Xin Yao saw the Black Tower collapse, and her heart surged with excitement and joy.
Seeing that Huanxing Town was safe and sound, with no trace of the King Beast, she breathed a huge sigh of relief.
She had originally planned to check on Huanxing Town first, but somehow ended up flying toward the direction of the resort.
However, the moment she saw that scene, she regretted it.
She had rushed back in a hurry, her body still wet, her hair plastered to her cheeks—she didn’t even care. She only wanted to see with her own eyes whether the young man was safe.
As it turned out, not only was he unharmed, but beside him stood that vibrant, bright-smiling girl.
The two were standing very close. The girl’s eyes curved into beautiful crescent moons as she gently stroked his face.
And although he had a trace of helplessness on his face, he didn’t push her away.
It was a natural closeness, an intimacy that belonged to their age, their world, under that sunlight.
Envy? Or jealousy?
She couldn’t tell. She only felt uncomfortable inside.
Reason sneered coldly in her mind.
‘See? What are you expecting? And why are you uncomfortable? What does this have to do with you? This isn’t right. This isn’t normal. This is just an illusion caused by that strange symptom!’
Emotion whispered like a venomous snake.
‘Does it really matter if it’s real or fake, right or wrong? Isn’t what matters how you feel right now? What are you… thinking right now?’
‘My thoughts… my thoughts… I want…’
“Cough, cough!” Xin Yao walked over quickly. “Are you two okay?”
Xia Yanran withdrew her hand, looking over with a surprised expression. “You’re… Captain Xin Yao? Why are you back?”
“We received reports of a King Beast appearing here, so the interim Chief sent us back to support.”
“Oh.” Xia Yanran nodded, then asked very innocently, “Then why are you the only one?”
Looking at the innocent light in the girl’s eyes, although she was supposed to come back to scout the situation, she felt an inexplicable pang of guilt.
“I fly fast, so I came back ahead to take a look.”
“Then you don’t need to worry, Captain Xin Yao. Just now…”
Xia Yanran enthusiastically pulled her to sit down beside her and began telling her what had just happened.
She didn’t refuse. After learning the full story, she also appeared very shocked.
During this time, she deliberately avoided looking at Lin Yu and didn’t say a word to him.
After Xia Yanran finished, she let out a huge sigh of relief. “Thanks to Doctor Qin and the Chief, otherwise, I don’t know how many casualties there would have been this time.”
She stood up and said, “Alright, I’ll head back to Huanxing Town now. Thank you, Yanran.”
“It’s nothing.” Xia Yanran laughed without a care in the world.
Watching Xin Yao leave, she turned around and saw Lin Yu covering his face and sighing. She pouted and said, “What’s wrong with you? Did I say something wrong?”
He shook his head, trying to make his tone sound normal. “No, you were right. You didn’t say anything wrong.”
Because the one who was wrong was Xin Yao. She shouldn’t have come here.
Since her mission was to return for support, once she saw that Huanxing Town was safe, her first priority should have been to go there, not here.
But could Lin Yu say that? No. He knew that Xin Yao came here first because of him…
“By the way, Aunt Qin fell asleep over there. Go check on her and have her go back to her room. She must be very tired today.”
“What?” Xia Yanran immediately widened her eyes and stood up. “Why didn’t you say so earlier!”
She still cared a lot about her mother. Just now, she was so excited to see Lan Lan that she momentarily forgot her mother had also been in a fierce battle.
Watching the girl’s figure disappear around the corner, Lin Yu silently got up and walked outside. If he wasn’t mistaken, that woman shouldn’t have gone far.
Sure enough, as soon as he stepped out of the lobby, he caught sight of Xin Yao hesitating, walking slowly forward.
The next second, she turned around and met Lin Yu’s gaze.
It seemed to startle her. She quickly turned back and even quickened her pace.
The woman with her back to Lin Yu felt as if her shameful secret had been discovered. Her heart suddenly raced, her cheeks grew hot, and she only wanted to flee this place quickly.
