The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Sorrow filled Fa Shan’s heart, yet he had no right to say anything.

’This was... the choice I made. How could I possibly blame her for any of it?’

He didn’t dare reveal even the slightest hint of grievance.

Taking a deep breath, Fa Shan forced himself to rally his spirits and change the subject.

"You’re an Immortal Cultivator now, so... what are your plans for the future?"

"If you’re willing to come back, I’ll gladly give up my position as Sect Master."

But Lu Sangjiu shook her head. "There’s no need for that."

"Fa Shan, what’s past is past... Like I said, there is no more Moon Palace, and no more Gu Huang. Do you understand?"

"You’re doing a fine job as the Sect Master of the Divine Tomb Sect. Your sect and its disciples need you. Don’t say things like that again."

Fa Shan had expected this answer, but he couldn’t help feeling disappointed.

"Then regarding the Immortal Demon War, you..."

"You probably don’t know, but I now practice Immortal and Demon Dual Cultivation. So while I am an Immortal Cultivator, I have never abandoned my identity as a Demon Cultivator."

Lu Sangjiu said seriously, "I will not take a side in this war. At the same time, I will do my best to prevent widespread devastation."

"Fa Shan, I won’t become your enemy. Rest assured."

Fa Shan nodded. "I understand. If there’s anything I can do to help, you can contact me at any time. I will never refuse."

Fa Shan left soon after, and Xie Ningyuan walked into Lu Sangjiu’s room carrying some food.

"I had some free time, so I made you something to eat."

"You’ve been asleep for over a month. Your mouth must taste rather bland. Come, try some."

Lu Sangjiu smiled and nodded. She walked over and saw that all the dishes were her favorites.

She took a bite, then said, "Aren’t you going to ask what I said to Fa Shan?"

Xie Ningyuan shook his head. "I can probably guess."

She was silent for a long moment before letting out a soft sigh. "I’m not Gu Huang anymore. Those hundreds of years are a blank space... I can’t go back."

It wasn’t that she hadn’t noticed Fa Shan’s feelings, but she couldn’t lie to herself and pretend nothing had happened.

After she finished eating, Lu Sangjiu stood up. "Come with me somewhere."

Xie Ningyuan didn’t ask where they were going; he just quietly accompanied her.

They walked until they stood before a solitary grave... It was Bai Sheng’s tomb.

Lu Sangjiu approached it as if seeing an old friend, a gentle smile on her face. "Asheng, it’s been a long time."

Fa Shan kept Bai Sheng’s grave very tidy; he must have visited often.

Lu Sangjiu took out a jug of wine as an offering and then chattered on, telling her many things.

Xie Ningyuan stayed with her the entire time, showing no signs of impatience or boredom.

Just as she stood up to leave, Xie Ningyuan suddenly called out to her. "Little Jiu."

Lu Sangjiu turned back. "What is it?"

Xie Ningyuan smiled at her. "It’s nothing. I just wanted to tell you that Bai Sheng may be gone, and the Moon Palace may be gone... but you still have me."

"I will always be your strongest connection to the past. So don’t be sad. At least to me, you are both Lu Sangjiu and Gu Huang."

"You never have to worry about losing the person you used to be."

Lu Sangjiu froze. The sorrow hidden deep in her heart seemed to spill over at his words, impossible to hide any longer.

Her eyes reddened slightly as she shook her head. "...It’s not really sadness. It’s just that returning to a familiar place inevitably makes one a little sentimental."

She gave a small laugh. "But, thank you for comforting me."

Xie Ningyuan gazed at her and suddenly said, "Lu Sangjiu, I like you. What about you?"

The confession came so unexpectedly.

It was a surprise, and yet, somehow it wasn’t.

Lu Sangjiu stared at him, stunned, and hesitated. "You..."

"Don’t ask anything, and don’t think about anything. Just answer me. Do you... like me?"

They looked into each other’s eyes. No more words were needed. That one question seemed to say everything their hearts contained.

He told her not to think, so she wouldn’t.

Looking at Xie Ningyuan, she smiled softly, her expression absolutely radiant.

Then she nodded forcefully, giving her answer with unwavering certainty. "I do. I like you a lot."

Seeing her, Xie Ningyuan couldn’t help but smile too. He quickly closed the distance between them and pulled her into his arms. "What a coincidence. I like you a lot too."

A sweet feeling spread through her heart, and in that moment, Lu Sangjiu emptied her mind.

The rule that a Buddhist Practitioner cannot love one person, the Immortal Demon War, fate, the Heavenly Dao... she didn’t want to think about any of it.

All she needed to know was that, right now, she and Xie Ningyuan had been honest with each other, and their feelings were mutual. That was enough.

After enjoying the moment of peace, Xie Ningyuan took the initiative to tell Lu Sangjiu about his own situation.

"I did indeed suffer a backlash before because of my feelings for you. But the other day, I had a sudden epiphany, and now I have a path that is truly my own."

"It’s not fully developed yet, and I probably still need to figure it out on my own, but... at least I’m not going to die."

Hearing this, Lu Sangjiu recalled some suspicious details she had previously overlooked. Annoyed, she demanded, "You were suffering a backlash all this time. Why didn’t you tell me?"

Xie Ningyuan cleared his throat. "If death was the predetermined outcome, telling you would have only made you worry, so..."

"So, you were probably planning to just hide away and die by yourself when the time came, without letting me know, weren’t you?"

Xie Ningyuan: "..."

The thought had indeed crossed his mind.

He was a bit embarrassed. "Well... you have to understand I was a bit muddled when I was on the brink of death, right?"

"Understand you, my ass!"

Lu Sangjiu irritably rapped him on the head. "I hate people like you who get off on self-sacrifice! Do you think you’re so noble?"

"Let me tell you, if you had died without my knowledge, I would only have blamed myself more after finding out the truth!"

"I’ve never been someone who lacks the courage to face things! Even if you absolutely had to die, we should have faced it together! Don’t you dare pull any of that sneaky crap on me again, you hear?!"

Watching Lu Sangjiu fly into a rage, Xie Ningyuan found her exceptionally cute.

His eyes crinkled with a smile as he nodded emphatically. "I know now!"

"If there’s a next time, I’ll definitely tell you. If I lie, you can call me a dog!"

Only then did Lu Sangjiu’s anger subside a little. She huffed, "That’s more like it!"

"It’s getting late. We should hurry back. The others will worry if they can’t find us."

With that, she turned and started walking back the way they came. Xie Ningyuan quickly caught up to walk beside her.

Then, Lu Sangjiu felt her hand being taken.

His hand was large, his palm warm.

It made her cheeks flush... She stole a glance at him and saw the corners of his lips quirked up in a slight smile, and her heart instantly warmed.

So, her fingers couldn’t help but squeeze back, and both of their hands tightened their grip.

’This is nice. I no longer have to worry about walking the path ahead alone.’

’Xie Ningyuan will definitely always be with me, moving forward with resolve.’

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