovered, so they hadn’t looked for any other way to leave yet either.
Song Shuhang helped both of them get set up in the Dragon Network, just for fun. After all, the other seniors were in there having fun, so he couldn’t just leave them out. They could keep themselves occupied for a little while by familiarizing themselves with the ‘magical power top-up device’ and ascending through the levels.
While he chatted with them a bit, he noticed that Soft Feather was acting a bit...off? Anyone who didn’t know her well would just see a girl excited to try out a new toy, like she usually was, but to Song Shuhang, she seemed a bit...depressed? A bit...on edge?
He would have to find an opportunity later to talk to her alone for a bit. Maybe if it was just the two of them, she might be more willing to tell him what was wrong.
If he had to guess...
Soft Feather had just transcended her Fifth Stage Tribulation and condensed her golden core. Now that he thought about it, it had been immediately after that that she had started acting a bit weird.
Perhaps...the number of dragon patterns on her core had ended up being something disappointing?
Although Song Shuhang had a hard time imagining a genius like Soft Feather ending up with fewer than seven dragon patterns, it wasn’t like it was impossible. And it would surely be disappointing. Everyone in the group had at least seven dragon patterns.
However, if that was the case, then he could certainly empathize with her.
After all, he had originally only had three dragon patterns, and every one of them came from external forces. Meaning that, without his various cheats, he shouldn’t have had any at all.
However, he also knew of someone else who hadn’t had any dragon patterns back then, and that person had gone on to become the Wielder of the Heavens’ Will, so it seemed that having zero dragon patterns was actually not bad at all.
Senior White Two was also still there, although he seemed to be busy playing around in the Ancient Nether. Whatever it was he was doing was apparently supposed to be a “surprise,” and he also informed Song Shuhang that unless he was actually dying or something, he was far too busy to chat right now and not to bother him.
So, the usual. Song Shuhang got the feeling that Senior White Two was actually peeping on what he was doing quite often to check up on him, but he wasn’t about to call him out on it. He didn’t mind that much.
Actually, it was kind of...comforting. At the moment.
However, the most important thing was that Senior White miraculously returned from the Ninth Stage Heavenly Tribulation Realm.
He couldn’t have had better timing. Song Shuhang had just been wondering what to do next when a crack opened in space right in front of him, and Senior White stepped out, followed by Song Shuhang’s battered clone.
“Yo, Shuhang, we’re back,” Senior White said with a smile. “For real, this time.”
Behind him, Song Shuhang Two dissolved into light particles to return to the main body. For a moment, the air around Senior White seemed to sparkle, setting off his infinite charm.
He was, in that moment, the most beautiful thing Song Shuhang had ever seen in his life.
He really thought he might cry.
Song Shuhang and Senior White immediately headed somewhere quiet and out of the way to talk.
Since Song Shuhang had encountered a few...problems with his cultivation technique while he was at Fifth Stage, and his cultivation technique was now also rather unorthodox, Senior White wanted to check him over to make sure those problems hadn’t followed him into the Sixth Stage.
He also needed Senior White to help him revise the Sixth Volume of his ❮Thirty-Three Divine Beasts’ Technique❯ so he could continue practicing.
Song Shuhang’s version of the ❮Thirty-Three Divine Beasts’ Technique❯ had long not been the original version. At the beginning, Senior White had needed to piece together the first couple of volumes for him. Then, even after Song Shuhang had obtained the complete technique, Senior White continued to modify the technique as he advanced so it would be more suitable for him.
Then, the universe had conspired to give Song Shuhang multiple golden cores, which had required an even more dramatic revision of the Fifth Volume of the technique.
And now, those eight golden cores had become eight vast Spirit Lakes.
No one in the Divine Beast Department nor the Thirty-Three Divine Beasts’ Sect could have ever imagined that someone might end up with eight Spirit Lakes. Therefore, the original Sixth Volume wasn’t remotely suitable for the current Song Shuhang either.
However, this was mostly just an excuse.
What Song Shuhang really wanted deep down in his heart was to just...hang out with Senior White for a little while.
He just...really wanted Senior White—wonderful Senior White who could do anything and had all the answers and all the luck—to just...stay next to him and fend off the next disaster for a little while.
Song Shuhang was very tired and wanted to retire.
This last disaster had almost been too much.
