Webnovel/28

## Chapter 28

* Main

The **28th chapter** of the web novel is titled 《同乡认亲》 which translates to *"Recognizing a Relative"*. It was first published in Chinese on JJWXC, July 2015.

## English Novel Location

This chapter starts on the line

> That year’s Immortal Alliance Conference was a greater disaster than nearly any since its inception.
>
>

Of the English Novel volume 1, chapter 4: Conference, and ends on the paragraph
*Based on the end point in the Faelicy translation*

> At first, Shen Qingqiu emphatically said nothing. “I refuse to believe you only remember that one thing. Don’t dwell on the past.” More importantly, he had a resolution. “Enough blathering. I wanted to have a real discussion with you today—because after the Immortal Alliance Conference, I suddenly had an idea. Perhaps it can solve our shared problem.”
>
>

*And based on the end point in the CNoveluv translation:*

> “You think joking about something like this is funny?” Shen Qingqiu asked. “I’m talking about a guaranteed fix. As long as we keep it absolutely secret, we’ll avoid any trouble. It all depends on you.
>
>

Of the English Novel volume 1, chapter 5: Bai Lu.

## Recap

That Immortal Alliance Conference was the biggest disaster since it’s inception. Of the thousands of participating disciples, with Zhao Hua Monastery being spared due to supporting the barrier. Huan Hua Palace lost almost 100 disciples, Cang Qiong Mountain had around 30 injured, the minor sects has innumerable losses, and those numbers weren't counting the cultivators who joined the fray to help clear the demons. Perhaps most heartbreaking of all, the top performing disciples in the Conference, Qing Jing's Luo Binghe, had fallen to demons, his sword shattered.

Ming Fan came to deliver the ten thousand spirit stones that Shen Qingqiu had bet on Luo Binghe's victory, a bet that Yue Qingyuan agreed to back that Shen Qingqiu completely forgot about making. At the time, he had thought of it like a consolation prize, but now without Luo Binghe here to dictate what to do with them, he was at a loss. He tells Ming Fan vaguely to "put them away for now," which Ming Fan wants to question more but doesn't for fear of upsetting his master. The Qing Jing disciples had been walking on eggshells around Shen Qingqiu, worried about upsetting him, and had thought he was getting better. However, around half a month of seeming recovery, they heard him repeatedly call out for Luo Binghe. At that, Ning Yingying barged in, promising to make him whatever food he wanted, telling him that he was worrying all his other disciples by being out of his mind with grief. Shen Qingqiu was shocked by this, thinking that he didn't even need to eat at Core Formation stage and had just wanted a little snack, forgetting that he had already cast Luo Binghe into the Abyss. Seeing Ning Yingying about to cry from anxiety, he threw away his excuses and solemnly promised it was just a slip of the tongue, sending her out to play.

Once she was outside, he reminisced on how much she had grown up from the pampered childish burden she had been in the original novel. Wasn't she supposed to be the one waiting to the heavens here? He wondered to the effect of his teachings. He concluded that either way, this behavior couldn't continue. Despite him raising the protagonist, it seemed like the protagonist was the one taking care of him all this time, and his departure had left him like a grieving widow. At that thought, he mentally slapped himself, claiming he couldn't just say such things, he was getting worse by the day, and that he deserved a slap. Either way, it seemed as though with Luo Binghe gone, he was quite lonely, especially compared to how their reunion would go five years down the line.

Shen Qingqiu buried the shattered pieces of Zheng Yang in his backyard and erected a sword mound. When onlookers saw him there, they thought he was mourning his dead disciple, but in reality he was mourning the sunshine youth that he had destroyed. Several days after throwing Luo Binghe into the Abyss, The System finally gave another message, saying he got 10000 Protagonist Satisfaction points. The System then introduced protagonist Heartbreak points, and that due to an excessive amount of them, Shen Qingqiu's points had been reset to zero. This message made him want to wail to the heavens, and he insulted the System for treating Luo Binghe like a son. Due to this upset, Shen Qingqiu decided to take his anger out on someone, and sent Ming Fan to go invite Shang Qinghua over.

