Chapter 84: Trap

The next day, Cheng Er left without saying goodbye. She left a letter for Bu Sha; by candlelight I vaguely sensed it was a poem. But I firmly believed, given Bu Sha's literary ability, he could absolutely not understand it, and he burned the letter without letting us see it.

Only much later did I slowly realize that perhaps Cheng Er had taken a liking to Bu Sha, which was why she kept picking on him unreasonably, hoping to draw his attention, even just a little.

Three days later, we drew ever closer to our destination. Thus Character: Thus Character: Luofeng, farewell.

Although I am slow-witted, I know this person harbors too many hidden dangers; whether he truly wishes to leave or is being forced by Qi Ran, I should not detain him. But Cheng Er and Thus Character: Thus Character: Luofeng have truly vanished without a trace, and I still feel an uncontainable sense of loss.

The day after Thus Character: Thus Character: Luofeng bade farewell and left, Xiao Yin disappeared again, and a vague irritation rose in my heart. Why, why does Xiao Yin keep vanishing after I arrived in the Azure Snow Kingdom? Yet at that time I also had a strange intuition—it was not encountering danger, but leaving of its own will or purpose.

The mystery wrapped itself in layer after layer, filling me with inexpressible worry and agitation; yet the crux of the mystery always hovered before my eyes, while I somehow always lacked a net to entrap it, a key to unlock it, and thus could not solve it.

Five days later, we finally reached the mountaintop where the Another Heavenly Cave is located.

Here I took Xiao Yin away and encountered Wu Ye. On the hilltop where I had rescued Wei Lingfeng, I was surprised yet it made sense to see Wei Lingfeng, Wen Ce, and—Wu Ye again.

When we arrived, Wei Lingfeng stood in a moon-white long robe on the hill where I had rescued him from the soldiers that day, his expression calm and tranquil, yet faintly bearing an air of solemn lethality.

Wu Ye and Wen Ce stood at his sides; upon seeing us approach, they merely turned their heads to glance briefly, without making any major movement.

Beside Wei Lingfeng there were none of the Twelve Imperial Guards who constantly attended him daily; yet I would not be foolish enough to believe that an emperor of a nation would risk his life on an adventure, even if the Another Heavenly Cave truly held a tremendous secret.

Otherwise, those Twelve Imperial Guards must be hiding in the shadows, or at the very least he would have certainly prepared an escape route beforehand to ensure his safety.

Even if it were an adventure, it would certainly be undertaken only with a seventy to eighty percent chance of success—this is Wei Lingfeng, the youngest yet most terrifying emperor of the Heaven and Harmony Continent.

We arrived at the gate of the Another Heavenly Cave.

"Huh?" Wei Lingfeng looked at me and Qi Ran, his handsome brows slightly raised, "Why am I here? Didn't Bu Sha tell you?"

I watched his elegant, inscrutable smile, his crystal-bright eyes, and felt that his smile today was somewhat forced.

Qi Ran brushed away the dead leaf that had fallen into my hair and answered calmly, "Part of Bu's memory has been erased."

Wei Lingfeng's expression flickered for a moment, then instantly returned to normal. He took the amber jade cup offered by Wen Ce, took a light sip, and said softly, "If so, then for me to say it is the same. I and you—" His voice trailed off; he lowered his head, gazing at his faint reflection in the cup, his tone growing colder and more inscrutable, "are truly, brothers born of the same father and mother."

I twitched the corner of my mouth. This guy really knows how to enjoy himself—having attendants even in these remote mountains and wilderness. Same father… same mother? What? Brothers of the same father and mother?!

Wei Lingfeng looked at my shocked expression, couldn't help but twitch his thin lips, and finally revealed a faint yet genuine smile. The light in his eyes, which had been dim, brightened slightly, then returned to tranquility.

Ah! I stared at him blankly, and suddenly something became clear in my heart. No wonder I felt something odd when I saw him today; Wei Lingfeng's demeanor, from the very start, has been somewhat profound and inscrutable, while also faintly concealing an air of solemn lethality.

