Chapter 101
Yu Sui lay beneath the snow mountain without getting up. Both light cores had been crushed, so she couldn't see how the battle on the other side of the snow mountain was going.
When Senior Brother obtained the mechanism nine-sided die, Yu Sui also thought he could use the Golden Crow Red Arrow, but unexpectedly the Golden Crow Red Arrow didn't activate.
But that was fine.
She had already successfully shattered Wenyang Hui's Five Elements Light Core. Senior Brother was so smart, he should know to control Wenyang Hui and seize control of the situation.
She couldn't hear any sounds from the other end of the snow mountain at all.
Yu Sui still had no strength. She closed her eyes to rest, but her mind remained active, recalling all the previous moments.
Senior Brother's Wind-Riding Techniques were abnormally fast, reminding Yu Sui of her Thunder Snake enhanced by Strange Fire power. Even with Five Elements Energy in chaos, he could calmly counterattack and even try to get the jump on controlling Wenyang Hui.
Without some trump card up his sleeve, Yu Sui wouldn't believe it.
Just from the speed of his Wind-Riding Techniques alone, she couldn't tell what Divine Mechanism Arts it was.
Yu Sui quietly listened to the sound of wind and snow. Strange Fire's heat allowed her to avoid being invaded by cold. In her daze, she heard the sound of small stones falling from above.
Strange Fire flickered, informing her that two figures were approaching.
Yu Sui heard Wenyang Hui's screams and curses as Mei Liangyu kicked him down. He was unwilling to admit defeat, yet afraid Mei Liangyu would really go crazy and kill him, so he began talking about various stakes and consequences.
Wenyang Hui suffered multiple impacts while rolling down, and without Five Elements Energy protecting his body, the Young Master's precious body was tortured beyond recognition. After rolling in the ice and snow, his face turned purple from the cold.
"If you dare kill me... and my uncle... my mother won't spare you... she's..."
Wenyang Hui struggled to raise his head to look at Mei Liangyu behind him, but saw him flick his finger. Wenyang Hui felt his abdomen take a heavy blow, spat out blood, and his body continued rolling down uncontrollably.
Under severe injuries, Wenyang Hui fainted several times.
He rolled down from the mountain slope, his bleeding wounds picking up snow particles and black sand. The impacts from rolling scratched his face, making him completely unrecognizable.
When he reached the bottom of the snow mountain, Wenyang Hui fainted again.
Mei Liangyu's gaze swept over him and saw another figure lying beneath the snow mountain.
This figure wore the same orange-gold long dress as Junior Sister Nangong Sui, with the same hairstyle, even the same golden hairpins.
Not long ago he had gazed at that crabapple golden hairpin on Yu Sui's hair. Its owner had a fresh, bright face, obedient and gentle when looking down, with soft smiles filling her eyebrows and eyes. She could chat and laugh with him, occasionally looking up at him.
Now this person lay on the ground covered in blood, quiet and silent, no longer speaking or looking at this world.
The north wind howled, cold drilling into his clothes and mixing with his wounds into his body, seeming to freeze even his blood. Mei Liangyu stared fixedly at Yu Sui below, able to see the large patch of still-wet blood on her chest.
Her usually fair skin with a rosy glow now showed only weak pallor, and he couldn't even see her breathing rise and fall.
Mei Liangyu had originally been quite far from the foot of the mountain, but because of that figure reflected in his eyes, he used Divine Mechanism Arts again despite his Five Elements Energy chaos, rushing down with Wind-Riding Techniques. In just a few instants he had reached Yu Sui.
Seeing Yu Sui's lifeless appearance up close, the thoughts hanging in Mei Liangyu's heart crashed to the ground, creating a thunderous sound deep in his heart.
It looked like the Golden Crow Red Arrow had killed with one strike.
At this moment, Mei Liangyu's mind flashed with all of Yu Sui's once-vibrant appearances. His brain, which always held many things and operated constantly, briefly stopped and went blank for an instant, until he saw flying snow land on Yu Sui's cheek and instantly disappear.
