And yet, there was no use in figuring this out.
Gu Zuo quietly rubbed his face, and kept his mood under control.
He never realized that he could tuck his thoughts into his heart in the presence of his big brother this quickly. However, he knew that he couldn’t confess to his big brother right now.
— It definitely wasn’t that he was unwilling. Rather, he had heavy apprehensions.
He wanted to go back to his original world. But even if they went together, it would be a long-distance relationship. He couldn’t cause his big brother, who was pursuing the summit of the path of martial arts, to always think about going to another world to visit him… To be separated from the one you love was an unbearable type of anguish for anyone. Although he hadn’t personally experienced this kind of pain, he had seen it from a young age, and could place himself in someone else’s shoes. After thinking it over, he could understand.
What was even more important was that…
Gu Zuo didn’t know if his big brother would be willing to accept him after he confessed.
One could assume that it wouldn’t work. This world was like the previous world. Homosexual love wasn’t mainstream. Apart from Bai Wenjun and Qi Feng’s cut-sleeve farce, he hadn’t seen any gay people expressing their love for one another. Even though there was Senior Sect Brother Huang Ji back then, he felt that he was a man, and held that particular way of thinking.
In this world, perhaps the perceptions of many people were that men and women could love each other, and that yin and yang created harmony. By passing down powerful bloodlines, one could develop a clan, and produce even more descendants.
Had it been Gu Zuo himself, if he hadn’t grown up by his dad’s side, even in that world of information explosions, the younger him who didn’t have any additional forms of entertainment wouldn’t necessarily have known that love could sprout between people of the same gender. To say nothing of his understanding of masculine passions.
And in his big brother’s heart, the clan was extremely important. Tianheng had a plan for every step of his life. In all likelihood, an unbroken chain of heirs was also in it…
Gu Zuo was confident that if he really told Tianheng about his own feelings, based on the trust and sentiment between them these years, his big brother wouldn’t disdain or hate him. However, when all was said and done, it was unlikely for there to be no negative effects. Regardless of how his big brother reacted, so long as Tianheng didn’t accept him, what difference would it make to him? Between the two of them, it would be a barrier of his own making.
It was better that they continued this close, fraternal relationship before he departed… Although it made him somewhat forlorn, there also wasn’t anything bad about days such as these.
After all, there were many things they needed to do.
It was still far away. There wasn’t any time to waste one’s efforts over the entanglements of love.
Gu Zuo’s heart was pained, but when Tianheng looked over, he promptly revealed a great, big smile: “Big brother, does it taste good?”
Tianheng watched him pensively.
Gu Zuo’s smile stiffened.
He had been concentrating too hard on his thoughts just now. Had big brother discovered that something was wrong? His big brother absolutely couldn’t question him about this! He still hadn’t thought of a good excuse! Should he say it was because he was worried about going to Ten Ultimates Sect, that he was too nervous?
Fortunately, Tianheng didn’t ask about Gu Zuo’s anxious matter, which made Gu Zuo sigh in relief.
Tianheng smiled: “I haven’t tried Ah Zuo’s craftsmanship in a long time. It’s still delicious as ever.”
The previous Gu Zuo, who hadn’t become aware of his own inclinations yet, would’ve been happy to hear these words. When the present Gu Zuo listened to this, he was extra happy. But more than that, he was satisfied and content.
After all, Tianheng’s identity in his heart had now doubled…
Gu Zuo blurted out: “In the past, I cooked for big brother every day! Whatever big brother wants to eat, I’ll make it!”
Tianheng raised an eyebrow before his smile returned: “Then, wouldn’t it be hard on Ah Zuo? You don’t have to do that. There’s no harm in simply waiting till there’s a need or when Ah Zuo has some free time to let this elder brother enjoy your cooking.”
Gu Zuo’s face couldn’t help burning up a little.
Since he recognized his heart’s intentions, he realized why he had always felt embarrassed before. And now that he was clear about his embarrassment, every one of Tianheng’s responses caused joy to sprout in his heart. His state of mind was set adrift as it floated along.
