Cai'er, Reluctant to Part, and Infuriating Without Consequence

Cai'er's trembling eyelashes and pitiful expression made Long Haoyu's heart clench.

The ring, blue with golden forget-me-not patterns, still carried the warmth of Cai'er's fingers.

After writing the words, the little hand gripping his tightly trembled slightly with nervousness.

"Big Brother, don't forget Cai'er."

"Okay...?"

Cai'er wrote in Long Haoyu's palm again. Mist had already gathered in her violet eyes, shimmering tears pooling in their corners.

Long Haoyu's clenched heart tightened painfully again. His fingertips gently wiped at the corners of Cai'er's eyes, and the tears that were about to fall slipped through his fingers.

Without a word, Long Haoyu opened Cai'er's hand and gently wrote in her palm, "Big Brother won't forget Cai'er."

A radiant smile bloomed on Cai'er's face, and the pitiful look in her eyes vanished completely. Her lips pursed slightly.

She opened her mouth several times, wanting to express her excitement with words, but no sound came out.

Long Haoyu looked at his No Edge. There was a Lock Buckle on its hilt, one he had specially commissioned after obtaining No Edge so that he could hook the sword up with his finger when needed.

The warmth of the forget-me-not ring on his finger made him remove the Lock Buckle from No Edge. Using considerable force, he squeezed it into roughly the same size as Cai'er's finger.

"You gave Big Brother a ring, so Big Brother will give you one too."

"This is Big Brother's gift to you, Cai'er."

Cai'er did not resist as Long Haoyu slipped the Lock Buckle onto her finger.

It was an ordinary Lock Buckle, yet it captured all her attention at that moment. Her violet eyes silently watched it, as though she wanted to imprint every detail of its patterns into her heart.

"Big Brother, Cai'er will definitely come find you someday."

Cai'er wrote another line in Long Haoyu's palm, then ran to the man in white without looking back, not daring to look at Long Haoyu again.

She couldn't look anymore. If she did, she truly wouldn't be able to bear leaving.

"Cai'er, let's go!"

The man in white sighed softly. Watching Cai'er give the forget-me-not ring to Long Haoyu, then seeing Long Haoyu put a Lock Buckle on Cai'er's finger, he felt inexplicably stifled.

He gently took Cai'er's hand and, after several leaps, quickly departed from the area, not daring to linger any longer.

Only after they had traveled far away did he and Cai'er stop atop a high peak.

Standing beside the man in white, Cai'er looked at Long Haoyu, who was now only a blurry figure in the distance, and waved her hand forcefully.

Goodbye, Big Brother!

Cai'er will miss you.

Long Haoyu had excellent eyesight.

He saw every bit of the waving from atop the mountain.

He gently stroked the forget-me-not ring on his finger. He was not moved simply because it was a Space Ring.

What truly left him feeling wistful was the emotion Cai'er had poured into this ring.

At such a young age, she had already shouldered responsibilities that should never have belonged to her, along with those endless, sunless trials.

Grandfather, sooner or later, I'm going to slash you twice.

The Demon Race's existence, your rule—how many tragedies like this have they created?

Long Haoyu sighed inwardly and strapped No Edge back onto his body. The bloody scent from the blade rushed into his nose. It was somewhat pungent, yet strangely captivating.

"Brother, they mentioned the Assassin Temple just now. Are they from the Assassin Temple?" Long Haochen came over to him.

"That's right. They're from the Assassin Temple. That senior in white was no match for them," Long Haoyu replied gently.

Upon hearing this, Long Haochen's gaze immediately hardened with resolve. "Brother, I'll definitely cultivate diligently too. When things like this happen again in the future, I'll be able to help you."

"Then you'd better work hard. Your brother's Spirit Energy is higher than yours right now, so be careful not to fall too far behind," Long Haoyu said in a deliberately relaxed tone.

Long Haochen waved his fist, his eyes filled with determination as he silently etched this resolve into his heart.

Long Haoyu was his elder brother.

He had to catch up to his brother's footsteps!

He had his brother, his mother, and now his father had returned too. He had to work hard!!

After picking the wild vegetables, Long Haoyu took Long Haochen home.

After experiencing slaughter, seeing the three Thatched Cottages that made up his home once again filled Long Haoyu with warmth.

Since Long Xingyu had returned, Bai Yue had not gone into town to help others cut clothes that day. The moment she saw the two brothers return, she hurried over.

"Yu Yu, Chen Chen, how did your test go today?" Bai Yue asked gently, pulling both brothers into her embrace.

"Mom, my Spirit Energy Test was 18 points. I passed and became a first-rank Attendant Knight."

"And Brother's Spirit Energy Test was 35 points. He already meets the standard for a third-rank Attendant Knight, and he passed too."

Long Haochen eagerly gave Bai Yue the answers. He was delighted to mention that he had passed the test.

When he spoke of Long Haoyu already reaching the level of a third-rank Attendant Knight, he was even more unable to hide his happiness, proud of his elder brother.

"Mhm, Yu Yu and Chen Chen are both amazing!" Bai Yue was even happier upon hearing that both her children had passed. A blissful smile spread across her face.

Long Xingyu stood not far away. He was not surprised in the slightest that the two brothers had passed the assessment.

Even upon hearing that Long Haoyu's Spirit Energy had reached 35 points, he was not particularly surprised. What had happened last night was still vivid in his mind.

For Long Haoyu to sneak silently to his side, then dare to swing his sword directly at him—anything less than such an assessment result would have made no sense.

Watching the two brothers held in Bai Yue's embrace, and thinking of their talents, a pained expression surfaced on his face again, only to be swiftly concealed.

At that moment, a faint scent of blood entered his nose. Finally, he looked thoughtfully at Long Haoyu, then at the black heavy sword on Long Haoyu's back.

"You encountered danger?"

Long Xingyu stepped forward and asked, "There's a faint bloody smell on this sword."

Long Haoyu broke free from Bai Yue's embrace and met Long Xingyu's gaze. In a stiff tone, he said, "Nothing. I just nearly died."

Nearly died?

Long Xingyu's aura suddenly surged, but then he noticed Long Haoyu's steady breathing.

The pain and struggle in his eyes disappeared, replaced by confusion and fury.

Long Haoyu and Long Haochen were the two brothers he had already decided to carefully nurture. Yet they had encountered danger right under his nose?!

Long Haochen was a little bewildered. He felt the anger emanating from Long Xingyu, but he also glanced at Long Haoyu from the corner of his eye in confusion.

Still far less mature than Long Haoyu, his mind was filled with questions. The scenes of his elder brother killing five Wolf Demons resurfaced in his mind.

When they encountered the Wolf Demons in the forest, hadn't his brother held an utterly overwhelming advantage?

It seemed... probably... not that dangerous, right?