The blow left Ning Xiaoxiao sobbing so hard she shook all over, almost fainting.
Listening from the side, Zhuang Yusheng quickly pieced together what had happened through the chaos in his mind. When he saw Ning Xiaoxiao like this,
he hurried over, took her by the shoulders, and told her,
"Xiao Xiao, this isn't your fault!!"
But Ning Xiaoxiao clutched his robes and choked out,
"Zhuang Yusheng, my brother never did anything wrong, but every one of us misunderstood him!"
"Do you know what my brother looked like before he died?"
"His demon core had been dug out. He was covered in wounds, and he was blind... Eldest Senior Brother did all of it! And I didn't rescue him sooner. I never tried to talk Eldest Senior Brother out of it. I just watched the tragedy unfold before my eyes! How am I any different from Eldest Senior Brother, who did nothing but seek revenge on him and hurt him?!"
At this, Ning Xiaoxiao let out a hoarse, choking sob. Staring at Zhuang Yusheng through tear-blurred eyes, she screamed in anguish,
"Do you know? My brother even called my name before he died... but I didn't recognize him!"
"I just..."
"Let him die right in front of me!!!"
Ning Xiaoxiao wasn't blaming Lou Yunxiao.
She was blaming herself.
She felt she was no different from Lou Yunxiao, who had been blinded by hatred!
She kept replaying every expression Ning Ke had shown and every word he had said while he was with her earlier.
She wondered whether she could have stopped the tragedy if she had been a little smarter, a little more rational.
Could she have saved Ning Ke sooner?
She didn't dare imagine how Ning Ke had endured those dozen or so days in the Dungeon.
She didn't