Chapter 133: Truth
Moments later, Rong Xie, dressed in tight-fitting clothes and a hooded cloak, appeared on the eaves not far away.
The winter night wind blew the hem of his cloak, revealing a lithe and slender figure.
Shen Bingsi’s gaze locked firmly onto the figure ahead, and he teleported almost instantly, arriving behind Rong Xie.
“Where are you—Ah!” Rong Xie was looking around in all directions, searching for Shen Bingsi. Turning his head abruptly, he suddenly saw Shen Bingsi right behind him, which gave him a fright.
“Why didn’t you make a sound, sneaking up behind me…” Rong Xie’s voice held a trace of complaint.
Shen Bingsi stared unblinkingly at his face until Rong Xie’s expression shifted from complaint to suspicion. “What’s wrong? Could it be—”
Shen Bingsi forcibly suppressed the impulse to rush up and hug the person before him tightly. He didn’t want to scare Rong Xie. It was his first time entering someone else’s dream, and he didn’t know if doing so would frighten the dream’s owner.
The third chapter of Mind Arts, one of the five basic courses for Spirit Mirror Sect disciples, stated that the Path of Cultivating the Heart was the most arduous because the human heart is fickle. Dreams are the manifestation of the heart; desires hidden during wakefulness often appear in dreams. At such times, the heart is exposed and easily hurt. That is why spells like the Nightmare Spell and Illusion Arts are called evil arts—they aren’t open clashes of strength but insidious moves striking when one is unprepared.
This was Shen Bingsi’s first time using such a move. However, his understanding of dreams was no less than that of evil cultivators who frequently used Nightmare and Illusion Arts, because he cultivated the Ruthless Path.
The Ruthless Path was the nemesis of Nightmare and Illusion Arts. During cultivation, Ruthless Path cultivators would actively enter illusions, exposing their hearts directly to tempting or terrifying scenes to temper their nature. Over time, their hearts became encased in a thick callus; even if they entered an illusion, they wouldn’t easily be exposed. Compared to the training undergone for the Ruthless Path, illusion and nightmare spells were nothing.
Shen Bingsi had learned some rules about dreams through countless such temperings. The first rule was not to startle the dream owner.
“Nothing,” Shen Bingsi said with a normal expression. “I know where Lu Yingqi is. Let’s go, I’ll take you to find him.”
Rong Xie breathed a sigh of relief. “Why were you staring at me just now? I thought Senior Brother Lu had met with some misfortune.”
“You really pay attention to Senior Brother Lu. He’s at the late Nascent Soul stage, after all; how could he die so easily?” Shen Bingsi mimicked Rong Xie’s tone calling him “Senior Brother Lu,” leading the way with a look of disdain.
Rong Xie circulated his spiritual power, floating up lightly to follow Shen Bingsi. “Peh, peh! Don’t say such inauspicious things!”
Shen Bingsi suddenly noticed something and turned back. “You’re using magic?”
“Yes.” Rong Xie was puzzled. Isn’t it obvious?
“Why not use a flight talisman?” Shen Bingsi grabbed Rong Xie’s arm and pulled him in front of himself. “Don’t use magic anymore. Don’t you know your spiritual power is limited?”
Rong Xie struggled slightly but couldn’t break free. “I’m anxious… You didn’t return for so long, and there was no news of Senior Brother Lu. What exactly were you doing?”
Shen Bingsi extended his arm to embrace Rong Xie, making him offload his weight onto him. “Stop using spiritual power. Wherever you go, I’ll take you.”
Rong Xie paused slightly. Unknown thoughts crossed his mind, and his expression became complex. “…You’re right. I was negligent.”
For the time that followed, Rong Xie didn’t suggest using a flight talisman. He simply leaned against Shen Bingsi’s arm, letting him fly them here and there.
