619: Lu Xueqi and Biyao (2)

Her gaze slowly shifted, surveying the unfamiliar great hall, finally resting on the soul-stabilizing pearl floating in front of her forehead. The pearl rotated gently, emitting a soft light that calmed the heart.

“This is... Town Yue Tower?” Her lips moved slightly, silently mouthing the words. She remembered the last impression before losing consciousness: being in a stone chamber, with Su Han holding her, and Lu Xueqi also present.

“Yes, Town Yue Tower. The place guarded by Senior Brother Shi Yue of the Qingyun Sect.” Su Han explained softly, briefly recounting Elder Mu's rescue, Lu Xueqi's assistance using the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, and the necessity for her to rest quietly for seven days after taking the jade marrow rejuvenation pill. His speech was slow, his voice deep, every word carrying the weight of surviving a catastrophe.

Bi Yao listened quietly. When she heard “Malice Qi” and “Nine Heavens Divine Thunder purging the body,” her eyes flickered slightly. Being a Ghost King Sect disciple herself, she was familiar with the power of Malice Power, knowing how troublesome and terrifying it was. The Nine Heavens Divine Thunder was the bane of all sinister and evil Evil Qi under heaven. Using the Divine Thunder to purge Malice from the wound sounded simple, but was actually extremely perilous, requiring immense control from the caster and posing a huge test for the recipient. No wonder... after waking up, she felt her Divine Soul was exceptionally clear and transparent, as if washed by the purest rainwater.

Lu Xueqi... She recalled the woman in white, cold and aloof like the bright moon of the Nine Heavens. It was she who saved her, using the most direct and dangerous method.

Her feelings were complicated. They belonged to the Orthodox and Demonic Paths, respectively, and should have been mortal enemies. Yet, first she blocked a bone spur for the other, and now the other had saved her with Divine Thunder. Tangled up in this unsettled debt was Su Han.

Her gaze involuntarily fell back onto Su Han's face. He looked terrible, his complexion barely better than hers, with dark circles under his eyes, bloodshot veins, and a faint blue stubble on his chin. His blue robe was stained with dust and dried, darkened bloodstains—some hers, and probably some his own. Yet, the look in his eyes when he gazed at her was astonishingly bright; the intense emotions surging within made her heart tremble, afraid to look too deeply.

She wanted to raise her hand and touch his face, to tell him, “I'm fine, don't worry so much,” but her whole body was weak, and even moving a finger was strenuous. She could only squeeze his hand back a little tighter.

Su Han felt that subtle pressure, his heart aching, followed by boundless relief and tenderness. “Don't move around. Elder Mu said you need rest; the medicinal power is dissolving. Sleep, sleep a little longer. I'm right here.”

Bi Yao was indeed still very drowsy. The medicinal power seemed to have the effect of soothing the Divine Soul. Listening to his low, gentle voice murmuring in her ear, her eyelids grew heavy again. But she held on, her gaze questioning as she looked toward the entrance of the great hall.

Su Han understood what she was asking. “Senior Sister Lu's True Qi depletion was significant. She is recuperating inside the Tower and will return to Qingyun tomorrow.”

A flash of understanding crossed Bi Yao's eyes, along with a hint of emotion so subtle that perhaps even she hadn't fully grasped it. She blinked lightly, indicating she understood, and then finally succumbed to the surging weariness, closing her eyes again. This time, the faint curve at the corner of her lips seemed more pronounced, and she did not let go of Su Han's hand.

Su Han quietly stood guard like this, watching her breathing become steady and deep again. He also slowly adjusted his own breathing, attempting to circulate his sluggish True Essence. Even recovering just a trace would be beneficial.

Lu Xueqi did not go to the quiet room arranged by Shi Yue.

After leaving the great hall, she stood quietly for a moment in the winding corridor inside the tower. The light inside the tower was dim, with only certain glowing Ores embedded in the walls providing faint illumination. The air was filled with the scent of old stone and the faint, lingering aftermath of Spiritual Power that had persisted for years.

She walked up to a corridor window. Outside the window was not the real sky, but a scene conjured by the Town Yue Tower Formation: flowing clouds unfurling, mountains stacked with jade green, similar to the actual scenery of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains outside the tower, yet imbued with a sense of tranquility and permanence.

The tianya sword hummed silently in her hand, its cold, clear blade reflecting her calm, waveless eyes. Only she knew what kind of emotional turmoil lay beneath that composure.

The backlash from the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder certainly existed, but given her Cultivation and Foundation, it wasn't severe enough to prevent her from traveling. The excuse of staying to recuperate seemed plausible but was actually far-fetched. Even the casual tone behind Senior Brother Shi Yue's voice transmission seemed to carry a hint of understanding.

Why did she stay?

Was it to observe whether Bi Yao's injuries were stable? To guard against possible accidents? Or... was it for the person currently guarding the Jade Bed, refusing to leave even an inch?

The image of Su Han tightly gripping Bi Yao's hand and the panic and relief almost spilling from his eyes flashed through her mind. She had seen that look before, outside Xiaochi Town, when Bi Yao was injured, but this time, it was deeper, heavier, as if he had lost the whole world and then miraculously regained it.

She also remembered the complex look he gave her—filled with gratitude, worry, and a hint of difficulty to discern—when she activated the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, rapidly consuming her True Essence and making her face pale. That single “thank you” was heavy as a mountain.

He thanked her for saving Bi Yao.

Bi Yao also saved her.

Between her and Bi Yao lay the division between Orthodox and Demonic, the Sect Precepts, and, even more so... the person whom neither of them had explicitly named, yet both perhaps understood implicitly.

Lu Xueqi's fingers unconsciously rubbed the cold hilt of the heavenly abyss. She had cultivated the Dao since childhood, with a resolute Heart-Nature. Her only pursuit was the ultimate limit of the Sword Dao and protecting the common people. Matters of romance were distant and unfamiliar to her, even obstacles on the path of Cultivation. The teachings of her Master, Great Master Shuiyue, and the experiences of her fellow Senior Sisters, all made her keep a respectful distance from such matters.

But some things, just because you ignore them or don't think about them, don't mean they won't happen.

When did it start? Perhaps when he grabbed her hand amidst countless Yin Spirits beneath the Dead Spirit Abyss? Perhaps when he stepped forward to face the Kui Niu on Liubo Mountain? Or perhaps, it was just in the moments of fighting side-by-side, or the occasional exchange of glances, that something was quietly planted and took root before she even noticed.

As for Bi Yao... that woman, bright like an elf, yet possessing the stubbornness and fervor of a Demonic Cult Enchantress, she burst into their world, so abruptly, yet so naturally. She threw herself into harm's way for Su Han, even going so far as to abandon the Ghost King Sect (at least temporarily). This decisiveness and passion were things Lu Xueqi could not achieve.

She could draw her sword for him, venture into danger for him, and might even violate some principles for him, but she could never, like Bi Yao, write the words “I like you” so brightly in her eyes, in every glance toward him, and in every selfless action.

The distinction between Orthodox and Evil was like a cold chasm, separating her and Bi Yao, and also casting a thick shadow over a possible future between her and Su Han. And Bi Yao's presence made this shadow more concrete and profound.

Staying behind, perhaps, was just to see things more clearly. To see his choice clearly, to see her own Heart clearly, and to see where this complex, tangled situation would ultimately lead. (End of chapter)