RIIDMDR chapter 152

During the few days he was in the formation, Jingyuan’s injured tail prevented him from going out. Nanxu couldn’t find anyone to talk to. Sometimes he thought about going to the beach by himself to watch the sunrise and sunset, and sometimes he thought about finding Jingyuan, who was recuperating in the main courtyard with his injured tail. However, while his intentions were good, reality always got in the way.

Wanting to watch the sunrise, he went out before dawn. After wandering around outside the Jade Palace walls, he arrived at the beach, where the sun had already spread its rays across the shimmering sea.

He wanted to watch the sunset, so he went out in the late afternoon. After finally leaving the courtyard and climbing the rocks, he saw that the moon was already high in the sky.

He made lunch, intending to share it with Jingyuan, but by the time he found Jingyuan’s residence, it was almost dinnertime.

He wandered around the small palace every day, thinking that it was only the size of an island and that he could figure out the layout by walking around it. He persistently hesitated at the forks in the palace walls, choosing his path.

Until one day when Nanxu wandered around for over an hour without figuring out his direction. As darkness fell, he slumped down in a corner, rubbing his aching legs.

Today, he carried a fishing rod on his back. He had originally wanted to go fishing. After his previous experience of almost sinking into the formation, the current calmness made him even more alert. Nanxu knew he couldn’t stay in the formation for too long. Once the invisible, swamp-like array slowed his steps, he needed to find something unusual to break the stalemate. That’s why he had been constantly seeking ways to break the formation. His restless behavior lately was due to this.

He did many unusual things, such as jumping into the sea and surfing. Each time he entered the water, of course, he was pushed ashore by a turtle shell. That turtle was the same one that had pushed Jingyuan’s wheelchair before. He was a man of few words. No matter how many times Nanxu explained that he intended to enter the sea, the turtle seemed not to hear him and would rescue him again the next time.

After several such incidents, Nanxu had to find something else to do. He figured that he must have never fished before since he had made the fishing rod himself. However, it was almost dark, and Nanxu estimated that he had no chance to fish.

Nanxu rubbed his aching legs and looked up at the sky. There was no sunset, and the sky wasn’t very bright. Just as he was starting to feel bored, he saw a dark cloud drift by on the wind.

Nan Xu: …

Keep blowing! Keep blowing!

Nan Xu silently cheered for the wind.

However, things didn’t go as planned. When the dark cloud reached the small palace, the wind suddenly stopped. Nan Xu noticed that the light overhead had become much darker. Realizing something was wrong, he leaned against the wall, gave up on fishing, and decided to find his way back to the courtyard first.

Like a headless fly, he wandered aimlessly through every fork in the road as water droplets began to fall. Nan Xu grew increasingly anxious; he didn’t want to get completely soaked.

The dark cloud seemed eager to lighten its load, and the patter of rain turned into a cacophony. The raindrops pounded against the glazed tiles, creating a resounding crash. IfNanxu were in the courtyard, sitting on a soft couch by the window and sipping tea, he would surely find the rain beautiful. But now, running in the rain, he could only curse whoever had drawn up those palace construction plans—whoever it was, he hoped, would never find out.

Nan Xu’s mindset shifted dramatically, transforming his frantic run through the downpour into a leisurely stroll. By the time he finally found the familiar courtyard and entered it, he was soaked to the bone.

Just as he was relieved to no longer be lost, the heavy rain began to stop. His newly calmed emotions crumbled again. He threw his hands on his hips, looked up at the sky, and cursed loudly.

The cloud, perhaps not expecting Nan Xu’s outburst, slunk away.

Jingyuan was leisurely sipping tea when he glanced through the window at the fleeing cloud demon. His gaze shifted to Nan Xu, whose soaking-wet appearance startled him for a moment. Then, realizing what he had done, he asked helplessly, “You went out on an adventure again?”

The question was laced with sarcasm. Annoyed, Nan Xu stood silently under the eaves while water droplets rolled down his clothes and soaked the jade tile beneath his feet.

Inside, Jingyuan, seeing he had truly angered him, put down his teacup, pushed his wheelchair to the door, and said, “Come in, dry your clothes, and have a cup of hot tea.”

Nanxu glanced at Jingyuan, then looked away.

His usually imposing gaze was completely out of place given his miserable state, making it impossible for Jingyuan to maintain a serious expression. He wanted to laugh but had to suppress it; his tailbone ached from holding back his laughter.

“If you don’t come in, I’ll close the door. It’s windy today,” Jingyuan continued.

Nanxu felt even more annoyed—angry at his own incompetence and inability to find his way, angry at the dark cloud working against him. Perhaps he was more angry out of embarrassment and rage. He wanted to put on a show to salvage the pride that the rain had washed away. However, since Jingyuan had said so, Nanxu was genuinely worried that he would actually do it and be humiliated even more.

Oh well, what’s the point of pride anyway?

Nanxu stepped inside the house, leaving a trail of wet footprints behind him.

“Where did this wind come from? Your hospitality in the South Sea is nowhere near as good as in the North,” Nan Xu muttered.

Jing Yuan’s expression changed slightly upon hearing this, a strange displeasure creeping over him. The South Sea boasts countless delicacies and rare sea creatures, and his palace is luxurious and comfortable. How could it be inferior to the North? If Yun Yi had heard this, he would have repeated it a hundred times over.

