Di Jun's Concern

Chapter 8: Di Jun's Concern

The night in the Sun Palace arrived late.

Even when the Sun Star sank to the west of the sea of clouds, the sky was still bright. Golden-red light slanted in through the windows, cutting the bedroom floor into halves of light and shadow. Taiyi sat cross-legged on the couch, his eyes closed, but he wasn't meditating—he was waiting.

Waiting for Di Jun to arrive.

Di Jun's words from noon, "Come to my chambers to discuss," still echoed in his ears. He had said three days, so it would definitely be three days, not a moment sooner, not a moment later. That was just how Di Jun was; his word was his bond. Once he set a rule, he followed it, as predictable as the sunrise and sunset.

The light outside the window shifted inch by inch.

It moved from the desk to the couch, fading from golden-red to orange, then darkening into a dim, warm hue. Taiyi opened his eyes and looked at the sky—it was about time.

As expected, footsteps sounded outside the door.

Not heavy, but steady, they landed on the jade floor step by step, the sound clear. They stopped at the door, paused, and then three knocks sounded, unhurried.

"Taiyi."

It was Di Jun's voice, sounding softer than usual, less imposing.

Taiyi stood up and walked over to open the door.

Outside, Di Jun was still in his dark gold casual wear, his hair loosely tied. His hands were empty, not holding any food containers. He glanced at Taiyi, nodded, and stepped into the bedchamber.

The door closed behind him.

Di Jun walked to the side of the couch and sat down, not in the main seat, but on the edge. He looked around the bedchamber, his gaze lingering on the desk—the faint golden repair mark was still there, gleaming in the dim light.

"Fixed it?" Di Jun asked, his tone casual.

"Mhm," Taiyi replied, sitting opposite him. "I was idle and decided to give it a try."

"Good technique," Di Jun said. "More delicate than before."

The words sounded like praise, but Taiyi's heart skipped a beat—the former Eastern Emperor Taiyi was indeed not a meticulous person. He was skilled in fighting and cultivation, but he had always been too lazy to bother with repairs. He quickly added, "I've been able to calm my mind lately."

Di Jun glanced at him but didn't reply.

Silence fell in the bedchamber.

The light outside the window dimmed another degree. Lights began to appear in the distant palaces, one by one, like stars. Wind seeped in through the window cracks, carrying the dampness of the night mist, cool and refreshing.

"Taiyi," Di Jun suddenly said, his voice very soft. "Tell me honestly—have you encountered anything lately?"

Here it comes.

Taiyi tensed inwardly but kept his expression unchanged. "Encountered what? Nothing."

"Nothing?" Di Jun turned his head, looking at him. His eyes seemed exceptionally deep in the dim light, as if they could see through a person. "Then why are you suddenly so... impatient?"

"Impatient?"

"Impatient to go to war with the Witch Race, impatient to flip the table, impatient to smash everything and start over," Di Jun said slowly, word by word. "This doesn't seem like something you would do."

Taiyi fell silent for a moment.

His mind raced—how should he answer? Continue the pretense? Or reveal a bit of the truth, half-true and half-false? Di Jun wasn't Bai Ze, nor Fei Lian; he was his elder brother, the person who understood Eastern Emperor Taiyi best in this world. It was easy to fool others, but difficult to fool Di Jun.

"I just..." Taiyi chose his words carefully. "I just feel stifled."

"Stifled by what?"

"Stifled by everything," Taiyi said, letting go and speaking with a hint of genuine frustration. "The Witch Race is riding roughshod over us, and we still have to endure it. The West Kunlun sends an invitation, and we have to rush over. Whatever that person in Zixiao Palace says, we have to listen—why should we?"

Di Jun listened quietly, without interrupting.

"Brother, do you remember when we first took human form?" Taiyi continued, his voice lowering. "Just the two of us, on the Sun Star. How free we were then? We flew when we wanted, shouted when we wanted. The world was vast, and no one could control us."

Di Jun's gaze softened.

"And then? We established the Heavenly Court, ruled the stars, which sounds magnificent, but what's the reality?" Taiyi gave a bitter smile. "More and more rules, more and more concerns. We have to think three steps ahead for every step we take, living harder than anyone else."

"This is responsibility," Di Jun said softly.

"I know it's responsibility," Taiyi looked up at his brother. "But this responsibility is suffocating."

Silence fell again in the bedchamber.

Di Jun looked at his younger brother for a long time. The sky outside had completely darkened. Stars began to light up, one by one. Faint starlight filtered through the window lattice, falling between them like a dusting of silver powder.

