Love.

Like.

These two words both seemed to concern “emotions,” but at some unknown point, they had been mysteriously divided into ranks and grades. The latter seemed not as deep and intense as the former, while the former was more passionate and pure than the latter.

Xie Buchen used these two to distinguish their past feelings, which gave Jian Chou a strange sense of bewilderment.

She thought that what he said might not be wrong.

Setting aside grudges and speaking purely of emotions, it did seem to be so.

But what of it?

She had lost both parents in childhood, had seen that all living beings suffer, and had experienced the coldness and warmth of human nature countless times. What Xie Buchen had experienced later was nothing more than what she had already gone through.

He had experienced these changes in worldly affairs and still questioned heaven.

Having experienced the suffering of this world, it was only natural that her temperament was somewhat more indifferent than ordinary people who knew no hardship.

All of yesterday has become today’s self.

She had feelings for Xie Buchen, but just as Xie Buchen said, though they were deep, they only amounted to the word “like.” When deeply trapped within them, it was naturally difficult to extricate herself, but once she had the opportunity to let go, she didn’t find it particularly significant.

Perhaps she had simply forgotten.

So-called romantic love sometimes arose from pure desire and thoughts, sometimes from compatible interests and aspirations, sometimes from gratitude and reverence, and sometimes even close friends who had endured hardships together could gradually develop feelings…

In Jian Chou’s view, it was often many emotions mixed together.

Never pure.

Perhaps in Xie Buchen’s view, it was also just an illusion that confused one’s rationality?

The more one experienced, the deeper one loved.

Xie Buchen had only accompanied her through a few ordinary storms of wandering, allowing her to possess all the beautiful hopes for a home. But she had accompanied Xie Buchen through wealth and privilege, escaped family extermination, and through much hardship and pioneering efforts, built a home anew…

Naturally, his love for her should be deeper.

She had already extinguished her past romantic feelings and no longer immersed herself in the emotions of those years. All the bone-deep memories of the past would gradually fade.

But Xie Buchen could not.

When he raised his sword to kill her, he desired to sever his beloved but could not. When a person dies, emotions fade; no matter how deep the love, one can slowly let go. But Jian Chou hadn’t died. Emotions grew with love, so not a single day brought relief. He remained forever in bone-deep memory, with more bone-deep memories added as their interactions increased.

At this moment, Jian Chou was calmly narrating facts.

At this moment, Xie Buchen was also merely calmly recounting the past.

At least on the surface, there was a cold distance between them, appearing to have no remnant of past romantic feelings, both rational to the extreme.

After a long silence, Jian Chou still laughed, sighing: “In the end, you and I are both mortals, and the words ‘romantic love,’ compared to things beside this vast universe, are hard to last long. Worldly affairs are often wondrous, neither within your calculations nor my expectations. What you want to escape from, you sink deeper into; what you don’t want to escape from leaves no attachments…”

What you want to escape from, you sink deeper into;

What you don’t want to escape from leaves no attachments.

These words, used to describe the two of them, were surprisingly fitting.

Xie Buchen knew her words had implications, but when he was about to respond, his calm gaze flickered slightly as he looked toward the door of the torture chamber beside them.

Someone had gone and returned.

Jian Chou also sensed it and turned her gaze to look at that tightly closed door.

It wasn’t Qu Zhengfeng, but Xueyin.

In the deep corridor outside, her light, unconcealed footsteps could be heard.

But they weren’t coming toward Jian Chou’s side, but toward the opposite side.

The torture chamber on the other side of the corridor was equally simple, with bare walls and only a gray-white three-foot round pillar standing on the ground, connected to the underground rocks.

Lu Xiangleng was bound to it.

When Xueyin pushed the door open and entered, she only saw that this woman, who originally had a somewhat aloof bearing, now had a completely pale face, blood staining her front, with undried blood traces still hanging at her lips—full of wretchedness and defeat!

“Xiao Mou” held a snow-white soul-hooking cord in his palm. At this moment, he wasn’t doing anything to Lu Xiangleng, but seemed to have already sensed her approach. He stopped all his movements and turned sideways, looking directly at her.

Qu Zhengfeng slightly raised an eyebrow, seeming somewhat surprised.

He coughed once, his voice somewhat unfamiliar and cold: “Does Senior Sister Xueyin still have business here?”

A faint bloody smell floated in the air—the bloody smell that belonged uniquely to the living.

Xueyin was somewhat unexpected.

In her past understanding, apart from being bullied by Lian Zhao, Xiao Mou had always been a person without much presence, with a solitary temperament who didn’t like to talk, even showing a bit of resignation. However, at this moment, seeing that the Jiushijiu Zhou female cultivator had obviously been tortured, she suddenly felt it was rather shocking.

On the entire journey to the watchtower garrison, no one had inflicted any punishment on this female cultivator, and when she had come to look earlier, the person had still been fine.

How long had Xiao Mou been standing here?

This female cultivator, whose cultivation was not low, had actually already fainted and been injured to this extent!

Yet Xiao Mou, holding the soul-hooking cord, showed no excess expression on his face, still looking like his usual self with no changes, as if the torture the female cultivator had suffered wasn’t his doing at all!

It was truly chilling in a strange way.

This reality of severe interrogation was different from the Xiao Mou in Xueyin’s impression…

But could someone who could endure Lian Zhao’s oppression for over ten years and still cultivate successfully truly be an easy person to deal with?

Xueyin’s heart suddenly gained a few more points of wariness.

