To be fair, most people would find a handsome, quiet companion likable, and Xu Ziyan was no exception. Ultimately, though, concern for his brother outweighed everything else. Xu Zirong’s unmistakable dislike of Bai Muhua diminished whatever goodwill he felt.
So Xu Ziyan wavered between liking and disliking Bai Muhua. In the end, dislike won by a narrow margin. He decided to find a relatively safe place to leave the man, then come back for him when they were preparing to leave the realm a month later.
He had mainly made this decision to spare Xu Zirong’s feelings. Whatever the reason for Zirong’s dislike, Xu Ziyan would never disregard Xu Zirong’s feelings simply for a stranger he happened to find somewhat agreeable.
Bai Hua accepted the proposal calmly. Although confident in his appearance, he did not believe a stranger would fall in love at first sight. Given enough time together, he might win Xu Ziyan over, but a few hours would not suffice. Besides, his dragon-shaped jade pendant had begun to warm, as though sensing something. He wanted to investigate its secrets away from the brothers.
Xu Ziyan was pleased by Bai Muhua’s understanding, though he regretted that Zirong could not get along with him. As requested, he left Bai Muhua beside a small stream.
After they parted, the gloom surrounding Xu Zirong eased at once. His expression remained cool, but Xu Ziyan could tell he had relaxed.
“Zirong… do you really hate Bai Muhua that much?” Xu Ziyan hesitated before asking. His brother was normally distant toward others, but rarely displayed such open hostility.
After a long silence, Xu Zirong slowly raised his head. “Big Brother, would you believe me if I said I don’t even know why I hate him?”
Xu Ziyan paused, then nodded vigorously. “Of course I believe you! Why wouldn’t I?” He smiled, leaped onto Xu Zirong’s flying sword, and ruffled his hair. “No matter what happens, Big Brother will always believe Zirong.”
Xu Zirong blinked, then suddenly flung himself into Xu Ziyan’s arms and rubbed his cheek against him.
“Careful!” Cold sweat broke out on Xu Ziyan’s forehead. They were still standing on a flying sword! One careless move and they could fall. Cultivators were powerful, but hardly immune to dying from a great height. If anyone heard the Xu brothers had fallen because they lost control of their flying sword, they would become the Xuanyu Domain’s favorite joke for the next decade.
“Sorry.” Xu Zirong stuck out his tongue. His brother’s promise of unconditional trust had moved him so much that he had momentarily forgotten he was controlling a sword in midair.
Xu Ziyan stared at Xu Zirong for a moment, then burst into laughter. Xu Zirong’s expression had been unbearably adorable. He had almost never seen his brother act so childishly, even though Zirong really was only twelve.
Xu Zirong blushed at the laughter. Even the great Blood Demon realized what he had done. He had lived two lifetimes, yet Xu Ziyan’s indulgence kept coaxing childish gestures from him.
How humiliating!
In fact, the Blood Demon had lived only a little more than thirty years in his previous life. The first ten years had been defined by abuse in the Xu family; the next ten were spent cultivating relentlessly, sustained by the desire to return and take revenge. His hatred for that family had become his reason to live.
In the last ten years, he destroyed the Xu family, founded the Blood Demon Palace, and became the infamous Blood Demon. All he wanted was to survive the pursuit of righteous cultivators. In the end, however, he was killed by Bai Hua and Bai Hua’s lovers.
Wait… Bai Hua?
Xu Zirong’s eyes flew wide. He finally understood why he had hated Bai Muhua so intensely. His silhouette was remarkably similar to Bai Hua’s. Xu Zirong had witnessed Bai Hua and his three lovers together countless times in his previous life, so that figure was engraved in his memory. But Bai Muhua’s face, compared with Bai Hua’s…
Wait a moment!
Xu Zirong’s eyes turned blood-red, and a vicious killing intent burst from him.
Why? Why couldn’t he remember Bai Hua’s face?
He remembered everything else about his previous life with startling clarity. So why was Bai Hua’s appearance the one thing he could not recall?
It felt as though someone had deliberately erased Bai Hua’s face from his memories. Whenever Xu Zirong tried to remember him, his features were veiled in mist, and Xu Zirong had never even noticed the omission until now.
