Chapter 58

Chapter 58

"What the hell..."

The scar-faced man sat on a rock, propping his large blade against the ground, recalling last night with a look of utter disbelief.

They had clearly poured pine oil, and the fire had caught instantly.

The wind was favorable too, and the flames had quickly pushed forward. But then, as it burned, the fire just stopped moving.

The wind kept blowing, the fire stayed intense, but it didn't move forward anymore.

Eventually, as the brush burned up, the fire slowly died out.

The scar-faced man frowned deeply, his grip on the sword hilt whitening his knuckles. He couldn't figure out what strange phenomenon had caused this. A faint fear crept into his heart.

Ma Lin, the bandit leader of Quan Mountain, was just as baffled. Staring at the ashes in the distance, he sneered coldly, his eyes filled with a chilling ruthlessness.

"Demons or monsters? If they existed, the people I've killed would've torn me apart as ghosts by now. The fire acted weird, but it didn't turn around and burn us. Why bother worrying about why it did that? All I know is we didn't finish the job, and that promised gold ain't coming to us."

The scar-faced man wanted to back out. "They promised the gold, sure, but with that much money, will they really pay up?"

The price was so high that even the big shots in the prefectural city combined would struggle to pay it.

The scar-faced man had been suspicious from the start, but he'd heard Ma Lin was joining too. Ma Lin had a fearsome rep, and his men were all ruthless—he wouldn't let himself get screwed over. And with the new county magistrate cracking down, they couldn't survive on Tiger Head Mountain anymore. That's why they'd decided to roll the dice.

His resolve had never been strong, and after last night, he was scared of getting tangled up with something unclean. He also figured he wouldn't live long enough to enjoy that crazy reward those bigwigs promised. All he wanted now was to stay alive and keep out of this mess.

Ma Lin curled his lips into a smile, his dead eyes fixed on the scar-faced man. "Anyone who doesn't give me what I was promised—I'll kill their whole family."

"Fang Tian, I don't like quitting halfway, and I hate people who bail mid-way. If you wanna leave, fine—unless you're dead. Your cowardice don't bother me, but don't mess up my plans. Otherwise, I'll make sure you're dead."

Fang Tian's heart trembled at Ma Lin's look—it was even scarier than that weird fire that burned all night.

He'd heard of how vicious the Quan Mountain bandits were, and now he was seeing it firsthand.

As the head of his own mountain stronghold, Fang Tian, despite his fear, forced himself to stand his ground. "You want me dead? Think my boys are pushovers?"

Ma Lin gave a sinister smile. "Try me."

Fang Tian visibly shuddered, muttering "crazy" under his breath, but didn't dare say more.

Thinking it over, at this point, he and his brothers had no choice but to see this through.

Sticking with Ma Lin at least meant that with his reckless ferocity, they might get some gold in the end. With money, whatever came next would be easier to deal with.

With that thought, Fang Tian's resolve hardened.

"What do we do now? Light another fire?"

Ma Lin looked at the smoking area. "No. If we light a fire during the day, the county office will react faster than at night. We can't let them get to the targets first. Now take all our men and comb the mountain."

-

Shen Song's head still throbbed.

It had been a long time since he'd felt the pain of mental exhaustion.

His face was pale, and he was drowsy and listless, completely drained.

Meanwhile, Shen Lin was bandaging the Shadow Guard Captain's wounds.

Last night when the fire broke out, the captain had shielded Shen Song from a blow, and a thick, flaming branch had crashed down, burning his entire right shoulder and back.

The wound was bloody and raw, the flesh charred. Shen Lin couldn't even stand to touch it.

Shen Jue was supposed to do the bandaging, but the Shadow Guard Chief seemed to really hate Shen Jue and wouldn't let him near.

Shen Dashu, Shen Chong, and Zhao Lu were also hurt protecting the family, so Shen Jue went to patch them up instead.

The only man in the Shen family still able to help with wounds was Shen Lin.

The more seriously injured shadow guards were gathered here, while the less hurt ones had gone ahead to scout, hunt, or pick fruit.