Shen Bingsi’s tense mood relaxed. His hand on Rong Xie’s waist tightened slightly, and Rong Xie pressed closer to him. The top of his head, emitting a gentle fragrance, was right before Shen Bingsi’s eyes, and his smooth, cool forehead occasionally brushed against Shen Bingsi’s jaw.
This feeling was just like when Rong Xie was comatose, and he had carried him from place to place, from the flying Sheng Xie Sword all the way to Orchid Ridge. Rong Xie hadn’t resisted at all, nestling obediently in his arms.
Except, back then Rong Xie had no consciousness of his own. The current Rong Xie was awake—this feeling was like a dream.
To some extent, he was dreaming.
…But this was Rong Xie’s dream. Rong Xie had complete autonomy in the dream! That Shen Bingsi could hold him like this and fly him through the sky was entirely because Rong Xie allowed it himself.
Shen Bingsi began to understand why some people didn’t want to wake up after falling into a sweet dream.
Since he had stopped Rong Xie from using spiritual power, Rong Xie’s spiritual power in reality wouldn’t continue to drain. It wouldn’t matter if the dream lasted a little longer. He would end it after they found Lu Yingqi.
Shen Bingsi clearly remembered Lu Yingqi had fallen below a wild hillside. He had changed his burnt clothes and meditated there to regulate his breathing. When Shen Bingsi found him, Lu Yingqi had just finished regulating his breath and said he didn’t want to get involved in the Lu estate’s affairs, so he went back.
Shen Bingsi remembered the direction of that wild hillside clearly. Without activating his spiritual consciousness, he took Rong Xie directly there.
On the way, the bright moon and clear breeze were pleasant. They leaped over treetops, seeing a vast forest unfolding beneath their feet. In the distance, the Clear River flowed out of the valley like a shimmering ribbon, winding through the woods under the moonlight.
“Rong’er, aren’t you the least bit curious about how I defeated Lu Yingqi?” Shen Bingsi asked while navigating the void.
“Hm…?” This time Rong Xie wasn’t impatient, nor did he urge Shen Bingsi to find Lu Yingqi quickly. Instead, he followed the question. “How did you defeat him?”
“I seem to have a special talent that only erupts in the most dangerous moments. Peaceful seclusion doesn’t suit me,” Shen Bingsi said with some pride. “On the contrary, roaming outside and fighting to the death with powerful demons stimulates this talent of mine. Today, dueling Lu Yingqi, who is two realms higher than me… when that crushing spiritual pressure came at me, that feeling returned.”
When the surrounding environment was dangerous to the extreme, he became calm, focused, and full of confidence. Accurately capturing the flaw of that single instant, then piercing through it in one stroke. That soul-shaking exhilaration rapidly elevated Shen Bingsi’s state. After a few occurrences, he successfully broke through.
“So that’s how it is,” Rong Xie said thoughtfully. “This must be the protagonist halo. Fighting monsters above your level not only causes no injury but also levels you up.”
“Hm? What does that mean?” It was the first time Shen Bingsi had heard such strange terms. What “protagonist halo”? What “leveling up by fighting monsters above your level”? However, it was normal for Rong Xie to say words he didn’t know. Rong Xie was widely read and knowledgeable, while he was too lazy to even look at picture books.
“Nothing. As long as you’re fine.” Rong Xie said softly.
Shen Bingsi felt Rong Xie press closer into his embrace, one hand reaching behind him to grab the belt of his Adjudicator robes.
Shen Bingsi didn’t know what the consequences of hugging Rong Xie tightly in a dream would be. He used the self-control of a Ruthless Path Nascent Soul cultivator to restrain his limbs from making unnecessary movements. Even so, the tremors in his Sea of Consciousness made him dizzy. The two of them took several sharp turns in the air, nearly falling from the treetops.
“Bingsi, are you alright?” Rong Xie lifted his head, looking nervously at Shen Bingsi, his hand gripping the belt even tighter.
