Death Knocks on Hell’s Door Chapter 77

Chapter 77 Shooting Stars

Yanluo and Thanatos had swept through an entire shopping mall, completely transforming Thanatos’ appearance from head to toe. They also ended up with countless shopping bags.

Thanatos tried to stop Yanluo from spending so much, but Yanluo cheerfully replied, “Your boyfriend has a lot of money, and he just wants to spoil you.”

Yanluo felt so satisfied watching the little reaper constantly try on new outfits.

Thanatos was as exquisite as a delicate figurine. Everything he wore seemed to fit perfectly. He truly deserved to be well-dressed.

Thanatos had no words to argue.

With so many shopping bags, they couldn’t carry everything, so Yanluo had made use of the mall’s delivery service. Empty-handed and feeling light, Yanluo took Thanatos’ hand, walking effortlessly without the burden of bags.

The mall was quite busy. With their eye-catching faces, Yanluo and Thanatos stood out even in the most ordinary of clothes. Under the frequent attention of passersby, Thanatos felt a little embarrassed, attempting several times to pull his hand out of Yanluo’s, but Yanluo held on tightly. No matter how hard Thanatos tried, he couldn’t break free and eventually gave up.

……Fine, go ahead. What was the big deal with boyfriends holding hands?

When they walked into a jewelry store owned by mortals, the young salesgirl glanced at their intertwined hands. With one gazing adoringly and the other blushing shyly, she couldn’t help but wonder if they were a transnational gay couple.

Such strikingly handsome faces, just like male leads from a novel!

The salesgirl immediately approached them with enthusiasm. “Would you two like to take a look at this couple’s red string bracelet? It symbolizes the bond of a thousand-mile relationship, tied with a heart knot, representing eternal unity. Only 9.9 yuan for a pair, young brothers, buy one! It’ll definitely ensure you stay together forever. Every couple that has worn this red string has ended up married!”

The fox spirit who ran the shop next door rolled her eyes. Selling fortune-telling charms to King Yan himself? How could His Majesty possibly want such low-quality red strings? It would be better to just go to the Old Man under the Moon and get a free one……

Yanluo pulled out some money. “I’ll buy them.”

Fox Spirit: “……”

So generous, didn’t seem like King Yan.

But then again, pulling out a ten-yuan bill was very much in line with King Yan’s character. In an age where rich CEOs were swiping credit cards for hundreds of millions, only the frugal (stingy) and unadorned (miserly) King Yan would regularly carry small bills and loose change.

The beaming salesgirl handed them the two red strings. Yanluo looked down at Thanatos, gently took his hand, and tied the red string around his slender wrist. “Later, I’ll go to the Old Man under the Moon and ask for a better one. I’ll tie a heart knot myself.”

Thanatos couldn’t help but ask, “Then why buy this one?”

Yanluo smiled as he handed the other red string to Thanatos. “I want you to help me wear it.”

“……” Thanatos took the string and slid it onto Yanluo’s long, elegant wrist. Yanluo’s fingers were slender and pale, like fine jade. Even the cheap red string instantly appeared more valuable the moment it adorned his wrist.

After putting the red strings on each other, Yanluo didn’t leave the store yet. The salesgirl, sensing their distinguished aura, assumed they were big spenders. She smiled warmly and asked, “Is there anything else you’d like?”

Yanluo said, “You still haven’t given me my change.”

The salesgirl’s smile cracked.

There was actually a handsome man, impeccably dressed with an air of sophistication, who still insisted on haggling over a one-cent coin! Shouldn’t a rich, domineering type who took his little boyfriend shopping casually say, “Keep the change”?

She opened the drawer and rummaged around for a moment before apologizing, “I’m sorry, sir, but we don’t have a one-cent coin……”

“It’s fine.” Yanluo considerately showed his QR code and said, “You can scan this.”

Salesgirl: “……”

After leaving the store, Yanluo noticed the complicated look in Thanatos’ eyes and took the initiative to speak up. “Frugality and careful budgeting are also traditional virtues of Chinese culture. Even a one-cent coin deserves to be carefully considered.”

Thanatos: “But you’ve spent millions on me today.”

Yanluo had bought a pile of designer clothes and shoes, without even considering whether Thanatos could wear them all. He even almost emptied a silver jewelry store. This didn’t look like careful budgeting at all. His whole body exuded the vibe of a spendthrift.

To Yanluo, the so-called designer and inferior brands humans cared about were all just ordinary, mundane items. He usually bought clothes as cheaply as possible, but the little reaper deserved the most luxurious of everything.

