On the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month in the sixth year of Shengde, at the hour of midday decline.

The group led by Xiao Rong, who was running at the very front, encountered a small unit of soldiers rushing back to report. Only then did they understand what had happened.

This small unit had a total of just over thirty men. In the original formation, they had been at the very rear. They hadn’t seen the bloody battle ahead where flesh and blood splattered everywhere. They only heard the order to withdraw when the battle drums signaled retreat. They ran back immediately. After running for a while, they found that their numbers were decreasing more and more. When they tried to go back and look for the others, they discovered the entire army had disappeared, as if some ghost had been at work. Frightened, they felt a chill run down their backs. After cautiously searching and still being unable to find the group, they discussed it and decided to return to Yiyang to request reinforcements.

It was difficult for just over thirty men to search for traces of an entire army in the mountains. However, for tens of thousands of men searching the mountains, it was still possible to find a missing army. In the face of sheer numbers, no terrain was too strange to overcome.

One hour later, Jian Jiao found Gongsun Yuan, who was leading the army in circles through the forest. The moment Jian Jiao saw him, he became furious, already assuming that this was all Gongsun Yuan’s responsibility.

Gongsun Yuan: “…”

Even so, Gongsun Yuan did not dare to defend himself, because although he had reorganized the army and prevented it from scattering completely, Qu Yunmie had indeed gone missing.

If Qu Yunmie could not be found, Gongsun Yuan could just pack up and go home to arrange his affairs.

……

Jian Jiao exploded in anger and vented on Gongsun Yuan first. Only then did he turn somewhat nervously toward Xiao Rong. Xiao Rong showed no reaction. He stood quietly in the forest. Sunlight poured down through the gaps between the tree trunks, making his face look as pale as paper.

Jian Jiao did not dare say anything to comfort him. Turning away, he glared again at Gongsun Yuan and ordered him to send out all his troops and combine them with his own soldiers for a full-scale search of the mountain.

Gongsun Yuan knew he was at fault and complied completely. A temporary camp was set up along the main road, and Xiao Rong stood there listening to wave after wave of reports returning.

Nothing in the east!

Nothing in the west!

Nothing in the south!

Nothing in the north!

Jian Jiao: “…”

This time, he didn’t even dare look at Xiao Rong’s expression. He himself was also anxious beyond measure. Nothing? How could there be nothing? Alive or dead, they had to see a body!

Time passed bit by bit. More troops arrived, but Qu Yunmie’s whereabouts were still unknown.

Jian Jiao had a bad feeling. He feared that the enemy might have captured Qu Yunmie.

Yet Qu Yunmie was not someone who could be captured easily. As long as he still had one breath left, he would tear everyone around him to pieces—unless he was already not breathing.

Thinking of this possibility, Jian Jiao became extremely uneasy. He secretly looked toward Xiao Rong. Xiao Rong stood beside him with his hands tucked into his sleeves, and just then also looked back at him.

His emotionless gaze made Jian Jiao’s heart skip a beat. He cupped his hands toward Xiao Rong and decided to go search for himself.

Watching Jian Jiao leave, Xiao Rong slowly pulled his hand out from his sleeve. His hand was covered in fresh blood. At that moment, a drop of blood slid down from his fingernail and fell to the ground. Though the scene was somewhat horrifying, it actually made Xiao Rong feel slightly more at ease.

He was still in pain, still bleeding—so Qu Yunmie was not in immediate life-threatening danger. Otherwise, he would have already collapsed and been hanging on by a thread.

Despite this, it could not be delayed.

It was winter, and they were deep in the mountains. Not everyone has the kind of luck Wang Xinyong has.

Where was he? Where exactly was he?

Xiao Rong felt as if his entire body’s blood vessels were about to explode. People in extreme panic became like this, unable to think, unable to calm down. He clenched his fist, and under the pressure, even more blood flowed out.

Soon, a small dark-red stain spread beneath his feet. At that moment, Xiao Rong suddenly raised his head, blinked toward a certain direction, and stepped forward.

The people around saw him, but since he seemed fine and only appeared to be looking for someone, no one stopped him. However, after he crossed a few exposed tree roots, he disappeared from sight.

……

Xiao Rong felt something extremely strange.

No one spoke to him, yet he suddenly understood a piece of information: Qu Yunmie was over there. He pushed aside branches, stepped over fallen leaves, turned here and climbed there. Even though he did not recognize this place at all, it felt as if there was a navigation system in his mind telling him exactly where to go next.

