“What did you say?”
Meng Qinghuan could hardly believe her ears. She felt as if she were floating on clouds, her heart filled with a bubbly sensation. After a violent shake, a sweet and sour feeling burst forth and filled her heart.
“He… Little He, what did you say?” Meng Qinghuan’s breathing was rapid. Yun He was accustomed to Meng Qinghuan’s usual flippancy, but now she was so anxious, as if she were about to faint.
“Uh, Master? Calm down. Isn’t this a normal thing?” Yun He was startled. She could feel the hand gripping her shoulder trembling, holding on tightly.
“How is it normal? You… why are you so calm about this? This is liking, this is… wanting to be together!” Meng Qinghuan’s breathing was rapid. She stared blankly at Yun He, afraid it was a dream. “I am your master, I, I…”
“?”
Faced with Meng Qinghuan’s overwhelming reaction, Yun He felt only confusion and bewilderment. She really didn’t think it was anything unusual; Meng Qinghuan’s strong reaction only made her perplexed.
“But, isn’t this a very normal thing?” Yun He touched her chin thoughtfully. “I’m different from Miss Bai. I’m straight. The only people of the opposite sex I’ve had close contact with are Cang Liu and Master, and I spend the most time with Master. Whether it’s from the perspective of developing feelings over time or from a logical standpoint, it all makes sense.”
After speaking, Yun He thought for a long time, as if she had truly sorted out the logic of the matter. She nodded seriously after finishing.
This action amused Meng Qinghuan. She had never seen anyone as rational as Bai Cha. Now she had truly broadened her horizons, and in her exasperation, Meng Qinghuan pushed Yun He against the wall.
Yun He, caught off guard, was pushed back. She had always been unguarded around Meng Qinghuan and only felt a chill run down her spine. Just as she was about to look up in confusion, she saw Meng Qinghuan’s face coming closer.
Soft, moist, and hot… Yun He could feel the suppressed emotions in Meng Qinghuan’s fervent kiss.
How strange, why was her rationality becoming chaotic?
A hazy consciousness gradually occupied Yun He’s mind, her heartbeat accelerating with the spread of the misty white fog. Perhaps she should always remain vigilant, because Miss Bai had said that a warrior must always maintain rationality and alertness.
But why could she feel nothing else? Only haziness and heat, her heart seemed to be jumping out of her chest, almost suffocating her.
Although Yun He hadn’t lost her strength, when she finally caught her breath, she found herself collapsing into Meng Qinghuan’s arms. In Meng Qinghuan’s dark pupils, she saw emotions that mirrored her own.
The thin veil of misunderstanding was pierced, and warm air immediately rushed into the room, raising the temperature. For the next two weeks, Yun He pushed aside the subtle relationship between Meng Qinghuan and Bai Cha.
Or perhaps she was just inherently dull and slow, merely the most qualified weapon, at best calmer than Lang Mo.
It wasn’t until one day when Meng Qinghuan took Yun He shopping that Yun He’s sharp eyes spotted a familiar figure.
“Miss Bai?”
It was just a fleeting glimpse of a back, but Yun He felt as if a bucket of cold water had been doused over her, extinguishing the flames of her burgeoning romance and bringing her back to her senses.
Yun He suddenly awoke. It seemed like it had been too long, too long since she had a mission, too long since she had contacted Bai Cha, too long since she had trained with everyone.
She was a warrior defending her country. What was she doing now?
At least Yun He didn’t want to leave. The moment she was saved from her muddled life and given a mission, no one knew better than Yun He the weight of those things. Yet now she was indulging in pleasure?
“Miss Bai!”
Without even thinking, Yun He was about to rush forward, but she stopped herself. She suddenly realized that Bai Cha might be on a mission, and her rash interruption could disrupt Bai Cha’s plans.
Speaking of which, she had indeed seen a few familiar and suspicious figures just now?
Yun He frowned, deep in thought, when Meng Qinghuan walked over with a large bag of fruit.
“What are you thinking about? Here, I queued for a long time to get this chocolate ice cream.” Meng Qinghuan playfully pressed the ice cream against Yun He’s face. Seeing Yun He’s dazed expression, he found it a bit strange. “What’s wrong? Did you wait too long? I wouldn’t leave you, you’re a grown person…”
“Master, I saw Miss Bai.”
Yun He’s words caused Meng Qinghuan’s smile to freeze. Or rather, he froze entirely in place, unsure how to react.
“Master, something’s not right. Why hasn’t Miss Bai contacted me for over two months?” Yun He stood in the center of the mall. Although it was crowded, she felt as if everyone was avoiding her, making her feel an inexplicable fear. “Could it be that Miss Bai doesn’t want me anymore?”
“Ahem, what are you thinking? It’s just that I brought you out privately, because I need someone to take care of…” Meng Qinghuan had deflected the topic many times before, but this time he sounded a bit stiff.
He had only been sealed in power, not lost his mind. He had discovered suspicious people near the city over a month ago. He had also seen Ying Zi and Bai Cha scouting the area, and he had always avoided them. He hadn’t expected Yun He to run into them this time.
“I can take care of you while I work, so why did we have to come to this city?” Yun He felt a pang of sadness.
Bai Cha didn’t want her anymore.
Those six short words felt like a large hand gripping her heart, making it difficult to breathe. It was as if she had returned to that basement, waiting in the darkness for an unknown future.
“You… I applied for leave with Bai Cha, you…” Meng Qinghuan tried to make excuses again, but his usual winning tactics failed him this time.