Qing Jing and An Ding generally minded their own respective businesses, so Shang Qinghua had no clue what Shen Qingqiu might want for him, so he started out with compliments about the peak and the tea bowl he was drinking from to keep Shen Qingqiu's mood high. Shen Qingqiu commented on how everything on the peak, such as the tea bowl, reminded him of his lost disciple, to which Shang Qinghua offered his condolences. Shen Qingqiu went on the offensive, saying that if Shang Qinghua truly was sorry, then none of this would have happened. Shang Qinghua smiles at first, questioning if he found An Ding's administration inadequate. Shen Qingqiu responded that his administration was too adequate, since he was able to get so many rare demonic beasts into the human realm to wreak havoc. Shang Qinghua gets upset at these accusations, shooting to his feet and calling them outrageous. Shen Qingqiu tells him to sit back down and listen to what he has to say if he dares, which Shang Qinghua sneers and agrees to since he has a clear conscience that's unafraid of false accusations.

> "Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky?" asked Shen Qingqiu.
>
>

To that question, Shang Qinghua froze in shock, and asked how he knew his ID, which froze Shen Qingqiu in shock in return, before he jumped on him and questioning how he wouldn't know who he was after finishing his entire novel, and how he suspected when he was off when he let something slip upon seeing Mobei-jun. When Mobei-jun appeared, Shang Qinghua had let out a "WTF!" That alone was something to spark suspicion, but at the time Shen Qingqiu dismissed it. Later, upon reflection, that slipup, plus the lack of the plot important Black Moon Rhinoceros-Python, showed that someone was potentially trying to avert Luo Binghe's fall into the Abyss.

Upon realizing that both of them were transmigrators, they stared at each other for a while before they started ranting and venting at each other. Shen Qingqiu complained about the plot holes, the wasted foreshadowing, the grade school writing style, and told him not to fool around writing whump. Shang Qinghua, in response, said he was the victim, as he was the author and should have transmigrated into the protagonist or even the System, and yet he was stuck as canon fodder after he got electrocuted plugging a cord in. Shen Qingqiu said it was better than his fate, since Mobei-jun outright kills him later to silence him, but he on the other hand gets carved up by Luo Binghe. Shang Qinghua counters that by saying how he transmigrated into an infant with a destitute and miserable childhood that led into years of being disrespected as an outer disciple, which was much worse than being transmigrated into a master.

Their competition of who had it worse had no clear winner. Shang Qinghua sighed, calling it fate that he had met a reader, and asked him what his Zhongdian ID was to see if they were perhaps acquaintances in the past.

> "Peerless Cucumber," said Shen Qingqiu.
>
>

Shang Qinghua thought for a while and said that he vaguely remembered him as an especially vicious commenter when demanding that he castrate Shen Qingqiu for being a creep to Ning Yingying. Shen Qingqiu says nothing for a moment, before saying he refuses to believe that's the only thing he remembers, and that he shouldn't dwell on the past because he has a plan that's going to save both of them.

## Changes Between Versions

### The Faelicy/Lily Translation (February 2020 version)

*This chapter ends with the note “Chapter by Lily from @yueqingyuan!” but was posted on Faelicy’s blog. The following section refers to this translation as the Faelicy/Lily translation, in reference to the blog and the translator respectively.*

#### Larger Changes

* The new point that the System introduces is called “Degree of Heartbreak” in the Faelicy/Lily and “heartbreak points” in the Seven Seas translation.
* The line about being a miserable villain with enough grievances to fill an ocean is framed differently across the translations. In the Faelicy/Lily translation, it’s just a sentence:

> Being a villain was truly miserable, with enough grievances to fill the Pacific Ocean.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation, its phrased like a quote or a poem:

