Chapter 28: Difficult Obstacles

“Senior Brother Ah Lan, wait a moment, I’ll get you out right away.” Shu Wan rushed into the water prison and went straight to Yi Chenlan. She broke the iron chains and extended her hand to him. “Hurry up, grab my hand.”

Yi Chenlan hesitated for a moment. “My hand is cold.”

“It’s fine, Senior Brother Ah Lan, hurry up.”

Yi Chenlan slightly curved his lips into a faint smile, wrapping Shu Wan’s warm little hand in his palm. With her strength, he pulled himself out of the water. He hesitated for a moment but ultimately did not release the hand he was holding so tightly.

Shu Wan did not pay attention to these things. She pulled him towards the door. Ge Qing was still standing obediently at the door. When he saw them come out, he nodded towards Yi Chenlan and said: “My name is Ge Qing, I’m the one helping you. After you leave Mount Pochen, head south to Yunzhou. There’s a town called Chishui. You can find someone named ‘Shen Ba’ there. He can take you to my old residence to hide for a while.”

Yi Chenlan glanced at the stranger who introduced himself as Ge Qing. Before he could speak, Ge Qing quickly reacted and stepped back a few paces. “No, no, no, don’t have any murderous thoughts. I’m very important. The details, let Shu Shimei explain to you. Shu Shimei, you can hit my acupoints now.” He closed his eyes and stood very straight.

“Is that okay?” Shu Wan asked with concern. “Won’t Yan Dongyun get suspicious if he finds you silent and unmoving?”

“Don’t worry, absolutely not.” Ge Qing patted his chest and assured her. “He wouldn’t care about this. Besides, if you don’t hit my acupoints, how will I explain to everyone that I was coerced?”

It made sense. Shu Wan immediately stepped forward and heavily pressed on his acupoints, then pulled Yi Chenlan up the mountain.

Yi Chenlan looked at Shu Wan’s soft little hand firmly holding his, and a great joy filled his heart, nearly overwhelming him. He slowly raised a smile, one that was so genuinely happy, showing even a slight flash of white teeth, making him look unusually childlike.

Wan Wan was taking him away…

Leaving this place filled with humiliation and disgust, he realized that it didn’t require him to rack his brain to plan an escape. There was, after all, such a soft and gentle possibility.

It was Wan Wan who was taking him away. No matter where they went, he was willing to follow her. Was there anything happier than this in the world?

Even though his dantian felt like it was being torn apart, his entire body burning like fire, and his legs, which had been soaked in the icy water for too long, seemed to have thousands of steel needles piercing through them.

Yi Chenlan’s steps were still light.

But Shu Wan still noticed a slight strain in his gait. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, do your legs hurt?”

“No.” Yi Chenlan immediately denied it gently, smiling slightly, as though even the contours of his face had softened.

He was so happy that Shu Wan felt the risk of rescuing Yi Chenlan was well worth it. As for how to face Shu Qi and the others in the future… she didn’t care. She would send Yi Chenlan away first and figure out the rest later.

Shu Wan didn’t dare slow down her pace. She constantly reminded Yi Chenlan to watch his step, while simultaneously explaining her plans. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, once I get you to the mountaintop, you can take the small path down the other side of the mountain. Go to the place Ge Qing mentioned. As for your Blazing Sun Manual and Eternal Slash, I’ll find a way to send them to you…”

Shu Wan stopped talking because Yi Chenlan suddenly came to a halt.

She looked at Yi Chenlan in confusion, seeing that his face was expressionless, but his complexion had suddenly turned a few shades paler.

Shu Wan was startled. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, are you feeling unwell?”

Yi Chenlan slowly turned his head to look at Shu Wan, his voice trembling ever so slightly. “…Take me to the mountaintop?”

“Yes.” Shu Wan responded, unsure of what was wrong. She spoke softly: “Time’s a bit tight, I didn’t prepare any… food for you…”

The wind blew by, and the evening breeze, which had seemed comfortable moments ago, now felt chilling to the bone.

Yi Chenlan let out a soft laugh twice. Then, slowly, he released the hand he had been unwilling to let go of.

Even Shu Wan, who wasn’t very perceptive, could sense something was wrong with Yi Chenlan. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, what’s… what’s wrong? Is it… an injury, or…?”

Yi Chenlan looked at her.

Shu Wan’s voice gradually grew quieter. She closed her mouth and looked at him with some fear. He was looking at her with a gaze she had never seen before—a coldness like snow, a sharpness like a blade.

“Senior Brother Ah Lan…” Shu Wan asked timidly: “What’s wrong with you…?”

What’s wrong with me? Yi Chenlan closed his eyes and forced back the tears welling up in his eyes, trying not to appear any more pathetic. So it wasn’t that she was taking me away, but that she was going to abandon me.

It turns out, he had always been the one being overly sentimental. The sweet joy he had secretly cherished for the past few days felt like a slap to the face—how ridiculous he was! How could he have thought Wan Wan would elope with him?

He wasn’t worthy.

