Upon returning to the Demon Realm, Zhao Xue pulled Zhu Xu into an embrace.
Zhao Xue lowered her head and buried it in Zhu Xu's neck, inhaling the unique fragrance that belonged only to Zhu Xu.
"Zhao Xue, let's eat the pastries first. They won't be as good when they get cold," Zhu Xu held the pastry box aloft with one hand and stroked Zhao Xue's back with the other.
Zhao Xue didn't budge. Zhu Xu had to resort to her usual methods of coaxing.
"Zhao Xue, I've been holding this pastry box for so long, my arm is getting sore," Zhu Xu leaned close to Zhao Xue's ear, nuzzling pitifully against her neck.
Zhao Xue's ears became uncontrollably hot.
Just as Zhu Xu was contemplating whether to fake a sob, Zhao Xue straightened up, took the pastry box from Zhu Xu's hand, and placed it on the table. Then, she turned and embraced Zhu Xu again.
Zhu Xu's eyes curved into a smile, a hint of helplessness in her expression as she hugged Zhao Xue back just as tightly.
"Zhao Xue, I hope our sleeping quarters will be alright this time?" A moment later, Zhu Xu grew tired of standing and leaned her entire weight against Zhao Xue, idly playing with Zhao Xue's hair.
"Mmm, everything is fine," Zhao Xue replied, her tone slightly anxious.
"My dear, you are so good," Zhu Xu finished speaking, let go of Zhao Xue's hair, and took a deep inhale of Zhao Xue's neck.
A tremor ran through Zhao Xue's neck, her long lashes fluttered, and her hands holding Zhu Xu went soft.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Xu found herself addicted to this inhale. She wrapped her arms around Zhao Xue's waist and pressed her face into Zhao Xue's neck.
"Zhao Xue, you smell so good."
Zhao Xue braced herself against the table with one hand while holding Zhu Xu's waist with the other. Her phoenix eyes sparkled, and the situation quickly escalated.
From then on, Zhu Xu slipped out several more times while Zhao Xue was asleep.
Sometimes she would wander the Demon Realm, sometimes she would go to the mortal world to pick out vibrant, matching clothes for Zhao Xue and herself, and other times she would go to attend the mortal world's annual festivals.
With Zhu Xu's increasingly deliberate departures while Zhao Xue slept, Zhao Xue's heart had stabilized considerably by the time she woke up to find Zhu Xu gone, though she would still rush to find Zhu Xu immediately.
On Zhu Xu's last excursion, she happened to see a meteor shower. That night, there was a magnificent meteor shower over the Demon Realm.
Recalling the old immortal who governed the stars, Zhu Xu thought the old immortal must have been dozing off, as he loved to sleep most of the day.
Zhu Xu turned, intending to wake Zhao Xue to watch the stars, but instead, she bumped directly into Zhao Xue's embrace.
Because Zhao Xue had arrived so hastily, her hair and robes were somewhat disheveled. Zhu Xu reached out to tidy them for Zhao Xue, then looked up into Zhao Xue's eyes. She suddenly felt that those phoenix eyes, filled entirely with her, were more beautiful than the stars in the sky.
"Zhao Xue, look at those two stars."
Zhu Xu reluctantly tore her gaze away from Zhao Xue and looked up at the sky, pointing to two exceptionally bright stars.
"Do you know? These two stars will always meet, perhaps in 16 years, perhaps in 32 years, but no matter how long it takes, they will always see each other again."
Zhao Xue followed Zhu Xu's finger and looked up.
Listening to Zhu Xu's description, Zhao Xue, who had always been extremely indifferent to all things, seemed to feel something different about these two stars.
A moment later, Zhu Xu turned to look at Zhao Xue's profile. "Zhao Xue, we are the same. No matter how long we are apart, we will always meet again."
As Zhu Xu spoke, Zhao Xue frowned. "I don't like separations."
Every time Zhao Xue woke up and couldn't find Zhu Xu, she would feel extreme panic. But every time she found Zhu Xu, seeing the smile on her face, Zhao Xue would say nothing more.
Up until now, Zhao Xue could only offer a small protest to express her dissatisfaction.
"Zhao Xue, separation is for a better reunion."
Sensing Zhao Xue's mood, Zhu Xu cupped Zhao Xue's face with her hands, her gaze full of affection.
Zhao Xue pursed her lips, remaining silent, but in her heart, she thought that nothing, no one, could ever separate them.
Even if the entire Heavenly Realm mobilized, he could ensure they would never return, and he could also lead Zhu Xu away safely.
As it turned out, Zhao Xue's foresight was necessary. The Heavenly Realm was indeed preparing to attack.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on mastering the Tenth Level Golden Body."
In the Heavenly Palace at this moment, an immortal with a beard stroked his beard and nodded at the Heavenly Emperor, while an immortal without a beard clasped his fists in congratulation.
The Jade Emperor thanked them humbly with a poker face, then ascended to the main seat. "It is all thanks to the assistance of several esteemed immortals."
"Very well, let us now discuss the matter of conquering the Demon Realm," the Jade Emperor's previously placid tone turned cold.
"Now that the Jade Emperor has cultivated the Twelve Level Golden Body, what do we have to fear?" The leader of the Four Great Vajras, impatient with the dithering, held his massive hammer, looking eager for a fight.
Wen Qu Xing stroked his beard and calmly retorted:
"That is not how we should put it. The Jade Emperor has cultivated the Twelve Level Golden Body, but the people of our Heavenly Court do not possess such protection.
The Jade Emperor cannot possibly protect everyone. What if that demon unleashes the seals on the Demon Realm's one hundred thousand elite soldiers? How will we heavenly generals face those ferocious, vengeful demon generals?"
"Doesn't that demon admire our Imperial Daughter? Would he be willing to remove the Imperial Daughter's glazed heart to break the seal?"
At this moment, Shen Ji Xian Jun also chimed in, "We cannot say for sure. It is better to be safe than sorry. What if..."
"You can't say for sure, you can't say for sure! Then let's say nothing at all!"
The leader of the Four Great Vajras was angered. He slammed his enormous hammer down, causing the entire Heavenly Court to tremble.
...
After discussing for an entire afternoon, it was finally decided that the heavenly generals who were willing would accompany the Heavenly Emperor to destroy that demon, while the rest would not be compelled.
Everyone agreed to this, and the Four Great Vajras were the first to step forward, positioning themselves beside the Jade Emperor early on.
On the day the Heavenly Court decided to launch its campaign, Zhu Xu and Zhao Xue were in a sea of flowers. Zhao Xue was searching among the numerous blossoms for the types Zhu Xu favored.
The flowers in the Demon Realm were all exceptionally large. Zhao Xue carefully placed these flowers, along with their roots, into a space she had created, intending to transplant them to the Demon Palace.
Zhu Xu basked in the dim sunlight of the Demon Realm, occasionally glancing at Zhao Xue. Seeing Zhao Xue about to uproot the entire flower sea, she quickly stopped him.
When Zhao Xue paused and Zhu Xu looked up again, she was instantly blinded by the overwhelmingly white heavenly army.