Chapter 181: with translation of chapter title

Blood.

It is my blood that gave them all a chance to be reborn.

When I cut my finger to prepare to draw a lightning-summoning talisman, the black vapor that flew over and devoured the blood on my fingertip were the souls lingering in Tafengcun.

After they absorbed a drop of my blood, following the great reshuffling in Tafengcun, they not only gained the chance to come back to life, but some even became younger than before.

A bunch of monsters!

"It seems the matter of Tafengcun won't be resolved anytime soon." Liu Junyan said, "Xiao Jiu, let's head back first."

Yes.

If I'm not mistaken, to completely resolve the matter of Tafengcun, I would have to die.

Tafengcun and I are destined to remain entangled, neither death nor rest will part us.

After returning that day, my mood has been terrible, and I've felt dazed and unfocused.

Something else happened outside; when Liu Junyan went out, he told me to sleep first tonight, estimating he'd return late.

Li Qingying and I kept watch at the Nan Shu Fang as usual until twelve; with no customers, we closed up, tidied a bit, and went to bed.

But as soon as I fell asleep, I heard someone seemingly calling from beside my ear: "Ālí… Ālí, you should come back to fulfill our marriage pledge."

Even in my dream, I immediately recognized that voice—it was the one who appeared on the Yellow Springs Road, calling himself "Qiu Gege".

He claimed to be my fiancé.

I thought that after being rescued from the Yellow Springs Road that day, I would hardly have any further dealings with him.

Yet I never expected he could still make contact with me in my dreams!

What on earth is going on?

That sound came from far away, growing nearer and nearer, until it seemed as if someone were leaning right by my ear, calling to me.

I jolted awake from my dream.

As I sat up, the door was pushed open just then—Liu Junyan had returned.

I almost reflexively sprang from the bed, lunged forward, and plunged into Liu Junyan's arms.

Liu Junyan startled, then instinctively held me tighter and asked, "Xiao Jiu, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"

"Āyàn, I'm scared."

Even now, my voice still trembles a little.

What I fear is not the dream itself, nor perhaps that Qiu Gege, but the Phoenix Clan behind him.

I struggled for eighteen years, and just as I was about to turn nineteen, I finally found my place, gained a lover and friends, and now I fear losing it all.

I fear being forced in this life to become entangled with my past life.

I don't want to be a phoenix-fox slave anymore; I just want to peacefully be my Xiao Jiu!

Liu Junyan didn't know what had happened; he scooped me up sideways, carried me back to bed, lay beside me on my side, and stroked my hair, asking, "Xiao Jiu, haven't you recovered from the upheaval in Tafengcun yet?"

"No." I shook my head and confessed, "It's that when my soul was drawn to the Yellow Springs Road, something happened."

I recounted to Liu Junyan, in detail, everything that happened after I encountered Qiu Gege.

The more he listened, the tighter Liu Junyan's brows furrowed, until he finally asked, "So the reason you suddenly brought up meeting my parents earlier was because of this?"

I nodded: "Yes."

"If what he says is true, and you once exchanged birth characters, that would be troublesome." Liu Junyan looked at me solemnly and said, "After the Tafengcun incident, there's a harsh fact I hadn't dared to mention to you…"

I asked: "What?"

"You must have realized that the villagers of Tafengcun are not ordinary reincarnations." Liu Junyan said, "Xiao Jiu, you too were born a child in Tafengcun, so…"

Liu Junyan wanted to speak but hesitated, finding it hard to get the words out.

But I already understood: "So I'm likely not an ordinary reincarnation either; that means my entanglements with my past life are hard to sever cleanly, and as long as that Qiu Gege doesn't let go, I can't escape the fate of returning to fulfill our marriage pledge, right?"

That possibility makes me feel desperate.

Why is it that whenever things finally start to improve, some complication always appears, pushing me back into the abyss again?

Does that mean I don't deserve happiness?!

"Xiao Jiu, it's just that we had a marriage pledge and exchanged birth characters, but we never actually became husband and wife, never registered in the Yin Marriage Nether Register, and it's never been recorded, so this is easy to settle." Liu Junyan said, "Even if you were once truly husband and wife, you are now my wife; I would storm the Ten Halls of Yama Palace and write your name beside mine."

"Your name can appear only on my Yin Marriage Nether Register."

In the mortal realm, a marriage between a man and a woman is registered at the civil affairs bureau.

As for marriages that involve both the yin and yang realms, regardless of the combination, they ultimately must be registered in the Yin Marriage Nether Register in the nether realm.

So if Liu Junyan and I were to register our marriage, we wouldn't get a marriage certificate but a Yin Marriage Nether Register.

Of course, marriages in the Upper Realm are not included here.

The Upper Realm… also rarely sees marriages.

Liu Junyan spoke with conviction, yet I felt my eyes well up.

In truth, he knows as well as I do just how much we'd have to sacrifice to protect our feelings.

Earlier, I had resolutely set out alone up the mountain, thinking that once I'd fully solved the mystery of my origins, I could wholeheartedly accompany Liu Junyan to face the upcoming Four Great Ferocious Beast Formation.

But… things don't always go as we wish.

Liu Junyan hooked a finger and tapped my nose, feigning ease as he said, "Xiao Jiu, relax—things aren't as tough as you imagine; just leave everything to me."

For now, it seems I have no choice but to trust him.

I reached out and clung to Liu Junyan's waist, burying my face in his chest, and stayed like that for a long, long time.

Later, I can't even remember when I fell asleep.

But it seems that as long as Liu Junyan sleeps beside me, I won't be disturbed by that thing anymore.

So for many days to come, no matter how busy Liu Junyan is, he will definitely return in the evenings to keep me company while I sleep.

Seeing that the New Year was just around the corner, although I still would go with Li Qingying to guard Nan Shu Fang until late every night, yet I didn't want any more business to come knocking.

This is the first New Year we will welcome after Dang Pu reopened.

It is also the first year since I came to Dang Pu that I have not spent with grandma.

I do not seek bustle; I only wish for safety.

I also occasionally go to the teahouse entrance to stroll around, to see if the proprietress has returned.

She has been gone for nearly ten days, with no word at all.

Jiang Yingxue's side relies entirely on Jin Wuya to hold on; otherwise, I estimate her soul would have already scattered.

On the twenty-sixth of the twelfth lunar month, Li Qingying and I went to the county town to buy New Year goods; we returned a bit late, and at the junction entering Wufu Town's territory, we actually encountered a Red Flag Child squatting on the curb.

The little child was barefoot, holding the Red Flag, and with a tree branch in hand was drawing randomly on the ground.

This Little Guy is very opinionated.

Regarding the Pearl Coil River incident earlier, he showed up uninvited at the critical moment and helped us.

After the situation subsided, he slipped away quietly and never appeared again.

His sudden appearance today surprised both Li Qingying and me.

He seemed to have sensed something as well; he lifted his head, glanced at our vehicle, immediately stood up, and trotted over to meet us.

I don't know if it's my imagination, but I always feel that the Little Guy seems to be pouting, with the look of someone who has been wronged and is looking for a parent to tell on.