Meanwhile, Jing Yue and the others met the Snake Emperor.
Speaking of which, this Snake Emperor was an old acquaintance of his—back then, he ran away from Jing Yuan who was in hot pursuit, and then his projection was destroyed by Kong Miao in Three Realm Temple, and now, this was their third meeting.
Compared with the last meeting, the Snake Emperor seemed a little haggard, but only a little.
The other party was clad in a thick coat of a beast. Although the snake tribe never liked the cold, the Snake Emperor was a little over the top.
Obviously, the injury left by Kong Miao had not faded even after a hundred years.
At this time, he silently scrutinized several people, and his eyes finally fell on Kang Ji.
“Kang Ji, I didn't expect you to join the fox tribe.”
Wei Zhentu’s expression didn’t change. “I have been exiled from the snake tribe.”
The Snake Emperor's mouth curled slightly. “The person who drove you away is dead. You can return at any time.”
Wei Zhentu lowered his head and didn’t answer.
The Snake Emperor seemed to have suddenly remembered something and said with a half-smile, “I forgot that Kang Duo is your father.”
Seeing that Kang Ji remained silent but the hand hanging by his side was clenched tightly, the Snake Emperor said casually, “Do you want revenge?”
“I have joined the fox tribe,” Wei Zhentu once again stated his position.
The Snake Emperor immediately felt disinterested and didn't have the mood to say more, so he said, “Are you here to take the Yao Fruit?”
Wei Zhentu, “Exactly.”
Snake Emperor, “The fruit is enshrined in the holy mountain of my snake tribe. I’ll get someone to take you there.”
They didn’t expect things to go so smoothly and were a little surprised. They quickly said, “Thank you, Snake Emperor.”
At this time, a Yao attendant stepped forward and whispered in the Snake Emperor's ear. The Snake Emperor's expression didn’t change but merely nodded slightly.
After the attendant retreated, he turned to Kang Ji again. “Your brother, Kang Xi is coming. Just let him take you to the holy mountain.” He smiled meaningfully. “You have not seen each other for a long time.”
Wei Zhentu froze and he inwardly cursed their bad luck. Could it be heaven’s will?
Not long after, Kang Xi, who was wearing a black robe, entered the hall. When he passed by the others, he didn’t stop as he walked to the Snake Emperor without looking sideways and knelt on one knee. “Greetings, my emperor.”
The Snake Emperor raised his chin. “Kang Xi, take them to the holy mountain.”
“As you wish.”
Kang Xi stood up, turned around, and faced the others.
However, when Jing Yue saw his appearance, he was startled.
Lin Weixue? No, not Lin Weixue, but very similar.
He had a deep impression of the half-Yao Lin-zhenjun who turned against the human race in the Three Realm Temple back then. At this moment, he suddenly thought of something Yanzhi mentioned, that the Snake Emperor took a fancy to Kang Xi a hundred years ago. Counting the time, it was just right.
So, did the Snake Emperor take a fancy to Kang Xi because he looked like Lin Weixue? It couldn’t be, right?
But it wasn’t important. The thought only flashed in Jing Yue’s mind before he put it aside and stopped thinking about it. He had no interest in the Snake Emperor and Lin Weixue.
At this time, Kang Xi stood in front of them with an aloof smile on his face. “Everyone, let's go now.”
The holy mountain was located on the west of the Imperial City, with a temple on the mountain where the Yao Fruit was enshrined in the temple.
Kang Xi didn't say anything along the way, and he didn't seem to pay attention to Kang Ji, but Wei Zhentu still felt a thorn on his back as if he was being targeted by a snake. He couldn’t help but feel that this trip would not be so simple.
Sure enough, Kang Xi did not take them to the holy mountain, but his mansion instead, which was the former Kang Duo’s palace of the Snake King.
“The Yao Fruit can only be picked at the first ray of dawn every day. Since it's late today, let's stay here for one night.”
Since Kang Xi said so, no one knew if it was the truth, but no one dared to question him for fear of accidentally exposing themselves.
After entering the mansion, everyone saw that the layout of the mansion was somewhat similar to the mansion of the human race, but the buildings were mostly dark and looked indescribably cold.
Kang Xi stopped, turned around, and said the first sentence to Kang Ji, “Since you are together, they can stay in your courtyard. It’s very spacious.”
