Spring's dark tint dyed the fairy's brows and temples; fallen blossoms lent their grace to the beauty's sleeves.
May autumn waters mirror sunset clouds forever; with nothing amiss, begrudge not the snow that lingers.
- Anonymous
While he was still in midair, a mouthful of warm blood spurted from the boy's lips onto Ju Ying's white robes.
By the time he crashed down before her, the steaming radiance that had protected him had scattered without a trace. The moment he landed, he struggled through the searing pain, bracing a hand against the ground to raise himself. Every muscle tightened, ready for another crushing impact.
Now he had nowhere left to dodge. Before him stood the terrified girl.
Fortunately, after that sudden upheaval, he heard only a few rolling rumbles behind him, followed by silence. He held his breath and listened for a while before he finally had time to think bitterly:
What a vicious scoundrel! He knew I could defend against spells, so he devised a trap to smash me with a boulder. He really meant to kill me!
There was no doubt that whatever had tripped him was the trigger Zhao Wuchen had planted for his trap. Who knew what means the wretch had used? The moment Xing Yan stepped on that crucial point, a thousand-pound boulder had hurtled into him.
Thinking of Zhao Wuchen's ruthless methods, Xing Yan felt both furious and remorseful:
What rotten luck! That wretch was already carried off by a tiger, yet I still fell into his trap!
Seeing Xing Yan take such a terrible blow, Ju Ying cried out in anguish and hurried to help him. But the moment she tried to move, she remembered that she was tightly bound to the tree trunk, unable to move either her hands or her feet.