Chapter 206 - 204: You Coward

"Let’s go. We’ll talk after taking him back." After all, they were in a restaurant. If things blew up, it would cause a bad scene.

Ye Xuan shot a faint glance at Guo Xiang, then signaled for the King of the Underworld to take the man away first.

The King of the Underworld understood Ye Xuan’s intention. He gestured to his bodyguards, who then grabbed Guo Xiang and left ahead of them.

"Ye Xuan, want to catch up?" the King of the Underworld asked, his eyes full of sincerity.

"I..."

Just as Ye Xuan was about to speak, his phone suddenly rang. He picked it up and saw it was a call from Vermilion Bird.

"Hello? Is Xuanwu awake?" Ye Xuan asked without a second thought the moment he answered.

"Yeah, he’s awake. But he refuses to see anyone and won’t say a word. You should come back and check on him," Vermilion Bird said helplessly over the phone. She cast a glance at Xuanwu, who was lying silently on the bed, not even blinking.

Ye Xuan frowned. He gave a sound of acknowledgment and hung up.

"Xuanwu? You found him?" the King of the Underworld asked with slight surprise, having overheard Ye Xuan’s conversation.

"Yeah, we found him in Longcheng District. How about it? Do you want to go back with me?" Ye Xuan asked mildly, slipping his phone into his pocket.

"Let’s go. I’ll try to talk some sense into the kid too." The King of the Underworld nodded, agreeing to accompany Ye Xuan.

Sitting in the passenger seat, the King of the Underworld chatted casually with Ye Xuan.

"After that kid retired from the Ministry of State Security back then, I sought him out and asked if he wanted to work with me.

"He said his Martial Arts were completely ruined and that he couldn’t help me with anything, and then he left.

"I tried to arrange a job for him, but he rejected that too. He’s even more stubborn than I am."

When the topic shifted to Xuanwu, he couldn’t help but sigh. "The thing he was most proud of was his Martial Arts. It’s a real shame they’re ruined."

Hearing this, Ye Xuan’s eyes flickered. He remained silent for a moment before replying, "His Martial Arts aren’t ruined. He tampered with the medical report back then. It’s just him... he doesn’t want to use force anymore."

Upon hearing Ye Xuan’s words, the King of the Underworld’s eyes instantly widened, his jaw nearly dropping to the floor. It took him quite a while to recover from the shock. Having been brothers with Xuanwu for the better part of his life, he knew the man fairly well, yet he couldn’t comprehend why Xuanwu would do such a thing.

"What did you say? The kid isn’t ruined at all? What’s his motive for doing this?"

"White Tiger’s death was a fatal blow to him. He’s always blamed himself, believing he was the one who got White Tiger killed. Sealing away his own strength must be the work of his inner demons." Ye Xuan had thought long and hard about this issue, and this was the only answer he could come up with.

"Sigh, this kid..." Now, the King of the Underworld didn’t know what to say.

Back when Ye Xuan and the others went to wipe out the Celestial Ranking, he happened to be abroad. He had originally thought that with the combined strength of the four Hall Chiefs, taking down the Celestial Ranking wouldn’t be an issue. Thus, he hadn’t taken it to heart.

But who could have known things wouldn’t be that simple? The Four Palaces’ Hall Chiefs were nearly annihilated, and many brothers lost their lives. By the time he received the news and rushed back as fast as he could, it was already too late.

Because of this, the incident had always been a hurdle in the King of the Underworld’s heart. He had also been blaming himself all these years. If only he hadn’t been so overconfident back then.

Unfortunately, there were no "ifs" in this world. What happened, happened.

Soon, the two arrived at the Ministry of State Security.

"King of the Underworld, long time no see."

When Vermilion Bird saw him, she was visibly startled for a moment, but seeing that Ye Xuan had brought him back, she relaxed. Forcing a smile, she gave him a brief hug.

A hint of a smile appeared on the King of the Underworld’s stern and rigid face as he gently patted Vermilion Bird’s back. "It really has been a long time. Your injuries should be fully healed by now, right?"

Vermilion Bird nodded, then bumped her shoulder against his. "I’m perfectly fine now. Let’s spar sometime when you’re free."

"I wouldn’t dare spar with you, you tigress." The King of the Underworld feigned fear, waving his hands repeatedly.

Vermilion Bird’s face immediately fell, and she shot him a fierce glare. "Call me a tigress again, and I’ll turn you into a eunuch!"

The King of the Underworld chuckled under his breath at her glaring demeanor.

"Where’s Xuanwu? Still in his room? How is he doing now?" After exchanging pleasantries, the King of the Underworld began to ask about Xuanwu’s condition.

Vermilion Bird put away her playful banter and jutted her chin toward the bedroom door. "Still lying in bed in there. He doesn’t react when I talk to him. You guys go in and take a look. I’m completely at my wit’s end with him anyway."

Sighing helplessly, Vermilion Bird felt a headache coming on. Xuanwu really was a handful.

"Ye Xuan and I will go in and check on him." The King of the Underworld patted Vermilion Bird’s shoulder to reassure her, then entered the room with Ye Xuan.

"Xuanwu! You kept me completely in the dark! Back when I asked you to help me, you absolutely refused, claiming your Martial Arts were entirely ruined.

"Ruined, my ass! You just damn well didn’t want to use them on purpose!" The King of the Underworld strode over to Xuanwu’s bed and deliberately bellowed at the top of his lungs.

Xuanwu’s eyes flickered, and a trace of pain crossed his face, but he still ignored the two men. He merely pursed his lips tightly and rolled over, turning his back to them.

Looking at the silent Xuanwu, Ye Xuan felt both angry and helpless. Among the five of them, Xuanwu was the youngest. Because of this, Ye Xuan and the others would often go out of their way to look after him. Whenever Xuanwu’s stubborn temper flared up, they would usually just humor him.

"Xuanwu, I finally made it back. Do you really have nothing to say to me?" Ye Xuan pulled up a stool and sat by the bed, patiently preparing to have a proper talk with him.

"What happened five years ago is an indelible pain in all our hearts.

"We are deeply grieved by White Tiger’s death as well; you’re not the only one mourning.

"I was severely injured back then, with less than a ten percent chance of recovering my Martial Arts. Fortunately, I met a benefactor who helped me by Washing Marrow and Changing Bones, which allowed me to regain my strength.

"I don’t understand. Your Martial Arts are still intact. Why would you deceive yourself and lie to us, saying they were completely ruined?

"Do you really think that by giving up on yourself and wallowing in self-pity like this, White Tiger will come back to life?"

Ye Xuan said a lot in one breath, originally thinking that Xuanwu would give him some sort of response. But who would have thought that Xuanwu would remain as unresponsive as a log, lying motionless on the bed.

"This brat is really throwing a tantrum now. People can’t even talk to you anymore, is that it?"

Seeing Xuanwu continuing to ignore them, the King of the Underworld’s temper flared up. He roughly hauled Xuanwu up from the bed and roared right in his face, "You’re a fucking coward! It was one thing when we spoiled and humored you in the past, but you’re still acting like a child now.

"Who are you putting on this miserable act for? I really feel bad for White Tiger, trading his life for a coward like you."