Текст книги "Благословение Небожителей. Том 6 (ЛП)"

Автор книги: Мосян Тунсю

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Текущая страница: 4 (всего у книги 20 страниц) [доступный отрывок для чтения: 8 страниц]

Hua Cheng took him into a chamber with a stone bed, where he quickly brought him and set him down. As he lay Xie Lian on the bed, he noticed something and checked Xie Lian’s back.

“They cast a spell on you?”

Xie Lian was overjoyed. He’d finally discovered it!

Still, it had taken him incredibly long to notice that there was something off about Xie Lian, which just showed how badly Hua Cheng had been caught off guard. Xie Lian waited for him to remove the Command Talisman from his back, but Hua Cheng’s hand paused before he touched the offending paper. In the end, Hua Cheng withdrew his hand and laid Xie Lian flat on the bed.

“Don’t worry, Your Highness. I won’t kill those two useless pieces of trash—for now,” Hua Cheng said in a low voice, perhaps attempting to reassure Xie Lian. “Even though I’d really like to murder them.”

There was a layer of thick, soft, fresh hay on the stone bed. It didn’t jab Xie Lian at all as he lay there limply, but he was so anxious that his insides were smoking—he couldn’t understand why Hua Cheng wouldn’t release him from the spell. Just as he was trying desperately to struggle his way out of its control, Hua Cheng reached for the sash around Xie Lian’s waist and begin to untie it.

In an unfortunate coincidence, that was the moment when the Command Talisman on Xie Lian’s back started to fade; he kicked out hard with one leg as an “Ah!” escaped his lips. His spasm looked like nothing more than the jerk of a dying fish twitching in its last attempt at life and objecting with no real power. Still, Hua Cheng froze instantly and withdrew his hand.

“I won’t!”

At that point, Hua Cheng seemed to decide that his tone was too harsh and that his actions might be scaring or repulsing Xie Lian. He backed away a few steps and softened his voice. His expression was cautious and resigned but otherwise unreadable.

“Your Highness, I won’t do anything to you,” he said in a low voice. “Don’t…don’t be scared.”

Xie Lian finally understood.

Hua Cheng still wasn’t sure what kind of response he would receive from Xie Lian upon releasing the spell, so he was refusing to hear it altogether.

Hua Cheng seemed to be holding back some sort of urge, and he once again assured him in a quiet tone that sounded like a vow, “Your Highness, trust me.”

He’d said that exact phrase before, but this time, all his normal confidence was gone.

Xie Lian wanted to answer him but couldn’t, and he didn’t dare struggle anymore lest Hua Cheng’s misunderstanding deepen. He could only lie there, flat and motionless, waiting patiently for the power of the Command Talisman to fade entirely.

Seeing that Xie Lian had stopped “resisting,” Hua Cheng approached again, reached out, and gingerly finished untying Xie Lian’s belt.

San Lang?! Xie Lian called out in his mind.

Xie Lian wholeheartedly believed that Hua Cheng would never take advantage of a helpless person, but this new development was completely unexpected—he couldn’t help his eyes widening. Hua Cheng set about loosening Xie Lian’s clothes, but he seemed to be avoiding touching Xie Lian’s body, which slowed him down. It was a long while before Xie Lian’s outer robes were removed and the inner robe followed. A wraith butterfly perched on the curve of Xie Lian’s shoulder, and a warm, tingling feeling crawled over his skin.

It was only then that Xie Lian realized the state he was in—his skin was red and slightly swollen, even cracked in some areas. But when the silver butterfly perched on him, his injuries had started to heal.

This was frostbite he’d gotten from tumbling all over the frozen mountain, but Xie Lian hadn’t noticed it since he was fairly used to pain at this point. If he had frostbite, then he had frostbite; even if he had noticed the injuries earlier, he probably would have left them to heal on their own. But Hua Cheng knew even better than Xie Lian himself where he was hurt, and he wouldn’t let it go. He would address Xie Lian’s injuries no matter what.