The others, like Granny Meng, often complained about how stingy Yanluo was in their group chat, but Thanatos had never seen that side of him. Yanluo had always been generous with him. Today, he even went on a crazy shopping spree for him, spending money as if it were water.

Until Thanatos heard Yanluo say, “You still haven’t given me my change.”

“How could you be the same?” Yanluo replied matter-of-factly.

The little reaper was his blatant favorite.

No, it was more than that. He was his one true love.

Thanatos was slightly touched. He lowered his gaze to the heart knot on his wrist. “You can still make this kind of knot?”

“Your boyfriend knows how to do a lot of things,” Yanluo said casually. “If we had more time today, I would’ve embroidered you a piece of clothing. I can do Suzhou embroidery, Hunan embroidery, Guangdong embroidery, and Sichuan embroidery for you.”

Thanatos was impressed but didn’t quite understand.

“There’s a shop upstairs that sells watches. Let me take you to have a look.”

Yanluo reached for Thanatos’ hand and started walking forward, but Thanatos didn’t move.

Yanluo turned his head. Thanatos said softly, “I don’t feel like shopping.”

“Tired from walking?” Yanluo asked, recalling Thanatos’ delicate stamina. “I’ll carry you.”

Thanatos shook his head. “Don’t want to buy.”

Buying too much was completely unnecessary. Thanatos didn’t even understand how humans could inflate the price of watches so high. No matter how expensive a watch was, it wouldn’t add a second to the precious time. And time, for a god, was the least valuable thing.

However, the time spent with Yanluo had started to feel precious.

Suddenly, Thanatos realized that sooner or later, he would have to return to Greece for work, and Yanluo’s duties in China were just as important. What would they do then? Would they continue this long-distance relationship forever?

Thanatos began to worry about this issue, and his expression became a little downcast.

Yanluo thought nothing of it, assuming the little reaper had simply grown bored after hours of shopping. It was nearly dinnertime, after all.

“Alright, then, let’s head back.”

Once they got back into the car, Yanluo started the engine, but he didn’t turn the car in the direction of the apartment.

Thanatos assumed Yanluo was just taking him to some restaurant for dinner, so he didn’t think much of it.

The car veered further off course, heading into a desolate area at the foot of a mountain. Yanluo finally stopped the car and said, “Let’s get out.”

Thanatos was puzzled, but he still unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car.

The setting sun dipped low, casting fiery red clouds across the sky, with rays of light stretching for thousands of miles.

Yanluo opened the trunk and pulled out a tent, bamboo skewers, meat, soda, and more……

Thanatos blinked in surprise. Were they going to camp in the wild?

Yanluo had everything prepared so thoroughly. It was clear this had been planned in advance, but it was beyond Thanatos’ expectations.

“Didn’t you watch the news? There’s an Orion meteor shower tonight,” Yanluo said. “How could a date be complete without a picnic on a mountaintop, watching the stars?”

Yanluo summoned a cloud, lifting the tent and food onto it. “This mountain isn’t very tall, only two or three hundred meters. You can climb if you want, or if you don’t want to—”

Thanatos had already seated himself on the cloud. The answer was clear.

Why go the long way when a shortcut was available?

Yanluo held back a chuckle as he joined him. “You should exercise more. You can’t keep being so weak.”

Weak? What did that matter? When he was working, all he needed was his strong wings, Thanatos thought so sullenly.

The cloud sped up the mountain, the setting sun a perfect circle in the sky. The grass on the mountaintop was soft, and a gentle breeze brushed their faces. On the vast hillside, there was only the two of them, surrounded by silence and serenity.

Yanluo used magic to set up the tent. He beckoned Thanatos to sit down together, and a pile of firewood ignited into a blazing bonfire, the heat radiating intensely.

It was karmic fire.

Yanluo had the power to control karmic fire at will. In this moment, he removed the karmic power that would typically annihilate the world, leaving only ordinary flames, perfect for grilling skewers.

There was no one else in the world who could use the Red Lotus Karmic Fire for barbeque.

The night fell quickly. Yanluo threaded the meat onto bamboo skewers and placed them over the fire. Before they realized it, the sun had completely disappeared, and the sky had turned dark, scattered with stars that twinkled like precious gems against the night.

The meat sizzled as it roasted, gradually browning to a perfect golden hue. Yanluo deftly turned the skewers, dusting them with a blend of seasonings. The savory scent wafted through the air, and his motions flowed with the ease of someone well-practiced.