He did not know how far he had gone from the campsite when he suddenly smelled a strong stench of blood. Crawling out from a bush, he froze the moment he stood up.

So many corpses and so many beasts.

Wolves, jackals, vultures, and leopards. They were all feeding on the bodies, making horrifying chewing sounds that made one’s hair stand on end. The moment Xiao Rong appeared, all the beasts lifted their heads. Their eyes glowed green, their bodies thin and gaunt. They looked at him with both caution and appraisal.

After all, the meat on the ground had already frozen solid—fresh, warm prey was obviously better.

Xiao Rong slowly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. After drawing it out very slowly, he lowered his eyes and avoided their gaze. While waving the sword, he slowly backed away. The animals could not understand the difference between tools and humans. They only thought his arm looked unusually long and difficult to deal with. Forget it—there was plenty of food on the ground. No need to risk their lives for something warm.

……

Those few minutes felt like years to Xiao Rong. Finally escaping the range of the beasts, he immediately broke into a run. His heart was still pounding wildly. At that moment, he even forgot that he could not actually die. He ran wildly in the direction his mind told him.

He intended to switch to walking once he got tired.

He didn’t need to, because he had already reached the place where Qu Yunmie had stepped into empty air and because he was running, he even launched himself forward like a flying figure. It wasn’t until both feet were in midair did he realize, confused, that he was falling.

Damn it.

That was his last thought.

*

Qu Yunmie was woken during the daytime by yet another deer licking him.

No one knew how many deer had tried him during the night. Qu Yunmie felt his face was a little sore. When he wiped it, there wasn’t any blood left on it anymore.

….

After he woke up, that feeling of weakness and numbness disappeared, and Qu Yunmie roughly realized that he had done something foolish.

It could not really be called foolish, though. After all, at the time he had been alone, and to guard against any possibility, he naturally had to be harsh on himself.

Yet due to this, now one of his legs was injured, several of his ribs seemed to be broken, and his whole body was covered in wounds of all sizes. On top of that, he had expended too much energy last night. Now he was hungry and cold. If this continued, he would not even be able to stand up.

He dragged his injured leg to a fir tree and sat down. He scooped up a bit of cold water from a puddle with his hand. After the burning dryness in his throat eased, he remained motionless and quietly watched the small animals hidden in the forest across from him.

With half Butewu tribe blood in him, Qu Yunmie would not move when he decided not to move. The small animals observed him for a long time, and only after they finally confirmed he was not dangerous did they walk over on their hooves to drink water.

While the deer was drinking, Qu Yunmie noticed something. This place had water that had not frozen, and even the grass here was still green.

This should have been a normal phenomenon, but Qu Yunmie had never seen it in his life.

He was only slightly surprised. The next second, he suddenly reached out, grabbed the deer that was trying to flee, and violently tore off its head.

The surrounding deer: “……”

A deer had lost its life!!!!

In an instant, they all rushed into the forest and could no longer be seen. From then on, for at least ten generations, the young deer would surely remember the rule of survival: never approach humans.

……

The reaction of small animals had nothing to do with Qu Yunmie. That strike had been somewhat strenuous for him, as he intended it to be a one-hit kill. He dropped the deer head, dragged the body over, and drank the deer blood hungrily.

There was no firewood nearby, and the grassland was wet, so Qu Yunmie gave up on making a fire. Instead, he tore open the deer skin and directly ate the raw meat inside.

Qu Yunmie ate so fiercely that the veins on his forehead bulged, but there was nothing he could do. If he wanted to survive and recover his strength to leave this inexplicable place, he had to eat.

After eating, he still did not move. He simply leaned against the tree to rest. By his judgment, the presence of deer meant this was a temporarily safe place where no wild beasts lived. Since his deer-head-ripping had frightened the herd away, he did not need to worry about beasts being drawn here by the smell.

During the day he could not determine direction. He had fallen down and could not remember the way he had come, so he could only wait until night, when the stars appeared, before moving.

If the heavens did not cooperate and the night was cloudy, then he would still move anyway. At the very least, he had to find another place where he could hunt.

Thinking this, Qu Yunmie calmed himself. When only oneself could be relied upon, panic was useless, it was better to conserve strength.

