Chapter 41

"Not like this, Baijie, not like this! The Divine Gate shouldn't be like this! We can't give up just because doing the right thing means suffering; we absolutely can't! The elders of Beixiang Mountain handle things unfairly, and this matter shouldn't end like this..."

Baijie tightly embraced Hengyi, her face pressed against his neck, and she gently persuaded him, "Don't be like this, Hengyi. The Divine Gate is a place where the strong prey on the weak, and the entire universe is the same! When you're weak, you can only be bullied. When you have the strength to fight back, you must grit your teeth and do it. When you don't have the strength, you can only be at the mercy of others! You're just making things harder for yourself. If you had just taken me and run away, it would have been better. Why did you have to insist on those strange principles..."

"Those aren't strange principles!" Hengyi's intense reaction made Baijie quickly say, "Alright, alright, I was wrong... Anyway, you were too impulsive just now. Do you know how scared I was when I was in the tree? I, I was really afraid you would be beaten to death!"

As Hu Baijie spoke, her emotions grew more agitated, but her whole body was icy cold, so cold that she couldn't even cry. She could only express her agitation through a tight embrace. "If something happens to you, I don't know what I would do. Hengyi, promise me you won't do this again, okay? Your master must have told you..."

"Master said not to provoke trouble, but I wasn't provoking trouble! As a disciple of the Divine Gate, the higher one's cultivation, the stricter one should be with oneself, setting an example. In such situations, I absolutely can't stand by out of fear of suffering or danger. If my strength is insufficient, I will do my best, but I can't just do nothing, not even try!"

Hengyi's firm refusal made Hu Baijie both anxious and worried. She knew how stubborn Hengyi could be, so she could only hold him tighter. "I'm just... very worried about you."

The cold water was merciless, completely devoid of compassion. The longer they were immersed, the more painful and miserable they became. The intense pain was continuous, and the cold was so severe that it was impossible to lose consciousness. There was no way to avoid it; they could only endure!

Hengyi suddenly pushed Hu Baijie away, took off his Lake Sea Robe, paused for a moment, and then quickly put the Lake Sea Robe on Hu Baijie, saying, "I tried, and taking off the robe makes it even worse. The mist from the Lake Sea Robe seems to slightly reduce the cold."

"What about you?" Hu Baijie couldn't refuse and was also unwilling to see Hengyi suffer.

"I'm not seriously injured, and I grew up in the Ice Valley, so I'm not as afraid of the cold."

Through the clear black water, Hu Baijie clearly saw the purple and blue bruises on Hengyi's body and legs, knowing they were from the fight. She immediately untied the Lake Sea Robe and tried to embrace Hengyi's body as much as possible, pressing her full chest against his, causing bubbles to rise.

"It might help a little."

"I'm fine, don't worry." Hengyi endured the cold, standing steadily in the black water. Soon, Hu Baijie couldn't help but cry out in pain, but he had no way to help her, so he could only encourage and comfort her. "We'll get through this soon, we'll get through this soon..."

Hu Baijie lifted her head, her face pressed against Hengyi's, slowly caressing it, hoping to bring some warmth. Her eyes never left Hengyi's.

She felt that Hengyi looked more towering than ever before...

The cold dampened their hair, which stuck to their faces and necks, making them feel icy cold. Hu Baijie raised her hand to brush the hair off Hengyi's forehead and face. Hengyi suddenly realized his lack of attention and quickly brushed Hu Baijie's long hair behind her ears and tied it up.

After tying it, Hengyi stared at her for a moment. Hu Baijie met his gaze with warmth, feeling very happy. For some reason, she suddenly felt a bit warmer inside, and her heart beat a little faster.

"I like it when you look at me like this..." Hu Baijie's eyes were filled with tenderness, and her sweet voice carried a sincerity different from her usual gentle facade. She thought of the intimate closeness with Hengyi and was about to kiss him without hesitation—

Hengyi pointed to the knot in her hair. "I can't do it, it looks terrible..."

Hu Baijie was slightly taken aback, feeling both annoyed and amused as she turned her head to look. Using the reflection in the water, she saw that it wasn't hair at all!

It was clearly a round disk hanging behind her head!

If it were in the past, she would have been angry, but now she couldn't help but laugh, gently pressing her face against Hengyi's neck. "Do it again, it looks terrible."

"I'll try again." Hengyi's arms reached around Baijie's neck, struggling to untie it. He recalled the hairstyles of women he had seen before and tried to make it look better.

The cold continued to seep, making Hu Baijie's eyes look misty. She wasn't in a hurry, enjoying the sensation of Hengyi brushing her hair, feeling particularly comfortable and at ease...

