Chapter 74#
Sensing Heaven’s Secrets#
The person who arrived was dressed in white as pure as snow, with ink-black hair flowing like a waterfall, slanted brows, and phoenix eyes. Wherever he stood, it felt as though a snowfall had occurred. However, unlike the cold, ice-like gaze in Yin Yuheng’s memory, those eyes were now filled with deep exhaustion, pain, and yearning—lifeless, like a person in their twilight years. Li Guanghan’s lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, nothing came out.
Who could have imagined that the once heartless and emotionless Soul Transformation stage Sword Sovereign would one day end up like this? He didn’t even dare to look at the person he longed for day and night; he could only watch from a distance, unable to step forward.
Yin Yuheng’s gaze crossed with his through the celestial light and tree shadows, only to quickly shift away. In that brief moment of intersection, Li Guanghan clearly saw the indifference in the other’s eyes.
Yin Yuheng had returned, but the Yin Yuheng who once regarded him as a mentor and loved and respected him would never return. The spring breeze was slightly warm, but Li Guanghan felt a chill deep in his bones.
Yin Shaozhuo’s expression darkened even further upon seeing Li Guanghan. He grabbed Yin Yuheng’s hand, his voice carrying a hint of coldness: “Don’t move.”
Yin Xuanji took Yin Yuheng’s other hand, not looking back, as if she hadn’t seen Li Guanghan at all: “Your hands are so cold. Is your body still feeling unwell? Hurry home, why are you standing here like a fool! You’re such a grown-up, yet you still need your sister to look after you?”
Yin Yuheng smiled gently and stopped looking at the white figure. He allowed Yin Xuanji to pull him into the main gate, even turning back to wink at Lu Yan and mouthing “Hurry up and follow.” Soon, the gate closed with a “clack,” and Yin Yuheng did not look back again.
Li Guanghan watched helplessly as the figure of the youth he yearned for vanished before his eyes. He took a dazed step forward, only to be stopped by a scorching blade of qi.
This strike was restrained, yet it still left a scorched mark on the ground, with a lingering, sharp killing intent in the sword qi.
Li Guanghan suddenly snapped back to his senses, halted his steps, and gritted his teeth: “Lu Yan—can the Demon Race now act so freely in Zhaohe?”
Lu Yan didn’t speak, merely lifting the tip of his sword. Li Guanghan understood; it was a signal for him to get lost.
Li Guanghan let out a sarcastic laugh, his eyes saturated with bone-deep jealousy. His hand inside his sleeve slowly tightened, but in the end, he forced down the surging emotions in his heart.
He didn’t dare to strike.
It wasn’t because Lu Yan was the Demon Emperor—Li Guanghan had the pride of a Soul Transformation Sword Sovereign and disdained bowing to anyone. But at this moment, before the East Palace and in front of Yin Yuheng, how could he dare to draw his sword against Lu Yan?
Lu Yan was the one Yin Yuheng favored.
Li Guanghan took a deep breath and said with restraint, “I just came to take a look. Today is the day A-Heng returns home. Don’t annoy him at a time like this…”
Lu Yan said coldly: “Your mere presence annoys him.”
Li Guanghan’s breath hitched, and the light in his eyes dimmed.
He was powerless to refute. Li Guanghan knew he was unwelcome; he just wanted to watch from afar. It was simply too unbearable… He no longer dared to hope that he was the one in Yin Yuheng’s heart, nor did he dare to beg for forgiveness. He only hoped for the heavens’ mercy—that Yin Yuheng could live well, so that perhaps he might still have a chance to say a word or two to him.
Li Guanghan closed his eyes and stopped looking toward where Yin Yuheng had disappeared, and stopped looking at Lu Yan: “I came today because I have something to say.”
Lu Yan frowned.
Li Guanghan said in a heavy voice: “Two things. One concerns Yuheng, and the other concerns the world.”
——————
National Teacher’s Mansion, Heaven-Inquiry Altar.
Zhu Anning sat kneeling in the center of the formation. The formation was intended for stripping spiritual veins, but it wasn’t yet fully complete; he was just sitting there dazed, watching it.
Zhu Anning hadn’t cultivated properly for a long time, and he rarely even picked up a sword. Every time he held a sword, he would remember how his senior brother used to hold his hand, teaching him how to strike bit by bit. He would remember how gentle the breeze was then, and how tender his senior brother’s voice was. But in the blink of an eye, the image in his mind would shift to his senior brother covered in blood.
Zhu Anning suddenly lowered his head and laughed, gently touching his own wrist.
