Flashback Begins—Spring Mountain
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Three days before Long Xiao descended, he decided to convince his friends to accompany him to seek enlightenment. He found them at their usual spot on Spring Mountain, where they were discussing ways to help grow back Lord Feng's hair. Lord Han flipped through ancient books on hair growth as Lord Bai and Lord Zhao went through a list of ingredients.
"Brothers, how do you fare?" Long Xiao smiled, sitting down.
"Brother Xiao, I suppose Goddess Ling Xing has retired early today. Ever since you wormed your way into her counsel, we hardly see you." Lord Zhao teased, marking an ingredient.
"That is certainly not relevant to the discussion, Brother Zhao." Long Xiao adjusted his robes.
Unbeknownst to Long Xiao and the others, lord Feng Luo had been fuming the whole time. Not only had Long Xiao not acknowledged his situation, but he also didn't try to help. Seeing Long Xiao so carefree grated on his nerves. He stood up abruptly.
"I cannot bear the sight of you, Long Xiao!" Feng Luo bit out, teleporting to the other side of the mountain.
"Well, that was..." Lord Zhao trailed off.
"Dramatic?" Long Xiao let out a small chuckle.
"Dramatic??" Lord Han repeated, closing the book.
"You burned his hair with a perfectly charged thunderbolt, A-Xiao. A mere mortal might have perished."
"You know how A-Feng loves his hair." Lord Bai chuckled.
"You owe me sixty merits for the painting." Lord Zhao said, not looking up from his scroll.
"Sixty merits?" Long Xiao exclaimed.
"Brother Zhao, do you have to be so shrewd?" He pouted.
"How about I bring you something worth sixty merits from the Mortal Realm?" He asked cheerfully.
"What?!" the three gods exclaimed together.
"The Mortal Realm?!"
"Yes. I know it's sudden, but the mortals... They need divine guidance." He said solemnly.
"And as the newly appointed Overseer, it is my responsibility to provide them with that." He declared, his posture grand, standing up.
"I want you all to come with me." Long Xiao said with a smile.
"Just like centuries ago." Long Xiao extended his hand, a subtle plea.
"To the Mortal Realm...? A-Xiao, are you hearing yourself?" Lord Bai asked, also standing up.
"Of course! Just think of it as a vacation. A divine one. The only difference is the location. What do you say?" Long Xiao asked, placing his hand on Lord Bai's shoulder.
"A divine vacation?" Lord Zhao repeated, his tone skeptical.
"Do you not remember what happened the last time we descended the Twelve Heavens?" Lord Bai said.
"I remember." Long Xiao sighed.
"I… I forget what I said. I'll take my leave now." He said with a forced smile, materializing a vial and scroll.
He turned around, the vial and scroll settling on Lord Zhao's lap.
"I concocted this three days ago. Tell Brother Feng that I haven't forgotten. Relay my apologies." Long Xiao took a step forward, teleporting away before they could say a word.
The three gods exchanged worried looks, a silent communication passing through the gesture.
Flashback ends
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"Ah... so that's what happened." Lord Feng chuckled.
"Would you not be furious if your hair suffered the same fate?" He ran a hand through his mid-length greenish hair.
Yes. Long Xiao's concoction had worked, growing Lord Feng's hair back gradually, thicker and stronger than before.
The Four Holy Gods still sat at Spring Mountain, Long Xiao's empty seat across from them. The silence was heavy until Lord Bai suddenly lifted a celestial visual orb from his sleeve, its surface glowing faintly with misty light.
Lord Bai placed the glowing ball in the centre, drawing everyone's attention.
"He's been gone a week. With this, we'll be able to see his whereabouts." Lord Bai said.
Seemingly reaching a shared conclusion, they all stayed silent, watching the orb intently.
The orb, infused with Lord Bai's essence, swelled into the size of a medium-sized watermelon. The mist inside began swirling, forming various indescribable shapes and figures before it cleared into a moving scene:
Long Xiao was seated on the cloud fragment, hovering in the sky. He sat cross-legged, arms folded, eyes half-lidded in contemplation. Behind him, Lei followed at a respectful distance, wings flapping smoothly and clearly annoyed.
"Where do you think he's going now?" Lord Feng asked, his eyes never leaving the orb.
"The Mortal Realm." Lord Zhao suggested.
"I know, but which realm exactly?" Lord Feng crossed his arms.
"We know that there are Twelve Realms." Lord Zhao pointed out.
"Knowing Long Xiao, he's likely to go to the most chaotic realm." Lord Bai teased, eyes darting at the others before returning to the orb.
"Brother Bai, are you trying to say that A-Xiao is exhibitionistic?" Lord Han tilted his head in confusion.
"Of course not, Brother Han!" Lord Bai raised his hands in mock surrender.
"I meant that Long Xiao just likes to help beings in need. Where better to start than in the realm with the highest probability?" Lord Bai chuckled after making himself clear.
"The Xuchong Realm!" They exclaimed together, exchanging certain glances.
The orb dimmed slightly, leaving them staring in silence.