The Best Fortune Hidden for Years

Ya Li looked at her son and remained silent for a long time.

The emergency lights in the shelter corridor still flickered on and off, cutting the light and shadow on her face into segments, highlighting the fine lines around her eyes, the stray hairs at her temples, and the faint curve of her lips.

Everything flickered in and out of focus, sometimes bright, sometimes dim.

"Son, what you need most right now is to improve your own strength," she said, her voice low, as if afraid of disturbing something.

"I know," Yun Jingheng, leaning against the doorframe.

"But Mom, I need to go outside to get some moonlight."

Ya Li did not answer immediately.

She reached out and gently adjusted the slightly loose bandage on Yun Jingheng's shoulder, her movements as light as when she applied a band-aid to this child years ago.

"Does your dad know?" Ya Li asked.

"I haven't told him yet."

When do you plan to tell me?

"Wait until I finish altering the protective suit."

Yun Jingheng pulled the dented device out of his pocket and waved it in front of his mother. "And I need to finish calculating the signal attenuation data for the communication module first."

As Ya Li listened to her son listing the tasks he needed to complete one by one in the tone of reporting on the progress of his experiment, she suddenly chuckled softly.

The laughter carried a sense of resigned relief, completely different from the emotion he had when he patted the back of his head earlier.

"I used to tell your dad that you were destined to be a researcher. You'd quietly do your experiments and write your papers in the lab, without any fighting or life-or-death situations, and live a peaceful life."

She paused, her fingers still resting on the edge of the bandage on Yun Jingheng's shoulder, "And you, on the other hand, research nothing but things that kill people."

"Mom, defensive equipment and communication devices aren't considered weapons of mass destruction. Strictly speaking, this is an interdisciplinary field combining security engineering and communications engineering," Yun Jingheng corrected her earnestly.

"Okay, okay~ no." Ya Li looked at him, her eyes crinkling with laughter.

Two weeks later.

The night was beautiful, but beneath the darkness lay desolation.

"What are you thinking about?" Yun Jingheng spoke first.

Ye Xinglan pointed towards the distant ring-shaped ridge, "There used to be a forest there. In autumn, the leaves would turn a deep orange-red, and from across Sea God Lake, it looked like a fire was burning on the lake."

Yun Jingheng looked in the direction she was pointing.

He remembered that grove of trees.

He was squatting in the woods collecting soil samples, while Ye Xinglan was practicing sword moves beside him.

It's gone now.

"It will grow back," Yun Jingheng said.

"In the natural cycle of ecological restoration, moss appears first, followed by wild grass, then shrubs, and finally trees. When the trees grow tall enough to provide shade, the birds will return."

"That sounds very methodical, so what are our plans?"

Yun Jingheng smiled. "You really want to come with me?"

"Otherwise what?"

Yun Jingheng looked at her, the smile on his lips not fading, but a deeper emotion appeared in his eyes.

"Let me explain first," he said, lifting the sphere of Moonlight in his palm higher, suspending it between them like a miniature moon belonging only to them, "the God Trial isn't about circulating the celestial sphere, it's about—"

"Staring blankly," Ye Xinglan said for him.

"How did you know?"

"Your clone said it spoke with us briefly before you merged with it."

Ye Xinglan turned her head to look at him, the moonlight softly outlining the lines of her profile. "It says your God Trial requires your consciousness to sink into the Sea of Spirit, using Divine Power as a medium to communicate with the God Trial."

"Your body just sits there motionless, looking almost like you're in a daze. It could take a few days at best, or several months at worst. You can't stop or be disturbed during this time; your body will be in a completely defenseless state."

She paused here, then added, "So we need a protector."

"I need a protector,"

Yun Jingheng looked at her and said seriously, "This process is very boring, even more boring than practicing basic swordsmanship."

"You can only sit here, you can't make a sound, you can't move around freely, and you can't practice your sword."

"The only things you can do are look at the moon, count the stars, and daydream. The whole process requires no skill and has no entertainment value whatsoever."

Ye Xinglan was silent for a moment.

Then she raised her hand and touched his face.

I said it.

"I like you."

Her fingertips trembled slightly as she said those four words.

Yun Jingheng was stunned for a moment, then smiled happily.

He raised his right hand and placed it on the hand that Ye Xinglan had pressed against his face.

His hands were warmer than hers; the skin that had been chafed between his thumb and forefinger had healed, leaving only a few faint pink marks. His palm pressed against her fingers, enveloping them in the warmth of her calloused skin.

Do you know your hand was shaking when you said that?

He spoke, his voice carrying a hint of amusement, but not in a mocking way. Rather, it was the kind of cautiousness one feels when something precious has struck one's heart, yet one is still trying to maintain a facade of composure.

"I know," Ye Xinglan said.

She paused for a moment, "The last time you said 'looks good,' the tips of your ears turned red."

"...You found out." Yun Jingheng gently took her hand from his face, but didn't let go.

His fingers slipped between hers, gently holding the back of her hand. "Then I'll say it this time too—'I like you.' I should use that phrase once too."

Ye Xinglan blinked.

Her eyelashes fluttered gently in the moonlight, brushing against a small patch of skin on her lower eyelid.

She didn't urge him, didn't speak, but waited quietly, her hand in his, the trembling in her fingertips slowly subsiding.

"Ye Xinglan."

"Thank you for coming with me. Thank you for staying with me..."

His voice was slightly lowered, with a hoarse quality characteristic of someone recovering from an injury, and sounded more real under the moonlight.

Do you remember the day we first met when we were little? So many years have passed, but we've never been apart.

"Actually, I didn't need you to say it first; I've kept these words to myself for many years."

Ye Xinglan's eyes lit up.

The corners of her mouth slowly curved into a smile.

"We grew up together, we've seen each other at our most vulnerable and disheveled, and we've weathered countless hardships together. I can no longer distinguish between friendship and romantic feelings."

"I like you, not just a fleeting infatuation, but a steadfast love that has lasted from childhood to the present. I want to be with you for every day from now on."

"You bastard, you made me speak first..." she sobbed as she rushed into Yun Jingheng's arms.

Yun Jingheng remained silent.

He gently pressed his cheek against her forehead, and his right hand stroked her back rhythmically.

He felt the fabric on his chest slowly getting wet.

for a long time.

He felt her take a breath, a long and slow breath.

"You say," her voice came from his arms, muffled, nasal, and still slightly trembling.

"If I don't speak first, how long are you planning to keep quiet?"

Yun Jingheng lowered his head, his lips gently touching her hair, without answering immediately.

He thought for a moment, then honestly told the truth, "I'll probably have to wait until you put the Stargod Sword to my neck and force me to talk."

Ye Xinglan let out a soft hum in his arms.

The "humph" was hoarse and nasal from crying, sounding utterly intimidating, but her hand slid down his back and gently pinched a spot on his uninjured side.

He didn't use much force. After twisting, she didn't pull her hand back, but gently left it there, her fingertips feeling the warmth of his body through the fabric.

"There won't be a next time." Yun Jingheng tightened his arms around her back, pulling her closer into his embrace.

"From now on, I'll be the one to start, every single day, until you get annoyed."

Ye Xinglan finally lifted her head from his embrace.

The moonlight shone on her face, revealing the traces of her crying; her eyes were red-rimmed, and a tear still clung to her eyelashes.

But as she looked at him, the corners of her mouth slowly curved into a smile.

"You big bastard..."