How was he worthy of using a sword again?
Zhu Anning felt a bit cold, likely a lingering effect of soaking in the waters of the Ice Lake. He didn’t have Yin Yuheng’s talent, so he could only use this method to temper his spiritual veins.
Stolen things must always be returned. He was only afraid that His Highness would find him dirty and wouldn’t want them.
His senior brother had once told him not to use his blood. In fact, not using his blood was for the best. Zhu Anning understood in his heart that even with the tempering of the Ice Lake water, his heart’s blood would never reach the same level of purity as Yin Yuheng’s. Even if he drained all the blood in his body, he couldn’t save Yin Yuheng’s health.
So Zhu Anning decided to use a more effective and more resolute method.
—He would dig out his own spiritual veins and spiritual platform to repair his senior brother’s damaged ones.
Zhu Anning propped himself up on the ground and stood up shakily. Footsteps came from the door; it was a young Daoist boy coming to deliver a message. Li Guanghan had been unwilling to see him for a long time; coincidentally, Zhu Anning also loathed Li Guanghan’s face.
“The National Teacher sent word that His Highness has returned to the capital. You may go now.”
Zhu Anning’s eyes lit up, and a trace of genuine joy appeared on his face. He moved toward the door, but as his disheveled hair fell before his eyes, he suddenly stopped.
How could he go see His Highness looking like this? He was already loathsome enough; he couldn’t be so messy. With trembling hands, Zhu Anning bound his hair again, and he once more recalled how, on that long street long ago, his senior brother had gathered his hair, inserted that jade hairpin, and smiled at him with bright eyes.
The greatest bitterness in the world is that spilled water cannot be gathered back. What’s more painful is that he has so many memories—every movement, every word, every action reminds him of Yin Yuheng’s shadow.
The past cannot be chased. Zhu Anning composed his expression, took the necessary items, and stepped out of the gate with firm steps.
——————
By the time Lu Yan entered the room, Yin Yuheng was already asleep. His spirits were still not very good; a wound to the soul was the most difficult type of injury to heal. Seeing his pale face, Lu Yan’s heart sank again.
The furnishings in the room were still as they were in the past. The room was cleaned very thoroughly, and nothing had been moved much; even the book he hadn’t finished reading before leaving was still on the small table, with light and shadow scattering in from the window. Lu Yan sat by the bed, quietly watching the sleeping person. For a moment, it felt as if he had returned to those years. Lu Yan remembered that he often looked after the sick and injured A-Heng like this.
Why was he always getting injured… Driven by some unknown impulse, Lu Yan reached out to touch Yin Yuheng’s hair, then uncontrollably moved downward—to his brows, the tip of his nose, and finally lightly pressing against Yin Yuheng’s lips.
Too pale, no color at all, Lu Yan thought. Yin Yuheng suddenly stirred and opened his eyes.
Lu Yan didn’t have time to withdraw his hand: “…”
Yin Yuheng parted his lips, and whether intentionally or unintentionally, lightly bit Lu Yan’s fingertip, laughing softly: “Doing something bad in secret?”
“!”
As if burned, Lu Yan abruptly withdrew his hand, his cheeks flushed, his voice serious: “I wasn’t.”
Yin Yuheng chuckled: “Then why were you leaning so close to me?”
Only then did Lu Yan realize he was almost lying on top of Yin Yuheng. He silently sat up straight, turned his head, coughed lightly, and said: “Li Guanghan has left.”
Yin Yuheng raised an eyebrow: “Him. I thought you would have stabbed him directly when you saw him.”
Lu Yan fell silent for a moment. He indeed wanted to do that.
Lu Yan hesitated: “After all, he is the Sword Sovereign of the Human Race, and… did you want me to do it?”
Yin Yuheng laughed, saying softly: “What are you afraid of? I will always choose you. Do you think I would still have any lingering pity for him? He should also have some self-awareness. What did he come for this time?”
Lu Yan smiled slightly, then turned serious again: “He just came and said two things. One is that he has a way to repair your spiritual platform and spiritual veins, and the other…”
“He and I are both in the Soul Transformation stage and can both sense the vague secrets of heaven. For some time now, the heavenly portents have given a bad premonition,” Lu Yan’s voice grew heavy. “And in these last few days, this premonition has become even stronger. It’s as if some calamity is coming.”
“It’s not a calamity directed at any one person, but… the Human, Demon, and Ghost races will likely all be unable to escape its influence.”
Just as Yin Yuheng frowned, in his sea of consciousness, Xiao Bai suddenly spoke up: “Brother Heng—I feel it too—”