When she heard this news, Su Yan froze.
It took her a while to get her emotions back under control. Finally, she smiled as if she didnât want to burden anyone and asked casually, âhow did you run into him? Isnât he working for the demons now?â
As soon as she finished her sentence, she laughed self-deprecatingly. âThatâs right, he works for the demons. You were just out fighting them, why wouldnât you run into him?â
Her tone was indifferent as she asked and answered her own questions.
Ye Zichen watched as she forced herself to smile. For a long time, he said nothing.
âWhatâre you looking at me like that for?â Su Yan batted her eyes and smiled. âYou donât think Iâd let him influence my state of mind, do you? Come on, Iâm not as fragile as you think.â
It was that same smile as before: a smile unwilling to weigh others down. If you werenât familiar with her, you perhaps couldnât see through it but Ye Zichen could. He saw it in the angle of her lips and the way she narrowed her eyes.
It was as if sheâd practiced it hundreds or thousands of times; it was a fixed pattern engraved into her mind.
He watched her a while longer. Finally, he couldnât help but ask, âis that really what youâre thinking?â
âIt is,â she said with a decisive nod. âItâs true: Su Yiyun was my brother back in the Modern Realm and he was always good to me. If weâd gone on living in the Modern Realm, he might have stayed that doting older brother forever. Unfortunately, this isnât the Modern World. Heâs no longer my loving big brother.â
âWeâll go back sooner or later.â
Deep within his heart, Ye Zichen had always seen returning to the Modern Realm as his goal. Regardless of whatever else was going on, this wasnât the place they truly belonged.
âYou donât need to push yourself too hard.â Su Yan smiled and shook her head. âBeing here feels quite good too. My friends and lover from the Modern Realm are here with me. Besides, if we really do go back, I donât know how Iâd explain it.â
âExplain what?â asked Ye Zichen in confusion.
âWhere Su Yiyun went.â Su Yan cocked her head to the side and took a deep breath. âHeâs my uncleâs beloved only son. If Uncle asks where he went, what should I tell him? I canât just say âYiyun went off to join the demons and is working as their formations grandmaster,â nos can I? That wouldnât work too well.â
Su Yanâs tried her best to keep her tone as facetious as possible. From time to time, she even stuck out her tongue and laughed. She didnât want Ye Zichen to worry on her behalf.
She was timid.
She still wasnât accustomed to this place or to her life here.
Although Su Liuâer and Su Zhu treated her well, like a princess, this still wasnât her home.
But she didnât want her weakness to influence Ye Zichen. She wasnât stupid, and even if she was, sheâd still know the person in her heart was already shouldering an enormous burden, a load heavy enough to crush just about anyone.
She didnât want to become a burden to him or increase the weight on his shoulders, not even a little.
Sometimes, she truly envied Xia Keke. She was always smiling foolishly, no matter what was going on. It was as if sheâd never worried about anything, nor had she ever made others worry on her behalf.
Little did she know, Ye Zichen knew her far too well. How could he not know what she was thinking?
âThatâs true.â Ye Zichen decided not to expose Su Yanâs act. Instead, he smiled at her and said determinedly, âbut I still want to go back.â
âMm, no matter where you go, Iâll follow you.â Su Yan smiled sweetly at him, then fidgeted with the hem of her clothes. âMy brotherâŠ. Su Yiyun. Has he really completely thrown his lot in with the demons?
âHe has.â Ye Zichen responded to her tentative question decisively, leaving no room for doubt. âIn the ambush earlier, we could have finished off a lot more of the demons, which would have been a great help in our future battles. Then he appeared and put an end to their losses. In the past, I couldnât be certain but now I know for sure: he truly has sided with the demons.â
âOh. Thatâs truly a pity,â Su Yan sighed.
Then she said gravely, âwhen the time comes, you absolutely must not be softhearted. Since youâre certain heâs allied with the demons, you have to put aside your former friendship.â
âI will.â Ye Zichen still sat on the ground. Now, he tightly clenched his fists and frowned into the sky. âWhen the time comes, I absolutely wonât show mercy. No one can stop me from taking hold of the future. No matter who gets in my way, Iâll handle them personally, even if itâs Olâ Three himself.â
âThatâs good. Now that youâve said that, I can finally relax.â Su Yan smiled and nodded. She put her hand to her forehead and peered up into the clouds. âI wonât disturb you any longer then. Iâll go now, then?â
âAlright.â
Then, just as she was on the verge of leaving, she stopped. Her beautiful face was tense as she repeated herself, seemingly afraid Ye Zichen had forgotten. âWhen the time comes, donât show any mercy. Got it?â
âI wonât.â
When she saw Ye Zichen, she turned and left. However, the instant she turned away, her shoulders shook and her warm smile grew devastatingly bleak.
As Ye Zichen watched her leave, he muttered to himself, âIâm sorry.â
Then his gaze grew cold. âI canât show mercy, not even if I wanted to, not even if youâreâŠ. Su Yiyun.â
The vast and powerful demon army swept through the sky. By now, there was no longer any trace of sadness in their eyes.
A great battle was about to begin. Even if Black Dragon hadnât warned them, they knew better than to let their emotions sway them.
Gu Li stood before the army, shoulder to shoulder with Black Dragon, yet heâd felt a cold chill down his spine the whole way here.
Suddenly, he spoke. âI never would have guessed that, after that first ambush in the canyon, we wouldnât encounter anything at all on our way here.â
Black Dragon looked at him coldly and snorted, âwhat, you wanted another one?â
âYour Excellency, youâre too sensitive.â Gu Li shrugged helplessly. âSince they didnât try to ambush us again, it seems theyâve decided to simply fight to the death.â
âI donât need you to remind me of that,â replied Black Dragon coolly.
Then he arched his brows and asked, âweâre almost in their inner sanctum, yet I havenât seen any of your subordinates even after all this time. Surely youâre not planning to make the demons fight the Beast Region on their own while you reap all the benefits?â
âHow could I? Since weâre working together, I couldnât possibly do something like that. Youâve led your entire army to battle. My subordinates will naturally participate as well.â
With that, a line of dark shadows came into Black Dragonâs line of sight. They approached from afar, led by three indistinct figures.
Before long, the three hurried to Gu Liâs side.
âGu Li, Your Excellency.â
The three arrivals were none other than the Zombie Progenitors: Jiangchen, Hanba, and Houqing. An endless army of hungry, vicious blood zombies followed behind them.
Gu Li nodded at them, then smiled at Black Dragon. âLook, Your Excellency. My people are all here.â
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