> Being a villain was true misery / Grievances enough to fill the ocean.
>
>

* When Shen Qingqiu tells Shang Qinghua to calm down, in the Faelicy/Lily translation, he asks him:

> Let me call you something; do you agree?
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation, he asks him:

> Let me say something. Do you dare respond?
>
>

#### Smaller Changes

* Shen Qingqiu describes Luo Binghe’s efforts in the Immortal Alliance Conference with “Luo Binghe had tried his hardest” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and “Luo Binghe had made a good showing” in the Seven Seas translation.
* The things Luo Binghe was in charge of deciding what to do with deliveries, such as “whether it should be sorted for storage or used for something else, how to use it” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and “where the gift should be saved or whether it should be used to trade for something else, and if so, how to do so” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Ning Yingying tells Shen Qingqiu has been “beside yourself” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and “out of your mind with grief” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu notes that it seems like Luo Binghe was “the one raising him” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and “the one looking after him” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu questions himself by saying “Who was he scaring putting on the act of a grieving widow, when it’d been only a couple of days since he’d seen him?” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and, with more detail, “He was scaring his disciples, putting on the act of a grieving widow whose husband had just died. Hadn’t it been only a couple of days since he’d last seen that child?” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu ends off his rant about Proud Immortal Demon Way stating “don’t fool around writing torture and suffering?!” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and “don’t fool around writing whump!” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shang Qinghua’s claim to victimhood starts off with “...” in the Faelicy/Lily translation, while it’s described that he “said slowly” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu being reminded of his comments as Shen Yuan starts off with “...” in the Faelicy/Lily translation and “At first, Shen Qingqiu emphatically said nothing” in the Seven Seas translation.

### The (CNoveluv) WorshipperA Translation (May 2018 version)

*Originally posted February 2018, edits made since then*

#### Larger Changes

* When describing the casualties of the Immortal Alliance Conference, the WorshipperA translation does so with actual numbers attached:

> The new cultivators from all the participating sects numbered 1,313 people total. Among them, Huan Hua Palace lost 140 people and Tian Yi Overlook lost 90 people. Apart from the people who didn’t participate in the Conference, the diligently-working Zhao Hua Temple that held up the enchantment was spared. Among the three great sects, Cang Qiong Mountain sect suffered the lightest casualties: only 39 people.
>
>

While the Seven Seas translation keeps the numbers more vague:

> Over a thousand new talents from every sect had participated in the conference. Of the four great sects, the members of Zhao Hua Monastery, who’d focused on supporting the barrier spell, had luckily been spared, while Huan Hua Palace had suffered the greatest losses, to the tune of nearly a hundred participants. Cang Qiong Mountain had taken the least damage, with only thirty or so injured.
>
>

* After it’s noted that the Shen Qingqiu’s beloved disciple perished with a broken sword, there is more to that line in the WorshipperA translation that is not in the Seven Seas translation:

> how could his heart not ache?
>
>

* The amount of spirit stones that Ming Fan comes to deliver is three thousand in the WorshipperA translation and ten thousand in the Seven Seas translation.
* After Ming Fan reminds him of the bet he placed on Luo Binghe, there is an extra line in the Seven Seas translation:

> It was the bet he had placed on Luo Binghe. Yue Qingyuan had said that any losses would be his to pay, while Shen Qingqiu could keep any winnings for himself.
>
>

This line is not in the WorshipperA translation, due to the scene that it’s referencing not having taken place in the WorshipperA translation.

