181: 4.46 Ambush

4.46 Ambush

1Heimo landed outside the area of the dormant volcano and found the atmosphere thick with tension. Even the demonic energy was stagnant, as if bracing for the oncoming storm. Along the way, he was moving like a corpse, his mind either blank with white noises or filled with questions. Why? Why did Lu Yizhou leave? Why did he have to take the dragon egg away? For what? Heimo's mind instantly supplied him with the worst case scenario. Lu Yizhou had gone back to Lingyan. He had, after everything they went through, taken Heimo's things and presented them to that bastard who didn't even care whether he was alive or not.

Lu Yizhou had betrayed him.

No, he wouldn't, another voice argued. 

He wasn't that kind of man, you know it. His sincere eyes, his kindness, his selflessness, all of them weren't fake. "Let me help you," he had said. But what could Lu Yizhou help him with? Help him to open the gate to the demonic realm? He, the most righteous cultivator of all, was willing to go through such lengths for Heimo alone? No, it wasn't possible. Whatever they had between them — Heimo couldn't bring himself to name it — wasn't enough for Lu Yizhou to throw away everything; his reputation, his honor, his life, just for Heimo's sake. It was unthinkable, Heimo almost laughed at himself for entertaining such an idea. He resolutely threw the image of Lu Yizhou jumping after him down the cliff to the back of his mind, that was definitely just a one time thing. He was monitoring Heimo, making sure that he didn't cause any trouble. 

No matter how hard Heimo thought about it, he couldn't understand what Lu Yizhou was thinking. Heimo gritted his teeth, furious and aggrieved at the same time. He wanted to shake Lu Yizhou hard, to demand answers as to what he was planning to do. But the bitter fact remained apparent in front of him, Lu Yizhou had disappeared, leaving behind one glaring problem; Heimo could no longer open the gate to the demonic realm. He could no longer save Ningning.

"Lan!" Luqiu Hong bolted toward him as soon as Heimo came to sight. "Where have you been—" She startled when she took in Heimo's pale and despondent state. Her tone softened and the edge of her eyes were tinged with concern. "What happened to you?"

Heimo swallowed thickly and shook his head. He couldn't say it; that he had lost one important chance to save Ningning because he went against Shijie's advice and involved himself with Jingxue-Jun again and again. Ignoring the sharp pain in his chest, he asked, "You lit up the flare. Did something happen to Ningning?"

The corner of Luqiu Hong's lips turned downward. "Ningning is… the usual. She has been well these days.." Looking around, she pulled him into the house and straight to Heimo's room and closed the door behind them. Then she started to pace back and forth, the signs that anxiety was starting to get to her. "I called you back because of the rumors. Have you heard of it? Words have been spread about Jingxue-Jun straying down the path of demonic cultivation." She stopped and scrutinized him closely. "Lan… by chance, does it have anything to do with you?"

Heimo sucked in a breath and put on the most nonchalant expression he could muster. He discreetly tugged his collar higher to hide the hickeys and shrugged. "Well, I am not clear about that either. You know I have been busy gathering the materials for—" Heimo bit his lips. Bad change of topic. Alas, everything was too late because Luqiu Hong had latched on it.

She grasped Heimo's arm in a tight grip, her expression hopeful. "Have you… Have you succeeded?"

Heimo closed his eyes and desperately tried to hold back his tears. The agony was tearing him apart. He dug his nails into the soft flesh of his palms, using the pain to sober him up. He couldn't tell Shijie now. He couldn't burden her more than this. Most importantly, he didn't dare to imagine how disappointed she would be when she knew the truth. This was all Heimo's fault and he had to salvage it somehow. Bitterness surged in his heart as soon as he thought of Lu Yizhou. Heimo had to hunt the man down and take back what belonged to him. Right, he still had time to make everything right.

"Lan…?" Luqiu Hong called out worriedly after not receiving any answer. "If you—"

"I've almost got it, Shijie." Heimo patted her shoulder and offered a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I only need one last thing. Only one, and after that, we can save Ningning. Everything will be okay." The last sentence was directed more to him. Everything had to be okay otherwise he wouldn't be able to go on. Failure wasn't an option.

Fortunately, Luqiu Hong was slightly appeased by his confident tone and nodded. "That's good. Don't force yourself and tell me if you need anything, got it?"

"En." Heimo smiled, even though his heart was bleeding inside. "I will do that." He tore his gaze away from Luqiu Hong's expectant look. I'm sorry, Shijie. I'm really, really sorry, he thought. "Ah, I miss Ningning. I will visit her for a while then continue on my journey. No need to send me off, Shijie." He turned around without waiting for an answer and waved, desperately running away from that place before he broke apart and kneeled in front of Luqiu Hong's legs, begging her to forgive him for his foolishness. But no, he couldn't even forgive himself for this. 

Quietly, he entered Ningning's room and saw the little girl lifting her head up from her book. She beamed brightly, even with her corpse like skin and black veins that slathered up her neck. "Brother!" This was one of the good days where the demonic energy within her was docile, rendering her lucid enough to sit up and read, her favorite thing to do after Auntie and Uncle passed away.

