Mi Lu’s fingers slightly spread, and the cloth slipped from his fingertips, falling onto the bed.

He stared blankly at Hulü Yan, his mind seemingly rusted and frozen, unable to process anything for a long while.

That is, until Hulü Yan suddenly grabbed his wrist, pulling him into his embrace.

Mi Lu, caught off guard, crashed into Hulü Yan’s chest. Instinctively, he tried to struggle, but Hulü Yan held him tight.

In the four years from age fourteen to eighteen, Hulü Yan had transitioned from a boy to a young man. Even though he had been lying in bed all those years, his hair had grown, his height had increased, and his physique had changed. He even felt much stronger than before.

Mi Lu felt Hulü Yan’s hands wandering over his back, sliding from his waist to his shoulders, then down from his shoulder blades to his lower back, as if anxiously searching for something.

He was held so tightly he felt short of breath. He pressed his hands against Hulü Yan’s chest, struggling to push him back.

“What did you say you heard?” Mi Lu finally managed to squeeze out a question from the small gap between them.

At his words, Hulü Yan’s actions paused, and he gradually loosened his grip.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Mi Lu slipped out of Hulü Yan’s embrace. He picked up the cloth from the bed, quickly moving to the basin on the shelf to wash it, putting more distance between them.

Hulü Yan sat on the bed, looked down at his hands, then looked up at Mi Lu.

His eyes were pitch black, with his pupils small compared to the whites, giving his long, narrow eyes an inorganic, cold quality.

Even though he wasn’t expressionless, the indifference in his eyes seemed to extinguish anyone’s desire to approach him.

Mi Lu wrung out the cloth and hung it on the wooden rack, his gaze steady as he looked at Hulü Yan.

Only he knew that, internally, waves as high as several floors were crashing in his mind.

Hulü Yan was still Hulü Yan. He was exactly as he had been in Mi Lu’s memory after ten lifetimes of reincarnation.

Especially when Hulü Yan slowly raised his gaze, his expression, look, and appearance perfectly overlapped with the Hulü Yan in Mi Lu’s memory.

Four years of unconsciousness had not changed him at all.

Perhaps it was because he had touched cold water, but Mi Lu’s fingertips felt a chill creeping silently into his palms. In moments, both his hands were cold.

He rubbed his hands together, feeling a slight warmth returning.

“I heard it calling me,” Hulü Yan murmured in a daze.

“It? He? She?” Mi Lu frowned in confusion. “Who are you talking about?”

Hulü Yan grew silent as if in thought, then shook his head. “I don’t know. I only heard some sounds, and those sounds woke me up…”

As he spoke, he seemed to realize something. “How long was I asleep?”

“Four years,” Mi Lu said. “Exactly four years.”

Jing Lan and Li Huai had been busy outside all day, watching as the sky darkened and night fell, yet Mi Lu still hadn’t come out of the tent.

Mi Lu had stayed in the tent all day before, but the air inside would become stuffy, and he would usually come out for a breath of fresh air. Today, however, not even a shadow of him was seen.

As they worked, Jing Lan and Li Huai discussed this, and by the end, they concluded that Mi Lu might have fallen ill.

After finishing their tasks, they approached Mi Lu’s tent together and gently knocked on the wooden door.

“Sect Master,” Jing Lan leaned toward the door and asked quietly, “are you alright?”

Mi Lu’s voice quickly came from inside the tent. “What’s wrong?”

They heard footsteps approaching.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Jing Lan replied, scratching her head nervously. “We noticed you didn’t come out all day and worried you might be feeling unwell, so we came to check on you.”

“I’m fine,” Mi Lu’s voice had a touch of laughter. “Thank you for your concern.”

Just as he finished speaking, the wooden door suddenly opened from within.

Jing Lan and Li Huai thought it was Mi Lu, so they wore apologetic smiles as they looked up. But in the next instant, they found themselves face-to-face with a figure towering a head taller than them.

Outside, the sky was thick with night, with only the soft white glow of a luminous pearl shining within the tent.

The snowy light outlined the edges of the figure, spilling onto Jing Lan and Li Huai’s faces and bodies.

