Returning to Capital Star, Sun Tu was the first to bid them farewell: “I’m leaving now, goodbye.” He glanced at Duan Chenhui and thought to himself, forget it, being a prince is still more comfortable.

“Goodbye,” He Qing waved at him, “Come back with us to the cultivation world next time.”

“Haha… we’ll see about that.” At this moment, he really didn’t want to go back; after all, returning meant facing his embarrassing past.

Sun Tu fled in a flash.

Watching Sun Tu’s hurried escape, He Qing turned back to Duan Chenhui and asked, “Speaking of which, what happened to Sun Tu’s master in the end?”

Duan Chenhui thought of Bodhisattva and shook his head. “He’s probably gone, ever since he recommended Sun Tu to us.”

“Amitabha.” He Qing put his hands together in prayer. “It seems everything has come to its destined end.”

“Don’t think too much about it, let’s go home.” Duan Chenhui pulled out a hover car and dragged He Qing on board.

After returning, He Qing first went to celebrate the victory of the competition with Zhang Yi and the others. Then, he ran off to find Qiao Yi.

The moment Qiao Yi saw him, his eyelid twitched, “I’ve been really busy lately.”

He Qing smiled as he walked over. “The herbs were very effective. I wanted to discuss some things with my mentor.”

Qiao Yi put down his test tube and narrowed his eyes. “You want me to run errands for you?”

“I’m still a student,” He Qing said seriously, taking out the herbs. “Naturally, I need the mentor’s help.”

Qiao Yi glanced at the herbs, unmoved. “You’re becoming more and more of a headache. So, you’re insisting that I take on this task?”

“Don’t you want to? I can always find someone else.” He Qing made as if to put the herbs away and turn to leave.

Qiao Yi immediately pressed down on his shoulder. “Alright, alright, let me study it first and publish a paper.” He paused and then smiled slyly. “But since you’re my student, please stay and help me, dear He Qing.”

“…” He Qing was stunned, “But I still need to go home and be with the general, and this is just a side gig.”

“He’s a grown man, he doesn’t need company.” Qiao Yi waved him off dismissively.

Thus, He Qing was forced to stay and work overtime. By mealtime, Duan Chenhui was still waiting for him to come home.

He Qing: [General, mentor needs my help…]

Duan Chenhui: [It’s alright, I figured Qiao Yi wouldn’t let you off so easily.]

He Qing: [I’ll definitely be back tonight.]

While hiding in a corner texting Duan Chenhui, He Qing suddenly heard an explosion. He turned around to see his beloved mentor had once again blown up the lab.

A teacher from the neighboring lab ran over and knocked on the door, “Did you blow up the lab again? You’re disturbing everyone!”

He Qing ran over to open the door, letting out a cloud of smoke that greeted the teacher. “Sorry, the mentor is conducting a big experiment.”

Cough cough cough “Close the door! Turn on the ventilation system!” The teacher backed away, covering his mouth.

From behind He Qing, Qiao Yi’s voice eerily echoed, “We’re conducting an important experiment, and we never complained when you blew up your lab.”

“We rarely blow things up!” the teacher cursed as he walked away.

“Sigh,” He Qing closed the door and turned to look at Qiao Yi, whose face was now entirely black—this was literal, not figurative.

Qiao Yi wiped the soot from his face, looking utterly exasperated. “Your herbs’ energy is quite strange.”

He Qing obediently handed him a handkerchief. “Here, wipe your face.”

Qiao Yi took the handkerchief and wiped his face, immediately switching back into workaholic mode. “Let’s continue.”

“Yes.” He Qing dutifully helped him, and by evening, he was finally able to go home. As soon as he was done, he bolted. “Goodbye, mentor!”

“Go on,” Qiao Yi took out a cigarette, stuck it in his mouth, and waved him off while leaning against the lab table.

He Qing closed the door and left. As he walked down the hallway of the lab building, explosions could be heard from time to time. Amitabha, it seemed everyone was like this, so he couldn’t really blame himself or his mentor. He made his way to the basketball court, where students were playing. The sky was dyed red by the setting sun, casting a fiery glow on the buildings.

He Qing paused to admire the view for a moment, and suddenly saw Duan Chenhui walking towards him, backlit by the sunset.

“General, why are you here?” He Qing ran over.

“I came to pick you up,” Duan Chenhui said with a smile. “Where’s Qiao Yi?”

“Mentor is probably pulling an all-nighter. I escaped,” He Qing said as he lowered his head and fiddled with the prayer beads on Duan Chenhui’s hand.

Duan Chenhui simply took his hand and led him away. “Then let’s go home.”

“Okay.” He Qing smiled, lifting his head to look at the distant sky. The sun was as beautiful as it had been the day before.

“It looks like a salted egg.”

“… The Golden Crow isn’t actually edible.”

“?! General, you’ve eaten one?”

“No, just heard about it. A long time ago, there were nine of them.”

“Amitabha… but there are many suns in the interstellar world.”

“… That’s just a fairy tale.”

——

A month later, Qiao Yi finally completed his experiments and published a paper, including He Qing’s name on it. After reading it, He Qing sighed. His mentor really wasn’t willing to let him off, but this was truly just his side job.

In any case, things were temporarily settled. He Qing ran home. “General, I’m back! I’m finally on break!”

Duan Chenhui turned off the light screen. “Perfect timing. Let’s go back home too.”

“For what?” He Qing walked over and sat down.

Duan Chenhui smiled. “To hold a remarriage ceremony, but this time, it’s just for family.”

He Qing was taken aback. “That’s right, we haven’t made a formal bond yet.”

Duan Chenhui squinted his eyes. “Then what kind of blood was used the first time?”

“… Chicken blood.”

