Xue Zi Ye shuddered. — "And if you can’t bring it back? Will they kill you?"
— "Heh." He gave a small laugh. — "Being killed would be the lightest punishment."
— "The wind’s picking up. Let’s head back." He glanced at the increasingly heavy snowfall, then took off his cloak and draped it over her thin shoulders. — "I heard you fainted today… don’t stand out here in the snow at night."
The warmth enveloped her instantly.
Xue Zi Ye clutched the edge of the cloak, but her body continued to tremble.
— "Let’s go back to the Summer Pavilion." Ming Jie turned to lead the way with the glass lantern in hand.
Suddenly, she grabbed his hand. — "Ming Jie!"
— "Hmm?" He responded to the unfamiliar name, feeling her cold, trembling hand gripping him so tightly it caused him pain. Lowering his eyes, he masked the flash of cold light in them.
A blood-red pearl was placed into his palm, emitting a powerful aura that seemed to freeze the falling snow.
The Dragon Blood Pearl!
He drew a sharp breath, blurting out, — "This—"
— "Take it!" She pushed the pearl into his hand, her eyes filled with a reckless determination after making such a weighty decision. — "But don’t tell Huo Zhan Bai. Don’t blame him… he fought you because he, too, was trying to save someone."
Ming Jie hesitated, unsure of her meaning at first. He only gripped the pearl tightly, his eyes betraying a flicker of elation.
As Xue Zi Ye lowered her head and mumbled to herself, his hand rose silently, moving toward the fatal pressure point on the back of her neck.
But his inner energy froze, and his hand stopped abruptly.
The blood seal! Not yet. Not now… I have to wait for the right moment.
In the end, his hand only rested gently on her shoulder. He spoke softly, — "You seem very tired, aren’t you?"
Xue Zi Ye nodded wordlessly. After days of holding back, the tears finally fell, flowing freely. She had been consumed by exhaustion, guilt, and a constant battle of conflicting emotions while facing both Huo Zhan Bai and Ming Jie. Though famed as a miracle doctor, she had still been unable to save the lives slipping through her fingers.
Master Qingran… Master Qingran… why were you in such a rush to leave the valley all those years ago, pushing the responsibility of being the valley’s master onto me when I was only eighteen? You left me with nothing but a single purple jade hairpin, but there’s so much I still haven’t learned…
If only you were still here, your disciple wouldn’t feel so helpless now.
— "You should go rest early." Ming Jie led her toward the Summer Pavilion, his voice low and soothing.
As they walked, the wind gradually warmed, and the falling snow melted away before it could touch the ground.
In the gentle breeze, he felt a sharp pain in his head as something shifted slightly near his Baihui point.
How could anyone else remove the golden needle placed by the Sect Leader himself?
— Just now, he had used the Qian Kun Displacement Technique, forcibly shifting the Baihui point and the golden needle by an inch, making Xue Zi Ye believe he had truly regained his memories. But it couldn’t last long—after a quarter of an hour, the shifted point would return to its original state.
But it didn’t matter anymore… after all, he had already obtained the Dragon Blood Pearl.
Holding the pearl he had worked so hard to acquire, he found it almost laughable—after facing near death several times to seize it, it turned out that a simple, fabricated story had achieved what force could not.
Who would have thought that even the sharpest, strongest woman could be blinded so easily when it came to matters like these?
It was even more effective than the illusionary power of his eyes…
Lowering his gaze to hide the cold smile forming on his lips, he guided Xue Zi Ye back to the Summer Pavilion.
"Ming Jie," as they entered the room, she suddenly stopped. "I think… you shouldn't go back to Kunlun."
He was startled. Could this woman really be so naïve, thinking she could make him stay here? With the blood seal still blocking his energy, if she insisted on this idea, things could turn dire.
Frowning slightly, Ming Jie felt troubled, unsure how to persuade her.
"Rest for now," he suggested.
Tomorrow, he would find a way. If necessary, he would return to the palace and figure out how to undo the blood seal there. After all, he had obtained the Dragon Blood Pearl today; it was time to contact the disciples who had been separated outside the valley. Once the task was complete, he should return to Kunlun immediately. By now, Miao Huo and Miao Shui were likely growing impatient.
As she watched him turn to leave, Xue Zi Ye anxiously called out, "Ming Jie?"
"Hmm?" He was still unaccustomed to the unfamiliar name and paused for a moment before responding. "What is it?"
