The desolate ruins echoed with the mournful cries of a trapped beast.
Those cries stirred Wei Cheng's heart, too. The lifefire in his eye sockets seemed buffeted by wind and rain, flickering wildly. He gaped in shock, his jaw opening and closing awkwardly several times. For a moment, a thousand words surged up in his chest, but they all stopped in his throat and melted into a sigh.
"If that was the case, he could simply have abandoned him... Why stab him in the back?"
This was what Wei Cheng found hardest to understand.
He'd thought he knew his uncle well enough. They had no secrets from each other. Now he realized that had only been what he'd believed.
They'd grown up together.
They were uncle and nephew in name, but brothers, even father and son, in truth.
Wei Lou had been mature beyond his years, far more precocious and wise than Wei Cheng. Through those turbulent days, he'd stayed by Wei Cheng's side like an older brother and father. They'd supported each other every step of the way, surviving the devastation of their family and the pain of their Clan Annihilation. It hadn't been two years, or twenty, but two hundred!
Wei Lou smiled. "What do you think?"
Wei Cheng was left speechless. He said in frustration, "I don't know."
Uncle and nephew faced each other across the prison bars.
For the first time, Wei Cheng had the uncanny feeling that the person before him was a stranger.
"I... might know..."
Shen Tang joined the conversation in a quiet voice.
Wei Lou's eyes were bloodshot, his pupils like pearls adrift in a sea of blood. The contempt in his gaze nearly spilled over.
His tone was scornful. "You know? You understand?"
Wei Lou's condescending taunt filled Shen Tang with