"Taiyi," Di Jun suddenly said, "have you... sensed something?"

Taiyi's heart leaped.

"Calamity energy," Di Jun's voice grew even softer, as if afraid of disturbing something. "The calamity energy of the Witch-Demon Calamity is getting stronger and stronger. I've been having nightmares lately, dreaming of the Sun Star dimming, dreaming of the Heavenly Court collapsing, dreaming of... you standing covered in blood amidst the ruins."

Taiyi held his breath.

"Bai Ze also said that the heavenly secrets are becoming more chaotic and impossible to divine," Di Jun continued, as if talking to himself. "Before, we could vaguely see a path, but now... it's all fog."

So that's how it is.

Taiyi suddenly understood—Di Jun hadn't sensed the problem with him being an imposter, but the signs of the impending calamity. As calamity energy permeated and heavenly secrets became chaotic, everyone caught in the calamity would have a sense, though the intensity varied.

He breathed a sigh of relief, yet his heart tightened again.

He breathed a sigh of relief because his identity wasn't exposed; his heart tightened because... Di Jun looked so distressed. The Heavenly Emperor, who was so majestic in the Lingxiao Palace, now sat in the dim bedchamber, talking about nightmares with a voice as weary as an ordinary person.

"Brother," Taiyi spoke, his voice softening unconsciously, "it's just a dream."

"I hope it's just a dream," Di Jun shook his head. "But my heart... it just doesn't feel settled."

He paused, then suddenly reached into his robes and pulled something out. It was a jade pendant, identical to Taiyi's, except it was carved with a soaring eagle. He placed the pendant on the couch and pushed it over.

"You keep this."

Taiyi blinked. "Isn't that yours...?"

"It's the one I have," Di Jun said. "We each have one, remember? We agreed back then, if we ever got separated, we'd use these to find each other."

Memories flooded back.

Taiyi remembered. It was true. The brothers had only recently taken human form back then, and it was their first time leaving the Sun Star. They had flown too far and almost gotten lost. After they returned, Di Jun had made two warming jade pendants, one carved with a Golden Crow and the other with an eagle, saying they would use them to identify each other if they ever got separated.

"It's been so many years," Taiyi picked up the pendant, feeling its warm smoothness in his palm. "You still kept it."

"I kept it," Di Jun smiled, a hint of nostalgia in his smile. "You were so small then, your wings weren't even fully grown. You'd get tired after flying for a bit and insist on perching on my back for a ride."

Taiyi remained silent.

Images flashed through his mind—two small Golden Crows, one behind the other, circling the Sun Star. The smaller one, tired from flying, would shamelessly settle onto the larger one's back. The larger one wouldn't get annoyed, just carry him like that, flying round and round. Starlight glinted off their feathers, making them sparkle.

"Later, you grew up and could fly on your own, so you stopped letting me carry you," Di Jun continued, his tone tinged with emotion. "And then, we established the Heavenly Court, you became the Eastern Emperor, and I became the Heavenly Emperor... We met quite often, but there were fewer and fewer times like this, sitting and talking."

Taiyi clutched the jade pendant, his palm growing sweaty.

He had been acting, always acting, playing the role of the arrogant and overbearing Eastern Emperor Taiyi. But now, facing Di Jun like this, he suddenly felt... unable to continue the act. It wasn't about being exposed; it was as if a spot in his heart had been touched, making it ache with a soft tenderness.

"Brother," he said softly, "I'm fine."

"I know you're fine," Di Jun looked at him. "But I just... can't help but worry."

The words were too direct, too unlike something Di Jun would say. Taiyi looked up and saw the worry in his elder brother's eyes—it wasn't the concern of a Heavenly Emperor for a subject, but the pure, unadulterated worry of a brother for his sibling.

He suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

"I really am fine," he said again, his tone more earnest this time. "It's just that I've encountered some issues with my cultivation recently, coupled with sensing the calamity's aura. It's making me restless. I'll be better in a while."

"Issues with cultivation..." Di Jun mused. "Is it the Chaos Bell?"

"Mm," Taiyi nodded, half-truthfully. "The restrictions within the bell are too difficult to break, and I'm stuck at a bottleneck. I've been feeling agitated, which made me speak harshly."

This explanation made sense.

Di Jun knew how much his brother valued the Chaos Bell, and he also knew how difficult it was to refine. It was perfectly normal to be agitated when stuck at a bottleneck. His expression softened. "You can't rush cultivation. Take your time."

