Heart Protection (Back from the Brink)

CHAPTER 18

The snake demon knelt in front of the bed. He didn't move for a long time.

Yan Hui silently gazed at his back. She had no words to say.

The one who broke the deathly stillness was unexpectedly the one sitting on the other side of the bed, Tian Yao: "I'm sorry......" His tone was low, and his aura was empty. It was obvious his body was still in bad shape.

The snake demon remained silent for a long time before he stirred. His head drooped. He ran his hands over the bed and came across a wooden hairpin encased in ice. This hairpin was worn by Zhenren Qi Yun earlier.

It was probably the only thing that didn't disappear along with Zhenren Qi Yun......

The snake demon held the hairpin tightly in his hand. The coldness covered his hand in frost: "I don't blame you......" The hand holding the hairpin turned white from his tight grip. "It was me......" His jaw was clenched deathly tight. It seemed like his voice was being squeezed out from his throat. "It was me!" Tears fell from his eyes. He bent and collapsed over the daybed. His entire body shook, and his voice was filled with sobs: "I caused her death. I caused her death......"

Yan Hui heard his words, and she tightly clenched her fists.

The snake demon's sobs gradually got louder, like a child who had fallen. It sounded like his heart was breaking. He cried his lungs out, drowning out all other sounds.

Yan Hui looked down. Her mind endlessly repeated Zhenren Qi Yun's two words, "Stop him." She wanted Yan Hui to stop him.

Zhenren Qi Yun died from the Hoarfrost Technique. Aside from her shifu, no one could cast the spell with that ferocity. No one else could cast it at such a degree. The person Zhenren Qi Yun wanted her to stop couldn't have been anyone else.

Zhenren Qi Yun's death couldn't be blamed on Tian Yao, not on the snake demon, but should be blamed on......

"Why!" His shoulders tensed, and the snake demon's red eyes locked onto Yan Hui: "Why would Ling Xiao kill Qi Yun?!" He cried out angrily.

Yan Hui's face was pale. For a short period, she couldn't get a single word out. She silently looked at the snake demon. It was a long time before she faintly said: "I can't think of any reason."

It was like the snake demon went crazy. He grabbed her shoulders and started shaking her. All the while, he kept asking: "Why would he kill her! Why kill her!?"

Yan Hui only shook her head: "I don't know."

Her mind was a mess. For a moment it would be Zhenren Qi Yun's ice-covered appearance. The next moment, it was Ling Xiao teaching her the sword-dance on the mountain peak since childhood. The next moment was when she was being thrown out of the monastery; Ling Xiao was coldly looking at her. But in the end, Yan Hui started to calm down. What stayed in her mind was Ling Xiao standing in front of her and holding her hand, saying:

"Hold this sword in your hand. Keep benevolence and righteousness in your heart. You cannot harm fellow sect members nor practitioners of the same beliefs. You cannot use your strength to oppress others. You cannot be arrogant nor conceited."

It was like a clear voice had washed away Yan Hui's confusion.

She should believe in him. After so many years of following his beliefs, even if others suspect Ling Xiao, she shouldn't doubt him.

Yan Hui looked at the snake demon with determination: "There had to be a misunderstanding at some point."

"What other misunderstanding!" The snake demon released Yan Hui. With one hand, he flipped the table. His face revealed his agitation: "Qi Yun died from the Hoarfrost's backlash! In this world, who else besides your master is that proficient in frost techniques?! Who else could cast that spell on Qi Yun?!"