However, how would Wei Zhentu know which courtyard belonged to Kang Ji? He said smoothly, “I have been exiled from the snake tribe, so why would I have a courtyard here?”
Kang Xi looked at him in amazement with an incomprehensible emotion in his eyes. After a while, he said, “Are you blaming me, your brother?”
Wei Zhentu continued the script that everyone had discussed before, and said in mock despair, “Since I’m not of the snake tribe, why would I have a brother?”
Kang Xi's finger on one side twitched nervously and finally smiled lightly. “In that case, I’ll get someone to make the arrangements.”
After that, Kang Xi called for a Yao servant and gave him some instructions before he glanced at Kang Ji thoughtfully and left.
As soon as he left, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and followed the servant to a spacious yard. There were six or seven rooms in the courtyard and four of them could easily have one room each, but the Yao attendant should always remain with the master, so Qin Yanzhi followed Jing Yue, Ruan Jiu followed Wei Zhentu, and each chose a room to stay in.
As soon as the door was closed, Jing Yue said to Qin Yanzhi, “I couldn’t say this just now, but I think Kang Xi looks familiar.”
He briefly explained the matter between Lin Weixue and the Snake Emperor. “You weren’t there at the time, but Fu Chen-zhenjun should have met him.”
Qin Yanzhi thought for a while. “I had already gone to Nine Heaven Academy at that time. Although I heard about it, I had never seen Lin Weixue.”
“Alas, in a blink of an eye, it's been a hundred years.” Jing Yue sighed. “At that time…”
At that time, he never imagined that he would get this far with Qin Yanzhi.
He suddenly had some different thoughts and said softly, “I remember the first time I saw you, it was at my initiation ceremony as the patriarch of Frostcloud Sect.”
Qin Yanzhi was stunned for a moment with a smile in his eyes. “You actually remember.”
Jing Yue, “Zhenjun looked so imposing. How could I forget?”
Qin Yanzhi’s smile grew brighter. “Laozu is more impressive.”
Sitting in Jing-jing’s arms, the blue phoenix listened to them praising each other, and thought of the BL tropes that it had recently read. It quickly said, “Jing-jing, ask him what was his first impression of you. The books always say that true love begins with love at first sight.”
It suspected that Hooligan had already taken a fancy to Jing-jing, so he planned every step, waiting for an opportunity!
Otherwise, why would Hooligan save Jing-jing from danger every time? Ji-ji wondered how long it took him to make preparations!
And the reason why it created the opportunity for Hooligan to show his intentions was not that it had changed its mind about him, but that it believed it was the best pet in the world. Since Jing-jing's heart was moved, it would take the trouble to help them out.
After all, it also hoped that Jing-jing would be nourished by love as soon as possible, and gave birth to a small Jing-jing for it to play with.
Thinking of this, it glanced at Hooligan's stomach with disgust.
Jing Yue was speechless but Qin Yanzhi said, “What was your first impression of me at that time?”
Jing Yue, “…”
If he hadn't known that only he could hear Ji-ji's words, he would have thought that Ji-ji had said the same thing to Qin Yanzhi. How could this be something that Qin Yanzhi would ask?
Blue phoenix sighed. “Love makes people blind, troubled, and unlike themselves…”
Jing Yue touched the Sumeru Ring on his hand and blue phoenix quickly shut up.
Seeing that Jing Yue didn't answer, Qin Yanzhi said with a half-smile, “Is it difficult for you to answer?”
“No.” Jing Yue thought about it. His first impression should be an inexplicable sense of familiarity, but for some reason, he felt that Qin Yanzhi wouldn’t be happy with this answer, so he said instead, “As I said just now, you looked very imposing.”
Qin Yanzhi raised his eyebrows, not obvious if he believed it or not
“What about you?” After he posed the question, Jing Yue realized that he was so boring, and was a little embarrassed for a while.
“I think you have a calmness that doesn't match your age.” Qin Yanzhi said slowly as if trying to recall. “It looked quite conflicting as if an old monster had taken possession.”
Jing Yue, “Old… monster?”
Qin Yanzhi, “I know, you are still young, just over a hundred years old.”
Jing Yue, “…” What was his point?
In the corner, blue phoenix watched silently as they “flirted” with each other while it was being ignored. At this moment, it seemed to have returned to Flying Blossoms Mountain, back to the old days when the Little Hooligan competed with it for favor.
