Don’t Discriminate Against Species

The Xing Xing was a little baffled upon seeing Zhuang Qing raise his head to look at him. "What's wrong?"

"You mean to say that Fu Li and I… have met in the past?" Zhuang Qing had never believed in the so-called past and present lives, so now that he suddenly heard the Xing Xing say such a thing, his heart did not contain joy but utter disbelief.

"Elder White Ape, what do you mean by that? I've met Zhuang Qing in the past?" Fu Li was also taken by complete surprise and asked this question practically in unison with Zhuang Qing.

"Both of you still aren't aware?" The Xing Xing was even more surprised than the two people involved. He placed his teacup on the table. "In Little Zhuang's past life, wasn't he the human pet you raised?"

Zhuang Qing thought that something had gone wrong with his ears. He stood there in a daze, a buzzing sound in his brain. His usual cognitive ability was lost. His head turned towards Fu Li, as if in search of some semblance of the truth from him.

"P-Pet in my previous life?" Fu Li stammered like his tongue was in knots. "But they don't look alike at all."

"It's very normal for them to look different, it's not like they have the same parents after reincarnation. It would be strange if he looked similar to his past self," The Xing Xing seemed to be completely unaware of the big bomb he had cast down and fished out a large pile of things from his Qiankun pouch. "Little Zhuang was a human in his past life and had a short lifespan; there was no affinity between you two. Fortunately, you're still yao in this life. He too became yao and you even got together."

"Some people are not fated to meet even if they reincarnate a hundred times. For you to meet once again and even be bound as Dao Companions - that is a marriage predestined by fate," The Xing Xing nodded with a smile. "Pretty good, pretty good."

The Xing Xing was clearly talking about his past life, but he seemed to be listening to someone else's story. Even when he recalled the images he had glimpsed in the Recollection Mirror, Zhuang Qing didn't feel like the human called Bo Lian was him at all.

The human he had been inwardly jealous of and even wished to never have appeared was actually himself?

"Fu Li," He sat back down on the office chair dazedly. A good while later, he met Fu Li's worry-filled eyes. "I recall you saying that Bo Lian was an ordinary friend to you, and that you didn't have any intentions towards him?"

Fu Li opened his mouth. He didn't know how he should respond. "Ah…"

"Is there a very big difference between me and Bo Lian? Or should I say, is there any shadow of him in me?"

"You and Bo Lian," Fu Li shook his head. "Aren't alike at all. He had a mild personality, scholarly bearing, and was always smiling when with me."

Fu Li wasn't willing to think back to the past and had intentionally pushed all memories related to Bo Lian to the bottom of his heart. Because he understood even more clearly than Bo Lian that the death of a human symbolized the end to all things, a foreordained end to their affinity. There was only suffering in continuing to cling to it.

Only after Zhuang Qing made this serious inquiry did he dig out the memories buried in the depths of his heart bit by bit. However, these memories had been hidden away for too long, so long that they had changed colors. There was indeed not the slightest similarity between Bo Lian and Zhuang Qing - whether it was in looks or personality, not a single point of similarity could be found.

Bo Lian had been fond of hugging him in his original form and sitting at the entrance of his cave, basking in the sunshine while telling him all sorts of funny stories about the human world. He'd also often made him delicious food from the human world. Elder White Ape had said that a noble gentleman like Bo Lian would never cook in the human world. Bo Lian had also liked painting; he'd painted the sky, the earth, mountains, water, and him. Whether it was his human form or his original form, they'd all appeared countless times under Bo Lian's brush.

“Maybe he liked you very much, and he continued to like you after death to the moment he reincarnated,” Zhuang Qing thought about how Bo Lian had waited day after day following his death, how he had given up on his fate to be a monarch, how he had abandoned his future after reincarnation, and how he had waited in despair and loneliness for the day he and Fu Li would meet again. In the end, what he waited for was not Fu Li but the news of the death of the yao on Reflecting Mist Mountain.

"Your heart really wasn't moved by everything that Bo Lian did?" Zhuang Qing looked up, his eyes on Fu Li. In his good-looking eyes were glinting stars.

"Both of you take your time to talk. I seem to smell the Kunpeng's scent, I'll go find him to reminisce about the past," Sensing something off about the atmosphere, the Xing Xing stood up without any hesitation and put down his teacup. "Virtuous Zhuang nephew, can I go to the back?"

"Please," Zhuang Qing made a 'please' motion and the Xing Xing swiftly left without looking back.

Fu Li: …

"Why aren't you talking?" Zhuang Qing turned and continued to look at Fu Li. There was even a smile on his face.

"Do you want me to say I was moved or that I wasn't moved?" Fu Li swallowed.

"That is my question to you, I only want to hear the words from your heart. I won't get angry no matter what you say," Zhuang Qing pulled open the window curtains and looked out the window. "Although Uncle Yuan said that I was Bo Lian in my past life, I don't have any memories of it, nor do I have any empathy for the relationships and emotions of my past life."

"In my eyes, you're different from Bo Lian. Bo Lian was my friend and pet, you're my lover," Fu Li secretly scrutinized Zhuang Qing's expression. "It's a different feeling."

"Even though our souls are the same?" Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li.

Fu Li slowly shook his head. "It's different. Although the soul is the same, the memories and relationships are different, so it's a different existence."

"A past life is a past life, this life is this life," Fu Li very much wanted to utter some honeyed words, but he eventually still chose to be honest. "In my heart, my affinity with Bo Lian reached its end the moment he died."

Zhuang Qing was silent for a moment. Then, he suddenly inexplicably laughed. "I really don't know if you're sentimental or heartless."

