Chapter 55
Before they could react, both of them were drawn into the illusion.
The scene before them rapidly shifted. The foggy surroundings gradually became clear, revealing two thatched huts at the foot of the mountain, swaying precariously in the wind and rain.
Upon seeing the familiar thatched huts, Haowei’s heart skipped a beat, as if a hand had gripped his throat, making it hard to breathe.
This was the place where he and Si Lan’s wisp of spirit once resided.
He glanced sideways and noticed that at some point, Si Lan had disappeared from his side.
In the void of the illusion, he was suspended alone, watching the scene of the pouring rain.
He slowly approached the huts, and the dark figure sitting on the threshold became clearer.
The little fool didn’t know how to tie his hair, so it was simply tied behind him with a piece of gray cloth. His eyes were red, as if he had just cried, and they were wet, staring unblinkingly at the heavy rain.
This illusion could make one see the deepest regrets in their heart.
For Haowei, the greatest regret was not returning to find the little fool back then.
Even though he could break free from the illusion and return to reality at any moment, he wanted to keep watching. He wanted to know what had happened to the little fool after he left and to see the final outcome of this regret.
The rain continued to pour, making the huts sway. The little fool, lost in thought, got up, put on a straw hat, and stumbled into the rain towards the mountain.
Haowei almost called out to him, but the moment he opened his mouth, he remembered that if he really did, he might get trapped in this illusion, so he held back and silently followed the little fool.
The rain, mixed with mud and rocks, flowed down the mountain path. The little fool, caught off guard, was knocked down by the mudslide. His knee was scr4p3d, and the strong wind blew off his hat, which was only held in place by the strap around his neck.
Grabbing onto the wild grass on the ground to steady himself, the little fool didn’t bother to put the hat back on. Seeing another wave of mudslide coming, he hugged a nearby tree, clinging to it tightly as tears and rain mixed on his face, making his aggrieved expression barely visible in the misty rain.
This made Haowei clench his fists involuntarily, closing his eyes in unspeakable pain.
Really foolish.
Why run into the mountains in such heavy rain?
After the mudslide passed, the little fool used the wild grass and thorns on the ground to steady himself and slowly crawled to the middle of the mountain, his face showing a joyful expression. He reached out to part the grass, revealing a dark cave entrance.
Seeing the cave, Haowei suddenly understood.
He had come to the cave looking for him, thinking he would take shelter here in the rain, unaware that he had long since left.
Haowei had told him many times that he was going to join the army, yet he still couldn’t remember.
Well, he was just a little fool, it wasn’t fair to expect too much from him.
The little fool didn’t find Haowei in the cave but met the Taixu Divine Lord instead. Haowei didn’t know what the Taixu Divine Lord had said to him, but the little fool didn’t leave the cave that night. He just hugged a wooden doll and curled up as if waiting for Haowei to return.
Haowei couldn’t bear to watch any longer. Turning his head away, the scene before him changed again.
It was still the thatched hut, but the little fool’s wisp of spirit seemed to be called away, about to vanish. He seemed to sense it, reaching out to grab the wooden doll with Haowei’s face carved on it. But his body suddenly convulsed in pain, his hand trembling as he tried to touch it, only for the wisp of spirit to turn into a brownish light and gradually disappear into the air.
The illusion shifted once more, now showing Lanlan’s home.
The man who should have been asleep woke up from the bed, his eyes dark like ink, resembling two black jades set in his pale face. Beads of sweat dotted his small nose, as if he had a nightmare. After sitting up, he stayed dazed for a long time.
Seeing Si Lan in this state, Haowei’s heart ached again. He wanted to reach out and touch this moment’s Si Lan, but he didn’t dare.
Everything before him was just a reflection of the past created by the illusion, designed to evoke inappropriate desires and make him sink into it.
When Si Lan woke up, Lanlan saw him and excitedly rushed to him, saying, “You’re awake?”
