Lord Hēi'àn couldn't believe such a simple phrase had caused such great misunderstanding. There had to be more to it.
"Now you have to go to her and patiently wait for her to forgive you," said Jia er as he pulled out a bottle of plum blossom wine. "Women, when angered, won't listen to anything you have to say, so it's best to just wait."
"What makes you an expert?" Lord Hēi'àn couldn't believe he was taking advice from someone much younger, "You have only ever been with one person your whole life."
Jia er sipped his wine glass before answering, "That is exactly why I know." He poured a second cup and offered it to Lord Hēi'àn, "Look at you having lived so long, beauties fawning over you for centuries as if you were some kind of delicacy. Can't even figure out what you've done wrong." Tsk, tsk.
Lord Hēi'àn had to admit Jia er had a point, but why did he have to make it sound like he was some degenerate who only cared for admiring the flowers?
"Are you two about done?" Gardenia had returned a tray of flower-shaped pastries in her hand. "Would you like some?"
Lord Hēi'àn reached for one, and Gardenia smacked his hand away. "Not you, Jia er."
Lord Hēi'àn felt he couldn't catch a break anywhere he went. "Chu Hua used to be so kind, " he said, shaking his head disappointedly.
"I have not been Chu Hua in a very long time," Gardenia said, placing the tray in front of Jia er before pouring herself a glass of plum blossom wine. "Sweet."
"I know you only like sweet wines," Jia er said as another bottle of wine appeared. "This one is made from peaches."
"Can you help me with my problem first?" asked Lord Hēi'àn.
Gardenia gave Lord Hēi'àn a bored look as she sipped the peach wine, "All you have to do is talk to her, and next time, think before you speak. I like this one better; it's much sweeter."
Lord Hēi'àn left the courtyard even more dejected than before. How could his sister regain her memories and automatically go back to treating her lover as if nothing had ever happened? Yes, it's been a lifetime, but it still felt too rushed. Not only that, his sweet baby sister was more concerned with her lover than with her own brother. What madness?
San Wol was practicing her sword technique when Lord Hēi'àn found her.
"I thought you were a High Priestess?" Lord Hēi'àn asked, admiring her sword technique, which was beautifully deadly.
San Wol didn't answer; instead, she directed her next strike towards Hēi'àn, who countered it with his fan. The two clashed until the sun set and the moon rose. San Wol truly was something else. Lord Hēi'àn had caught a glimpse of San Wol back when she was a heavenly maiden, lifetimes ago. Even then, she seemed far out of reach.
"Have you two finally made up?" Gardenia asked as she walked towards them with a handful of meat skewers. Xiao Huli carried a tray of sparkling red fruit. San Wol smiled, and Lord Hēi'àn's heart fluttered. It had been ages since he had felt it make the slightest movement. How could a smile be so powerful?
San Wol set her sword down and took the skewers from Gardenia's hand. "Allow me to be of assistance," she said, avoiding Lord Hēi'àn.
Jia er and Gardenia had decided it was time they devised a plan to get all that had been lost, and in order to do that, they believed convincing Lord Hēi'àn to help would be beneficial to their cause. Gardenia wanted to destroy the Empire of Cardena, to be precise, her own Kingdom of Lucia. Yes, the Kingdom of Lucia would be the first to fall.
"Did you two make up?" asked Gardenia as she chewed on one of the skewers.
Lord Hēi'àn pretended not to hear the question and picked up a piece of the sparkling red fruit. "Where did you come across fruit of the underworld?"
"It was in my courtyard," Xiao Huli answered. "I liked it very much."
"This isn't something a divine fox should eat," said Lord Hēi'àn, yanking a piece of fruit from Xiao Huli's hand, "it will decrease your cultivation. Do you not wish to ascend?"
Xiao Huli gave a warm smile as she stole back the fruit, "The heavens were never kind to me, why should I go back? I will become a fox demon before I ever return to the Divine Realm."
Lord Hēi'àn was left speechless. The little fox was as troublesome now as she had been lifetimes ago. While he did not care for the Divine Realm, he could not believe the once-proud Divine Fox of all the Heavens would rather become a Demonic being than return home. Then again, they had executed her and many of her loved ones.
"Won't you have regrets?" asked San Wol.
"Why should I?' responded Xiao Huli, "the Heavens never cared for me."
This was something they could all agree upon. Mortals believed the divine realm to be a pure place simply because it was filled with light; the truth, however, was that the Divine Realm always sought to eliminate anyone and anything that did not align with its ideals of right and wrong. Why mortals chose to believe in such foolishness baffled Hēi'àn. All the offerings did was allow the Deities to live as Kings and Queens in the Divine Realm.