Something inside Heimo cracked at her sister's carefree grin. He showed his best smile and proceeded to plop himself down by her bedside, groaning. "Aiyah, this one hasn't seen Ningning's smile for a long time! Woe is me, dying without my fair lady's smile!" He buried his face into his palms, mimicking crying sounds and pausing once in a while to peek at Luqiu Ning.

As he expected, the girl giggled, closed her book and put it aside. "Nooo, Brother is acting silly again!"

"I am not!" Heimo retorted petulantly. "This one is telling the truth. Ningning should smile more so that this one can recover faster."

Ningning reached for his hand and squeezed lightly. "I have missed you, brother."

The guilt surged up again and Heimo hastily averted his eyes, laughing clumsily. "This one has also missed Ningning so much."

"Brother, is it true that I can be cured soon?" Heimo's body tensed at the question which Ningning interpreted as a no. The little girl hastily comforted him and patted his head with her clumsy, little hand just like how Auntie Luqiu always did. "It's okay. I know it's difficult. Ningning can still bear it. It's not easy to defeat me, you know!" She pumped her fists and harrumphed.

Heimo almost burst out in tears right then and there and he bit his lips so hard to hold it back. Why should someone as understanding and kind as Ningning have to suffer so much? What had he done to warrant such affection when all he did was mess everything up over and over again? He gathered Ningning into his embrace and let his tears fall, quietly, onto the fabric of her shoulder. Albeit confused, Ningning still wrapped her short arms as much as she could around him and rubbed his back, muttering, "There, there, it's okay. Good boys don't cry."

Heimo couldn't help laughing through his tears at the solemn words that were spoken in such a sweet and adorable voice. He wiped the dampness on his eyes away and gave her a grin. "Aiyah, I'm sorry, this one is getting carried away for a second because Ningning is just too adorable for this one's fragile heart!" He cupped Ningning's pale cheeks, his smile morphing into one of tenderness and heartache. "Don't worry, this one will definitely make you healthy again. Just wait." He vowed.

Before Heimo could get a reply, a faint ruckus drifted from outside. He frowned and patted Luqiu Ning's head, smoothing her anxious frown. "It's okay. I will go out and see what's going on. Shijie will come soon and accompany you, okay?" After comforting her for a while, Heimo left and quickly closed the door behind him. Whatever had happened, it must have been quite severe for he could hear the arguments getting louder and louder as he made his way to the main hall. 

Heimo frowned when he saw half of the sect members there, looking agitated as if they were ready to fight. His heart sank to the pit of his stomach. "What happened?" His voice cut through the uproar and everyone turned to give way for him, inclining their heads in respect. 

"Little Lan." It was Uncle Liu who stepped forward to speak. He was one of the closest members to the Luqiu family and also one of a few who wasn't afraid of Heimo. Even though he had just taken over the Sect Leader's position after Uncle Luqiu passed away, Heimo was aware that his callous reputation had evoked fear even among his own. Afterall, not every member of the sect was demonic cultivators. Some were ordinary people, those who didn't have anywhere to go and could stay only because of Uncle Luqiu's generosity. Uncle Lan was included in the latter.

The middle aged man was seething with rage, face flushed angrily. "Outside… there's a group of cultivators heading this way! They are from Lingyan and a few small sects, declaring a war against us!"

"W—What?! How—" Colors drained from Heimo's face. So fast? He had heard the rumors back in Yuling but… he had never expected that it would happen today! How did they discover this place?! Was it Lu Yizhou—

"I—I'm sorry…" Another man stepped forward with teary eyes, guilt twisted his face. If Heimo wasn't wrong, he was a lesser cultivator who couldn't get a breakthrough even after decades. Uncle Luqiu only let him stay because he was hardworking and sincere. "A few days ago… I—I received a talisman from Lingyan's cultivators for free. I really thought that it's an ordinary talisman. I—I have no idea that it can sense our presence and monitor each of our movements. When I realized it…" He buried his face into his palms and wept. "Everything is too late! I'm sorry, I really didn't do it on purpose. Please forgive me, Sect Leader Lan!"

The other members exploded.

"Yang Hui, how can you do this to us?!"

"You ungrateful bastard! We are going to die today because of you!"

"What should we do—"

"Silence!" Heimo snapped. In an instant, all voices died down and only rapid breathings echoed within the space, loud and heavy. Heimo could only give the remorseful Yang Hui a frustrated glower. "The deed has been done. There's nothing we can do anymore. We will talk about this later…" His lips curled into a wry smile. "That is, if we are still alive to see the sunrise tomorrow. First thing first, I have to distract all of those cultivators away from this place. Those who want to fight, follow me. Those who can't, remain here and protect Luqiu Hong and Luqiu Ning with your life. If anything happens to them, I will seek you out even if you have become ghosts." He swept a menacing glare around to emphasize that he could very well fulfill what he had just said. Everyone cowered, shrinking their necks with a skittish look. 

Heimo threw his gaze outside where the sun was suddenly covered by thick, tumultuous clouds. Lightning struck intermittently. The storm was coming and maybe, another bloodbath. "Let us go." 

He was ready to summon the demonic energy when another person stumbled in. "U—Uncle Liu, Sect Leader Lan! Outside—"

Uncle Liu hollered back. "We already know what is happening outside!"

"No, no, that's not it!" Flustered, the man gestured wildly. "Outside, J—Jingxue-Jun is fighting against Linyan's Sect Leader!"

"What?!"

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