While sitting, he was not idle. He skinned the deer, and without caring whether it smelled or not, he wrapped it around himself for warmth. Then he stripped the bark from the tree behind him with his bare hands. The bark was much drier than the grass so he tried to start a fire with it.

Why did he keep using his bare hands? Because when he woke up, all his weapons were gone. His sword and bow were lost, and even his Snow-Drinking Vengeance Spear was gone.

Qu Yunmie refused to think about the loss of his beloved weapons. His priority now was to survive and return, so he could see the man he loved.

……

Qu Yunmie was actually quite good at encouraging himself. Whenever his mind started to wander, he forced himself to imagine Xiao Rong’s reaction when he returned. Perhaps Xiao Rong would cry, perhaps he would be furious, or perhaps he would simply pack up and run away from home without a word.

As he thought about it, he could not help but laugh. Xiao Rong truly had a bad temper. Most people could not handle him. Only he could. He was strong, patient, and unwilling to argue with him. Where could Xiao Rong ever find a husband as considerate as him?

Husband.

Hiss.

As he secretly imagined Xiao Rong calling him “husband,” Qu Yunmie pressed his lips together. He poked at the small fire on the ground, roasting a deer leg over it, while his cheeks slowly turned slightly red.

When he finally had enough of indulging himself, he lifted his head to check for danger—and saw Xiao Rong standing not far away, disheveled, holding the Chilong Sword in his left hand and gripping the Snow-Drinking Vengeance Spear in his right, staring at him in shock.

Qu Yunmie: “…”

He froze as well.

They stared at each other. Xiao Rong slowly walked over. When he was about half a meter away, he stopped and asked Qu Yunmie, “Guess which weapon I want to use to stab you to death?”

Qu Yunmie blinked rapidly like he was sending telegraphs. After a long silence, he pointed at the Chilong Sword. “You must want to use your own sword to take my life, because you have thought about it many times, but if you really want to do it, I suggest you use the spear. It is longer, sharper, and requires less strength to pierce the heart.”

Xiao Rong: “…”

Xiao Rong was so angry he almost exploded. He deliberately did the opposite. He casually threw the Snow-Drinking Vengeance Spear aside, strode over, raised the sword high in one hand, and grabbed Qu Yunmie’s shattered armor with the other.

The sword tip pointed at Qu Yunmie’s throat, only about one centimeter away, but Qu Yunmie did not look at the sword at all. He only looked at Xiao Rong. He let himself be pulled up slightly by Xiao Rong’s grip and seeing Xiao Rong’s cold gaze, he opened his mouth and only said one word: “Sorry.”

The blade trembled, because Xiao Rong could no longer hold it steady. His hand shook, and the Chilong Sword shook with it. Seeing this, Qu Yunmie reached out to grab the blade, but Xiao Rong immediately pulled it back and threw it beside the Snow-Drinking Vengeance Spear.

One was a world-famous weapon that always ranked on weapon charts, the other was a masterpiece crafted at great cost, a classical beauty among weapons.

Despite this, at that moment, they were both nothing more than two disgraced comrades in misfortune.

……

The sword and spear silently accepted their fate, while their owners were already tightly embracing each other. Xiao Rong wrapped his arms around Qu Yunmie’s neck, pressing his body against the surging emotions, while Qu Yunmie gently stroked his back. Even when Xiao Rong touched his wounds and caused him pain, he did not make a sound.

The sky had completely darkened.

The stars came out too.

Qu Yunmie looked up at the sky, at those stars that had guided him countless times before.

It was said that immortals lived among the stars. He wondered if his A-Rong came from there too.

He would not ask, just as he would not ask how Xiao Rong had found him. He wanted Xiao Rong’s future. For that future, he could abandon the past.

After a while, Xiao Rong still had not let go, so Qu Yunmie said, “I saw Han Qing.”

Xiao Rong’s fingers tightened. As expected, he quickly straightened up. Their faces were very close now, Qu Yunmie could even see his own reflection in Xiao Rong’s pupils.

Lowering his gaze, he continued, “I shot him with an arrow. It clearly hit his head, but he still ran. Now I suspect he might have some kind of supernatural power.”

Xiao Rong paused slightly.

“If he really has supernatural powers, then you would not be sitting here eating roasted meat. Forget it. Leave him. Where are you injured? Can you still walk?”

Qu Yunmie lifted one side of his trouser leg and showed the deep wound that exposed bone. As for his broken ribs, he did not mention them.