But at that time, it still had faith, which was totally shattered now.
Lan Ji-ji lamented—it was difficult to be a phoenix, and it was more difficult to be a straight phoenix!
Suddenly, its head turned to the door, and Qin and Jing also looked at each other. They heard someone enter the yard.
Then, a Yao attendant’s voice was heard, “Lord Kang Ji, Lord Kang Xi requests to see you.”
It was quiet and Wei Zhentu didn't respond for a while.
Of course, Jing Yue knew that Wei Zhentu didn't want to go, but if Kang Xi insisted on seeing him, even if he pretended to be dead at the moment, it would only delay things for a while.
When the attendant urged again to no avail, he exited the yard.
Not long after, Kang Xi turned up in person.
“Kang Ji, can’t your brother invite you now?”
After a while, the door slowly opened, and Wei Zhentu stood behind the door. The eaves blocked the sunlight, and the shadows fell on his face.
Kang Xi's eyes flickered slightly and he smiled. “Here, come with me.”
Wei Zhentu didn't move but asked, “What’s the matter?”
Kang Xi's pale thin lips flattened slightly. “Do you want to strain the relationship between us?”
Wei Zhentu was cautiously silent. Given his current situation, the more he spoke, the more mistakes he would make. They could not afford to let their efforts go to waste now.
The remaining smile on Kang Xi's mouth disappeared completely and he said coldly, “That pot of acacia has withered.”
Acacia? As Wei Zhentu had studied the language of the Yao race before, he had some understanding of their culture. He knew that an acacia plant could grow for a hundred years, which represented unwavering love, and was usually used for courtship.
The acacia mentioned by Kang Xi was most likely given by Kang Ji.
This pot of plant must have special meaning to Kang Ji and Kang Xi, making him even more afraid to say anything.
Seeing Kang Ji's bland expression, Kang Xi's heart tightened, and a chill flashed in his eyes. “Have you forgotten what you said?”
Wei Zhentu still didn't answer. Kang Xi only took the other party's silence for acquiescence. His pale face went almost transparent and he stared daggers at the other party. Finally, he smiled sarcastically, turned around, and left.
Meanwhile, Jing Yue and the others met the Snake Emperor.
Speaking of which, this Snake Emperor was an old acquaintance of his—back then, he ran away from Jing Yuan who was in hot pursuit, and then his projection was destroyed by Kong Miao in Three Realm Temple, and now, this was their third meeting.
Compared with the last meeting, the Snake Emperor seemed a little haggard, but only a little.
The other party was clad in a thick coat of a beast. Although the snake tribe never liked the cold, the Snake Emperor was a little over the top.
Obviously, the injury left by Kong Miao had not faded even after a hundred years.
At this time, he silently scrutinized several people, and his eyes finally fell on Kang Ji.
“Kang Ji, I didn't expect you to join the fox tribe.”
Wei Zhentu’s expression didn’t change. “I have been exiled from the snake tribe.”
The Snake Emperor's mouth curled slightly. “The person who drove you away is dead. You can return at any time.”
Wei Zhentu lowered his head and didn’t answer.
The Snake Emperor seemed to have suddenly remembered something and said with a half-smile, “I forgot that Kang Duo is your father.”
Seeing that Kang Ji remained silent but the hand hanging by his side was clenched tightly, the Snake Emperor said casually, “Do you want revenge?”
“I have joined the fox tribe,” Wei Zhentu once again stated his position.
The Snake Emperor immediately felt disinterested and didn't have the mood to say more, so he said, “Are you here to take the Yao Fruit?”
Wei Zhentu, “Exactly.”
Snake Emperor, “The fruit is enshrined in the holy mountain of my snake tribe. I’ll get someone to take you there.”
They didn’t expect things to go so smoothly and were a little surprised. They quickly said, “Thank you, Snake Emperor.”
At this time, a Yao attendant stepped forward and whispered in the Snake Emperor's ear. The Snake Emperor's expression didn’t change but merely nodded slightly.
After the attendant retreated, he turned to Kang Ji again. “Your brother, Kang Xi is coming. Just let him take you to the holy mountain.” He smiled meaningfully. “You have not seen each other for a long time.”
Wei Zhentu froze and he inwardly cursed their bad luck. Could it be heaven’s will?