Shen Lin and Shen Jue were twins, but their personalities were polar opposites.

Shen Jue would wince at these wounds too, but he had the nerve to clean them.

Shen Lin, on the other hand, couldn't handle it. His hands trembled uncontrollably as he cleaned the Shadow Guard Captain's wound.

The Shadow Guard Captain gritted his teeth against the pain, frowning. "If you keep shaking like that, you're going to tear the wound open even wider."

"I'm sorry!" Shen Lin's eyes reddened as he quickly apologized.

The Shadow Guard Captain found this amusing. "I'm not crying, so why are you blubbering like a bear?"

Shen Lin wished he could close his eyes—wounds of this severity were simply too much for him to handle. "I-I just think it hurts too much."

"You're a grown man, why are you such a coward?" The Shadow Guard Captain furrowed his brow.

Shen Lin lowered his head in embarrassment. "I'm sorry..."

The Shadow Guard Captain's frown deepened, but he said nothing more.

After the wound was cleaned and medicine powder applied, a scout returned to report. Seeing Shen Lin tending to their captain's wound, he raised an eyebrow slightly before quickly lowering his head to report that the bandits were searching the mountain.

The Shadow Guard Captain immediately moved to get up, and Shen Lin exclaimed in alarm, "It's not bandaged yet."

"Then hurry up."

Shen Lin quietly murmured that it might hurt a little and to bear with it, then quickly sped up his work.

The moment the cloth strip was tied, the Shadow Guard Captain pulled his clothes on and prepared to lead the Shen family in continuing their escape.

At the same time, he would leave some men behind to set up an ambush and slow down the bandits' pursuit.

The Shen family members were all exhausted by now. Shen Jing's leg could no longer carry him, and Zhao Lu was carrying him on his back. Shen Song was also weak, carried by his second brother.

No one knew how long they'd been running when sounds of fighting broke out behind them.

The bandits had caught up.

An arrow flew through the air. The Shadow Guard Captain shoved Shen Lin aside, and the arrow pierced through his shoulder, embedding itself with flesh and blood into the tree trunk behind him.

His brow furrowed tightly as he used his sword to brace himself against the ground, barely managing to stay upright.

"Numbers one through five, take the Shen family and go!"

Shen Lin wanted to check on the captain's injuries, but he was immediately pulled forward by the shadow guards who had arrived.

The Shadow Guard Captain rose with his sword, moving with agility as he leaped and slashed toward the bandits. The other shadow guards who stayed behind struck out simultaneously, once again holding back Ma Lin, Fang Tian, and their men.

Halfway up Tiger Head Mountain, on the scorched, burned-out ground, Qi Yuanjing was gripping Xie Zhiyu tightly.

"You can't go any further. I'll take my people the rest of the way. I'm not letting you go down the mountain—you stay right here, and I swear I'll bring him back to you."

Xie Zhiyu wore red robes, yet his face was utterly bloodless. His usual arrogance, the infuriating swagger that never gave a damn about anything, was all gone, leaving only restless, gnawing anxiety.

"Qi Yuanjing, I can't just sit here twiddling my thumbs." Xie Zhiyu stared into the deep mountains, his dark eyes dull and lifeless. "Let me go find him. I need to see him with my own eyes."

"You go? How can you still go? On that broken, battered body that's barely hanging on by a thread? Do you actually want to die that badly?"

Qi Yuanjing was honestly about to lose it over Xie Zhiyu's stubbornness. They'd rushed all the way from Mingqing County, and he'd coughed up blood who knows how many times along the way—hard to notice against the red robes unless you looked closely, but with that deathly pale face and those red robes, you'd swear Xie Zhiyu was a ghost.

If his master hadn't been there, he'd already be one.

Xie Zhiyu only asked him calmly, "The person in those mountains right now is Shan Yue. Qi Yuanjing, could you sit here and wait?"

Qi Yuanjing opened his mouth, but the words died in his throat. He glanced at the person standing not far away—white robes like frost and snow, completely out of place in this land of ashes.

