Chapter 57

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Chapter 57: Vengeance

Ice blue eyes fell coldly on Ji Yunhe.

They looked at each other as if they were picking up from their first encounter in the Demon Valley dungeon years ago. Only now, their roles had been reversed.

Changyi's eyes were still clean and clear, reflecting everything around him -- the firelight on the wall, the prison bars, and the people. Inside his translucent pupils, Ji Yunhe saw herself. She was covered in blood, her hair was messy and her clothes were torn, even every breath she took seemed to be a struggle. She looked so pathetic.

Ugly to the extreme.

Ji Yunhe smiled, three parts self-deprecation, three parts flirtation, but mostly a sigh from years of sentiments.

"Long time no see, big-tailed fish."

The mirror-like tranquility under the blue eyes rippled from her voice, but the disturbance quickly subsided.

"Ji Yunhe." His voice was as cold as his gaze. The gentle warmth of the past had now turned into icy blades, pointing at her.

"You look terrible."

Zhu Ling's saber did not cut her body, but these words cut into her soul.

Ji Yunhe looked at Changyi.

After having gone through so much over the years and meeting the unfortunate Ji Yunhe, his current state of mind could not possibly be as innocent and flawless as before...

It was only logical.

It was all her fault again.

Ji Yunhe felt an assortment of emotions brewing inside, but her smile did not change. She held on to her flirtatious grin and seemingly shrugged off his malicious comment.

"That's me. Pathetic to the extreme..."

"Jiaoren… trespassed the Grand Master's house… All disciples come forth… All disciples... " While Changyi and Ji Yunhe made their small talk, Princess Shunde started to crawl toward the cell door. She called under her breath, but aside from the demon master dead on the floor, there were no other disciples here.

Changyi turned his head and glanced at the even more pathetic Princess Shunde.

The ruthlessness in his ice blue eyes was something Ji Yunhe had never seen in him before.

He had really become the Lord of the North...

Changyi was no longer the demon imprisoned in a dungeon. He now had his own power, his own army, and his own killing intent.

Before Ji Yunhe had time to think more, he leaned over and his cool hand grabbed onto her wrist. Then he roughly pulled her to her feet.

Ji Yunhe's body was weak and stiff, being pulled up suddenly made her every joint ache, and she felt a wave of dizziness.

But she endured it without a word. She staggered a few steps and her head crashed into his chest.

Changyi did not bother waiting for her to find her balance before pulling her toward the cell door, almost dragging her.

He was too strong, she had no way to resist.

She could only stumble after him.

The door of the cell still had the Grand Master's seal, but Changyi kicked it open without even looking at it. The seal broke and he pulled Ji Yunhe out.

She finally walked out of the cage that had imprisoned her for almost six years. But as soon as she stepped out, her legs gave way and she fell to her knees. They could not support her body anymore.

Changyi was still holding on to her wrist, so tightly that it almost bruised her.

Ji Yunhe looked up at him and tried to squeeze out a smile to no avail.

"I can't walk..."

Changyi did not speak and the prison fell silent for a while. Then he reached down and picked her up with one arm. Ji Yunhe leaned weakly into his chest. In a moment of disorientation, she felt as if she was back in the pool of draining water inside the Ten Square Formation. Changyi still had his tail, and she still had hopes for a future full of endless expectations.

They drifted toward the exit, as if what awaited them was a world without restraint, the blue sea and the clear sky...

That was the most optimistic moment in her life...

Click. The fire light brought her back to the present.

Changyi had grabbed a torch off of the wall.

The torch was located on top of a pile of torture devices. He looked at them.

Then he turned around without saying a word. He held Ji Yunhe in one hand, the torch in the other, and walked to the iron bars of the cell again.

Princess Shunde, who was still lying inside, panicked. She looked at Changyi and flopped backwards a few times, struggling. "What are you going to do? What are you going to do..."

Changyi slammed the cell door shut and locked her inside. A blue light flashed on the bars. Like the Grand Master, he had sealed the prison.

