Chapter 14: Goodbye.
Qing Chun quickly dragged Liang Chen all the way back to his house, ignoring the curious gazes that were directed at them as she did so. Only once they both entered his house and she locked the door did she let out a sigh, her eyes landing on Liang Chen's eyes and hair.
“You dumbo, just look at what you have done to your hair and eyes.”
Liang Chen sat down on the floor, still feeling ashamed at how he had lost control over himself. Hearing Qing Chun's words, he raised his head somewhat. He gently grabbed onto his now emerald hair, letting it flow between his fingers for a short moment before he shook his head.
“I'm sorry. It wasn't on purpose.”
His hair had turned green and his eyes had turned golden after cultivating using the Demonic beast blood and lightning, so it was indeed not on purpose. But as he did not know what else to say, he simply apologized. Qing Chun sat down on the floor in front of him, looking him up and down. While she looked him up and down, Liang Chen decided on what he wanted to do, speaking out in a low voice.
“Big Sister Chun, you said you were willing to listen to my story once I finished what I was doing?”
Liang Chen had said that he would tell Qing Chun what he had been doing once he managed to complete it, so now that he had reached the early stage of the Mortal Tower realm, he felt like it was time to tell her. Qing Chun's eyes lit up when she heard Liang Chen's words, a smile appearing on her face.
“Of course, as long as you are willing to talk, I am willing to listen.”
Liang Chen gave a slight nod of his head and then started to talk about what he had been doing in Sky Piercer Forest. He hid nothing from her, even describing how he killed the first snake by baiting it to bite his arm and then use the chance to stab it in the head. He even told her about his motivation, his burning desire to kill Qing Lan Yong. Once he finished telling her everything, he could see that Qing Chun's eyes had reddened as she glared at him.
“You dumbo! How could you do something so reckless!? Did you not even think about what might happen to you?!”
Qing Chun stretched out her hand and delivered a heavy chop onto the top of Liang Chen's head, furiously staring at him. Bathing in Demonic beast blood? Even though they were only Rank 0 Demonic beasts, there was still a good chance that he would either die or end up crippled! Liang Chen accepted the chop, looking at Qing Chun with determined eyes.
“I did, I thought about everything that could have happened, everything that could have gone wrong. But in the end, I still felt that it was something that I had to do. I still believe that I have to do it. If I don't, I will be unable to close my eyes when I die.”
Even if it was 100 times more dangerous, Liang Chen would still risk it, all for the chance to get revenge. Seeing the determined expression in Liang Chen's eyes, Qing Chun felt a slight ache, so she stretched out her arms and embraced Liang Chen in a tight hug.
“You reckless dumbo...”
She knew that Liang Chen's determination came from the death of his parents, an even that had scarred him deeply. Facing such a determination, she truly did not have any right to try and dissuade him from being reckless. Being embraced by Qing Chun, Liang Chen hugged her back, letting out a low apology.
“I'm sorry that I made you worry again.”
Qing Chun responded by speaking softly, her voice a little choked up.
“It's fine, it's fine. You are still alive, so it's fine.”
The two continued to embrace each other silently, simply enjoying a short moment of peace and warmth. After a little bit, Liang Chen loosened his hug and pulled back, looking at Qing Chun with a slightly apologetic expression. Qing Chun looked at Liang Chen with a slightly worried expression as she spoke out.
“Are you going out again tomorrow?”
The meaning behind her words was clear, so Liang Chen shook his head without hesitation, a warm and genuine smile appearing on his face.
“No. after all, I have to catch up on a few missed days, don't I?”
Qing Chun's body perked up after hearing Liang Chen's words, a pleased expression appearing on her face. She stretched out her arm, pointing directly at Liang Chen as she put on an aggrieved expression.
“Damn straight you do! You were gone for almost five days, so you are not allowed to leave the city for the next five days!”
