Chapter 315: Little Brother, Long Time No See

Chapter 315: Little Brother, Long Time No See

The biting wind blew from the north, bearing a cold indifference for all living beings, spreading frost across the land.

Winter had arrived at this moment.

This was a severe winter; perhaps after the winter, countless corpses would be found in the capital's streets.

The fragility of life was as worthless as a handful of dust, barely worth mentioning.

Perhaps, one day in the future, all beings on earth would wither and be buried beneath the gods, becoming nothing but ash.

This ash might only exist in the wind's memory, scattering as it wanders.

Just as this chilling wind that had blown this moment carried the breath of death, drifting to the edge of the forest where the Eight Sect Alliance lay seven days' journey away.

The trees shed their leaves, whirling them up and letting them fall, finally withering into their tombs, mingling with mud to harden the earth.

Especially in the black of night, the cold grew even sharper.

The trees shivered, sensing the shift of seasons.

Under the trees, a figure trembled, for he beheld the skull-faced visage of the moonlight.

Uncle Six.

Uncle Six's head had no fresh blood, the blood on his beard was no longer crimson but dark, purpled.

Yet his eyes remained open, pupils scattered, lifeless, yet the emptiness and the transition between life and death lingered, unblown by the wind, only the beard swayed slightly.

Xu Qing was silent.

He had not known Uncle Six for long, only crossing paths during the White Emperor incident, yet since then, Uncle Six's care for him had been considerable.

Both the White Emperor incident's gift of the jade slip for protection and the purge of the Night Raven organization's backing had saved Xu Qing from much trouble and crisis.

The former was a crucial support in his first battle against the White Emperor; without Uncle Six's jade slip, that battle would have been far harder.

The latter, Uncle Six's full support made Xu Qing's actions smoother, while also intimidating those in the sect linked to the Night Raven organization, making him safer.

Uncle Six's protection differed from Uncle Seven's.

Uncle Seven was grand and fierce, attracting disciples to form a deterrent, like a long spear piercing the sky.

Uncle Six's personality and past shaped his protection to be silent and unobtrusive, like an invisible shield, granting Xu Qing space to retreat.

In this indifferent world, in this cruel age, Xu Qing valued this silent and unobtrusive care deeply.

His nature was to cherish kindness and act cruelly toward enemies, even ruthlessly so, with a high wall built deep within his heart, guarded against the outside world.

He had armored himself and sealed off all connections, only to protect himself from harm.

This was the result of his upbringing, yet beneath it all, behind the wall, in the depths of his icy demeanor, lay a warmth few could understand.

For enemies, Xu Qing was ruthless and merciless.

For benefactors, Xu Qing never forgot, always remembering.

This was Xu Qing.

In this bitter winter night, for those who had given him care, warmth, and a hearth, he had met few in his life, and each was precious to him.

But Lei (Lie) had left, Master Bo had left, and now Uncle Six had also left.

So his heart ached fiercely.

His body trembled with cold.

His eyes slowly reddened.

Finally, a reluctant effort lifted his head.

This movement was arduous, for at the moment the group appeared, Xu Qing's body seemed frozen, unable to move.

It was the pressure, the coalescence of life's essence!

Yet he struggled to lift his head, for even if it were death, Xu Qing would not bow his head to face it.

He stared at the figure ahead, the black-robed youth with a spirit-face mask, holding a sugar-coated meat like the blood of Uncle Six's past.

The black-robed youth paused, a flicker of nostalgia in his eyes, warmth laced with affection, gazing at Xu Qing.

This gentle gaze made Xu Qing stagger, his heart convulsed with a fierce shock.

That affectionate look instantly overturned his memories, vast and earth-shaking.

As the youth halted, the three behind him also stopped.

The face of the Night Raven under the mask showed strange hues; he recognized Xu Qing, the brat who had escaped death during the White Emperor incident and under his command.

What he witnessed now made him feel the matter was far more complex, so he spoke not a word.

As for the father of the White Emperor, he looked puzzled, thoughtful, but said nothing.

However, the White Emperor's daughter's expression twisted, staring fiercely at Xu Qing, a sneer on her lips, believing Xu Qing's fate this time would be certain death.

"Lord, I..." the White Emperor instinctively opened his mouth, but at once, his father glared at him sternly, causing the White Emperor to hesitate, not speaking.

From his father's gaze, he saw tension and puzzlement.

The White Emperor, though radiant, in her core nature was not as wise as her father.

