Chapter 159

At midnight, Ke Xingzhou suddenly furrowed his brows in unease.

He was half awake and half asleep, instinctively reaching out to the side, but the person who should have been lying beside him was gone, leaving only a slightly cool blanket.

Ke Xingzhou immediately became fully awake.

He looked around, noticing that the balcony door was slightly open, and there seemed to be a figure outside.

A broken voice came from outside: "Are you sure? If not, Xingzhou... of course I’ll go..."

"Nie Chen?"

Ke Xingzhou asked, and Nie Chen hurriedly returned from the balcony, still carrying the coolness of the night.

"Why are you awake?"

"Where did you go?"

Both of them asked their questions at the same time, then paused. Nie Chen casually answered, "There was some work at the company, so I stayed late. Did I wake you?"

Ke Xingzhou shook his head.

He usually sleeps quite soundly; even a small earthquake wouldn’t wake him up. He wasn’t sure why he had suddenly woken up tonight.

Nie Chen’s palm was a little cool. He tilted his head and rubbed against him, transferring his warmth: "Do you need to go out?"

"..."

Nie Chen fell silent for a moment before answering, "I’ll stay with you for a while."

Ke Xingzhou vaguely responded.

He was indeed very tired. The recent constant running around had drained both his mental and physical energy, and then he received the memories from his previous life. Now, all he wanted was to sleep for three days and nights.

Nie Chen didn’t get into the bed but held him from across the blanket, his steady breath brushing over the top of his head.

After a while, just when he thought Ke Xingzhou had fallen asleep, he suddenly heard him mumbling, "Your job is so tiring, having to work overtime in the middle of the night."

Nie Chen: "Don’t like my job?"

Ke Xingzhou thought for a moment. "Actually, it’s not that I dislike it."

After all, it’s quite lucrative.

Nie Chen seemed to smile: "Do you want me to spend more time with you?""Mm." Ke Xingzhou admitted without hesitation, "I’ve heard that frequent overtime can cause mental fatigue."

Nie Chen: "..."

Nie Chen tightened his embrace a little, his voice filled with a hint of gritted teeth: "Whether I'm tired or not, do you want to verify it a few more times?"

"..."

Ke Xingzhou immediately stopped speaking.

He buried his head in Nie Chen's chest, remained quiet for a while, and then spoke again: "You have to be healthy. I just checked, some diseases can't be cured even with money."

Nie Chen: "... Mm."

Ke Xingzhou fiddled around in the blanket for a while, and light leaked through the gaps in the blanket. He didn't know when he had brought his phone in, but his fingers were tapping away on the screen, and soon Nie Chen's phone rang.

He took it and glanced at the screen, seeing the photo of them embracing in the snow during the spring snowstorm.

Ke Xingzhou: "Zhu Chu recently thinks he's awakened his spirit language ability, saying he can curse things."

Nie Chen, confused: "Hm?"

Ke Xingzhou: "He said when we have our wedding, we should put this in the memory album. Wishing us a lifetime together."

"..."

Nie Chen suddenly felt as if something had struck him heavily, and his heart uncontrollably began to race.

Ke Xingzhou continued unknowingly with sweet words: "So you need to stay healthy, don’t let his spirit language fail."

Nie Chen's heart burned, and he tightened his embrace.

He softly agreed.

--

Half an hour later, at the entrance of the Ke family villa.

Lian Cheng turned to look at the newcomer, his tone cold: "Are you always this late?"

Nie Chen curled his lips, about to retort, but then remembered the "Chen Xiaoyao" who had completely dissipated here a few hours ago. He thought about it and decided to hold back.

He glanced at the barrier Lian Cheng had silently set up and calmly said: "Are you sure Zhuo will come here? Why would he look for Xingzhou?"

"Because of you and me."

"What?"

Lian Cheng lifted his head towards the sky, and after a long pause, finally spoke: "Pure and turbid qi are opposites, pure qi rises to become the heavens, forming the heavenly realm. Turbid qi descends to form the earth, creating the underworld and the eighteen levels of hell. The excess pure qi becomes the way of heaven. Why do you think the remaining turbid qi has yet to transform?"

Nie Chen was silent for a moment, then quickly understood Lian Cheng's meaning: "Because it’s unnecessary?"

"Yes, unnecessary." Lian Cheng said, "The way of heaven may not be the transformation of pure qi; it’s simply the aspect that governs the order of all things."

"So the turbid qi is the opposite of the way of heaven?" Nie Chen seemed to understand Lian Cheng’s meaning.

Order is the opposite of chaos.The way of heaven has always been everywhere, and the turbid qi, originating from the same source, may follow the same principle. However, everyone places too much importance on the clear principles of heaven, believing that everything is arranged by heavenly will, and they overlook the vague figure behind the chaos, both large and small.

However, even the gods who always speak of the way of heaven have never seen the true form of the way of heaven.

As for the turbid qi, there is no need to mention it.

But since turbid qi belongs to outside the order, it is understandable that their methods within the order cannot harm each other.

Everything under the rule of the way of heaven may not possess this ability.

But they are the exception.

"Do you remember when we subdued the Wind God before, I said that Ke Xingzhou’s arrow could even hurt the way of heaven?" Lian Cheng said softly, "That was originally a joke, but now it seems that it might come true."

Whether in the past life or this life, Ke Xingzhou was never a rule-abiding person.

In his past life, "Chen Xiaoyao" made rapid progress in cultivation in the first half of his life. While improving his own strength, he also learned artifact forging, pill refining, and more. He took the principle of learning by analogy to the extreme and forged a bow that could only be drawn using merit.

In the second half of his life, he allied with the despised demon race, boldly fabricated a non-existent sect, and even impulsively accepted a disciple with useless spiritual roots.