— He had to endure it.
He couldn’t let his big brother notice.
Gu Zuo displayed a hundred twenty percent of his acting skills as he nodded to Tianheng: “That’s fine. But if big brother wants to eat something, just tell me. At that time, I’ll prepare it for big brother.” He looked at Tianheng like he wanted to say something else, but he hastily continued to talk, “Big brother can’t refuse me on this!”
The smile on Tianheng’s lips deepened, and his gaze became even softer: “Okay. This elder brother happily accepts.”
Gu Zuo couldn’t stop the corner of his mouth from revealing a smiling expression.
This feeling was ten times greater than anything he had felt before, but it came from his heart, and it was hard to control himself.
It was the same as before when refining medicinal cuisines. Except for the first bowl, the rest of the dish lacked the same medicinal effects seen in that first bowl, and even the flavor was slightly inferior. However, it still tasted good when bystanders ate it.
After Gu Zuo received a bowl that Tianheng personally served, he happily ate it. At first, the remaining medicinal cuisine would’ve been left untouched, but the Wu Clan Head, Wu Xing, had a shrewd mind. He went over and asked for a bowl to eat — Originally, he didn’t need to act this way. Doing it was clearly to get closer and ingratiate himself.
Afterwards, some Wu Clan members also dropped by to get into his good graces because they had been seeking refuge. Gu Zuo didn’t mind, and Tianheng also allowed them to do so. Later on, Gu Zuo saw that the Hu Clan’s Hu Chang’an and his siblings seemed somewhat hesitant. Gu Zuo waved at Hu Chang’an, and invited the three siblings to try his cooking.
At this moment, under Tianheng’s command, the battle slaves and servile races prepared some food to fill their bellies. Everyone assembled together in the wilderness outside the city, but it felt a little bit like they were having a picnic.
The relationships between one another seemed to become much more close-knit.
After the meals were finished, the moon was already hanging in the sky.
The night would deepen soon. Gu Zuo had slept already, so would they keep waiting outside the city, or would they simply go inside?
Tianheng quickly made a decision. He lifted Gu Zuo’s robe collar, and helped him stand up. Tianheng smiled and said: “Enter the city.”
The crowd of subordinates obeyed this order: “Yes, young master!”
Those who practiced martial arts didn’t need to be afraid of the light of day or the darkness of night. Since they had rested earlier, it was convenient to enter the city and go back to the sect at this moment.
Gu Zuo tugged at Tianheng’s sleeve. He truly was a bit nervous: “Big brother, there’s no problem for me to go to Ten Ultimates Sect, right?”
Tianheng let Gu Zuo pull on his sleeve, and reached out his other hand to ruffle Gu Zuo’s hair. He spoke in a soft voice: “It’s no bother. From now on, Ah Zuo is this elder brother’s personal pharmacist. You’ll have the identity of a sect disciple.”
As Gu Zuo laid down his worries, a faint redness quietly climbed up his ears again.
Previously, he always felt that this ruffling was a normal thing to do, that it was an ordinary movement of the hands. Now, that the layer of dense fog had been cleared, the feelings this action brought him were different…
Shijue City was the city where Ten Ultimates Sect was located. When going in or coming out, security was always tight. Gongyi Tianheng and his majestic procession of troops also needed to present themselves before the city gates.
An Atomic Realm battle slave took the initiative to flash forward and toss out a declaration.
This declaration had a number of large characters in flowing, cursive script. In addition to a personal seal, clearly written on it was that Gongyi Tianheng, a prodigy of Ten Ultimates Sect, needed to enter the city at this moment.
Ten Ultimates Sect’s prodigies held extraordinary positions in Shijue City. When the declaration came over, the nearly undetectable arrogance of the guards of the city gates became respectful: “Open the city gates. May we have the honor of this prodigy entering our city!”
Immediately following this, the city gates, which were three hundred meters tall, opened wide. The troops’ wild beasts entered in an orderly fashion, and there wasn’t anyone who dared to obstruct them.
This kind of momentum actually seemed even more formidable than when they were in Xuanwu City.
