After the Breakup, My Cold and Aloof Junior Disciple Went Mad - Chapter 4

Gu Shenzhi was perplexed; the God’s tone didn’t sound like he was there to pass judgment, but rather like he was reminiscing.

Yet, Gu Shenzhi did not believe he had any past to reminisce about with the God.

Gu Shenzhi averted his gaze, answering with a flawless, diplomatic response: “Thank you for your concern, Divine Lord. I have been serving at the Extreme Yang Palace for these past years. I have been diligent and conscientious; serving the Heavenly Realm is, naturally, not a bad thing.”

The Divine Lord lowered his eyes, staring down at him, his gaze unreadable.

He stood tall, and simply standing before Gu Shenzhi, he seemed to envelop him entirely, exerting an indescribable, invisible pressure upon him.

Gu Shenzhi’s heart hung in suspense. Not knowing if the Divine Lord had called him here alone to punish or to instruct him, he decided to preemptively admit fault: “This morning, I neglected my duties for personal reasons, causing the Divine Lord to travel to the Extreme Yang Palace alone and adding to your trouble. It was truly wrong of me. I ask for your forgiveness. I assure you that from now on, everything regarding the Divine Lord will be my priority, and such a mistake shall never happen again.”

“‘Personal reasons’?” The Divine Lord chewed on those two words, then let out a scoff. “Wasn’t it for a matchmaking date? How did it go?”

Gu Shenzhi was stunned. How did the Divine Lord know he was on a matchmaking date?

Could that fellow, the Star of Destiny, have leaked it?

Knowing all along that he couldn’t be trusted, Gu Shenzhi closed his eyes for a moment and quickly replied: “You jest, Divine Lord. It was not a matchmaking date; I was simply paying a visit to a long-time friend. We were enjoying our conversation, and that is why I missed the time.”

“Goddess Yunxiao, Immortal Jinghe, the Flower Fairy, the Wind Elder… Hmph, none of these immortals in the Heavenly Realm are considered to be of high standing, are they?”

The Divine Lord’s words were strange and carried a hidden edge: “Is the official business at the Extreme Yang Palace so heavy that it cannot keep you from your desire to seek amusement? No wonder it is said that among all immortals in the Heavenly Realm, you, Immortal Wuling, are the most romantic. No matter who it is, everyone has nothing but praise for you.”

How did the Divine Lord know such details? Even if the Star of Destiny was a gossip, he wouldn’t discuss things so deeply. Could it be that the Divine Lord had investigated him beforehand?

Gu Shenzhi felt some displeasure, but he bit the bullet and argued for himself: “These are just trivial, idle rumors in the Heavenly Realm; the Divine Lord need not concern himself with them. Furthermore, there are many beautiful and kind-hearted people in the Heavenly Realm, and I am merely being teased and flattered by the other immortals.”

The Divine Lord’s expression seemed to darken further. He tilted his head and leaned in, stopping about three inches from Gu Shenzhi’s cheek.

The distance was too close; he could smell the faint, cold fragrance emanating from the Emperor.

Gu Shenzhi rarely stood this close to anyone; even with his brothers, he always maintained a sense of propriety.

Just as he was about to take half a step back, he heard the Divine Lord chuckle in a low voice. The sound was deep, and his breath brushed against his ear, making it itch.

The Divine Lord narrowed his eyes and whispered, “There may be those who are as beautiful as you, but I fear there is no one as debauched as you.”

Gu Shenzhi froze and immediately glared back.

How much misunderstanding and resentment must one have toward him to say such filthy words! And to think he was a Divine Lord!

“Please watch your language, Divine Lord!” Gu Shenzhi gritted out.

He couldn’t fathom it. Even if he had been late, it shouldn’t warrant such an insult. Could it be that the Divine Lord was jealous of his matchmaking date?

But what did a matchmaking date have to do with him? Surely the Divine Lord wouldn’t be meddling in other people’s affairs just because he himself had been abandoned in the past?

Perhaps Gu Shenzhi was pushed to his limit, or perhaps he had been frozen stiff; either way, his brain stopped functioning. He blurted out a retort: “That’s right, in the Three Realms, someone as devoted as you is truly rare, yet you alone are the one who cannot let go of that past. I truly feel sorry for you, Divine Lord…”

Before he could finish his sentence, his arm was seized by a hand and yanked forward, locking him into the Divine Lord’s embrace.

The force was so great that Gu Shenzhi could not break free. Losing his footing, he nearly fell, only to be caught by the warm, large hand around his waist, pinning him firmly against the Divine Lord’s chest.