Thanatos watched quietly. Among the Eastern gods, there were those like the Jade Emperor who shunned worldly things, and then there was Yanluo, who blended seamlessly into the human world. Thanatos was curious to know how was Yanluo able to merge with the human world so effortlessly?

Yanluo noticed Thanatos’ gaze and smiled. “I wasn’t always like this. Gods don’t usually consume the five crops. If I had stayed in the heavenly realm, I would never have had the chance to learn any of this.”

He paused, focusing on the skewers before continuing, “In the past, humans would eat their prey raw. They often got sick and had short lifespans. So, I descended to teach them how to use fire. But before I could teach them, I had to learn it myself.

“The Heavenly Dao didn’t approve at first. It claimed my actions interfered with mortal affairs which violated the heavenly laws,” Yanluo scoffed, a hint of disdain in his voice. “Who wants to abide by those broken laws?”

He said it lightly, but Thanatos knew that Yanluo must have paid a price for his defiance.

As a god, becoming too empathetic with humans rarely ended well. The Greek god Prometheus had stolen fire for humanity, and his punishment had been severe. Zeus ordered that he be bound to Mount Caucasus, where his liver was pecked at by a vulture every day, until the fourth King of the Gods, Hephaestus, freed him.

“Don’t worry,” Yanluo said, catching the concerned look in Thanatos’ eyes. “It was just a few lightning strikes. Nothing serious, didn’t hurt a bit.”

Thanatos: “……”

He was starting to lose track of what “not serious” really meant.

“Here.” Yanluo handed him a perfectly roasted chicken wing.

Thanatos took a small bite, his eyes drifting to the firelight casting a warm glow over Yanluo’s sharp, handsome features. Yanluo’s face, untouched by the smoke and dust of the world, was focused and attentive as he roasted meat skewers for him.

The night was still. They sat side by side in front of the tent, eating and drinking together.

A smear of oil appeared at the corner of Thanatos’ mouth. Yanluo smoothly reached for a handkerchief and gently wiped it away, his movements tender and fluid. Thanatos froze, unprepared for such tenderness.

He held his breath. If he had exhaled, it would have been too noticeable.

Suddenly, Yanluo spoke. “The meteor shower’s here.”

Thanatos turned his head and looked up, seeing the sky thick with dark clouds. In an instant, meteors streaked across the night sky, through the ink-black clouds, reflecting in his starry eyes.

Meteors flew across his pupils, beautiful and breathtaking.

Yanluo’s voice broke the silence. “Clouds weave like works of art, and stars shed a sorrowful light. The galaxy silently spans the vast distance. The golden wind and jade dew meet but once, yet this fleeting moment surpassed countless moments in the human world.” [T/N: poem about the annual meeting of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl on the magpie bridge]

Thanatos didn’t understand, but he thought it was beautiful.

It seemed to be poetry from the East, the most difficult part of the Chinese language to comprehend.

“Make a wish,” Yanluo said.

Another wish?

Wishes were for birthdays, wishes were for shooting stars.

When gods made a wish, who could grant them?

Even with that thought in mind, Thanatos still obediently closed his eyes.

He felt a little guilty for making such a wish, but he really hoped that he could delay his return to Greece.

He wished for Venus’ child to grow stronger, so the pregnancy would last longer, and his task would be postponed.

He didn’t want to be in a long-distance relationship with Yanluo. He wanted to stay by his side.

Thanatos opened his eyes and turned his head, only to meet Yanluo’s gaze. The seemingly all-knowing gaze made him slightly flustered.

Just as Thanatos was about to look away, Yanluo’s clear voice rang out. “Little Reaper, I just made a wish. I wonder if it will come true.”

Thanatos, still distracted, answered absentmindedly, “It will definitely come true.”

Thanatos thought that Yanluo’s wish must be related to the prosperity of the country, the well-being of the people, and world peace.

Yanluo: “Do you want to know what wish I made?”

Thanatos: “Wishes won’t come true if you say them out loud.”

Yanluo: “But my wish can only be fulfilled by you.”

Thanatos looked at him in confusion.

Yanluo smiled, leaning in slightly. “I wish I could kiss my Little Reaper.”

Thanatos’ pupils contracted slightly, and a hint of uncertainty flickered in his starry eyes.

Yanluo stared at him intently, as if waiting for an answer.

Thanatos blinked a few times.

He couldn’t bring himself to nod in agreement.

Nor could he bear to shake his head in refusal.

He remained silent for a few seconds.

Then, he closed his eyes.

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