Xie Lian’s thoughts were interrupted when Hua Cheng took his arm and raised it. There were even more patches of frostbite on his hands and feet, and many of the spots were bleeding due to all the frantic running and pulling he’d been subjected to recently. Xie Lian wasn’t afraid of pain, but he was ticklish—and in spite of himself, fragmented memories from years past surfaced in his mind. The trembling, heated hands of a boy in a dark cave, random panicked touches, irregular breathing, and racing hearts…

At first, these memories were hazy and incredibly faint; Xie Lian had packed them away and tossed them into a corner of his mind long ago. But as the memories began to resurface, they had a surprisingly different taste, and it made Xie Lian want to hold his head and scream—especially with Hua Cheng right in front of him, doing very nearly the same things he’d done once upon a time. Xie Lian’s face and mind were burning. He was afraid Hua Cheng would see his distress, but Hua Cheng didn’t look at him at all; he fulfilled his promise completely and never crossed the line. He kept his head slightly turned away, averting his gaze from Xie Lian’s half-exposed white shoulder.

Suddenly, a jeering voice rang out from behind Hua Cheng.

“Hua Cheng! You madman, what do you think you’re doing to His Highness?! You’re disgusting!”

Hua Cheng whipped his head toward the voice. Xie Lian looked past him to see who had reached the entrance of the cavern chamber.

The speaker was Mu Qing, with Feng Xin beside him. Despite being so recently wrapped in giant chrysalises, they had somehow broken free and found this place. Their faces had gone pale at the scene inside the cavern, and Xie Lian’s face paled in turn.

What an awful sight!

Feng Xin pointed at Hua Cheng, then pointed at Xie Lian with his clothes peeled halfway off. It was a long moment before he could squeeze out, “You… You… Let him go right now!”

Hua Cheng quickly pulled Xie Lian’s clothes back in place. “You useless trash dare hunt us down,” he said coldly. “I think you’re tired of living.”

“Keep your filthy hands off him. Does the ugly toad want a taste of swan meat?”4 Mu Qing sneered. “Never mind dreaming of it for eight hundred years—you can hope for a thousand more, but don’t even think of touching a single one of His Highness’s fingers!”

Xie Lian’s heart dropped. But while the comments annoyed him, he could sense that something was amiss.

What was wrong with those two? They shouldn’t have spewed such malicious words, even if Hua Cheng had beaten them to a pulp earlier—it was especially uncharacteristic of Mu Qing. It seemed like they were purposely trying to provoke Hua Cheng. But there was no reason for that; they knew they couldn’t beat him, so what did they want? Moreover, their tone subtly pointed the spear in Xie Lian’s direction. It was like they wanted to stir up confusion—as though they wanted Hua Cheng to do something to Xie Lian in a fit of anger.

Sure enough, darkness flashed over Hua Cheng’s blanched face, and he threatened softly, “Since you both came seeking death—”

Xie Lian could see the naked murderous intent in his eyes, and horror filled him

“Don’t!” he cried.

Too late. Hua Cheng unsheathed his scimitar, and Eming flashed cold.

Feng Xin and Mu Qing were both startled by the strike, and they reflexively looked down at themselves, but they saw no visible injuries on their bodies. Just a moment later, before they had the chance to breathe in relief or retaliate, the upper halves of their bodies split from their lower halves and fell to the floor with a thud.

Blood spurted and gushed, spilling over and flooding the ground.

Xie Lian had never expected things to go like this. He lay limply on the stone bed, completely dumbstruck.

Hua Cheng had actually sliced Feng Xin and Mu Qing in half!

They weren’t dead yet. They tumbled to the ground, one gritting his teeth, the other yelling furiously—it was a sight too tragic to witness. Hua Cheng’s expression was frigid as he sheathed his scimitar. His face was dotted with only a few drops of blood, but the tinge of red complemented the aura of evil surrounding him and made him look even more striking.

Hua Cheng stood in the pool of blood for a moment, then turned to walk toward Xie Lian. Xie Lian stared with wide eyes at Hua Cheng’s grim approach.

By the time Xie Lian snapped out of his stupor, Hua Cheng had already reached his side. He clutched one of Xie Lian’s hands and pulled him up into an intense embrace.

