Chapter 84 — The Journey Afar
劍問蒼天 · Page 1 of 6
All was silent around him; it seemed the only thing echoing in his ears was the violent pounding of his own heart, and the fear of death's unknown pressed down on the wild dog like an endless, freezing sea, drowning him.
Unbidden, he trembled...
The figure beneath the gaze of countless eyes looked pitiful and utterly alone, and yet he clung on with an unexpected stubbornness; the hand that shook still gripped the Blackheart Token tightly, very tightly.
There was something oddly familiar in the sight—as though many years ago, there had been another obstinate, enduring youth, clinging to something for reasons no one could name.
The red glow in his eyes quietly faded; his arms swung soundlessly in the darkness, and at once countless black-robed figures surged outward like a tide, vanishing clean and without a trace in the blink of an eye.
The wild dog's panting slowly evened out; wonder stirred in his heart, though fear remained, and he cautiously opened his eyes a slit—only to find that this place, at some unknown moment, held but two people, himself included.
The smell of blood that had filled the air had likewise vanished, he knew not when.
That man stood with his back to him at the edge of the Abyss of the Dead, gazing silently downward, as though somewhere in the deepest darkness of this world lay the memories of his past.
A wind blew gently past; the man's insignificant frame, set against that vast Abyss, seemed terribly frail. A thought suddenly darted through the wild dog's mind: with no one else about, why not just push him over...
Once born, the thought burned through him like fire, searing him until his whole body grew hot, and he could scarcely keep from trying it—yet for all that his mind raced so wildly, his body seemed to defy his will and would not move an inch.
Until, that is, the man turned around and looked at him.
The wild dog felt as though a basin of cold water had been poured over his head, chilling him from crown to sole.
"Were you just thinking of pushing me down from here?" the man said mildly, as though speaking of something that had nothing to do with him.
"Clang!"
The Blackheart Token slipped from the wild dog's hand and fell to the ground. He snatched it up in a fluster, his face several shades paler, but then he drew himself up stiffly, as if to bolster his own courage, and cried loudly, "Kill me if you must—I'm not afraid of you!"
The man whom others called Ming Li regarded him faintly and said, "I will not kill you. If you died, the Blood Refining Hall would truly have no heirs left, and I fear the Blackheart Elder down below would die with his eyes unclosed." He walked forward, passing the wild dog, and went on, "From now on, you will follow at my side."
The wild dog started, then burst out, "You led men here and all but wiped out our Blood Refining Hall, and now you want me to follow you?"
Ming Li paid him no heed and simply walked on, but his voice came back clear as ever: "Your cultivation is too low, and besides, without me now, the Hades Sect will want you dead first. And those fellow disciples of yours who surrendered—Elder Nian and his lot—seeing you hold fast to the Blood Refining Hall, would it not make them look too shameless? They would kill you just the same."
The wild dog was struck dumb, sweat beading on his forehead; but seeing that figure gradually melt into the darkness, walking farther and farther away, he stamped his foot at last, ran quickly after him, and called out loudly, "Hmph, I'm not afraid of dying, but to revive the Blood Refining Hall, I'll humble myself for now..."
In the darkness, footsteps sounded in succession as they walked one before the other through this Ten Thousand Bats Ancient Cave. Suddenly, as if something had just occurred to him, the one behind spoke up: "Hey, Zhang Qingyue, why do you treat me this way..."