"You won’t just disappear again, will you?" Xue Zi Ye couldn’t shake a sense of unease, as though this long-lost companion would vanish again once she closed her eyes.
—She suddenly regretted giving him the Dragon Blood Pearl.
Ming Jie shook his head, though inwardly he was surprised by her sharp intuition.
"Ming Jie," Xue Zi Ye looked at him, her voice softening. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry?" He was caught off guard. "For what?"
"That night, twelve years ago… I forgot about you." As though these words had been buried deep in her heart for years, Xue Zi Ye exhaled slowly, pressing her burning forehead into her palms. "I’m sorry… I only ran away with Xue Huai, fighting desperately to escape. I forgot that you were still locked in that dark room! I… I abandoned you."
She covered her face with her hands. "You killed someone for me when you were just six years old, and they locked you in that place… I swore I’d always take care of you like my little brother… but that night, I left you behind! I’m sorry… I’m so sorry!"
Ming Jie stood there, stunned. In his mind, the images of that night began to resurface.
Two figures running hand in hand… the village engulfed in flames… screams all around him as everyone avoided him. He had screamed, run after them, but the fear of abandonment had caught up to him.
For a moment, he felt himself slipping into the illusion again, but he quickly suppressed it.
"It’s all right," he said with a smile, lowering his head. "I didn’t die, did I? Don’t be sad."
Xue Zi Ye buried her face in her hands and stayed silent for a long time.
"Good night." She lowered her hands, her voice soft.
—Ming Jie, I swear, I’ll never let you return to that darkness.
When he stepped outside, the air felt stifling and oppressive, as if something within him was stirring restlessly. Ming Jie gripped the Bloodshed Sword, feeling an inexplicable discomfort. What was going on? Could it be that her words had affected him?
No… it was all false.
The illusions continued to surface but couldn’t sway his mind. He, of all people—someone who mastered the art of creating illusions to control others—wouldn’t fall for anyone else’s tricks. He trusted nothing and no one anymore.
Besides, whether those things were real or not didn’t matter. He was a man without a past. Ming Jie smiled faintly as his eyes took on the glassy sheen of his true nature.
An assassin doesn’t need a past.
All he needed was the Dragon Blood Pearl in his hand. All he wanted was freedom and power!
As he left the Summer Pavilion, a cold wind blew snow onto his face, finally clearing his head. Clutching the blood-red pearl, he smirked and twisted the sword hilt with a snap.
A tiny snake peeked out, flicking its red tongue.
"Go, Chi." He tapped the snake’s head.
Chi immediately transformed into a red streak, darting into the snow, slithering like lightning. More snakes slithered out of the sword hilt, released in a tangled mass. These were the offspring of Kunlun blood snakes, unafraid of snow and ice. Once released, they would instinctively seek out the mother snake.
His companions, lost in the cold fir forest, were surely still searching for him. The entrance to the valley was too well hidden, and the snowy terrain of the region made it difficult to locate.
Otherwise, the martial artists from the Central Plains would have found this place long ago.
Ming Jie watched Chi slither away, then refocused his gaze.
Beneath the ice, that face smiled back at him, peaceful and calm, with a strange, familiar warmth that reached into his very bones. In that brief moment of contact, Ming Jie felt a powerful surge of emotion, something he hadn’t anticipated, something that took his breath away.
What was it? A sense of sadness, longing, trust… and something else, something…
"Schk!" Before he knew what he was doing, the Bloodshed Sword had already slashed downward!
How could this be… how could it be?!
When I was beaten down and humiliated in the Shura Grounds, when I rolled on the freezing ground calling out, when I knelt before the Sect Leader as he patted my head, when I was captured by the martial artists of the Central Plains and tortured in every way possible… Xue Huai… how can you rest so peacefully?!
How dare you!
The ice shattered in an instant, the sharp blade cleaving through the face beneath.
A thin trail of blood slowly spread across the pale face, seeping into the icy spring beneath, only to be frozen again by the cold. Yet, the youth with his slightly bent posture, arms half-raised as if in an embrace, remained peaceful and serene in expression.
The sword, lodged in the ice, was gripped by a trembling hand, and in that moment, Ming Jie’s strength seemed to fail him.
He slowly collapsed to his knees on the ice, gasping for breath, his gaze growing dim.
No… no… He was losing control, these illusions were taking over…
This couldn't happen. He had to return to Kunlun as soon as possible!
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