“…How can I possibly let go?” he whispered.

Xie Lian couldn’t speak, being held so tightly in his arms. And then Hua Cheng whispered something else in his ear. Xie Lian’s heart was pounding so wildly he thought it might jump out of his chest…when he suddenly felt his body release.

The Command Talisman that Mu Qing stuck to his back had finally been released.

Even though Hua Cheng said he wouldn’t let go, he still loosened his embrace just a little and let Xie Lian leave his hold once he released him from the Command Talisman. Xie Lian took a deep breath, then leapt to his feet and charged over to the pool of blood on the ground.

“Feng Xin? Mu Qing? Are you two all right?!”

Mu Qing’s injuries were more severe; blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and the light in his eyes had faded. But Feng Xin still had breath left, and he gripped Xie Lian’s hand tightly.

“Your…Highness…”

Xie Lian clutched his hand in turn. “What? What do you want to say?”

Feng Xin swallowed a mouthful of blood and managed to grit out, “Watch out…for Hua Cheng… Don’t go near him… He…he’s a monster!”

It seemed that Feng Xin had used up all that remained of his strength to give Xie Lian that warning before he died. Unexpectedly, the expression on Xie Lian’s face gradually calmed.

“Monster?” He let go of Feng Xin’s hand and rose to his feet. “I wonder. Is he more of a monster than you two?”

That shocked Feng Xin. Without pausing for a response, Xie Lian drew Fangxin and pierced Feng Xin’s heart, nailing him dead to the ground in a flash!

“Your Highness, you…!” Feng Xin sputtered in shock, but before he could finish, he stopped breathing.

Xie Lian withdrew Fangxin from Feng Xin’s heart and shook it clean of blood before he retreated to Hua Cheng’s side. He kept his sword pointed at the corpses on the ground all the while.

“Now that blood has been spilled, there’s no need to keep talking through those skins.”

“Ha ha ha…”

A jeering laugh echoed from the ground. Mu Qing’s body had been sliced in half at the waist, but its head twisted around to show that it was the one laughing.

Its upper half was sprawled facedown, so even if it turned its head, its cheek should have still been pressed to the ground. But the corpse’s head kept turning until it was fully backward and lifted it, laughing at Xie Lian all the while!

As suspected, these were not the real Feng Xin and Mu Qing but impostors from who-knew-where. The real Feng Xin and Mu Qing were still trapped in those giant white chrysalises trying to gnaw themselves free. That was what Hua Cheng had whispered when he released Xie Lian from the Command Talisman.

Their faces were pale not from shock or horror, but because they weren’t human to begin with!

Xie Lian flashed his sword. “Feng Xin” and “Mu Qing” both smiled chillingly and replied in unison:

“As you wish.”

They then melted into puddles of something that resembled thick blood. Hua Cheng moved to shield Xie Lian. The two bloody puddles flowed across the ground and merged into one, bubbling like they were boiling. Soon, the pool formed into the shape of a man. A chill spiked up Xie Lian’s spine from waist to neck as he watched that indescribable mass contort itself and grow bit by bit.

Soon, “Feng Xin” and “Mu Qing” were completely gone. The person who had replaced them was a tall, slender young man dressed in white.

Judging by his size, the young man seemed to be about seventeen or eighteen years of age. He was wearing a mask, half of it crying, half of it smiling. While his face couldn’t be seen, a youthful, crisp, bright voice came from behind the mask.

“How are you, Xie Lian?” he asked warmly.

Xie Lian’s lips twitched unconsciously, and his mind went numb. Hua Cheng had been shielding him, but now the ghost king raised his blade and lunged at the man!

The white-clad man was dauntless in the face of Eming’s wicked sharpness, and the blade missed him by mere millimeters as he sidestepped. In the span of a second, he flashed behind Hua Cheng. He reached for Xie Lian like he wanted to touch his face. Silver light streaked, and Hua Cheng blocked that hand, shielding Xie Lian once more.

Hua Cheng’s voice was cold. “Keep your filthy hands off him.”

