Yan Hui remembered when she had just entered Chen Xing Mountain. Her relationship with Senior Disciple Zi Yue hadn't soured yet. Zi Yue had a conceited personality, but her innate character wasn't bad.
When disciples entered Chen Xing Mountain, their diets were more strictly controlled than before they joined. Yan Hui was famished every day. At that time, as the Senior Disciple and as Yan Hui's roommate, Zi Yue would secretly hide food for Yan Hui to eat. Although Zi Yue's demeanor was a bit arrogant when she gave Yan Hui food, her character was good. Yan Hui was also grateful toward Zi Yue.
However, not long after Yan Hui had entered the mountain, she got entangled with an imp. The impish ghost had been alone for a long time, but now it would frequently drag away Yan Hui to play. It harassed Yan Hui without any consideration to the setting or time. Yan Hui was extremely annoyed by it, but she didn't know how to drive it away. To passerbys, Yan Hui would clearly be walking by herself when she would suddenly start gesturing and shouting to someone who was not there. Her extremely strange behavior made everyone unwilling to associate with her.
But Zi Yue would still give Yan Hui food every night. One time, Zi Yue brought over a heap of good things to eat. Yan Hui was staring at it in anticipation when the imp suddenly showed up. It made a huge fuss for Yan Hui to play with it. Yan Hui strived hard to ignore it, but the imp suddenly became furious. It laid down on the platter in Zi Yue's hand and made a gesture at Zi Yue's throat.
It had a dark aura, a murderous chill. Its expression showed its intent to kill Zi Yue.
That was Yan Hui's last straw. A slap of her hand knocked away the food tray. Using the magic she just learned, Yan Hui caught the imp.
But with Zi Yue's arrogant personality, it rubbed her the wrong way to see someone treating her good intentions like that. In a flash of anger, Zi Yue grabbed Yan Hui. Yan Hui's grip loosened, and the imp scampered away. Yan Hui was anxious to catch it and accidentally knocked over Zi Yue in her haste. Zi Yue was injured by her fall and started crying, but Yan Hui didn't have the time to look after Zi Yue. She ran after the imp.
In the end, Yan Hui dealt with the imp yet also earned Zi Yue's hate.
After the incident, Ling Xiao asked Yan Hui why she treated Zi Yue like so. Yan Hui stalled for a long time. It wasn't until Ling Xiao's expression became stern that Yan Hui hurriedly told him she could see ghosts.
Even as a child, Yan Hui knew the ability was frowned upon. Some people would even think she was a type of demon herself. Yan Hui was scared Ling Xiao would drive her away, but in the end, Ling Xiao didn't do so.
He flipped through many books and practiced many spells before finally figuring out a spell to give to Yan Hui. He pressed it into Yan Hui's body, which finally reduced many of her difficulties.......
If it wasn't for Ling Xiao, then her life up until now would've been miserable......
But it turns out what gave her so many difficulties was because there was a heart protection scale inside her heart.
Yan Hui touched her chest and raised her head to look at Tian Yao. The two were quiet for a long time. Tian Yao was the first to break the silence: "I'm sorry."
His words were so straightforward that Yan Hui was stunned for a spell. Then, she dipped her head and softly asked: "Why are you apologizing?"
Actually, there truly was no reason to blame Tian Yao. There was probably no one else that wished the heart protection scale never left his chest more than Tian Yao did. Besides, even though the heart protection scale caused a lot of difficulties in her life, at the very least, it allowed her to live.
There was nothing more important than living. Yan Hui knew this principle.
"Speaking of, I really should be thanking you. But......" Yan Hui said, "No matter how deep our relationship is, I can't continue to help you."
Tian Yao calmly looked at Yan Hui. His clear eyes distinctly reflected Yan Hui's image. It was too distinct. It made Yan Hui embarrassed.
Yan Hui turned her head: "Last night I saved you. Consider it as repayment for the kindness you've shown me, providing food and a place to sleep. Up ahead, there's a lot of human presence. The town can't be far. There will be xian disciples watching the gates. The demons won't be so reckless. Although your body has a dragon aura now, the majority of the disciples won't know what that is. You shouldn't have trouble moving around with your human guise. Just be careful not to run into your out-of-luck ex-lover."
She said: "Let's part ways here."
Tian Yao opened his mouth, intending to say something. Yan Hui sighed. Then suddenly raised her hand, she chopped it against Tian Yao's neck.
Tian Yao fell stiffly onto the ground.
"Actually, to tell the truth, I didn't want to take action. But with you latching onto me, I have no other choice. It has to be this way. Don't blame me." Yan Hui dragged Tian Yao into the corner of the abandoned temple. She covered him with dry grass.
"I'm leaving now. Goodbye."
With nothing else to say, Yan Hui didn't delay any longer. She limped out of the rundown temple, dragging her leg.
She couldn't stay with Tian Yao. With her suffering from sleep paralysis, it might even cause trouble for him. It would be best for both of them if they went their separate ways.
Yan Hui finally limped with her lame leg into the nearest town when evening came. She asked around and found the whereabouts of a wealthy landlord. He was a despot that bullied his tenants who farmed the land. Yan Hui was very pleased to learn where the landlord lived. She unhesitatingly snuck into his rear court and took two sets of clothes to wear. Then she swiped some money and left.
Yan Hui found an inn for the night. She called for a doctor to apply medicine and change the bandages on her leg. The doctor finished when the moon had reached its peak in the sky. Yan Hui thoroughly cleansed herself and then laid down on the bed.
Just then, moonlight shone through the window. Its gleaming light scattered on the floor. Yan Hui laid wide-awake for a long time. She didn't close her eyes. Usually on nights like these, Yan Hui would think, what if she fell asleep and the sleep paralysis came? Who would wake her up in the morning......