At this moment, her father's true feeling was horror, for something felt amiss.

This journey, the mysterious figure ahead with terrifying power and the ability to release divine vision, could have moved aside, yet he lingered slowly.

As if he had known this direction all along.

Until the White Emperor's father saw Xu Qing, his heart suddenly guessed strongly—that the glowing lord had taken this path to meet Xu Qing.

This guess made him shiver.

In the howling wind, the black-robed youth noticed Xu Qing's gaze toward the severed head in the Night Raven's hand, and spoke softly, "I know their relationship, but he slew the White Emperor, and I took his head as a trophy—this is justified, and will not change because of you."

Speaking, the black-robed youth stepped forward, his pace unhurried, his eyes still gentle, without the slightest pretense, flowing from the heart.

Xu Qing's body, though frozen, now trembled more violently.

He could not believe his eyes, staring at the youth's masked eyes, the voice echoing in his deepest memory, stirring a familiar sensation.

This feeling made his breath grow ragged, his pupils contracting, his throat involuntarily emitting a whimper.

Not fear, but disbelief, unwilling to believe, and after feeling this, it was his final, desperate denial.

Until the black-robed youth reached Xu Qing's side, gazing at the boy almost his height for a long time.

Finally, under Xu Qing's shuddering and the crackling of his bones, the youth raised his hand, placing it on his mask.

Gently... he removed it.

Revealing a face eerily similar to Xu Qing's by seven parts.

In the starlit haze, the pale face bore the divine eyes of the heavens, pure and boundless.

Above, the sharp eyebrows slanted like blades; the thin, tightly pressed lips; the clear-cut contours—all gave the youth the aura of a hawk in the dark night, cold and aloof.

Compared to Xu Qing, he seemed colder, seemed more malevolent.

Yet at this moment, in the solitary clarity within Ying Mu's eyes, a rare softness was present, and he spoke in a light voice.

"Younger brother, it's been a long time."

Xu Qing was as if struck by lightning from the sky, his mind seemed to have ten thousand thunderbolts explode, transforming into a sound that split the heavens and earth, his spirit was violently agitated, his body trembled incessantly.

Everything in front of him seemed to disappear, leaving only that face, which was as familiar as a dream, and the voice that had echoed in the deepest memories, beyond the high wall, within the iceberg, in the most fragile and precious part of his heart.

As when he had felt familiar before, his heart was filled with disbelief, but just now, he still had a hint of the emotion that was considered impossible.

But now, with the removal of the mask, with that one word of "younger brother," the last thread of stubbornness in Xu Qing's heart was ruthlessly destroyed.

The place of destruction was the deepest part of his heart, a place unreachable by others, and also the area he most wanted to protect, but at this moment……

Collapsed.

His belief was to survive in this chaotic world; if he could live a little better, that would be even better. If he could finally see his relatives, he would be completely satisfied.

He had imagined countless times in his childhood, the scene of meeting his relatives one day in the future, in all those images, there were beauty and warmth.

This was in the dead of winter, the one who was shivering, the persistence to avoid freezing to death.

But now……

Xu Qing's mouth emitted a wailing sound, his forehead had bulging veins, his eyes carried bitterness, bewilderment, pain, and more so, a slowly dissipating dependence.

A pain that could not be described came from the softest part of his heart, like a tear.

He felt so cold, so cold, even his soul at this moment also shivered, from the inside out, from the soul to the body.

"Younger brother, actually, what I miss most are the scenes of our childhood." Xu Qing's brother, lifting his head, looked at the cold moon in the night sky, speaking softly.

Xu Qing's chest heaved, his eyes forcefully avoided looking, gazing at another black-robed person's hand holding the head, sadness turned into tears in his eyes, slowly flowing down.

These tears, it was unknown whether they were crying for the sixth grandfather, or for the brother, or for himself.

At this moment, the cold wind came again, it couldn't dry his tears, but could move the hearts of Shengnv Zi, his father, and the Night Bird.

After the three of them witnessed this scene with their own eyes, their hearts had already surged unprecedented torrential waves!

Shengnv Zi's eyes widened, with the ultimate horror.

His father's breathing was labored, his thoughts in turmoil, heaven and earth turned upside down.

As for the Night Bird, he bowed his head to look at the head in his hand, then looked at Xu Qing's eyes, which were filled with tears, showing struggle and madness, finally his gaze fell on his master, and even more fervent.