Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 195: Pawprints of a Puppy

Patter patter patter, rustle.

A small black nose pressed against the crack of the door, sniffing hard. All the sacrifices on this floor were dead; there was no warm scent of living souls in the room.

The little black dog withdrew its nose and licked the tip with its tongue.

Lately, it really enjoyed wandering around the Disaster Relief Tower, sniffing here and there.

Fang Xiu had been studying in the mortal world recently, dragging Bai Shuangying along to live with him. Whenever they weren’t summoning it on purpose, the little black dog made full use of its ghost immortal status to run freely between the living and spirit realms, having a grand time.

Still, as much fun as roaming alone could be, it preferred walking with Fang Xiu. Fang Xiu would buy tasty dog biscuits and feed them to it from his warm palm.

That warmth always reminded the little dog of its previous owner.

Bai Shuangying didn’t enjoy walks as much, and his palms were never warm. But he was good in his own way—he could pet its head for hours without getting tired.

Normal humans didn’t have that kind of patience. All this time, Bai Shuangying’s head-pats had been the most comfortable.

It missed them a bit.

Maybe it was time to visit the mortal world again, it thought seriously.

“…Are we sure this is okay?”

Hearing the whispering voices of Underworld workers, the little dog’s floppy ears twitched. It picked up speed, transforming into a breeze.

Two ghost attendants were coming over with a bunch of cleaning tools, ready to clean the now-empty floor of the Tower.

They looked like paper dolls—one had a single eye, the other had three—and were huddled together, whispering non-stop.

“Even if Lord Fang has recovered his memories, he’s still not even thirty. Just over twenty years old. He’s far too young,” said the one-eyed attendant, Dian Yi, with a sigh. “He’s already tangled up with the God of Xushan. That kind of relationship can’t last.”

Dian San nervously looked around and lowered his voice. “What are you saying? Lord Fang’s doing just fine, isn’t he?”

“In terms of work, it’s definitely easier than before,” Dian Yi admitted readily.

Back when the sacrifices participated in rituals, the attendants had to manage the bodies left behind in the mortal world. If a soul stayed in the tower for a year or more, it was like being sent on a long, high-intensity business trip.

Now that Fang Xiu had reformed the system, most of the souls being sent down were non-recoverable. Their bodies didn’t need care and just a preservation spell to keep it fresh.

“But he’s handing over all the Tower’s refined yin energy to the God of Xushan,” Dian Yi whispered. “Everyone in the Underworld knows how precious that kind of pure yin energy is. And as the E resolutions continue, even a few leaks would help us build good relationships with new ghost immortals. Yet he’s giving it all away.”

“They’re bound together by karma, a bond between a god and an E,” Dian San said hesitantly.

“Sure, but this isn’t a matter of life or death. Even when Lord Fang destroyed multiple Immortal E’s, no one was rushing to sacrifice themselves.” Dian Yi snorted coldly.

“I’ve seen plenty of mortals in love. When they’re infatuated, it’s all grand gestures and passionate vows. But once the novelty fades, they become nitpicking and stingy…”

“Humans crave novelty and thrill. The God of Xushan might be powerful, but his personality is mild. Once Lord Fang matures and takes a hard look back at things… well.”

The little dog half-understood but knew these weren’t kind words. Its gums itched; it wanted to gnaw something badly.

“You’re worried Lord Fang might change his mind and they’ll have a falling out?” Dian San asked timidly.

“What else? If those two split, this Tower might not survive.” Dian Yi sighed again. “Who knows how many more peaceful years we’ll have here… Ow!”

Pain shot through its leg—it had been bitten hard by something. Dian Yi looked around suspiciously, but the little dog was already long gone.

It sprinted up to the top of the Tower and headed straight for A’Shou’s office, ready to file a complaint.

Underworld rules said it shouldn’t bite the enforcers too hard, Fang Xiu had told it that. But sometimes a little nip just wasn’t enough. It simply couldn’t stand hearing people talk badly about Fang Xiu and Bai Shuangying.

