“Brother?”
Hearing this, Baili Tu still hadn’t quite reacted. He instinctively repeated the question, “He is your brother?”
The arrogant aura he had just now vanished instantly, replaced by a withered look. He stammered, “Junior Brother Yu, so he is actually your brother. I… I didn’t know before.”
Yu Heng, however, said nothing. Hearing those words, he only lowered his head further to check on the condition of the person in his arms, refusing to give the person opposite him another glance.
This made Baili Tu anxious. He pushed aside the obstructive Huo Ling and walked over in a hurry. Seeing that Yu Heng was still ignoring him, he had to lower his gaze to the mortal youth and say, “This… this brother of Junior Brother Yu’s family, are you alright?”
If this were among the Demon Tribe, someone would surely be shocked to see Baili Tu showing weakness to another. After all, due to the Demon Emperor’s doting, he was used to acting overbearing outside. Because of his noble status and high self-esteem, it was nearly impossible for him to bow his head to others. This gesture was already giving Jiang Xuning a great deal of face.
However, Jiang Xuning only frowned. It wasn’t that he held a prejudice against the Demon Tribe, but having read the book, he knew that Baili Tu’s original form was a Tengshu (Soaring Serpent), and his nature was sinister and cruel.
So, even though the person before him appeared innocent and naive at the moment, he still couldn’t forget the gaze this man had when he tried to kill him just now. The lack of hesitation in his movements showed he truly had the intent to kill. Coupled with his original personality, Jiang Xuning didn’t believe he was truly repentant.
Sure enough, seeing that Jiang Xuning wouldn’t speak, the youth lost his patience. His face darkened as he said, “If you had informed me of your identity earlier, I wouldn’t have attacked you.”
He then scrutinized Jiang Xuning from head to toe before adding, “Besides, I see you aren’t actually injured, are you?”
His words were full of mockery; he believed the person before him was intentionally putting on airs.
Jiang Xuning originally had a good temper, but facing the youth’s attitude, he couldn’t help but feel a spark of annoyance. However, through years of suffering from illness and having died once, he had lost that impulsive edge. Moreover, he didn’t want A-Heng to be caught in the middle. After all, in the book he read, A-Heng seemed to quite like this person, so he simply turned his head away and ignored him.
Baili Tu, seeing this, assumed Jiang Xuning’s thoughts had been exposed and that he was showing weakness. Thus, he became even more arrogant, letting out a sneer and saying triumphantly, “I knew it.”
No longer regarding the person before him, he reached out to pull Yu Heng’s hand. He hated it when his things were touched by others, even a brother wouldn’t do.
But before he could act, a low shout interrupted him.
“Enough!”
Yu Heng, who had been silent until now, finally had a completely dark expression. The little bit of calm he had managed to maintain vanished. He looked coldly at the person before him, showing no more mercy. “Prince Baili, I saw with my own eyes just now that you tried to kill my brother.”
He then supported the person in his arms and turned away. No matter how much Baili Tu called out, he left without looking back.
“Yu Heng, you treat me like this for a mere mortal!”
Baili Tu was exasperated. He was about to demand an explanation but was blocked again by Huo Ling. This made his temper flare even more, revealing his naturally vicious side. He began to speak without restraint:
“Huo Wumian, aren’t you just a piece of unwanted trash? Your father didn’t want you, your mother didn’t want you. If the Immortal Sovereign hadn’t picked you up, do you think you’d be where you are today? What right do you have to stop me? Get out of my way!”
As he spoke, he tried to shove the man aside. However, Huo Ling clearly didn’t give him the chance. He let out a low laugh, evidently not taking Baili Tu’s words to heart, and then said slowly:
“I may be unwanted, but I am still much better than a half-civilized beast shaped from an animal.”
……
Due to the previous scuffle, Jiang Xuning’s knee had been scraped. But because of his unique constitution, the thumb-sized wound was bleeding incessantly.
Under the candlelight, Yu Heng said nothing, keeping his head low as he applied medicine. Aside from the faint smell of blood and the occasional whistle of the wind, there was nothing else. The silence was slightly awkward.
This continued for a long time until Jiang Xuning finally broke the silence.
“I’m fine.”
He spoke this way, thinking Yu Heng was worried about the wound. He offered a few words of comfort; after all, he had long ceased to care about such things. Compared to the pain of his usual episodes, this was nothing.
Rather, it was Yu Heng who made him more worried, so he asked, “Why did you only just return?” He had thought their descent to exorcise evil would only take a few days, but it had stretched into half a month. Even though he knew from the book’s plot that A-Heng would be fine, he had still been very worried during that time, fearing an accident.
