Xuan Ye, This Is the Name Cai'er Gave Me

What a ridiculous reason!

The white-robed figure took a deep breath, his voice dropping.

"Stop messing around."

"This is not the time for your willfulness!"

"Come with me, it's your only way to live!"

Before he finished speaking, his figure blurred into an afterimage, his five fingers forming a claw, reaching directly for Long Xuanye's shoulder.

Long Xuanye didn't dodge. Just as the white-robed figure's hand was about to touch his clothes.

A flash of pitch-black light flickered and vanished in Long Xuanye's palm.

It was an ordinary short blade, but now it was pressed against his own neck.

The white-robed figure's movement halted abruptly.

His hand stopped in mid-air, his fingertips less than an inch from Long Xuanye's shoulder.

"What are you doing!"

Long Xuanye finally looked up at him, his eyes calm and unfathomable.

Mr. Shadow, don't force me.

"Do you think your hand is faster, or my knife is faster?"

The white-robed figure frowned deeply.

"You think threatening me with suicide will make me let you go?"

"I could stop you completely before you even make a move!"

A twitch played at the corner of Long Xuanye's mouth.

"You can try."

"The special ability that blocked you once before is enough to buy me the time to slit my own throat."

"You can't stop someone who is determined to die."

The white-robed figure fell silent.

He stared intently at Long Xuanye.

After a long while, the white-robed figure withdrew his hand, his voice filled with exhaustion and confusion.

"...Why bother?"

"Long Xuanye, why on earth do you have to go this far?"

Long Xuanye's gaze flickered slightly.

He shook his head.

"My name is not that."

He said softly, as if declaring to himself.

"My name is Xuan Ye."

"The 'Xuan' from night."

"Cai'er gave me this name."

After speaking, he no longer looked at the white-robed figure, put away the short blade, and turned to walk into the depths of the mountain forest.

The white-robed figure stood in place, no longer pursuing.

He knew he couldn't stop him now.

Xuan Ye's figure gradually receded into the distance.

He passed by a place called a "garden."

It was a spot Cai'er had pointed out as beautiful when they were resting before.

Under the moonlight, Xuan Ye stopped.

There was no garden here at all.

Only a patch of messy wild grass, dotted with a few nameless white flowers that trembled in the night wind.

With just these, let alone weaving a beautiful flower crown, it would be incredibly difficult to even gather a decent bouquet.

Xuan Ye remembered Cai'er's grayish-white eyes.

She couldn't see clearly.

So she mistook the foxtail grass all over the place for flowers.

Last time, he could only agree with her.

"When my eyes are better, we can come here and I'll weave a flower crown for you..."

A girl's voice seemed to whisper in his ear.

Xuan Ye stood in silence for a long time.

He didn't turn back, his figure completely disappearing into the thick night.

In front of the thatched cottage.

The white-robed figure still stood, its expression complex.

Suddenly, a suffocating pressure descended from the sky.

Golden light tore through the night, and a figure slowly descended.

The newcomer was clad in golden armor, with a handsome face but eyes filled with brutality.

Seal Knight, Long Xingyu.

"Where is he?"

Long Xingyu's voice held no emotion.

The white-robed figure bowed respectfully, neither servile nor overbearing.

"I do not know who Your Excellency refers to."

Long Xingyu's gaze fell upon it, and the pressure instantly intensified tenfold.

"Long Xuanye, where is he?"

The white-robed figure felt its bones creak, but it still straightened its back.

"I don't know anyone named Long Xuanye."

"Boom--!"

A pillar of golden light erupted, instantly blasting the white-robed figure away.

It crashed heavily against a distant mountain wall, spitting out a mouthful of blood, its entire body collapsing.

Long Xingyu's figure, like a phantom, appeared before it, looking down from above.

"I'll ask again."

"Long Xuanye, where is he?"

The white-robed figure coughed up blood, but a tragic smile appeared on its face.

"I... don't know..."

"There has never... been such a person."

An eighth-tier Emperor Assassin, facing a Seal Knight... was still nothing more than an ant.

The killing intent in Long Xingyu's eyes surged.

But in the end, he did not deliver the killing blow.

Killing an elder of the Assassin's Sanctuary would bring endless trouble.

Moreover... humanity still needed his strength.

He let out a cold snort, and his golden figure shot up into the sky.

Long Xingyu's figure flashed, and he landed beside a house near a Knight Temple.

It was brightly lit.

In the courtyard, a small, thin figure was sweating profusely.

Long Haochen held a wooden sword, repeatedly practicing the most basic thrust, slash, and stab.

His movements were meticulous, and sweat had already soaked through his clothes, but his young face was filled with determination.

Inside the house, Bai Yue watched her son outside the window, her eyes slightly red.

"Chen'er, take a break. Dinner is ready."

Long Haochen stopped his movements, wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve, and ran into the house.

He skillfully helped Bai Yue set the table, a maturity on his face that did not belong to his age.

"Mom, don't worry."

"Brother is gone, I'll take care of you from now on."

Bai Yue stroked his head, about to say something.

Creak--

The door was pushed open.

Long Xingyu walked in.

"Dad!"

Long Haochen's face lit up with surprise and joy as he immediately went to meet him.

Long Xingyu looked at his son, the taut lines of his face softening slightly.

"Starting tomorrow, you're coming with me for wilderness training."

Long Haochen paused for a moment, then hesitated.

"Then... what about Mom?"

Long Xingyu said calmly.

"Your mother, I will take good care of her."

He looked at Long Haochen and changed the subject.

"Do you still want to see Long Xuanye?"

"Yes!"

Long Haochen answered without hesitation.

"Then come with me."

He didn't tell Long Haochen his true intentions.

Long Xingyu had made preparations for both scenarios.

If he found that unfilial son and killed him with his own hands, that would be best.

If he couldn't find him...

It wouldn't matter.

Haochen's talent was even stronger than his own had been back then.

He would train Haochen in the most rigorous and brutal way, forging him into the sharpest sword.

A sword... sharp enough to kill his own brother.

Thinking of this, Long Xingyu felt an inexplicable surge of excitement.

The Demon God Emperor's bloodline...

Killing each other...

Good!

Excellent!

Night deepened as they crossed an invisible boundary.

The air was filled with the scent of sulfur and decay, a stark contrast to the freshness of the human kingdoms.

This was the territory of the Demon Race.

[Ding--]

A cold, mechanical voice sounded in Xuan Ye's mind.

[Quest Complete: Travel to the Demon Race territory and seek a sliver of life amidst slaughter and death.]

[Distributing rewards...]

[Innate Dark Inner Spiritual Power +10.]

Boom!

A power, entirely different from light, surged through Xuan Ye's limbs and bones.

This time, the ten points made him truly feel a cold, demonic power churning within him, and his perception of external energy became much sharper.

Then came the second notification.

[Reward Issued: Growth Equipment · Vengeance (Spirit-Demon Tier).]