Runes • Rifles • Reincarnation

Under his mother's urging, Jin Shu stepped toward Liu Hua's hovering body. He was fairly sure she was messing with him—though no one else spoke up to stop him, which left him uncertain. Still, he leaned down, ready to press his lips to Liu Hua's, when a voice cut through the silence.

"If it was Grand Elder Feng's technique that put Liu Hua in this state… wouldn't she have a way to wake her without Jin Shu's kiss?" Zhu Ren asked, her tone genuinely curious.

Everyone turned toward her, wearing varying expressions. Zhu Ren only blinked back at them, clearly not grasping what she'd said.

"Didn't your spirit get enhanced?" Sun Mei'er replied with a knowing look. "Why don't you consolidate your gains, hmm?"

"I probably should," Zhu Ren nodded, then walked off to find a quiet spot to meditate.

With that interruption, the quiet, bated atmosphere cracked slightly. The other three girls started whispering among themselves, even dragging Bing Hou into the conversation despite her having nothing to do with it. Though they kept their voices low, Jin Shu could still make out every word.

"Should we really let him go around kissing other women?" Biyu murmured. "I know she saved his life… but he already has us three. Does he really need more?"

"W-what? Why am I counted?" Tian Li stammered, her face reddening. "Did you forget? I'm into women, not men."

"Uh-huh…" Biyu gave her a look that said she didn't believe a word.

"If he kisses Liu Hua…" Li Xue chimed in, "her sister comes as a package deal, right?"

The other two stared at her in disbelief.

"Hmm… how does that affect the wife count?" Li Xue continued unfazed, ticking names off on her fingers. "Biyu, Tian Li, me. That's three. Then Liu Hua, Liu Ying—that makes five. Plus Bing Hou makes six. But if he meets more women, that'll go over six. I told him before he should stop at six… maybe more's not so bad though… Oh! Maybe the sisters count as one! Yeah, then there's still room for one more!"

Bing Hou, hearing her name, perked up. But when she caught what Li Xue was rambling about, she couldn't stay quiet.

"Hold on," she said, stepping closer. "I have a destined partner. Why would I marry that man?"

She pointed straight at Jin Shu, who was still debating whether to play along with his mother's farce.

"You've seen him naked," Li Xue said with a casual shrug, as if that explained everything.

"And… what does that matter?"

"Well, what if your destined partner asks if you've seen another man naked? Would he still want to marry you then?"

"Huh? Why would he ever ask that?"

Li Xue shrugged again. "Could happen."

Jin Shu tuned out their bickering.

Ah, whatever. Screw it. He sighed internally. She tried to save my life—I still died. That balances out her trying to kill me… plus, I've seen a lot more sides of her lately.

He decided to follow his mother's script. He knew exactly how it would go: he'd kiss Liu Hua, she'd wake up—though not because of the kiss, but because Feng Lian would quietly dispel her technique—and then they'd have a brief moment together before getting interrupted and sorting out whatever mess this was.

That was the plan.

But just as he leaned down again—

"Achoo!"

A dainty sneeze burst out, followed by a massive gust of wind.

Jin Shu nearly toppled over as the blast hit him square in the back. He whipped his head around and saw Yin'er wiping her nose with a sheepish grin.

He might've been confused if he didn't know she had better control over the wind element than even he did. Still… he hadn't realized she could summon a gale with a sneeze.

Maybe one day she'll be able to kill enemies with a single sneeze, he thought with a smirk. But seriously, what is with this romcom-like situation?

Shaking his head, he leaned down for the third time. Surely, this time, he wouldn't be interrupted. Third time's the charm, right? He was determined now—so much so that he completely ignored his stepmother's quiet warning, spoken just before his lips brushed Liu Hua's.

"Mind the lightning," she had said.

What lightning? he wondered—right before he found out.

Liu Hua's eyes snapped open in surprise, just as a jolt of electricity surged from her lips into his.

A million volts hit him like a herd of wild stallions. His hair shot upright as if he'd stuck a finger into the heavens light socket, and his entire body spasmed before he was violently thrown backward. He landed flat on his back several meters away, blinking up at the sky.

He'd felt her lightning before, during their duel, and it hadn't been nearly this strong. And that was back when he wasn't even partially resistant. She must've gained a power boost from the heavenly punishment's baptism.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

"Pfft!"