He didn’t even realize that this was what he wanted until they sat down. Then Senior White took out his tea set and started to make tea—a clear sign that he was prepared to be there for a while—and a deep sense of relief washed over Song Shuhang all the way down to his bones.
Thank God, he thought, Senior White isn’t going to leave again.
“Why don’t you tell me what you’ve been up to while Fellow Daoist White Rabbit and I have been gone?” Senior White said gently. He handed Song Shuhang a steaming cup of tea and continued setting up the usual spread of fruits and food that always accompanied it.
“Senior White, can you also tell me about what you’ve been doing in the Ancient Nether with Senior White T—er, the other Senior White?” Song Shuhang asked.
He had quickly corrected himself because he’d felt the sudden sensation of a pair of eyes glaring at the back of his head from afar.
Senior White Two was definitely peeping! So he might decide to hop on over to the Black Dragon World to say hello to Senior White and goodbye to little friend Shuhang at any time. However, he was much more likely to do so if Song Shuhang kept using his nickname.
Senior White laughed softly. “Alright. Why don’t you write down the next volume of the ❮Thirty-Three Divine Beasts’ Technique❯ for me while I tell you, and then you can tell me about what you’ve been doing?”
“Okay.” Song Shuhang pulled out paper and a pen and got to work.
Meanwhile, Senior White started from the beginning. He explained about the colorless and transparent objects hidden inside the ‘zombies’ attacking the Black Dragon World, and how following these mysterious objects had led the two Whites to the Ancient Nether.
Then he went into how they had discovered the ‘nodes’ which had been left in the Ancient Nether by powerful cultivators in the past, and how they had then decided to shift their focus to also planting their own pillars alongside the others.
Song Shuhang nodded a little while he listened. In fact, he already knew something about both of these matters because of the Scholarly Sage’s eye. That said, Senior White’s story included a few things he hadn’t known, such as...
Apparently, Senior White Two’s counterpart had left one of those sets of pillars!
Song Shuhang thought back to the vague figure he had seen whose hair reached his back—the only one who had directly identified himself as a current Wielder of the Will—who had been upset that he couldn’t cut his hair.
Mm-hm, now that he thought about it, this person’s style did seem familiar.
Senior White Two had been personally familiar with another of those powerful Immortals as well—the daoist shrouded in light of virtue who had left the ‘Virtuous Crystal Diamond’ pillars. His name had been, creatively, ‘Daoist Priest Virtue’ and he had been the original owner of the Universe-Piercing Flying Shuttle all of the Whites liked so much.
Daoist Priest Virtue had also been the sixth Wielder of the Will, the one right before Senior White Two.
From this, Song Shuhang could conclude that every single pillar he had seen with the Scholarly Sage’s eye had been left by someone who had either become the Wielder or who had been the runner up.
Sure enough, they were all existences of a terrifying level.
However, what did that mean for the two Senior Whites? Senior White Two couldn’t try for it again...right?
Then, after a few days of happily planting pillars, Senior White Two had instructed his little hamster to accept a request for help from Song Shuhang, after which that little hamster had disappeared.
“We were both quite worried that you had ended up in the Heavenly Tribulation Realm again, and that his little hamster had become involved as well,” Senior White said, calmly sipping at his tea. “Which, I suppose, did turn out to be the case. So I sent a clone over to the Black Dragon World to investigate.”
The pen in Song Shuhang’s hand faltered, just for a second, as Senior White got to this part.
Obviously, Senior White Two would have been worried about his favorite pet, but hearing Senior White actually say so...
It was fine. It was fine! Everything had worked out in the end. Even though Song Shuhang had accidentally put № Hamster in a ludicrous amount of danger, things had worked out and № Hamster had come back with him unharmed—well, as unharmed as could be hoped for, given the situation.
It was fine.
He kept writing. He also wanted to include some of his own ideas about how to revise the technique.
After more than a week, Song Shuhang’s clone had suddenly appeared in the Ancient Nether while on his quest to complete all of his Golden Core Compositions. The two Whites had protected him from the Ancient Nether Chaos Will and also scanned his QR code composition for good measure before sending him away again.
Song Shuhang nodded a little. While he had been in the Heavenly Tribulation Realm, he’d only had a vague sense of what his clone had been doing. During their time apart, they had essentially been two different individuals.
However, now that his clone had returned to him, he had also received its memories.
It turned out that his clone had been quite busy while his main body had been suffering through the tribulation!