“Zirong, what’s wrong?” Xu Ziyan was startled by the sudden murderous aura. He immediately raised a shield of spiritual power in front of them both, while lightning serpents danced along his fingers, ready to strike.
When he realized the killing intent came from Xu Zirong, his expression darkened. Xu Zirong was usually so detached. What hatred could produce an aura this fierce?
Under Xu Ziyan’s protection, Zirong had suffered little in the Xu family and had made no enemies. Yet the killing intent was almost tangible. What was happening?
Xu Zirong suppressed the murderous aura almost immediately, but Xu Ziyan’s question made his blood run cold.
The strange problem involving Bai Hua’s face vanished from his thoughts. Now there was only one thing to figure out: how to explain that murderous aura to Xu Ziyan.
He froze. His mind raced for an excuse, but he had been standing far too close to his brother. Claiming the killing intent came from elsewhere would insult Xu Ziyan’s intelligence.
He knew how much his brother spoiled him, yet a poor explanation could open a fatal rift between them.
What should he do? What should he do?
Xu Zirong desperately searched his mind. At that moment, his thoughts seemed completely blank.
None of his usual little tricks would work. No matter how hard he thought, he could find no solution.
“Zirong? Are you all right?” Xu Ziyan was nearly frantic when Xu Zirong remained silent and motionless. The boy stood stiffly on the flying sword, while Xu Ziyan’s heart burned with worry. “Zirong, don’t frighten me. Damn it, what’s going on? There’s nobody else around. How could this happen?” He summoned his own flying sword, scooped Xu Zirong up, and jumped onto it.
Xu Zirong had been agonizing over an explanation, but his brother’s words suddenly gave him an idea.
The instant Xu Ziyan held him, he went limp and let his body hang against his brother as though he had lost consciousness.
Xu Ziyan landed and laid Xu Zirong beneath a small tree. Seeing that Zirong appeared unconscious, he hurriedly examined him.
He found no injuries, but Xu Ziyan immediately seized his brother’s wrist and sent his spiritual power through Zirong’s meridians to examine him internally.
Xu Ziyan’s spiritual power carried the violently destructive force of the Azure Firmament Divine Lightning. He had to devote nine parts of his concentration to suppressing it, leaving only one part for examining Xu Zirong.
Within moments, large beads of sweat were rolling down Xu Ziyan’s face. Salty sweat stung his eyes, but he could not spare the attention to wipe it away. All his concentration was occupied by restraining the lightning and examining his brother.
Only a tenth of his power could be used for the examination, so his dantian was soon more than half empty. Nearly half of Zirong’s body remained unchecked, and Xu Ziyan could feel his spiritual power running dry.
Diverting a sliver of attention, he pulled a bottle of Essence-Replenishing Pills from his storage bag and poured its entire contents into his mouth. The fragrant pills turned into a hot stream of power within his dantian, where the Azure Firmament Divine Lightning rushed to devour it like a shark scenting blood.
With the pills replenishing him, Xu Ziyan inspected all of Xu Zirong’s meridians and dantian. Nothing seemed wrong. His anxiety increased: if Zirong’s body was unharmed, the attack might have targeted his divine sense.
Just as Xu Ziyan was about to leave the Azure Spirit Secret Realm immediately to seek help from his master, Xu Zirong let out a faint groan and opened his eyes.
“Zirong!” Overjoyed, Xu Ziyan pulled him into a tight embrace. “Are you all right?”
Xu Zirong blinked as though waking from a long dream. “Big Brother?”
“It’s me. What happened just now? Did somebody attack you?”
Xu Zirong seemed confused. First he nodded, then shook his head. “I’m not sure. It was as if someone suddenly got into my head and told me to hand over my body. But Big Brother told me never to give my body to anyone else, so I fought him. He was very powerful and knew lots of techniques, but I could control the surroundings in there. In the end, I won.”
As he spoke of his victory, Xu Zirong looked proud and expectantly waited for praise.
Xu Ziyan, meanwhile, was so horrified by the account that he nearly lost control of himself.
Wasn’t that possession? Damn it! His brother had nearly been possessed! This world was terrifying. Someone could be minding their own business and suddenly have somebody try to steal their body!