"I know."

"Regarding the Witch Race," Di Jun changed the subject, "I've asked Bai Ze to make contact."

Taiyi was taken aback. "Make contact?"

"Mm," Di Jun nodded. "We can't fight them, at least not yet. But we can probe their intentions and understand their situation. Bai Ze is thorough in his work; I trust him with this."

This was good news.

Taiyi's mind raced. If Bai Ze made contact with the Witch Race, the conflict between the Witch and Demon races could be temporarily suppressed. This suppression would give him more time to develop and prepare. The System had said the calamity was inevitable, but how it unfolded and when it happened had a lot of room for maneuver.

"You always think things through, Brother," he said sincerely.

Di Jun glanced at him and smiled. "Now you're saying nice things? Who was it earlier, in the Lingxiao Palace, shouting about hanging Witch Race heads on the South Heaven Gate?"

Taiyi felt a bit awkward and rubbed his nose.

"Your temper," Di Jun shook his head. "It's been like this since you were little, so quick to anger. I remember once, when we were still on the Sun Star, you got into a fight with a fire spirit from a neighboring star system. You couldn't win, and you were so angry you didn't eat for three days."

"Did I?" Taiyi searched his memories.

"Of course!" Di Jun chuckled. "I had to step in and beat up that fire spirit for you before you'd eat."

Fragments of memory surfaced—it seemed... it really happened. That fire spirit had bullied the newly formed young Golden Crows, claiming seniority, and Di Jun had grabbed it by the wings and beaten it until it flew around in circles, finally crying and admitting defeat.

Taiyi smiled too.

As he smiled, that feeling of soft ache returned to his heart.

The stars outside the window grew brighter and more numerous, a dense scattering like a handful of crushed diamonds. A night breeze slipped through the window cracks, carrying the faint, pleasant fragrance of the distant Fusang Forest.

Di Jun stood up.

"I should go," he said. "Xihe is waiting for me."

Taiyi rose to see him off.

At the doorway, Di Jun stopped and looked back at him. His gaze was deep, as if he were imprinting his brother's image in his heart.

"Taiyi," he said, "no matter what happens, remember—Brother is here."

With that, he opened the door and walked out.

The door closed softly behind him.

Taiyi stood inside, still clutching the eagle jade pendant. The pendant was warm, as if still carrying Di Jun's body heat. He stood there for a long time, until the starlight outside had shifted, before slowly turning and walking back to the couch.

He sat down and placed the two jade pendants side-by-side on the couch.

The Golden Crow and the eagle lay together, emitting a soft, warm glow under the starlight.

Taiyi stared at the jade pendant for a long time, then raised his hand to cover his face and let out a long, silent sigh.

"Lin Yuan, oh Lin Yuan," he murmured to himself, "you must be so tired of acting."

Outside the window, the starlight flickered.

It was like countless eyes, quietly watching this play unfold.

Watching this soul, inhabiting another's shell, stumble forward in this unfamiliar world. The path ahead was a mountain of knives and a sea of fire, the abyss behind him was ten thousand feet deep, and the only things he could grasp were the two warm jade pendants in his hands.

And the words, "Brother is here."

Taiyi lay down, gazing at the dome of his sleeping quarters. A star chart was carved on the dome, the same as the one in Lingxiao Palace, only much smaller. The stars lit up one by one, moving along their predetermined paths, without the slightest deviation.

Just like destiny.

He closed his eyes.

His mind flickered between Di Jun's weary face, the System's cold prompts, the brutal scenes of the Witch-Demon Calamity, and the image of two little Golden Crows playing on the Sun Star.

It was chaotic.

But as the chaos swirled, it gradually became clearer.

He had to survive.

Not just for himself, but for... for those who took him seriously. For Di Jun, for Fei Lian, for Bai Ze, for the countless members of the Demon Race in the Heavenly Court who had placed their lives on Eastern Emperor Taiyi.

This burden was too heavy.

So heavy that he could barely breathe.

But for some reason, as he held the two jade pendants, a little strength welled up within him—not much, just a little, but enough.

He opened his eyes and sat up.

From a hidden compartment by his bed, he took out a blank jade slip and found a brush. The brush was made from golden crow feathers, and the tip was dipped in star sand ink. He wrote a few characters on the jade slip:

"Calamity Survival Record."

Then he paused.

What should he write? How should he write it? He didn't know. He would just jot things down as he thought of them, as he planned them, as he... this hard-won strength.

Outside the window, the night was still deep.

The stars shone quietly.