No, he couldn't.

Qi Yuanjing had no choice but to pull a small wooden bottle from his sleeve. "My master gave this to me, and I never gave it to you. This pill will bring your body back to normal for a short while, but it'll stir up the gu worm that's been dormant inside you. You'll be in constant pain—worse than before. But it'll keep you from dying."

Before Qi Yuanjing could even say "think it over," Xie Zhiyu had already popped the cork, tossed the pill into his mouth, and swallowed.

He tossed the empty bottle aside and headed straight into the mountains.

Qi Yuanjing said nothing more, silently leading his people into the mountains. Shan Yue followed behind, picked up the wooden bottle, and wiped it clean with a handkerchief. Seeing his disciple's worried, fidgety profile, he sighed softly and followed.

A sheer cliff. Nowhere left to run.

The Shen family had been backed against the cliff edge by Ma Lin, who'd caught up to them. The guards protecting them were badly wounded, collapsed on the ground.

Ma Lin had his blade resting on his shoulder, blood smeared across his face. Half his left palm had been sliced off, wrapped in a crude bandage already soaked through with blood.

Yet he acted like he didn't feel a thing, grinning at the Shen family. "Your family sure is a pain to invite, huh? Coming all this way cost me a hand and most of my men. So now, you gonna jump off, or come with me to the prefectural city and see the world?"

The old Shen couple tried to shield the kids at first, but the younger ones quickly shoved them behind.

Shen Jing gritted his teeth against the pain in his leg, with Zhao Lu holding him up. Shen Zhun handed Shen Song off to Chi Jiu. The men stood at the front, glaring at Ma Lin.

"Well, well—what a lovely family." Ma Lin sneered. "You've got plenty of good days ahead. Die now, and it's all for nothing. Coming to the prefectural city with me?"

Shen Chong frowned. "No matter how good the vegetables from our fields are, it's not worth the Chen family going through all this trouble. Are you trying to use our family as leverage against someone?"

Ma Lin raised an eyebrow. "Oh, a scholar indeed—sharp as ever. Who we're threatening, I don't know. All I know is, delivering you gets me paid."

"They want you to bring them back alive, right?" Shen Chong said.

"Looks like the scholar's trying to threaten me now, huh?" Ma Lin shrugged nonchalantly. "If you wanna jump off the cliff and die, go ahead. I'll just head down, pick up the smashed bodies, and deliver them. Far as I'm concerned, that's the job done. If they dare stiff me on payment, I'll kill their whole family and take their money."

Ma Lin was so brazen that Shen Chong knew nothing could scare him. Unless they offered a bigger payoff.

Shen Song had recovered somewhat. He looked at the cliff and thought it might actually be a chance to escape.

Back in wilderness training, they'd simulated extreme terrain escapes.

Including escaping off cliffs.

Shen Song started edging toward the cliff to check what was below, but after two steps, Chi Jiu grabbed him, afraid he'd fall.

He turned to tell Chi Jiu he was fine, and in that split second, he caught a flash of red robes.

Looking closer—it was someone he hadn't seen in a long time.

It was Xie Zhiyu.

Why was he so much thinner again?

His face was so pale too.

Was he sick? Or was the gu poison flaring up?

Why was he drenched in cold sweat? Was he in that much pain?

The second Shen Song saw Xie Zhiyu, a flood of thoughts rushed through his head.

He walked forward, and Chi Jiu, worried, stuck close behind.

"Xie Zhiyu, you're back!"

Xie Zhiyu saw Shen Song at a glance and knew right away he wasn't in good shape.

His brow furrowed slightly. Seeing the cliff behind him, his heart jumped into his throat. The pain from the gu poison was instantly drowned out by sheer alarm. His voice trembled—whether from pain or fear, he couldn't tell. "Be good. Stand still. Don't move."

Shen Song didn't move, just nodded.

Qi Yuanjing and his people caught up quickly. Ma Lin's expression darkened, realizing the big shot those people in the prefectural city wanted to provoke had just shown up in person.

He glanced from Shen Song to Xie Zhiyu.

