Chapter 89: Life so Fragile
Yexue was about to question Madam Lin when Ru Yi shook her head. "Let’s get them to safety first. I’m worried the little girl won’t make it." She could barely make out the rise and fall of her chest.
"Fine," Yexue said at last. She looked around to get a bearing of their way home. "We’re far off from the Lin residence, but I think I can recognize where we are."
The cave had led them to the outskirts of the village, which was beginning to confirm Yexue’s suspicions that Lin Guowei was a part of the bandits kidnapping children from the village. Possibly the mastermind behind the operation.
Yexue adjusted Madam Lin’s weight on her back before motioning for Ru Yi to follow. "Let’s go. I don’t think Madam Xiao’s house is a long walk from here."
Except...it ended up being an even longer walk than any of them had anticipated. By the time they reached the house, the sun had already begun to dip.
The moment the door opened—
"Yexue!" Qingyue’s voice rang out sharply. She was on her feet in an instant, eyes scanning, relief and anger warring in her expression.
Lieyin stood just behind with her arms crossed. But her posture had already relaxed at the sight of them alive.
They’d just started the patrol when Lieyin felt a piercing pain shoot through her, and knew without doubt that Ru Yi was in pain. Which meant Yexue was also in whatever trouble she’d landed herself in.
But she couldn’t care, not after the heated argument between her and Yexue. Instead of trying to find them, Lieyin had continued the patrol, acting like the pain coursing through her was merely an inconvenience.
It was Xiao Yi who ran forward without hesitation. He grabbed onto Ru Yi’s leg like he usually did, only stopping short when he saw the girl in her arms.
Yexue helped Madam Lin down from her back and watched Madam Xiao rush forward to take the older woman inside.
She turned to meet Qingyue’s questioning gaze with a quiet defiance.
Since the three of them never fought, it meant they also never learned how to apologize to one another.
Yexue opened her mouth to say something...that she was sorry, and that she shouldn’t have made them feel abandoned by her. But above all, she didn’t regret her decision, because at the end Ru Yi had needed her the most.
Instead, she snapped her mouth close and went inside without a word to them. Lieyin turned to Qingyue with a look of disbelief.
It was Ru Yi that walked over to Qingyue. "We found something back at Madam Lin’s house. I think it might really have to do with the children being kidnapped. But first, we have to make sure Madam Lin and her daughter are alright."
That was when Qingyue’s eyes dropped to the little bundle in her arms. "What happened?" she asked at the same time she led Ru Yi inside.
Madam Xiao moved quickly, issuing quiet instructions to the others as they carried water and cloth.
Madam Lin and her daughter were taken to the main room, their fragile state demanding immediate care.
Xiao Yi refused to let go of Ru Yi’s sleeve until he was gently coaxed away by Qingyue. The room had been cleared. Not completely, but enough.
The noise, the movement, the relief from earlier had been pushed out, replaced with something quieter. Heavier. Urgent.
Madam Lin laid on the small bed, her breathing uneven, her body trembling from exhaustion and prolonged restraint.
Her daughter...too still and too pale.
Ru Yi stood near the door, her hands clasped tightly together, watching as Qingyue and Lieyin stepped forward.
"We don’t have much time," Lieyin said, her voice low.
Qingyue didn’t respond immediately. She was already assessing. Watching and calculating. Her gaze lingered on the child longest. "I’ll take her."
Lieyin glanced at her. "Are you sure?"
There was a pause before Qingyue answered with no hesitation. "Yes."
While Lieyin was the best when it came to swordmanship, Qingyue had more spiritual strength than she did. And the young girl who was already at the brink of death would require more energy.
Lieyin nodded once. "Then I’ll stabilize Madam Lin."
They moved in sync, like they’d done it a hundred times before.
Lieyin knelt beside Madam Lin first, placing two fingers lightly against her wrist. Her eyes closed slowly as she drew in a controlled breath.
Then—
A faint glow flickered to life beneath her skin. It was soft...warm. Her spiritual energy. It flowed from her core, guided through practiced channels, down her arm and into her fingertips.
Madam Lin’s body reacted instantly. Her breath hitched, then steadied.
The tremble in her limps eased as Lieyin directed the energy carefully, reinforcing what was weak, soothing what was damaged.
"Her condition isn’t critical," Lieyin murmured. "She’s just drained."
Ru Yi let out a small breath of relief. But her gaze shifted quickly to Qingyue. And what she saw made her chest tighten.
Qingyue sat at the edge of the bed, the child laid gently before her. Still unmoving. Still barely breathing.
Qingyue’s expression had changed completely. There was no cold distance, only focus, deep and unyielding.
She placed one hand lightly over the girl’s chest. The other hovered just above her forehead. Then she closed her eyes and silence fell.
It came a second later—a surge of energy.
Unlike Lieyin’s steady warmth, Qingyue’s spiritual power was sharper...denser. It gathered quickly, like a storm pulling itself together beneath the surface.
The atmosphere shifted.
It became pressed, almost suffocating.
Even Ru Yi felt it, like standing too close to something vast.
Qingyue exhaled slowly before she released it.
Bright light flared softly around her hands—pale, almost silver, threading into the child’s body like fine strands weaving something broken back together.
The girl’s chest rose, barely...then fell.
Qingyue’s brows furrowed. "That’s not enough," she muttered under her breath.
She drew another breath, deeper this time. And the energy surged again. Stronger. Faster.
It poured out of her now, no longer measured in small amounts, but in steady relentless waves. The glow intensified.
The room seemed to dim around it.
Ru Yi’s heart began to race. "Qingyue..."
Lieyin glanced over and immediately stiffened. "That’s too much," she warned. "You’ll drain yourself."
Qingyue didn’t stop. "The damage is much deeper," she said through clenched teeth. "Her organs are failing. If I don’t stabilize everything at once, she won’t survive the night."
The energy pouring from her now was no longer controlled. It was overwhelming. Raw power forced into precision through sheer will.
She leaned closer now, her forehead nearly touching the girl’s as she forced the last of her energy forward—everything she had left.
"Qingyue..." Ru Yi took a cautious step forward.
"Breathe," Qingyue commanded, watching with wide eyes as the girl finally took a sharp inhale. The girl coughed weakly, her body trembling as color slowly returned to her face. She made it!
Qingyue on the other hand froze for a second before her shoulders dropped. The light vanished instantly and so did her strength. Her body swayed before collapsing forward.
"QINGYUE!"
Ru Yi caught her just before she hit the ground. Her pulse was weak, her face already pale. For the first time she understood something clearly.
Qingyue wasn’t just cold or calculating. She carried the weight of every decision—the cost of every life she chose to save. Even if it broke her completely.
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