Their waists and abdomens pressed together; even through their clothing, he could feel the fiery heat radiating from the Divine Lord.

Gu Shenzhi was overcome with shame and anger. In his struggle, the Zhao Fen peony flower fell from his sleeve.

The cluster of flowers, charming and pink, landed unintentionally on the pale blue cold-jade tiles, looking remarkably pitiable.

Using his other hand, Gu Shenzhi pushed hard against the Divine Lord to create some distance and asked with low, suppressed anger: “What is the meaning of this, Divine Lord?”

The peony on the ground was lifted by the Divine Lord’s mental power and suspended before Gu Shenzhi’s eyes.

The Divine Lord stared down at the Zhao Fen and asked him softly: “A peony flower… there is a famous poem in the mortal world, how does it go?”

Gu Shenzhi bit the bullet and said: “Only the peony possesses true national beauty…”

The Divine Lord let out a soft laugh, raised his eyes to look at him, and said slowly, with no sign of joy or sorrow in his eyes: “It is ‘To die under the peony flower, even as a ghost, one is still romantic’…”

Gu Shenzhi pushed him away with all his might, retreating three zhang away. He stood with his hands behind his back and said angrily: “Divine Lord, there must be a limit to your jokes.”

The Divine Lord rubbed his fingers, looking as if he were sighing or perhaps feeling vexed: “I have given you such hints, why are you still so oblivious? Have you forgotten everything?”

Gu Shenzhi shook his wrist, which had been turned red from the grip. He hadn’t listened to a word of the Divine Lord’s rambling, his only thought being to leave this place as soon as possible: “I do not understand your words, Divine Lord.”

The Divine Lord’s brows relaxed into a smile—a cold, stern face that could unexpectedly reveal such a gentle expression.

He stepped forward, forcing his way toward Gu Shenzhi. His voice, however, contradicted the smile; it became increasingly cold, laced with an uncontrollable fury: “How could you… not understand?”

“Back then, you said you liked me, that you wanted me? You said that even though you were trapped on Cuiwei Peak, you missed me day and night? You said you wanted my long flute to console yourself with the memory of the person? You said you would definitely come back to find me…”

“Since your eyes are not blind, why can’t you recognize me?”

Gu Shenzhi’s breath hitched. He stood frozen, staring at the person before him in confusion and shock.

The Divine Lord approached slowly and raised his hand, gently caressing his face. He traced his brows, the bridge of his nose, and his lips with his gaze, looking both deeply affectionate and resentful. He laughed in a low voice: “How could you forget me, my dear… senior brother.”

Gu Shenzhi’s eyes trembled violently, and his vision gradually blurred. The vague figure he had been longing for in his dreams began to overlap with the silhouette of the Divine Lord.

The old scars on Lu Nanfeng’s face, along with the youthful awkwardness of the past, had all vanished. His face was now lean and rugged, his eyes flashing with a hidden sharpness. His brows were furrowed, looking gloomy and terrifying, like a volcano about to erupt—dangerous and scorching.

This belated discovery made Gu Shenzhi’s heart tighten abruptly. He stared blankly at the man before him, his limbs rigid as stone, standing there motionless.

The Divine Lord asked, word by word: “Should I call you Kong Can, or Gu Shenzhi? Do you still remember me?”

How could Gu Shenzhi not remember? The name Lu Nanfeng appeared in his dreams almost every night.

The Lu Nanfeng in his dreams was very gentle; he could not bear to see him suffer or grow weary. Whatever he asked for, he granted; whatever he wished for, he fulfilled.

How could someone so beautiful and vivid, someone who only existed in his dreams, be standing right in front of him now, becoming so strange, cold, and aggressive?

The Divine Lord’s fingertips forcefully wiped the tears from Gu Shenzhi’s face, leaving a red mark on his pale skin. He asked with a blank expression: “Speak, Immortal Wuling.”

Gu Shenzhi suddenly regained his senses. In an instant, his mind was filled with complex thoughts; endless doubts and anxieties overwhelmed any joy or excitement of a reunion.

He thought, he had clearly used the Forget-Me-Not Pearl to erase his memories, so why would Lu Nanfeng still remember him?

He thought, Lu Nanfeng was the reincarnation of the Qingqiu Divine Lord, so why hadn’t he noticed it at the time?

He thought, how much sincerity remained in Lu Nanfeng’s old feelings, and had he called him here for some warmth, or was he so consumed by hatred that he wanted to retaliate against him?

Thinking of the resentment on Lu Nanfeng’s face earlier, it must be that he hated him to the core. What kind of delusions was he still entertaining?