* While Shen Qingqiu notes never expecting someone to describe him as having lost his mind to grief, in the WorshipperA translation alone, there is a line that further elaborates:

> Shen Qingqiu hadn’t thought of even in his previous life.
>
>

* Before claiming he’s not acting like a grieving widow, Shen Qingqiu in the WorshipperA translation talks about how he’s the one who harmed Luo Binghe:

> Obviously he was the one who dragged up and beat the little white sheep male protagonist, but how come now it was as though the male protagonist had captivated him.
>
>

And in the Seven’s Seas translation, he talks about raising Luo Binghe:

> Clearly Shen Qingqiu was the one who’d raised that little lamb of a protagonist, so why did it seem like the protagonist had been the one looking after him?
>
>

* While both translations note that onlookers thought he was reminiscing on his disciple, the conclusions they draw from this is different across the translations. In the WorshipperA translation:

> the sad sigh an expression of his deep and true feelings for his disciple as he created the grave himself.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation:

> What a deep master-and-disciple bond! Fate toys with us all.
>
>

* The line before the System notification that breaks him is different across the translations. In the WorshipperA translation, the preceding line is:

> Also, what truly transformed him into a wind-worn and disordered fossil was that, after the system calculated the score, it sent a heart-destroying notice.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation, the preceding line mentions how many days later the notification comes:

> What truly broke him and caused him to weep at the heavens was that, after several days of silence, the System sent him a message truly devoid of all humanity.
>
>

* Shen Qingqiu’s laments about the point loss are described and framed differently across the translations. In the WorshipperA translation, he complains with:

> He worked hard as cattle or a horse for thirty years, but in one night he’d returned to the time before his liberation. Shen Qingqiu’s heart felt as stifled as though it’d been suppressed by the Pacific Ocean.
> Since he wasn’t happy himself, of course he had to find someone else’s unhappiness.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation, he complains with:

> Years of slaving away at the System’s every command, and he was back to square one in a single night.
> Being a villain was true misery / Grievances enough to fill the ocean.
>
>

* After it’s noted that both Qing Jing and An Ding mind their own businesses, there is a line in the WorshipperA that has no equivalent in the Seven Seas translation:

> Their relations were neither cold nor warm
>
>

* When noting how Shen Qingqiu was suspicious of Shang Qinghua’s actions in the Immortal Alliance Conference, there is an extra descriptive line in the Seven Seas translation that is not in the WorshipperA translation:

> Shang Qinghua was subject to the irresistible pressure of the plot
>
>

* The reason that Shen Qingqiu said Airplane’s ID is different across the translations. In the WorshipperA translation, he suspects already that he’s the author:

> As for why he guessed it was Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky……of course there was still only one reason – – of those he knew, other than the people he knew about that were uninvolved in the scene, there was only the original author. That was why there was only one option for him to guess!
> This kind of foolish guessing hitting the mark every time wasn’t his fault!
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation, just to see if the name was recognized:

> He’d only wanted to study Shang Qinghua’s reaction to this name to determine if he had also read Proud Immortal Demon Way—but given his reaction…he wasn’t just a reader, was he?!
>
>

* Shang Qinghua’s complaining about where he’s ended up starts off with differences across translations. In the WorshipperA translation, he mentions godhood and transmigrating into the protagonist:

> I am the author, can’t I be considered as the god who created this world? Even if I transmigrate, I should transmigrate into the protagonist.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation, he mentions the protagonist and the System, but not godhood:

> At the end of the day, I’m still the author. Even if I didn’t transmigrate into the protagonist, I should at least have transmigrated into the role of a System in itself, right?
>
>

* Shen Qingqiu’s response to Shang Qinghua claiming to be a victim has differences across the translations. In the WorshipperA translation:

> Shen Qingqiu smiled coldly: “It’s still better than me. Our identities directly revealed to Mo Beijun means he’ll kill us off. We can only wish for a happy death. Meanwhile, I was personally cut by Luo Binghe into. A. Human. Stick.” The emphasis of each word indicated a rather deep resentment.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation:

> “Still better than me,” Shen Qingqiu sneered. “After you’re exposed as a spy, Mobei-Jun kills you outright to silence you. At least it’s a straightforward death. Don’t you remember the state I’ll be in after I get carved up by Luo Binghe?
>
>

* When Shen Qingqiu tells Shang Qinghua to not dwell on the past, there are more details in the Seven Seas translation. In the WorshipperA translation:

> “……” Shen Qingqiu: “Past events should be laid to rest.”
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation:

> At first, Shen Qingqiu emphatically said nothing. “I refuse to believe you only remember that one thing. Don’t dwell on the past.”
>
>

* After denying Shang Qinghua’s disbelief that he has a solution, the following description is different across translations. In the WorshipperA translation:

> My solution will be able to secure the root of the problem if the secret is not leaked. Even in the most desperate straits, you’ll be able to return.”
>
>
> Only, there were still two little conditions missing.
>
>
>
> Success or failure depended on one action. He would see if Shang Qinghua, this fellow countryman, would be of help.
>
>

And in the Seven Seas translation:

> As long as we keep it absolutely secret, we’ll avoid any trouble. It all depends on you.
>
>

#### Smaller Changes

* Shen Qingqiu’s reaction to remembering the bet he had placed on Luo Binghe is described as “a little overwhelmed” in the WorshipperA translation and “bit of a loss” in the Seven Seas translation.
* The tasks that Shen Qingqiu assigned to Luo Binghe are described as “things that should go to the warehouse, or the things used to do other things” in the WorshipperA translation and “Luo Binghe to handle—where the gift should be saved or whether it should be used to trade for something else, and if so, how to do so” in the Seven Seas translation.
* In regards to what to do with the spiritual stones, in the WorshipperA translation, Shen Qingqiu says “First receive them, then” with Ming Fan wanting to ask about “how to receive them.” In the Seven Seas translation, Shen Qingqiu says “Put them away for now” with Ming Fan wanting to “more instruction, like “Where should I put it?””
* Ming Fan’s decision of what to do with the spirit stones is to “stuff his heart in storage” in the WorshipperA translation and “It should be fine if I put them where Luo Binghe used to put things” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu is noted to have called out for Luo Binghe “twice” in the WorshipperA translation and “a few times” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu admonishes Ning Yingying, after asking what she was doing by barging in, by saying “A young lady so energetic, what kind of appearance is this?” in the WorshipperA translation and “it’s unsightly for a lady to act so rough and undisciplined” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Ning Yingying describes Shen Qingqiu as “so distracted like you’ve lost your soul” in the WorshipperA translation and “out of your mind with grief” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu describes how Ning Yingying was in the original novel as “this little girl who was always spoiled and flighty in the novel, dragging behind the hind legs others” and “supposed to be the one most whiny and willful” in the WorshipperA translation and “ this little miss, who in the original novel had always been pampered and childish, only capable of getting in trouble and being a burden” and “supposed to be clawing at the ground, wailing to the heavens” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Luo Binghe’s heartbreak points zero out Shen Qingqiu’s protagonist’s coolness points in the WorshipperA translation and his protagonist satisfaction points in the Seven Seas translation.
* The things on Qing Jing Peak that Shen Qingqiu claims Luo Binghe arranged are “every grass and every tree, every cup and every plate” in the WorshipperA translation and “everything I see begins to bring up old memories. Every plank, every dish in this Qing Jing Bamboo House” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shang Qinghua asks if Shen Qingqiu blames An Ding “for not being strong enough” in the WorshipperA translation and “for inadequate administration” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shang Qinghua “smiled coldly” at Shen Qingqiu in the WorshipperA translation and spoke “With a sneer” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shang Qinghua calls Shen Qingqiu’s accusations “your forceful and faulty accusation of wrongdoing” in the WorshipperA translation and “ a false accusation” in the Seven Seas translation.
* Shen Qingqiu ends off his rant about Proud Immortal Demon Way stating “Why mess around with this mental and physical abuse?!” in the WorshipperA translation and “don’t fool around writing whump!” in the Seven Seas translation.

## Appearances

Shen Qingqiu

M.Luo Binghe

Ming Fan

M.Yue Qingyuan

M.Gongyi Xiao

M.Liu Mingyan

Ning Yingying

The System

S. Qinghua

M.Mobei-jun

M.OG Qingqiu