Mi Lu was panting heavily, his chest rising and falling violently, but his eyes were still fixed on Hulü Yan.

Hulü Yan’s eyes were dark and empty, the confusion on his face sinking deep into his gaze.

Finally catching his breath, Mi Lu extended a hand toward Hulü Yan. “Come here, come to me.”

However, Hulü Yan didn’t respond. He only stared blankly at Mi Lu, then tilted his head, as if trying hard to search through his memories for Mi Lu’s figure.

But in the end, Hulü Yan found nothing.

“Hulü Yan, come here first,” Mi Lu urged, extending his hand a bit further. He explained anxiously, “We’ve fallen into a formation created by the Medical Hall. You can’t follow her; if you do, you’ll sink deeper into this formation and never get out!”

Hulü Yan finally showed some reaction. He opened his mouth and, in a childish voice, asked, “What formation?”

“This is a formation that creates illusions. It pulls from your memories to create people and things that made a deep impression on you. If you’re fooled by the illusions, you’ll be trapped deeper and deeper until you die in this formation,” Mi Lu softened his tone as much as possible, coaxing, “Don’t believe the illusions. Come to me, and I’ll take you out.”

Hulü Yan stared intently at Mi Lu. “Who are you?”

“I’m…” Mi Lu hesitated, the words dying in his throat.

He wanted to say he was Hulü Yan’s friend, but the words wouldn’t come out. He wasn’t sure if their relationship could be considered a friendship. Maybe Hulü Yan had never seen him as a friend.

After a moment of silence, Mi Lu had no choice but to change his phrasing. “I’m Mi Lu, someone you know.”

“Mi… Lu…” Hulü Yan repeated the name, and clarity returned to his eyes. He called out softly, “Mi Lu.”

“I’m right here!” Mi Lu waved his hand, seizing the moment. “Come over.”

Hulü Yan broke free from the woman’s hand and took a step toward Mi Lu.

But just as Hulü Yan took his first step, the woman grabbed his shoulder, lowered her head, and spoke softly, “Is Little Yan leaving? Does Little Yan not want to stay with Mother anymore?”

Hulü Yan’s small figure stiffened. Under the woman’s gaze, he hesitated. “Mother, I…”

The woman pitifully said, “Does Little Yan not love Mother anymore?”

“No!” Hulü Yan shook his head vigorously, hurriedly explaining, “I would never not love Mother!”

The woman’s hand, which had been gripping Hulü Yan’s shoulder, slid down and took his hand again. Her voice lost its previous pitiful tone, now sounding more like coaxing. “Then don’t leave, okay? Stay here with Mother forever.”

“Shut up!” Mi Lu shouted, losing his temper. He gathered a surge of spiritual energy in his palm and sent it toward the woman.

But just before the energy reached the woman, it dissipated silently by an invisible force, leaving no trace behind, and causing no harm to her at all.

It didn’t work!

Mi Lu gritted his teeth and stopped wasting his energy. He shouted instead, “Hulü Yan, don’t listen to her. She’s not real. She’s an illusion created by the formation!”

The woman’s face was still covered by her long hair. She seemed unable to hear Mi Lu’s voice, only sensing Hulü Yan’s emotional shifts. She crouched down and gently embraced Hulü Yan’s small body. “Mother is so lonely. Will Little Yan stay here with Mother?”

“No!” Mi Lu answered loudly. “What’s fake is fake! Don’t fall for that nonsense!”

“Little Yan…”

“Hulü Yan!”

Every time the woman spoke, Mi Lu would shout in return.

Hulü Yan was caught in the middle, but he no longer looked at Mi Lu. Instead, he leaned obediently against the woman’s shoulder, letting her gently stroke his back.

Seeing the situation turn for the worse, Mi Lu grew anxious.

It’s over!

He had a sinking feeling that Hulü Yan was about to follow the woman.

What to do, what to do…

There was nothing he could do besides watching helplessly as the woman led Hulü Yan away if Hulü Yan didn’t believe him.

The woman seemed to share Mi Lu’s thoughts, as she began slowly pulling Hulü Yan away, gently stroking his face. “It’s time to go home.”

Just as she stood up and prepared to leave with Hulü Yan, Hulü Yan suddenly broke free from her hand, pushed the woman away, and ran toward Mi Lu.

“Mi Lu,” Hulü Yan called out.

