Kite

Tea was being brewed in a little copper pot, naturally not the precious tea that costs a thousand gold per two, but nameless leaves picked in the mountains in the early morning, with a few small white flower buds, giving off a clear and sweet fragrance.

"At times like this, we should be drinking wine, but it's a pity that the monks have to abstain from it, and I don't feel good about sneaking down the mountain to buy it."

Hearing this, Ye Jiuya thought of the peach blossom wine in the mortal world. Chen Weichen once boastfully brought a jar, saying it was the best craft of Xiao Dao in his family, picking the best peach blossoms and taking the dew from the tips of the petals. He was so pampered that even when he wanted to drink it himself, he might not be able to get it.

The peculiarity of wine lies in its gradual change. At the rim of the cup, the taste is lightest and sweetest, also clear and refreshing. Then it gradually becomes dense and strong, so sweet that it's a bit bitter. When drinking to the end, the bottom of the cup is the most concentrated and bitter, with only a sweet aftertaste.

The young master once lazily squinted and said, this wine is like people. The bitterest part is at the bottom. Only after drinking to the end can you know. Seeing how much Old Cripple likes this wine, he must have some unspeakable bitterness hidden in his heart.

"Originally, it was all dark there. We were drifting without knowing what day it was, drifting wherever we ended up." Chen Weichen filled the plain white teacup with tea. White mist steamed in front of his eyes, condensing into small and crystal-like water droplets on his lashes.

"I can only know by slowly recalling that when I was there, I had no perception."

The mountain forest was quiet, the Buddhist hall was peaceful. The Vajra had angry eyes, the Bodhisattva had lowered eyebrows, all still, motionless. Only his voice echoed slowly.

"I also know that besides here, there are some other places. Occasionally, the self there would have a mental impulse and connect with me, allowing me to look outside. Those who are irritable and love to grab and bite here, are quiet and don't like to move there. Those who are quiet and don't like to move here, I suppose are irritable and grab and bite there."

"They can all see the outside. Sometimes when they drift, they become agitated, and I know it's because they have connected with the person outside."

"At that time, I just waited every day, wanting to be like them, to also see the self outside, to see what it's like outside. I waited and waited, not knowing how long had passed, but it never came. I waited more, still it never came."

He took a sip of tea, letting the sweet fragrance linger between his lips and teeth, smiled and said, "You also know, he walks the path of the supreme forgetting of emotions. That state of mind is not an ancient well, but an icy lake. Even if the world turns upside down, it can't stir up the slightest ripple. Without this bit of ripple, there's nothing for me. In the world of heart demons, all the other things are kites pulled by a string, only my string is broken."

"So I was still like that, year after year, hoping to be pulled by the string. I hoped and hoped, and stopped hoping. My mind was in a daze, sleeping and waking, waking and sleeping, not knowing who I really was."

He spoke quietly, and the person opposite listened quietly, as if he were not recounting a painful past and hard-to-swallow bitterness, but rather reuniting with an old friend to calmly discuss trivial matters.

"Later," he paused and looked up at Ye Jiuya.

After listening to the Zen sounds in the ancient temple deep in the mountains for two months, that pair of eyes that were always full of tenderness seemed to have walked from spring to summer, from summer to autumn, gradually becoming as calm and clear as an autumn pool.

Looking at this pair of eyes that he hadn't seen for a long time, Ye Jiuya felt some lingering emotions rising, but when the words reached his mouth, he didn't know what to say.

"Later," those eyes curved slightly, showing a hint of a smile, "on August 15th, I suddenly saw you. It was snowing, and you were practicing swordsmanship on the mountain top. Your sword was very good, and you were also very good."

Chen Weichen seemed a bit lost in thought.

He was in that dark, boundless ocean, struggling to no avail, disappointed and then despairing, unaware for many years, until at a certain moment, someone's mind suddenly moved.

-- In the starless and moonless night sky, fireworks exploded; the long-blind person opened their eyes; the drowning person struggling in the deep water finally floated to the surface.

He then saw it, saw the white and snowy distant mountains, saw the flying snow rolling across the sky, saw the person in the snow.

The broken string was finally reconnected, and his muddled consciousness suddenly became clear, as if enlightened.

That person's shadow was then deeply, deeply engraved inside him, and he knew that this life was over.

"He then had heart demons, and I became the heart demon. However far he walked on the path of forgetting emotions, that's how deep I fell into the mortal world." Chen Weichen looked at him and sighed, "It's just a pity that you are good-looking. At that time, you hadn't fully grown up, but you were already a little beauty."

These words actually carried a bit of lingering resentment. He could not bring himself to directly blame himself or that other person, so he could only blame it on this one's face—in fact, it had nothing to do with appearance. A cold-hearted person who had walked alone on the immortal path for so many years, one day looked around and found no one who could be his teacher, no one who could be his enemy, no one who could be his friend. He was very high, but also very cold. Suddenly, he saw a person favored by the creation of heaven and earth, and on a whim, he felt a bit of compassion and went to teach him swordsmanship, wanting to quickly pull this verdant young sprout to the same height as himself.