Qu Yunmie said, “Only this one injury. The others are minor. I originally planned to wait until nightfall to find a way out.”

The wound made Xiao Rong’s breathing tighten. His voice even changed. “How could it be this deep?”

Qu Yunmie blinked. “I cut it myself. It had poison.”

Xiao Rong looked at him in shock. Then Qu Yunmie added, “I handled it in time. It had no effect. You can see I don’t look poisoned, right?”

Xiao Rong nodded vaguely, but still felt uneasy.

Seeing that he believed it, Qu Yunmie relaxed. He would never tell Xiao Rong that he had nearly crippled himself while trying to neutralize what he thought was a deadly poison.

He would hide it for a lifetime.

……

Now that they found each other, and given Qu Yunmie’s condition, Xiao Rong was no longer in a hurry to take him back. Moreover, it would be difficult anyway. After finding him, the “navigation” in his mind disappeared.

So irresponsible. At the very least it should have told him the direction back.

Yet that navigation disappeared as quickly as it had come, just like a familiar tornado-like personality, which made Xiao Rong grind his teeth a little.

Qu Yunmie placed the deer skin beside him so Xiao Rong would not sit on the damp ground. Xiao Rong sat and watched as Qu Yunmie continued roasting the deer leg. It was nearly done already, and after a little more roasting, Qu Yunmie used the Chilong Sword to cut the meat and handed it to Xiao Rong.

Raw, it was terrible. Roasted, it was still terrible. Perhaps that was why deer had such a large population.

Yet neither of them cared about taste anymore. At this time, even the finest delicacies would have tasted like wax.

Xiao Rong ate a couple of bites and told him about the army he had brought last night, including the fact that over a hundred thousand troops were currently searching the mountains for him. Qu Yunmie only responded with a brief “mm.” After eating raw meat followed by cooked meat, he felt slightly nauseous.

After recovering, he turned and asked, “Were you frightened?”

Xiao Rong: “…”

What a pointless question.

Looking at Qu Yunmie’s visibly sickly face, he paused and instead asked, “Are you afraid?”

Qu Yunmie was stunned, then slowly nodded. “Mm.”

Xiao Rong asked again, “What are you afraid of?”

Qu Yunmie: “…”

He also felt that was a pointless question.

Even so, he was more honest, so he answered properly. “I am afraid I will fail you again. I am afraid you will be disappointed in me. I am afraid I will never be able to return to see you. I am afraid our chance will disappear like this. Although I know you may only be giving me hope, having hope is still better than none. I hope that one day I can tell you everything in my heart.”

Xiao Rong gave an “oh,” and said, “Then say it.”

Qu Yunmie lifted his eyes. He suddenly became alert. Xiao Rong, still poking at the fading fire, looked at him after two breaths with a calm expression.

“Say it,” he repeated.

Qu Yunmie: “…”

In that instant, he made his decision. He would not foolishly ask “can I really say it?” He could not give Xiao Rong a chance to change his mind.

So he said directly, “A-Rong, I cannot live without you.”

“Not only in state affairs, but in important days, ordinary days, day and night, when I wake, when I sleep, when I eat—at every moment I cannot be without you. You must belong to me, so I can feel at ease. The freedom you want is like a curse to me. I know you are a man, but my feelings are no less than those devoted couples. You do not know what I think. You think I only want to say it? No. I also want to truly be husband and wife with you. You let me conquer the world and become emperor, then I want you to be my empress. I do not need anything else in this life, only you. Whether in the palace or a farmstead, as long as you are by my side, always there, I will have no other desire.”

Xiao Rong had originally expected Qu Yunmie to say something like “A-Rong, I love you,” but instead Qu Yunmie’s confession was so bandit-like it was shocking.

For anyone else, they would have been frightened to death. Empress? He truly had no idea how much pressure he was putting on someone.

But—

No matter how rough he was, he was his rough man. The man he had chosen.

……

Xiao Rong buried the lower half of his face in his arm. It was dark now, so his expression could not be seen clearly. Qu Yunmie waited nervously, only to see Xiao Rong suddenly stand up.

He stepped out and extinguished the fire on the ground, then said calmly to Qu Yunmie, “Get up. Let’s go find a direction. We cannot just wait for others to find us. This place is strange. If it were easy to discover, someone would have settled here long ago.”