“A few days later, we reached the last set of nodes,” Senior White continued. “Although we were both keen to continue exploring, we agreed that it would be best to check in with you first. Therefore, I went back to the Black Dragon World to see how you were doing, and you should know what happened after that.”
Mm-hm, after that, Senior White had immediately been dragged off to the Ninth Stage Tribulation Realm along with Song Shuhang’s clone when Lady Kunna had swapped out his clone for his main body.
It had been his innate disaster-avoidance skill in action. Senior White and Song Shuhang’s clone’s experiences in the Heavenly Tribulation Realm had been much less exciting than Song Shuhang’s own experiences during that time.
“Then I guess that’s where I should start,” Song Shuhang decided. After all, his clone had already told Senior White a lot about what had happened before that.
First, he passed over the cultivation technique he’d finished writing down.
Then, he started with the fight against Demon Emperor Hezhi, the Scholarly Sage-level existence he’d somehow managed to provoke, and also the magnificent Karmic Saber Technique he’d had the chance to use against him.
It was just unfortunate that the demonic Immortal had survived and gotten away in the end.
Senior White frowned. He also had some memories of this part from his own clone, but his clone had run out of energy partway through. He hadn’t been able to see the end of it.
“Fellow Daoist White Rabbit is right,” Senior White said after a moment. “You must have some sort of special constitution that automatically aggros big shots.”
Song Shuhang burst into tears.
It wasn’t his fault! He didn’t go and provoke these guys on purpose! The blame just ended up getting shifted over to him every time with all these big shots!
He, too, was very desperate.
Anyway, then he had started transcending his Sixth Stage Tribulation in earnest.
This was when he had made his biggest mistake.
During the fight with Demon Emperor Hezhi, the dragon-eyed Lady Kunna had granted Song Shuhang almost full authority over the Dragon Network. Then, Demon Emperor Hezhi had consumed her and taken over the Dragon Network himself. Then, Song Shuhang had dealt him a mortal blow, and he was currently unconscious somewhere, trying to recover.
As a result, Song Shuhang currently had the highest authority in the Dragon Network.
The very first thing he had decided to do with that authority was to connect his QR code Golden Core Composition to the Dragon Network. That way, he could send the QR code to the group later, and they could all friend him and join the Dragon Network and have fun.
The key word here was ‘later’.
If he had known that linking his ‘QR code’ with the Dragon Network in the middle of his tribulation would result in such a disaster, he never would have done it. He absolutely would have waited until he was done.
He just hadn’t been prepared for his seniors’ persistence and curiosity.
It had been days since he’d sent that QR code to Soft Feather! How was he supposed to know his seniors had been trying to get it to work the entire time since then!
And so, Senior Thrice Reckless had friended him in the middle of his tribulation.
The rest of his seniors had followed suit like a tidal wave.
They had started messing around with the Dragon Network, ascending through the levels, because of course they would do that, that was the point, and Song Shuhang had only encouraged it by sending them enough ‘magical power flow’ for them to play around as much as they wanted...
And the end result was that the primordial souls of over half the seniors in the group were brought to the Black Dragon World and dumped into the middle of his tribulation.
Senior White wasn’t reading or drinking his tea anymore. He was just staring at Song Shuhang.
Song Shuhang wished he wouldn’t.
He couldn’t tell what Senior White was thinking, but it couldn’t be anything very flattering. He’d seriously f*cked up here. He already knew that.
There had been multiple opportunities for him to make a different decision, and any one of them would have kept his seniors’ primordial souls back in the main world where they belonged.
If he hadn’t sent them the ‘magical power flow’, they wouldn’t have been able to advance through the levels like that, reaching the Fifth Level and getting forcibly dragged to the Black Dragon World.
If he had just not linked his stupid QR code to the Dragon Network, it would never have been a problem in the first place.
Senior White sighed a little and reached out his hand.
Song Shuhang braced himself for...well, he wasn’t really sure for what. He just felt like he needed to brace himself.
However, Senior White only lightly patted his head. Then he paused, and his fingers began to gently comb through Song Shuhang’s hair instead.
Song Shuhang’s eyes slipped closed for a moment. It was a nice feeling. It would have been quite relaxing at any other time.
As it was, although some of the tension fell away from his shoulders, as soon as he thought about where his story was going, they felt tense all over again.