It was only after hearing her words that Liang Chen realized that he had stayed in Sky Piercer Forest for five days, so it seemed like he had been sitting in that pool of blood for around one day. Liang Chen put on a smile, assuring her that he would not go anywhere until he had made up for those five days.
Qing Chun continued to stay in his house for a bit longer, making sure that Liang Chen knew what sort of punishment would await him if he were to not make up for those five days. Only after she felt confident that he would not go anywhere did Qing Chun leave the house, returning to her own home.
With Qing Chun leaving, Liang Chen picked up a clean robe and then went to the bathhouse that was located behind the house. Now that he could use Qi, he was able to activate the array that filled the tub with warm water, so he was finally able to take a warm bath again. After he took a bath and cleaned himself, he sat down on the floor in the house, closing his eyes to quietly cultivate.
Just because he had been slightly successful in his cultivation did not mean that he could start slacking, it instead meant that he would have to work harder and harder. Only like that would he be able to catch up to Qing Lan Yong.
After Liang Chen passed a few hours immersed in quiet cultivation, the smell of smoke suddenly tickled his nose. He didn't think much about it at first, but as the smell got more intense, he realized that the smell came from close by. He quickly opened his eyes and stood up, noticing that smoke was coming in through his windows and from beneath his door.
A strong sense of unease filled his chest as he dashed forward and pushed open the door. When he opened the door, what greeted him was a thick wall of smoke and hot air. His eyes quickly turned bloodshot when he saw that the garden around the house was ablaze, all the trees consumed by fire. Seeing a group of people standing outside the garden, torches in hand, he could not help but let out a loud shout at the person at the front of the group.
“Qing Youyan! What the fuck do you think you are doing?!”
Liang Chen's hands twitched when he saw Qing Youyan standing at the front of the group of people. There were a few other children, as well as a few adults, within the group that he recognized, but it was clear that Qing Youyan was the leader of this group. Qing Youyan touched the violet mark on his neck as he shouted at Liang Chen in a loud voice.
“Shut up! Not only are you spreading rumors about the Young Master, you are even so depraved that you are gleefully attacking people from the same clan! Do the years the Qing clan has spent raising you mean nothing to you?!”
Qing Youyan's voice was filled with righteousness as he shouted out. Liang Chen quickly realized how he convinced the other people in the group to do this, he had clearly exaggerated what Liang Chen had done to him right after returning to the city, riling the others up against him. Liang Chen's lips curled into a furious smile as he shouted back.
“Raising me?! The Qing clan has done nothing for me! All it has done is rob me of my parents!”
While shouting, Liang Chen also kept a close eye on the flames. The entire garden was already ablaze, and the fire was starting to spread to the main house as well as the bathhouse. Soon, there would be nothing left of the home that his parents built. Qing Youyan looked at Liang Chen, raising his head high as he condemned him.
“Your parents were traitors, and it seems like you are too!”
Liang Chen felt his blood boil, wishing he could dash over and tear Qing Youyan apart, he even started to regret not killing him earlier. But he forcefully repressed the urges, his bloodshot eyes staring at the flames that were starting to consume his home. He turned his eyes onto Qing Youyan, who had a self-satisfied expression on his face as he looked at the fire. Liang Chen decided on his next course of actions, his cold voice reaching Qing Youyan.
“Mark my words, Qing Youyan! One day I will finish what I started earlier! I will not let you have a single day of peaceful rest for as long as I live!”
Liang Chen sent one last look at the people in the group, making sure he properly memorized every single one who was part of it. He then turned around and ran away, running in the opposite direction of Qing Youyan. He ran past his house and climbed over the wooden fence that surrounded it, dashing through the city. No matter how furious he was, no matter how much he wanted to kill Qing Youyan and the others, he knew that he was outnumbered and outmatched, so he had to flee.
He could hear Qing Youyan shout something, the sound of people running after him quickly sounding out. Liang Chen felt like cursing Qing Xiang, who had left without giving him any way of contacting him. While Liang Chen was running through the city, running through as many alleys and hidden streets as he could, he suddenly heard a familiar voice call to him.