“How have those two been doing lately?”

Before the dog could complain, it heard A’Shou asking Dian’er.

“No issues in the Tower, My Lady. They seem to be doing well,” Dian’er replied respectfully.

A’Shou nodded, then turned to the little dog. “And you? Have you noticed anything unusual?”

The dog froze.

Why was even A’Shou asking about Fang Xiu and Bai Shuangying?

Seeing it stand there dumbly, A’Shou quickly added, “They’re fine. This is just a routine check. For the stability of the Disaster Relief Tower, the Underworld files an annual report.”

The little dog tilted its head.

“We can’t leave the Tower. Please go check the mortal world’s situation for us,”

A’Shou said, taking a fragrant pill from a drawer and offering it. “You don’t have to understand. Just report what you see.”

The dog gulped down the pill in two bites, barked twice loudly, and turned into wind once more.

After it disappeared, Dian’er turned to A’Shou. “Those two are always stuck together. Why worry?”

A’Shou replied, “Do you want the official explanation, or my personal doubts?”

“Uh…”

“As the saying goes, ‘sharing both sorrows and joys together,’ but in reality, it’s not so easy to share such things. The human world has many temptations. We can’t afford to get careless… That’s the reasoning.”

A’Shou sat back down and resumed going through paperwork.

“As for my doubt, I just don’t understand one thing. If they really planned to settle down, why haven’t they given the little dog a name?”

……

If it was supposed to report honestly, it should keep walking.

The little dog followed a familiar scent and wandered over to Cheng Songyun’s home.

Cheng Songyun had bought a small place in her daughter’s neighborhood. When she wanted to see her child, she would stay there a few days.

She was financially comfortable now and enjoying life. She would go on short trips when she had nothing else to do.

But the weather was a bit cold lately, so she stayed home and hung some cured meat.

The little dog squeezed through the door just as Cheng Songyun was calling Fang Xiu.

“Xiao Fang, send me your address. I’ll mail you some cured meat. I bought good cuts. It tastes amazing in stir-fry or soup. Let me tell you, Xiao Guan and his dormmates fought over it like crazy,” she said enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. “I don’t know if Xiao Bai can eat this kind of thing, but I’ll send it anyway…”

Fang Xiu’s voice came faintly from the receiver. He sounded cheerful and relaxed.

“Oh no, don’t be polite. I’ll send it to your dad’s address then. By the way, how’ve you two been lately? Come visit if you’ve got time… Huh? What?”

Cheng Songyun’s smile froze. She looked like she’d just heard something shocking. She paused for a while before speaking again.

“Oh. Oh, I understand. You handle your things first. Come visit later!”

She hung up, still looking stunned.

——???

The little dog’s fur bristled. It didn’t even care about the cured meat anymore.

Could something really have happened to Fang Xiu?

It didn’t dare linger. It ran off to the next stop—

Guan He had successfully been admitted to Gui Province’s police academy and was living on campus. It was the weekend, and he was out shopping with his dormmates.

He no longer looked like the hunched, gloomy figure from the ritual. His crewcut was neat, his posture straight, and his build had filled out.

Whether he’d grown taller or just stood straighter, the little dog couldn’t tell—from its perspective, Guan He had always been a towering giant.

It sniffed for a while, confirmed the scent of the little boy spirit, and knew it was him.

Guan He had fallen a few steps behind his friends and was speaking seriously on the phone.

“Fang Ge? I just got a message from Auntie Cheng. I mean… I know you’re busy, and if you need help on my end, say the word.”

“I was surprised, yeah. But still, you two have been together a long time. Something like this happening isn’t too strange.”

Like Cheng Songyun, he sounded confused, unaware of the full picture.

“Anyway, I’m here if you need anything. Not many people know your situation… Okay, got it. I’ll be ready this weekend.”

“Was that your folks? What’s with that look?”

His friends swarmed over after the call ended.