“It’s good to learn from past mistakes,” Senior White said. “However, you shouldn’t dwell on them too much, or they’re likely to become an inner demon in the future.”
Song Shuhang nodded, but his grip tightened around his teacup. “But what if those mistakes got someone killed?”
Senior White’s hand in his hair briefly froze. “Did someone die?”
In fact, as soon as Song Shuhang had said the primordial souls of their fellow daoists had been involved in his tribulation, Senior White had considered that possibility. One’s primordial soul was fragile and couldn’t defend itself well. One wrong move could have easily wiped them all out.
Nevertheless, he was sure that if someone in the group had died, that would have been the very first thing Song Shuhang would have told him.
Song Shuhang was quiet for a good long minute while he frowned down at his cup.
“I don’t know?” he said eventually.
“You don’t know?” Senior White repeated with a slight frown. Did that mean someone had died?
Song Shuhang glanced over at him and gave him a wry smile. “It’s okay, everyone’s still alive. They all made it safely back to the main world. It’s just that...well, I’ll tell you the rest of what happened first. I’m not sure how to explain it.”
“Alright,” Senior White said. His fingers returned to combing slowly through Song Shuhang’s hair.
Mm-hm, it felt pretty good.
“Since all the seniors got involved in my tribulation, it got pushed to the Eighth Stage again. In fact, I suspect it may have even reached the Ninth Stage,” Song Shuhang said with a sigh. “So we got pulled into another space to finish it again. However, the place we were sent wasn’t the Heavenly Tribulation Realm but a new ‘Group Tribulation Transcension Space’...”
He explained about the ‘Group Tribulation Transcension Space’. This was a partially-finished space he suspected had been created specifically to deal with situations like this one, so a group tribulation of the Eighth Stage or higher wouldn’t harm the main world, but people who weren’t actually ascending to the Eighth Stage wouldn’t randomly be given Sage Seals.
In other words, it was somewhat his fault again.
The Heavenly Emperor and Song Shuhang’s captive steel manifestation, who had also been transcending a tribulation, also got pulled in with them, much the way he had been unjustly implicated in Senior Skylark’s tribulations not long ago.
However, unlike him, the Heavenly Emperor had a way to leave when it was her turn. She swapped her team out for Soft Feather and Doudou, resulting in even more of the group getting involved in his tribulation...
Song Shuhang had to stop and just sit there enjoying the feeling of Senior White’s fingers fondling his hair for a moment.
Seriously speaking, if he did end up with an inner demon in the future, it was going to be this f*cking tribulation.
Look, Song Shuhang was becoming used to the idea of transcending his tribulation with other people, and he had also become quite familiar with Uncle Eighth Stage Heavenly Tribulation. Such a tribulation was well within the limits of what the current Song Shuhang could handle.
But having to do it with so many of his seniors...and they hadn’t even been in a state where they could defend themselves...they could only sit back and pray that Song Shuhang would be able to handle it...
What if he hadn’t been able to handle it? What if they had all been wiped out?
His seniors weren’t only important to him but to so many other people...
If they had all died...
If any of them had died...
At least Soft Feather and Doudou had been there with their real bodies. He hadn’t wanted them to get involved either, but at least they had some chance of defending themselves.
...That slow caress of fingers in his hair really was very comforting. Song Shuhang took a deep breath and continued.
One by one, their senses were taken away from them.
He and Soft Feather had teamed up to take down the ‘personified’ heavenly tribulation lightning which had caused it, but it was no use. The spell had been cast, and it would continue until none of them could sense anything at all.
At that time, he had miraculously been able to reconnect with the Dragon Network, only for it to inform him of what was coming next.
The ‘Invisible Death’.
The last wave of the tribulation, a sort of ‘appraisal’ which would pass over them, and anyone deemed unworthy would turn to ashes and die.
This shining brilliance could not be stopped, could not be defeated, could not be avoided in any way...
One could only lay there as a salted fish and pray.
And by the time it appeared, even their divine sense was taken away.
They couldn’t see it coming. Literally.
They couldn’t sense it in any way.
They had no way of knowing whether it was still approaching or if it had already passed over.
One could only stand there.
And pray.
And wait.
Song Shuhang had never before felt that a heavenly tribulation was legitimately trying to just kill him and get it over with, but that was sure what this one had felt like.
It did everything in its power to make it impossible to fight back, and then dropped a nuke.
