V2C155

Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.

This long night felt almost like an eternity. By the time the sun rose, someone had passed away in the break of dawn.

Not long after, a chamberlain serving breakfast came in and discovered the death of the Bei Mian Emperor, and immediately retreated in panic to inform the crowd. Zhu Yan, hiding behind the curtain, saw the Head Steward with his attendants swarming in from outside, sighed and left the noisy Palace.

She found Shi Ying in the temple at the top of the White Tower. He was praying alone under the statue of the sacred Twin Gods with his palms joined together. The temple was empty, with a shimmering light falling from the dome, peering in through the gate, almost like an unfathomable ocean, and on the other side of the sea of light was the silent gaze of the gods and demons, inspiring awe.

Zhu Yan looked through the wavering curtain, quietly gazing at the white robe, not daring to make a sound to not disturb him.

How long had it been? A decade?

Last time, when he received the news of his mother’s death, the young priest also spent time meditating inside the cave and was unable to stop his demons from raging, crying out, leaving bloody handprints all over the walls, and almost killing her by mistake.

But this time, as he witnessed his father’s death, he was able to remain composed.

So many years had passed, not only herself, but even her Master had grown up a lot… Zhu Yan sighed and finally gently walked over to him, kneeling down together at his side, joining her palms and silently chanting the Mantra of the Afterlife. The sound of the invocation was as continuous as the sound of a water stream. The white pagoda stood above the clouds, towering over the Yunhuang, and the eyes of the deities and demons stared silently and unfathomably at the pair of young people.

When the one hundredth chanting of the mantra for the afterlife was completed, Shi Ying stood up, but remained silent and turned to walk out. With some restlessness in her heart, she couldn’t help but chase after him and softly whispered, “Are you alright?”

Although Shi Ying did not speak, there was a strange look in his expression that made Zhu Yan unable to contain her feelings and be secretly surprised, yet without waiting for her to speak again, he suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned back to look at her.

That look made her forget what she was going to say for a moment.

“Ah-Yan.” He whispered, suddenly reaching out to wrap her in his arms!

“…” She suddenly forgot what she wanted to say, and her mind went blank for a brief moment, just crouching softly on his chest, not daring to move a muscle. In that instant, the temple was extremely quiet, and she even could hear his heartbeat – it turned out that his heart was beating so fiercely, completely opposite to his apparent calmness.

She couldn’t help but raise her head to look at him, only to be stunned for a moment.

He was crying – his eyebrows were impassive and his voice wordless, only the tears streaked across his cheeks and faded into the daylight.

That was the second time in her life that she had witnessed him in tears. Zhu Yan trembled for a moment, and her heart ached so badly that she wanted to say something but eventually didn’t. She just raised her hand and silently hugged him tightly and pressed her head sideways against his heart.

There was no need for words to be said in that moment.

She remembered how silent and lonely he had been as a boy, but she didn’t expect him to remain that way as an adult – a man who had been abandoned by his family in the deep valley as a child, and who had managed to regain the warmth that had been lost, only to lose it all over again after a brief time. How many happy days did he have in those twenty years?

In that moment, she couldn’t help but blurt out, “Don’t worry. Even if your father and mother are gone, there is still me! I will always be here for you.”

The promise was made in the presence of the Gods and Demons, and the young girl’s eyes shone bright like the stars.

In that moment, beneath the azure sky at the absolute top of the White Tower of Jialan, Shi Ying held the beautiful young girl tightly into his arms. Her body was so small and soft, yet it gave him the impression that if he held this tiny person in his arms, he could fight against the merciless and mighty forces of time.

Zhu Yan did not dare to speak, she just let him cuddle her, lifting her hand to gently caress his back.

Shi Ying remained silent for a long time, his heartbeat gradually calming down as he gazed down at her, his eyes flashing with many complicated expressions as he suddenly spoke, “Let’s go back and cancel our marriage vows separately this time!”

“Huh?” Zhu Yan was startled, and her brain was unable to translate for a moment.

