In the vast, boundless, pitch-black space, a petite, graceful figure drifted aimlessly.
Her heart was filled with panic, fear, and helplessness.
She had just been in her room happily eating candied haws, yet she was inexplicably brought into this pitch-black space. Her five senses—hearing, sight, smell, and the others—had all vanished. She could not even perceive the passage of time, wandering aimlessly in this dark void, unable to extricate herself.
At this very moment, how she wished someone would come to save her.
For some reason, a young figure suddenly appeared in her mind—the person who had vanished for over a year and whom her sister was so deeply attached to. With all her might, she opened her eyes and shouted in her heart: "Xiao Se, brother-in-law, come quickly and save me!"
The moment she opened her eyes, a burst of intense white light suddenly appeared before her. The light expanded abruptly, enveloping her. A moment later, the light vanished, and the petite figure disappeared from this pitch-black space along with it.
Outside Shenhuo Mountain Manor, in a bamboo forest.
The space twisted abruptly, and Xiao Se walked out from it.
Looking at the familiar scene around him, he recalled how, once upon a time, it was here that he exposed Jin Renfeng's secret and subsequently took him to the Magical Beast Mountain Range to be executed.
"System, release Oriental Qinlan." Having had the experience with Little Cat last time, Xiao Se immediately spread his Evil God Wings and flew into the high sky.
The next second, above in the sky, the Void Realm twisted abruptly, and a petite figure fell out from it.
Xiao Se's Evil God Wings were incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, he arrived, spread his wings, and released a gentle wave of Soul energy to catch Dongfang Qinlan steadily, pulling her into his embrace.
At this moment, Dongfang Qinlan slowly woke up. Upon realizing she was lying in someone's warm embrace, she slowly opened her eyes and saw a familiar figure who looked slightly fairer and more mature than he had two years ago, exuding an aura of nobility and sanctity.
With a "waah," Dongfang Qinlan could no longer hold it in; she hugged Xiao Se's neck and began to cry bitterly. She didn't know how long she had spent in that pitch-black space—perhaps a quarter of an hour, perhaps an hour, perhaps a day, a month, or even a year—but none of that mattered anymore.
At this moment, she had finally found something to rely on and burst into tears.
Watching the slightly trembling, sobbing figure of Oriental Qinlan in his arms, a wave of self-reproach washed over Xiao Se.
What do people fear most? Death? Poverty?
No!
What people fear most is loneliness.
Loneliness is more terrifying than anything else. When you go years without seeing a person or hearing a sound, even if you possess a long lifespan and endless wealth, you will still suffer from the torment of emptiness.
Xiao Se didn't know how terrifying the System storage was, but Little Cat had once spent three days inside, and every time she mentioned it to Xiao Se, her heart would still be filled with lingering fear.
Precisely because of this, upon hearing that Oriental Qinlan had been swapped, Xiao Se immediately teleported to the Fox Spirit World to release her.
Even so, this little girl had nearly broken down.
"Alright, alright, Oriental Qinlan, it's okay now." Xiao Se patted Oriental Qinlan's back gently and said softly.
After crying for quite a while, Oriental Qinlan's sobbing gradually subsided. She wiped away her tears and said with a choked voice, "Wuwu... Xiao Se, I was so scared just now. Wuwu..."
"Where is your sister?" Xiao Se wiped the tears from the corners of Oriental Qinlan's eyes.
"My sister should still be at Shenhuo Mountain Manor. I was originally in my room eating candied haws when I was suddenly taken to a pitch-black place." Dongfang Qinlan sniffled.
Xiao Se nodded: "I'll take you home first, so your sister doesn't worry."
A moment later, under Xiao Se's guidance, Oriental Qinlan returned safely to Shenhuo Mountain Manor.
"Oriental Qinlan." As soon as they returned to Shenhuo Mountain Manor, Dongfang Huaizhu came forward to greet them. Because the time elapsed was short, no one had discovered Oriental Qinlan's disappearance. When she saw Xiao Se, her whole body stiffened, and she stood there, stunned. The jade flute in her hand fell silently, and even as the sound of it hitting the ground rang out, she was already oblivious to it.
Her beautiful eyes welled up with mist, and tears brimmed in the corners of her eyes. Dongfang Huaizhu leaped into Xiao Se's arms, hugging his neck tightly, her body trembling slightly.
"Huai Zhu, I'm back." Xiao Se patted Dongfang Huaizhu's jade-like back gently and said softly.
"You jerk, didn't you promise it would be at most one year? Why were you gone for so long?" Silent tears slid down Dongfang Huaizhu's beautiful face, and she took a bite of Xiao Se's shoulder.
"I'm sorry." Feeling the sharp pain from his shoulder, Xiao Se did not resist in the slightest. He suppressed the Dou Qi within his body to the extreme, fearing he might hurt the beauty in his arms. His eyes were filled with guilt and tenderness. For the past year or so, he had spent most of his time in the Sky Burning Qi Refining Tower, and then traveled between the Doupo, Douluo, and Shaonian Ge Xing Worlds. If not for exchanging for Oriental Qinlan this time, he likely wouldn't have returned until he had completed his seclusion and achieved a Breakthrough to the Dou Zong realm.
"Does it hurt?" Dongfang Huaizhu released her teeth, her voice still somewhat choked, and asked tremblingly.
"It hurts, but I brought it upon myself," Xiao Se smiled and said.
"You certainly deserve it for leaving me for so long. However, being able to return alive is more important than anything else." Dongfang Huaizhu closed her eyes, resting her pretty face on Xiao Se's shoulder. Compared to a year ago, Xiao Se had clearly grown quite a bit, his height exceeding 1.85 meters. This left Dongfang Huaizhu feeling quite sullen because her little boyfriend was only sixteen this year, a full six or seven years younger than her. But fortunately, none of that mattered anymore; Xiao Se had given her the Longevity Pill, so she no longer needed to be troubled by age.
Just as the two were being intimate, Dongfang Qinlan, who had just experienced such great ups and downs, puffed out her cheeks. Having been suddenly pulled into a strange, pitch-black space, she had wanted to find her sister, Dongfang Huaizhu, to confide in, but she was now feeling rather dissatisfied. After all, shouldn't she, the sister who had been through so much, be the one needing comfort the most?
"As expected, sister forgets her sister once she has a brother-in-law." Oriental Qinlan pretended to wipe away non-existent tears and shouted loudly.
"Oriental Qinlan, what are you saying?" Dongfang Huaizhu's pretty face flushed red.
"Isn't it true? My sister went missing for so long, yet you didn't show any concern at all." Dongfang Qinlan placed her hands on her slender waist.
"Missing? What's going on? Didn't you just finish eating not long ago and take a skewer of candied haws back to your room?" Dongfang Huaizhu asked, puzzled.
"Just finished eating?" Dongfang Qinlan was stunned. She looked at the night sky, which hadn't completely darkened yet, and asked tentatively, "How long has it been?"
"Less than half an incense stick of time. What's wrong?" Dongfang Huaizhu was still confused.
"Come on, sister, Xiao Se, let's go to my room and see." Dongfang Qinlan grabbed Xiao Se's and Dongfang Huaizhu's hands and headed straight for her room.
The corners of Xiao Se's mouth twitched. He quietly activated the heart fire of the Fallen Heart Flame in his palm, locked onto the inflatable doll in Dongfang Qinlan's room, and instantly annihilated it. This thing must not be seen by his wife and sister-in-law.
(End of Chapter)
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