Thankfully, Song Shuhang had just enough time before the brilliance of the ‘Invisible Death’ appeared for him to try a few ways to fight back.
Most of them didn’t work.
Even his favorite trick of using Senior Skylark’s hair to lure out a giant turtle of disaster didn’t work, because the turtle that showed up had already taken a beating because of that trick once. It fled as soon as it appeared and didn’t take a single person away with it.
It was truly a shame. That was an excellent trick to get out of messy situations such as these...when it worked.
In the end, he could only stand there.
And pray.
Pray that Senior Skylark’s hair, which seemed to be able to resist the brilliance a bit, could help protect everyone.
Pray that his pseudo-eternity smoke mode was enough like the real thing to protect everyone.
Pray that everyone would be able to pass this tribulation as easily as—shockingly—Lady Onion had.
And wait.
Senior White was no longer stroking his hair. In fact, at some point, Senior White had taken his hand back and even drawn away from Song Shuhang somewhat.
This was because, as Song Shuhang described his experience with the ‘Invisible Death Tribulation’, he was able to create a connection with the energy of heaven and earth, and the spiritual energy around him began to condense into the embryonic form of an ‘Illusory Reality’.
Senior White drew away in order to allow him to have this experience undisturbed—and also to set up a small formation so he wouldn’t disturb others.
It was quite lucky for Song Shuhang to touch upon the creation of illusory realities even though he was only at the Sixth Stage. Moreover, it felt as though this wasn’t the first time!
However, Song Shuhang did not seem to notice the changes happening around him. His eyes were fixed firmly on the empty teacup in his hands, his gaze empty and staring right through it.
As he spoke, the area of about six meters around him was covered by the illusion. It didn’t even reach the edges of Senior White’s small formation, and it wasn’t enough to affect anyone in the nearby Dragon Blood Tribe or Soft Feather and Doudou, who were their guests.
Senior White, who was sitting right next to Song Shuhang, was well within its range. He allowed himself to be drawn into the illusion.
The world of the illusion was pure white, an unfinished product. The clouds blanketing the sky above them were thick with the aura of the heavenly tribulation.
A heavy Buddhist hum sounded through the space.
At once, Senior White had the distinct impression of losing his hearing. At the same time, he could also still hear Song Shuhang speaking next to him.
The illusion was only a prototype, so his experience was from both a first person perspective and that of an outside observer.
His senses of ‘smell’ and ‘taste’ went next. Then his ‘sight’ went dark, and he could no longer ‘feel’ the ground he was sitting on nor the cup in his hand.
It was quite a profound experience.
In the distance, a brilliant light bloomed and began to spread through the space.
It was quite slow at first, but steadily grew faster and faster as it rushed toward them like a tsunami.
It had filled about half the space when his ‘divine sense’ weakened and disappeared.
Song Shuhang and their fellow daoists had been forced to wait in silent darkness for quite a long time before the brilliance passed over them.
However, as this was an unfinished product, Senior White could still watch as the brilliance rushed toward them.
At this time, Song Shuhang’s voice also began echoing through the space.
"Don't die! I can't let any of you die! ... I have to hold on! ... Everyone, please survive ... Please, let everyone survive this heavenly tribulation..."
It sounded desperate and close to tears.
Senior White had never heard Song Shuhang sound like that before.
Something in his chest ached as he listened to it.
It was unknown whether a person caught in this illusion would actually be able to hear this voice once it was fully formed. It was only because Song Shuhang himself had been the one making such hopeless pleas that it could appear in this illusion at all.
If anyone else had been making them, he wouldn’t have been able to hear it.
The brilliance swept over them.
In the next moment, the illusion collapsed.
“I don’t know when it finally hit us,” Song Shuhang finished. “I just know that at some point, I couldn’t maintain my smoke mode anymore, and I collapsed. When I woke up, it was over and everyone was fine.”
Senior White asked curiously, “Then who died?”
“No one died,” Song Shuhang said again. He frowned down at his hand and went on, “However, while I was unconscious, I had a dream—or maybe it was an inner demon, I don’t know. Anyway, I saw Senior Ancient Lake Temple, Senior Tian Tianwei, and Senior Copper Trigram all turn to ashes due to the ‘Invisible Death’. Then later, Senior Ancient Lake Temple and Senior Copper Trigram both said they felt they had died during the tribulation. So...I can’t shake the feeling that something really happened to them.”