But upon hearing the running footsteps gradually approaching from behind, she unconsciously stopped.
Taking a deep breath, she was just about to turn around and give a flimsy explanation when her wrist was grabbed.
At that moment, Xin Yao’s mind went blank. She could only stare at him with wide eyes, dumbfounded. Then he led her to a blind spot formed by the lush greenery beside them.
He looked around and, seeing that they wouldn’t be seen, finally let go.
The physical contact disappeared, and that strange feeling seemed to be pulled away as well.
Xin Yao stepped back two paces, hugging her shoulders, completely forgetting that she was actually the stronger one.
“Wha—what do you want to do? We—we can’t… can’t…”
Her voice gradually faded as she realized she didn’t seem to have the right to say that. After all, she was the one who had initiated things before…
Lin Yu looked at her like this and felt a headache coming on. He frowned, hesitated for a moment, then still spoke:
“Um, calm down. I understand. I just came to tell you what exactly is happening to you.”
Xin Yao looked into his eyes. Their gazes met. In those deep eyes, there was no expected mockery, disgust, or frivolity. Instead, there was a heavy, helpless sense of responsibility, and a trace of… fatigue?
Soon, she was the first to concede, looking away. “Mm, go ahead.”
She really wanted to figure out what was going on, but she also understood that even if she did, what difference would it make?
What was done was done.
“The condition you’re in is called ‘Plunder Energy.’ To be honest, I’m partly responsible.”
Then Lin Yu explained the situation regarding this condition, including those top-secret records.
After listening, she didn’t ask Lin Yu how he knew. Instead, with a trembling expression, pale face, and complicated eyes, she said:
“You mean… in the future, I’ll still be like that night… toward you…”
Lin Yu nodded heavily. He knew this answer was cruel, but hiding or sugarcoating it would only lead to greater disaster.
He didn’t know Xin Yao well, but from her reaction after that night, this kind of thing was absolutely unacceptable to her.
“If you really feel terrible about it, just blame me. It’s all my fault.”
Sigh… What else could he do?
Their worldviews were different; one of them had to bear more. There were already enough troubles anyway; one more wouldn’t make a difference.
However, the expected breakdown or anger didn’t come. What responded to him was a light laugh.
“Heh.”
“Huh?” Hearing the light laugh, Lin Yu looked over.
The clear-faced woman wore a sad smile on her face, like a plum blossom blooming in the biting cold wind—strong, yet pitiful.
“Why do you take all the blame on yourself?”
She suddenly asked, catching Lin Yu a bit off guard.
“Well… if it wasn’t for me, you…”
Xin Yao interrupted him before he could finish. “Without you, I would be dead. Liuli and your sister, they would all be dead.”
Lin Yu was a bit confused, not knowing why she was saying this now.
“Right. At that time, I just wanted to save my sister, so I used you all. That’s right, I used you. So don’t feel burdened.”
He tried to convince Xin Yao with this self-deprecating statement.
But she shook her head, lowered her hands, and walked over.
For some reason, Lin Yu instinctively stepped back, but Xin Yao still hugged him.
She held him in her arms, gently tousling his hair and patting his back.
Lin Yu froze on the spot, unable to move or stay still.
Then, a woman’s gentle voice, tinged with sympathy, came from beside his ear.
“Why? Why do you think it’s all your fault? What did you go through before that made you become so cautious like this, shouldering all the blame yourself?”
Hearing this, Lin Yu felt a buzz in his head.
He knew he had always been afraid—afraid of repeating the same mistakes—so he was cautious about everything.
But… he never expected to be seen through by this woman he had only met a few times.
Such straightforward words, pure and caring.
It was like a person who had been carrying a heavy burden alone in the darkness suddenly had someone gently pat them on the shoulder and ask, “Are you tired?”
His hard shell seemed to develop fine cracks, and his always-tense body gradually relaxed under that awkward but persistent patting.
He suddenly understood.
Maybe the smile on Xin Yao’s face just now wasn’t just for her own unsolvable predicament.
Part of that smile was also for him.