CG Chapter 184: Shadow of the Heart, Obsession in the Mind
The cold, calm voice of Aretius came out: "Shall we step in? We walked all this way for this, after all."
Li Suyin nodded softly as she stepped forward toward the gates of the Soul-Sealing Mound. She held both her hands together, her index fingers interlocked, forming a slight gap; her breath slowed down for an instant as she gently tugged her entire body backward.
In the next instant, a snapping sound, and with it, the entire gates' sealing power seemed to have withered as the gates opened on their own without any further interference.
The moment the gates unlocked, a gust of fierce breeze blew from the very depths of the Soul-Sealing Mound, carrying the odor of decay and the sorrows of the resentful, trapped souls.
These violent currents would have caused most mortals to step back in disgust and fear, but as they neared Aretius, they suddenly turned gentle; it was as if the lowly servants were kowtowing before their Emperor, not daring to cause the slightest commotion.
Meanwhile, Li Suyin had acclimated to these winds long ago, yet she could not hide her surprise that Aretius showed not the slightest bit of a reaction. Her surprise was only natural, as her resistance was built on years of training with Death Ki since birth.
This was also related to one of the mysteries that propelled the Li Clan to the formidable power they are today. The Li Clan's main lineage would drag their women to give birth inside the Soul-Sealing Mound to force the Death Ki to corrode and invade through the infant's body since birth.
This caused the birth of the main bloodline to become sparse, but it ensured that each junior would have a high affinity for this decaying force, transforming decay into a gentle force, such as the Patriarch's lotus.
She quickly snapped out of it as she turned her head toward Aretius, gesturing for him to step forward.
Aretius and Li Suyin walked side by side. From afar, they appeared as if a pair of celestial dao companions were strolling through their own heavenly garden. This was if you ignored the backdrop of the countless tombs lying behind them, some of which were slightly open as they absorbed the energy of the moon, while others were sealed shut by yellow talismans.
Strangely enough, as they entered the Soul-Sealing Mound, Li Suyin's voice quietened down, allowing Aretius to examine the talismans. She did not even flinch when he opened some of the tombstones to examine the corpses within.
She appeared in a state of daze as she looked at the rotten carcasses around her. She did not appear disgusted by the smell or revolted by their hideous appearance. She seemed melancholic instead, as if she could feel the despair emanating from these remains.
The duo ventured deeper than originally planned as Aretius continued to examine the myriad techniques used for refining the various corpses. Li Suyin kept her distance, with her gaze falling upon him every once in a while with admiration.
She was not sure why, but from the very first moment she met him, she sensed that he was different, unlike the other rising heroes of the Jianghu who seemed willing to start a fight merely to increase their reputations.
To her, Aretius appeared as if he had gone through all of this before, as if his sharp edge remained hidden only for a true opponent; he reminded her much of her father, Li Muren, but in a peculiar, separate way.
Aretius's vision flickered as he noticed Li Suyin peeking at him. He merely smiled for an instant under his mask before returning to studying the corpse in front of him as if it were more appealing and attractive than any celestial fairy.
After all, Li Suyin's attraction was also just an engineered piece he decided to add as a reassurance, to leave the seed of dependence in her heart that, with his nurturing, might turn into obsession.
This strange tranquility seemed as if it would have gone on for all of eternity. Yet no peace lasts forever, much like how mankind can never truly be satisfied.
A muted, foreign sound of laughter echoed in the distance; if it had not been for the absolute quietness of the mound, this sound would not have caused any issues, but it was the fact that no one was here except for the two of them that caused this strangeness.
"Did you hear this?" Li Suyin asked in a hushed voice; her right hand trembled as it moved to her left side.
Before she could continue that thought, the voices grew louder; it sounded as if a lullaby were being sung in a childlike tone, which was slowly closing the gap.
The voices finally grew strong enough to comprehend the words being sung.
"The sun is bright,
Mother said go play,
Father is far away,
Where is sister?
Where is... sister?
There is no one to play."
The voice quietened down before breaking once more into an illegible sound, as if it were calling for someone.
"There is no one to... No one to... No one..."
From a distance, the footsteps grew louder, and with them, an innocent-looking boy, no older than three years old, emerged. As he stepped closer, his true appearance made itself clear.
He wore a tattered white garment meant for burying the dead. His cheeks, still maintaining the baby fat around them, would have made women think he was adorable if they had ignored his pitch-black, purple skin, much akin to sour grapes. His little fingers curled into rings at his eyes, forming the impression of a playful spyglass as he looked at the duo in front of him.