Si Lan nodded, his expression momentarily dazed, “I… was it you who saved me?”
“Yes, I’m your savior. You must… promise me one thing.”
“Alright.”
“I want you to marry me.”
Haowei saw Si Lan fall silent for a moment before slowly nodding, “Okay.”
The next moment was the wedding day. Si Lan was dressed in a red wedding robe, his hair tied up high with a jade crown, looking exquisitely handsome. Though he was a demonic cultivator, his aura was unmatched.
Haowei’s eyes stung at the sight. Clearly… it was he who had saved him and raised him for so long, yet upon waking, he was marrying another woman!
Moreover, he had married that woman three times, entangled for hundreds of years!
The more Haowei thought about it, the angrier he became, not noticing the flaw in the illusion. His eyes remained fixed on the scene where Si Lan, holding the bride’s hand, slowly walked towards the hall.
The officiant was chanting, “First bow to heaven and earth…”
“Second bow to the parents…”
“Husband and wife bow to each other…”
Haowei felt overwhelmed by the sea of red, so glaringly bright. As he reached out to cast a spell to destroy everything before him, his wrist was suddenly grasped. Turning around, he saw another Si Lan appear beside him.
Si Lan glanced at the scene in the illusion, frowned, and said to Haowei, “This is fake. Can’t you tell?”
Si Lan had also fallen into an illusion earlier, reliving the day he failed to save Luo Hui. However, he had easily seen through the illusion and escaped, finding Haowei only to see this scene now.
Haowei’s breath slightly restrained, he remained silent for a while before saying, “Fake?”
“Mhm, I didn’t marry Lanlan in the mortal realm.” The earlier illusion might have been real, but the latter part was fake, clearly meant to mess with Haowei’s mind.
“Then in the demon realm? You and her…” Haowei’s words stopped abruptly, his dark eyes staring at Si Lan.
Si Lan recalled that when Haowei was still a little white dragon, he had already explained this to him, but he didn’t expect him to still be fixated on it now.
He glanced at Haowei and vaguely saw a trace of black energy pass over Haowei’s forehead. Startled, he looked again carefully but saw nothing, thinking he might have imagined it.
He looked away and, while breaking the illusion, said, “Although Lanlan and I reached the marriage contract stage in the demon realm, something always went wrong right before the wedding night.” He felt wronged; he did nothing, yet ended up with three ex-wives.
Haowei remained noncommittal, his face still gloomy.
After Si Lan broke the illusion, the scene quickly returned to its original state. The dispersed demonic energy gathered again, filling most of the sky.
How strange, how did the Swastika formation break?
Haowei’s eyes sharpened, and he drew his long sword. At that moment, his heart was filled with a deep gloom. Encountering this lingering demonic energy gave him a chance to vent. His movements were swift, and his sword aura was like a stream of arrows, slicing the demonic energy into pieces. The pained screeches of the forming demon could be faintly heard.
Determined to be ruthless, even after dispersing the demonic energy, Haowei still wasn’t satisfied. He swung his sword again, slicing the tops off fifty-eight mountains. Thick smoke billowed instantly, and the terrified roars of the suppressed beasts echoed from the mountains below.
Si Lan looked at Haowei and seemed to see a trace of dark energy between his brows again. Just as he was about to speak, it disappeared.
Haowei sheathed his sword and placed the Demon Suppression Formation on the mountain peak. The beasts’ voices disappeared instantly.
Si Lan sensed something was wrong. Haowei’s emotions were very unstable; did the scene in the illusion affect him that much?
He had already explained that the wedding scene in the mortal realm was fake.
He initially planned to continue investigating Yuwuxia’s affairs but, seeing this situation, suggested they return to the demon realm to rest and let Haowei calm down a bit.
Haowei didn’t respond.
Along the way, Haowei remained silent, a nameless rage and resentment brewing within him. His mind kept replaying the scene of Si Lan and Lanlan’s wedding.
