Love & Redemption
Chapter 56 - 16 Qu Ru’s Truth (3)

Chapter 56: Chapter 16 Qu Ru’s Truth (3)

The second update. Who says this isn’t romantic fiction... If so... I’m going to sit in the corner and draw circles...

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Because Yu Sifeng was almost out of strength, and couldn’t even hold his sword steadily, it was obvious that he couldn’t continue the investigation. Therefore, the group discussed and decided to leave one person behind to take care of him while the rest would go to Haiwan Mountain to investigate who was manipulating Qu Ru.

Too exhausted to speak, Yu Sifeng became the charge of Zhong Minyan, who evidently took on the role of the little boss. He instructed seriously, "Xuanji, you stay behind to take care of Si Feng, and if he’s able to move, then fly over to support us. Ruo Yu, let’s carefully plan our next moves."

Ruo Yu nodded, and Linglong, unwilling to be outdone, rushed to say, "I want to take the lead! I’ll see for myself who has done such a despicable thing!"

Zhong Minyan glanced at her and sighed inwardly, but his face remained pleasant as he said, "You’re a girl, you can’t be the first one. What if something happens? How... how would I explain it to Master?"

What’s wrong with being a girl?! Linglong hated it when others looked down on her because of her gender, always relegating her to the weaker side. She was about to argue but saw his tender and indulgent expression, and her anger dissipated, turning into a blush. After stuttering for a long while, she eventually acquiesced.

Lu Yanran, who had been silently pretending to be a mute, suddenly let out a sound, sighing softly, "I should stay and take care of Si Feng... It seems I’ve twisted my True Qi earlier, and my chest hurts a bit..."

Linglong gave her a cold look and scoffed, "So you twisted your True Qi? The martial arts of Fuyu Island are nothing special, huh."

Lu Yanran initially wanted to find an excuse to stay with Yu Sifeng alone but was immediately mocked by Linglong. She didn’t care about other things, but she couldn’t stand anyone speaking poorly of Fuyu Island. She stiffened her face and responded, "I’m fine! If we are going, then let’s go! This time I’ll show you what true Swordsmanship is!" Implying that she hadn’t shown her real skills during their previous fight.

Keep boasting! Linglong was too lazy to argue and rolled her eyes again.

Sometimes, the rivalry between women can be more brutal and biting. Zhong Minyan and Ruo Yu exchanged glances, both affirming this thought.

"We’ll head out first. Xuanji, take good care of Si Feng. If nothing unexpected happens, we’ll rush back around midnight. If there’s an accident, we’ll send a signal. When you see the signal... you and Si Feng must hurry back to Zhao Family Manor and definitely not push yourselves to come over, got it?"

Zhong Minyan spoke earnestly, not caring whether Xuanji shook her head or nodded—after all, in his eyes it didn’t matter; he figured she’d forget as soon as she heard it.

The four then flew towards the mountain on their swords, leaving behind Yu Sifeng, who lay on the ground half unconscious, and Xuanji, clutching her wound in a daze.

By now, the night was deep, the moonlight like water, streaming through the bare, tall branches, casting a blanket of silver white on the ground. The corpses of Qu Ru and the others lay in pieces, with large swaths of blood dried on the ground, quickly forming a thin layer of ice.

Such a scene would never make anyone feel happy. Xuanji felt a penetrating chill; the vast True Qi that had earlier gathered in her chest now seemed to have disappeared without a trace. She aimlessly stretched her hand towards the moonlight, fingertips pale, devoid of the earlier silver radiance.

She remembered when learning Immortal Law at her best state, with abundant True Qi, she could only summon three or four Fire Dragons; that was already the limit, and often she needed several days to recover. Just now... had she really summoned more than a dozen massive Fire Dragons? Wasn’t that a dream?

If her master knew how much she had shown off today, he’d probably jump for joy. She had finally achieved something noteworthy, although she hadn’t quite figured out how she did it.

Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but curve her lips into a slight smile.

"Are you smiling?" Yu Sifeng lying on the ground suddenly spoke softly.

Xuanji was startled and quickly leaned in, asking, "Are you awake? How do you feel now? Can you move?"

He shook his head and suddenly sneezed, lamenting, "I just feel so cold..."

