5000 years later.
Since that day, Mo Yuan and Bai Qian made regular trips to their special place to keep their love alive and the fires burning, while instantly and effortlessly returning to their original places as Master and Disciple when they returned. For them, it worked and both couldn't have been happier, though occasionally Bai Qian would suddenly appear naked in his bed or on his lap when he was meditating and even sprawled out across his study desk while he was reading through his scrolls, forcing him to not only raise a barrier, but to keep a supply of contraceptive peaches on hand.
Her temper too was brought under control, though occasionally it would flare out, it never reached the point it did that day, his punishment was firmly implanted in her mind. And when they did argue, which was often and always started by Bai Qian, she did so respectfully while choosing her choice of words carefully before they left her mouth, though Mo Yuan would hold back the laughter when he caught her on many occasions struggling to keep her temper contained.
And Yao Guangs memory became a thing of the past. Mo Yuan had talked at great length of their past, how she came to reside on Kunlun, and what happened at the Palace when he had found her missing. He left nothing out, and between his soft caresses and gentle kisses, he rid her completely of the last jealous seed that had began to take hold, leaving her in no doubt of his love and desire for her and her alone, and nor would she ever feel jealousy to that extent again.
And with her maids firmly ensconced within Taichen Palace and sworn to secrecy or face instant banishment to the Mortal Realm, the whole sorry affair became nothing more than an unfortunate event that required no more thought or action, not even the Realms Leaders bothered to question her sudden disappearance, it was as if she had never existed.
The ensuing years saw a calm fall about Kunlun Mountain, its Master and his Disciples as each one grew stronger in knowledge, strength and power, though Si Yin continued to outstrip them all in Intellect and Weapons Training, though apart from Die Feng, Zhi Lan was the only other brother that kept him on his toes when it came to sword skills, which saw them going head to head regularly on the practice field. And sometimes, when Mo Yuan and his seniors were too busy to keep an eye on them, Si Yin and Zhi Lan would escape to Zhe Yans Peach Tree woods to sword fight in the tree tops, creating a magical display of master swordsmanship amid a swirling mass of peach blossom rain, Si Yins favorite past time.
Now with Graduation looming for his Seniors Die Feng, Chang Shan and Xiang Ru, all Disciples were busy preparing Kunlun Mountain for its first Graduation Ceremony which would see visitors from across the Realms attending. As the youngest and most junior, Si Yin was given the job of personally caring for his Seniors and that included running missives from Kunlun Mountain to their families and friends who were invited to attend, a job that excited him immensely, as it wasn't often he got to travel away from Kunlun Mountain without one of his three most senior brothers in attendance.
One invitation saw him visiting the Mortal Realm. Die Fengs brother had a holiday home there, though this was not known outside of their immediate family, so the visit was to be completed quickly and under strict secrecy.
With other missives to deliver that were just as important as his one, Si Yin decided to leave it until the following day. One more day would not make a difference and it would mean he would not tire him out too much. The Mortal Realm always left him drained after each visit, so he planned for it to be his only errand for the next day. Though if Si Yin was honest with himself, he was being rather spiteful. He was still angry with his first seniors treatment of the Mortal woman he had left pregnant, though she was long gone from their world now, but making him wait an extra day wasn't necessary, he wouldn't have lost too much time delivering the missive that day as it took only a mere few seconds to enter and exit at will, meaning any discomfort would be minimal.
Though sadly, there were no missives to deliver for Chang Shan, as he was an orphan that Mo Yuan had adopted and raised as his own, but they would all be there for him, so the sadness lasted only the time it took to remind himself that he was his family, all of his Disciple brothers were.
And with the cleaning and other daily chores they all had to complete on top of these new tasks, he wasn't left with much time for himself, but he didn't mind, they were his brothers, and being the first Graduation was a big deal that even his father and mother along with Bai Zhen and Zhe Yan had been invited, though he didn't think his parents would come, he knew Bai Zhen definitely would being a close friend of Die Fengs and Zhe Yan always followed his brother everywhere he went. It had been a long time since he'd seen his brother so he was looking forward to delivering his invitation, which he decided to deliver first, and immediately.