Fu Li sighed in helplessness. He just knew Zhuang Qing would be angry. Saying that he wouldn't be angry no matter what was merely deception. "I can't lie to you. I didn't understand emotion those years and didn't know that Bo Lian had romantic intentions towards me." When he learned about it, two thousand years had already gone by and Bo Lian's remains had long turned into yellow soil. The year the azure dragon clan caused trouble at Weishui's river basin, many places were flooded and it was unknown where Bo Lian's remains had washed to. Perhaps it had sunk to the bottom of the river, or perhaps it had flowed along the river to an unknown place and eventually ran aground, drying up and vanishing into Heaven and Earth.

He only hoped that Bo Lian's remains could rest in peace and hadn't been disturbed by gold plunderers.

"Got it," Zhuang Qing picked up his coat lying over the chair. "Let's go."

"Go where?" Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing, somewhat unable to follow.

"Bring Uncle Yuan to Uncle Feng and Uncle Kang. They haven't met for many years and must have many things they want to say," Zhuang Qing made his way to the door, crooking his finger at Fu Li. "What are you still standing there for? Come along."

Fu Li went forward and linked hands with him, beaming. "En en, okay."

Zhuang Qing leaned his head, looking at Fu Li beside him. Seeing the simple-minded way he was smiling, he inwardly let out a sigh of helplessness. It seemed like there was a similarity between his past and present lives after all - at least, they had similar aesthetic tastes and even fell for the same person.

Not only was the Kunpeng not moved at seeing the Xing Xing, a fight almost broke out. However, although the Xing Xing's combat ability was a bit on the lower end, he was extremely quick. Unable to even land a hit despite multiple attacks, the Kunpeng simply plopped down on the ground. "Laozi won't fight with you anymore."

"What are you fighting for? If not for us that year, you might have already been struck to death by heavenly lightning," The Xing Xing glanced around the Kunpeng's room. Apart from a thick carpet, there was nothing else. He mimicked the Kunpeng and sat down cross-legged as well. "Seems like you've been well lately."

"No choice, your nephew is filial towards us elders," The Kunpeng shook his leg. "He raised us very well."

"You're even calling our family's Little Li nephew, you should give him some gifts after freeloading these few days," The Xing Xing might appear boorish, but he was very meticulous in personality. The Kunpeng's little move at driving a wedge between them had zero effect on him. He wasn't the brainless type like Feng Ruizhong.

"It is only right and proper for juniors to be filial to their elders, how are gifts needed?" The Kunpeng snorted somewhat unhappily. "If not for him crying till the skies turned murky and the earth dark, I wouldn't have been awoken by him."

"What's so wrong about babies crying a little after birth, have you never seen infants crying?" The Xing Xing was unhappy. Inciting disharmony was all right, but he would be unhappy if his family's child was bad-mouthed.

"I've seen children cry, but have never seen any child who cried till seawater roiled and all light vanished," The Kunpeng said moodily. "You guys also have quite the capability, this sort of fi…"

"Uncle Yuan, Kunpeng daren, sorry for interrupting," Zhuang Qing reached the door and rapped on it. His gaze swept across the Kunpeng. "Uncle Yuan, Fu Li and I are getting off work, let's go back together."

The Xing Xing stood up, patting the non-existent dust on his body. "Aiya, our family's child is fetching me home for a meal, I won't argue with you over these meaningless questions."

The Kunpeng: …

Was having a child so impressive? What f*cking difference was there between the Xing Xing's senseless methods of showing off and those street aunties in the human world? How despicable.

But he was still very angry!

The three yao got into the car. Noticing that the Xing Xing wasn't unaccustomed to the car, Fu Li could rest at ease. "Elder, you won't leave now that you've arrived in the human world, right?"

The Xing Xing replied, "I won't, I won't."

Fu Li revealed a smile.

They were halfway through their journey when the Xing Xing said out of the blue, "Little Zhuang, you've suffered these few years." His natal chart was destroyed in his past life because of Fu Li, and he suffered all sorts of torment not long after being born in this life. Regardless of whether one was human or yao, getting through both these fates was a matter of incredible difficulty. But not only did Zhuang Qing get through it, he even cut a bloody path through his own fate. It was no wonder that he could obtain the Blue Dragon's inheritance and even become the Dragon Emperor of the aquatic races.

Upon hearing these words, Fu Li suddenly recalled that it was precisely because Bo Lian had stayed on in the underworld for a full eighty years in the hope of meeting with him after death that his extremely precious natal chart was destroyed. Which was why Zhuang Qing had suffered so much in this life, with no parents or relatives, and constantly teetering on the edge of death.

"Zhuang little dragon…" Fu Li suddenly felt upset, the kind of upset that came with no prior indication, where his entire heart was immersed in a jug of both bitter and astringent liquid, suffocating him.

"Those were the things I did in my past life, it has nothing to do with you, nor does it have anything to do with me," Zhuang Qing saw that Fu Li's expression was off. "I'll make the honey chicken wings you like tonight, do you want to eat it?"

"Yes!" Fu Li nodded.

He still had the energy to eat, it seemed like he wasn't all that upset, thought the Xing Xing.

Fu Li and Zhuang Qing returned to the flying palace. The Xing Xing was in a complex mood at returning home and walked right at the back. He heard Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu's hurried footsteps.

"Little Zhuang, don't take to heart those things you saw this morning."

"Yes. Actually, it was all Bo Lian's one-sided intentions towards Little Li, our Little Li was never once moved by him."

"Yes yes yes. Even in our hearts, we prefer you more."

The Xing Xing: …

These two good pals were probably idiots, right?

Ilyz: the moment everyone was waiting for is finally here~