Mei Liangyu's fingers trembled slightly. Frowning, he crouched down and reached toward Yu Sui. His slender, bloodied fingers gently traced her warm cheek, and his gentle touch made Yu Sui feel ticklish, making it hard to keep up the act.
"Nangong Sui." Mei Liangyu's cool fingertips felt Yu Sui's warm body temperature. His usually cool, lazy voice had become low, with barely detectable ruthlessness in his pronunciation that made Yu Sui's heart tremble.
Yu Sui couldn't keep up the act anymore. She gently opened her eyes, her dark pupils moving slightly, reflecting Mei Liangyu's slightly frowning face. After she opened her eyes, she saw the man's furrowed brow slowly relax.
Senior Brother had arrived faster than she'd expected.
When opening her eyes, Yu Sui caught sight of Mei Liangyu's eyes before he could restrain his emotions.
The finger touching her cheek was ice cold, but his gaze was burning hot.
Mei Liangyu's palm gently cradled half her face. The blood on his hand stained Yu Sui's face, but he didn't mind. A little blood color looked more pleasing than lifeless pallor.
"Senior Brother."
Yu Sui only said this one phrase before feeling Mei Liangyu sending her large amounts of Five Elements Energy, trying to protect her heart meridian and stop her bleeding, while simultaneously using Medical School's Heavenly Mechanism Arts: Heart Through the Eyes.
Seeing that Yu Sui's entire body only had the fatal wound on her chest with no other excess injuries, Mei Liangyu quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
With the situation eased and no threat to her life, Yu Sui thought to play dead and scare Mei Liangyu a bit. Besides, she was already severely injured with no strength to stand up. Anyone seeing her at first glance would think she was already dead.
It would be strange if Yu Sui could still be alive.
Though Mei Liangyu's Five Elements Energy was in chaos, he used Divine Mechanism Arts to summon large amounts of Five Elements Energy to heal both himself and Yu Sui.
With Medical School's Heavenly Mechanism Arts treatment, wounds recovered remarkably quickly.
Yu Sui clearly felt "energy" and "strength" returning, and her previously weak, stiff fingers regained mobility.
Though Medical School healing arts were good, they couldn't self-heal.
She wondered if cultivating Medical School Nine Schools Arts using masterless energy from light cores could break the rule of being unable to self-heal.
Just as Yu Sui's mind wandered, she heard Mei Liangyu ask in a low voice: "Trying to play dead and scare me?"
"Senior Brother." Yu Sui came back to her senses, her eyes moist and bright, focusing on Mei Liangyu.
She said: "I really almost died."
Though Mei Liangyu didn't know what method she used to survive the Golden Crow Red Arrow, he didn't need to investigate deeply. He only needed to be grateful she survived.
"You won't die anymore."
Mei Liangyu's palm on her cheek had originally been ice cold but now seemed to absorb Yu Sui's body temperature, becoming warm too.
Yu Sui turned her gaze away to look at the suspended sun behind Mei Liangyu, then said: "The Golden Crow Red Arrow is really powerful."
Mei Liangyu's gaze still fixed on her: "A killing weapon created jointly by the Mechanism Families, designed to deal with Saints. It's indeed very powerful."
"What about Wenyang Hui?" Yu Sui looked back at Mei Liangyu, pretending to know nothing as she asked, "I briefly fainted earlier, and he said he was going to find you."
Mei Liangyu said: "Nearly dead."
Yu Sui looked at him, gently tilting her head as if not understanding, as if wanting him to be more specific.
Those eyes seemed able to speak.
Mei Liangyu understood her meaning but asked: "Can you get up?"
Yu Sui said softly: "It hurts too much."
It wasn't easy for her to say these words.
Mei Liangyu understood the difficulty of these words. He cradled her face with one hand and paused, then bent down to lift Yu Sui up. His steady, strong arms supported her waist and legs, holding her in his embrace while the Five Elements Energy he'd summoned also enveloped them both.