Whether it was compassion or appreciation, the undercurrent in the depths of the icy lake suddenly surged for a moment, and that sky full of snow was blown into a corner of the heart demon world that knew no day or night.

Ye Jiuya was silent for a moment, then said, "It was I who misled you."

"It's hard to say," Chen Weichen refilled the tea. "He shouldn't have impulsively gone to teach you swordsmanship at that time, misleading himself, misleading you, and incidentally bringing me along. It shows that the world is impermanent, and there are some people who should not be met. I shouldn't have gone to Cang Lang Cliff at that time either, just thinking that if by chance I encountered an immortal fate and entered the immortal path, I would have a chance to look at you from afar. Who knew that my fated one would come flying over the sea in the snow, so I could only..."

-- I could only put down my pride and pester you for the time being.

He coughed, a little embarrassed, "I could only pour wine under the moonlight and wait."

The two looked at each other, thinking of the moonlight over the sea at the edge of Cang Lang Cliff more than half a year ago. In the silence, a certain atmosphere quietly grew -- clearly the two were sitting opposite each other in a very proper manner.

Perhaps when reminiscing about the past with this fated person, it is always easy to become sentimental, even if this person wasn't very old, and the past events had not been that long ago.

In the span of over two hundred days, going from strangers to familiarity with the person before him, even standing shoulder to shoulder traversing the north and south of the Central Continent, the realms of immortals and demons, it couldn't be said to be anything but a wondrous feeling.

"Since that's the case," Ye Jiuya said, "why are you insistent on drawing a clear line with him?"

Chen Weichen blinked, about to speak, when footsteps approached. It was Lord Lanshan, with an air of pure and upright dignity about him.

"So Brother Ye was here," he said, "making it quite a search for us."

Chen Weichen held his cup and took a sip, mischief flashing in his eyes again, clearly conveying that he had abandoned his official duties to secretly come here.

His gaze shifted, seeing Lord Lanshan, and hearing the address of "Brother Ye" that was a bit more intimate than "Swordmaster Ye". He also roughly knew that in the two months since the heart demon calamity loomed, the leaders of the Northern and Southern Swords had interacted quite a bit.

Lord Lanshan was obviously a bit surprised to see him here.

Chen Weichen greeted him with a call of "Lord Lanshan". He didn't say much more. Unlike two months ago when he was weak, he had now concealed the aura of the heart demon by seventy to eighty percent. No matter how much Lord Lanshan scrutinized him, he wouldn't be able to discern anything.

Ye Jiuya then told him: "Lord Lanshan and I came here for a formation that fuses sword intent with Buddhist dharma. Perhaps it can make one immune to the invasion of heart demons."

"That makes sense," Chen Weichen looked at him. "Since you have matters to attend to, hurry along then."

As Ye Jiuya stood up to leave, passing by his side, Chen Weichen reached out to hold his hand, lifting his eyes to gaze at him. "Lord Ye, will you stay the night?"

Upon receiving an answer of "Alright", he then leisurely went back to brewing tea, not minding that Lord Lanshan's gaze held a few more traces of puzzlement as he observed him.

This person Lord Lanshan indeed had true skill and genuine talent that was beyond reproach. His swordsmanship, praised as having "Buddha's intent", also subtly aligned with Buddhism's concept of the three thousand worlds. Integrating it with the Zhichen Temple's Buddhist arts shouldn't be difficult. However, Ye Jiuya's heartless sword intent only cultivated that aloof air of looking down upon all living beings. It was neither like the wrathful gaze of Vajra subduing the four demons, nor did it have the slightest connection to the Bodhisattva's compassionate lowered eyes gazing upon the six realms of existence - it bore no similarity to either of the two major Buddhist sects, making it somewhat tricky.

Chen Weichen pondered this while flipping through a Buddhist scripture, his gaze shifting to the murals on both sides depicting figures sacrificing their bodies to feed tigers and cutting their flesh to feed eagles. Ferocious tigers devouring humans were evil beasts of the mortal realm. However, when Mahasattva saw that the mother tiger was emaciated and the tiger cubs were weak, he offered up his body to feed them. It could be seen that Buddha's original intent was to deliver all living beings. There was no distinction between humans and tigers. One's own life could also be readily let go, with no discriminating mind, no self, no person, no living being.

The scripture also said something like "the five aggregates are all empty, transcending all suffering and tribulation", "no sensation, perception, volition, or consciousness; no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind", "the empty nature of all phenomena, neither arising nor ceasing". When compassion reached its pinnacle, lowering one's gaze to look down upon all living beings, gradually seeing no distinction between creatures, no birth or death, how was it any different from the ruthlessness of the Heavenly Dao?

He found it interesting, circling this part, and also pondered the saying of "the Great Dao returns to oneness". Before he knew it, night had fallen.

His current residence was very simple, just a bed and a desk. On the desk were a few scriptures, lit by the dim light of white candles, giving off the impression of studying by the light of a lamp beside an ancient Buddha statue.

To Ye Jiuya, it felt as if Chen Weichen might drift away on a night breeze, unrestrained and unfettered.

Only when he raised his head to look at him did his eyes come alive, a smile spreading to the corners of his brows. In a flash, he transformed into a refined and charming scholar of the mortal world.

