"Forget it. I don't want to fight for anything anymore. Can my mother come in?" Gu Yuan seemed to have seen things more clearly. He no longer had nightmares every night like when he first lived in the cave.
Several times, he woke up suddenly from his dreams. Afraid of waking me up, he would go and sit alone at the cave entrance.
Actually, I was already awake at that time, but I didn't disturb him. It was necessary to give him some private space at that moment.
"She's in a pretty good state recently. But are you really not going to take her out?"
"Look at me. I'm blind now. If I take her out, will she take care of me or will I take care of her?"
"Brother, how long are you going to keep running away? You know better than anyone else that as long as Father Emperor has your weakness in his hands, you won't be a threat to him. So you feel at ease leaving Mother in the Heavenly Court. You've been living in peace these days, but have you ever thought about your mother? She's always wanted you to make a name for yourself. Is this how you're going to repay her?"
"Father Emperor hasn't come after you for now, but what about in the future? Who knows what crazy idea he might come up with. You can't keep hiding in this cave and living a life in the dark forever."
It was obvious that Long Lin was here trying to persuade Gu Yuan to stand up and fight back. But just as Gu Yuan said, all he had now was his worthless life. What could he use to fight against the Heavenly Emperor? As long as his mother was safe and sound, that was the greatest comfort to him.
"I don't think this place is in the dark. These days have been the most peaceful days of my life. I'm not trying to run away. I'm just facing reality."
They were talking about those power struggles. I didn't really understand them, so I decided to let the two brothers have a good chat. It wasn't appropriate for me to get involved.
After pouring them two glasses of plain water, I walked out of the cave alone, wanting to soak up some sun.
These days, I'd just been rushing in and out of the cave with Gu Yuan. I hadn't had the time to appreciate the beautiful scenery here.
Although this was a deep mountain, it was a wonderful place with mountains and rivers. I took a stroll alone to the stream and found a rock to sit on.
I watched the little deer running on the other side of the stream, scaring up a flock of birds.
At this moment, the sky was blue, the sun was shining brightly, the mountain spring was gurgling, the birds were chirping in the forest, and from time to time there were the calls of small animals.
Here, I completely agreed with Gu Yuan. This place wasn't in the dark. It was a place full of surprises.
I was idly admiring the beauty of nature. Everywhere I looked was beautiful.
Suddenly, my gaze was fixed on the other side of the stream. Behind a pine tree, I saw that red - robed woman again.
At this moment, her two hands were grasping the tree, and half of her body was crouching outside. I didn't know how long she had been watching me.
Although the distance was a bit far, the scar on her face was extremely eye - catching. Her ferocious facial features were distorted. Being stared at like this by such a person would make anyone's hair stand on end.
I quickly stood up from the rock, and the red - robed woman stood up too.
However, she always kept the same distance from me. When I walked, she followed me, and when I stopped, she stopped too.
It was noon, and the sun was shining brightly. She clearly looked like a red - clothed ghost, but how could a ghost stand under the scorching sun? Who on earth was she?
I ran while looking back at the woman. Her face was as pale as death as she closely followed me.
Until I accidentally bumped into someone's chest. Looking up, I was surprised to see that it was Long Lin walking out of the cave. I was in such a hurry that I ran right into him.
Seeing me so panicked, Long Lin asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?"
"Someone. Someone has been following me." I grabbed Long Lin's arm and answered nervously.
Long Lin raised his eyes and scanned the area behind me, then said, "Where is anyone? There's no one."
"She's right behind me. A woman in red. She's so scary. She has a scar on her face."
I tightly grabbed Long Lin's shoulders with both hands and closed my eyes, too scared to look behind me.
After two minutes, Long Lin said again, "Are you seeing things? There's really no one here. This is a deep mountain. It's very difficult for ordinary people to get in."
I took a deep breath, squinted my eyes into a slit, and turned my head to look behind me.
Sure enough, there was nothing behind me. That person had disappeared again.
This made me even more scared, and I held onto his shoulders even tighter.
I was sure I had seen her. It definitely wasn't a hallucination. She could disappear silently right under Long Lin's nose, and Long Lin didn't notice at all. This person... no, this thing that was neither a celestial nor a demon seemed even more terrifying than I had thought.
"Don't worry. I'm a high - ranking celestial. I'm full of righteousness, and no ghosts can get close to me." Long Lin said to me confidently.
If it had been before, I would have believed him without a doubt. But now, I was also skeptical about the identities of some high - ranking celestials, because some so - called righteous celestials were more terrifying than demons.
"Have you finished your chat?" I let go of my hands and took two steps back to keep some distance from him.
Long Lin smiled and said, "Yes, we're done. Thank you for taking care of my brother for the past half - month. Seriously, I've never seen him smile like this before. It seems that you're really important to him."
I lowered my head. I felt a bit embarrassed when he said that.
"It's okay. It's what I should do."
Long Lin put his hands behind his back. When he smiled, his peach - blossom eyes were curved. He was really a bit different from the Long Lin I had first met.
"You like him too, don't you?"
I didn't expect Long Lin to ask me this suddenly. It was really to the point and hit right at my heart. I didn't know what to say for a moment, and my face turned as red as an apple.
Long Lin wasn't stupid. My expression said it all.
"If you really like him, then persuade him not to give up easily. I think he'll listen to what you say."
"Your Highness the Second Prince, I know you're doing this for Prince Yuan's good. But you saw what happened that day. Before Prince Yuan was injured, when he fought against the Heavenly Emperor, he was seriously injured and even lost his sight. Now, how can you expect him to fight against the Heavenly Emperor?"
"But if he doesn't take a chance, my brother, your lover, might lose his life." When Long Lin said this, his expression was very solemn. He didn't seem to be joking at all.
I couldn't believe it for a moment and tried my best to resist his words. "What are you talking about? It's impossible. I've checked his body. Apart from being blind, there's nothing wrong with him."
"I'm telling the truth. That's exactly why I'm worried because he seems to be okay."
"Why? Since his body is fine, why are you worried?"
I frowned tightly, my eyes full of expectation, waiting for Long Lin to continue.
"Think about it. He was injured by the fragments of the Heavenly Emperor's Haotian Shield. Only the Heavenly Emperor can control the Haotian Shield. It's the Heavenly Emperor's ultimate move. Those who are hit by it will either die or be seriously disabled. Who can escape it without extraordinary skills?"