At that moment, the intense pain throughout his body seemed to suddenly make itself known, overwhelming him and catching him off guard. Yi Chenlan bent over slightly, beads of sweat starting to form on his forehead.

Shu Wan was terrified. She had never seen Yi Chenlan like this before. She immediately tried to support him. “Senior Brother Ah Lan! Where does it hurt? Let me see!”

“Don’t touch me.” Yi Chenlan moved away from Shu Wan’s hand, speaking in a low voice.

Shu Wan squatted down in a daze, looking up at Yi Chenlan with worry in her eyes, resembling a pitiful little rabbit. Yi Chenlan took only a single glance before turning his face away.

I gave you my whole heart—how can you still look at me with those clean, innocent eyes?

To think he had once believed that Heaven had finally shown him mercy—yet it turned out to be false. It was only because, in his past life, he had not yet tasted such bitterness. That was why even in death, he could not die in peace. He had to be reborn to suffer all over again.

He opened his mouth with difficulty. “Wan Wan, you shouldn’t treat me so kindly.”

Shu Wan felt a pang in her heart. She did not understand what had come over Yi Chenlan all of a sudden. He looked as though he had been caught in a torrential downpour—desperate and fragile.

“Senior Brother Ah Lan, do you… do you not want to leave?” she asked. “Do you think I’m forcing you to go?”

“Actually… actually, that’s not it.” Shu Wan struggled to find the words. At this moment, Yi Chenlan looked like a piece of fragile porcelain, and she could only handle him with utmost care. “I… I’m not trying to hurt you. I just think that if you stay here any longer, you’ll be hurt even more. If… if you leave this place, maybe you’ll find a different path, maybe you’ll have a better life… Senior Brother Ah Lan, didn’t we agree on this the other day? You agreed too…”

Yi Chenlan listened silently. The pain still surged through him, yet he slowly straightened his body.

Yes, they had agreed. He had been the one who foolishly misunderstood, overestimating himself. But perhaps things were not so bad. After all, this laughable, shameful affection of his—no one had noticed it but himself.

Yi Chenlan slowly smiled, though it lacked the gentleness and brightness of days past. He repeated again: “Wan Wan, you shouldn’t treat me so kindly.”

Had it been the Yi Chenlan of his past life, at this very moment—after the heartache—he would likely have left in sorrow, cradling his foolish longing in some hidden corner, watching as the only warmth he knew was embraced by another, all while silently offering his blessing and protection.

But he was someone who had already died once. He had returned from the depths of hell. He would not act like that again.

He was no longer the kind and naïve Yi Chenlan of the past. What he desired, he must obtain. How could he possibly hand it over to someone else?

Since she would not take him with her, then he would take her away instead.

A trace of fine powder silently fell into Yi Chenlan’s palm. He clenched his fist tightly, a gentle smile reappearing on his face. His beautiful phoenix eyes seemed to glisten with clear moisture, exuding an almost unbearable softness.

He pleaded in a low voice: “Wan Wan, please… don’t hate me, alright?”

This line came out of nowhere, and Shu Wan, confused, reflexively asked: “Why would I hate you?”

Her gaze resembled that of a defenseless little animal, looking at the one she trusted the most with pure and unguarded eyes. Her entire being was free of any wariness, as if she were showing the softest part of her fur without reservation.

Yi Chenlan’s slightly raised hand suddenly halted.

He clenched his fist even tighter. His expression did not change, and he continued to smile as he prepared to act. Yet before he could move, he heard Shu Wan say:

“Senior Brother Ah Lan, don’t let your thoughts run wild. You’re a good person, not the least bit unlikeable.”

Yi Chenlan closed his eyes, then abruptly turned away. He took a deep breath, as though struggling to restrain something. His expression turned fierce, and his voice sounded as if it had been forced through clenched teeth. “Leave—right now.”

“Yi Chenlan! You dare try to escape?! You dare to abduct Wan Wan?!”

A furious shout suddenly rang out behind him. Yi Chenlan’s expression changed slightly. In an instant, his mind raced. Without hesitation, he flung out the hand he had just withdrawn, scattering the powder in his palm toward Shu Wan.

In almost an instant, Shu Wan’s eyes closed, and her body went limp, silently collapsing to the side.

Yi Chenlan hurried to catch her, his movements impossibly gentle, as if he were cradling a priceless treasure. He tenderly took Shu Wan’s cold little hand and rubbed it softly between his palms. Then he looked up, gaze unwavering, toward the person who had arrived—

Song Anzhi wore a cold expression, and his lips curled into a mocking sneer. “You ungrateful son of the Demon Lord, how dare you try to take Wan Wan by force! The cycle of Heaven’s retribution truly never fails. You commit vile deeds and still think you can escape, but I have caught you in the act.”

“Fortunately, Senior Brother Shu happened to be looking for you—otherwise, you really might have succeeded, Demon Lord’s heir.”

“Today, the Zhongshan Sect will give you a lesson you’ll remember for the rest of your life!”