Chapter 83: Easing Tensions

Chapter 83: The Thaw

"Stay... alright?"

Shen Lian's heart was a mess. When Yan Huaixuan spoke again, he stuffed a pill into Yan Huaixuan's mouth.

Then he felt the man holding him slowly go limp.

Shen Lian hesitated for a moment, but still reached out to catch Yan Huaixuan's collapsing body.

But when he tried to pull his hand away, Yan Huaixuan gripped his wrist tightly.

No matter what Shen Lian did, Yan Huaixuan wouldn't let go.

Shen Lian took a deep breath and furrowed his brow. He was tired too, and didn't want to fight it anymore.

"He Ci, come in," Shen Lian said. "Being outside will make spiritual energy drain faster."

It was only then that He Ci walked in. He glanced at Yan Huaixuan, who was gripping Shen Lian's wrist tightly.

"A Lian... what's your relationship?"

Shen Lian answered truthfully, "We used to be cultivation partners. Not anymore."

He Ci paused for a moment, then nodded.

"Get some rest. Tomorrow's the last day, and we can leave."

"Alright."

When Yan Huaixuan woke, his head was splitting. Just as he was about to get up, a soft grunt sounded beside him.

Yan Huaixuan froze. He looked up in disbelief and found Shen Lian sitting beside him, his hand still wrapped around the other's wrist.

And his head was resting on Shen Lian's long hair, which was why Shen Lian had let out a sound when he moved.

Yan Huaixuan's thoughts slowly caught up.

Not only that, he felt the wound on his back had already healed, and even the blocked spiritual energy in his body was starting to flow normally again. Normally, it would have taken at least half a month to recover to this state.

He looked at Shen Lian's side profile.

Last night... had Shen Lian helped him?

Shen Lian had been resting in meditation anyway, so he woke up the moment Yan Huaixuan did.

"How long are you going to keep staring?"

Yan Huaixuan finally sat up. "Sorry."

When he spoke, his voice was incredibly hoarse.

He let go and saw that Shen Lian's wrist, which he'd held all night, was ringed with bruises, standing out harshly against his pale skin.

Yan Huaixuan started immediately, "Last night, I—"

He raised a finger, about to use spiritual energy to heal Shen Lian's wrist, but Shen Lian yanked his hand back and stood up.

Yan Huaixuan's hand hung in the air, and his eyes dimmed.

But to his surprise, Shen Lian frowned, walked a few steps, then turned back and said coldly, "Hand."

Yan Huaixuan blinked, confused, but held out his hand anyway.

Then Shen Lian dropped a few pills into his palm.

Yan Huaixuan's eyes shot up to Shen Lian.

Something instantly lit up in those frost-colored eyes.

Shen Lian pressed his lips together and looked away, his voice just as cold as ever. "You saved He Ci last night. I'm paying that debt back on his behalf."

"And you ate so many of my pills yesterday. If you died today, wouldn't all my effort last night have been for nothing?"

Even though Shen Lian said he was repaying He Ci's debt, Yan Huaixuan couldn't help the smile tugging at his lips. "Thank you," he said softly.

Shen Lian paused. "He Ci, let's go."

"Alright."

Shen Lian and He Ci had only walked a few steps when they realized Yan Huaixuan was still following them. When Shen Lian stopped, Yan Huaixuan looked up at him, confused.

Shen Lian pursed his lips. "If you walk that slow and end up collapsed on the ground again like yesterday, don't expect us to help you."

Hearing this, a hint of warmth crept into Yan Huaixuan's eyes. By the time Shen Lian blinked again, Yan Huaixuan was already walking beside him.

He said to Shen Lian, "What happened yesterday won't happen again. I've already recovered."

Shen Lian: "..."

He shot Yan Huaixuan a cold look. "Who asked you to explain? Who asked?"

Though his tone wasn't great, he was at least willing to talk to him now. Something seemed to take root and bloom in Yan Huaixuan's chest.

He carefully tucked the two pills away with the ones Shen Lian had given him over the past few days.

Then he walked beside Shen Lian.

But for some reason, the closer Shen Lian got to the boundary, the more the compass needle wavered.

Shen Lian frowned. "Could the compass be wrong?"

This was a shed shell from the ancient divine beast Black Tortoise's bloodline, with incredibly strong divination and prediction abilities. It shouldn't be wrong.

Yan Huaixuan spoke up, "If you're willing, you can let me take a look."

Shen Lian coldly tossed the compass to him.

Yan Huaixuan caught it. In his hand, the compass was completely different from when it was in Shen Lian's.

The entire compass instantly radiated a brilliant luster, and from within, one could even hear a heavy, ancient call.

Shen Lian: "?"

Shen Lian couldn't help but stare at the compass, wondering who was really the master of this thing.

But he also knew that in the end, these treasures depended on the ability of the user.

The more powerful someone is, the better they can unleash an artifact's full potential.

And in Yan Huaixuan's hands, the compass shed its worn, aged shell, revealing a rippling blue water pattern. A phantom blue turtle slowly emerged on its surface, pointing the opposite way.

Shen Lian: "..."

Yan Huaixuan coughed lightly, glancing at Shen Lian, hesitating.

Shen Lian: "Alright, you don't need to say it. I know what you're going to say!"

So they'd been running all that time, only to find out they'd been heading in the wrong direction.

Shen Lian grabbed the compass back in frustration, and the adorable little turtle instantly shrank back inside, leaving the compass looking drab and gray again.

Shen Lian: "?"

Yan Huaixuan said softly, "The spiritual energy you're feeding it isn't right. This compass is water-aligned. You need to pull water elements from the air and feed them into the compass."

Shen Lian was already fuming, and hearing Yan Huaixuan say this only stoked his anger.

Past experiences made him automatically assume Yan Huaixuan was mocking him. "Yeah, I'm not as good as you, fine?"

Yan Huaixuan froze, then immediately looked like he'd done something wrong. He flusteredly lowered his lashes, hiding his silver-white eyes.

"I'm sorry."

Shen Lian: "..."

He sometimes wondered if the current Yan Huaixuan had been to charm school.

He frowned hard. "Sorry, sorry. Is that all you can say?"

Yan Huaixuan opened his mouth, about to blurt out "sorry" again, but stopped himself. He pursed his lips. "I didn't mean to upset you."

Shen Lian looked at him, and for some reason, a wave of irritation welled up in him again.

"Okay, just drop it. Which way?"

Shen Lian chucked the compass back to Yan Huaixuan.

Yan Huaixuan caught it, and this time, without a word, he just opened it.

This time, they followed the new direction. Luckily, they hadn't strayed too far off course.

But at this pace, they'd be stuck here for another night.

As Shen Lian walked, the little paper figure dozing on his shoulder suddenly stirred and spoke up, "It's getting dark! It's getting dark!"

Shen Lian was startled. He looked up at the sky—strange, wasn't there still half an hour before sunset?

Why was the sky already darkening? And this time, it skipped the blood-red phase entirely, turning black directly.

A cold chill seeped into the air.

Yan Huaixuan suddenly wrapped his arm around Shen Lian's waist, his expression grave. "Let's go."