If it weren’t for him being the true dragon’s son, anyone who stole his luck and fate would face divine retribution. Si Lan and Lanlan would have long been together, sweetly in love.
The more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt.
They landed on Zhuyun Peak, where clusters of golden and silver honeysuckle swayed with the mountain breeze, blooming profusely and filling the air with fragrance, seemingly mocking his irritation.
He suddenly remembered that Lanlan’s third life was as a honeysuckle demon, and Si Lan had planted the entire peak with honeysuckle for her.
Heh.
It had been hundreds of years, yet Si Lan hadn’t removed them.
He clenched his fingers, suppressing the rising anger in his heart.
Si Lan sneaked a glance at him. As they walked side by side, the setting sun cast their shadows on the ground, long and thin, their sleeves brushing against each other like they were holding hands.
Si Lan had no idea what Haowei was thinking, only sensing his low mood and unstable breath.
This jealousy was intense.
After some thought, he decided it was necessary to have a thorough talk with him.
Haowei had always minded his three ex-wives. Si Lan could understand; after all, Haowei, a virtuous and pure man, being with someone who had married three times was quite unfair.
He tentatively reached out, his little finger seemingly accidentally brushing Haowei’s hand. Seeing no reaction, he grew bolder and directly held Haowei’s hand.
Haowei’s steps paused, his facial muscles tensed, and the oppressive aura around him lessened slightly, but he still seemed unapproachable and difficult to deal with.
Si Lan steeled himself, treating Haowei as the little white dragon, coaxing him, “Don’t be mad. When Lanlan asked me to marry her, I agreed out of gratitude. At that time, my mind was full of thoughts of revenge, with no room for romantic feelings. Later, when I returned to the mortal realm after avenging myself, fifty years had passed, and Lanlan was already seventy years old when she married me.”
So, naturally, he didn’t develop romantic feelings for the first-life Lanlan.
“In her second and third lives, I only met Lanlan once before we made the marriage contract. To my shame, my mind was still preoccupied with revenge, with no interest in love, nor did I think of cultivating feelings with Lanlan. Thus, despite our entanglement over three lives, we only met five or six times in total.”
“In her fourth life, she married the husband she lost early in her first life. I was actually quite relieved. If she had married me, it wouldn’t have been a happy union for either of us, as I had no romantic feelings for her.”
Si Lan said a lot, but Haowei’s expression remained unchanged until the last sentence, when he finally turned to look at Si Lan, his gaze slightly shifting.
“No romantic feelings at all?”
“None.”
Haowei wasn’t bothered by Si Lan’s three marriages but was concerned that Si Lan might have loved Lanlan or still harbored feelings for her.
Otherwise, Si Lan wouldn’t have gone to see Lanlan before leaving the mortal realm last time.
Hearing Si Lan’s words now, the gloom in his heart dissipated.
But these honeysuckle flowers…
Haowei lowered his gaze, his lips pressed into a thin line.
Following his gaze, Si Lan saw the honeysuckle flowers and suddenly understood, “Ah, these honeysuckle flowers, I always forgot to remove them. What flowers do you like?”
Haowei didn’t speak for a long time. After a while, he said nonchalantly, “No need to bother, honeysuckle flowers are fine.”
“Oh,” Si Lan responded, glancing sideways to see that Haowei’s expression had softened. He secretly let out a sigh of relief.
Dealing with a true dragon’s temperament was really tough.
Like serving an emperor, he had to treat Haowei with utmost care.
He needed to find a way to turn the tables and make Haowei follow his lead for a change.
At that moment, Qu Ze and Xie Li were walking towards them from the mountain. Si Lan instinctively tried to pull his hand away from Haowei’s, but Haowei took the initiative, gripping Si Lan’s hand even tighter.
Si Lan couldn’t shake his hand free and felt too embarrassed to make a scene, so he forced a smile and ended up standing there, holding hands with Haowei, in front of Qu Ze and Xie Li.