The disciple guarding the entrance to the cave by the black water looked at the two figures huddled together in the misty cold and said with a dark face, "He's the most comfortable one being punished in the water torture hell!"

"This is punishment? I wish I could switch places with him!" Another disciple, looking at the misty water and the curve of Baijie's figure, spoke with envy.

What seemed simple in theory was difficult in practice. After another failed attempt, Hengyi untied it again, summarizing his mistakes and thinking about how to do it better.

Suddenly, Hu Baijie's gentle voice sounded in his ear. "Hengyi?"

"Hmm?"

"Talk to me, talking makes it less cold."

"..."

Hu Baijie waited for a moment and realized that Hengyi was probably struggling to think of what to say. She smiled and took the initiative to find a topic. "The Divine Book techniques aren't just four, right? You used two more today."

Baijie, who had forgotten about the cold in the black water, remembered Dachuan's instructions and quickly whispered, "Baijie, can you not tell Hu San about this?"

"Then teach me." Hu Baijie's eyes twinkled, adopting a threatening tone.

"Will you tell if I don't teach you?" Hengyi frowned, and his hands stopped moving involuntarily.

Hu Baijie noticed the change and couldn't help but laugh, gently stroking his back and saying softly, "From today on, no matter what you don't want others to know, I will never tell, including Hu San."

Hengyi realized it was a joke and said with relief, "Baijie, you're so good, thank you so much!"

"For what? Women naturally support their men. Every woman is the same!" Hu Baijie, thinking of Hu San, recalled past events and said softly with a hint of sadness, "Actually, I'm not as loyal to Hu San as you think. In the past, I couldn't escape his control. Now, although my mother is still in the Lake Sea Sect, joining the Peak Sect means he is the one who needs me, not the other way around."

"Hu San is shameless, helping such a person is strange." Since Hu San claimed the Divine Book as his own creation, Hengyi had found him very despicable.

Hu Baijie thought Hengyi was referring to Hu San's disgusting and immoral deeds and was afraid of being misunderstood. She quickly leaned back, her breathing rapid, and stared at Hengyi's eyes, explaining, "Don't think too much, I'm not in that kind of relationship with Hu San!"

Hengyi looked at the anxious Hu Baijie with a blank expression. "What kind of relationship?"

Hu Baijie breathed a sigh of relief, immediately realizing that Hengyi wasn't referring to what she feared. "Not a relationship where I have to help him."

After saying this, she was afraid Hengyi would overthink it and quickly changed the topic. "You don't want to teach me the Divine Book techniques?"

"I think Master wouldn't allow it. Master said the Divine Book techniques can only be fully taught to disciples who are committed to the New Law Hall."

"I will always support you, isn't that the same as supporting Master and the younger disciples?" Hu Baijie thought Hengyi was dense and hadn't realized her change of heart, or perhaps he had never understood it.

"Alright! I'll write to Master to explain the situation. I believe Master will agree!" Hengyi was glad that Hu Baijie no longer supported Hu San and could help the San Yuan Sect.

Hu Baijie leaned on Hengyi's shoulder, finding his naivety helpless but not finding it as ridiculous or annoying as before. She was very worried about him.

"You're too trusting. What if you meet a liar? Hengyi, not everyone means what they say. Like those people who apologized earlier, they seemed remorseful at the time, but they were just lying. They turned around and framed us!"

Speaking of this, Hengyi's anger flared. At the time, he had thought that Xia and the others had truly repented!

"I'm not afraid of their lies! I remember their faces and will find them one by one until they truly repent! I won't just hope for change with words. The strong are right, so I will become strong and make them listen! Baijie, I've thought about it. If this is the only way to make the Divine Gate what it should be, then I will do it."

Hengyi had already made up his mind and set his goal at Beixiang Mountain, determined to change things with all his strength!

Looking at the determination in Hengyi's eyes and the change from his usual innocent gaze, Hu Baijie suddenly realized that Hengyi had grown up, transforming from a boy into a man.

She raised her hand to brush the wet hair off Hengyi's forehead and said softly with a smile, "Boys are carefree. When a boy has a goal and strives to achieve it, he becomes a man. Hengyi, you've grown up..."

"Right, so don't feed me anymore. I'm not a three-year-old, and it was embarrassing!"

Hu Baijie was speechless, suddenly wanting to strangle him!

The door to the water prison suddenly opened, and the sound made Hengyi and Hu Baijie look over.

In the misty cold, a tall figure stood at the entrance.

A disciple opened the door and laughed, "Junior brother, you're truly remarkable, treating the water torture hell as a sacred place for cultivation."

"Thank you, Senior Brother." The voice was loud and confident, though young.

"It's no trouble."

In the cold mist, the figure waded closer, gradually becoming visible...

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