"How is the formation coming along?" he asked.

Ye Jiuya replied that there were still some areas where progress couldn't be made.

He then pointed to the scripture in his hand, sharing some rather insightful and profound Buddhist teachings. The atmosphere was harmonious. After two months apart, their relationship had become much more peaceful.

Later, when the topic turned to heart demons again, and he was asked why he wanted to draw a clear line with that person, he refused to say no matter what.

Chen Weichen only cupped Ye Jiuya's face, saying, "You're suddenly being so good to me, but how much of it is for my sake, and how much is for his sake, hmm?"

He asked, but didn't want Ye Jiuya to answer. He continued, "He is aloof and detached from worldly affairs. I am filled with the aura of the mortal world that I can't rid myself of. He has the Dao in his heart, fearless and dauntless. I have no grand ambitions and only wish to be happy. Tell me, isn't this line clear enough?"

He seemed intoxicated, drunk on the appearance of the person before him that no poetry or song under the heavens could capture. His voice and eyes carried a hint of delirious abandon.

Having said that, his breathing quickened, and a look of anguish appeared in his eyes. He said, "I like you, I envy and hate him. I don't want to be him, but you think of him. What can I do?"

He closed his eyes as if resigned to fate, lowering his head. At first, he only touched Ye Jiuya's forehead with his own. In the end, unable to suppress the frantic thirst spreading in his heart, he lightly touched those pale, thin lips.

They were slightly cool and soft.

Before this, he had never overstepped his bounds like this. He considered himself to have acted out of genuine feelings in the past, stopping at the bounds of propriety, clean and pure.

Sharing a bed was no big deal. On ordinary days, hugging or leaning against each other was more out of attachment. When he was messing around with Wen Hui, there was no shortage of hugging and embracing. When he was playing the role of a young master in the pleasure quarters, listening to the interesting neighborhood tales from the enchanting ladies, he had also lain on the soft, fragrant laps of beauties. It was just like Xing Qiu's habit of always needing to lean on something when there was nothing to do.

But now, it was different.

From the longing of desperately wanting to catch a glimpse of him when he was a heart demon, to the soul-stirring gaze at the bottom of Cang Lang Cliff, to wanting to follow him, to wanting to be closer to him... it finally bit by bit transformed into scorching hot desire. Just embracing was no longer enough. He had to overstep his bounds, had to be discourteous. He had to take a big gulp of that poisonous wine to quench the anxious yearning in his heart to grasp onto something.

He thought back on his mere nineteen years of life. When he was in the mortal realm, he didn't do much. He only secretly rejoiced.

The young lady next door married the scholar from the neighboring house in a red wedding dress. The maidservant had another quarrel with the manservant. The young master from the capital sent a hairpin adorned with kingfisher feathers through someone to his second sister.

He felt that the mortal world was truly wonderful.

Occasionally, he would raise his head to look at the moon in the sky and think of that person on the snowy mountain. He couldn't even sleep.

He didn't find the longing painful. On those sleepless nights, he merely loved the romantic feelings of the mortal world for a night.

Clearly, the opposite of the word "immortal" was not "demon".

It was "mortal".

The bright moon of the immortals was distant and cold. The fireworks of the mortal world were vibrant and passionate.

Just a light touch was still not enough. He pecked a few more times, sticking out the tip of his tongue to lick and kiss.

Ye Jiuya's body stiffened slightly. His hand was already on the other's shoulder, about to push him away, but he hesitated for a moment upon feeling that warm touch.

He recalled a certain late night during the past two months when he wasn't meditating for his cultivation but was sleeping instead. In the middle of the night, he suddenly woke up, as if there was another person beside him, embracing his arm, their breath gently brushing against his shoulder. When he turned to look, it was empty.

Suddenly, it turned cold, as if something was missing that he couldn't grasp even if he reached out. But now it was right under his hand.

That warm touch suddenly mesmerized him, as if he had found something long lost and now regained. He was unexpectedly reluctant to push away.

This enchantment occupied his mind, causing his hand that originally intended to push away to embrace instead. Closing his eyes, he slightly parted his lips and teeth, immersing himself in this fleeting moment of tenderness.

After parting, Chen Weichen's expression was sorrowful, with a hint of helplessness. He asked, "Who am I?"

Ye Jiuya said, "Chen Weichen."

Chen Weichen then smiled slightly and asked again, "Do you also want to be like this with him?"

Ye Jiuya gently shook his head.

Chen Weichen smiled again, a somewhat foolish smile, with a childlike innocence, yet he said, "Lord Ye, I'm in so much pain."

Ye Jiuya frowned slightly, wondering why he was sad again, and asked, "What's wrong?"

Chen Weichen shook his head, "Do you know how I distinguish between sadness and happiness?"

Ye Jiuya naturally didn't know.

"Whether it's sadness or happiness, I don't really know what it feels like, so I can only imagine it myself," he said. "Later, I couldn't even imagine it. I only knew that when it hurts, if I'm unwilling, it's sadness; if I'm willing, it's happiness."

He stared at Ye Jiuya without blinking, "Lord Ye, Lord Ye, I'm so happy."