Although he is usually an inscrutable person, often all his schemes lie hidden beneath his gentle, elegant smile, unlike today when his sharpness is fully exposed.

It is as if… I startled, as if it were when he was afflicted by Blood Gu; when I told him he had been struck by the Heart-Eating Technique, because he had been hurt, he deliberately hid his weakness, and instead became even more cold-hearted and ruthless.

I was still pondering when I suddenly heard him say, "Even if our identities were suddenly swapped, I and Qi Ran are still brothers."

"Still brothers." I pressed my lips together, slowly chewing over these words; although he was clearly speaking to me, his gaze lingered on Qi Ran before moving away.

"Exactly." Qi Ran's voice was neutral, neither salty nor bland, neither suppressed nor exalted. He naturally took my hand and led me across the dense thicket, as if in an instant, this person Wei Lingfeng—his elder brother—was no longer held in his heart.

Bu Sha exhaled lightly, as usual diluting his presence, and followed at a leisurely pace.

As I passed by Wu Ye's side, my heart stirred slightly; I stopped and asked, "Wu Ye, where were you seven days ago?"

Wu Ye's eyes flickered with doubt, yet he replied respectfully, "My lord, at that time I was assisting the Emperor with his affairs."

I was stunned, my doubts swelling. I thought, Wu Ye, Wu Ye! No matter whether it's Qi Ran or Wei Lingfeng, I want to protect you, so don't blame me if I betray you. Turning my gaze to Wei Lingfeng, I said calmly, "What did you have him meet Yin Ziheng for?"

As soon as those words left my mouth, the atmosphere around us solidified abruptly, as if flickering with some captivating, uneasy aura and sparks.

I saw Wu Ye's body tremble slightly, then he lowered his head indifferently.

Wen Ce's gaze snapped onto Wu Ye, his face showing a deep, complex expression, while his hand unconsciously fell to the folding fan at Wu Ye's waist.

Qi Ran's complexion darkened from the moment I spoke, yet he never intervened.

The cold smile on Wei Lingfeng's face grew wider and deeper; he flicked his sleeve cuff and said indifferently, "Mo Jin, you seem to have truly forgotten what I told you."

Wu Ye's whole body stiffened and trembled; he lowered his head and remained silent.

A mighty wind surged forth, whipping my hair aloft and stinging my skin; the little silver creature that had just returned from the plush pouch poked its head out, emitting a joyful yet mournful cry.

The lingering glow of the setting sun fell upon us. The gate of the Another Heavenly Cave finally opened.

Wei Lingfeng extended his crystal-clear, slender fingers, gently brushing the wind-tousled hair from his brows; his unfathomable smile deepened, yet he merely flicked his sleeve cuff and said softly to me, "Won't you go in?"

"Wen Ce, you wait outside."

"Your Majesty!" Wen Ce couldn't help but exclaim, but upon meeting Wei Lingfeng's gaze he slumped back, replying lowly, "Yes."

"As for, Mo Jin." Wei Lingfeng didn't even glance at Wu Ye, gave a faint cold smile, and said, "Come in with me."

I was dragged by Qi Ran's hand, dazedly striding through the strong wind inward, hearing the heavy, oppressive footsteps behind me; my chest felt as if thousands of surging waves were churning, yet I lacked the courage to turn my gaze toward those twin eyes—dark as ink, faintly visible behind the iron mask.

I did this, laying the naked truth before everyone—was it really right? Seeing Wei Lingfeng and their reactions, it seems they didn't know about this matter, so……

Could it be that Wu Ye is truly a subordinate of Yin Ziheng? Could it be that he deliberately approached me from the very beginning?

No, impossible! How could that be? He had no idea who I was back then. Yet I clenched my fists tightly; Yin Ziheng knew—he knew my identity and appearance as the ugly odd girl from the start……

If all this, from the start, was a scheme, I…… "Ah! Pain——"

I desperately tried to shake off the hand Qi Ran had grabbed, but could not escape his grasp.

