TM CH51

Chapter 51 Setting Sail (2)

At dusk, the afterglow of the setting sun illuminated the sea, rippling with orange-red light. It was a spectacle entirely different from sunsets on land, so fascinating that one couldn’t help but feel small and insignificant in its presence.

A trace of unease appeared between Rong Qi’s brows. “One day sooner.”

They had been traveling for three to four hours, yet there hadn’t been a single ship in sight, not even a seabird.

Gu Yunxing: “The wind at sea can shift at any time. The captain’s estimate might not be accurate.”

Rong Qi frowned. “It’s getting dark. If we lose visibility and go off course, it could end badly.”

Gu Yunxing tried to reassure him. “Once night falls, we can still use the stars to tell direction.” He took out a piece of preserved meat and handed it over. “There’s no need to worry, Right Protector. Heaven never seals off all paths.”

Rong Qi accepted the food and said, “That line again.”

Gu Yunxing paused for a moment, then let out a laugh when he realized.

Rong Qi took a bite of the meat, but his expression froze. He looked down at the food in surprise.

Gu Yunxing asked, “What is it?”

Rong Qi silently handed the preserved meat back, his expression hard to describe.

Gu Yunxing took a bite from the same spot Rong Qi had bitten, and immediately fell silent as well.

The two of them glanced at the other three. Back then, they had only been thinking about returning to the east island for the canvas, so most of the food had been prepared by Fang Ruoyao and Yan Fan… but it was too late for regrets now.

Gu Yunxing let out a sigh, then dug out a few fresh berries and quietly handed them to Rong Qi.

Rong Qi: “……”

Night eventually fell.

The sea at night was like thick ink. Starlight fell into the sea as if sinking into an abyss, only revealing an even more endless depth and vastness. The night wind, carrying a slight chill, stirred waves across the surface.

In the small boat, the group could clearly feel the rising swells. Rong Qi’s body swayed with the boat’s movement, and when the waves grew stronger, splashes of seawater made it into the vessel.

In such conditions, none of them felt like sleeping.

Fang Ruoyao tried her best not to dwell on it. “Big brother, can you continue telling me the story of the Three Fiends of the Kuangdao Sect?”

Several pairs of eyes immediately turned to Fang Lian.

Fang Lian coughed, looking a bit awkward. “It’s already late… let’s not disturb everyone’s rest.”

“It’s not that late,” Rong Qi, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly said. “Alliance Leader Fang can tell stories? Why not share it with all of us?”

Fang Lian looked troubled. Telling stories to amuse his younger sister was one thing, but he wasn’t shameless enough to recount his own past exploits in front of everyone.

Just as he was about to decline, Gu Yunxing spoke first. “The Kuangdao Sect… wasn’t that the heretical sect you wiped out on your way back from the Southern Region three years ago?” He seemed to be recalling the details, then added, “If I remember right, you even reformed one of the Three Fiends, Yan Luosan. Not only did she assist you, she’s now working for the Wulin Alliance.”

Fang Ruoyao was intrigued. “But big brother, you told me it was because Sister Yan had a kind heart, so she turned herself in willingly. How did you reform her?”

Gu Yunxing’s words had clearly opened the topic for good.

Fang Lian gave Gu Yunxing a complicated look, then turned to his sister with a smile. “Yan Luosan was originally acting against her will. Once she learned why I had come, she offered to cooperate from the inside.”

Rong Qi: “When Yanluo^[1] holds his parasol, crimson rain falls. Back then, this Yan Luosan was a ^[2]notorious demoness. How did she become someone acting against her will in Alliance Leader Fang’s version?”

The others were initially uninterested, but now they couldn’t help but become intrigued.

Fang Lian’s lips twitched. “Yan Luosan was once a married woman with a daughter. Her husband was murdered, and her child was kidnapped. With no other options, she joined the Kuangdao Sect, hoping to find a way to rescue her daughter.”

Fang Ruoyao: “But I’ve never heard anything about Sister Yan having a daughter…”

Fang Lian let out a sigh. “The Kuangdao Sect did find her daughter, but they also poisoned the child with a rare toxin. The girl was too young… she didn’t live more than a few years. Afraid Yan Luosan would turn against them if she found out, they kept it from her and continued to use her for three more years.”

Rong Qi sneered. “The world is full of wicked people, yet they insisted on forcing someone into evil. Seems they didn’t even have a decent fighter left.”

Fang Lian nodded. “What the Right Protector said is right. The only true experts in the Kuangdao Sect were the Three Fiends. The rest of the disciples were mediocre and not worth worrying about. But the sect was hidden deep in the mountains, where miasma was thick. Without a map, taking them down was easier said than done.”

Fang Ruoyao: “So Sister Yan gave you the map?”

Fang Lian nodded. “She also personally beheaded the other two fiends. The world says I was the one who destroyed the Kuangdao Sect, but the truth is… even without me, the sect wouldn’t have lasted much longer.”

No one spoke for a long time.

There were many grudges in the jianghu, not easily explained in a few words.

People like Yan Luosan, with secrets in their past, were all too common. Even if she was acting against her will, how many of those who died beneath her umbrella blade truly deserved to die?

Fang Ruoyao: “In the end, the most hateful one is the person who took Sister Yan’s daughter. Big brother, do you know who it was?”

Fang Lian: “Yan Luosan asked me the same question back then.”

As he spoke, his gaze fell on Rong Qi. The man was leaning against a wooden post, his head slightly turned toward the sea. Although he was listening, his attitude remained detached, as if the story had nothing to do with him, only chiming in now and then with sarcastic remark.