Heaven knows how delighted Mi Lu was to see this. In an instant, he could breathe freely again, and the weight in his heart was lifted. It felt as if he had come back to life.

“Hurry, come here!” Mi Lu stretched out his hand.

Miraculously, though he had been unable to reach Hulü Yan earlier no matter how hard he tried, this time, just by extending his hand, he was able to grab Hulü Yan’s!

Hulü Yan’s fingers were cold, but once they touched Mi Lu’s, they quickly entwined with his.

Without hesitation, Mi Lu pulled Hulü Yan to his side.

At only four or five years old, Hulü Yan was a small child, barely reaching Mi Lu’s waist. He was so weak that when Mi Lu pulled him over, he stumbled and crashed into Mi Lu’s leg.

Mi Lu bent down, scooped Hulü Yan into his arms, and began walking in the opposite direction.

“Hulü Yan!” The woman’s voice exploded from behind them, no longer gentle, but sharp and grating. “You’re not allowed to leave! Did I give you permission?”

The sudden shift in her voice startled Mi Lu. For a moment, he thought the woman had been possessed, causing such a drastic change.

In Mi Lu’s arms, Hulü Yan was even more terrified, his small face pale as he trembled and clung to Mi Lu’s clothes.

Mi Lu didn’t look back. He started running.

However, his steps were no longer as light as before. It felt as if his legs were weighed down with blocks of lead, each step requiring tremendous effort.

Mi Lu’s pace grew slower and slower.

After only five or six steps, sweat began to bead on his forehead.

At that moment, the woman’s voice rang out again, now a maniacal roar. “Come back here! If you dare leave, I’ll break your legs and see how you walk!”

Hulü Yan buried his face in Mi Lu’s neck, his body shaking uncontrollably, and muttered softly to himself.

Mi Lu listened carefully and realized that Hulü Yan was pleading.

“I’m sorry, Mother. Please don’t hit me. I won’t do it again…” Hulü Yan mumbled, his voice filled with deep fear, as if he was experiencing something truly terrifying.

Mi Lu felt the wetness on his neck and paused for a moment, then gently patted Hulü Yan’s back.

As soon as Mi Lu’s hand touched him, Hulü Yan flinched violently.

“I’m here. I won’t let her hit you,” Mi Lu comforted him softly.

Hulü Yan was utterly terrified, his sobs muffled as he cried quietly.

Mi Lu stopped walking and glanced at Hulü Yan’s exposed arm, which had slipped out from his sleeve.

The fair skin was covered in bruises, both old and new.

Some looked like they were caused by impact, some by whips. There were even some wounds that had not yet been treated, torn open with fresh blood seeping out of the gashes.

Mi Lu’s eyes widened in shock, and he gasped.

Now he understood—

Hulü Yan wasn’t just trembling from fear, but from pain as well.

The source of these wounds was obvious.

But Mi Lu couldn’t understand.

Why would Hulü Yan’s mother be so cruel?

If she didn’t like Hulü Yan, she could have chosen not to give birth to him. But since she did, why didn’t she treat him well? Why would she abuse him like this?

And yet, Mi Lu didn’t believe that Hulü Yan’s mother disliked him.

A mother’s love for her child couldn’t be faked.

From the way Hulü Yan’s mother had acted earlier, Mi Lu could tell that she had genuine love for him.

So why?

Mi Lu turned his head and, for the first time, clearly saw the woman’s face.

She had an oval face, willow-like eyebrows, and cherry-red lips. Her long black hair flowed freely behind her, unbound.

She was no longer wearing the light blue dress but a luxurious deep purple robe, slightly open in the front, with only a thin veil covering her underneath.

The woman was undeniably beautiful, but she no longer carried the gentle, kind air from before. Her contorted face made her look like a venomous snake, spitting poison with every glance.

She was engulfed in an overwhelming aura of vulgarity. Even her expensive robe couldn’t mask the coarseness that seemed to seep from her very bones.

The woman glared viciously at Hulü Yan in Mi Lu’s arms, pointing at him with her long, painted nails.

“You little brat, without me, would you even be alive today?” Her twisted features were filled with venom as she screeched, “You dare leave me? Anyone else can abandon me, but you can’t!”

By the time she finished, the woman was practically screaming.

The louder she got, the more Hulü Yan trembled in Mi Lu’s arms.