He threw the warning right back at him! The white-clad man’s right hand was severed by Eming’s slash, and the limb fell to the ground.

But the man seemed like he’d barely noticed the injury. He simply shook out his expansive sleeve to briefly hide the severed limb, then shook the sleeve back again. A new hand had grown in the old one’s place.

His fingers curled into claws, and he aimed directly for Hua Cheng’s right eye!

It all happened in under a second. Hua Cheng dodged just as fast, but the attack still left two bloody scratches on his cheek.

For the first time, Hua Cheng faced an opponent he couldn’t overtake in speed. His gaze turned sharp, and he changed tactics on the spot—he called forth millions of wraith butterflies, and they swarmed the man in a frenzy. The myriad butterflies wrapped the white-clad man inside a large, shimmering silver chrysalis, but that likely wouldn’t last long. Hua Cheng was about to grab Xie Lian when the silver butterflies shrieked and exploded into sparkling powder!

Seeing the subtle change to Hua Cheng’s expression as so many wraith butterflies were destroyed at once, Xie Lian knew that this wasn’t good. The white-clad man had blown apart the wraith butterflies, and now he was hidden within the shimmering silver powder that choked the air. His newly grown hand struck out once more, aiming again for Hua Cheng’s right eye!

This time, it was Xie Lian’s turn. He pulled out Fangxin and slashed! His strike didn’t just chop off the white-clad man’s hand, nor his entire arm—it very nearly bisected him entirely.

Seizing the chance, Hua Cheng called out, “Your Highness, let’s go!”

Xie Lian knew they shouldn’t get entangled in this fight, and that they should quit while they were ahead. He retreated, and the two rushed out of the cavern together. They bolted down the dark tunnel, unhampered by any obstacles.

“It’s him! He… He really didn’t die!” Xie Lian exclaimed as he ran.

Hua Cheng led the way. He was faster and dashed easily, setting up butterfly formations and silk traps along the way to trip up any pursuers. “He might not be the original.”

Xie Lian came to an abrupt stop and clutched his head. “No…I can feel it. He’s the same! Not only is he still alive, but he’s even stronger than before. Something let him be reborn… How else could he transform so easily into Feng Xin and Mu Qing? It’s very difficult to impersonate heavenly officials—it should be nearly impossible to create fake skins of them!”

Hearing his tone go frantic, Hua Cheng also stopped and turned back. He took Xie Lian’s hand and gripped it. “Don’t be scared, Your Highness. He might not really be stronger. There’s another possibility—he could be very familiar with Feng Xin and Mu Qing! That’s why he could create fake skins of them. He must be someone all of you—”

Before he finished, Xie Lian’s gaze fell to the hand that was clutching his own. Hua Cheng’s words and expression both froze. He paled and withdrew his hand, tucked it behind his back, and turned to continue onward.

Xie Lian, however, didn’t follow.

“San Lang,” he called out.

Hua Cheng’s body stiffened. He paused in his step but didn’t look back. He only acknowledged, “Your Highness,” in a carefully calm voice.

“A lot just happened, and everyone’s a little flustered and confused,” Xie Lian said from behind him.

“Mm,” Hua Cheng answered.

“Everything is still kind of confusing, but I want to take the time to ask you a question,” Xie Lian continued. “I hope you’ll answer me honestly and seriously.”

“…All right,” Hua Cheng agreed.

“Who exactly is that ‘noble, gracious special someone’?” Xie Lian asked solemnly.

Hua Cheng’s finger—the one that was tied with the red affinity knot—subtly twitched a few times. He was silent for a while before he eventually answered, “If Your Highness already knows, then why ask?”

Xie Lian nodded. “I see. So I didn’t misunderstand you. It really is true.”

Hua Cheng didn’t respond.

After a pause, Xie Lian asked, his tone flat, “Don’t you want to know…how I feel about this?”

“…”

Hua Cheng inclined his head slightly—it was like he wanted to glance back but was too afraid to look Xie Lian in the eye. Only the two streaks of blood on his cheek could be seen.

“Your Highness, would you please…not tell me?”

His voice cracked as he asked.