“Then when is the leave?” Yun He looked at Meng Qinghuan, her voice choked with emotion.
This was perhaps the first cold war between them since they met.
Or perhaps neither of them knew what to say.
That night, Yun He dreamed a lot. She dreamed of the bullying she suffered in her childhood, her parents’ abuse, her best friend being murdered by her mother, and being locked in a dark basement, forced by her mother to consume blood and flesh for survival.
When Yun He woke up, it was only one in the morning. She had only slept for three hours, but in her dreams, it felt like a century had passed.
Yun He wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. She hadn’t had nightmares in a long time. Turning her head, she found the bed beside her empty.
The bedding was cold, not like someone who had just gotten up. The window was left ajar, which was unlike the meticulous Meng Qinghuan. It seemed to have been left open to facilitate someone climbing back over the wall.
But Meng Qinghuan had no power, and she wasn’t sure if his injuries from the world competition were still there. Where had he gone?
For some reason, Yun He felt extremely uneasy and couldn’t sleep. After a moment’s thought, Yun He also climbed out the window.
She had originally intended to clear her head and perhaps look for Meng Qinghuan, but she stumbled upon him unexpectedly along the way.
In a secluded alley on the outskirts, a suspicious figure was lurking. Yun He recognized this person; he seemed to be a descendant of the Zhi family from the Guangming faction, someone she had paid attention to when investigating Yun He before. It seemed to be Zhi Yun, Zhi Yue’s uncle, and Meng Qinghuan was behind him.
Yun He, who had become a true “He,” had astonishing eyesight. She could soar through the sky in an instant, and with her intimate familiarity with Meng Qinghuan, she quickly pinpointed his location, then discovered the sneaky Zhi Yun.
After some thought, Yun He decided to follow behind Meng Qinghuan. She felt it was better not to approach Meng Qinghuan directly, lest she disrupt his rhythm.
Bypassing guards, navigating complex terrain, avoiding counter-surveillance… Meng Qinghuan handled these with practiced ease. He had only lost his ability to fly, but he could still deal with ordinary people with great skill, which amazed Yun He.
As expected, Master is Master. If it were her, she might have been discovered several times. But Meng Qinghuan, as an ordinary person, was surprisingly adept at hiding. If she hadn’t fully awakened her bloodline power, she might have been discovered by Meng Qinghuan too.
She still had a long way to go and would need to work harder in the future.
Yun He mused, the wind obeying her command concealed her presence and brought her news from her surroundings. She followed silently, watching Zhi Yun enter his lair. As soon as the door opened, Meng Qinghuan pushed him inside with a dagger at his throat.
The fluid movements left Yun He in awe. In the past, Meng Qinghuan’s power was too immense, and he often relied on brute force. Now, having lost his power, Meng Qinghuan’s close-combat skills as an ordinary person truly amazed Yun He.
Yun He had initially thought Meng Qinghuan was an assistant to Bai Cha, but she didn’t expect him to possess close-combat skills as sharp as Bai Cha’s.
“I advise you to confess. I have a rather bad temper, you know.”
The sounds from inside the house were faintly carried to Yun He by the wind. Yun He remained vigilant of the surrounding guards, ready to rush in and rescue Meng Qinghuan if anything went wrong.
“Heh, isn’t this a traitor to the Abyss? What, you betrayed them and now you want to get involved?” Zhi Yun looked at the gleaming silver dagger at his throat and smiled somewhat forcedly. “Regardless, it shouldn’t concern you anymore, right?”
“It indeed doesn’t concern me, Zhi Yun, but if you were smart, you’d stay away from this city. You know I’m here.” Meng Qinghuan snorted coldly. Obviously, he hadn’t lost his mind and wasn’t easily fooled. “Since I’m here, I naturally have to protect my own life. Shouldn’t you explain why you people are here?”
“This isn’t your city, is it? People come and go for profit, and you’re going to regulate that?” Zhi Yun forced a casual smile. Before he could react, he felt a sharp pain in his wrist. Before he could scream, he was silenced by the hawk-like sharp gaze of Meng Qinghuan.
“Let me say it again, my temper isn’t much better than Bai Cha’s. Clench your teeth and don’t make me even more upset.”
The dagger, carrying the scent of blood, was pressed against Zhi Yun’s throat again. A more dangerous glint flashed in Meng Qinghuan’s eyes as he pressed again, “I’m asking you what you’re here for!”
“No, big brother, you have to let me finish, right, right?” Zhi Yun gritted his teeth, cold sweat beading on his forehead. “You know us. An experimental project is absolutely confidential. Our presence here is a secret. Don’t say I don’t know; even if I knew, I wouldn’t know everything. How could one person know everything about a secret?”
Meng Qinghuan actually believed this. Knowing a little piece of information and then piecing together a complete picture was indeed standard operating procedure; otherwise, the target would be too specific and it would be like sending oneself to their death.
“Then you must at least know specifically what you’re doing, right? If it’s truly for scientific experimentation, I won’t pry into your secrets, but you should be able to tell me which project it belongs to, shouldn’t you?” Meng Qinghuan snorted coldly. “Don’t tell me you have difficulties even with that.”
“Hey, hey, big brother, you’re a traitor to the Shadow. We can talk to Bai Cha, but not you.” Zhi Yun gritted his teeth and said with a smile, “You’re a civilian now, and injuring my wrist is illegal vigilantism…”
“Enough nonsense. What, you can’t say?” A dangerous light flashed in Meng Qinghuan’s eyes. “Then you’d better give me a satisfactory reason.”
“This… because…”
“Because they were targeting you from the start.”