Yang Yan stared wide-eyed, genuinely wondering whether Pei Ye had been possessed by something. He had gone out yesterday and returned as though all the life had been sucked out of him. But Yang Yan could hardly tie the boy up and force the Sword Manual in front of him, so he could only leave helplessly.
Inside the room, sunlight streamed through the window lattice, strands of light and dust drifting in the air.
The bedding had been churned into a crumpled mess by a whole night of tossing and turning. Having thrown the quilt off his head, the boy lay like a corpse, his eyes fixed blankly on the rafters.
Only a silence that had brewed all night filled the room. After a long while, he called softly, "Little Cat."
Black Cat cultivated with closed eyes.
"Little Cat~" He rolled over and held Black Cat up before him with both hands. Black Cat opened a pair of calm jade eyes.
"Why do I still feel so awful?"
"..."
"I said back then that it wouldn't work." Pei Ye rolled over, complaining. "I told you... We're really good friends. Rejecting her was bound to hurt her. From now on... we'll never be able to chat happily together again."
The boy truly felt a heavy weight press deep into his heart, and his voice sank. "But you insisted, 'If you don't like her, just turn her down.'"
Black Cat closed those eyes and resumed cultivating. Ever since speaking up the night before last, Black Cat seemed to have lost interest in this childish business.
But the boy only wanted someone to talk at.
"...But anyway, I've already turned her down." Pei Ye murmured blankly, "However awful it feels, all I can do now is get through it... Piao Qing must feel