“… “ Duan Chenhui suddenly felt a bit internally injured. “No matter, this time, you won’t escape, and once we bond, there’s no turning back.” Duan Chenhui looked at him. “You understand, right?”

“I know.” He Qing suddenly felt a bit nervous. The day came, and he woke up early. He reached out to touch the spot beside him, but no one was there, so he quickly got up.

“You’re awake?” Duan Chenhui walked in from outside, followed by robots carrying two wooden boxes. “Time to change into your clothes.”

He Qing got up and walked over. When he opened the box, he was shocked to see a traditional red wedding robe!

He Qing was stunned and looked up at Duan Chenhui. “So the general ordered clothes from the cultivation world.” He took his groom’s robe from the box and carried it off.

Duan Chenhui didn’t stop him and began changing into his groom’s outfit as well.

He Qing glanced over, slightly disappointed. “… So it’s not a bride’s outfit.”

“How could it be?” Duan Chenhui laughed. “Do I seem like that kind of person?”

“…” He Qing gave him a look. “Are you afraid of getting beaten up by the people from Ten Thousand Demon Valley?”

“…” Duan Chenhui rubbed his forehead. “Alright, I did consider it. But your little demons from the valley will definitely cause a ruckus.” They had already repaired the formation, and He Qing had sent invitations and a teleportation array to Ten Thousand Demon Valley, hoping to surprise them—though it might be more of a shock.

——

Ten Thousand Demon Valley.

“Nine-Tailed Elder! It’s a wedding invitation from the boss!” A little demon ran to the elder of the valley.

The Nine-Tailed Fox, who had been promoted to elder, was lounging in a recliner. “Boss never comes back unless something’s up, and now he’s sending invitations?”

“Let me see.” Song Nian took the invitation, opened it, and nearly fainted on the spot. “Th-this…”

“What is it?” A squirrel picked it up, took one look, and screamed, “Boss is getting married!!!”

The Nine-Tailed Fox immediately perked up. “Who’s it with?!”

“It’s Duan Chenhui!” Xiao Bai peeked over and promptly fainted like Song Nian.

The Nine-Tailed Fox snickered. “I knew it! He’s been wanting to steal our boss for ages! Everyone! Let’s go crash the wedding!”

“Right—!”

With the Nine-Tailed Fox’s command, all the demons agreed, though quite a few were just there to watch the drama unfold…

Before long, the entire cultivation world knew that the Nine-Tailed Fox had led a group of demons on a grand shopping spree for wedding gifts. Someone asked around and found out it was for the Demon King’s wedding! And the other party was none other than the Demon Lord! This news sent shockwaves through the three realms, with some worried that the two realms might form an alliance.

But then the current Demon Lord immediately clarified, “I’m the Demon Lord now!”

Everyone calmed down and went back to watching the drama, unfazed. That made sense.

——

Back at He Qing’s place, they had just finished changing into their wedding clothes when they heard a commotion outside.

He Qing ran to the window and looked down. The Nine-Tailed Fox and the others had arrived. He raised his hand. “I’m up here, long time no see.”

The Nine-Tailed Fox and the others rushed over on clouds and grabbed He Qing, ready to run off. “Boss, let’s go home!”

“Hey, let me finish getting married first.” He Qing pointed at his wedding outfit.

Their hearts sank. They all glared at Duan Chenhui. “Villain!”

Duan Chenhui laughed and walked over to greet them. “It’s been a while.” After thousands of years, these little demons were still the same. How rare. He turned to He Qing and asked, “What’s the standard for accepting people into Ten Thousand Demon Valley?”

He Qing thought for a moment. “Just one rule: they must swear a heart demon oath. If they ever harm the valley or me, they can never enter again.”

“Ah.” Duan Chenhui nodded. That made sense. With such an oath, anyone in the valley would share He Qing’s loyalty and ideals.

The Nine-Tailed Fox glared at Duan Chenhui. “If you want to join Ten Thousand Demon Valley, you’ll have to swear a heart demon oath too.”

Duan Chenhui smiled. “Mine’s more than just a heart demon oath.” He held He Qing’s hand and raised it up.

“… “ The Nine-Tailed Fox was speechless.

He Qing waved them off. “You all better go sit down. The ceremony is about to start.”

This wedding was to honor the heavens and earth. He Qing led Duan Chenhui onto the stage, and they each pricked their fingers, filling two cups with their blood. He Qing picked up his cup, and Duan Chenhui took the other.

They exchanged glances, then drank the wine.

The demons below started wailing and crying.

The Duan family, though unsure where these creatures had come from, still went to comfort them. Someone noticed their tails and ears…

The Duan family: Are they… beastfolk?

Standing on the stage, Duan Chenhui looked at the demons, some revealing their true forms, and felt like he couldn’t bear to watch. He started to wonder if they’d really lived for thousands of years. He turned back to He Qing and suddenly felt that everything made sense.

Perhaps the fate of Ten Thousand Demon Valley had already changed.

He Qing looked up at him. “This time, we’ve finally bonded for real.”

“Yes.” Duan Chenhui took his hand and slipped a ring on his finger.

He Qing smiled as he put a ring on Duan Chenhui too. “The ceremony is complete.”

Cough “The ceremony is complete,” Song Nian, invited to officiate, cleared his throat. He wore a look of exasperation, as if lamenting that neither the Demon King nor those boys were ever reliable. What would happen to the valley when he got old?

He Qing and Duan Chenhui turned to face everyone, accepting their blessings.

The flower children holding baskets continuously scattered petals at them, shouting, “Congratulations! Blessings of 99 years!!”

“Blessings of 99 years!!” The Nine-Tailed Fox and the others, though unsure what that meant, went along with the custom.

——The End——