If not for Cai'er, he never would have had the courage to accept such a perilous "high-difficulty mission" when facing the unfathomable White-robed figure. After all, how many times in your life did you get a mission where you couldn't die, and the enemy even had to protect Long Xuanye instead?
And that was nothing compared to the earth-shattering gains they'd made now.
Saint Cai'er stopped what she was doing.
She turned her head and smiled at him. Her already beautiful eyes seemed to hold a sky full of stars, sparkling brightly.
"It's all right. We're family."
She paused, then added softly in a tone that carried a hint of indulgence.
"Xuan Ye really is such a polite, good boy."
The slight warmth of emotion that had just welled up in Long Xuanye was instantly choked off by those words, leaving him helpless.
Was this right??
You're calling me a child...
Forget it.
With the body he had now, calling him a "child" wasn't... exactly wrong.
That's right, it was just like that!
He composed himself, his expression turning serious.
"We need to find somewhere else to stay. It's not safe here anymore."
The astonishing commotion from last night was sure to attract countless prying eyes. Staying here any longer would be no different from walking straight into a trap.
Saint Cai'er nodded without the slightest objection.
She was on her own and had no belongings to pack. Rising to her feet, she headed for the cave entrance first, then turned back and held out her pale hand to him.
Long Xuanye took it. The warmth of the girl's palm and her utter trust in him settled his restless thoughts completely.
The two of them left the cave.
Night had fallen deep, and the bitter wind cut across the wasteland like a blade, howling as it went.
Yet Long Xuanye didn't feel the slightest chill. The Chaos Spirit Furnace in his Sea of Qi was like a tiny sun, radiating warmth without pause and keeping the wind and snow at bay.
With strength far beyond what they'd had before, the two moved at incredible speed.
By the middle of the night, they had already covered dozens of miles and reached an old place.
This was the very town Long Xuanye had been sent to buy supplies from when he first awakened his system—a town that had been destroyed by demonic creatures. Now only a few dilapidated thatched huts remained, swaying in the wind.
When Saint Cai'er saw the place, a hint of delight flashed in her eyes.
She walked around one of the thatched huts and found that many of the pottery jars, wooden stools, and other household items were still intact. She took Long Xuanye by the hand and chose the most complete-looking hut.
The two had just finished arranging a few things, hoping to use the place as a temporary shelter, when Saint Cai'er suddenly stumbled. Something had caught her foot, and she was about to fall.
"Careful!"
Long Xuanye's reflexes were now astonishingly quick. He darted forward and reached out, catching her firmly around the waist.
At that very moment, he accidentally met her eyes.
Her eyes should have been as clear as purple crystal, but now a faint, deathly gray-white sheen covered them.
Long Xuanye's heart sank.
He abruptly remembered that when she had fought the White-robed figure, Cai'er had forced herself to wield the Reincarnation Sacred Sword, using the Power of Reincarnation that didn't belong to her ahead of time.
It felt as though an invisible hand had clenched Long Xuanye's heart, making his breath catch.
"Your eyes..."
Saint Cai'er wasn't surprised that he'd noticed. She merely blinked, but the gray-white haze didn't fade.
"The Trial of Reincarnation has come early." Her voice was soft, yet unusually calm. "The price is my senses."
"But because I used the Sacred Sword's power, I didn't go blind right away this time. My vision is just slowly getting worse." She paused, then added, "And I can speak for now, too."
As Long Xuanye listened to her describe the cruel reality in such a detached tone, his chest tightened.
Noticing how tense he was, Saint Cai'er instead gently patted the back of his hand.
"Don't worry. 'Mom' will take good care of you."
The words that had just risen to Long Xuanye's lips were blocked once again.
The heavy ache in his heart mingled with a warmth that made him want to laugh and cry at the same time, until all that remained was a faint sigh.
Should I say something to correct her?
But with things like this right now, if I say the wrong thing, Cai'er will be sad, won't she?
Then I'll say nothing...
Uh, that doesn't feel quite right either.
Long Xuanye was at a loss.
The two said no more and tacitly began tidying up the dilapidated little hut.
Saint Cai'er was clearly very experienced at surviving outdoors. Before long, she had gathered a large bundle of clean hay from outside, carefully spread it in a corner, and arranged it into a simple bed.
With the knowledge of an adult, Long Xuanye pieced several broken planks back together into a passable table. Then he found a relatively intact piece of rag and draped it over the top as a tablecloth.
The hut was crude, but under their hands it gradually began to look a little like a "home."
Looking at the scene before her, Saint Cai'er's eyes curved into crescents.
"From now on, this is our home!"
Seeing the beads of sweat at her temples and the joy brightening her eyes, Long Xuanye couldn't help smiling, too.
"Right. From now on, this is our home," he said softly. "We're at the border, so the people from the Assassin's Sanctuary shouldn't be able to find us easily."
At that, Saint Cai'er quietly tightened her grip on his hand.
If only she could live like this with Xuan Ye forever.
At the Assassin's Sanctuary, everyone had told her what was "right." Accepting the trials was right. Enduring pain was right. Becoming the sharpest sword was right. All she could do was endure.
But now, she had chosen Xuan Ye.
She didn't want to be a "good person" who did everything right anymore. She only wanted to be his "mom."
That was enough.
Just as the warm atmosphere began to settle around them, Long Xuanye's expression suddenly darkened!
A trace of dark aura flickered through the air and vanished!
"Move!"
He had no time to explain. He seized Saint Cai'er and threw himself sideways with her!
Almost at the same instant!
Whoosh!
A jet-black claw-shaped gust tore past their clothes and slammed into the wooden pillar of the thatched hut behind them!
Bang!
Splinters flew everywhere!
"Pretty quick, aren't you?"
A hoarse voice rang out from the darkness, laced with mockery.
Five towering figures slowly emerged.
The one at their head was a nearly two-meter-tall demon with bluish-black skin. The claws on both hands gleamed with a cold light in the moonlight.
"The Shadow Eater Squad, on orders to patrol the border. And we've run into two little humans. Perfect. Your blood will make fine sacrificial offerings!"
Long Xuanye's gaze swept quickly over the five demons before him.
The bluish-black-skinned demon at their head was a fourth-order Bone Erosion Demon. The pale bone blade in his hand radiated an ominous aura, and among the five demons, his presence was the steadiest.
Behind him were three third-order demons.
One was thin and gaunt, with a faint green mist swirling around him: a Rotting Mist Demon.
Another had unusually large claws, with bone spurs growing from his joints: a Sharp Claw Demon.
The last carried a bone bow and prowled through the darkness with a sinister gaze: a Dark Arrow Demon.
As for the fifth...
Before you continue