Even the cultivation method he gave Duan Changsheng was one he created on the spot.

This life is no different. The disciples of the Xiaoyao Sect include almost every race from the three realms. The races that fought fiercely thousands of years ago are still at odds, but now they fight for the Xiaoyao Sect’s accomplishments, competing for the title of "Best Employee."

Who else but Ke Xingzhou could create such a situation?

As weapons personally crafted by Ke Xingzhou, they may become the greatest variable in the battle between the way of heaven and the turbid qi.

At this moment, the air in front of them began to ripple, and a gray figure slowly appeared.

At the same time, the constellations that should have been gathering merit elsewhere appeared in the distant sky, quickly approaching.

But unlike their previous encounter, the constellations did not hide their forms this time. Not only did they cause various degrees of exclamations along the way, but each of them appeared dazed, muttering something continuously.

Clearly, they were under control.

The situation was similar in other directions. Local ghosts, demons, gods, and monsters appeared above the city. People who hadn’t gone to sleep yet were astonished and looked up, taking pictures of the strange scene and posting them online.

【What’s going on? Don’t tell me it’s another mirage! I clearly saw a few things crash into each other!】

【A deer body with a leopard-patterned peacock head, and a long silkworm body... Wind God and Rain Master? Have I gone mad from watching "Classic of Mountains and Seas"? How are mythical figures appearing in reality?】

【Blind guess, a 5D projection… Forget it, I can’t fool myself anymore, what the hell is going on?!】

【Forget about the Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise. What’s up with those people? You guys are secretly cultivating immortality behind my back!!】

The internet completely erupted. The relevant departments didn’t even have time to delete posts, and more and more people who witnessed the appearance of ghosts, demons, gods, and monsters posted about it online, spreading the shock.

Nie Chen’s phone was almost overwhelmed by the relevant departments, but neither he nor Lian Cheng had the mood to be distracted and answer.

Lian Cheng had not stopped the constellations earlier because he vaguely guessed that their existence would not have a significant impact on the situation.

He did not expect the turbid qi to affect them so much. Even from such a great distance, it still managed to draw so many different races.Lian Cheng couldn’t help but frown and purse his lips. “If I’m wrong, we’re probably going to die today, our souls scattered. Are you sure you want to participate? It’s still not too late to turn back now.”

Nie Chen’s expression was grave as he moved two steps to the side, blocking the window of Ke Xingzhou’s room. “Don’t make Ke Xingzhou remember you forever.”

With that, he gently flicked his wrist, cutting his palm and pressing the wound onto the Lian Cheng bow. As he took out the bow that Ke Xingzhou had used while he was asleep, it immediately expanded with the wind, transforming into a normal-sized bow.

Lian Cheng paused for a moment, then chuckled softly. “Jealous?”

In fact, he knew very well that the current Ke Xingzhou was no longer the same Ke Xingzhou from a thousand years ago.

Even though they shared the same soul, and he loved the version of Nie Chen with the same origin, it was still not his “Chen Xiaoyao.”

A complicated emotion flickered in his eyes. He raised his hand to rest on the Lian Cheng bow, and his figure transformed into a stream of light, merging into the bow.

The patterns and light on the bow grew increasingly intricate and complex. As Nie Chen pulled the bow, the countless golden lights representing the merits carried by both him and his spirit surged, all converging onto the Lian Cheng bow, forming a more dazzling arrow.

At this moment, footsteps suddenly sounded behind them, and a pair of familiar hands covered Nie Chen’s hands.

Nie Chen’s back stiffened, and his fingers trembled.

Ke Xingzhou, still wearing his pajamas with the marks from sleep on his face, spoke with a tired voice. “I just forgot to tell you, I had a dream.”

“—Heaven entrusted me with a task.”

Ke Xingzhou had just woken up because of a dream.

In the dream, he had been asleep but could still see what was happening outside. He saw the Wind God and Rain Master, who had mysteriously disappeared, trapped in a barrier, trying to figure out a way out. He also saw the constellations, who were working tirelessly everywhere, earning merits.

At the end of the dream, he saw Nie Chen and Lian Cheng standing outside the Ke family’s door, fighting with a vague figure.

Nie Chen shot an arrow, which drained all the merit from Nie Chen and Lian Cheng. Still not enough, the Lian Cheng bow then drained their true bodies, and only then did it release the earth-shattering arrow.

The familiar scene reappeared, but this time, unlike a thousand years ago, the bow was held not by him but by Nie Chen and Lian Cheng.

The panic in that moment felt too real. Ke Xingzhou suddenly woke up, and when he realized Nie Chen was beside him, he almost thought it was just a bad dream.

But he still felt uneasy. After falling asleep again, he had the same dream.

The hints from heaven were too obvious. After waking up for the second time and not finding Nie Chen, he went downstairs to search for him.

To his surprise, he saw the exact same scene from his dream.

Ke Xingzhou gripped the bow tightly, his gaze fixed steadily on the gray figure that was about to take shape in front of him. But his words were directed at Nie Chen. “I’m really angry right now. You’d better start thinking about how to calm my anger from this second on.”

Nie Chen opened his mouth. “Zhou Zhou…”

But before he could speak, the figure of the turbid qi finally stabilized. Ke Xingzhou stared at that figure and, for a moment, almost forgot he was still speaking to Nie Chen.

He fell silent for a moment. “...Why imitate someone else, and not Ke Zhengye?”

The gray figure in front of them was obviously much more solid than when they had seen it at the hotel. It had already taken on a more distinct shape, and whether in body or appearance, it looked exactly like Ke Zhengye.

Nie Chen and Lian Cheng, looking at the turbid qi’s form, fell into silence as well.Rarely, they completely agreed with Ke Xingzhou's thoughts—this image was... too complicated to describe.

Turbid: "?".