“The one who took her daughter was backed by a powerful force. To them, the Kuangdao Sect was nothing more than a grain of sand at the foot of a mountain. Even if she gave it her all, she wouldn’t be able to shake them in the slightest.”

Rong Qi noticed that Fang Lian hadn’t continued speaking and vaguely guessed something. “Alliance Leader Fang, don’t tell me you’re trying to pin this on my Lihuo Palace as well?”

Fang Lian: “Then where does the Right Protector think all those orphans in Lihuo Palace came from?”

Rong Qi opened his eyes, a flash of cold light in their depths.

“Although my master is a demon, he wouldn’t deign to do such filthy things. Alliance Leader Fang comes from a prestigious family and naturally doesn’t understand that there are many homeless people in this world.”

Fang Lian: “The words of a dying man…”

“Naturally, one would want to take revenge on their enemies before dying,” Rong Qi finished for him with a cold smile. “Did those two really think that giving a name would spare them from death?”

Fang Lian was silent for a long time before sighing. “It’s true this matter hasn’t been verified. This humble Fang spoke out of assumption.”

Fang Ruoyao frowned. “If those two lied to Sister Yan before they died, that’s just too cruel!” The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. But whether it was those two from the Kuangdao Sect, or the demon in front of her, it was all one-sided stories. Maybe she should remind Sister Yan to find out the truth before taking revenge.

“Then, demon, how did you end up in Lihuo Palace?” Perhaps because her older brother and Gu Yunxing were nearby, or because she’d seen Rong Qi rush into the cave to save Gu Yunxing, she found the courage to ask him directly.

Fang Lian immediately felt it was inappropriate, but before he could speak, Rong Qi had already answered.

“When I was a child, wandering and beaten, I met my master.”

Fang Ruoyao looked at him in surprise, a trace of sympathy flashing in her eyes. But Rong Qi’s next words made that fleeting sympathy vanish in an instant.

“After he saved me, the first thing he did was tell me to avenge myself,” Rong Qi said, a cruel smile tugging at the corner of his lips, “So I tied them up, one by one, and pushed them into the river. I watched them struggle, cry, and finally sink to the bottom. From that day on, I became part of Lihuo Palace.”

Fang Ruoyao’s face went pale with fright. “Even if they bullied you, that doesn’t mean… they deserved to die!”

Rong Qi let out a cold laugh. “Such naivete. That’s why you’ll always be a foolish girl hiding under your elder brother’s protection.”

Fang Ruoyao: “I’m not foolish! You’re just too obsessed with revenge!”

Rong Qi: “What if someone killed your elder brother?”

Fang Ruoyao’s expression changed instantly. “You’re not allowed to talk nonsense!”

Rong Qi sneer. “Getting murderous, little demon Fang.”

Fang Ruoyao choked on her words, then huffed and hid behind Fang Lian, refusing to acknowledge him further.

Gu Yunxing looked at the girl, her eyes rimmed red with frustration, and shook his head helplessly. “Was there really any need to provoke her like that?”

Rong Qi: “She was the one who insisted on asking.”

Gu Yunxing: “Being vindictive isn’t necessarily wrong.”

The two sat close together, their wide sleeves overlapping. Beneath the fabric, Gu Yunxing’s palm pressed gently over the back of Rong Qi’s hand. His fingers slipped between Rong Qi’s, slowly intertwining, locking each one in place.

Rong Qi didn’t react.

Gu Yunxing gave a slight tug, lightly shaking their joined hands.

Still, Rong Qi didn’t move. His eyes remained closed, making the sensation even more distinct. The hand gripping his would tighten, then loosen, as if quietly reminding him: I’m here.

“I can hear you,” Fang Ruoyao suddenly said, breaking the quiet moment between them. “Brother Gu, do you also think I’m too naive?”

Fang Lian spoke softly, “Ruoyao…”

But she insisted, “I want to hear what Brother Gu has to say.”

Gu Yunxing was silent for a moment.

Rong Qi, curious to hear what kind of moral lecture he might give, felt the soft pad of Gu Yunxing’s thumb caressing his skin. His expression flickered slightly.

Gu Yunxing: “Those people didn’t deserve to live.”

Fang Ruoyao: “Is that… is that so?“

Gu Yunxing: “Naturally.”

A gang of bullies who took pleasure in others’ suffering, treating the weak as playthings, how could they possibly be considered unworthy of death?

Silence fell over the boat once more.

As Rong Qi listened to the waves, he suddenly felt a warmth spread over him — the ugly rabbit fur blanket had been draped over his body. This time, he didn’t push it away. Taking advantage of the added cover, he idly began to play with Gu Yunxing’s hand beneath it.

Before long, drowsiness crept in.

The five of them decided to take turns resting, each keeping watch for an hour. But with no proper way to measure time at sea, they could only rely on instinct to switch shifts.

When Rong Qi woke up, everything in front of him was still pitch black. For a moment, he couldn’t tell what time it was. Only the hand under the blanket remained, still holding his.

At the slightest movement, Gu Yunxing’s voice came softly from beside him, “Awake?”

“Who could sleep soundly in this cursed place?”

Even Yan Fan’s snoring had become uneven and broken, no longer steady.

Rong Qi: “Gu Yunxing, has it been more than an hour?”

Gu Yunxing had insisted on taking his turn before Rong Qi. Rong Qi could already guess what this fool was thinking.