Not long after, Kang Xi, who was wearing a black robe, entered the hall. When he passed by the others, he didn’t stop as he walked to the Snake Emperor without looking sideways and knelt on one knee. “Greetings, my emperor.”
The Snake Emperor raised his chin. “Kang Xi, take them to the holy mountain.”
“As you wish.”
Kang Xi stood up, turned around, and faced the others.
However, when Jing Yue saw his appearance, he was startled.
Lin Weixue? No, not Lin Weixue, but very similar.
He had a deep impression of the half-Yao Lin-zhenjun who turned against the human race in the Three Realm Temple back then. At this moment, he suddenly thought of something Yanzhi mentioned, that the Snake Emperor took a fancy to Kang Xi a hundred years ago. Counting the time, it was just right.
So, did the Snake Emperor take a fancy to Kang Xi because he looked like Lin Weixue? It couldn’t be, right?
But it wasn’t important. The thought only flashed in Jing Yue’s mind before he put it aside and stopped thinking about it. He had no interest in the Snake Emperor and Lin Weixue.
At this time, Kang Xi stood in front of them with an aloof smile on his face. “Everyone, let's go now.”
The holy mountain was located on the west of the Imperial City, with a temple on the mountain where the Yao Fruit was enshrined in the temple.
Kang Xi didn't say anything along the way, and he didn't seem to pay attention to Kang Ji, but Wei Zhentu still felt a thorn on his back as if he was being targeted by a snake. He couldn’t help but feel that this trip would not be so simple.
Sure enough, Kang Xi did not take them to the holy mountain, but his mansion instead, which was the former Kang Duo’s palace of the Snake King.
“The Yao Fruit can only be picked at the first ray of dawn every day. Since it's late today, let's stay here for one night.”
Since Kang Xi said so, no one knew if it was the truth, but no one dared to question him for fear of accidentally exposing themselves.
After entering the mansion, everyone saw that the layout of the mansion was somewhat similar to the mansion of the human race, but the buildings were mostly dark and looked indescribably cold.
Kang Xi stopped, turned around, and said the first sentence to Kang Ji, “Since you are together, they can stay in your courtyard. It’s very spacious.”
However, how would Wei Zhentu know which courtyard belonged to Kang Ji? He said smoothly, “I have been exiled from the snake tribe, so why would I have a courtyard here?”
Kang Xi looked at him in amazement with an incomprehensible emotion in his eyes. After a while, he said, “Are you blaming me, your brother?”
Wei Zhentu continued the script that everyone had discussed before, and said in mock despair, “Since I’m not of the snake tribe, why would I have a brother?”
Kang Xi's finger on one side twitched nervously and finally smiled lightly. “In that case, I’ll get someone to make the arrangements.”
After that, Kang Xi called for a Yao servant and gave him some instructions before he glanced at Kang Ji thoughtfully and left.
As soon as he left, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and followed the servant to a spacious yard. There were six or seven rooms in the courtyard and four of them could easily have one room each, but the Yao attendant should always remain with the master, so Qin Yanzhi followed Jing Yue, Ruan Jiu followed Wei Zhentu, and each chose a room to stay in.
As soon as the door was closed, Jing Yue said to Qin Yanzhi, “I couldn’t say this just now, but I think Kang Xi looks familiar.”
He briefly explained the matter between Lin Weixue and the Snake Emperor. “You weren’t there at the time, but Fu Chen-zhenjun should have met him.”
Qin Yanzhi thought for a while. “I had already gone to Nine Heaven Academy at that time. Although I heard about it, I had never seen Lin Weixue.”
“Alas, in a blink of an eye, it's been a hundred years.” Jing Yue sighed. “At that time…”
At that time, he never imagined that he would get this far with Qin Yanzhi.
He suddenly had some different thoughts and said softly, “I remember the first time I saw you, it was at my initiation ceremony as the patriarch of Frostcloud Sect.”
Qin Yanzhi was stunned for a moment with a smile in his eyes. “You actually remember.”
Jing Yue, “Zhenjun looked so imposing. How could I forget?”
Qin Yanzhi’s smile grew brighter. “Laozu is more impressive.”
Sitting in Jing-jing’s arms, the blue phoenix listened to them praising each other, and thought of the BL tropes that it had recently read. It quickly said, “Jing-jing, ask him what was his first impression of you. The books always say that true love begins with love at first sight.”
