Back in the mountains, Jing Yi and Qiu Ling were slowly making their way up. Now that Qiu Ling wasn’t controlling the wind anymore, the breeze brushed past their cheeks, making their hair and robes flutter lightly. Petals rained down from above, falling onto their heads and shoulders, sometimes clinging to them before they floated the rest of the way to the ground.

Jing Yi watched the way they tumbled about in the air and then formed a large carpet to their feet. Some sunlight was spilling through the treetops, showering the ground in a prism of different grades of light and shadow.

"It’s really a beautiful place. Did you come here to get an ingredient or did you just notice it while flying by?"

Qiu Ling also looked around while his hand was resting on Jing Yi’s back. "I only flew by. Although there was an ingredient I had to get from the top of a mountain. That one was a lot uglier though. There were hardly any plans at all."

Jing Yi looked at him with worry. "The top of a mountain? Wasn’t that dangerous?"

Qiu Ling just smiled. "What’s dangerous about that? Didn’t you see me fly? I can just fly up there and pick it. Nothing more than that. That was actually very easy."

"That’s good then."

Qiu Ling nodded and didn’t think about it any longer. Anyway, to him, something else was much more important. "So you like it? It’s pretty romantic, isn’t it?"

Jing Yi smiled and reached out, patting Qiu Ling’s chest. "Yes, yes. It’s pretty romantic."

Qiu Ling beamed. "That’s good then." He reached out and grabbed Jing Yi’s hand, holding it in place. "Since it’s so romantic, do you feel like giving me a kiss?"

"Not really."

Qiu Ling pursed his lips. "A pity. Well, maybe you’ll feel different when we reach the top."

"Maybe." Jing Yi couldn’t help himself from smiling. Qiu Ling would really try everything he could to make him fall in love, wouldn’t he? In a way, it was a bit cute. At the very least, he felt so now that they had gotten closer.

He still didn’t think that they should go any faster though. A relationship would need time. That was what he had gathered from what his mother had told him. She had known his father even back when they were children but she hadn’t married him immediately when they came of age. They had still waited for a while.

Jing Yi felt that that was quite good. Even though there wasn’t much time left anymore until he would come of age, he didn’t think that he should decide for or against Qiu Ling immediately. Waiting a year or two more should be alright, shouldn’t it?

Just then, Qiu Ling leaned over and peered into his face. "What are you thinking about?"

Jing Yi was startled out of his thoughts. He turned to Qiu Ling and was met with a curious gaze. "Well …"

Qiu Ling tilted his head. Just now, his beloved had looked really happy as if he had thought of something nice.

"I just thought that … it’s not bad to take your time with something good, right?"

Qiu Ling blinked and then looked up the path they were taking. "Do you want to walk more slowly?"

"Ah?"

"I mean … This is something good, right? Wasn’t that what you were talking about?"

"I guess so." Jing Yi nodded and looked up as well. In fact, it was a bit similar. If they had just flown up this mountain, then he would have seen the top but that would have been it. Now, they were slowly walking up and he could take a look at the scenery. It was nice. And with Qiu Ling … If he had said yes right at the beginning, he never would have had the chance to get to know him this well before they married. It didn’t seem right. Even though he would have had the chance to get to know him afterward just like how he could have watched the scenery when they descended the mountain, he just felt that it was better this way around. No, he felt that he had done the right thing by asking for more time right in the beginning.

Jing Yi looked up at Qiu Ling’s profile, watching him for a moment before he turned back around and just looked around.

Qiu Ling glanced at him but didn’t say anything. Anyway, he could also feel that things were slowly changing. At the very least, Jing Yi didn’t mind him getting close anymore. That was a major step in the right direction.

In that way, Qiu Ling and Jing Yi quietly came to an understanding. Neither of them brought up their current thoughts and they just walked on arm in arm, slowly making their way to the top.

The sun sunk toward the horizon, making the spots of light on the ground grow smaller while the shadows spread out. The beautiful colors around them faded away, although a red-golden hue started to cover everything. Eventually, the path turned slightly and became steeper.

Qiu Ling tightened his grasp around Jing Yi’s waist and the two of them walked the last few hundred meters. They passed by another row of trees and then, they already stood on the top of the mountain, looking out over the ground below them and with the sky glowing crimson.

Jing Yi stared breathlessly. He had never seen anything more beautiful in his life.

Qiu Ling only glanced at the sight in front of them and then looked at Jing Yi. Seeing the surprise and awe on his face, he smiled to himself. This was even more beautiful to him than this place. If he ever managed to make Jing He show an expression as unguarded as the one his reincarnation showed just now, he might be the happiest man alive.