# Chapter 22 â Night of Unease
# Sun City â Inner Refuge District
Night covered Sun City quietly.
Too quietly.
The usual noise of merchants, taverns, and crowded streets had disappeared completely. Insteadâ
temporary camps filled the inner districts while frightened civilians huddled around spirit lamps and small fires.
Children cried softly.
Guards patrolled constantly.
Cultivators rested while gripping weapons even during sleep.
Nobody truly felt safe anymore.
---
The crimson glow from the eastern mountains still illuminated the distant horizon faintly.
Like an eye that refused to close.
---
Xu Yuan sat atop a damaged rooftop while cold wind passed through the ruined district below.
The city looked different now.
Smaller somehow.
Fragile.
---
Behind himâ
Lin Hao climbed onto the roof while carrying two food containers.
âI spent thirty minutes fighting three people for this.â
Xu Yuan glanced backward.
âThat sounds less like buying food and more like war.â
âWe are literally in war.â
Fair point.
---
Lin Hao dropped beside him dramatically before handing over one container.
The food inside looked questionable.
Even during disastersâ
Sun City cooking remained dangerous.
---
Xu Yuan poked the food suspiciously.
âThis might kill me before the monsters do.â
Lin Hao immediately pointed toward him.
âGood.â
âThen the city survives.â
âThat feels emotionally hostile.â
---
For a brief momentâ
both quietly laughed.
Small.
Tired.
But real.
Sometimes even simple jokes made heavy nights easier.
---
Below the rooftopâ
several younger guards argued while repairing barricades.
âYou placed the formation stone backward!â
âHow was I supposed to know it matters?â
âIt literally exploded!â
âThat sounds like poor design!â
Even nearby cultivators almost smiled slightly.
People naturally searched for normal moments during disasters.
---
Xu Yuan slowly looked toward the eastern mountains again.
The resonance inside his chest had calmed somewhat after sunset.
But not fully.
It still pulsed occasionally.
Like something deep beneath the gate continued calling him silently.
---
And worseâ
he still remembered the system messages clearly.
> Host stability: Low
>
> Unknown observer present
---
Xu Yuan honestly disliked the second line most.
Being watched by ancient horrors already felt bad enough.
Now apparently even mysterious systems were suspicious.
---
Thenâ
soft footsteps approached behind him.
Xia Yu quietly climbed onto the rooftop before sitting beside him naturally.
No hesitation.
No awkwardness.
Like always.
---
Lin Hao stared toward both of them silently.
Then sighed deeply.
âYou two really act married already.â
Xu Yuan calmly answered:
âWeâre engaged.â
âThat somehow makes it worse.â
---
Xia Yu calmly took some food from Xu Yuanâs container without asking.
Xu Yuan looked offended.
âThat was my suspicious food.â
âYou werenât eating it.â
ââŠFair.â
---
For several momentsâ
the three quietly sat together while looking over the damaged city.
Spirit lights flickered throughout the streets below while distant patrols continued moving across rooftops.
Despite everythingâ
Sun City still endured.
Barely.
---
Then suddenlyâ
BOOOOMâŠ
A deep heartbeat echoed from the mountains again.
The entire city fell silent instantly.
Even civilians stopped talking.
---
The ground trembled lightly afterward.
Not enough to destroy anything.
Just enough to remind everyoneâ
something beneath the crimson gate still lived.
---
Lin Hao quietly swallowed.
âI hate that sound.â
Xu Yuan nodded slightly.
âSame.â
---
Xia Yu slowly narrowed her eyes toward the mountains.
âItâs getting stronger.â
Xu Yuan immediately looked toward her.
âYou can feel it too?â
She nodded once.
âThe pressure keeps increasing.â
---
For several secondsâ
none of them spoke afterward.
Because everyone understood what that meant.
The gate was still opening.
Slowly.
Relentlessly.
---
Then suddenlyâ
Xu Yuanâs vision flickered again.
The rooftop vanished briefly.
Dark endless ruins appeared around him once more.
Black crystal pillars stretched endlessly through darkness while ancient chains crossed the sky overhead.
And before himâ
the translucent system screen appeared again.
---
> InitializingâŠ
>
> Synchronizing host soulâŠ
>
> Detecting foreign suppressionâŠ
---
Xu Yuan frowned slightly.
Foreign suppression?
---
Thenâ
another line appeared.
---
> Warning:
>
> Host soul heavily sealed
>
> Potential inaccessible
>
> External curse detected
---
Before Xu Yuan could reactâ
the female voice from earlier echoed again softly.
> âDo not awaken too quicklyâŠâ
Thenâ
another voice answered from the darkness.
Cold.
Ancient.
Inhuman.
> âThe fragment must return.â
---
BOOM!
Xu Yuan instantly returned to reality.
His breathing became unstable briefly.
---
Xia Yu immediately noticed.
âYou disappeared again.â
Lin Hao blinked.
ââŠWhat does that even mean?â
Xu Yuan rubbed his forehead slowly.
âI think my mind is becoming complicated.â
âThat sentence explains nothing.â
âBecause I understand nothing.â
---
For onceâ
Xu Yuan sounded genuinely exhausted.
And Xia Yu noticed immediately.
Her expression softened slightly.
Then quietlyâ
she leaned closer beside him.
Not dramatic.
Not embarrassed.
Just naturally supportive.
---
Lin Hao stared toward them for several seconds.
Then slowly stood up.
âI suddenly feel very unnecessary here.â
Xu Yuan looked upward.
âYou arrived carrying food.â
âThat was my entire role in this story.â
---
Even Xia Yu quietly smiled again.
Small.
Brief.
But enough to make the atmosphere lighter for a moment.
---
Thenâ
far beyond the cityâ
something moved beneath the crimson gate again.
This timeâ
the mountains themselves cracked slightly.
And deep inside the endless darknessâ
countless crimson eyes slowly opened wider.
Watching Sun City patiently.
Waiting for the seal to weaken further.