“That is strange,” Senior White said as he pinched his chin in thought. “I’ll see if I can find an opportunity to look them over once we return to the main world. Your dream may have been a warning that they have some hidden damage from this experience.”
Song Shuhang’s shoulders slumped in relief. “Thank you, Senior White.”
Senior White smiled a little. “It’s nothing. In the meantime, you should try not to worry about it too much. Even if something did happen, everyone is alive now and that’s what matters. If there’s more to it than that, it’ll reveal itself in time.”
Song Shuhang nodded. Sure enough, he could always count on Senior White to tell him what he needed to hear.
At this time, Senior White started moving the tea and snacks around to his other side so it wasn’t between them anymore. He didn’t seem to be putting any of it away, though.
Senior White asked, “Since it was another Eighth Stage Tribulation, did you also have to give another speech?”
Song Shuhang said with a sigh, “Yeah. Doudou, Soft Feather, and I all gave speeches. Little Yinzhu was supposed to, too, but she slept through it, haha. Luckily, I had those manuscripts we found in the secret realm. You should watch them if you still can, Senior White. I think we did a pretty good job this time.”
Senior White said, “Alright, I’ll make sure to watch them later.”
“Oh, and Soft Feather said that Senior Spirit Butterfly gave a speech as well. And also Senior White T—er, the other Senior White’s pet, № Hamster.” Song Shuhang suddenly remembered about this point.
“Oh, Fellow Daoist Spirit Butterfly has finished transcending his tribulation? I’ll have to remember to send him my regards.” Senior White paused and frowned at Song Shuhang, who was suddenly very distressed. “What is it?”
“I just realized, I slept through № Hamster’s speech!” Song Shuhang exclaimed. “That’s not good, I’m supposed to take a test on it!”
“Even if you were asleep, shouldn’t you have still been able to see it?” Senior White asked.
The ‘Profound Sage Speech’ was something which every practitioner had a right to see no matter where they were or what they were doing—the only exception was if someone was in a secret realm which blocked the signal. Even if a practitioner was transcending a tribulation, they would have the chance to see the Profound Sage Speech once their tribulation was over.
Even if Song Shuhang was asleep, he should have still had the chance to see these two speeches in his dreams.
Song Shuhang wore a bitter expression as he said, “While I was unconscious, I was being tortured. Even if I did see their speeches, I don’t remember it.”
Song Shuhang explained briefly about secretly taking on the Black Dragon World’s Eighth Level Tribulation for all the seniors.
The corner of Senior White’s eye twitched a bit. “Then why don’t I repeat it for you later?”
Song Shuhang felt tears of joy spring to his own eyes. “Senior White!”
[Nope, it’s too late. I don’t feel like giving you a test anymore. Therefore, you fail,] said Senior White Two’s voice suddenly.
Now Song Shuhang definitely felt like crying, but it wasn’t from joy. [Senior White, don’t be like this!]
Senior White Two said, [Hehe, I warned you that you should pay attention to № Hamster’s speech. Now, wait for me to come over and deal out your punishment.]
“Fellow Daoist Netherworld White, stop teasing him for now,” Senior White said gently. “You’ll get your turn later.”
He could tell just from Song Shuhang’s expression that Senior White Two had chimed in to scold him over this matter concerning his little hamster’s Sage Speech.
Senior White Two transmitted something over to Song Shuhang that felt distinctly like pouting. However, he also didn’t say anything more.
Senior White waved his hand. “Shuhang, come over here.”
Song Shuhang was a little confused. Weren’t they already sitting pretty close?
Even so, he dutifully scooted over a couple feet into the spot where the tea had been. This close, their shoulders were almost touching.
Senior White turned around to face him.
With a rather solemn look on his face, he wrapped his arms around Song Shuhang and pulled him in so close the younger man was practically sitting in his lap.
[Ah,] said Senior White Two. He said nothing else.
Song Shuhang froze, his arms awkwardly stiff at his sides.
Was Senior White...hugging him?
Song Shuhang felt his face heat up a bit, although he couldn’t say why.
It wasn’t like he’d never been this close to Senior White before. It was just that, usually, Song Shuhang was the one desperately clinging to Senior White so he wouldn’t fall off his terrifyingly fast sword.