Oblivious to Jing Yuan’s expression, Nan Xu walked behind the screen in the room. Just as he was about to undress, he remembered something and asked Jing Yuan, “Where are your clean clothes?”

Jing Yuan was puzzled. “Clean clothes?”

Nan Xu met his gaze. “My clothes are wet.”

Jing Yuan stared at him for a long while and finally realized that something was wrong. Demons can use spiritual energy to form a barrier when walking in the rain, so their clothes won’t get wet. How had this little demon become so soaked and not known any spell techniques?

He had previously assumed that Nan Xu’s cultivation was low, but he realized that he didn’t know anything at all.

Jing Yuan casually waved his hand, sending a cloud of black mist toward Nan Xu. Nanxu instinctively tried to block it but realized his clothes were already dry as soon as he raised his arm.

He looked himself over and found that not a trace of dampness remained, which he found novel.

However, since his clothes had been wet before, even though they were now dry, Nanxu still felt a little uncomfortable. He declined the hot tea Jingyuan offered and asked, “Could you show me the way back to the courtyard? I still have spare clothes that Yunyi made for me at the Cat Demon Clan. I’ll go back and change.”

“Yunyi made you new clothes?” Jingyuan asked.

Jing Yuan escorted Nan Xu back to the side courtyard. Neither of them spoke on the way. The creaking of the wheelchair echoed through the alley as it rolled over the stone slabs. As he walked beside him, Nan Xu thought of that night not long ago when, despite his illness, Jing Yuan silently led him in the moonlight. For a moment, the memories seemed to overlap.

The next day, Nan Xu caught a cold. Sniffling, he continued his antics but unexpectedly discovered scratches on the jade wall pointing in a certain direction. Three thousand years later, Nan Xu recognized these directional signs, knowing they ultimately pointed to the same location.

Sure enough, it took Nan Xu only fifteen minutes to reach Jing Yuan’s courtyard. His lunch was still warm. He had prepared garlic scallops and spicy blue crab. The garlic was finely chopped, briefly fried in oil, and evenly spread over the scallops before steaming. The aroma was incredibly enticing. Needless to say, the blue crabs were large and plump with tender meat.

Of course, Nan Xu hadn’t obtained these ingredients himself from the sea. They were delivered by the silent sea turtle demon. Compared to Jing Yuan’s indifference, this sea turtle demon seemed to have a magic pocket. Whatever Nan Xu wanted, the turtle could quickly deliver it—fast and of high quality. Truly admirable.

If anyone dared say turtles were slow, Nanxu would be the first to disagree.

Nan Xu brought lunch into the house. Jing Yuan had changed his bandages behind the screen and came out to see him. He raised an eyebrow. “Why are you here so early today?”

Nan Xu sniffed. “Didn’t you draw the road signs last night?”

“You found out pretty quickly,” Jing Yuan said. “I thought you were going to get soaked a couple more times.”

Nan Xu wondered if his past self from three thousand years ago had found out just as quickly. In any case, this time he had seen the answers before answering the questions, which gave him a slight advantage.

When Jing Yuan mentioned the dark clouds again, Nan Xu asked curiously, “What?”

Jing Yuan pointed to the sky. A dark cloud drifted by. Nan Xu could feel it looking down and then, disappointed, drifting away after failing to find what it was looking for.

Nan Xu gritted his teeth. It wasn’t an ordinary cloud. He really did it on purpose!

Feeling unwell, Nan Xu couldn’t eat with Jingyuan. Having already eaten in the side courtyard, Nan Xu uncovered the food prepared for Jingyuan and pushed it toward him.

Watching Jingyuan eat so elegantly, Nanxu finally asked the question that had been nagging him for a long time: “Then why did you only draw signs leading to the main courtyard?”

Jingyuan wiped the soup off his hands with a handkerchief, looked up at Nanxu, and said, “I know this island best. Wherever you want to go, just find me anytime.”

In Nanxu’s mind, Jingyuan had always seemed somewhat aloof. Even when speaking to him, there was a hint of sarcasm. Perhaps it wasn’t intentional, but long-standing habits aren’t easily hidden. Nanxu could sense that Jingyuan treated him kindly, but he never expected him to say something like that.

“Can I come looking for you at night? Won’t you find it troublesome?” Nanxu asked deliberately.

Jingyuan nodded. “I will certainly keep my word.”

…

Nanxu pulled himself out of his thoughts. While he was in the formation, he hadn’t looked for Jingyuan at night. He didn’t know what had happened afterward. He had left because of a sudden tsunami. While swimming on the beach, the sea turtle demon disappeared. He was swept away by the waves, and when he opened his eyes again, he was unexpectedly outside the formation.

Even if Nanxu hadn’t bothered Jingyuan in the middle of the night three thousand years ago, Jingyuan still kept his word three thousand years later. Maybe that night, Jingyuan didn’t recognize him. Despite being ill, he escorted the person who followed the trail on the wall back to the courtyard and didn’t break his promise.

“You say you only set out after being swallowed by the waves?” Tingchuan’s voice suddenly sounded beside him.

Nanxu nodded. “Yes. I was trying to find a way to break the formation at the seaside when the waves suddenly surged. I didn’t feel any discomfort from drowning.”

Tingchuan frowned. Although he wasn’t familiar with Little Demon at that time and didn’t know the specifics of their interactions, he knew that Little Demon had never fallen into the water while living in the South Sea. Nanxu’s memory didn’t match reality.

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