Only then did Xuanji realize that he wasn’t even wearing an overcoat, and she had allowed him to lie on the ground without care. She was greatly ashamed and quickly draped her blood-stained overcoat over him, all the while holding his icy hand and transferring some of her meager True Qi to him.

"Is it better now?"

She asked.

However, Yu Sifeng just smiled lightly, a touch of teasing in his voice, "You’re still the same as before... If no one tells you, you just won’t do it."

What does that mean? She looked at him bewildered, her eyes round with confusion.

As he lay there, looking up at her beautiful profile against the moonlight, her skin as delicate and white as jade, she seemed unchanged. Those eyes, just like four years ago, you could never tell if she was intently watching you or just lost in her thoughts.

"You..." He suddenly spoke in a low voice, with a hint of allure, "Don’t you want to see what I look like without the mask?"

She was taken aback again, then nodded, "I do want to see, may I?"

His voice suddenly contained a laugh, "Now... not yet."

Si Feng is so strange tonight... Xuanji bit her nails blankly, staring at him, unsure of what to say.

"Actually, you could have taken it off while I couldn’t move, and I wouldn’t have known. Why didn’t you just now?"

Because...

"I... I was afraid you’d get angry." Also, she hadn’t at all thought about taking off the mask.

He smiled bitterly to himself, "Have I ever lost my temper with you?"

Xuanji quickly went along with him, "Then... then I’ll take it off!" She said and reached out to remove the mask.

"Don’t take it off," he said.

Do I take it off or not? Xuanji was completely confused; he was indeed very strange today! Could it be that Qu Ru had damaged his brain? One moment this, the next moment that.

Yu Sifeng closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and after a long while, he whispered softly, "You really are a fool."

Alright, perhaps she was a fool from the beginning... Xuanji looked at him speechlessly, and for a moment, neither of them had anything to say.

"Xuanji." He suddenly shifted, rubbing his head gently against her knee like an injured big cat, "Why... did you forget me?"

She choked up again. There had been too many moments tonight that left her speechless, she simply didn’t know how to handle such complex situations. The young man sleeping at her feet was so familiar to her, and yet, why did she also feel he was so strange, and even, a bit sad.

"I definitely won’t forget again in the future," was all she could promise.

"Will there be a future?" he wondered aloud, whether asking her or himself, "Chu Xuanji, you truly are heartless."

What else could she say?

He suddenly gripped her hand tightly, so tightly that it even caused her pain. Xuanji looked at him in alarm; he remained silent for a very long time before saying in a low voice, "Don’t forget me again. If you... I..."

She suddenly felt as if she had made a terrible mistake. Although she didn’t understand why, it seemed like she was about to lose him. She remembered that afternoon four years ago when he looked at her with such focused eyes, gazing at her, only her. Yet, she easily forgot that gaze.

A shiver ran through her heart, a rush of indescribable emotions; she had so nonchalantly let down this young man looking at her.

"You... I..." She muttered, not knowing what to say.

"What do you want to say?" His eyes shone unusually bright behind the mask, like two stars.

She pursed her lips and said quietly, "I... I don’t know..."

He remained silent, and after a long while, he suddenly whispered, "Let’s not talk about this anymore, can you help me sit up?"

Xuanji quickly and gently supported his back, helping him sit up against the trunk of the tree. Seeing that his body was limp and that he really didn’t even have the strength to sit up, she couldn’t help but wonder, "What dance were you doing just now?" He seemed to be chanting some strange incantation, Si Feng always knows many things she has never heard or seen before.

He chuckled softly, "I’m not telling you."

You meanie. She looked at him with a grievance.

Yu Sifeng seemed to be in a much better mood, leaning his head back against the tree, and started to whistle lightly. It sounded like a folk song from their region, with a light and entangling melody. Not long after he started, Little Silver Flower from his sleeve couldn’t help but dance out onto the ground, twirling in lights and silver flashes, looking very spirited.

Seeing it dance so beautifully, Xuanji had already forgotten about the earlier weirdness and couldn’t help but clap and laugh.

Yu Sifeng watched her laughing quietly and also began to smile softly.

"You fool, you’re such a fool..."

He murmured, gripping her hand tightly.