“Little Chen! Come over here!”
Liang Chen stopped running, turning towards a spot between to buildings that was hidden by two large trees. Qing Chun stood there, waving at him with a worried and hurried expression on her face. Liang Chen quickly dashed over, making sure that no one spotted him. Once he reached Qing Chun, she looked at him with a slightly regretful expression, tossing him a leather bag that he could hang over his shoulders.
“I warned you that this would happen, now there is no longer a place for you within this city. I wish I had been able to stop you before you laid your hands on Qing Youyan. Take this.”
The leather bag was slightly heavy, so it was clearly filled with quite a few things. Grabbing the bag and hanging it over his shoulders, Liang Chen could not help but question Qing Chun.
“This is?”
Qing Chun grabbed onto his wrist and started pulling him through the city, vigilantly glancing at the surroundings as they ran towards the western exit of the city, the exit that was located furthest away from his house. While they ran, Qing Chun started quickly speaking.
“It's clothing, a map of the surrounding cities, food, and a water-skin. It's everything I managed to scrounge up when I heard that they were coming for you. You need to leave this city as quickly as you can. You need to find a safe place where you can hide, a place where the people of this city won't find you.”
Liang Chen could not help but be surprised when he heard her words. Maps were very costly, as cities and towns could easily vanish because of Demonic beast attacks and other battles. Because of that, maps often had to be redrawn from scratch, making them very expensive. He could not help but wonder how Qing Chun had managed to get her hands on a map of the surrounding cities.
The two ran through the city, dodging into alleys and doing their best to stay hidden. But just as they turned a corner, a male youth clad in the robes from the Qing clan just so happened to be turning the corner a little bit ahead of them, easily spotting them.
“Qing Chun? You are helping him?!”
The youth let out a surprised shout, his eyes opening in surprise when he spotted Qing Chun. The youth looked like he was about to open his mouth and let out a loud shout, so Liang Chen's body moved on instinct. Golden arcs of lightning flashed around his legs, his speed drastically increasing as he dashed forward. His right hand shot out, grabbing onto the throat of the youth, a violet aura gathering around the hand that was grasping the youth. Recognizing what Liang Chen was about to do, Qing Chun quickly stepped forward as she let out a low shout.
“Little Chen! Let go of him!”
Liang Chen turned towards Qing Chun, his eyes conflicted as he looked at her. He did not want to kill the youth, after all, they did not have any strong hatred between each other. But as he thought about it more and more, his face hardened as he shook his head.
“I can't! He saw you! He knows that you are helping me! If I let him live now, he will tell everyone else, and then there is no way you can continue to live here, you will be forced to leave your parents and flee! He must die!”
It was enough that Liang Chen had lost his parents and was now forced to flee the city, he did not want Qing Chun to go through something similar. To prevent that from happening, he would have to kill the youth in front of him. While Liang Chen was tightening his grasp, Qing Chun grabbed onto his arms, speaking to him with pleading eyes.
“Little Chen... please don't do this. Please, I am begging you. Don't become a murderer because of me.”
Qing Chun was stronger than Liang Chen, so if she wanted to, she could easily tear him away from the youth. But it seemed like she was a bit unwilling to use strong force against Liang Chen. Liang Chen's expression twisted slightly as he looked at the pleading Qing Chun, his grip loosening slightly as he spoke.
“But then what will you do? As long as he lives to tell what he saw, you cannot continue to live here.”
The youth that Liang Chen was grasping was already purple in the face, the skin on his neck melting because of Liang Chen's poison. Liang Chen's poison was not normal poison, it was a mixture of all the poison that was mixed into the Demonic beast blood that he bathed in. If he was not unconsciously holding back, the youth would likely have died already. After hearing Liang Chen's question, Qing Chun's expression distorted slightly, her voice slightly hesitant as she spoke out.