He looked at Princess Shunde. "Under the monstrous waves, I saved your life. Now, I want to return it."

The torch in his hand flew out and landed inside the cell.

The dried grass and hay were instantly ignited.

Princess Shunde shrieked in horror, "Someone! Someone come!" She tried to extinguish the flames, but they spread like a hell fire fueled by rage and hatred. The entire cell was set aflame in no time.

"Help! Help! Master!" Princess Shunde cried in desperation.

Changyi held Ji Yunhe and turned away without another look.

They exited the prison of the Grand Master's house.

Ji Yunhe looked past his shoulder, and only now did she see that it was nothing more than an ordinary courtyard.

The fire in the courtyard lit up the sky of the capital, and Princess Shunde's calls grew muffled. Ji Yunhe whispered under her breath, "Don't make random bets."

Changyi paused his steps and looked at her inside his arm. She lifted her head and returned his gaze.

"Fate will note it down."

Princess Shunde was now… paying for her loss in a different way.

Changyi did not understand what she was saying, but he did not seem to care either. He carried her down the empty main pathway of the Grand Master's residence.

After leaving the burning courtyard, a group of imperial soldiers gathered before them.

The disciples of the Grand Master's house had all been pulled to the warfront, and the ones that came back ran away just now because of Princess Shunde. At this time, the only person standing in front of the soldiers was Ji Chengyu.

Ji Chengyu had met Changyi before. When he saw him walk out with Ji Yunhe, his eyes widened with shock. "Jiaoren... Jiaoren..."

Although the world was full of demons, only one jiaoren had his long silver hair and ice blue eyes.

The imperial soldiers lost their will to fight as soon as they heard Ji Chengyu. The light of the fire shined on Changyi's hair, turning its silver color red. Changyi did not speak, but he tossed an object out of his sleeve.

It was an old, dirty, tattered rag doll.

The doll was thrown at Ji Chengyu's feet.

Ji Chengyu was even more shocked to see this doll, and did not pick it up. After a long time, he looked up and asked Changyi, "My brother asked you to bring this? Where is he? He..."

Changyi did not stay any longer. His hand glowed and his body disappeared with Ji Yunhe.

A flash of blue light streaked across the night sky like a comet.

Not to mention the imperial soldiers, even Ji Chengyu himself would never be able to catch up.

Changyi carried Ji Yunhe and soared through layers of clouds.

Ji Yunhe looked at the stars that she had not seen in years from inside his arm. They fascinated her. But the most fascinating thing was the face in front of her.

No matter how many years had gone by, no matter how many things had happened, Changyi's face was still stunningly beautiful. Even if his gaze had changed...

"Changyi, where are you taking me?" Ji Yunhe asked him. "The Northlands?"

He did not answer her.

Ji Yunhe was silent for a bit then asked again.

"Did you come to save me?"

Ji Yunhe thought Changyi would stay silent and keep ignoring her, but to her surprise, Changyi opened his mouth, "No."

Then they landed on a mountaintop. He released her from his arm and she staggered backward, finally finding support against a large boulder.

He stared at her just like before, but the look in his eyes was now detached and indifferent. He raised his hand and pulled a strand of Ji Yunhe's hair with his long, slender fingers. With a slight pinch, her hair fell to the ground.

He had cut a strand of her hair to tell her that he was here for vengeance.

As if he were saying: This time, I'm here to hurt you.

Ji Yunhe understood his intentions but did not know what to say.

The sky brightened as a ray of sunlight beamed over the horizon behind Changyi.

Against the light, Ji Yunhe could not see his face very well. But when the sun beamed further down and shined onto her shoulder, she felt a sharp, burning pain.

She immediately clutched at her shoulder with her hand. But that hand suddenly felt the same burn. She looked down at it and was so stunned that she forgot about the pain.

And Changyi's eyes also fell onto her hand.

The sunrise covered the land.

Most of her body was under Changyi's shadow, but the hand exposed to the sun was stripped of flesh and blood, leaving only the bones intact...

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