“I’m sorry,” Xie Lian said. “Something like this has to be made clear.”

Hua Cheng didn’t need to breathe, but he still sucked in a deep breath. Although his face was awfully pale, he still smiled and replied courteously, “That’s true. It’s for the best.”

He was like a criminal on death row, waiting for his sentence. He closed his eye.

Yet his eye didn’t remain closed for long—soon it snapped open once more as a pair of arms suddenly circled him from behind and caught him in a forceful embrace.

Xie Lian buried his face in Hua Cheng’s back, but he didn’t speak either. Though nothing was said, it was enough.

It was a long time before Xie Lian felt the man he was hugging turn around. Hua Cheng fervently returned the embrace, engulfing Xie Lian in his arms.

From above his head, Xie Lian heard Hua Cheng’s staggering response. “Your Highness… You really will…be the death of me.”

Just then, the sound of an explosion echoed through the deep recesses of the cave. A blinding white light flashed through the darkness, followed by a series of shrieks from the silver butterflies.

They both looked up, and their expressions changed. Xie Lian loosened his grip on Hua Cheng’s sleeves.

“Let’s talk later!” Xie Lian said.

And thus, the two continued on—except now they were running hand in hand.

Xie Lian’s face was still hot, but he spoke with forced calm like nothing had happened. “San Lang, how did you discover that the Feng Xin and Mu Qing who approached us were dummies? Where are the real ones?”

Hua Cheng was in essentially the same state. “I left behind wraith butterflies to monitor the two useless pieces of trash. How could there be two more of them? Don’t worry, Your Highness, they’re fine. They won’t die!”

“Then we have to release Feng Xin and Mu Qing from the chrysalises,” Xie Lian said. “It’ll be bad if he finds them while they have no way to fight back!”

“This way—follow me!” Hua Cheng answered.

The Cave of Ten Thousand Gods was indeed his territory. Even when they came to crossroads that branched into multiple different paths, he immediately and accurately knew which one to take. It wasn’t long before they returned to the area where they’d left Feng Xin and Mu Qing. Even from a distance they could hear those two flinging accusations at each other and yelling.

“Why did you tell His Highness to run?! Now you’ve done it—he’s been carried off!”

“What, should I have had him stand around to be butchered?!”

“Huh?! You just wanted him to distract Hua Cheng and lead him away! Am I wrong?!”

Xie Lian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Both men in the giant white chrysalises on the wall were simultaneously gnawing at the silk and yelling at each other, and they were so surprised when they saw him return that they forgot to spit out the white silk dangling from their mouths.

“How did you escape?”

Xie Lian’s bamboo hat was still on the ground where he dropped it, and he quickly picked it up and tied it around his neck. The heavy white silk released Feng Xin and Mu Qing before retreating into the shadows. The two of them tumbled to the ground, beaten black and blue. When they saw Hua Cheng emerge from behind Xie Lian, their faces twitched—they probably thought they were in for another round of beatings or that things would otherwise get rough again. However, when Feng Xin reached out to grab Xie Lian’s arm and pull him back, Xie Lian grabbed hold of Hua Cheng first.

“Your Highness…?!” Feng Xin was flummoxed.

Hua Cheng was already starting to lead the way once more. “Gege, this way.”

As if those two dared to follow him.

“Your Highness, why are you still with him?” Feng Xin questioned.

“Didn’t I tell you he’s lost his mind?” Mu Qing said. “He’s completely enchanted.”

Xie Lian didn’t bother to argue; he just gently but very firmly held on to Hua Cheng. “There’s no time to explain now. Let’s get out of here first—there’s an enemy after us!”

With Xie Lian holding him like that, Hua Cheng’s eye began to twinkle. A moment later, he smiled. “I suggest you both hold your tongues and follow. I’m in a good mood, so I won’t fight you—for now.”

Feng Xin and Mu Qing were left in complete disbelief by this display, complicated expressions plastered on their faces. They just couldn’t comprehend why Xie Lian still walked so nonchalantly beside a terrifying devil who had stalked him for over eight hundred years with a mind full of unspeakable thoughts. It was like playing with fire and delighting in the burns.

