Editor and proofreader: Oceanblue

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Gu Shenyuan wasn’t sure how he got there, but he trembled as he reached out to check Ye Qingyun’s breath. When he felt a faint pulse, his senses returned.

At his touch, Ye Qingyun’s eyelashes fluttered, and he weakly opened his eyes. He looked as if he could close them again at any moment and never reopen them.

Gu Shenyuan suddenly became aware of the pain in his own body—it was punishment for not protecting Ye Qingyun properly after he was injured by the bloodline restriction.

But the pain in his body was nothing compared to the heart-wrenching fear of losing Ye Qingyun. He crouched down, trembling, and carefully picked Ye Qingyun up.

“I’ll take you to get treated,” Gu Shenyuan said in his usual calm voice, though a hint of a cry slipped in. “Don’t close your eyes. I’ll take you to get treated. It’ll be okay. It’ll be okay.”

Ye Qingyun weakly shook his head. He looked at Gu Shenyuan and reached out his hand.

Gu Shenyuan wouldn’t let Ye Qingyun exert himself. He lowered his head so that Ye Qingyun could easily wrap his arm around his neck.

Ye Qingyun weakly draped his arm over Gu Shenyuan, then pressed Gu Shenyuan’s head down and kissed him.

This kiss had nothing to do with sweetness. Gu Shenyuan tasted only blood in his mouth, the blood from Ye Qingyun’s mouth passing through to his.

Gu Shenyuan didn’t spit it out. He didn’t even consider doing so. Instead, he swallowed the blood.

Why was there so much blood? How much pain was Ye Qingyun in right now?

Gu Shenyuan’s mind was in chaos. He ended the kiss, trying to get Ye Qingyun to the hospital as quickly as possible, hoping that Ye Qingyun would be fine and no longer look like this.

“Haha,” Ye Qingyun suddenly let out a weak, hollow laugh. “See, you still fell for it, didn’t you? Does it still hurt?”

Gu Shenyuan: “…What?”

Ye Qingyun’s voice was weak, but he still managed to smile: “The injury I gave you should have hurt a lot, right? Does it still hurt?”

Gu Shenyuan felt as if a bucket of ice-cold water had been poured over him, his entire body instantly freezing.

…He didn’t feel the pain anymore.

He didn’t feel any pain at all.

Ye Qingyun was still so badly injured, yet he felt no punishment anymore.

“The wine I told you about earlier, it wasn’t the antidote… The real antidote is still with me.” Ye Qingyun closed his eyes tiredly, speaking in fits and starts, clearly exhausted, but his lips still curved upward. “But now… you can’t pour it out, because I… already gave it to you. Haha.”

A whirlwind of thoughts rushed through Gu Shenyuan’s mind. There were so many things he wanted to say and ask, but in the end, only one sentence came out: “…Let’s go to the hospital.”

“It’s useless. Didn’t you guess it?” Ye Qingyun mercilessly shattered Gu Shenyuan’s hopes, making him face reality. “I’m an SSS-level psychic. After I destroyed that ability disintegrator, I… can’t hold on anymore. There’s no saving me.”

Gu Shenyuan fell silent, and Ye Qingyun continued: “Taking me to the hospital won’t help. There aren’t any hospitals nearby, so why not talk to me? I just want to have a quiet conversation with you.”

Gu Shenyuan’s arms holding Ye Qingyun started to tremble uncontrollably. He sat down against a tree, letting Ye Qingyun lean against his chest.

Ye Qingyun asked, “Without the bloodline restriction, will you still listen to me?”

“…Yes.”

Ye Qingyun was satisfied with this answer. He instructed Gu Shenyuan, “After I die, live well. Eat on time, sleep on time, okay?”

As Ye Qingyun’s voice grew softer, he struggled to open his eyes and looked at Gu Shenyuan with dimming eyes.

Gu Shenyuan held Ye Qingyun’s hand without speaking.

He didn’t need to eat on time or sleep on time.

The road to the underworld was lonely, and he couldn’t bear the thought of Ye Qingyun walking it alone. He would stay with Ye Qingyun, no matter where he went.

—

Ye Qingyun spoke softly, “Your life… was exchanged for mine. Are you just going to… destroy it like this?”

Gu Shenyuan’s breathing became a bit more hurried. Ye Qingyun’s hand reached out, gently pressing against Gu Shenyuan’s beating heart. With a voice that seemed as fragile as wind, he said, “Before you destroy it, think carefully. This is my life. Are you really… going to let it disappear?”

Transparent, colorless droplets of water fell onto Ye Qingyun’s cheek. He struggled to blink, his eyes slowly closing again, “You said you’d listen to me… I… order you, don’t die. Live well, wait…”

Wait for what?

Gu Shenyuan didn’t know, because the person who said this could no longer finish the sentence.

“…Qingyun?” Gu Shenyuan gently touched Ye Qingyun’s cheek. He tried to wipe the water off Ye Qingyun’s face, but the more he wiped, the more there was, and it couldn’t be cleaned away. “I’ll take you back. We’ll find a peaceful, beautiful place, settle down quietly, and I’ll be with you for life. You can supervise me to eat and sleep, okay?”

Ye Qingyun would probably like such a leisurely life, right? Whenever a new technology or research appeared, he could read it to Ye Qingyun, making him happy.

Gu Shenyuan would also prepare Ye Qingyun’s clothes for each day, ensuring they were different every season.

Ye Qingyun was beautiful; he looked good in anything, even in a burlap sack. But he couldn’t let Ye Qingyun suffer. The best, the most luxurious styles—whatever others had, Ye Qingyun should have too.

Ye Qingyun would stay by his side, sheltered from harm, and accompany him through the seasons, through thousands of days and nights, until he grew old. Then, he would dig a deep grave, a coffin large enough for both him and Ye Qingyun, and bury them together, forever.

They would always be together.

Suddenly, Gu Shenyuan’s thoughts stopped as something unusual happened in his arms.

A few streaks of red light began to shine through Ye Qingyun’s body, piercing his skin.

This red light, Gu Shenyuan had seen it just recently—it was identical to the light that appeared when the red light barrier was shattered.

The light grew larger, and wherever it emerged from Ye Qingyun’s body, the flesh and blood turned to ash.

Gu Shenyuan’s fear grew exponentially. He exhausted every idea he could think of to protect Ye Qingyun, to stop him from being hurt.

But it was useless. The light surged faster and faster. Once it left Ye Qingyun’s body, it disintegrated completely and vanished.

And just like the light, Ye Qingyun disappeared into the world.

Gu Shenyuan looked down. He still held Ye Qingyun in his arms, but the space was empty, with nothing left.