I didn't feel like crying, nor was I sad. I slowly stood up and said calmly to the pursuers behind me and the two "spectators" on the stage, "You deserve to die!"
The bride's expression changed slightly, while Ao Chi suddenly gave her a hard look and whispered, "How dare you..."
If I don't slaughter that couple who have no regard for human life, I deserve even more to die.
The injuries on my body no longer hurt, and my lost strength returned. I need to be in this state, even if it's just for one minute.
I pushed away Jiu Jue, who was supporting me, and turned to move.
"Stop!"
Someone behind me called out, but it wasn't Jiu Jue.
This voice was wholly domineering, powerful without anger, and did not allow the listener any defiance.
The point is, I've heard this voice for thousands of years.
I turned around stupefied.
The "bodies" of Fatty and Skinny turned into a puddle of clean water which was gathered together by inexplicable power, piling up and up until it piled into a transparent human shape.
With a thunderous noise, a crack ran down from the the human figure's head, like unzipping a piece of clothing, and a tall shadow stepped out from within—
His brows and eyes, skin, black clothes with purple dragon patterns, his slightly raised chin, and every single movement including each strand of hair, all exuded a domineering arrogance.
"Ao... Ao..." I, who have always been articulate, stuttered for the first time.
"Ao, my ass!" He grabbed my hand, seemingly rough but actually gently pulled me into his embrace, and lashed out in a series of, "If I hadn't shown up, you would have been boiled into soup! There's truly no woman dumber than you! After all these years, you still haven't improved..."
No one in the world dares to berate me in such a tone, nor does anyone dare to take such an intimate action of embracing me; only him.
But the way I look now... I continued to stutter, "You...you know me?"
"Oh right, I forgot." He lightly pinched my face with both hands as if teasing a child, almost nose to nose with me, "Only a stupid woman like you can't recognize me, how can I not recognize you!" He sighed, calling out, "Shaluo... Shaluo... Shaluo..."
I felt like I had been waiting for this name for an eternity.
But that wasn't the most crucial thing; what mattered most was the person calling my name.
His hands tightly protected me, and in the eyes before me that were as beautiful as ever, I saw my reflection. I also felt the fiery warmth, and the long-lost yearning.
Correct! This was the person I'd been looking for, this was my Ao Chi.
My body was surrounded by infinite safety and warmth, and my soul felt like a baby nestled in a comfortable cradle rocking gently. It transformed into countless pieces of starlight, drifting away into the distance.
Everything that didn't belong to me was leaving, and what belonged to me was returning.
"The wedding dress is not bad, but it doesn't really suit you," Ao Chi's fussy evaluation called me back from my wandering mind.
Wedding dress?!
I looked down and saw that the wedding dress on Mu's body had somehow transferred onto me. No, it simply was my body.
The poison curse I was under vanished into thin air when Ao Chi called me by my true name. I was back again; tree demon Shaluo, the real deal.
I touched my face joyfully, handily picking up a silver tray from the ground. I flipped it over and used the glossy bottom as a mirror, eagerly examining myself.
"What the hell are you doing looking at yourself! You'll be an old demon no matter how much you look!" Ao Chi impatiently snatched the tray away and turned to Jiu Jue, saying, "You're still breathing, right? I never thought an immortal from the heavens would show such a wrecked appearance one day, haha."
The exhausted Jiu Jue still maintained his poise and reminded him, "This East China Sea Villa is not an ordinary place. It confuses human nature and absorbs the spiritual essence of non-human beings. Otherwise, it would never be the turn of a little dragon like you to laugh at me."
"It's right to be mocked by your savior," Ao Chi continued to smirk. He is always like this; as long as he sees others angry, he'll do everything possible to make them even angrier.
I wasn't angry; I just had a bunch of questions to ask.
"You..."
Before I could say anything, Ao Chi had already covered my mouth with his hand.
"Now is not the time for questions; I'll explain later."
With that, he took my hand and walked forward.
Only then did I notice that the crazed guests who had been chasing us were all standing still, each one staring blankly ahead, heads down, hands hanging loose, silent and motionless.
"Nasty puppets."
Ao Chi just waved his hand, as if brushing away annoying flies and mosquitoes, and those blocking our path really flew away like flies, falling to the ground in a heap.
"If they are just manipulated humans, don't be too harsh on them," I reminded Ao Chi when I saw the women and children lying on the ground, including the little girl who had just run away and tried to send me to my death.
"That's why I didn't turn them into grilled fish," Ao Chi glared at me.
Clap! Clap! Clap! A burst of applause rang ahead of us.
Tonight's protagonist, "Groom Ao Chi," clapped his hands and walked towards us with a smile. Behind him was Mu, covered in blood stained clothes and wounds. What a shame that the body I gave her back looked so bad.
Appearance-wise, the two Ao Chi were 100% identical. Standing between the two of them, I felt like I was caught between two mirrors.
Mu didn't say a word, only gazing at me with a pair of dull eyes.
"It's really hard to see you." He stopped about three steps away from us, smiling lightly and seemed completely non-threatening. "Hiding for twenty years, huh? Truly not easy."
I thought things like dignity and seriousness are cut off from personages like Ao Chi. But today I discovered it's not the case.
"How should I address you?" He sighed. "God Anubis? Ao Shuo? Or... my dear brother?"
I'm not hearing voices, am I? He called him Ao Shuo and... brother[1]? Is this really a response to my famous remark "All weirdos in the world belong to the same family"?
"We look alike, don't we?" He looked into my eyes, his expression transformed from the previous coldness to infinite warmth. He pointed at himself and then at Ao Chi, saying, "He surely hasn't told you that he has a twin brother."
"I have no interest in other people's family matters." I still remember how he treated me just now, and said coldly.
"Haha, I just like women like you – courageous and a bit foolish." He suddenly burst into hearty laughter, "Especially that stubbornness and pride that comes from the bones, the way you refuse to bow down to anything, it's very charming."
Mu's eyes turned dark, like a candle extinguished by the wind.
I was so disgusted by being "complimented" by such a man that I turned away and ignored him.
"You put so much thought into setting up such a big trap and forcing me to show up, don't tell me it's just to reminisce?" Ao Chi suddenly raised his voice, interrupting him in a rage.
"What's wrong with talking about old times?" He showed zero anger as he walked towards me.
Ao Chi stepped between us, saying each word seriously, "If you take another step closer, don't blame me."
"Oh, really?" He stopped and his smile faded away. "Are you still thinking about stabbing my heart with the knife in your hand, just like a thousand years ago?"
Ao Chi's brows wrinkled into a deep 川. Especially when he heard the words "stabbing my heart," I could distinctly feel his body tremble slightly.
"Back then, if I hadn't lost my immortal soul, the first man to enter your life wouldn't have been Zimiao." He tilted his head slightly, stubbornly staring at me behind Ao Chi.
This statement was like a thunderclap, causing my breath to catch.
[1] 哥哥: older brother to be exact.
No comments:
Post a Comment