Qu Ze glanced at their joined hands, his swollen face revealing no expression. “Lord, we and the two protectors have gathered enough jade fruits.”
Si Lan forced a stiff smile, replying awkwardly, “Oh, really? Then you and the protectors should personally deliver them to their families and apologize.”
“Yes,” Qu Ze replied, lowering his head and glancing at their interlocked hands again.
If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed that the overlord of the Demon Realm and the overlord of the Heavenly Realm would be walking hand-in-hand under the sunset. If he spread this news, no one would believe him, and it might even be considered the biggest lie of the year.
Xie Li, being more straightforward, stared at their intertwined hands with wide eyes, his small face a mix of curiosity and confusion.
Si Lan, too busy to care about what his little disciple was thinking, gave an awkward laugh and quickly pulled Haowei away.
After only a few steps, he heard Xie Li whispering to Qu Ze.
“Senior Brother, can holding hands like that make them have babies?”
“…”
Si Lan was speechless.
Haowei glanced at Si Lan, seeming even more pleased.
Qu Ze, half exasperated, half serious, replied, “No.”
“But in the stories, it says if you hold hands, then on the bed, yin and yang connect, and in eight or nine months, a child will be born. Just the other day, I heard them on the bed…”
Before Xie Li could finish, Qu Ze covered his mouth and dragged him away, as if fearing further disaster.
Si Lan suddenly realized that his habit of reading those romantic stories had influenced Xie Li, causing the young boy to “understand” so much at such a young age.
Talking about bed, yin and yang connecting—how embarrassing.
Even Si Lan, who had lived for over a thousand years, felt ashamed.
Secretly annoyed, Si Lan decided that Xie Li must be sent for nine hundred years of compulsory education at the Demon Hall.
Haowei, still holding Si Lan’s hand, noticed his flushed face and smiled even more.
An improper old demon lord had raised an improper little demon lord.
Once they returned to the main hall, Haowei finally let go of Si Lan’s hand. Si Lan felt an immense relief, though his fingers still tingled where Haowei had held them. It was strange—Haowei wasn’t a heater, so why did his touch feel so peculiar?
Lost in these thoughts, Si Lan noticed it was late and decided to take a bath in the hot spring at the back of the mountain. He liked to think while bathing and planned to consider how to continue investigating Yu Wuxia.
Out of courtesy, he asked Haowei if he wanted to join.
Previously, in the Eight Trigrams Formation of Extreme Sound, the proud little white dragon refused to bathe with him, so Si Lan assumed Haowei would decline this time as well. Unexpectedly, Haowei nodded in agreement.
Feeling uneasy, Si Lan kept on his underclothes and shrank into a corner of the spring.
Haowei, upon entering the clear pool, immediately transformed into his original form. The white dragon swam leisurely in the water, its scales shimmering under the moonlight. The pond was shallow but vast, larger than most lakes.
Watching Haowei swim so joyfully without even glancing his way, Si Lan felt it was unnecessary to be so reserved. He took off his underclothes, leaving only his inner pants, and soaked quietly in the pleasantly warm water.
The water, meticulously maintained by Si Lan for centuries, not only nourished the body but also enhanced beauty.
After circling the pond a few times, Haowei reverted to his human form, seemingly a bit self-conscious, showing only his upper body while covering his lower half with a coarse white cloth.
He sat beside Si Lan, resting his hands on the edge of the pool, eyes closed. Water droplets fell from his dark hair, tracing down his jawline, chest, and along his well-defined abdomen before merging into the spring water.
Si Lan stole a glance at him and quickly looked away.
The mist rising from the water created an ambiguous atmosphere between them.
Trying to ease the awkwardness, Si Lan said, “The moonlight is beautiful tonight.”
“Mm,” Haowei responded.
Though brief, since Si Lan had clarified his relationship with Lan Lan earlier, Haowei’s mood seemed much better.