Though they stood straight, they still had to look up, their necks soon feeling sore.

They stared in stunned silence, mouths open, unable to make a sound.

After a long while, they heard Mi Lu’s voice again. “Why are you both so quiet?”

As he spoke, Mi Lu approached the door and saw Hulü Yan silently staring at the two trembling figures by the door.

Under the light of the luminous pearl, Jing Lan and Li Huai’s faces appeared starkly pale. If not for their trembling legs, Mi Lu might have thought Hulü Yan had paralyzed them.

The two turned to Mi Lu with expressions as though they had just seen a lifeline, gratitude filling their eyes to the point of materializing.

“Sect Master!”

“Sect Master!”

They called out in unison.

“Come in; I have something to tell you both,” Mi Lu beckoned them over.

But Jing Lan and Li Huai stood frozen.

They exchanged uneasy glances, cautiously looking at Hulü Yan, who blocked the doorway.

Mi Lu seemed to understand and patted Hulü Yan on the shoulder. “You’re in their way.”

Hulü Yan silently stepped back.

“Come on in,” Mi Lu said.

Jing Lan and Li Huai quickly thanked Hulü Yan and hurried into the tent, their steps quick and anxious as they passed him.

Walking past Hulü Yan, they felt as if a string pulled taut, almost about to snap. Hulü Yan’s unreadable gaze on them made their skin crawl.

The walk to the chairs was the longest, most agonizing journey they’d ever taken.

Finally reaching the chairs, they quietly exhaled with relief.

But just as they relaxed, they heard Hulü Yan’s footsteps approaching.

Jing Lan: “…”

Li Huai: “…”

They reflexively straightened up again.

Mi Lu, sitting opposite, took note of their reactions and comforted them. “Don’t be too nervous; he won’t harm you for no reason.”

Jing Lan and Li Huai forced a stiff smile, hands on their knees.

Though Mi Lu’s words didn’t completely erase their fear of Hulü Yan, after four years of close company, they trusted Mi Lu’s judgment.

Seeing their bodies gradually relax, Mi Lu smiled and added, “However, if he’s in a bad mood, I can’t guarantee your safety.”

Jing Lan: “…”

Li Huai: “…”

Their bodies stiffened even more, a thin layer of sweat forming on their foreheads.

They wanted to cry.

Their lives had seen all the highs and lows right in that moment.

Mi Lu observed their shifting expressions with amusement but didn’t tease them further. Clearing his throat, he spoke seriously. “I called you here to discuss a matter.”

He paused briefly, then continued, “Hulü Yan and I have decided to go out for a while. There are things that must be done, and I want to see what’s happening outside. But we can’t bring all of you along. I’ve thought about it, and I’ll let you decide.”

Jing Lan and Li Huai were stunned.

“I have three options for you,” Mi Lu said. “First, you can stay here within the barrier and wait until we return. Second, you can each find your own path. No matter where you go, I won’t interfere, provided you don’t reveal anything about what you’ve experienced here.”

Jing Lan and Li Huai’s faces grew visibly anxious, overshadowing their fear of Hulü Yan.

They shifted uncomfortably, ready to stand up. “Sect Master…”

“There’s also a third option,” Mi Lu interrupted. “You may come with us, but we can only bring two people at most.”

A glimmer of hope appeared in their eyes.

“But don’t expect us to ensure your safety if things get rough,” Mi Lu added.

The light in their eyes dimmed instantly. They sat back down, silent.

Mi Lu gave them time to process this. After a while, he said, “We’re leaving at dawn tomorrow. Please inform the others and let them know they have the night to decide.”

When they left, Jing Lan and Li Huai noticed Hulü Yan standing in the shadows of the tent. His gaze remained fixed on them—cold, emotionless, and almost as if examining objects.

This unsettling thought chilled them to the bone.

Holding their breaths, they hurried out.

The outside was pitch black, and others had already gone to rest.

Only a faint crescent moon peeked through wispy clouds, with the thin moonlight filtering down like gossamer.

Jing Lan and Li Huai wandered around the campsite, but, strangely, they couldn’t find their tents.