"Ahaha!"

The last remnants of solemnity vanished as laughter erupted around the enclosed space.

Liu Hua sat up, blinking as she looked around. "What's going on? Where's the heavenly punishment? And… why was Jin Shu kissing me?"

"Let's see… where to begin?" Sun Mei'er mused, tapping her chin. "You nearly died trying to save Shu'er. He thought you did die, so he went on a rampage and tore the heavenly punishment apart—heroic, but not the smartest decision—which, as you might guess, led to him dying."

She paused deliberately, likely just to deepen Liu Hua's confusion.

Jin Shu cringed. Her words struck home, bringing back the raw, uncontrollable fury he'd felt in that moment—fury not at the heavens, but at himself.

"If Jin Shu died… then who's he?" Liu Hua asked, pointing. Then she tilted her head upward. "And who's he?"

Jin Shu followed her gaze and blinked. Long Jinshu was still floating in midair above them, apparently forgotten by everyone—including himself.

Long Jinshu seemed lost in thought, staring off into space—until he suddenly glanced down, as if sensing their gazes. He descended silently, coming to stand behind Jin Shu without a word.

Sun Mei'er resumed her narration, drawing everyone's attention back to her.

"So, those are both Jin Shu. The one with the horns is a dragon prince and—according to him—the remnant soul of Jin Shu's first life. And Jin Shu is Jin Shu, the boy I gave birth to, newly revived." She shrugged as if that cleared everything up.

"Uh…" Liu Hua glanced between the two incarnations. "Okay."

"Oh, also, I made him kiss you to help move your relationship along—and give those three some competition." Sun Mei'er laughed mischievously.

Jin Shu's brow twitched. He had known she was messing with him, but hearing it out loud was a different kind of infuriating.

"So… does that mean he's going to marry me?" Liu Hua asked, shooting Sun Mei'er a hopeful look while sneaking a glance at Jin Shu from the corner of her eye.

"If he knows what's good for him, he will," Feng Lian answered before Sun Mei'er could.

"Uh… w-we can talk about that later," Jin Shu stammered, clearly flustered. "Just… give me a moment. I need to figure out what happened to me."

Long Jinshu raised his hand and dispelled the silver barrier that had enclosed them, revealing the crowd of disciples and elders still waiting, watching with barely restrained curiosity.

"Everyone, disperse. Return to your duties," Chen Ai Yun ordered, before turning to Jin Shu. "Everything here is settled. We'll wait for you back home."

She began ushering the others away, giving him space.

Jin Shu watched them go, then let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. The tension drained from his body, and he dropped onto a nearby boulder, glancing over at Long Jinshu.

"…What happened? I died again… right?"

Long Jinshu gave him a long, unreadable look, as if weighing something.

"I can't tell you everything," he said at last. "The more you know, the less freedom you'll have in the future."

"What does that mean?"

Long Jinshu waved the question off, choosing instead to address the original one.

"You died. I killed you," he said, tone flat and face calm. "I tampered with your elemental affinities. I clouded your judgment, and Liu Hua's. It wasn't an accident that she forgot to warn you about the lightning summoning storm—or that you felt the need to hide your abilities."

Jin Shu blinked. At first, he thought Long Jinshu was joking. But something in the way he said it told him otherwise.

"…Why?" he asked, disbelief and a trace of betrayal in his voice. "You killed me. You almost got Liu Hua killed. For what?"

"I can't say. Just know that it needed to happen eventually. And this was the safest place for it."

"What else?"

Long Jinshu arched a brow. "What else… what?"

"What else have you been lying to me about?" Jin Shu's voice rose. "How much of my life has actually been mine—and how much has been you pulling strings?!"

"Oh…" Long Jinshu's expression turned difficult. "Not much. I only nudged you a few times. Most of your choices were your own."

"Most, but not all," Jin Shu growled. He shot to his feet and punched at Long Jinshu's face. "You bastard!"

His fist passed straight through.

"I'm a soul. You can't touch me."

"Oh, wanna bet?"

This time, lightning crackled across Jin Shu's arm—black and white, pulsing with power. He threw another punch.

It connected.

Long Jinshu's head snapped sideways violently, his neck jerking at an impossible angle—one that would've broken a living body.

"I deserved that," he muttered, rubbing his cheek.