The silence returned, and Si Lan sank a bit deeper into the water.
Suddenly, he felt something cool brushing against him underwater. Looking down, he saw a white dragon tail curling around his leg.
“…”
He couldn’t help but look up at Haowei again. Haowei still had his eyes closed, but two pink dragon horns had appeared on his forehead.
How odd, transforming into human form while still showing dragon horns and tail?
Oh, he suddenly remembered Haowei had mentioned that his dragon horns appeared when he was angry.
Realizing this, Si Lan couldn’t understand what had upset the little white dragon this time.
Just moments ago, he seemed to be happily swimming.
The dragon tail under the water became more intrusive, the tip curling around Si Lan’s foot. The cool, smooth scales against Si Lan’s skin sent a chill through him.
His mind flashed back to something he’d heard during their spiritual cultivation.
“There’s another one, hidden beneath the dragon scales.”
His gaze deepened as he looked at the dragon tail, his brows furrowing slightly. Only during their first spiritual connection had he felt two, but back then he was so dazed that his memory was unclear. He hadn’t encountered it since.
Haowei seemed to sense Si Lan’s gaze. His dragon tail suddenly wrapped around Si Lan’s waist and pulled him into his arms.
Startled, Si Lan instinctively put his arms around Haowei’s neck to steady himself.
Haowei opened his eyes, his dark pupils fixed on Si Lan. “Why are you staring at me?”
“Weren’t you the one getting close to me first?” Si Lan noticed Haowei’s dragon horns were even pinker, resembling two delicate coral branches on his smooth forehead. It was oddly amusing.
Was Haowei really angry?
He didn’t look angry at all.
Haowei said, “The tail just accidentally touched you.”
“…”
This guy had some nerve. Clearly, he had been teasing Si Lan with his tail for a while, yet he claimed it was accidental.
In a muffled voice, Si Lan retorted, “Really? If your tail is so uncontrollable, you might as well not have it.”
Saying this, he deliberately pinched one of Haowei’s dragon scales. Haowei’s body stiffened, and his tail doubled in size. The tail fin rose above the water’s surface, with the tip curling gently around Si Lan’s nape.
“I’m not lying to you.”
Like his dragon horns, Haowei’s tail became uncontrollable when he was aroused. The dragon horns would emerge from his forehead, and the tail would automatically seek out the person he adored.
The more intense his feelings, the more serious the problem became.
Ancient texts stated that dragons were inherently lascivious, which was not a false claim.
However, a true dragon would only lose control of their emotions with the one they loved. Haowei originally thought that soaking in the hot spring would not make him lose his composure, but he underestimated how intoxicating Si Lan’s scent was.
That sweet fragrance, mixed with the steam, entered his nostrils and seemed to merge with his very being, gradually eroding his self-control. After transforming into human form, he had kept his eyes closed, trying to avoid looking at Si Lan, which was a futile attempt to deceive himself. But he still lost his composure due to the allure.
Si Lan found Haowei’s thick skin quite amusing. When he was a little white dragon, he used to blush easily, but now that he was grown, he had become much bolder.
“You haven’t explained why you were staring at my dragon tail earlier.”
“Just a bit curious, that’s all.”
“Curious about what?” Haowei asked.
“…”
Si Lan didn’t know how to respond and didn’t notice Haowei’s dragon tail standing behind him, its scales gleaming with a silvery light, ready to move.
T/N: Hey there! There is plenty more where that came from, so stay tuned! And stay healthy! Straighten your posture, so some stretches and drink some water before continuing hehe~
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Also, check out the other series we have on HoH!
If you like cats, check out Revenge of the Garfield
If you like dragons, check out I’m Pregnant with the Hope of the Entire Planet and The Dragon and the ‘Princess’
How about some mystery or showbiz? Check out Morbid Addiction & Perfection
What about the perfect, most non-toxic male lead ever? Laws of Love
How about MC nursing ML back to health? Forced into the Deep
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