Now he understood why those people would spend a fortune to bring this family back.

What a perfect leash for a wolf, huh?

Sure enough, Ma Lin heard the pretty man in red say, "How much are they paying you? I'll pay double. Let the Shen family go."

Ma Lin clicked his tongue. "I'm a man who answers to money, not people. Since the gentleman says so, that makes things a lot easier. They promised me a thousand gold pieces once the job's done. But if the noble sir wants to buy these people back, double won't cut it."

Ma Lin said bluntly, "The noble sir's clearly loaded, being so generous. If I let them go too easy, wouldn't I be taking a huge loss?"

"How much do you want?" Xie Zhiyu didn't want to waste words and asked directly.

"Ten thousand gold pieces." Ma Lin said. "Once I have the money, I'll get out of Yunan Prefecture. Or if the noble sir wants revenge, I can turn around and kill those people too."

Xie Zhiyu nodded. "Deal."

Ma Lin's eyes lit up. "The noble sir really doesn't have a money problem."

"Let the adults take one person first. The rest, once the money comes, I'll release one by one."

That much money—you'd have to rob the imperial treasury to get it. The fact that this man agreed so easily made Ma Lin not want to let anyone go all at once.

He planned to take his men and flee beyond the border with the Shen family, stopping at each spot to trade a portion of the gold for one person.

Ma Lin turned aside, about to signal his men to come grab the prisoners, when out of Fang Tian's few remaining men, someone suddenly lunged forward, charging straight at Shen Song.

Chi Jiu was too slow—he got shoved to the ground, and a dagger pressed against Shen Song's throat.

Ma Lin frowned in annoyance. "What the hell are you doing?"

The man sneered, not looking at Ma Lin but staring straight at Xie Zhiyu. "Lord Xie, if you want this young man to live, jump off the cliff."

Xie Zhiyu glanced at him. "You're not a bandit. You're a trained assassin."

The assassin pressed the dagger deeper into Shen Song's neck, blood seeping out. Shen Song winced and immediately said to Xie Zhiyu, "Don't you dare!"

Xie Zhiyu calmly looked at Shen Song, but spoke to Qi Yuanjing. "Qi Yuanjing, keep an eye on this man and make sure you get Shen Song out safely."

Qi Yuanjing was losing his mind. "Xie Zhiyu, are you insane? You're seriously thinking about jumping? What if he still doesn't let him go after you jump!"

The assassin said coldly, "My master ordered you dead. Don't worry, I'll keep my word once the job's done."

"Shut up! You say so, but why should I believe you?" Qi Yuanjing roared at the assassin, wishing he could poison the bastard.

Ma Lin also glared at the man. His prize was about to slip away.

The assassin didn't argue; he just dragged Shen Song toward the cliff. "If you don't jump, I'm taking him down with me."

Shen Song was already mobilizing his psychic energy, getting ready to strike the assassin.

But he didn't know that the blood on his neck and his body teetering on the cliff's edge were both getting to Xie Zhiyu.

This time, the gu worm didn't seem as affected by Shen Song. Xie Zhiyu had been enduring pain beyond what any human could bear, and he was at his limit, the agony making him hallucinate again.

Shen Song fell off the cliff right in front of him.

He reached out desperately, but only grabbed torn flesh and blood.

Xie Zhiyu's brows furrowed tightly, sweat soaking his clothes as he stepped toward the cliff edge.

"Xie Zhiyu!"

Shen Song shouted, and Xie Zhiyu turned his head, his eyes unfocused. "Be good, okay? Stay safe."

Qi Yuanjing sensed something was off and lunged forward. "Damn it, Xie Zhiyu, you're hallucinating from the pain! Whatever you're seeing isn't real! Get back here!"

Hallucination?

Shen Song was confused for a moment, not quite understanding what that meant, but he could tell Xie Zhiyu wasn't in the right state.

Before he could think further, a red figure plummeted past him and vanished.

In that instant, Shen Song felt something in his mind snap.

In that moment, all his senses went dead.

By the time he came to, he was already in the air.