“Since we decided to be together, we have to get rid of our wedding agreements.” Shi Ying’s eyes were cold, and his voice was calm and strong, “Could it be that even now, you’re still thinking of marrying Bai Fenglin?”

“Of course not!” She didn’t hesitate for a second, “Who wants to marry that guy!”

He stared at her expression and frowned, “Then what are you still hesitating about?”

“I… I…” Zhu Yan’s lips quivered, and her heart plunged hard.

“You’re still afraid of the Grand Master?” Shi Ying examined her expression and frowned, “I told you, no matter what he threatens you with, as long as I am here, you and those you care about will be fine – your father, your mother, your kinsmen… including that little shark you care about, they will all be alright. My promise is something you should be able to trust.”

“Of course I believe you!” Zhu Yan shuddered, “But… is more than that.”

“What else?” Shi Ying looked at her, consternated.

Zhu Yan looked at him with sad eyes and a fear that vaguely entered her bones and murmured, “You… can protect everyone, but who can protect you?”

“Protect me?” He was a little puzzled, “Why?”

“Because I will be the cause of your death!” Zhu Yan’s entire body trembled as she finally couldn’t control her inner fear and uttered her true concern, “The Grand Master said that I am a calamity in your destiny, and if I continue to be with you, I will definitely get you killed! If you get killed again because of me…”

“What?” Shi Ying was shocked but only frowned, “Don’t listen to his nonsense.”

“No, no, the Grand Master wouldn’t talk nonsense.” Zhu Yan’s voice trembled dramatically with endless fear, “I will get you killed. I… already got you killed once! There must never be a second time… and the Star Soul Blood Oath can only be used once! If something happens again…”

“Did the Grand Master really say that?” Shi Ying’s eyebrows couldn’t help but knit together, and his tone mistrustful – in the entire Yunhuang, the only person whose mastery in magic was above his own was the Grand Master. He could not foresee his own destiny, could that old man really see it then?

“Yes.” Zhu Yan finally blurted out what she was really afraid of, her voice shaking, “I… don’t want to watch you die again! I’d rather kill myself than let you die again! I…”

“Nonsense!” Suddenly, he interrupted her in a stern voice.

Zhu Yan was so startled by him that she couldn’t speak at once – Shi Ying’s eyes became very serious, vaguely tinged with anger, and the glare shone so harshly that it bordered on frightening.

“So it’s because of this? Ah-Yan, you have kept so many things from me!” He looked at her, not certain whether his tone was one of relief or anger, “Don’t listen to the Grand Master’s nonsense.”

“But he is the Grand Commander!” Zhu Yan was a bit at a loss, “He… is more powerful than you, right? How can I dare to disobey what he says? I… how dare I risk your life!”

Hearing her speaking with so much conviction, Shi Ying’s eyes grew colder and colder, almost tinged with wrath and murderous intent already, “Heh… that bastard!”

He paused and looked at her solemnly, “Listen, Ah-Yan, I don’t know what the Grand Master has been telling you behind my back. But whatever he said, don’t believe it – didn’t he predicted that if I saw a woman before I was eighteen, I would die because of her?”

“Yes!” Zhu Yan trembled, “So… that’s why you were killed by me!”

“No, that’s not true,” Shi Ying stared at her and shook his head resolutely, “I indeed was killed by your hand, but I was brought back to life again because of you! This is something that the Grand Master didn’t foresee, did he?”

“…” Zhu Yan froze for a moment and just stared at him in stupefaction. Yes, Da Si Ming had predicted that Shi Ying would die because of her, but how come he failed to predict that he would also live because of her?

“If you leave me because of your own feelings, I can’t help it. But if you’re giving up just for a prophecy from the Grand Master, that’s ridiculous!” Shi Ying looked at her, his eyes burning with intensity and his tone was sterling, “I shouldn’t have taught you to be so stupid after all the years of teaching you.”

If you loved my translations, help me to keep up with the good work!

Your contribution is highly appreciated, Thank you!

NOTE: This translation belongs to me. It is prohibited to copy / Re-translate / Re-distribute my translations without my prior permission. Thank you.

Like this:Like Loading...

Related