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On entering Qing Qiu, he was met by Mi Gu who did not immediately recognize him, forcing him to take on his true form to get past him, while laughing at his stunned face as she entered the main den. He had not seen Bai Qian since her ;little cousin Dongmei had come to stay, and seeing how lovely she had become he began to shed a flood of emotional tears. His young charge, had grown up.
Bai Zhen too, did a double take as she walked through the entrance, spilling his tea all over himself in shock at not only her sudden unexpected appearance, but her loveliness. "Xiao Wu, you have grown." he said smiling softly and his eyes misted lightly, while Zhe Yan gave her his usual appreciative eye roll before turning back to what he was doing, which was nothing by the looks of it, she thought to herself smiling.
Being back in the Fox Den brought back a lot of wonderful childhood memories, and as her last visit came back to her, she asked after Dongmei. "She would be almost grown herself." she said, before frowning when she caught the quick look Zhe Yan sent in Bai Zhens direction.
"To be honest, we haven't heard from her since she was here." Bai Zhen said smoothly smiling, before completely changing the subject to distract her from her 'little cousin.' "So what brings you here unexpectedly?" he asked rising to give her quick hug as she sat down next to him.
"This." she replied, laying the missive on the table in front of him.
Reading through it quickly he smiled even more broadly. "Well it's about time!" he laughed. "I thought Die Feng would be an old man when he finally graduated." causing them all to laugh, after all he had been there longer than any of them, almost 100,000 years.
"So you're coming?" she asked, raising her hand and crossing her fingers and eyes in front of him laughing.
"Yes. We'll be there." he laughed along with her, while throwing Zhe Yan a look that only he could interpret.
"Great!" she smiled at them both, before asking after her parents and other family members while Mi Gu entered with a light lunch and fresh tea, before heading to The Celestial Palace to deliver a missive to Xiang Ru's father who was the Celestials official Astronomer.
"I will come with you." Zhe Yan told her, I havn't seen Dong Hua for a while, and an important issue has arisen." he told her, then giving her a look, he leaned in closer. "How is the divination going Bai Qian?" he asked suddenly.
"Divination?" Bai Zhen asked surprised. He had no idea his little sister was Divining.
"I don't use it unless I have to." Bai Qian replied honestly. "Shifu said I need to work on communication skills" she smiled sweetly at him, making him laugh.
"Alright, but I may need you, so once you've delivered your missive, come and find me at Taichen Palace, have one of the guards guide you." he smiled as they both rose and she bid her brother farewell.
"See you in a few days." she said throwing her arms around his shoulders and hugging him tightly.
Then returning to his male form, he left with Zhe Yan following closely behind him.
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The Celestial Palace hadn't changed at all since he was last there, and as a guard arrived to escort him to the Celestial Observatory, the memories of his visit came back to him. Thinking about it now, he couldn't help but admire Mo Yuans patience at his sudden interest in Liang which thinking about it now, must have been very obvious to him, and that thought made him sad. He still held a special place for Liang in his heart, and after he had taken the amnesia potion he had wept silently for Liangs loss, a loss he would never remember, and nor could he bring up his beautiful singing voice, a gift he continued to keep secret. And as he thought about it, an idea began to form in his mind as he arrived at her destination.
Xiang Ru's father was a surprise. Her senior was a quiet and shy boy, who never spoke unless he was spoken to first preferring to keep himself to himself. He rarely joined in on their group excursions away from the Mountain, in fact he rarely joined them for anything, including their group discussions or joint activities. Though he was likable, no one really understood him, not even Die Feng.
He spent countless hours alone outside under the stars lost to his own thoughts and the one time he had ventured to sit next to him, he closed down completely on him, making it very clear that he did not want company, so he never tried again to connect with him. But he didn't mind, it was just the way he was. Mo Yuan was the only one who understood him.
His father on the other hand was the complete opposite. He didn't know what to expect, but his openly warm smile, exuberant hand gestures and the way his body bounced and jiggled when he walked was not how he envisaged him. He was adorable, excitable and so loud that he quickly found himself laughing and his own hands and gestures became just as exaggerated.
He was ecstatic to learn of his sons graduation, and of course he would attend, though he did stop his spastic movements for a brief minute to mention his mother, who had died years before his arrival to Kunlun Mountain, though he didn't elaborate, before grabbing his hand and pulling him towards a large opening in the ceiling, then waving his hand, 3 small stars came into view, and as he watched, they grew larger and larger until he could see their surface and what looked to be dwellings.