Mu Qing was skeptical but eventually chose to focus on the other point. “You said there’s an enemy here? This Cave of Ten Thousand Gods is his territory, so what kind of enemy could there possibly be? Did this enemy give him those scratches on his face? I doubt there are many out there who can injure Crimson Rain Sought Flower.”

“It’s White No-Face,” Xie Lian replied.

At the sound of that name, Feng Xin and Mu Qing’s faces both changed, and they followed Xie Lian without another word. They knew well that Xie Lian could joke or lie about anything except that one man. Xie Lian would never make light of him, nor would he ever mistake him.

Even though they’d just been fighting each other to the death in this Cave of Ten Thousand Gods, now they were fleeing like mad together.

“Just what is going on?!” Mu Qing demanded.

Xie Lian gave them an account of the white-clad man who had stolen their appearances, and they were both stunned.

“Disguised as us?! How is that possible!”

“It’s true!” Xie Lian said. “Everything happened so fast, and I didn’t get a good look, but it was absolutely you two at a glance!”

Feng Xin was dumbfounded. “But how can White No-Face still exist? Didn’t the Emperor kill him?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if that thing can’t be killed so easily,” Mu Qing said. “Maybe it died at the time, but I’m sure it could revive itself given the right chance!”

That reminded Xie Lian of something, and he turned to Hua Cheng. “San Lang! Right after we made it into Mount Tonglu territory, you woke from your stasis with a start and urged us to hide from something. Did you sense him then?”

Hua Cheng gave a slight nod. “Yes.”

“I knew it!” Xie Lian mumbled. “We chose the path to the west after that, but he was the one on the eastern path who’d killed thousands of ghosts. He’s been reborn, but he’s still a little weak—he needed to use the nefarious creatures coming to Mount Tonglu as a stepping stone… Now he’s recovered and might be even stronger than before.”

After all, he was the world’s first Supreme Ghost King!

As they talked, Mu Qing noticed something amiss. “Your Highness, do you know where he’s taking us? I don’t think this is the way out.”

It was Hua Cheng who replied. “Of course this isn’t the way out, because there is no way out right now.”

Feng Xin was astonished. “What? Isn’t this cave your territory? You can’t be lost!”

“Of course not…” Xie Lian replied in Hua Cheng’s defense.

“White No-Face is blocking the path to the cave’s exit,” Hua Cheng explained. “If you think you can defeat him in your current state, then by all means don’t follow me. I won’t stop you. Go right ahead.”

Feng Xin and Mu Qing were both from Xianle, of course—and just like Xie Lian, that creature had left an indelible shadow on their hearts. They didn’t want to face him unless absolutely necessary.

Feng Xin gazed upward. “Can we punch through the top of the cave to get out?”

“The snowy mountain is above us. Do you want to start another avalanche?” Hua Cheng mocked.

Unfortunately, they had left the Earth Master Shovel with Yin Yu in case of emergency. Even if they did have it, none of them had studied how to use it, so they wouldn’t be able to dig an escape route without making a racket and drawing attention.

“Then why are we running around aimlessly?”

“As long as we run around aimlessly, he’ll chase us and we can lure him away from the exit,” Xie Lian explained. “And then you two can use that chance to escape.”

Mu Qing immediately caught the issue. “Wait… ‘You two’? You mean you want to split up? One group is the bait to lead him away, while the other group escapes on their own?”

“Exactly!” Xie Lian said. “The Emperor must be informed that White No-Face has reappeared in the world. Once you both escape, find a way to notify the heavens—”

“Wait, wait!” Mu Qing cut him off. “You’ve already decided who’s going to be bait and who’s going to leave?”

Xie Lian shook his head. “I didn’t decide. White No-Face did.”

Mu Qing understood and didn’t say another word—there was nothing they could do to choose who was pursued. Among their group, White No-Face would certainly be most interested in chasing Xie Lian!

“I will stay with you to face him,” Feng Xin declared without hesitation.