It suspected that Hooligan had already taken a fancy to Jing-jing, so he planned every step, waiting for an opportunity!
Otherwise, why would Hooligan save Jing-jing from danger every time? Ji-ji wondered how long it took him to make preparations!
And the reason why it created the opportunity for Hooligan to show his intentions was not that it had changed its mind about him, but that it believed it was the best pet in the world. Since Jing-jing's heart was moved, it would take the trouble to help them out.
After all, it also hoped that Jing-jing would be nourished by love as soon as possible, and gave birth to a small Jing-jing for it to play with.
Thinking of this, it glanced at Hooligan's stomach with disgust.
Jing Yue was speechless but Qin Yanzhi said, “What was your first impression of me at that time?”
Jing Yue, “…”
If he hadn't known that only he could hear Ji-ji's words, he would have thought that Ji-ji had said the same thing to Qin Yanzhi. How could this be something that Qin Yanzhi would ask?
Blue phoenix sighed. “Love makes people blind, troubled, and unlike themselves…”
Jing Yue touched the Sumeru Ring on his hand and blue phoenix quickly shut up.
Seeing that Jing Yue didn't answer, Qin Yanzhi said with a half-smile, “Is it difficult for you to answer?”
“No.” Jing Yue thought about it. His first impression should be an inexplicable sense of familiarity, but for some reason, he felt that Qin Yanzhi wouldn’t be happy with this answer, so he said instead, “As I said just now, you looked very imposing.”
Qin Yanzhi raised his eyebrows, not obvious if he believed it or not
“What about you?” After he posed the question, Jing Yue realized that he was so boring, and was a little embarrassed for a while.
“I think you have a calmness that doesn't match your age.” Qin Yanzhi said slowly as if trying to recall. “It looked quite conflicting as if an old monster had taken possession.”
Jing Yue, “Old… monster?”
Qin Yanzhi, “I know, you are still young, just over a hundred years old.”
Jing Yue, “…” What was his point?
In the corner, blue phoenix watched silently as they “flirted” with each other while it was being ignored. At this moment, it seemed to have returned to Flying Blossoms Mountain, back to the old days when the Little Hooligan competed with it for favor.
But at that time, it still had faith, which was totally shattered now.
Lan Ji-ji lamented—it was difficult to be a phoenix, and it was more difficult to be a straight phoenix!
Suddenly, its head turned to the door, and Qin and Jing also looked at each other. They heard someone enter the yard.
Then, a Yao attendant’s voice was heard, “Lord Kang Ji, Lord Kang Xi requests to see you.”
It was quiet and Wei Zhentu didn't respond for a while.
Of course, Jing Yue knew that Wei Zhentu didn't want to go, but if Kang Xi insisted on seeing him, even if he pretended to be dead at the moment, it would only delay things for a while.
When the attendant urged again to no avail, he exited the yard.
Not long after, Kang Xi turned up in person.
“Kang Ji, can’t your brother invite you now?”
After a while, the door slowly opened, and Wei Zhentu stood behind the door. The eaves blocked the sunlight, and the shadows fell on his face.
Kang Xi's eyes flickered slightly and he smiled. “Here, come with me.”
Wei Zhentu didn't move but asked, “What’s the matter?”
Kang Xi's pale thin lips flattened slightly. “Do you want to strain the relationship between us?”
Wei Zhentu was cautiously silent. Given his current situation, the more he spoke, the more mistakes he would make. They could not afford to let their efforts go to waste now.
The remaining smile on Kang Xi's mouth disappeared completely and he said coldly, “That pot of acacia has withered.”
Acacia? As Wei Zhentu had studied the language of the Yao race before, he had some understanding of their culture. He knew that an acacia plant could grow for a hundred years, which represented unwavering love, and was usually used for courtship.
The acacia mentioned by Kang Xi was most likely given by Kang Ji.
This pot of plant must have special meaning to Kang Ji and Kang Xi, making him even more afraid to say anything.
Seeing Kang Ji's bland expression, Kang Xi's heart tightened, and a chill flashed in his eyes. “Have you forgotten what you said?”
Wei Zhentu still didn't answer. Kang Xi only took the other party's silence for acquiescence. His pale face went almost transparent and he stared daggers at the other party. Finally, he smiled sarcastically, turned around, and left.