"These stars are a new discovery." he told him excitedly, and so far I have only chartered these 3 stars, but...." he waved his had across the opening again "They have 27 suns!" he cried out in amazement, causing his mouth to drop in stunned amazement with him.
He knew enough about evolution and life sustaining ecosystems, that the idea of any planet containing life under that many suns, was impossible. "But, how?" he asked unable to tear his eyes away from the 3 small planets that were completely surrounded by the bright glaring globes.
"Technically its not possible, but obviously it is." he laughed. He then went on to explain that these three stars were completely alone in their corner of the vast Universe and that life definitely did exist as the dwellings were testament to it. "But from what I have been able to calculate so far, is each sun contains a barrier or something similar, and each one generates and emits a very subtle energy that affects each planet separately, though in rapid succession."
Looking up at him, he frowned slightly at that information. "You mean, they have 27 seasons?" he asked trying to get his head around it, knowing that if Xiang Ru was there, he would have understood much more without asking a single question.
Impressed with his quick deduction, he gave him a nod of his head as he leaned over to pat him on the head, which was his way of giving praise. "I see you have a quick mind young man." he said with a gleam in his eye. It was quite a discovery and one that they could all learn much from, that Si Yin became excited at the thought. But as much as he wanted to stay to learn more, he could not, he had other missives to deliver, so turning to bow politely, he gave his final farewells with a promise to return, something he was looking to. "I look forward to Mo Yuans interpretation of it when you bring him with you," he said laughing as he led him back out towards the guard who had come to collect him.
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Reaching Taichen Palace, he waited outside the main entrance to be announced, though from where he stood he could clearly see the opulence and elegance through the Palaces open doorway.
He rarely got to see the great God Dong Hua Di Jun, so to suddenly find himself waiting to enter his private residence was exciting, especially being the first of his Disciple brothers to do so, and he didn't have to wait long before he found himself being led forward where he was greeted by Zhe Yan. Politely bowing to Di Jun, Si Yin was in return given a slight nod, and a wave of his hand towards a nearby cushion where he sat down quickly and waited. Whatever Zhe Yan was planning, it had to be important enough to include The Great God himself.
Zhe Yan immediately began to fill Si Yin in on the clandestine information gathering the Celestial Tribe were involved in and the possibility of a war, that though still preventable, could escalate if not dealt with quickly, and apparently one issue they were facing was a potential informant among their midst.
"Hence why you are here." Zhe Yan smiled wryly at him. "We have heard of your ability to divine information just by holding a hand. Is this true?" he asked smiling, though Dong Hua Di Jun who had been sitting there the whole time looking bored, suddenly looked up in interest.
"Yes." he answered, taking on a impassive look. It wasn't hard to figure out how Zhe Yan knew, after all Mo Yuan continued to give 3 monthly reports on his progress, but it was a gift that he did not care to share openly nor did he want it known.
Understanding him perfectly, Di Jun gave him another wave of his hand, as he sat up to stare harder at him. "What is spoken about here, remains here." he said nonchalantly but the interest to see his gift in action definitely interested him.
"He is Prince Sang Jis personal advisor, a man who has been a part of the Celestial Palace for centuries." Zhe Yan informed him, "And not one to be taken lightly. If he is who we think he is, then he is very dangerous, but there is critical information that we need." He added, then looking at Si Yin for the longest moment he frowned slightly. "When was the last time you gave Divination?" he asked.
Suddenly Si Yins eyes dropped. He had never wanted to hear that womans name again, but to be forced to say it, took every ounce of effort to force it past his lips. "Not since Yao Guang." he said softly, not looking at either of them. Though the look Di Jun gave Zhe Yan, he knew instantly to let it go.
"Alright. After the Graduation, I will come and collect you from Kunlun Mountain, we'll organize everything else from here." he said quietly as he pondered on the look Di Jun had given him as the memory of the womans sudden and unexplained disappearance came back to him. Then taking his arm to escort him back to the main entrance, Zhe Yan whispered softly to him. " I can't tell you why, but it is imperative that this meeting is kept from Mo Yuan." he said giving him a very stern look. "When we meet again, you will understand why." he added before seeing him off.