In an emergency, Mu Qing had always been the one Xie Lian sent back to make a report, and Feng Xin had always stayed behind to assist him. It seemed that ancient history was about to repeat itself. But then Xie Lian glanced at Hua Cheng.

“Thanks! But there’s no need. San Lang will stay with me.”

“How can he be the one to stay? He…” Feng Xin blurted.

Hua Cheng’s brow furrowed ominously, but Xie Lian only replied, “I trust him.”

Although his voice was gentle, he was firm in his stance. Feng Xin was stunned in spite of himself.

“Your Highness…”

Xie Lian patted his shoulder. “You two go together. Mount Tonglu has closed its gates, so it’s hard to say whether you’ll even be able to get out to spread the word. Besides, don’t you still need to search for…Lan Chang and the child?”

Feng Xin’s face turned glum at this reminder.

A wraith butterfly emerged from the engravings on the vambrace around Hua Cheng’s wrist. “Follow it,” he said.

The two looked at Hua Cheng, then at Xie Lian.

In the end, Mu Qing said simply, “You two watch yourselves.” With that, he turned and hurried after the silver butterfly down another tunnel. A moment later, Feng Xin followed.

The four thus parted at this fork in the road. As Xie Lian watched their retreating backs, another series of rumbling explosions echoed in the distance. The pair exchanged a look.

“He’s here,” Hua Cheng said darkly.

“Lead me,” Xie Lian said.

The white-clad man had come after Xie Lian, as expected. To ensure he was kept at a safe distance, Hua Cheng set up wraith butterfly formations at various points in the caves to monitor the situation and slow their pursuer down. Every time an explosion went off and the wraith butterflies shrieked, Hua Cheng's expression grew grimmer and Xie Lian’s heart ached. They wound around corner after corner until finally they reached a chamber.

Xie Lian couldn’t help but sigh. “I can’t believe it… So many silver butterflies have been lost.”

While the wraith butterflies didn’t have a good reputation in the Three Realms, Xie Lian saw them as nothing but sweet, adorable little spirits. He couldn’t help but feel for them—they ceaselessly launched their suicidal attacks just to delay the enemy a few moments more.

But Hua Cheng only snorted. His gaze seemed to penetrate the thick rock walls, and he said, “Don’t worry. If he kills one, I’ll make ten more. Fast and furious as a storm, I will never back down. We’ll see who’s left standing in the end.”

Xie Lian’s heart skipped a beat for some reason, and he thought, Oh no, this is bad.

Although Hua Cheng had only displayed it subconsciously, Xie Lian really was quite weak to his aggressive, rebellious confidence.

Another moment passed, and Hua Cheng slowed his pace, seeming like he’d received some sort of signal. He turned to Xie Lian. “He’s been led away. Those two are almost out.”

“Great!” Xie Lian said. “Now we can take our time to come up with a strategy.”

“Mm. There’s no rush now,” Hua Cheng said. “He’s been left far behind. We can hide here for a while and think of a battle plan.”

They both trailed off, and an awkward tension suddenly bloomed between them.

This wasn’t the kind of awkwardness that stemmed from embarrassment; rather, they were both feeling strangely shy. With the creature hot on their trail and Feng Xin and Mu Qing with them, the feeling hadn’t been nearly as obvious. But although Xie Lian had said, “Let’s talk later,” now that “later” had arrived and they’d caught their breaths, he had no idea what to say.

Xie Lian coughed lightly twice to clear his throat, then scratched his cheek with a finger. No matter what gesture he made, nothing felt quite right. He wanted to speak, but he worried that whatever he said would sound too abrupt, or too silly, or like he was trying too hard. In the end, he just hoped that Hua Cheng would say something first.

However, Hua Cheng’s expression was just as strained. On the surface, he looked like he might have been seriously thinking through their battle plans, but it was hard to say whether that was true. The hands clenched behind his back were trembling slightly.

They walked past one particular divine statue. Most of the carvings in this Cave of Ten Thousand Gods were about the same size as the man himself, but this one was rougher in craftsmanship and it was shorter by half. When Xie Lian passed it, he casually peeled off the veil covering its head, and his eyes lit up.