Mingtian blindly waved an arm towards Xie Yi’s direction in a nondescript reply but did not turn away from the expressionless Nie. When the dark golden eyes of the deity moved over Shi Yue and to Xie Yi, the youth twitched.
It was frightening, like being an ant confronted with a huge beast. Even if you knew the other wasn’t planning on doing anything, it still made his skin prickle.
“Shi Yue and Xie Yi. I know your story and I know your plans, but there is only one thing I have to say about it. Mingtian cannot be involved in this war”, he said in his melodic voice.
That caused the mixed breed to look up in surprise. His eyes were wet with tears, but now tinged with confusion. “What? Why can’t I?”
Nie smoothened out his hair in gentle strokes. “Because I let your blood wake up in this life, you gained a strength that you were not supposed to have. If you get deeply involved in this war, you might catch the attention of those I have avoided so far. It’s too dangerous.”
His eyes lowered at Su Liang, who cocked his head.
“Likewise, Su Liang must never involve himself in fights of a larger scale. If you do wish for him to live freely, I will ensure that he never gains strength exceeding the limits of this plane.”
“We will do that”, Xue Hua decided in a determined voice as he wiped his tears away. His face was serious. “We will accept that offer. Thank you.”
“Xue Hua-”
“I’d rather our son is limited through something naturally rather than him always having to control his strength. What if he accidentally uses too much and is taken away?” Xue Hua shook his head. “It won’t hurt him if you limit it, right?”
“He won’t even feel a difference.” Nie returned his attention to Mingtian. “Would you mind allowing me to carry your mother’s memento for another while? I do not have a suitable replacement yet and it is not convenient for me to walk around uncovered.”
“Sure”, Mingtian nervously said, returning it to Nie. When he placed the mask back over his face, a good part of the previous pressure vanished.
“So we need to get bellflower fruits from somewhere? That’s going to be a problem”, Shi Yue carefully led them back to the main topic.
“Ah, I-” Mingtian patted around on his chest and finally around his waist before he found what he was searching for. Opening up a small bag made of simple fabric, he revealed the golden bell.
Everyone looked at him in surprise, excluding Nie, whose body was perfectly still.
“It was supposed to be a, uh, dowry”, Mingtian said and cleared his throat while glancing over to his mate.
Xue Hua flushed a bit. “A normal bell would have been fine! Don’t be stupid, we will use it for Su Liang! The ones on the hairpin, too. You can give me normal bells in exchange.”
“Where did you even find that?”, Xie Yi asked curiously and Mingtian lowered his head.
“...There was a tree on the way. I didn’t get into trouble last time, so I thought…”
“They did not mind indulging you because you are my son”, Nie said in an emotionless voice, but somehow his amusement was still clear to everyone. “Still, the fruits are our reward for hard work. Don’t steal them anymore.”
“I won’t”, Mingtian hurriedly promised. He held the fruit out for Nie, who merely motioned towards Su Liang.
When Mingtian held it out for his son, the little cub showed actual hunger for the first time. He struggled towards it, happily chewing on the fruit with loud crunches.
“He will be able to change into a humanoid form in a couple of weeks. As long as his diet is correct, you will mainly see his growth in his humanoid form; this one will grow very slowly. It’s natural”, Nie explained.
He turned to face Shi Yue. “Is there anywhere convenient I can stay out of people’s eyes but nearby? A place that you would not mind me occupying.”
“The nest?”, Shi Yue wondered. “We have prepared a room underground for Su Liang.”
“That will be fine.” Nie nodded. “I know where it is. I shall go and settle there. If anything is the matter, do not hesitate to come to me.”
Nie turned around and left in the correct direction without anyone guiding him. Shi Yue opened his mouth to say something but shut it again.
After all, that was a deity. He shouldn’t underestimate his abilities to know things somehow.
“Alright, you go back to your mom”, Xie Yi said to Su Liang before handing him to Xue Hua. Then he looked at the still slightly dazed Mingtian, waited until the other noticed his gaze, and jumped up at him.
Mingtian took a step back when the tall man hung over him, legs around his waist and arms around his head. Laughing, Mingtian held him up. “I’m back!”
“You’re back!”
“How have you been!”
“I got thrown down the canyon by my sword spirit!”
“You got - what?!”
Shi Yue watched the messy situation a bit wistfully. Ying Hua patted his shoulder. “They’re brothers, after all.”
“I am aware. I might have to split them up soon, though”, he mumbled back. “Mingtian, Xie Yi told me everything I need to know about the Demonic Sect for now. We will leave soon to inform the other sects.”
The beast took in the phrasing without comment. It wasn’t unexpected that Xie Yi would tell Shi Yue sooner or later, although Shi Yue relaxed attitude was slightly surprising.
“Seriously?” Mingtian whined and peeked out from under Xie Yi’s arms. “It’s his birthday soon! You can’t take him away right now!”
