Imperial Weight Chapter 2
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 2
Though he had anticipated that the talisman's effect might not last very long, Little Phoenix hadn't expected it to be quite this short—barely half an incense stick's worth of time.
He decided to find time to track down that golden-winged bird and demand a refund. If it refused, he'd give it a beating.
The night was thick with darkness, the moon barely visible, yet their eyes gleamed brightly.
Xingyi looked at him, and he stared back at Xingyi.
In truth, Xingyi's appearance hadn't changed much—he looked the same as when he'd been in the mortal realm. In his first life, he'd been a prince; in his second, a cultivator. But the problem lay with this second life. Just as Little Phoenix was preparing to seek him out at the immortal mountain, he'd heard that Xingyi had ascended ahead of schedule and returned to the Heavenly Court.
This time, with all his five senses and six perceptions restored, the Star Disc required its master to be heartless and emotionless, and even his memories had been erased. Xingyi didn't even remember that he'd descended to the mortal realm, so how could he possibly remember a plump little bird like him?
Little Phoenix deliberated: since his husband no longer recognized him, and there were all sorts of entanglements in the world about "do you love the past me or the present me," it would be better to observe secretly for a while first.
The master of the Star Disc had just awakened from sleep and was now fully roused by these chirping sounds.
Emperor Xingyi lowered his eyes and recognized him. "You're the little phoenix from earlier today."
Little Phoenix nodded happily, flapping his wings, as if to say yes, yes, it's me! His joyful, bouncing appearance left Xingyi unable to maintain his temper.
Xingyi had always been lazy by nature. When well-rested and in a good mood, he could be quite cooperative in executing the relevant procedures of the Heavenly Realm—attending court sessions, chatting with the Jade Emperor about "when will you have another son"—though Emperor Xingyi had lived for millennia, he remained a bachelor immortal. Unlike the Jade Emperor, who had already grown white hair and a white beard, his appearance was still first-rate among the immortals. He currently held the top position for twenty consecutive terms in the ranking of "Most Desirable Male Immortal to Marry" among the celestial maidens. When he hadn't rested enough, he would find ways to ensure he got adequate rest. When immortals from the Heavenly Court came to pay their respects, he thought nothing of standing them up—it was common for him to ghost them for ten days or half a month.
Having been awakened in the middle of the night by a bird, and seeing that this bird couldn't speak and presumably had low cultivation, Xingyi figured it wasn't some mountain spirit coming to harass him, so he paid it no mind. He extended his finger and stroked Little Phoenix's head.
Little Phoenix, emboldened, hopped up along his hand, climbed to nestle by his neck, and nuzzled against him.
"There will be snow tonight. You should leave after tomorrow."
Xingyi picked him up and gently held him in his palm, a hint of tenderness showing through his indifference. Little Phoenix's bright black eyes stared at him, practically sparkling with stars, but Xingyi had already closed his eyes again, his breathing gradually becoming slow and steady. Little Phoenix folded his wings, gazed at him for a while, then leaned sideways against his palm and closed his eyes too.
In the middle of the night, Xingyi turned over, his five fingers loosening, and Little Phoenix tumbled out of his palm, plopping down onto the bed with a soft thud.
Little Phoenix woke from the fall and looked up at his husband, who lay on his side, presenting half of his handsome face—sharp, beautiful eyes and brows, a high-bridged nose. When awake, he was surely a fine gentleman, bright as stars. Little Phoenix waddled along the bed, the soft cloud brocade beneath him. He retracted his claws to avoid snagging it.
He extended his wing tip and carefully poked at Xingyi's eyelashes. The soft white down bent slightly against the somewhat stiff lash tips, then returned to its original shape as he withdrew. Little Phoenix circled around Xingyi once, then carefully extended his claws and climbed atop Xingyi's head. He gripped firmly, able to sleep even at an angle, essentially making a nest of Xingyi's hair, then happily fell asleep.
He slept until the sun was high in the sky. Even when the immortal attendant came in to help Xingyi wash and dress his hair, he didn't notice. Having grown accustomed to it after sleeping all night, Xingyi himself hadn't noticed either.
The immortal attendant stood behind Xingyi, staring at the white, plump ball nestled in his emperor's hair, holding the comb but not daring to move. "This... Your Majesty... should this bird also be combed?"
Xingyi had been resting with his eyes closed and only opened them at these words. A water mirror stood before him, and with a slight tilt of his head, he saw a round, smooth, fan-shaped bird bottom with tail feathers—the owner of this tail was sleeping sweetly in his hair.
The immortal attendant didn't dare move, though he was thinking that this bird certainly had audacity.
Emperor Xingyi was normally taciturn, and every morning upon rising he carried an icy aura that could frighten people back three feet, not to mention being discovered with a bird perched on his head. Xingyi said nothing, waved his hand to dismiss the attendant, then reached up to remove the small round ball from his head.
Little Phoenix was roused. He kicked his short little legs a few times, twisted about, then pulled his tucked-in head out from under his wing, revealing a pair of dazed eyes as he looked at Xingyi.
Then he buried his head back in, embarrassedly twisting his body again, the entire bird rubbing back and forth in Xingyi's hand.
Xingyi wanted to set him down and turned over his palm, but Little Phoenix climbed up, scrambling onto his fingertips and gripping tightly. When Xingyi lowered his hand, Little Phoenix rolled into an upside-down position, still maintaining his stance without falling, blinking his eyes at him.
"Go on, leave," Xingyi said.