No—he had jumped off the cliff after Xie Zhiyu.

It wasn't until the red figure came back into view that Shen Song regained his senses—sound, touch, heartbeat.

On the cliff, Qi Yuanjing's men were holding back the Shen family, barely stopping them from jumping too.

Qi Yuanjing was pinned to the ground by Shan Yue, a silver needle freezing him in place, leaving him helpless as he screamed Xie Zhiyu's and Shen Song's names into the void.

The feeling of falling and the looming awareness of death gave Xie Zhiyu a moment of clarity.

When he saw the blue sky and someone hurtling toward him, he was stunned into disbelief.

Shen Song.

His life.

It had followed him down.

The moment Xie Zhiyu recognized Shen Song, his mind went completely blank. He lost the ability to think, just staring at Shen Song, watching him.

Finally, Xie Zhiyu let out a soft chuckle.

He reached out, waiting for Shen Song to fall into his arms.

Shen Song reached out too, all while focusing his psychic energy, making the earth below rise and pulling the trees upward to cushion their fall.

Shen Song fell fast, landing in Xie Zhiyu's arms.

Xie Zhiyu tightened his grip, pulling Shen Song close, and as he did, a tear slipped from the corner of his eye and fell off the cliff.

He held Shen Song with all his strength, enduring the agonizing pain throughout his body, keeping his promise.

He was going to share his secret with Shen Song.

Xie Zhiyu whispered, "Xinyue means to adore, to harbor love, to love only one person. So Shen Song, 'Xinyue jun xi jun buzhi' means I love you, but you don't know it."

Shen Song heard Xie Zhiyu speaking in his ear.

He knew Xie Zhiyu was talking, but he needed to focus all his senses on controlling his psychic energy.

He had no idea what Xie Zhiyu had said.

Xie Zhiyu closed his eyes, his pale, bloodless lips brushing gently against Shen Song's earlobe. His back faced the ground, trying to cushion the impact for Shen Song.

Swoosh—

Pain shot through his back, briefly easing the agony of the gu poison. Instead of a violent crash that would knock him out or kill him, they kept falling, with branches snapping and leaves rustling in his ears.

Xie Zhiyu realized they'd landed in a tree. He immediately held Shen Song tighter, shielding his head, until they stopped falling.

When they hit the ground, the impact was surprisingly soft.

It felt like landing on soft, loose sand instead of solid ground.

Xie Zhiyu pressed one hand against the back of Shen Song's head and the other against the ground—it really was soft.

Before he could wonder why, a splitting headache hit him.

The hand on Shen Song's head was trembling uncontrollably.

Shen Song's psychic energy was spent, and his consciousness was fading too.

He still remembered Xie Zhiyu wasn't well, so he forced himself to lift his head from Xie Zhiyu's arms, only to see Xie Zhiyu with his eyes shut tight, brows furrowed, and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Xie Zhiyu!" Shen Song reached up to wipe the blood from Xie Zhiyu's mouth, asking worriedly, "What's wrong? Is the gu poison acting up?"

Xie Zhiyu vaguely heard Shen Song's voice and opened his eyes a little.

The gu poison was driving him insane.

Shen Song's worried voice continued, "Drink my blood—it works. Wait, I'll let you bite."

Shen Song was about to bite his own finger to feed Xie Zhiyu his blood.

Xie Zhiyu couldn't catch all of Shen Song's words, only the word "blood."

His eyes landed on the wound on Shen Song's neck, still bleeding.

The instant Shen Song's teeth grazed his fingertip, Xie Zhiyu pulled him into an embrace. The next second, a warmth spread over his neck, then a sharp sting.

Shen Song froze mid-motion, his hand changing course as his slender fingers grabbed Xie Zhiyu's collar, the back of his hand trembling.

Ah—his neck had never been ticklish before, so why was it so itchy now?

Shen Song wanted to pull back.

It felt too weird.

Warm, itchy, and a little sore.

"Xie Zhiyu, can you not lick?" Shen Song's voice trembled as he tried to negotiate with Xie Zhiyu.

