The building stood in an open clearing beneath the mist.
With no leaves to shelter it, the pure moonlight spilled over the sacred flowers, making their already radiant petals shine all the brighter.
To avoid drawing attention, Tang Qi extinguished the torch and tied the three horses to tree trunks in the woods.
Beneath the flawless moonlight, he glanced back and noticed Catherine looked a little unwell.
"Are you all right?"
He thought the long gash on her face, which she'd treated with only some simple herbs, might be hurting again.
"Don't worry about it."
To his surprise, a faint blush appeared on Catherine's cheeks.
She turned her head away, as if she didn't want to continue the subject.
Tang Qi realized what was going on—
The whole ride, the girl had been hugging him. Bouncing along on horseback, he'd felt the softness against his back trembling with every jolt...
Better not to dwell on that.
He hurried toward the building.
This must be a ruined Temple.
Tang Qi thought.
It wasn't grand, standing on a low stone foundation. It seemed to have been built entirely of marble.
The forest's humid climate and the Temple's long neglect had left the walls, which should have been white, covered in what looked like a dark green blanket—damp moss and vines.
Dark streaks of water snaked down the patches of gray-white wall that remained exposed.
There were no ostentatious carvings or ornate decorative lines on the walls. Their smooth, even surfaces instead gave the place a plain, rugged feel.
The roof should have risen like a tall, pointed spire, but now it had collapsed beyond recognition—
Without a doubt, it had once been glorious, magnificent.
But years of wear had left their mark on everything.
Still, it stood firm against time, refusing to