The members of the Wu Clan and the three Hu Clan siblings were strongly affected when they saw this grand sight.
Wu Xing was only in this place, and he experienced even more definitively the enormous difference between a silver-ranked organization and an iron-ranked organization. His thoughts heated up, and he became increasingly resolute about his own choice.
He needed to make the Wu Clan flourish. There would come a day when their Wu Clan wouldn’t fear others any longer, when they could freely stand tall upon this vast continent!
Meanwhile, a trace of pride sparked within Hu Chang’an’s mind.
Upon witnessing this sight, he recalled the Hu Clan they had left just recently. Unexpectedly, it already felt like a lifetime ago —
In the small palace hall, Gu Zuo could feel Tianheng’s precious identity in Ten Ultimates Sect, and was at a loss for words. Moreover, when he previously sent out his psychic power, he could sense that, just among the guards here, the lowliest soldier was an Immortal Realm. As one climbed the ranks, the strengths of the guards continuously increased. In several of the city gates’ towers, there were numerous qi emissions that were deep and immeasurable. This displayed the extremely terrifying foundations of Ten Ultimates Sect!
Indeed, this kind of sect was one that enraptured people…
Gu Zuo sighed internally.
Previously, when they were in Qingyun Sect, Gu Zuo could feel the insignificance of the Cangyun Empire. Now that he came to Ten Ultimates Sect, he again sensed the smallness of Qingyun Sect. As for Ten Ultimates Sect, it was only a silver-ranked organization.
If he saw a gold-ranked organization one day in the future, just how shocking would it be?
There wasn’t enough time to ponder such things. All of a sudden, Tianheng’s expression twitched.
Right now, Gu Zuo was paying attention to his big brother at all times. Naturally, he became aware of this at once: “Big brother?”
What could make his big brother’s expression shift like that? Gu Zuo’s tone was quite concerned.
Tianheng shook his head to pacify Gu Zuo. Then, he smiled and said: “Ah Zuo, follow me. Let’s pay our respects to my master.”
Gu Zuo stared blankly. After that, he became incredibly nervous: “Big brother’s master? But this is… I’m just…”
Tianheng drew Gu Zuo over by his forearm, and pulled him into a one-armed embrace. Then, Tianheng directly jumped off the back of the wild beast while holding him.
As it turned out, they were already before the towering mountain gates at this time. And in front of that enormous stone tablet stood a man wearing blood-red robes. His pitch-black hair, which resembled crow feathers, hung down in straight bundles, but the tips seemed to be drenched with a bloody mist. It was very strange, but his appearance was malevolently handsome. At first glance, his pair of eyes were clearly black and white, but with a careful inspection, his eyes seemed to contain a ball of heavy, blood-like redness. One couldn’t look upon them too closely.
This kind of blood-robed person ought to have been incredibly horrifying, but at this moment, he suddenly turned his face to look at Tianheng and revealed a benevolent smile. Contrasted by his face of indeterminable age, he seemed somewhat bizarre.
“Apprentice, you’ve returned.”
Tianheng brought Gu Zuo along, advanced a step, and saluted: “This disciple came across a troubling matter, and anxiously left the sect in a hurry. This disciple is at fault for worrying master.”
Soon after, he nudged Gu Zuo forward: “Ah Zuo is this disciple’s adoptive younger brother. We got separated previously, and I was greatly worried for him. I was lucky enough to retrieve him, and I wanted to bring him to pay his respects to master. We’ve come just in time to observe the proper courtesies with master.”
Gu Zuo had never seen this kind of person before. Granted that the other party was kind and amiable, Gu Zuo still felt a bit timid. However, he quickly made his salutations: “This Gu Zuo pays his respects to this senior.”
The blood-robed man gave Gu Zuo a measured glance as he withheld the bloody light inside his eyes. His tone was genial and close: “Since you’re my apprentice’s adoptive brother, you’ll also be considered my half disciple. Ah Zuo’s qi emissions are pure and mild, making you a pretty good seedling. Excellent, you’re a good kid.”
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