Xie Yi climbed down from Mingtian and wryly smiled. “No choice. It’s important.”
“Yue, how were you planning on travelling? It would be best if I came along, wouldn’t it?”, Xue Hua questioned after hearing about the issue the first time. His eyebrows were lowered a bit.
“Yes, but you have to watch over your son”, Shi Yue rejected him quickly. That was why he had decided against asking Xue Hua.
“You are travelling only to inform them, no? Then there is no real danger. We can come along, all three of us… If Nie does not have any issues with it. That way, we can celebrate Xie Yi’s birthday together.”
Xie Yi looked at Shi Yue.
In truth, even if he understood why they had to leave and why he had to come along, he’d wish he could have Mingtian there for his birthday. If everyone could come along, it would be ideal.
“Worst case, I can protect them”, Mingtian said and wrapped an arm around Xue Hua. “Even if I limit myself and avoid larger fights, I can still watch over my family! They’ll be safe with me!”
“Well…” Shi Yue hesitated.
There would be a festival a couple of days after Xie Yi’s birthday in the city nearby the Honourable Sect. It would be exciting for Su Liang, and probably enjoyable for all of them in general.
Moreover, Xue Hua and Mingtian would allow a faster and safer journey over there.
“I don’t think anyone can even stop you if you decide to go”, Xie Yi bluntly said from the side. Neither he nor Shi Yue would be able to win against the two adult beasts. Especially since, himself, was on their side.
“Fine. But only come along, don’t get involved in the mess”, Shi Yue pressed them and Xue Hua nodded in satisfaction.
“Then that’s solved. Let’s go back to Nie, and on the way, I want to hear some more details”, Mingtian declared while looking at Xie Yi.
As they walked, Xue Hua was also filled in with the missing information on topic of Xie Yi’s rebirth. He accepted it quietly, only wondering if he should ask Mingtian about their relationship back then but finally deciding against it.
If it was something he wished to share, surely the other would tell him someday.
Shi Yue had to grab Xie Yi by the collar when they were back in the sect. The young man flailed a bit, unhappy, and continued to stare towards the room that included the entrance to the nest.
“Don’t play around with a deity. It’s dangerous”, Shi Yue scolded gently. He used the chance to wrap one arm around Xie Yi’s waist to hold him in place.
Mingtian stopped walking towards the nest and gnashed his teeth at the sight, then forced himself to continue.
As he had somewhat expected, knowing Nie for such a long time already, the deity was… uncomplicated. He found him sitting next to the nest, puffing his pipe relaxedly.
“U-Uhm, Nie”, Mingtian started, too awkward to call the man his father directly. “We wanted to know if it was alright if Su-”
“Yes.”
A short pause ensued before Nie tilted his head up towards Mingtian.
“I am listening to the things you say. I always have.”
Mingtian mentally screamed at remembering how he had always boasted about Nie and how often he had said that the other felt like his father. Somehow he had a feeling that Nie didn’t think any of that was embarrassing.
“I… see.”
“Su Liang will be full with the bellflower fruit for a month. You have three, so you could use those up first. Afterwards, I will supply different food for him. You only need to be here then.”
“That sounds good! I-Is it a problem otherwise? I mean, you came all the way, and we are immediately gone...” The beast tried to keep his voice steady but he still felt a bit insecure.
Nie needed a solid five minutes to even understand what his son was hinting at. “...Even a couple of years is no time for me at all. Do not worry about me.”
He waved his gloved hand at Mingtian as if to say he could leave, and Mingtian beamed. He ran over, nervously gave Nie half a hug, and then back upstairs again to find his mate.
I mistook knowledge that we readers had with knowledge that characters had... I thought that Mingtian knew that Nie was his father ad I was a bit confused while reading previous chapter
So many restrictions... Is it really right thing to do - to seal Su Liang potential without his permission and never allowing him to grow to the fullest? Or to tell Mingtian not to get involved? What are they strong for, if not for helping others? Are they strong only to hide this strength? (yeeeas, I know, I read to many shounens ).
In the first place, the strengths of the other plane should not mingle with this one. By all right, Nie was never allowed to wake up Mingtian's bloodline and he would have to take Su Liang away and bring him to the other plane. It's just like humans and nature - look what a mess we caused by getting involved in an ecosystem that was perfectly fine the way it was!
Not really a spoiler, once again something Nie will say in his story but: He is quite sure that Shi Yue and Xie Yi will become Immortals one day. When that happens, he intends to bring over Mingtian and Su Liang, and pull some strings to allow Xue Hua passage as well, so that they can continue to live together in the other plane. So I guess you could say he is only restricting them in an area where their powers shouldn't be used, he hopes it won't stay that way.
