Chapter 31: The Dragon Stirs
The storm had passed, but Tianxu City had never felt more tense.
At the Gallant Villa, silence blanketed the halls. Chen Yu stood in the central courtyard, the moonlight reflecting off the marble beneath his feet. His coat swayed gently in the night breeze. The world around him felt still—but his mind was anything but calm.
Behind him, soft footsteps approached.
It was Ruxue.
She didn't speak right away, just stepped beside him and looked up at the stars.
"You haven't said a word since the meeting with Qin Xuelin," she said softly.
"I'm thinking," Chen replied.
"You always are," she said with a faint smile. "But I worry... that you're starting to carry everything alone."
Chen turned to look at her. Under the moonlight, Ruxue's eyes shimmered with something unspoken.
"I chose this path," he said. "No one else needs to suffer for it."
"And yet," she whispered, "we already are."