"Ah, this...!" Empress Qingfeng's expression shifted slightly, as if surprised by Zhou Hong's request.
"Heh, if you find it difficult, it's alright. After all, I'm not a scoundrel like Black Wind Immortal Emperor," Zhou Hong chuckled sheepishly.
"Alas!" Empress Qingfeng hesitated for a moment, then sighed deeply, blushing slightly. "Alright, then. It's been a long time since I've spoken of love with any man."
Zhou Hong grinned, "Really?"
"What's there to lie about? Ever since that memory of mine was erased, I've been terrified of developing feelings for any man."
"Then why did you agree now?"
"I'm just cooperating with you. Of course, I also really want to know if you are indeed the person from the memory I erased. Although I had to delete that billion-year memory, now that I've become an Immortal Emperor and can't ascend any further, I actually crave to regain that past memory."
"Alright, then let's try."
For the next few days, Zhou Hong stayed at Empress Qingfeng's home. It started with them dining and having tea respectfully, and as they became more familiar, there were some physical contacts, like holding hands occasionally. Nothing more intimate happened.
Half a month passed in a blink.
Zhou Hong and Empress Qingfeng grew even closer. They gardened, walked birds, cooked, and did other things together.
"Zhou Hong, how is it? Am I the person you're looking for? You've been with me for half a month, and have you felt any inexplicable sadness during this time?" Empress Qingfeng asked Zhou Hong after half a month.
Zhou Hong shook his head.
"Ah? I'm not the person you're looking for?" Empress Qingfeng felt a pang of disappointment when Zhou Hong shook his head. Through their interactions over the past half month, she had grown increasingly fond of Zhou Hong. Moreover, this had been the happiest half-month of her life, and at times she wished it could last forever. But now, Zhou Hong shook his head.
"Don't misunderstand. My shaking my head doesn't mean you aren't the one I'm looking for. It means I can't be sure yet. My sadness doesn't occur every day, and it's quite normal for it not to happen during the short time we've been together. Let's wait a bit longer. If it doesn't happen for three to five months, then you truly are the one."
"Mhm!" Empress Qingfeng breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.
"However, I don't feel as relieved as I thought I would. Logically, if I found the girl I loved in my past life, my soul should be happy, but... it's almost the same as before." Zhou Hong frowned again.
"Ah!" Empress Qingfeng's heart clenched again. At this moment, she desperately wished she was the one he was looking for, and that Zhou Hong was the one from her erased memory who made her heart ache.
"Let's wait a bit longer!"
Empress Qingfeng could only nod helplessly.
After that, Zhou Hong spent another two months with Empress Qingfeng.
Finally, one night, two months later, atop the vast expanse of the heavens, amidst the clouds, their embers ignited and quickly blazed.
Several hours later, the flames in the clouds finally extinguished.
Empress Qingfeng was dazed. After all, for her, this was a tenderness separated by two hundred million years.
"Thank you. If it weren't for you, I would have forgotten...!" Empress Qingfeng looked at Zhou Hong, her face flushed. Those few hours had been the happiest time of her two hundred million years.
"Heh, I'm sorry!" Zhou Hong let out a helpless chuckle. He had promised that he wouldn't touch Empress Qingfeng before confirming if she was the one he was looking for, but unexpectedly, he couldn't control himself. Even with his current power, he couldn't control such a fire.
"It's alright." Empress Qingfeng lowered her head, her face still red. But as she lowered her head, she saw the "mad dragon" that had caused her to shriek earlier, and quickly turned her head away.
Zhou Hong couldn't help but smile. They lay amidst the clouds, watching the sky, both in silence.
"Do you have any family left in this world?" Empress Qingfeng suddenly asked Zhou Hong.
"Of course. They all live in my subordinate worlds. I presume your family also lives in your subordinate worlds, right?"
"No, my subordinate world is empty. There's no one there. I have no family left in this world." Empress Qingfeng sighed.
"How can that be?" Zhou Hong was slightly surprised. He knew Empress Qingfeng had always been lonely, but he hadn't expected her to be so solitary. He felt a pang of pity for her.
"When I was still weak, all my family members were either killed or died in battle. Not a single one remained. I remember I had an elder brother. He had a daughter. When the disaster struck, he placed his niece in an immortal mansion. Later, my elder brother died in battle. Under his protection, I managed to escape. When I went back later, the immortal mansion that my elder brother carried was gone. Perhaps it was stolen and refined by the enemy. My niece has likely died long ago. If she hadn't, then she would be my last remaining relative." Empress Qingfeng was recalling something, tears welling up in her eyes. Even though she was now as powerful as an Immortal Emperor, her lost loved ones would never return. Even though she had avenged them, what did it matter?
Zhou Hong's brow furrowed slightly. Immortal mansion? Niece?
Zhou Hong seemed to recall something.
"Qingfeng, when your elder brother put his daughter into the immortal mansion, how old was she? Can you tell me more about your niece?"
"About eight years old. She had a physique of calamity, also known as a lone star destined for misfortune. Therefore, my elder brother specially crafted an immortal mansion for her. To prevent her from affecting others, he raised her in the immortal mansion from a young age, rarely letting her go out. Later, a friend of my elder brother, who had achieved great power, was much stronger than my elder brother. Unexpectedly, he had malicious intentions and desired my sister-in-law. That was bad enough, but he also wanted to exterminate my entire clan. Thus, my clan was annihilated, and my niece's whereabouts remain unknown to this day. I don't know if she is alive or dead. After I became an Immortal Emperor, I tried to search for her, but there were no clues. She probably died long ago."
"Hahahaha, hahahaha!" Zhou Hong suddenly burst into laughter.
"What are you laughing at?" Empress Qingfeng looked at Zhou Hong with confusion.
"Qingfeng, it seems fate truly has a hand in this!" Zhou Hong suddenly recalled encountering a woman in the lower realm. That woman had been trapped in an immortal mansion beneath the ground for countless years. Unfortunately, because she couldn't receive heavenly tribulations, her cultivation had perpetually stalled before that point.