It's hard for me to grasp this concept of strict separation of the two planes, probably it's because of all the pop culture titles I ate, where the authors were to lenient wiht their own ideas and they had never a problem to break the rules created by themseves or mingle gods with humans like they were the same or even reverse their strength or whatever
Well, we destroy ecosystem, but we are still a part of it. We're destroing our own home, not only someone's other (oh, I forgot about the ocean depths)... That's even sadder. But that's why I don't think it's the same as in your novel.
I remember, that they ought to become immortals one day, but will the have to part with their friends? Like Xu Yan? ._.
Who makes sure that those who should not use their full strength do not use it? I mean, not everyone is well-bred like Mingtian Deities and immortals? But what about someone (born on lower plane with powers of the higher plane) who had such a strength and wanted to do good ? Would they force him to stop? And is Xie Yi strength really so much lower than Mingtian's?
@Melmothia Cracking fingers to explain world building
Long. Have a spoiler tag to make it shorter
They could visit the world again, but ultimately they wouldn't be a main part of it anymore.
The world setting is built like this: The creator of the world is not managing it anymore, but they gave the task to several groups. One of these is the judges on one of the highest planes, called the Rooted World (while the one where are now is part of the Branched World. Imagine the planes like stages of Yggdrasil, a bit.) along with the King of that plane, the Lords - of whom Juxian is a part of - and the being that manages the world's time.
Their task is ensuring that the world doesn't run into complete doom, for the simple reason that their Creator doesn't want that. Imagine a kindergarten (not exact, but works well enough). The teachers watch the children play and allow smaller fights. They would also allow some destruction of the environment, like plucking flowers. But if one of these kids is bringing a knife or other weapon to school, they're gonna get in trouble. Lots of it.
Generally the judges are very lenient and try to let the Branched World manage itself as much as possible. That's why they did not react to Mingtian or Su Liang, or Nie coming over. But they do get pretty pissed when things take overhand, like the whole timeline getting warped thanks to the Demonic Sect. If Mingtian - whose strength is several times higher this life thanks to Nie and thus far above Xie Yi - or Su Liang started intervening in a timeline that, by all right without Nie's involvement should not include such powers, they'd come checking. Nie is not part of the Branched World, so everything he does changes its path. They can't care much as long as the changes are minor, but if they rise, they'll get pissed and Nie is not risking that - not like he can go and ask, hey how much do you tolerate.
Same with cultivators: The closer they are to Immortals, the more they belong to the higher plane, the more likely that they will fall under the eyes of the judges if they cause a mess.
And now - oh boy - to the most complicated part of your question: "What if someone wanted to do good?" ...That doesn't exist. For the higher planes, there are two sides - things that are acceptable for the timeline, and things that destroy them. Other than that, there is no good or bad. They are beings that live not like humans, with considering a short-term effect. They consider millions of years. If I punch someone, that has countless effects. It doesn't matter if that was a criminal or a good guy. On the long run, it has good and bad effects for the world as a whole. it will always be good for someone and always be bad to another. So, they don't care what the powers are used for. What they care for is ensuring that no one breaks off a timeline-branch as it happened and that the world isn't moving towards destruction in the nearer future. They are a bit more lenient with Nie, Mingtian and everyone because the branch that the Demonic Sect enforced was too much on the route of bringing destruction closer, so they took the shortest path; allow one person to go back in time. This was the best way to fix everything with the least problems occurring later. Still, that doesn't mean that they will allow beings that might mess all of this up again to intervene, so they are watching.
Did that help? I don't like bending the rules of my worlds very much, I spend a lot of time creating them so I dislike changing the rules and settings as I please xD
not like he can go and ask, hey how much do you tolerate
Nie would not, but Xie Yi... I can imagine that Are they sure they want Xie Yi as immortal?
Thanks for explaining! It's definitely more understandable to me now. Just this kindergarten is like high management kindergarten And I know why I had problem. When you describe it like this then I understand it - even this thing with not meddling in the mortals things, just maintaining order of all the planes existing together. It's clear concept. But in novel we can see Nie and even the other transcendent (when Xie Yi went to his home) or know about Mingtian powers - so actually they seem closer than they are. That's why I thought - "why cannot they do this and that?". Broader perspective has helped me to better understand it.
@Melmothia Immortals are still not in the Rooted World, so he wouldn't be able to go over He could ask Juxian, but Juxian would shrug and say "Depends on who is watching"
Yyyyyeah this setting is quite broad, so it doesn't do well in a single novel >_> This is all knowledge that Xie Yi can't have and can't gain, so it doesn't make sense to include it here. Nie's story includes a part of it, the Transcendent's story would have a part, and if I ever get around to writing a story about the Judges, that would also explain it. I know it's lot of background knowledge, but I kind of don't want to throw it into the story without explanation either, yknow? But if people ask, I don't mind answering
Yes, too much background knowledge without reason to appear in the story, but artificially added is not good (unless you're Tolkien ), but I think that when it comes to your novel there still is some potential to put more information (and more side characters interacting or interfering with Xie Yi and Shi Yue) here and there if you were ever to expand this novel.