Chapter 207 – Leaving Nothing Behind
I turned to Bai Ye in horror the moment they were out of sight. "H-He knows," I stammered. "Are you sure he won't take action against us for it?"
"He might if we weren't leaving in five days." Bai Ye gave me a reassuring smile and patted me on the shoulder. "Don't forget that Mount Hua's reputation means more than anything to him. He might have felt responsible to keep Twin Stars under control if we were to remain here, but once we are gone, that would no longer be his business. Chu Yang would be more than glad to keep himself out of it given the chance, especially if that means the secret of the sword's past would be more safely buried."
Those words eased my mind a little. The Gatekeeper surely wasn't very far-sighted, I thought. If something was really off with Twin Stars like he expected, then releasing it out of Mount Hua's watch was the last thing he should do. How could he not care at all about the potential havoc it might wreck if set loose into the wild?
But since his lack of foresight only worked out in our favor, I had nothing to complain about. Returning a smile towards Bai Ye, I clasped my hand around his. "I can't believe how well things have turned out in the end," I said in relief. "You really scared me when you threatened to challenge the Gatekeeper … I wasn't sure at all if that was a bluff or not."
He chuckled at what I said. "Want to hear a secret?" He lowered his voice into a mysterious whisper. "Chu Yang was bluffing as well. There was a reason why he hadn't crossed blades with me for decades … Because he never won. He wouldn't dare truly challenge me in front of everyone else and make a fool of himself."
My eyes widened. "He has never won against you?" I repeated as a sense of pride surged in me. Of course, Bai Ye was the strongest. Of course, he would have made sure that everything would turn out safely for us, even without Teng Yuan's help.
He tousled my hair. "Like I said, Qing-er, you don't need to worry about me. I don't have to be able to wield a sword to protect us. Now, let's start getting ready for that indefinite errand of ours. There is a lot to prepare in just five days."
~ ~
He was right. The original deadline of ten days would have been a lot more reasonable, but after the Gatekeeper shortened the time in anger, everything in our hall turned upside down. After all, leaving Mount Hua wasn't nearly as simple as moving out of a house. It was more like parting ways with a life, leaving behind almost everything that we had grown so used to for so long.
The library was what I felt most reluctant to let go of. I wished that I had time to read through more books before leaving—the majority of the volumes were obtained on behalf of Mount Hua and recorded at the main peak, so we couldn't just take them with us. I was glad that I got to read all the ones on demonic swords, at least, and thank heavens that the collection Bai Ye had picked up in that foreign country were off the records, which meant we got to keep what mattered to us most.
But glancing over the library at the end of the day, I still felt nostalgic. Not just for the books that I knew I'd miss, but for the memories this room had left me as well. Such as that sultry summer afternoon when Bai Ye cornered me against the wall, demanding my answers to why I was looking for that book on dual cultivation.
"What's wrong?" Bai Ye turned around and asked, as I had paused for too long in the doorway.
I glanced at him. He better not know what I was thinking, because if he did, then he definitely would repeat that scene right this moment, and it wouldn't have ended with just an innocent interrogation. So I closed the door behind me and gave him a wistful smile. "I just feel a little guilty … I should've considered it more carefully before deciding to let out the truth. We might be able to find a better way to leave Mount Hua than this … a way that doesn't require you leaving everything behind."
To my surprise, he looked at me as if he didn't understand what I was saying. "Leaving everything behind?" he asked. Then he laughed. "You might have forgotten, Qing-er, that my memories of Mount Hua aren't nearly as favorable as yours. There were bright moments, sure, but those were from so long ago … and they were from a different hall to begin with. All my days here had been dull and hopeless for the past hundreds of years until you came. In all honesty, I feel quite excited to put this all behind me and start anew."
I blinked, somewhat uncertain if he had only said that to comfort me or if he really meant it. Seeing my doubt, he strode over and wrapped me in his arms. "You are everything that matters to me, Qing-er," he said softly. "All else here are only extra belongings that come and go in life. Even if some of them might carry fond memories, it doesn't matter in the end as long as you are still with me. As long as the life we lead still continues on … There will always be more beautiful memories to replace the old ones as time goes by."
His voice was gentle and luring, and the love in those words sent my heart fluttering just like it did on that summer afternoon. I smiled. "Bai Ye." I buried my face into his chest. "You are right. Home is where the heart is, like you've told me before. There is nothing to regret as long as we don't leave that behind."
He kissed the top of my head, and I felt him smile.. "There is one more thing we can't afford to leave behind though," he said, tousling my hair again, "and I need your help on this. Will you come to the cave chamber with me?"
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