Xie Zhiyu didn't say anything.

The soft sounds of licking and sucking at his neck were mixed with wet, sloppy noises. Shen Song buried his face into the crook of Xie Zhiyu's shoulder, struggling to endure the itch.

He could've handled it, until Xie Zhiyu's hand pressed against his spine. His legs were spread, hooked over either side of Xie Zhiyu's waist, and now his thighs were trembling too.

Shen Song frowned, gripping Xie Zhiyu's collar tighter. "Don't touch me all over, I'm ticklish."

"That ticklish?"

Xie Zhiyu, who had been quiet the whole time, finally spoke. His voice was low and hoarse, different from usual, and it made Shen Song's heart feel like it had been knocked.

Hearing Xie Zhiyu respond, Shen Song immediately straightened up, leaning back, while Xie Zhiyu's hands still pressed against his back.

Shen Song said, surprised, "You're okay now?"

Xie Zhiyu's face was still pale, but his lips were now a vivid red—partly from the blood, and partly from having been pressed against Shen Song's neck for too long.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Are you hurt anywhere else?"

Shen Song shook his head. "No, I'm perfectly fine."

Then he stared at Xie Zhiyu, who asked what he was looking at.

Shen Song blinked, looking a little aggrieved.

"I waited for you for so long in Yunxi County, Xie Zhiyu. You didn't give me any news at all."

Xie Zhiyu's heart softened, and he couldn't help but press his forehead against Shen Song's, his nose brushing against Shen Song's. "It won't happen again."

Shen Song's eyes widened slightly. This was the first time he'd experienced such an intimate gesture, and his spine went rigid.

His heart pounded wildly fast, and Shen Song suspected he might still have injuries from the fall—just not visible on the outside. The problem must be his heart.

He leaned back a little, and under Xie Zhiyu's puzzled gaze, asked, "Xie Zhiyu, when we were falling, did you say something in my ear? Was it the secret you wanted to tell me?"

Xie Zhiyu paused mid-motion as he leaned forward.

He frowned slightly.

"You didn't hear it?"

Shen Song shook his head. "No."

Xie Zhiyu stared at Shen Song, trying to discern whether he was lying or telling the truth.

From such a close distance, he'd spoken so clearly. Unless someone had a hearing impairment, how could they not have heard?

Shen Song's heart beat even faster under Xie Zhiyu's gaze. He looked down at his own chest in confusion.

Xie Zhiyu thought Shen Song was avoiding his gaze out of guilt for lying.

"If that's the case, then why did you jump down with me?" Xie Zhiyu asked softly.

Hearing Xie Zhiyu suddenly ask why he had followed him down, Shen Song looked up and said seriously, "You're my best friend. I wouldn't let you die."

Only by jumping down with him could he use his superpower to save Xie Zhiyu.

But he couldn't tell Xie Zhiyu about his ability.

His family had told him that no one else could ever know about his special power.

Shen Song wanted to find a way out, to see if he could get home.

Xie Zhiyu's expression darkened. He held Shen Song in place, preventing him from moving, his dark eyes churning with emotions Shen Song couldn't read.

After confirming that there was no trace of any hidden emotion in Shen Song's clear eyes, Xie Zhiyu's shoulders relaxed. He turned his face away, not letting Shen Song see his expression.

"Qi Yuanjing and the others will come down to the bottom of the cliff to find us. We just need to wait here. If we move around, they might not be able to locate us."

Shen Song nodded in agreement.

He noticed a piece of fabric at Xie Zhiyu's waist that was stained an alarming shade of red. "What happened to your waist? Did a branch stab you?"

Shen Song reached out to look, but Xie Zhiyu grabbed his wrist.

"You're a young man—you can't just casually examine another man's body."

Shen Song said, "Then what should we do, Xie Zhiyu? I'm so worried about you."

Xie Zhiyu's Adam's apple bobbed. He lowered his voice and turned his head away even more. "Don't talk to me like that anymore."

Shen Song couldn't see Xie Zhiyu's injury.