Gu Shenzhi did not dare to gamble, for he had no stake left in Lu Nanfeng’s heart.

Gu Shenzhi immediately stepped back, knelt, and prostrated himself on the ground, bowing his head until it touched the floor. His voice was as raspy as torn silk: “Please suppress your anger, Divine Lord! I hope you will consider that I was young and ignorant back then and had no intention to deceive or betray you. I dare not pray for your forgiveness; I am willing to be dealt with by you, if only you will spare the juniors of my clan!”

For a long time, no one spoke. The hall was deathly silent.

The chill from the cold-jade tiles pierced his knees like fine needles. The cold and the stinging pain made him tremble uncontrollably. Cold sweat poured down Gu Shenzhi’s forehead, his mind going completely blank.

He hadn’t felt this sense of helplessness—being at the mercy of another’s whim—for a very, very long time.

Hundreds of years ago, he had kneeled before the Heavenly Emperor in the same way, waiting for the final fate of the Peacock clan.

At that time, the heavenly tribulation was at its peak, and the Three Realms and Nine Prefectures were a sea of blood.

Gu Shenzhi’s uncle, Kong Hui, had led hundreds of the Peacock clan to defect to the Demon Realm, breaking through the South Heavenly Gate from the inside and pointing their swords at the Heavenly Emperor.

The Peacock King, in defense of the righteous path, fought desperately to protect the Heavenly Realm. To save the lives of his entire clan, he did not hesitate to destroy his own kin.

After capturing Kong Hui alive, he accepted the punishment himself, personally accompanying the rebellious peacocks into exile in the outer realms, leaving behind only Gu Shenzhi and a group of young clansmen.

When the Demon Realm was repelled and the Heavenly Realm began its reckoning, Gu Shenzhi, as the new clan leader, knelt before the Great Sacred Golden Throne, his life and death hanging on the decision of the Heavenly Emperor.

Gu Shenzhi did not know what the future held. But he knew that the surrounding immortals, who had luckily survived the great catastrophe, all wished for him to die.

Gu Shenzhi wanted to explain that all of this had nothing to do with him, that his father had done his best to protect the Heavenly Realm and had already accepted the punishment of exile—why then was he still being targeted, why couldn’t they give him a way to survive?

But he did not dare to speak, fearing that every word he said would be twisted and used to pass judgment upon him.

He hated himself for his slothfulness and lack of cultivation all these years, for having no ability to stand up to the Heavenly Emperor.

He blamed himself for hiding too long under his father’s wings, for being too cowardly, for not even having the courage to fight for a sliver of survival.

He could only wait, as weak as a fish on a chopping block, not knowing when the butcher’s knife would fall.

Someone suggested stripping the Peacocks of their divine status and demoting them to mere beasts.

Gu Shenzhi thought, that might be acceptable. He had a friendship with Wu Yin, the Prince of the Ba Serpent of Wanling Island; even if he were to be mocked by him, at least the lives of his entire clan would be spared. That would be enough.

Someone suggested throwing the Peacocks and their remaining remnants into the underworld, while others suggested banishing them to the Executioner’s Platform.

Gu Shenzhi’s heart hung in his throat. He truly feared that the Heavenly Emperor would disregard their past ties and deal a fatal blow.

Others, seizing the opportunity to seek personal gain, suggested keeping the Peacocks as captives, incorporating them into their own households to be supervised and tamed.

Gu Shenzhi thought, fine. As long as they could survive, as long as he could keep his clan alive, he would endure anything.

He could not remember what the Heavenly Emperor said in the end; he only remembered that after he kowtowed, the immortals argued in a clamor, dissatisfied with the Emperor’s decision but unable to do anything about it.

It was only later that Gu Shenzhi realized that the reason he was able to retain his divine status was entirely thanks to the Great Sacred Peacock Ming King.

However, the juniors of his clan were forever stripped of the opportunity to become deities and could only, like mortal cultivators, rely on their own cultivation and opportunities to ascend through tribulation.

That was enough. As long as everyone could stay alive, it was enough.

Gu Shenzhi’s face was as pale as paper. Just remembering that scene made him gasp for breath. Now, dizzy and with his hands and feet numb, his stomach churned, and he felt as if he were about to vomit.

Now, only he and Lu Nanfeng were in the hall. There was no Ming King to save him. He feared he would not escape this catastrophe today.

Sure enough, Lu Nanfeng spat out one cold sentence: “Anything?”

“I happen to be short a mount. Why don’t you, Immortal Wuling, take on that role?”