The graveyard of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was located at the rear of the sect. During dawn and dusk, it would present a strange scene of dividing yin and yang, as if symbolizing the separation between life and death.
Buried here were the sect masters, elders, and even disciples of past generations. However, compared to the sect masters and elders who had individual graves and tombstones, the disciples' graves and tombstones were grouped by each sect master's tenure, inscribed together on a single massive tombstone. Their bodies were cremated into ashes, arranged in rows beneath the same plot of land, accompanying the sect masters and elders of their generation.
The entrance to the graveyard was a tall memorial archway, carved with the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's emblem, symbolizing nobility and glory.
On both sides of the archway stood towering trees, their branches and leaves lush, blocking the scorching sun and providing shade for visitors. Sunlight filtered through the treetops, creating dappled light and shadow, as if it were the blessing of ancestors.
Walking into the graveyard, the surrounding walls were lined with neatly arranged stone carvings, vivid and lifelike, telling the history of the sect.
However, today, the graveyard received ashes that did not belong to a disciple of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. But with the nod of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Master, permission was granted for burial within the graveyard, though not in the main section; a separate grave could only be built on a small plot of land on the side.
Peach blossoms drifted down, seemingly beautiful.
Before Huo Yun'er's grave, Huo Yuhao knelt on the ground, allowing peach blossoms to fall on his head without making a single move.
At this moment, a jade arm reached out and picked them off.
Seeing Huo Yuhao's appearance, and the thumb still wrapped in bandages, Wang Dong'er felt a pang of heartache. She had already learned from Huo Yuhao what he had been doing these past few days.
Don't know how much time passed before Huo Yuhao slowly rose.
Without using soul power, after kneeling for so long, his legs had gone somewhat numb. After easing the sensation, he bowed once more toward Huo Yun'er's grave, then finally turned around, concealing the sadness in his heart. Everything was in the past.
"Yuhao..."
At this moment, Wang Dong'er, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke. "I believe your mother's spirit in the heavens will surely be gratified by you."
"Thank you, Dong'er."
Huo Yuhao took Wang Dong'er's jade hand, which she had actively offered, his movement gentle. But beneath this peace and tranquility, Huo Yuhao subtly cast his gaze toward the center of Wang Dong'er's eyebrows.
Although Dong'er never said it, how could this hide from Huo Yuhao, who spent every day and night with her and even shared a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with her?
He could feel that Dong'er's heart was far from as calm as her face appeared; her thoughts seemed chaotic and tangled, constantly engaged in internal struggle.
Moreover, when he had first arrived at the Shrek Academy Inner Court and seen Dong'er, she could be described as utterly haggard. Even after recuperation, her face still appeared extremely pale.
The long silence made Wang Dong'er's heart tighten.
Huo Yuhao could sense Wang Dong'er's feelings, and how could Wang Dong'er not sense his? But all of this, could she tell Yuhao?
Although she was not particularly clever, she could see that there was absolutely a huge conspiracy hidden within. She even began to doubt the truth of her childhood past, the truth of Big Dad and Second Dad's love for her, and even whether she herself was real or fake?
She felt so tired...
Perhaps, only what she experienced at the academy was real.
But even so, Wang Dong'er firmly felt she was shrouded in a cage of grand illusion, unable to move.
Father, Mother...
Was everything she had expected not worth this much?
The more she thought, the more chaotic Wang Dong'er's thoughts became, even growing "darker." Huo Yuhao, noticing all this, suddenly snapped back to his senses and spoke out to break the silence that should not continue.
"Dong'er, let me take you to walk around Nine Treasure City."
"Huh?"
Instantly, Wang Dong'er was awakened from her confusion.
"Swish—"
The next second, Wang Dong'er's face instantly turned crimson. Because of Huo Yuhao's sudden move, he actually cupped her cheeks with both hands. Their eyes met, their lips merely a hair's breadth apart from touching.
"Yu... Yuhao..."
In her soft call, Wang Dong'er's breath was sweet as orchids, making Huo Yuhao shy as well. But he still said, "Dong'er, let's go, let's have some time alone together. From today on, my entire day will belong to you, until your unhappiness completely scatters."
...
"Brother Junting, did the operation go smoothly?"
Ning Tian took the clothes Chen Junting had changed out of, put them in the laundry basket, then turned around to straighten his collar for him.
Every move was like that of a considerate wife.
"Very smooth." Chen Junting stroked Ning Tian's hair, smiling lightly. "Later I'll go find Uncle Ning, then make a trip to the Ice and Fire Two Heavens Eye, and I'll be able to set up this sect-protecting great formation."
"We'll have to trouble you."
Chen Junting shook his head, not minding.
"What trouble is there? Oh, right!"
He suddenly remembered, "Did Yuhao bring Dong'er back?"
Hearing this, Ning Tian's hand paused slightly. "She's back. It's just..." She looked up slightly, meeting Chen Junting's gaze, seemingly letting him see the worry in her eyes. "Dong'er's condition is truly not good; it's almost like she's abusing herself. I dare not imagine, separated for just a few days and she becomes like this. If it were longer, would she torture herself to death?"
"And most importantly, Dong'er suffers from an illness of the heart. An illness of the heart requires a cure for the heart. If she doesn't walk out of it herself, no matter how much Mother cares for her, Dong'er could worry herself sick to death."
Hearing this, Chen Junting was startled.
"This serious!?"
He hadn't expected Wang Dong'er to become like this.
But thinking again, he realized the key to the matter.
The chain reaction caused by the exposure of that marked identity might have caused Dong'er to develop severe paranoia, such as... such as...
She felt she had entered "The Truman Show"! Everything was an illusion, all deliberately woven by humans.
Although it was just a guess, intuition told him this was likely the reason. And the main problem probably lay in...
Wang Dong'er was struggling over whether to "pretend to sleep" or "wake up."
Thinking to this point, "This won't do."
"Yeah, it won't do."
Hearing Chen Junting's murmur, Ning Tian mistakenly thought he was talking about Wang Dong'er's constant internal struggle.
"But I heard Xiao Feng say she saw Yuhao accompanying Dong'er shopping in Nine Treasure City. Hopefully, this can relieve her a bit."
"Xiao Tian."
Suddenly, Chen Junting's tone became very serious, which made Ning Tian immediately realize Chen Junting's seriousness now.
"What's wrong?"
"Perhaps I can guess what Dong'er is thinking..."
Subsequently, Chen Junting told Ning Tian what had happened that day, along with his related guesses about the ins and outs of the situation.
Seemingly completely shocked by this news from Chen Junting, Ning Tian fell into astonishment, then lowered her head to ponder.
When she looked up again, just as Chen Junting thought she would say something like, "I didn't expect it to be Sea God Tang San"...
"Dong'er is truly pitiable."
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