97: Chapter 97 The Protected

Murong Xue stood up abruptly. The hem of her white undergarment was soaked with river water, clinging to her thighs and outlining the long, powerful lines of her legs.

Under the moonlight, those lines were like curves wrapped in silver velvet; every arc seemed meticulously designed, a perfect fusion of strength and beauty.

"I… just came out… for some air," her voice was half a beat faster than usual, like a silver spear that couldn't quite be pulled back in time after a strike.

Wang Sheng walked to her side.

He wasn't wearing armor either, only a simple Savage Beast hide vest, revealing his sturdy arms and shoulder lines.

Under the moonlight, his body, having broken through to Level 5 Barbarian Warrior, was even more toned than before; the lines of his muscles were like reliefs outlined by the moonlight.

It wasn't the rock-like ruggedness of a brute-force warrior, but the unique, restrained sense of power characteristic of a Holy Light Warrior, as if forged by golden light.

The two stood side by side by the Lingxi River.

The moonlight poured onto the ground like liquid silver.

The sound of the Lingxi River was like the gentlest nocturne, flowing softly between them.

In the distance, the lights of Guangming Village behind the defensive wall were like scattered fireflies. This small village, with its one hundred and eight people, was currently fast asleep in the deepest night of the Savage Mainland.

And the two of them, standing by the Lingxi River, were like two chess pieces illuminated by the moonlight—one gold, one silver—standing side by side… but never touching.

"Murong Xue…" Wang Sheng's voice was very light in the night breeze, like the gentlest wisp of wind over the Lingxi River.

"When did you start liking to fight?"

Murong Xue was taken aback.

This question was unexpected. She thought he would ask about the gathering, about the Shadow Clan, or about the Beast Tide, but instead, he asked when she started liking to fight.

Then she smiled.

It wasn't her usual dashing smile, the kind that was sharp like a silver spear drawn from its sheath, but a faint smile tinged with memories, like the softest ray of silver holy light.

"Since I was little," her voice was uncharacteristically soft, like silver moonlight falling on the surface of the Lingxi River.

"When I was a child in the countryside, a boy next door was bullying my younger sister. I rushed up and hit him, making him cry."

Her lips curled slightly; the arc on her resolute face was like a small flower blooming on steel—rare, but heart-wrenchingly beautiful.

"From then on, I felt that protecting others was very cool."

"Cool?" Wang Sheng smiled.

Under the moonlight, his smile was like ripples of golden light in the silver night—gentle, yet possessing a steady sense of power, much like a Level 5 Barbarian Warrior.

"Yeah," Murong Xue's brown eyes were like two warm amber stones in the moonlight—not the burning flames seen during battle, but a warmth like the embers of a dying campfire.

"Much cooler than being protected."

She paused.

Moonlight fell on the Lingxi River, on her white undergarment, and on the stray strands of her brown ponytail blown by the night wind.

Then, her voice became so low it was almost inaudible, like the last glimmer of silver holy light before it dissipated into the moonlight.

"But… being protected once in a while, it seems… not bad either."

Five words. Like five silver nails, they were driven into the night of the Lingxi River, into the silver glow of the moonlight, and into Wang Sheng's heart.

Under the moonlight, the tips of Murong Xue's ears were as red as two tiny flames, but on her face was a smile of relief like never before. It was as if her silver armor had finally cracked, and what shone through that crack was not a weakness, but light. The light she had hidden for too long.

Wang Sheng reached out his hand.

Murong Xue looked at his hand. Under the moonlight, it was like golden light in the silver night. She hesitated for a second. Only a second. Then, she placed her hand on his.

It wasn't a handshake between comrades-in-arms, but a softer, warmer touch—like silver holy light merging with golden radiance.

His palm was warm, and her fingertips were slightly cool. As their temperatures met in their palms, it was like two tributaries of the Lingxi River finally merging into one, as if the golden and silver holy lights had finally found a resonant frequency.

Under the moonlight, their hands were clasped together. Golden and silver glimmers flickered between their fingers like fireflies. The sound of the Lingxi River was like the gentlest accompaniment, and the distant Guangming Village was the most peaceful background. The two of them stood by the Lingxi River like two stars that had finally found each other. No more words were needed. This moment was enough.

On the other side of the Lingxi River. In the shadows of the trees. A pair of dark purple eyes was watching them.

Those eyes were like two gems soaked in shadow—no luster, no warmth, only an abyss-like, bottomless darkness.

The Shadow Clan had eyes on them near Guangming Village.

The eyes flickered slightly in the darkness, the pupils like the vertical slits of the Shadow Clan, resembling the dark purple patterns in the eyes of a Ink-scaled Python. It silently watched the two people by the river in the moonlight, as if shadow were watching light, like a venomous snake watching its prey. Then, it vanished silently into the night, as if it had never appeared.

Only the sound of the Lingxi River remained, and in the distance, deep within the Savage Beast Forest, low-frequency Shadow Clan communications, like a silent war song, were accelerating.

Zhao Linger sat up abruptly in the East Chamber.

Her big, round eyes widened suddenly. Her Spirit Sound Affinity caught a clear command within the Shadow Clan's communication:

"Three days… Beast Tide, target… Bright."

She grabbed the communication spirit stone; the silver-blue glimmer fell into the night like moonlight into an abyss.

"Wang Sheng!" Her voice was like a silver blade, piercing through the gentlest night by the Lingxi River.

"Shadow Clan, three days, Beast Tide, target… Guangming Village."

By the Lingxi River, Wang Sheng and Murong Xue turned their heads simultaneously. Under the moonlight, their hands were still clasped, but at that moment, the gentle warmth was abruptly interrupted by a cold alarm.

Three days.

Wang Sheng squeezed Murong Xue's hand, then slowly let go. His gaze was like a cold star, like the coldest sword blade on the Savage Mainland in the moonlight.

"Go back…" his voice was as steady as a mountain, "Prepare for battle…"

In Murong Xue's brown eyes, the previous gentle amber hue seemed to be gathered in, transforming into the sharpness of a warrior.

"Okay."

She turned around, the hem of her white undergarment looking like a silver flag in the night wind. Her footsteps no longer held the softness from before, but the determination of a Holy Light Knight before a charge—like a silver spear drawn from its sheath, moving forward without hesitation.