“I… I’m fine.” Shen Bingsi cast his gaze elsewhere, forcing himself to search the woods for signs of Lu Yingqi. He could feel the person in his arms looking at his face, but he dared not look down to meet that gaze.
“True, your Dao Heart is like iron; how could it… waver?” After a long while, Rong Xie withdrew his gaze and sighed softly. “I was really worried about you. If your Dao Heart wavered during your duel with Senior Brother Lu… what would we do?”
Shen Bingsi couldn’t care less about dizziness now. His brows twitching, he looked down at Rong Xie.
Rong Xie happened to have withdrawn his gaze and was looking ahead, presenting the top of his head to Shen Bingsi. From Shen Bingsi’s angle, he could only see Rong Xie’s indifferent brow and distant long lashes. A layer of melancholy seemed to shroud his jade-white face.
Rong Xie had never said such words to Shen Bingsi in reality. Shen Bingsi didn’t dare interrupt him. It was true that dreams are closer to the heart; Rong Xie found it easier to speak his true feelings in a dream.
With this, Shen Bingsi wanted to leave even less. Lingering a bit longer shouldn’t be a problem, right?
Just as he was thinking this, Rong Xie suddenly gasped. “What is that?”
Shen Bingsi looked in the direction of his finger. A ball of light flickered in the woods ahead. It looked like something was burning, and the fire was significant.
“It’s probably Lu Yingqi.” Shen Bingsi said with annoyance. “How did we find him so quickly?”
“Aren’t we here to find him?” Rong Xie was puzzled.
Although very reluctant, Shen Bingsi still flew over the treetops with Rong Xie, heading straight for the flickering firelight.
Soon, they arrived near the fire.
A strong smell of burnt flesh drifted over with the wind. Shen Bingsi frowned; this smell wasn’t quite right.
“Urgh!” Rong Xie covered his nose and mouth. The moment he saw clearly what was burning, he jerked his face away and retched.
Shen Bingsi saw the scene in the woods too. His eyes slowly widened.
A charred corpse, burnt beyond recognition, lay in the center of a crater. Around it, many charred trees lay haphazardly. One could imagine the devastating impact caused when the fireball fell from the sky and landed here.
“Impossible!” Shen Bingsi stared for a long time before finally finding his voice. “This isn’t Lu Yingqi!”
Lu Yingqi was dead.
Dead in Rong Xie’s dream.
Dreams require no cause and effect, nor investigation or verification.
Shen Bingsi felt the scene before his eyes shift instantly. He was standing at the entrance of the Ruthless Path Palace. The palace gate was draped in black gauze. Xuantian Sect disciples looked at him with hostility. Then, the two black lacquer doors slammed shut with a boom, locking him out.
Many sounds of weeping came from inside—some old, some young. A realization struck Shen Bingsi’s mind: Lu Yingqi was dead, and now he was listed as persona non grata by the Xuantian Sect.
Someone beside him swayed, as if unsteady on their feet, reaching out to hold his arm. Shen Bingsi turned to look. It was Rong Xie, dressed entirely in black. Rong Xie rarely wore black; it accentuated his skin, making it as white as ice and snow. His face was haggard, his lip color as pale as paper.
“Bingsi, what do we do? Senior Brother Lu is dead…” Rong Xie’s gaze was unfocused as he murmured blankly. “Senior Brother Lu is dead. Nothing has changed. How could this happen…”
Shen Bingsi’s heart sank.
At this moment, he should have said: Lu Yingqi isn’t dead. This is all a dream. Once you wake up, everything will be fine.
But an inexplicable bitterness made his tone change as soon as he opened his mouth. “Is Lu Yingqi that important to you? Did you really try every possible way to befriend him just to find me a sparring partner?”
“I…” Rong Xie looked up, gazing at Shen Bingsi in panic. Shen Bingsi’s heart constricted; suddenly, he didn’t want to know Rong Xie’s answer. But Rong Xie answered him anyway. “Of course not… I did it for myself.”
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