“A-Heng?”
After receiving no response for a long time, Jiang Xuning couldn’t help but ask again. The response was still the youth’s silence. Finally, he reached out to lift the youth’s face, but in the next moment, a slightly hot drop of water fell onto the back of his hand.
Jiang Xuning trembled in the heat. After a moment of daze, he abruptly lifted the youth’s head, revealing a face covered in tears, with a few drops still trembling in his eyes.
Jiang Xuning never expected to see such a scene. Yu Heng’s crying was so quiet that seeing it now left him so shocked he instinctively stepped back. But this didn’t last long; once he reacted, he leaned over again.
“Why are you crying?”
His throat was dry, and he was still puzzled.
But Yu Heng ignored him and continued to cry, only repeating one sentence over and over in a low voice: “How can you say you’re fine?”
He looked even more aggrieved than the one who was actually injured. The corners of his eyes were slightly red, possessing an indescribable beauty. Jiang Xuning saw that red mole again and couldn’t help but take him into his arms to comfort him, stroking him again and again. “I’m really fine.”
Miraculously, under this comfort, Yu Heng actually stopped crying. He only muttered gloomily, “Brother, am I very useless?”
Unable to even protect the person he wanted to protect, having to flee in a sorry state—he was truly useless. He hated himself like this.
Jiang Xuning only smiled and said, “How could you be? A-Heng is always the best in my eyes.”
Due to the unusual circumstances and Yu Heng’s persistent pleading, Jiang Xuning agreed to let him stay overnight in his small courtyard. That night, he slept very deeply, so he didn’t hear Yu Heng’s soft mumbles.
He said, “Kill him, kill him, kill them all.” He was full of hatred throughout the night.
……
Yu Heng had learned from his Master that his brother had been meditating for many days but still hadn’t felt any spiritual energy. Seeing his brother’s worried face, he couldn’t help but offer comfort. After all, the path of cultivation is not achieved in a single day; it requires opportunity, timing, and luck. It was natural that his brother wouldn’t be proficient upon his first contact.
Furthermore, the Master had promised that with his power, he would definitely cure his brother. Otherwise, looking across the Three Realms, there was likely no one else with such ability.
As he spoke, he finally managed to soothe Jiang Xuning. However, he also had a selfish thought he didn’t voice: even if the Master couldn’t cure him, he would find another way for him, no matter the cost.
“Brother.”
Looking at the person before him, Yu Heng called out softly. He then took out a string of jade beads from his robes. One piece of green jade was particularly striking, glowing with radiant light under the sun. It was beautiful.
He smiled and reached out to take the youth’s hand, putting it on himself. “This is Qingsong Jade. I obtained it accidentally a few days ago while exorcising evil. I brought it back with you in mind. It can nourish the body and calm the mind, which should help you draw spiritual energy into your body sooner.”
As he spoke, the bracelet was already on. Because of his long-term illness and lack of outdoor activity, Jiang Xuning’s skin appeared quite pale, especially his wrists, which were white and thin, somewhat abnormal compared to others. But wearing that green jade bracelet unexpectedly looked very good.
Even Jiang Xuning thought so, staring at the bracelet for a long time.
It was only when Yu Heng called him that he reacted.
“What?”
Perhaps he had been too engrossed, as he hadn’t heard what the person before him had said, so he asked again.
Yu Heng was extremely patient. Seeing him ask, he repeated it once more.
“Tomorrow, Guangling City at the foot of the mountain will hold a Spring Tour Festival. My brother has been at Tianyan Sect for many days and likely hasn’t had a chance to have fun. Why don’t I host tomorrow and take you down the mountain for a good day of fun?”
“Spring Tour Festival?”
Hearing this, Jiang Xuning couldn’t help but show a trace of confusion. “What is that?”
In Yue City, he had never heard of such a festival.
Yu Heng only smiled and said, “It’s a special festival here in Guangling. It’s very lively. Does my Brother want to go see it?”
He naturally wanted to. In Yue City, he had been confined to his home due to illness, unable to even go out. Now that he had left Yue City and home, he naturally wanted to see more of the outside world. So he nodded and said “Yes,” his eyes full of hope, even showing a spark of light.
And this was exactly what Yu Heng had anticipated. No one knew better than him how much his brother longed for the excitement of the outside world. It was only that weak body that had acted as a cage, imprisoning him for half his life. His hope was to rescue him from it.