Qi Ran looked at me for a long while, complex emotion flickering in his eyes, then he could not help but sigh softly, firmly yet gently pulling me into his embrace and whispering, "He indeed has a problem—including how the news of Bu's injury spread so quickly, which is also inseparable from him……"

Qi Ran paused here as well, evidently still unwilling to tell me many things, and only said coldly, "Bing Yi, no matter what he has done for you before, you can no longer trust him completely."

I slightly opened and closed my lips, hearing a "bang——" from behind; the gate of the Another Heavenly Cave slowly shut behind me.

I can no longer trust him completely. Even Qi Ran said so, yet he never explained a single sentence, I……

Soon we toured every accessible stone chamber in the Another Heavenly Cave, yet we never found anything different from what I had seen that day.

"You mean the method to open the gate of the Another Heavenly Cave is known only to Bu Sha?" I stared at Wei Lingfeng, utterly shocked.

Wei Lingfeng also shrugged with a hint of helplessness: "He naturally wouldn't fully trust me, so that day he probably intended only to tell Qi Ran. But he never expected……" He gave a small smile, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes, "that he would lose his memory along the way."

Bu Sha lowered his head slightly, leaning against the wall, his black hair falling to shield his eyes. Though he surely could not miss the sarcasm in Wei Lingfeng's words, I could imagine his aloof, icy expression hidden beneath those strands.

It seemed as if everything in this world had nothing to do with him anymore; so detached that even when we stood beside him, we often could not sense any aura of his presence, like a killer.

"Another…… Heavenly Cave……" Qi Ran slightly lifted his head, scanning the surroundings, though his gaze remained unfocused due to his contemplation.

Suddenly, a glint of light brightened in his blue eyes, and he said softly, "Another Heavenly Cave…… the stone chamber we entered when we came back."

Those words awoke us like a dream; the five of us began to retrace our steps along the way we had come.

One hand was being pulled by Qi Ran, the other hand unconsciously holding onto the wall edge; over these past few days, many things have happened, I've been in a daze all along, because I had some kind of bad premonition, so I never dared to investigate deeply.

Bu Sha is hiding something from me and Qi Ran — no! Perhaps, he's only hiding it from me. For example, why did his cooperation with Wei Lingfeng aim to assassinate the emperors of the Yin and Yao countries, and how did he succeed in one strike? Another example: why is he so obsessed with finding Qi Ran's mother, even risking being opposed to Qi Ran.

Qi Ran also has something hidden from me. What is the true purpose behind his establishment of Yi Country? A bit narcissistic: if he has fifty percent willingness because he misses me, then what is the other fifty percent for? And what does his cooperation with Wei Lingfeng mean? Is it a formal declaration of war against Bing Ling.

And Wu Ye, I let out a deep sigh, the hand resting on the wall edge unconsciously tightening its grip. Now, upon careful thought, it seems it's no longer as simple as concealment and deceit……

"Squeak—creak……" a piercing mechanical turning sound suddenly came from beside my ear; before I could think much, my body suddenly felt a strong suction.

"Ah——" I let out a loud cry, the world spun before my eyes, my body both sank and tilted in some direction. Then my nostrils seemed filled with a strange fresh fragrance, plus a gentle breeze, cool rain threads, seeping into my body through every pore, a peculiar comfortable numbness, yet also an inexplicable pleasure, disturbing my heart's lake.

"Bing Yi!" a startled, inexplicable shout came from beside my ear. My hands seemed to be grabbed by something, then an opposite force pulled me, yet helplessly could only follow me downwards.

I couldn't help but twitch my lips, silently wry-smiling: 'Don't shout so loud; according to the famous transmigration falling law, I definitely won't die!'

Before my consciousness was devoured by the strange dream of life-and-death longing, I vaguely saw Qi Ran and Bu Sha's silhouettes falling with me……

You two idiots, I won't die doesn't mean you won't either! I forced myself, mentally berating them harshly, then, as the rushing wind swept past my ears, I fell into a deep sleep.

A melodious, pleasant song echoed in my ears, reverberating in the dark cavern among the three swiftly falling figures……

Fine rain drifts, the clear wind sways, relying on a deep affection as long as a foolish heart.

Vast snow falls on the turbid Yellow River, leaving him to his heartless emotional wound.

……

(End of chapter)