Chapter 152: Words Under the Moon With An Old Companion
Xu Qing looked at Xue Yuncui as she stabbed the sword all the way through her head. Then she stepped back, pale faced. Xue Yuncui slipped into death, and Xu Qing stood there silently.
Meng Hao looked at her and then walked up next to her. Together, they sat down. The vines dragged Xue Yuncui’s body down into the ground and began to devour it.
The moon hung high in the sky, and everything was quiet. No one had noticed the ripples of battle magic; after all, this Blessed Land was a very large place.
“First time?” asked Meng Hao. Their shadows overlapped in the moonlight.
She was quiet for a while before nodding.
“The first time I killed someone, my heart was troubled for quite a while,” he said softly. As he looked at her, images from the Reliance Sect floated into his mind.
A breeze passed by, cleaning away the stench of blood. Xu Qing’s hair curled up, brushing against Meng Hao’s face. It was hard to tell whether it wrapped around his face, or his heart.
“Was it after the Sect disbanded?” asked Xu Qing, turning her head to look at him. Her face was pale, but to Meng Hao, it was beautiful.
He remembered the night years ago when he had escorted her back to the East Mountain. As he’d watched her walking away from him, he’d thought to himself that he wouldn’t mind marrying her 1.
It was a memory from years ago, such a long time ago. It was hard to determine whether or not it was simply the idling of youth.
“Actually, it was inside the Sect,” said Meng Hao with a smile. He felt relaxed. This Blessed Land was a dangerous place, but for some reason he felt at ease, as if he were back in the Reliance Sect, on top of the East Mountain, standing beneath the moon.
“Oh?” said Xu Qing, looking shocked. She stared at Meng Hao, temporarily forgetting to cover her face with coldness.
To Meng Hao, her blank look was filled with beauty. It was very different from the Elder Sister Xu from his memories. Coldness was unapproachable; but her numb look now made her seem very dear.
Meng Hao laughed.
“I suddenly have the feeling I never understood the real you, Elder Sister,” he said with a smile, looking at her. He was no longer the scholar he once had been. He had experienced many things, and had grown through the years. In terms of both experience and wisdom, he had matured a lot. He was now able to tell that the coldness exhibited by Xu Qing was intentional.
He looked over her, catching sight of the milky white skin beneath the rips in her clothing. This was not the first time he’d seen a woman in such a position, but for some reason, when he’d looked at Chu Yuyan, he could remain calm. Seeing Xu Qing now, though, a different look filled his eyes.
Xu Qing’s gaze met Meng Hao’s for a moment, and then she looked away, her heart pounding. A flush appeared on her face, and she gripped her garment tightly in her fists. She was clearly nervous.
Meng Hao coughed lightly, and then slapped his bag of the Cosmos, producing a set of clothes which he began to place around her shoulders.
She said nothing, allowing him to cover her up. She lifted her beautiful face to look at the moon. As the moonlight shone onto her, Meng Hao looked at her hair and her lovely features. They were so delicate it seemed as if the wind might cause them to break.
“You killed someone in the Sect? Who?” Xu Qing tried to pretend she didn’t notice Meng Hao looking at her, but her flush had deepened.
“An Outer Sect disciple surnamed Zhao,” said Meng Hao, recalling Elder Brother Zhao’s horrific death by the copper mirror. “He wanted to take the Immortal’s Cave you gave me.”