Hulü Yan didn’t dare look at her, only muttering pleas for mercy. “Mother, please stop. I’m sorry. It hurts…”

The woman seemed trapped by the formation’s power. She tried to move closer to Hulü Yan, but her feet were bound in place, unable to take a single step forward.

She struggled, then stumbled to the ground in a pathetic heap.

Her expression froze for a moment, and as she blinked, tears began to fall, like broken pearls spilling out uncontrollably.

“What did I do wrong? Why did I have to meet you? Why does the heavens treat me this way?” The woman sat on the ground, hands covering her face, sobbing as if she might die at any moment. “You ruined me. You ruined my cultivation, my life, everything I had. And yet…”

She dropped her hands, her tear-filled eyes locking onto Hulü Yan with hatred once again. “And yet I still have to raise you. Just because I’m your mother, just because you’re my son, that’s the only reason…”

Mi Lu pressed Hulü Yan’s head tightly against his neck, shielding his face from view.

He calmly watched the sobbing woman, and after a moment, spoke with a steady voice. “You’re already dead.”

Hulü Yan’s body stiffened at his words.

The woman seemed to hear him as well and looked at Mi Lu, slightly startled.

Mi Lu repeated, “You’re already dead. You only exist in Hulü Yan’s past. You have no place in his present or future.”

As he spoke, he hugged Hulü Yan tighter, as if he was telling the woman, but really, he was telling Hulü Yan: “Don’t let a dead person control your life.”

The woman struggled to her feet. “You…”

But as soon as she opened her mouth, a gust of wind blew through, and like petals scattered by the wind, she vanished into the air, leaving only the rustling of grass in the breeze.

Mi Lu silently carried Hulü Yan, walking in the direction they came from.

As they walked, the scenery around them slowly changed.

The sunlight disappeared, the green grass was gone, and the picturesque mountains and rivers vanished.

All that remained was a thick, dense fog.

Mi Lu closed his eyes and continued walking through the mist.

He didn’t know how long he walked, but eventually, like the woman, his consciousness faded into the mist as well.

Mi Lu opened his eyes.

The warm, golden sunlight poured down, stinging his eyes. He instinctively raised his hand to block the light.

“Sect Leader?” A voice sounded beside him. “Are you awake?”

It took Mi Lu a moment to adjust before he turned his head.

Soon, the familiar face of Yan Feng came into view, looking thinner than before.

Yan Feng was crouching beside Hulü Yan, asking cautiously, “Sect Leader, did you and the Vice Sect Leader accidentally enter the formation just now?”

Mi Lu gave a soft hum, then, with Yan Feng’s help, slowly sat up. “Where is Hulü Yan?”

“He’s over there,” Yan Feng quickly pointed ahead, speaking hastily as if afraid Mi Lu might misunderstand. “Sect Leader, we wanted to move you both into the house, but we were worried we might hurt you, so we waited here for you to wake up.”

It was only then that Mi Lu noticed the others standing behind Yan Feng—the few who had narrowly survived Hulü Yan’s wrath.

They were all young, having just joined the Medical Hall recently, their hands unstained by blood.

Otherwise, no matter what Mi Lu said, Hulü Yan, in his murderous state, would never have spared them.

As for Yan Feng himself…

Mi Lu couldn’t help but glance at Yan Feng twice. He remembered not noticing Yan Feng at all that day; it was Hulü Yan who had spared him.

Although Mi Lu didn’t know why Hulü Yan had chosen to spare Yan Feng, based on what little he knew of Hulü Yan, it definitely wasn’t because Hulü Yan thought Yan Feng was a decent person.

Sometimes, the longer you live, the worse your death will be.

Yan Feng caught the brief flash of pity in Mi Lu’s eyes and was immediately filled with a sense of dread. Goosebumps prickled across his skin as he called out nervously, “Sect… Sect Leader?”

Mi Lu snapped out of his thoughts, waved his hand, and walked toward Hulü Yan.

Hulü Yan had been unconscious for a full ten days.

During those ten days, with nothing better to do, Mi Lu had familiarized himself with the entire Medical Hall and had Yan Feng and the others repair the houses that had been damaged during Hulü Yan’s battle with Qi Wangtian and his group.

The Medical Hall was filled with vibrant, colorful plants. At first, Mi Lu thought they were merely decorative, but after noticing something odd, he asked Yan Feng about them. Only then did he realize that these plants were all medicinal ingredients used to create various elixirs.