Nor did he know how he was supposed to talk to Xie Zhiyu.

Now that he was certain they were safe, his tension released, and he slumped forward onto Xie Zhiyu's shoulder.

Xie Zhiyu's heart trembled.

"If you don't like me, don't lean so close. I'm not a good person who can keep tolerating..."

Before Xie Zhiyu could finish, Shen Song began to slide downward. Sensing something wrong, Xie Zhiyu immediately turned around and saw Shen Song's face deathly pale, unconscious.

"Shen Song!"

By the time Qi Yuanjing and his men found the two of them, it was already noon on the third day.

The sunlight was beautiful that day, and the two of them were holding each other beneath the tree.

It was Xie Zhiyu who was holding Shen Song tightly.

He looked gaunt, like a man who'd lost his husband.

The two were carried to the Qi residence.

The pharmacy there was better stocked.

The Shen family was notified right away, and once they learned Shen Song was safe, the whole family finally came back to life.

They'd barely slept these past few days, joining in the search. They split into several teams and fanned out to search, and Qi Yuanjing's team found them first.

Xie Zhiyu learned from Shan Yue that Shen Song was just asleep. For some reason, he'd been in a deep sleep for three days. Only after confirming Shen Song was completely fine did Xie Zhiyu agree to tend to his own injuries.

The wound on his waist was getting worse, and he had branch scratches on his back and face. The pills he'd taken earlier to push his body, besides triggering the Gu Poison, had also done serious damage to him.

Xie Zhiyu was a genuine wreck now.

He had no idea how long it'd take to recover.

When Qi Yuanjing was bandaging Xie Zhiyu's waist wound, he pressed down hard in anger.

This guy had to copy a death pact of all things!

With that look like he'd follow Shen Song to death the moment anything happened to him—who was he trying to scare?

"Listen here, Xie Zhiyu. If you ever pull a death pact stunt again, I'll watch you die with my eyes wide open. I won't save you again."

Once the wound was bandaged, Xie Zhiyu shot Qi Yuanjing a cold glance and sneered.

Shen Song didn't even like him, so what death pact was he talking about?

Qi Yuanjing felt a chill at Xie Zhiyu's smile. Remembering how his master had once said Xie Zhiyu harbored thoughts of death, and how he'd jumped off that cliff without a second's hesitation, Qi Yuanjing feared Xie Zhiyu still didn't want to live. He asked sharply, "What's that smile supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." Xie Zhiyu said, his voice flat.

Qi Yuanjing felt every hair on his body stand up. "What do you mean, nothing? You still want to die now?"

Xie Zhiyu gave Qi Yuanjing a blank look.

Qi Yuanjing's scalp prickled under that gaze.

His mind raced. After they'd found them, Xie Zhiyu's attitude toward Shen Song was obviously one of extreme concern—anyone with eyes could see that.

So it couldn't be that Shen Song's existence wasn't enough to give Xie Zhiyu a reason to live.

He thought of a possibility, hesitated for a long moment, and asked, "Is Song Geer..."

To avoid setting Xie Zhiyu off, Qi Yuanjing said carefully, "Still not enlightened?"

Xie Zhiyu let out a dry laugh.

Not enlightened, but he knew how to change the subject and shut him down.

Xie Zhiyu said nothing.

Qi Yuanjing scratched his head and pushed himself to keep going, "Song Geer, he's too pure. There's a lot he hasn't understood or realized. The kind of feelings you want—he definitely doesn't get them yet. Actually, he cares about you a lot deep down, but he doesn't know what kind of care that is. So he lumps it all into family or friendship."

Xie Zhiyu stared at Qi Yuanjing.

"Shen Song doesn't need to like me."

Qi Yuanjing didn't continue, stunned by what Xie Zhiyu had said.

Such a humble statement, coming from Xie Zhiyu's mouth.

Then he heard Xie Zhiyu say, "But besides me, no one is more suitable for him."

Qi Yuanjing still said nothing. He had overthought things earlier. Xie Zhiyu hadn't changed at all—still arrogant enough.