Oh. My. Fate?! (BL, Volume 12, Part 2)

266 Living Outside Wasn't Easy

Jing He could only sigh to himself and start walking forward. As long as he didn't curve in his path and walked in the southwestern direction continuously, he had to reach the Tian Shan sooner or later, didn't he? Thus, he simply walked what he figured should be straight ahead.

Those who had never set foot outside would not know but walking toward a goal you could not see was incredibly difficult even if it was originally straight ahead. Over the next few days, Jing He slowly learned this the hard way. He originally felt that he should have been walking in the right direction but without landmarks to orient himself, he actually couldn't tell whether he had passed by a place already or whether he was still going in the right direction. For all he knew, he might have long since passed the top of the Tian Shan or could still have to walk many li. In short, even after a week had passed, he hadn't even gotten a glimpse of the place he wanted to reach.

Jing He stopped in his tracks, feeling distressed. He had certainly wanted some time to calm down but nothing seemed to go according to his plans. After all this time, he hardly seemed any closer to his destination while the pain in his heart hadn't lessened at all. The worst part was that he didn't know what to do about either.

He couldn't suddenly turn off his feelings for Qiu Ling so, naturally, their separation hurt. Knowing what the future held for him didn't help at all. As for finding a place he knew next to nothing about, following a route that had no distinguishable sights for him to even make guesses as to where he was ... it seemed impossible by now.

He hung his head and then only felt more guilty when he saw the listless little flame heart in his arms. An Xin had still been very curious when they started on this journey but after several days of their surroundings not changing in the least, it must have become bored. Now, it slept most of the time away, its tail curled around Jing He's wrist while its little face was stuffed into the crook of his arm.

Jing He petted its head with distress, feeling that he wasn't taking care of it well. Thankfully, An Xin was a mythical beast. Otherwise, it would have starved to death on this journey. He really was useless outside of his palace. In fact, even inside, it didn't seem like he had ever done anything noteworthy.

Jing He furrowed his brows and then simply walked ahead again. He didn't know how else to find the way out so this was the only thing he could do. Anyway, the capital had long since been left behind so even if there had originally been a possibility of asking Tian for help, it was now gone. No, now, he had to make his way out of the High Heavens all by himself, no matter how long that took.

He continuously walked through the ever-unchanging landscape of the High Heavens, by now only hoping to accidentally come across the top of the Tian Shan. He had never seen that place but Qiu Ling had mentioned going there after the end of his trial. He hadn't mentioned much about how it looked at that time though, mostly focusing on how he had met Tian. There definitely hadn't been any information contained in that story that he could use to find the right way.

"Ah, An Xin, I'm afraid we'll be here for a long time." He sighed mostly to himself but still felt the need to say this out loud. He indeed mostly felt sorry for the little flame heart in his arms. As for himself ... well, he'd rather not be out here by himself but if it couldn't be changed, then he could live with it. Anyway, while he knew what he had to do, he didn't feel any happiness at the thought of returning home. No, if he was honest, the thought filled him with dread.

He knew his father. Contrary to Qiu Ling who accepted his decision with grace and had likely left the capital city of the Nine Heavens already, returning to the dragon realm to give him the space he needed, his father would never react that way. No, most likely, he would be gloating as soon as he returned, bad-mouthing the dragon king every chance he got. Then, to make sure that their separation lasted, he would likely pick up his search for a suitable son-in-law again, finally asking him to get married and he ... would quietly oblige.

Jing He's eyes dimmed as he thought of that and his steps slowed. He didn't want any of this but the vision he had seen made him unable to change his mind. He had to follow his father's wishes. There just was no other way. Just why could his father not have mercy on him and at least let him live the rest of his life in solitude? Wasn't it better to be alone than to be forced into a marriage?

He took a deep breath and sighed before picking up his pace again. Since he had decided to follow his father's wishes, he shouldn't complain now. Since he had forsaken Qiu Ling, then nothing else mattered. He just had to listen and follow orders. The rest ... he would learn to live with it.

Jing He walked silently until finally, something appeared in front of him. He raised his head, thinking that he should have finally reached the place where he could descend the Tian Shan. As a result ... he found himself outside the capital city again and it even seemed like he had somehow made his way to the opposite side of it, facing his own palace in the northeastern direction.