“It’s nothing,” Guan He forced a smile. “Come on, let’s go eat.”

The little dog was officially panicking.

It could no longer wander at its own pace. With a rush of wind, it stormed into Fang Xiu and Bai Shuangying’s house.

…Only Yuan Ye and Bai Shuangying were home.

Yuan Ye was cooking downstairs.

Seeing the panting little dog dash in, he calmly fished out a piece of meat from the pot, rinsed it under the tap. “Good boy. Want some meat?”

The little dog sat with its tail drooping, howled twice, its mind nowhere near the food.

“Fang Xiu went to class. He’ll be back soon,”

Yuan Ye replied with a knowing smile, as if he understood. “Xiao Bai’s upstairs. Want to go see him?”

“Woo woo woof—”

The dog rolled its eyes upward, carefully observing Yuan Ye’s expression.

Yuan Ye didn’t seem upset. In fact, he looked perfectly content. Could it be that Fang Xiu and Bai Shuangying had a fight and kept it secret from their family?

That made sense. If Fang Xiu wanted to hide something, no one would notice a thing.

The dog sat at the doorway, determined to wait for Fang Xiu to return and go see Bai Shuangying together.

Less than thirty minutes later, three knocks sounded, and Fang Xiu entered, carrying two bags with an unreadable.

The little dog rushed over and latched onto his leg, letting out an anxious whine.

“What are you doing here?” Fang Xiu casually patted its warm head.

“Woof!” the little dog cried desperately.

“Dad, I’m leaving one bag here,” Fang Xiu placed a steaming bag of prepared food on the table. “I’m heading upstairs. Call me when it’s time to eat.”

“Go ahead,” Yuan Ye waved his spatula.

Here it was.

The little dog scrambled its legs furiously and followed Fang Xiu up the stairs.

At the door, Fang Xiu paused, smoothing his messy bangs and flattening his shirt before opening it—

At first glance, Bai Shuangying sat at the window, wrapped in golden sunlight.

Soft white-noise music played from the speaker, and books were scattered on the floor.

In the next second, Bai Shuangying flashed to the doorway, lowered his head slightly, and looked directly into Fang Xiu’s eyes. “You’re back.”

“Have you really thought this through? Not acting on impulse?” Fang Xiu asked with unusual seriousness.

“Yes.” Bai Shuangying’s expression was blank, but his voice was firm.

“We’re not the same,” Fang Xiu sighed. “Aside from external factors, I have personal principles. Are you sure you won’t reconsider?”

“Even if this means we separate for a while, I…”

“I’ve made up my mind,” Bai Shuangying interrupted without hesitation.

Bathed in harsh sunlight, the two stared at each other in silence. For two whole seconds, the world seemed utterly still, even the dust in the air seemed to freeze.

“…Alright.” At last, Fang Xiu lowered his gaze.

The little dog’s ears trembled slightly.

Were its best friends breaking up? What could it do?

It had waited so long for companions to walk with, for a place that felt like home.

If they really separated… what would happen to it?

Whimpering twice, the little black dog wished it could speak. Then it heard the second half of Fang Xiu’s sentence—

“If you want to study with me, not only do you have to get into the same school, but you have to pass within three years.”

Fang Xiu scratched his head with both hands. “I’ll probably switch to a master’s or doctoral track. If everything goes well, we can be together for a long time. Haa, I knew you’d insist.”

Little black dog: “?”

Something didn’t sound right.

“I don’t like being apart from you for too long.” Bai Shuangying casually picked up a book from the floor. “The time you’ve spent studying alone has been too long.”

Fang Xiu laughed helplessly. He took a small step forward and tugged gently at Bai Shuangying’s cheeks. “I only mentioned it to Cheng Jie, and she was completely shocked. Xiao Guan said he’d help. You can borrow his notes.”

“Hey, if you actually get in, I wonder how the living-world institutions are going to react.”

“Heaven follows its natural course; everything has its own principles.”