And it did feel...desperate. Senior White’s arms closed around his waist and back like a vice, and his hand clutched at Song Shuhang’s shoulder as if he was afraid Song Shuhang might run away the second he had the chance. Song Shuhang couldn’t see his face at all; even if his curtain of glossy black hair hadn’t been in the way, the way his face was pressed against Song Shuhang’s shoulder would have made it difficult.
Was Senior White trying to comfort him...?
To be honest, it kind of felt more like he was trying to comfort himself.
He didn’t know what to do next.
Song Shuhang placed a hesitant hand on his back. “Senior White...?”
Senior White’s hold on him tightened instantly.
“Just...let me stay like this for a little while, okay, Shuhang?” Senior White murmured against his shoulder.
He didn’t sound like he was upset. Maybe he had just suddenly decided that giving little friend Shuhang a hug seemed interesting?
“...Okay.” Song Shuhang hesitated, then he also brought his arms up across Senior White’s back.
Senior White’s death grip relaxed just a little, and he nodded in approval against Song Shuhang’s shoulder.
Song Shuhang sighed and tightened his hug a bit. Well, as long as Senior White is happy, it’s fine.
Anyway...it was actually kind of nice.
Senior White was very warm and—once Song Shuhang adjusted his position a bit—surprisingly comfortable to lean against. Being inside the circle of his arms felt a bit like being inside a cocoon—very snug and secure and as if the outside world no longer existed. The steady thrum of his spiritual energy beneath his skin—almost as familiar to Song Shuhang as his own—was extremely soothing.
It wouldn’t be hard to just...fall asleep like this.
Too bad he’d just been asleep for days and wasn’t tired at all.
Maybe...he really did need a hug right now. Even if it seemed like Senior White was hugging him to reassure himself of something, it was also very comforting for Song Shuhang.
He was here. He wasn’t off exploring some secret realm or paying his spiritual energy bill or whisked away to the Ninth Stage Tribulation Realm or closed up for some indeterminate amount of time. He was right here, solid and very real between Song Shuhang’s arms, and so long as he was here, Song Shuhang felt like he didn’t need to worry about anything.
Even Senior White’s crazy luck which dropped meteors on the people around him couldn’t possibly target him while Senior White’s arms were wrapped around him like a protective barrier...right?
Right. This was a very comforting thought, and he was absolutely not going to believe otherwise.
Also...he’d kind of missed Senior White. The real Senior White. His clones had been around, but they weren’t quite the same.
Ever since they had entered the Black Dragon World—no, maybe even since the Immortal Feast had ended, he felt like he hadn’t seen much of the real Senior White. And he missed him.
Senior White’s thumb was slowly moving back and forth on his shoulder. Song Shuhang closed his eyes and relaxed a bit more.
That was pretty nice, too, actually.
...Also, he smelled pretty good.
Maybe it was a weird thought to have, but he did. Just like everything else about him, the way Senior White smelled was...very nice. Intoxicating.
Perfect.
“I’m really glad you’re back, Senior White,” Song Shuhang murmured after a while.
He had no idea how long they had just been sitting there hugging. For some reason, he found he didn’t really care that much.
Senior White obviously didn’t care, and if he didn’t care, then why should Song Shuhang care? He’d missed Senior White! He should be allowed to hug his senior whom he’d missed for as long as he wanted!
Unfortunately, though, Song Shuhang finally saying something seemed to cause Senior White to decide it was time to move. His arm around Song Shuhang’s waist remained where it was, but the other arm around his shoulders fell away as Senior White leaned back a bit.
He pressed a light hand against Song Shuhang’s chest to encourage him to lean back some as well.
Any form of protest or questioning died in his throat when faced with the rather pensive look Senior White was giving him. He sat there, unmoving, as Senior White lifted his hand, and his fingers gently brushed the hair back from Song Shuhang’s face.
His thumb lightly skimmed over Song Shuhang’s cheekbone.
Song Shuhang felt his face heat up again. Why was he...what was he doing...?
Also, he was pretty sure that Senior White hadn’t accidentally released his charm at any point here, so why was his heart beating so fast?!
“I’m sorry, Shuhang,” Senior White said sincerely. For a split second, Song Shuhang thought it really was about his weird charm, until he continued, “It seems like every time I leave you for a little while, you’re drawn into these kinds of troublesome life or death situations.”
“That’s not your fault, Senior White,” Song Shuhang said softly.
He knew very well that it was just the universe conspiring against him for some reason.
Granted, it did seem to conspire against him extra hard any time Senior White wasn’t around. So the way to fix that probably was for Senior White to just never leave him alone.