He raised his free hand, casually gathered his hair, then rose and walked to the window, plucked Little Phoenix from his fingertip, and placed him on the windowsill. Little Phoenix didn't move. Seeing that outside there was no wind or snow and the weather was fair, Xingyi patted Little Phoenix's head and closed the window, separating the man and bird with a thin layer of pearl paper.
He hadn't taken two steps when there was a pat sound—the window paper had been broken through. A short, pointed beak poked through, followed by a round, rolling body. Little Phoenix had made it halfway in, the other half still stuck there. After struggling for quite a while without managing to squeeze through, he could only look at him innocently.
Xingyi was amused by him, the corners of his lips curving slightly upward as he repeated. "I don't keep birds. Return to your own nest."
As soon as the words fell, Little Phoenix squeezed through with a pop, stood at attention before him, his eyes full of hope.
Xingyi thought for a moment and added, "Even if I did keep one, I wouldn't keep one as fat as you."
Little Phoenix froze in place.
Xingyi looked at him no more, donned his outer robe, and headed outside.
For thousands upon thousands of years, few things had been able to catch his attention. This bird was too bold. Once he stepped outside, he would be the heartless, cold-faced emperor, the inscrutable ancient war god behind the Star Disc.
Many people had used the word "sinister" to describe Xingyi. The reason was simple—he had no divine countenance, no radiance like Fan Tian's that blessed all beings, nor the magnanimous and easygoing manner of the current immortals of the Heavenly Court. His magnanimity was limited to the battlefields of the mortal world he'd opened up ten thousand years ago. He was like a ghost piercing through ten millennia, still retaining the heavy aura of slaughter and viciousness from the primordial chaos of heaven and earth. He never acted according to common sense, and his thoughts were even more difficult to fathom.
Only when there were battlefields could he muster some spirit. However, this was now an age of peace and prosperity, both in the mortal realm and the divine realm, so he was listless.
Donning black cloud brocade embroidered with stars and celestial rivers, Xingyi stepped into the snow and saw from afar a pair of immortal officials standing in the snow—one in blue, one in red, a striking contrast against the white.
The one in red exuded an unstoppable air of nobility, with a faint dragon seal between his brows. He performed a very serious bow with utmost respect. "Tanlang Xing pays respects to Your Majesty."
Just a hundred years ago, Tanlang had been an emperor in the mortal world as well. But imperial fates were countless in the heavens, and he wasn't the most exceptional one. As one of the few unassigned immortals in the Star Disc, he merely served as a star and naturally answered directly to Xingyi.
The one in blue had delicate, handsome features but wasn't as particular about etiquette. He simply smiled lightly. "Qisha Xing greets Your Majesty. I've been studying divination with the Supreme Elderly Lord these past days, and today I see that you seem to be fated with some spiritual little creature."
Xingyi said indifferently, "It's a bird."
Qisha's smile deepened. After Xingyi passed, he bowed deeply, then followed behind him, flanking him left and right with Tanlang as they accompanied Xingyi to court. "So my studies are going well—is Your Majesty planning to keep a bird?"
Xingyi said, "No."
Qisha slowed his pace, tilted his head, and smiled again.
Tanlang asked curiously. "What are you smiling about?"
Qisha gestured with his lips toward Xingy.: "Whatever His Majesty keeps dies. Don't you know? A hundred years ago, he kept a pot of wishful grass that could sing. He watered and fertilized it every day, and then it died. Ninety-nine years ago, he kept a rabbit that he thought was young, but it turned out to be an ancient pearl rabbit that immediately died of old age. Ninety-eight years ago, he kept a turtle, thinking this one would surely live long, but because the spring water of Fuli Palace was too blessed, the turtle couldn't withstand it and died too.
"Later, the Moon Elder couldn't bear to watch and got a potted spiky plant—called a cactus—and gave it to His Majesty, saying it had strong vitality and didn't need watering, only needed to be left to absorb moisture. Yet even such a plant His Majesty couldn't keep alive. Since then, His Majesty has never kept any living things, and afterward only occasionally feeds the birds he encounters on the road."
Tanlang was somewhat surprised. "Such a thing happened?"
Qisha said, "Dead is dead. I think the reason His Majesty hasn't kept these things since is probably that he finds it troublesome. Not only does it take time to keep them, but after they die, you still have to dispose of the corpse."
Tanlang sighed. "Better to give them to me. Say, did a little bird find His Majesty today? If there isn't much to do later, I'll go to His Majesty's room and steal that bird."
Qisha laughed mockingly. "I'm afraid it's not something you can steal. Given His Majesty's cold temperament, he's probably already broken its heart and sent it away. Let's catch up first, lest His Majesty has another whim to stand up all the immortals—the Jade Emperor has already been stood up too many times to count."
The scattered discussion drifted over on the wind. Xingyi's footsteps paused for a moment, his face expressionless as he walked straight into the hall.
The great hall was silent as death.
All the immortals knew that Emperor Fuli Yuanshi would definitely be late, and it was very possible he might not show up at all. Today, Xingyi was only half an incense stick's time late, and everyone found it quite remarkable.
Tanlang gossiped with others about this bit of news. "Supposedly, a little sparrow found His Majesty, and His Majesty is busy avoiding it, which is why he came so early."
Everyone discussed it intensely. "Really? The sparrow spirit clan doesn't seem particularly beautiful, so why didn't His Majesty chase it away this time but is instead busy avoiding it? Are we going to have an empress?"
The matter was completely unfounded, yet Xingyi heard it all clearly from above. He prepared to speak up several times but thought better of it.
That wasn't any sparrow—it was a little phoenix.
As for being breathtakingly beautiful, he hadn't seen that. So fat and still unable to transform into human form—looked like he'd never be able to transform in his entire life. Foolish.