She didn’t suspect anything else, only stood six feet inside the door, smiling: “Nothing much, just that when I went out earlier I ran into Elder Kong. He sent me to pass along a message, telling you that besides interrogating their method of entering and leaving Ghost Gate Pass, it would be best to also find out clearly about the strength situation of the cultivators on Jiushijiu Zhou’s side. If you could question out a battle formation plan, that would naturally be even better.”

“Understood.”

Qu Zhengfeng’s lips also had no trace of blood, with sickness always lingering on his features. No matter how you looked at him, he didn’t seem like a vicious and evil type.

“Thank you for conveying the message, Senior Sister. Senior Sister Lian Zhao and I will certainly do our best.”

Lian Zhao?

Xueyin had no intention whatsoever of going to notify Lian Zhao. Heaven knew what kind of romantic and lewd scene she might see if she pushed open that door across the way?

Having passed along the message, she directly planned to leave this place, only because she felt that the Xiao Mou she had known in the past and this real Xiao Mou seemed quite different, and for some unknown reason, she didn’t dare to linger long.

Only she had just taken a step when she stopped again.

A extremely subtle feeling suddenly emerged in her heart, making her recall in this instant Xiao Mou’s various reactions when she had seen Lian Zhao bullying him in the past…

In early years, Lian Zhao was radiant and bright, able to wear even a set of black robes embroidered with red to show arrogant pride. Her first meeting with Xiao Mou was when he had just entered the Wuchang clan.

Lian Zhao was already being supported by others then and was quite domineering.

She and Xiao Mou walked toward each other. Xiao Mou wanted to yield the path, while she wanted to go around. After swaying back and forth twice, neither actually yielded the way.

So she became angry.

Her alluring face lifted, and she asked him quite rudely: “A newcomer dares to block the road? What’s your name?”

Xiao Mou was sickly and languid. Having just arrived at the Wuchang clan, he was still showing his inexperience. When he raised his head to look directly at Lian Zhao, he seemed somewhat stunned.

Then he was embarrassed.

He hurriedly lowered his head, his voice somewhat low, honestly replying: “Xiao Mou.”

Lian Zhao repeated the name once, smiling as she said to him: “I’ll remember you.”

Then she left.

Three days later, Xiao Mou, who had only recently joined the clan, was beaten by several senior brothers who had been in the clan for a long time and was seriously injured.

Xueyin vaguely remembered that she had seen it: Xiao Mou during his recovery, somewhat dejected…

After that came Lian Zhao’s simple bullying.

For someone like Xiao Mou who had no presence, only Lian Zhao remembered him for a long time because of that one conflict. Out of ten encounters, she would mock him three to five times, laughingly calling him a “consumptive ghost” along with others.

It could be said that Lian Zhao was Xiao Mou’s nightmare.

But in such oppressive bullying, the solitary and silent Xiao Mou cultivated by himself. At first, he wasn’t noticed by others and remained obscure, but when others did notice, his cultivation had already become comparable to Lian Zhao’s, not falling behind.

From then on, Lian Zhao’s targeting became even more excessive.

But strangely, Xiao Mou, who clearly already had the power to contend with Lian Zhao, still endured, allowing Lian Zhao to find trouble with him everywhere without retaliating.

Previously, everyone including Xueyin had only thought that Xiao Mou had such a cowardly nature, and that Lian Zhao had backing behind her, so he showed no resistance and continued to endure as always.

But thinking about it now…

Was there only this one possibility?

Why couldn’t it be another kind? Though shocking to the world, it was reasonable…

Complex details instantly gathered together, combined with some abnormal situations today, piecing together a startling speculation!

In this instant, Xueyin herself could hardly believe it.

But this sudden impact made her completely unable to control herself. In the moment she stopped, she looked back at “Xiao Mou” and blurted out: “You like her?!”

“…”

Qu Zhengfeng had also thought she was about to leave and hadn’t expected her to suddenly turn back and say such a thing. Hearing it suddenly, his pupils immediately contracted!

Deep in his eyes, danger actually burst forth!

However, it was only for a moment before it disappeared.

Because he realized that the other party was saying that Xiao Mou liked Lian Zhao.

In this instant, he couldn’t help but view this Xueyin, who was mostly quite annoying, in a different light.

After all, even Jian Chou, who had searched Lian Zhao’s soul, was completely unaware of this—

This Wuchang clan ghost cultivator named “Xiao Mou” who was always bullied by Lian Zhao indeed harbored secret and humble feelings for this woman who always bullied him.

He had searched Xiao Mou’s soul, so he naturally knew clearly.

It’s just that such feelings were extremely well hidden by Xiao Mou himself. Even Lian Zhao, whom he liked, was completely unaware, so that even Jian Chou with her strong perception hadn’t noticed when searching Lian Zhao’s soul. Others naturally didn’t know either. Or generally speaking, normal people wouldn’t think in this direction.

Therefore, Qu Zhengfeng hadn’t told Jian Chou about this detail either.

First, it wasn’t necessary;

Second, he and Jian Chou were each disguised as one of them. Not knowing would be more natural, but saying it would inevitably be awkward.

But he hadn’t expected that Xiao Mou’s feelings would be revealed by Xueyin’s words!

Did this mean…

That no matter how secretly and subtly worldly emotions were hidden, as long as they truly existed, they would eventually be noticed by someone with a discerning heart?

It’s just that most of the time, those with discerning hearts were, after all, few.

Qu Zhengfeng raised his hand, casually touching this pale, sickly face with his fingertip, as if wanting to confirm through this that he was currently disguised as Xiao Mou and not someone else.

Then he lowered his hand.

His sickness-ridden demeanor was no different from when Xueyin had first entered, as he smiled flatly: “I do like… her, that’s true. But what does this have to do with Senior Sister Xueyin?”