But there was no way he could suggest that even as a joke. Even though he wouldn’t mind it at all. Senior White already spent a lot of his time with Song Shuhang, and he really didn’t have to. He had his own life.
Besides, if the universe really had it out for him, he’d suffer whether Senior White was there or not eventually. After all, Senior White hadn’t even meant to go anywhere this last time, it had just kind of happened.
Senior White said, “Even so, I’m sorry you had to go through all of that. If there had been any way for me to help, I would have.”
Song Shuhang smiled a little. “I know.”
Indeed, even though Senior White had already been in the Ninth Stage Tribulation Realm at the time, he had still sent over some power to help Song Shuhang in his fight against Demon Emperor Hezhi.
Senior White smiled as well and lightly ruffled his hair. “I’m also glad that you’re still here, Shuhang. You did very well.”
A kind of warm, fuzzy feeling blossomed in Song Shuhang’s chest.
Strange, Senior White had clearly praised him for other things in the past, so why did he feel so happy about it this time?
Well, whatever. He was allowed to feel happy that a senior had told him he’d done a good job, he thought. Especially when he personally felt that he had only just barely avoided disaster.
[Mm-hm, it’s good that you’re still alive after all that.] Senior White Two’s voice suddenly spoke up again. [I don’t know how you’ve ended up provoking the Heavenly Tribulation of all things, but it seems to have become quite ruthless against you in particular. You’ll need to be especially careful next time.]
Song Shuhang felt a little embarrassed—had Senior White Two been watching the whole time???—but also even more moved. [Thank you, Senior White. Don’t worry about me, I’ll definitely be extra careful next time.]
[Don’t mistake my intentions. I’m only happy you’re alive because it would be troublesome for me if something were to happen to your Inner World one day,] Senior White Two said, and he cut the connection.
“...” Song Shuhang.
Mm-hm, whatever you say, Senior White.
“Senior White, can we take a look at my cultivation technique now?” Song Shuhang asked.
Senior White laughed softly. “Alright. I would also like to see your eight Spirit Lakes later. It sounds fascinating.”
Song Shuhang said, “Sure! Oh, right, I can also show you the ‘Star Road’ composition on my whale core. Senior White T—the other Senior White already saw it, but I think you would also find it very interesting, Senior White.”
He thought that Senior White would like this Golden Core Composition which included most of their fellow daoists, and he would also be very intrigued as to why he—along with a few other big shots—hadn’t appeared on it. Also, he would have a chance to look at Song Shuhang’s ninth dragon pattern again, the one that reflected one’s ‘true self’.
When Senior White’s clone had looked at this dragon pattern, he had only seen a crude drawing. However, the real Senior White still hadn’t looked at it. Song Shuhang had always been very curious about what the real Senior White would see.
“Shouldn’t your whale core have already evolved into a Spirit Lake?” Senior White asked curiously.
“It did give birth to a Spirit Lake, but because my life-bound golden core is rather special, the whale core itself is also still there,” Song Shuhang explained. “Also, I never actually had the chance to draw a Golden Core Composition on that core, either. It just kind of appeared by itself.”
“How interesting! I’ve never heard of a Golden Core Composition that drew itself before,” said Senior White.
However, he didn’t make any move to let go of Song Shuhang or to let Song Shuhang move away himself. In fact, his free arm went to join the other still wrapped around Song Shuhang’s waist, keeping him firmly trapped.
Song Shuhang said embarrassedly, “Senior White, you have to let go of me to look over the cultivation technique.”
Yet Song Shuhang didn’t really try to free himself either. He was very comfortable here in Senior White’s arms. It gave him a very warm feeling that made him reluctant to part with it.
“Hmm, I’ve changed my mind. Why don’t you show me your Spirit Lakes and this ‘Star Road’ composition first? It would be easier for me to revise that technique for you if I know what I’m working with,” Senior White said.
Song Shuhang knew this was just an excuse. For whatever reason, Senior White just wanted to keep holding him.
He knew Senior White knew that he knew.
On the other hand, this was also very solid logic and Song Shuhang had no interest in arguing against it.
After all, he also wanted Senior White to keep holding him.
“Okay. Senior, please come with me,” Song Shuhang said.
Senior White carefully separated out a strand of his mental energy, and Song Shuhang guided it join his own inside his dantian.