"Smear some blood on yourself from me. When we get out, no one can see where your main injury is," Mei Liangyu said in a deep voice. He looked at the unconscious Wenyang Hui on the ground. School of Names Word Command materialized, and iron chains appeared between him and Wenyang Hui.
The chains locked Wenyang Hui's hands while the other end wound around Mei Liangyu's wrist. He held Yu Sui and pressed forward through wind and snow, dragging the unconscious Wenyang Hui behind him.
Yu Sui leaned in Mei Liangyu's arms, looking up. Some things weren't her probing with questions, but Mei Liangyu volunteering to speak.
Mei Liangyu had seen Yu Sui's fatal wound. Under the Golden Crow Red Arrow's attack, her Five Elements Light Core would inevitably be shattered.
But when he healed Yu Sui, he could sense her Five Elements Light Core was still there.
Even if he wasn't curious and didn't ask, other people outside might not be the same. Some secrets couldn't withstand deep investigation. The more you dug, the more secrets and dangers you'd find.
"Aren't you curious?" Yu Sui looked at his cool profile with a smile.
But Mei Liangyu looked ahead, regaining some of his usual laziness: "Everyone has secrets they don't want to tell."
Yu Sui rubbed her face in his embrace, getting blood on herself while saying: "But Senior Brother, you know too many of my secrets."
"No matter how many secrets I know about you, I won't be your enemy," Mei Liangyu looked down at her, just meeting Yu Sui's gaze looking back. Her eyes held no smile, just quietly watching him.
The reason Yu Sui felt she was fortunate through Mei Liangyu was because he knew about Strange Fire.
Except for Xue Mushi who was also a World Destroyer, Mei Liangyu was the first person in this world to know Yu Sui had Strange Fire, yet he hadn't taken any extreme measures against her or shown malice. He even everywhere revealed tolerance and care for her personally.
Perhaps it was because Mei Liangyu liked her a bit.
Yu Sui wrapped her arms around Mei Liangyu's neck, lifting her body and leaning her head into his neck. Her weak breath against his neck was warm and slightly ticklish. Mei Liangyu only tightened his arms holding Yu Sui.
"But I don't know what secrets Senior Brother has," Yu Sui said, then raised her head with her gaze on Wenyang Hui being dragged by chains behind them. "I'm not as capable as you, Senior Brother, at suppressing curiosity. When I discover secrets, I want to know them."
"What secrets do I have? I haven't even remembered them myself," Mei Liangyu was amused by her. "When I remember, I'll tell you."
This was actually true.
Yu Sui rested her chin on his shoulder, quiet for quite a while without speaking.
Mei Liangyu would look at her frequently, checking Yu Sui's condition, almost looking once every three steps, worried she couldn't hold on and would die.
If Yu Sui died in his arms, Mei Liangyu didn't dare think what he might do.
Seeing Yu Sui observe Wenyang Hui behind them for too long, he asked: "Why are you looking at him?"
"Will the Wenyang family let us kill him?" Yu Sui asked.
Mei Liangyu answered: "His father might, his mother won't."
After thinking, he added: "First Head Wenyang has no children and watched him grow up from childhood. Wenyang Hui acts quite obedient and likeable in front of these elders, so First Head won't let us kill him either."
After hearing this, Yu Sui smiled: "I guessed as much. He really is the type who'd be liked by elders."
Mei Liangyu said: "Aren't you too?"
"Senior Brother, are you comparing me to Wenyang Hui as a compliment or..." Before Yu Sui finished her question, Mei Liangyu interrupted: "Complimenting you."
He said decisively: "Who compared you to Wenyang Hui? Is he worthy?"
Yu Sui glanced at him but shook her head, saying softly: "In terms of being likeable, I can't compare to him. His clan elders all genuinely dote on him. Even if he caused great trouble, they wouldn't want him to die."
Mei Liangyu didn't think she was inferior. Junior Sister was a thousand, ten thousand times more likeable than a disgusting guy like Wenyang Hui.
"Wenyang Hui nearly killed you tonight. The Nangong family won't let it go either," he said.