But tonight, Yan Hui didn't have those worries. Her thoughts kept drifting off. She couldn't stop thinking, has Tian Yao's acupuncture point loosened yet? Could he move now? Has a demon found him?
If a demon hadn't found him, then based off of his walking speed, Tian Yao ought to reach the town early tomorrow morning. Her inner breath should've also recovered by then. She will buy a jian and use the Propelling Sword Technique to fly far away, completely shaking off Tian Yao.
Her chest had an ache that made Yan Hui feel extremely unwell. She knew it was from the blood oath she had cast on herself. She was going against her oath. Even though she had promised it while drunk, going against an oath was going against it. She ought to receive the punishment.
It wasn't long before her magic completely recovered, and then she could easily break the blood oath. She could say goodbye to this chapter of her life and freely wander the jiang hu as she wanted......
Yan Hui hadn't finished reflecting on her desires when she suddenly felt another sharp pain in her chest. This time, it was much more intense than the irritating dull ache she felt earlier. Her body shuddered in pain.
Yan Hui gritted her teeth and suppressed the pain. She rolled onto her side and rubbed her chest, telling herself to get used to the pain. However, a split second later, the sharp pain stabbed her heart again. This time, it made Yan Hui curl up.
Yan Hui hissed in pain, sucking in air. She closed her eyes to make herself sleep. The strange thing was, the instant she closed her eyes, she instantly saw a swaying forest under the moonlight.
Yan Hui opened her eyes. The sharp pain stabbed her again. This time she didn't have to close her eyes to see the swaying forest in her mind. Within the shaky scene, she saw the figure of a demon flash past.
Tian Yao!
This was what Tian Yao was seeing! Yan Hui suddenly sat up. It was Tian Yao fleeing in a panic! A demon had found him!
Yan Hui clenched her teeth and started to reason with herself. She shouldn't go find him, shouldn't go save him. Since she left him today, she shouldn't care what life or death situation he was in.
But the stabbing pains in her heart were getting stronger and stronger with each wave.
She shouldn't care about him. The more involved she was with him, the harder it would be to get away from.
In her mind, she saw Tian Yao suddenly fall. The demon that was pursuing him quickly throw itself at Tian Yao. Its claws slashed at Tian Yao's shoulder. However, Tian Yao agilely rolled away from that spot. With a flash of his hand, he snatched the demon's blade and plunged it into the demon's chest.
The demon's blood dyed Tian Yao's body, but he didn't flinch. He crawled up and continued forward. For having a human's body and strength, Tian Yao was already extremely lethal. However, there were still countless more demons pursuing him......
In the end, Yan Hui gritted her teeth and couldn't hold back a curse: "Fuck!"
She got up and grabbed the decorative peach wood jian hanging on the inn's wall. She yanked open the window. Without even tying her outer clothing shut, Yan Hui used Propelling Sword and leapt out. She headed directly toward where she sensed the danger was.
Tian Yao hurriedly raced under the light of the moon. He ran fast without stopping, but the face that should've been red from exercise was actually pale white. The excessive exercise filled his mouth with the taste of blood. He didn't look panicked. His mind was still rationally analyzing the possibilities of escaping from here.
The smell of the blood on Tian Yao's body from the demon he killed was too strong. No matter how fast he ran, he couldn't shake off the pursuing pack of demons. Even if there was water, it couldn't completely wash away the pungent smell of blood.
What could he do......
Tian Yao tried hard to think of different possibilities, but no matter how hard he tried, it was always the same outcome. Ultimately, he would die. Unless the Heavens shined down on him, he would not survive. There was no other way. And the Heavens, as shown from before, were stingy on the grace they showed him......
A demon wind came from behind. Tian Yao turned his body to dodge, but this wind was particularly strong. It knocked Tian Yao down, and his figure cut a sorry sight as he tumbled on the ground. It wasn't until Tian Yao hit a tree that he stopped rolling.
Tian Yao coughed. Blood spilled from his mouth, splattering onto his clothes. He dipped his head. He saw the moonlight cast the soft shadows of the swaying trees. In a daze, he seemed to see the moonlight illuminate the ground into a bright white.
The black outline of a person's figure stepped closer and closer. Their murderous aura was bitingly cold. It was as if Tian Yao had gone back twenty years into the past. It was the first time he had been so dispirited with no strength to resist. He only watched the person raise a long jian toward him.
Remembering that scene, Tian Yao huffed out a "heh" and laughed. So it turns out his fate was set to this. It didn't matter how much he struggled. He would become a wisp of a soul, stuck between life and death while hazily drifting in this vast world.
Since struggling was no use, then it would just have to be this way. He would accept his fate......
The shadow of the demon raised a large sword.
The corner of Tian Yao's mouth held a sneer. He closed his eyes. He had no interest in seeing his fate. It seemed like Tian Yao had already sunk into dark and deep despair......
The force from the sword was impressive. In the split second that it swung down, the force of it ruffled Tian Yao's hair. However, right at this moment when life hung by a thread, he suddenly heard a loud "clang." The sound exploded by his ear, like thunder had leveled the earth.
The thin moonbeam in front of him was blocked by a silhouette. A slightly familiar scent flowed past his nose.
Tian Yao opened his eyes. He saw the back of a thin woman blocking that chilly and murderous sword that was aimed for him.
Light from magic swirled where the peach wood jian and the sword met. He heard the woman staunchly challenge: "This person's life is protected by me today."
Tian Yao lifted his head and looked at her. Light shined into his despondent, black eyes.
"You all pack up and go home," she yelled loudly. With a wave of her jian, she thrust the heavily muscled demon back ten meters.
The peach wood jian was brandished in the air. This woman stood with a straight back in front of him. Her stance showed that she would protect him. It was like the Heavens finally agreed to bestow upon him.......
Grace.