“I will flee. I have an aunt in Willow's Rest, she holds a rather high position in the Qing clan, so she will keep me safe. But while she can keep me safe, there is nothing she can do for you. You see, I will be completely safe. Please, Little Chen.”
Liang Chen could tell that Qing Chun was not being completely honest with him, there was something she was hiding from him. He let go of the youth, who dropped to the floor and started gasping for air. He was a bit better off than Qing Youyan had been, so Qing Chun did not heal him, there also wasn't time to heal him now. Liang Chen looked at Qing Chun with determined eyes, grabbing her wrist and pulling her along as he continued towards the western exit.
“I will lead you to Willow's Rest.”
Qing Chun was clearly hiding something, but Liang Chen could also tell that she did not want to tell him. With his parents now dead, the only one left that he truly trusted was Qing Chun. Since she did not want to tell him, he would not press her to tell him. Qing Chun grabbed onto Liang Chen's wrist, stopping him from running further. A sweet smile appeared on her lips as she spoke.
“Thank you, Little Chen. But that won't be necessary.”
After Qing Chun spoke, the shadows on the ground around them started to twist and distort, two human figures rising out of the shadows. Both figures released an overpowering pressure, their bodies clad in completely black clothing that hid their features. Shocked at seeing two people emerge from the shadows, Liang Chen could not help but question.
“These are?”
Seeing Liang Chen's expression, Qing Chun had a bitter smile on her face. The two shadowy figures took a step backward, standing behind Qing Chun without saying anything. Qing Chun pointed at the two people, giving a short description of them.
“Guards that my aunt has prepared for me, they will ensure my safety.”
Looking at the two guards standing silently behind Qing Chun, and hearing her description of them, one fact was clear to Liang Chen, the Qing Chun he had known all his life clearly hid a big secret. At the same time, he wondered how the guards got here so fast. Exactly when had Qing Chun called them over?
“They seem quite strong for guards, and they arrived rather quickly.”
Hearing Liang Chen's question, Qing Chun looked like she was at a bit of a loss on how to respond. In the end, she shook her head and let out a deep sigh, deciding to tell him the truth.
“They have always been by my side and keeping an eye on me, that is why they could get here so fast.”
Liang Chen could not help but be a little shocked at Qing Chun's answer. Had they always been there? Did that mean that they had been at her side ever since she was born, stalking in the shadows? Did that mean that they had seen everything the two of them had done together? Every hug and promise they had made? While Liang Chen was still immersed in his shock, Qing Chun looked at him with a worried and apologetic expression.
“Little Chen, just like you have lied to me, I have lied to you. Once we meet again, would you be willing to listen to my story?”
Liang Chen pushed aside his shock, looking directly at Qing Chun. Seeing him look at her so directly, Qing Chun's worried and apologetic expression grew a bit heavier. But contrary to what she expected, a bright and warm smile spread on his face as he nodded his head.
“Of course, as long as you are willing to talk, I am willing to listen.”
After he nodded his head, he swept the surroundings with his eyes. The sound of people running was getting closer, so it seemed like some people were starting to get close to them. He sent one last look at Qing Chun, the warm smile on his face growing a little brighter.
“Goodbye, Big Sister Chun. Once I am stronger, I will find you and listen to your story.”
After he spoke, Liang Chen did not hesitate any more, turning around and dashing away. Lightning crackled around his legs, pushing his speed to the max as he dashed towards the western exit. With the two guards, Qing Chun would be just fine, so he did not need to worry about her, he just had to worry about what he would do in the future. Qing Chun looked at the swiftly disappearing figure of Liang Chen, a smile spreading on her face.
“Goodbye, Little Chen. I look forward to the day your name causes the earth to tremble.”
After she spoke, the two shadowy figures behind her placed their hands on her shoulders. The shadows beneath them rose up from the ground, swallowing them and sinking back into the ground, their figures nowhere to be spotted.