Though his face was being pulled, Bai Shuangying still maintained a proud expression. His pronunciation was a little warped, but his tone was unwavering. “As long as cause and effect are clear and the theories sound, there’s nothing I can’t learn.”

“If that’s the case, should I be worried about your language subjects?”

Bai Shuangying fell silent.

After a long pause, he murmured, “I’ll do my best.”

“In any case, I don’t like being apart from you for too long.”

Fang Xiu looked at him with eyes as gentle as spring wind.

Bai Shuangying opened his arms in response, inviting a hug. Fang Xiu embraced him without hesitation, burying his face in the cool, soft fabric of Bai Shuangying’s clothes.

“I used to think that you wouldn’t care about being apart for a few hours.”

Fang Xiu’s voice was muffled. “I thought I was the only one…”

Bai Shuangying stroked his hair and gave it a soft ruffle. “At first, I thought I wouldn’t care either.”

“But if I don’t want to be apart, then I don’t. That’s how I feel. That’s the truth.” He emphasized the word “truth”.

His tone remained calmly matter-of-fact, as if this was the most natural thing in the world.

Fang Xiu smiled, warm breath brushing against Bai Shuangying’s chest. “You’re right. No point in lying to myself.”

Then his breathing slowed. He hugged Bai Shuangying tightly for a long while before speaking again. “This is one of my bad habits.”

“Hm?”

“These days, I’ve been a little too happy. So happy it scares me.”

Fang Xiu spoke softly. “I know you won’t change. But humans… humans change all the time. What someone thinks at eight, twenty-eight, or forty-eight… It’s completely different.”

Bai Shuangying listened quietly, slowly brushing his fingertips along Fang Xiu’s back.

Fang Xiu fell silent again. Speaking this truth seemed to take all the strength he had. “My life has turned out much longer than I ever imagined. And honestly, I’m not that prepared for the future.”

“To tell the truth, I don’t know what kind of person I’ll become.”

“I see,” Bai Shuangying said gently.

Fang Xiu buried his face deeper, voice growing even softer. “So I’ve always hoped that nothing between us would ever change—if you don’t change, and our relationship doesn’t change, I can convince myself that everything is still the same. That nothing ever will change.”

“That way, I can feel a little safer.”

For some reason, the little black dog understood a bit of that.

It was like being handed something incredibly precious and not knowing how to care for it. Too scared to bite it, too scared to play with it, terrified of breaking it.

All it wanted was to find a place to bury it forever and keep it safe.

But sometimes, it wondered—did that really count as “having”?

Bai Shuangying didn’t comfort his human. He just thought carefully and finally concluded, “It seems you really don’t want to be apart from me.”

Then he let out a breath, speaking like someone who had been through it all. “Then let’s wait until we’re about to be separated and look for ways not to be. See? I’ve already found one.”

Just picturing the God of Xushan studying Guan He’s high school notes made Fang Xiu’s carefully cultivated melancholy vanish.

He gave a low chuckle. “Fair enough.”

“Even if you become a notorious villain, you’re still incredibly clever. You’d come up with a solution.”

Bai Shuangying said, “Whether you’re twenty-eight, sixty-eight, or one hundred twenty-eight, I’ll still say this to you. I’m not planning to leave—at least not for the next thousand years.”

“So you really don’t need to hold back. Just do whatever you want.”

His tone was still perfectly casual, as if this whole conversation was nothing more than choosing breakfast.

…He even pulled Fang Xiu a little closer.

Fang Xiu: “Really?”

Before Bai Shuangying could answer, Fang Xiu lifted his face and kissed his cheek.

The corners of his mouth curved in a signature smile. Only now, it was so sincere it held a trace of youthful awkwardness.

“Then I think you should have lunch first today,” Fang Xiu whispered.

Before the little black dog could run over for some head pats, it found itself teleported out of the room by one of Bai Shuangying’s spells.