Yu Sui wrapped her arms around Mei Liangyu, interlocking her fingers: "If he really killed me tonight, I can't say about Father's side, but Mother should thank him."
She spoke in a gentle, soft voice with just the usual casual chat tone. "I don't need everyone in the world to like me. There will always be people who dislike and don't like me, maybe because of something I said, maybe because of an expression I made. I don't even know what I did in that moment to disgust people."
When Yu Sui stood before Lady Su, every word she spoke, every expression she made would disgust her.
After Yu Sui was considered an ordinary person, Nangong Ming's attitude toward her also fluctuated between favor and dislike.
Yu Sui didn't consider herself a likeable person.
If asked whether there were people in this world who liked you, most would first think of their parents and close friends.
But what if even your parents didn't like you?
Besides parents, it was very hard to meet someone in this world who truly liked you and wholeheartedly cared for you.
In this person's eyes you were special. Whether friendship or love, they wouldn't suddenly dislike you because of one word or glance.
Yu Sui still looked at Wenyang Hui behind them, but her mind flashed through various memories: "I don't need that person to accommodate me greatly either. I only need that person to say they won't kill me, it's not my fault, I'm not cursed, I'm not unlucky, I don't have to die."
Because many people in this world, besides their parents, have never been truly liked by anyone else.
Yu Sui had never been liked by her parents.
When Mei Liangyu said the Wenyang family would protect Wenyang Hui because he was likeable, not due to shared interests but because these elders genuinely doted on Wenyang Hui.
Yu Sui couldn't help recalling the past.
She had tried hard to get along with Lady Su when she was little, but dislike was dislike. No matter how obedient and well-behaved she was in front of Lady Su, she couldn't earn Lady Su's favor.
Yu Sui had seen how well Lady Sun treated Zhongli Que, and how well Zhongli Ci treated Zhongli Que. They all used their own ways to love and protect their child.
This made Yu Sui feel the world wasn't completely rotten.
When she wanted to give up before, she would think: there must be someone in this world who likes me.
Maybe there would be.
I just haven't waited for them yet.
Yu Sui had endured year after year this way.
Everyone in the world waits to be loved.
So actively loving others becomes incredibly difficult and rare.
But Yu Sui no longer waited for that person who would like her.
This could no longer comfort her or calm her suppressed anger.
Yu Sui had learned to like herself.
She had infinite patience with herself, could tolerate all her dark sides. The sides that others would find disgusting and curse after glimpsing, she could accept calmly and would absolutely never look at herself with disappointment.
As long as she would never dislike "Yu Sui," that was enough.
Listening to Yu Sui's words, Mei Liangyu thought of her unknown secrets. Her predicament was enough to destroy her spirit, make her suffer unbearably, and turn her into someone hateful and angry who would take revenge on this world.
But she restrained herself.
Yu Sui struggled upward in suffering, while Mei Liangyu let himself fall.
Mei Liangyu stopped walking and turned to look at Yu Sui leaning on his shoulder. Yu Sui withdrew her gaze from behind and buried her head in his neck. Cool, smooth hair strands touched his skin. His chin rested against Yu Sui's head, and her hair's fragrance reached his nose, momentarily overwhelming the bloody smell on both of them.
Yu Sui spoke before Mei Liangyu could: "Senior Brother, if I liked you, you would be the happiest person in the world."
Mei Liangyu stood in place for a long time without moving.
These words seemed to carry some amusement, or maybe it was his imagination. Like a joke, but for someone like Junior Sister, it shouldn't be.
Mei Liangyu tightened his hold on Yu Sui, making her press closer into his embrace. He lowered his head, his nose gently brushing against Yu Sui's forehead in a tender, intimate interaction that softened the heart.
He chuckled softly: "Then should I work toward this goal?"
Yu Sui also smiled: "That depends on what kind of person Senior Brother wants to become."
Wind and snow bypassed them both, unwilling to disturb.
After a quiet moment, Mei Liangyu said: "I'm so greedy, of course I want to be the happiest person in the world."