Qu Yunmie: “…”

Holding back his emotions, he also stood up. Xiao Rong then walked over and made him rest his arm on his shoulder.

Qu Yunmie looked at him silently, and the anger and frustration in his eyes suddenly disappeared.

Qu Yunmie pointed out the direction. Xiao Rong supported him as they walked forward. In truth, he did not support him much, because Qu Yunmie did not put his full weight on him. They moved slowly, neither speaking.

After walking for an unknown distance, a drop of coldness suddenly fell on Xiao Rong’s nose. He instinctively looked up. In the pitch-black sky, faint light appeared, very weak, because they were not stars, but rain.

Xiao Rong suddenly stopped. He raised his free hand to catch the rain. Each drop was icy cold, but it truly was not snow—it was rain.

He had always thought this place was warm due to special geography, but what if it was not? What if this was simply the first response of a region after a centuries-long cold period ended?

Looking at the rain falling into his palm, Xiao Rong suddenly felt his nose sting.

He wanted to cry.

Not for himself—for those who died under endless snowstorms.

When extreme cold arrived, all tribes raised weapons to survive, and from then on there was no peaceful year. People were born from tragedy, grew up in hardship, came in haste, and left in haste. Emperors and slaves shared the same fate, never knowing when death would come.

Now, this rain faintly told Xiao Rong something.

It was ending.

The cold was ending. The chaos was ending too.

Qu Yunmie looked at Xiao Rong blankly, not understanding why he was crying. Xiao Rong suddenly sniffed, turned his head, and gave him a faint smile before continuing to support him. “Let’s go.”

……

Xiao Rong’s feeling was not wrong. It really was ending. The place they were in was a rarely visited basin in the Tianchuan Mountains. It used to only rain there, but tonight even the outer regions were affected. Roads, camps, even Yiyang were all experiencing precipitation. What used to be snow had turned into icy rain.

That night, many people walked in the rain. Qu Yunmie and Xiao Rong were one pair. The hundred-thousand-strong army on the mountain was another, stumbling forward in the mud. Even Han Qing was the same.

After the rain began, the road turned muddy. Han Qing slipped and fell, and this time he could not get back up.

The arrow was still in his head. He had not removed it. After leading Qu Yunmie there, he had fled without looking back, not even knowing where he was going. When his horse could no longer run, he continued on foot.

He has traveled countless places and met countless people, but at that moment he could not think of where he wanted to go.

Born in Xinan, studied in Lujiang, became a monk in Changan, and practiced Daoism in Dongyang. He has changed identities as easily as drinking water. Each time he changed, he abandoned a group of people and a place. He has never cared before, but now that he was dying, he realized he was rootless.

Yet even if he could start over, he would probably still do the same.

Because that was his nature. Humans could not resist their nature.

Lying on the ground, Han Qing watched water gather beside him. He felt some regret, because the timing was so perfect. Spring arrived early. If he had been the victor, it would have seemed as if even heaven was on his side.

But he has lost. Such a good omen would belong to Qu Yunmie.

Blood mixed with water flowed into his remaining eye, turning everything red. The pain grew stronger. He knew his time had come. Others might say something at such a moment, but he had nothing to say or think. He simply waited until his consciousness disappeared.

……

His death went unnoticed. It would likely be a long time before mountain villagers discovered his bones, but the moment he died, Xiao Rong suddenly tensed.

Someone found them. Soldiers ran back to report, and others removed cloaks to cover Xiao Rong. Just as he was about to take one, he suddenly gasped, his body freezing as if locked in ice. He clearly felt something being pulled out from every part of his body. The process lasted three to four seconds. When it ended, he collapsed to his knees, gasping heavily.

Only Xiao Rong knew—he was fine. In fact, he has never felt better. Strength returned to his body, and even his breathing became smoother than before.

Much later, he realized what had happened.

He and Qu Yunmie had finally been unlinked.

When he heard Qu Yunmie’s voice again, Qu Yunmie ignored his injured leg and knelt beside him, grabbing his shoulders in panic and calling him loudly. “A-Rong! A-Rong?!”

Xiao Rong came back to himself, looked at him, and said softly, “I’m fine.”

Then he pressed his hand to the ground and stood up. Qu Yunmie looked at him, suddenly struck by a very bad premonition.

It was as if he has unintentionally lost something.

 

 

Edited by: Antiope

 

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