They grew more panicked, feeling something amiss but too frightened to think deeply. Wandering aimlessly, they soon broke out in a cold sweat, an unexplainable dread gnawing at them.

As they stopped, feeling weak, they sensed a shadow behind them.

“What is your relationship with him?” came a low, deliberately hushed voice.

Even though they’d never heard it before, they knew who it belonged to.

Hulü Yan…

Jing Lan trembled, nearly fainting. Her hand shook as she struggled to answer.

Finally, Li Huai, who had managed to calm himself a little, whispered weakly, “He’s… he’s our Sect Master.”

“Hmm,” Hulü Yan seemed unsatisfied. “What else?”

“What… what else?”

“If he’s just a Sect Master, then why would he keep you both around? Why does he treat you two differently?”

Jing Lan and Li Huai’s minds were blank.

Hulü Yan’s hand gripped Jing Lan’s neck from behind. “Back at the Medical Hall, you were the one cleaning my courtyard, right?”

“Yes…”

“You also spoke with him the most,” Hulü Yan’s grip tightened. “Did you say or do something to him? Is that why he kept you around?”

Hulü Yan’s tone grew as cold as ice as he concluded, “Do you like him?”

Jing Lan’s mind went blank.

In that instant, everything became clear.

Hastily, she pulled Li Huai down to kneel before him. “You misunderstand, we begged him to keep us because we had nowhere else to go! If not, it would have been a dead end! I respect him and am grateful, but I could never dare to feel anything for him!”

Hulü Yan looked down at them, expressionless.

Jing Lan raised her tear-streaked face, swearing, “Please believe me, I have no hidden feelings toward him. If there’s a lie in my words, may I be struck by lightning!”

After a long silence, Hulü Yan let out a chuckle. “Get up.”

Though Jing Lan hesitated, she quickly obeyed.

“You’ll know how to answer him tomorrow, right?” Hulü Yan asked lightly.

Jing Lan quickly nodded. “Yes, please rest assured.”

“Go to sleep,” Hulü Yan said, watching them leave.

Back in the tent, Mi Lu waited for Hulü Yan’s return. He looked up, smiling. “How did it go?”

A short while before, Hulü Yan had insisted on wandering the camp alone.

Hulü Yan walked over, noticing Mi Lu changing the bedding. He answered casually, “It was too dark to see anything.”

Mi Lu laughed. “Didn’t I tell you to bring the luminous pearl?”

“I forgot,” Hulü Yan replied shamelessly.

Mi Lu rolled his eyes. “…How could you forget that?”

Finished with the bedding, Mi Lu checked Hulü Yan’s limbs. Not only were they free from muscle atrophy, but he seemed even stronger than before.

Mi Lu, squatting beside him, admired Hulü Yan’s leg muscles. “Only you could stay in bed for four years and wake up able to walk.”

He gave the muscles a light pat.

But before he could pull his hand back, Hulü Yan flinched like he’d been electrocuted, stumbling back until he crashed into a cabinet.

“Doesn’t that hurt?” Mi Lu exclaimed, moving to help him up.

But Hulü Yan avoided him like the plague, retreating frantically.

Mi Lu’s hand fell short, leaving him both annoyed and amused. As he opened his mouth to question him, he noticed Hulü Yan’s face flushed under the light.

Hulü Yan looked exactly like a child caught stealing candy, desperately trying to hide his panic. The more he tried, the more obvious it became.

Finally, unable to stand it any longer, he muttered, “Just don’t touch me.”

Mi Lu fell silent, observing Hulü Yan’s expression. Gradually, he started piecing together old memories.

He remembered Hulü Yan’s changing attitude towards him around the time that boy Xiao Zhen had left—sometimes avoiding him, sometimes refusing physical contact, and sometimes growing inexplicably irritable.

Though he hadn’t understood at first, everything became clear after that incident in the Peach Blossom Array.

Sitting down, he rested one hand on his crossed knee, pondering for a moment before deciding to address it directly. “In the Peach Blossom Array at the Medical Hall, when I carried you out, I accidentally entered your memories.”