In its final glimpse, it saw slender fingers lift a red T-shirt and a pale hand press against Fang Xiu’s lower back.

Little black dog: “???”

Well, never mind. It was clear its friends weren’t breaking up anytime soon.

It blew out a puff of air and waddled downstairs. It decided to get a bite of meat before submitting its report.

Inside the room—

Fang Xiu wrapped his arms around Bai Shuangying’s neck, his bare back pressed to the door.

As the rustle of fabric filled the air, he ran his fingers through his lover’s hair, whispering nonstop.

“I want to take you and Dad on a family trip next holiday.”

“I want to introduce you to my new friends.”

“I want to go with you to…”

…

“…I want to give that little black dog a name.”

Eventually, all his whispered desires were drowned in the act of fulfilling them.

……

Years later, Country A, a private medical facility.

A doctor adjusted his glasses and sighed. “Mr. Zhuang’s condition is not good. Recently, his seizures have become more frequent, and we’re starting to see irregular brain activity.”

“He’s old, and his body is failing. The fact that he’s survived this many years in a coma is already a miracle. Money can’t change his situation anymore.”

“But he’s still with us, isn’t he?”

A middle-aged man in an expensive custom suit spoke with unwavering certainty. “He’s survived so many critical episodes. That’s my God’s protection.”

“That’s why we must not fail him.”

A young woman beside him responded reverently. “After so many key members disappeared, you’ve finally kept the Guishan Sect going all these years.”

“The situation back in our country isn’t ideal. Only a few ordinary followers remain, waiting for your guidance.”

“I know.” The man let out a long sigh.

“Right, aren’t doctors from Country C supposed to visit today? I remember they’re new but highly skilled. Make sure confidentiality is airtight.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t be stingy. Do whatever it takes to keep the leader alive a little longer.”

The woman nodded firmly and murmured a few verses of “Return, return,” before striding into the patient’s room.

Zhuang Chongyue’s hospital room was spacious and elegant, with a view of the wide blue sky.

Once a robust man, he now looked like a dried corpse, sunk deep into a tangle of machines and tubes.

His skin was shriveled and yellowed, brittle like rough paper that might tear at the slightest touch.

The doctors standing at his bedside were surprisingly young.

One wore a surgical mask, gaze lowered, eyes obscured by shadow. The other stood in the light, leaning over the patient. He was strikingly handsome, his hair slightly messy, and a sliver of red visible beneath his white coat.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you live a very, very long time.”

The handsome doctor smiled. His smile was gentle and sincere that it was almost indescribable.

The woman was visibly moved and nodded in acknowledgment.

The young doctor’s smile deepened. Leaning down further, he added playfully, “You’ll never be rid of me.”

As if he heard the words, Zhuang Chongyue, deeply unconscious, twitched beneath his eyelids. A slight moisture appeared at the corner of his eye.

“What was that…” the woman murmured in surprise.

“It’s nothing. Just joking.”

The doctor straightened up and held out his right hand.

“Hello, I’m Fang Xiu.”

“This is my husband and colleague, Bai Shuangying.”

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The author has something to say:

Officially the end. Thank you for all your support and patience throughout the story!

This one was more of a warm-up project. From here on, I’ll likely alternate between set fantasy and modern supernatural themes with new experiments in between. [peeks sneakily]

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Replay: The next book A Contract Between Enemies is tentatively scheduled for release around July! It’s fantasy—check the author profile for updates~

Thank you to everyone supporting the official release! See you in a few months [heart]

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Kinky Thoughts:

Oh, this last chapter is really good. At least the pet will get a name (though we won’t know what it is).

It seems like Nian Zhong has experimented again with this novel. The last “experimental” project she did was Access Denied… which was also one of my least favorite works by her. I seem to not like it when she writes out of the norm.

Anyway, please support the author by buying the raws. You can use Google Chrome with their auto translate and this guide on how to buy novels on jjwxc. Remember, only with your (financial) support can artists continue to produce more great works.

Until next time.

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