Chapter 78 A Kiss? At the bottom of the lake, eyes, breathing.

When he jumped down from above, Shen Mi didn't have much air inhaled because of the wind, and now he was almost exhausted after swimming forward a few meters.

She felt as if her lungs were being scorched by fire, her chest was throbbing with pain, and every time she tried to breathe, she could only inhale icy water mixed with the metallic taste of blood that seemed to come from nowhere, which rushed straight to her throat.

The sounds of water, her heartbeat, and the blade cutting through the water behind her all blended into a chaotic mess. She could only rely on her willpower to keep going, mechanically paddling with her arms and kicking her legs, creating jerky splashes.

She tugged at Ren's arm, anxiously indicating that she needed to surface for air.

Just then, the Jin man also jumped into the water, his searchlight piercing the darkness and illuminating the bottom of the lake. The beam of light suddenly swept across Shen Mi's face.

Blade immediately shook his head, his expression firm and cold, indicating that she could not surface now.

Shen Mi frantically gestured in response: She was about to collapse; if she didn't go up soon, she would die here.

After giving the hand signal, Shen Mi plunged upstream without hesitation. The water was icy cold, but she didn't care about anything else; she just wanted to escape this cage as soon as possible.

However, after swimming only a few steps, her ankle was suddenly tightened, and she was grabbed.

Looking down, she saw it was a blade. His fingers were bleeding, and his pale skin gripped her calf like an iron clamp, preventing her from escaping. He looked up at her, his blood-gold eyes reflecting an irresistible expression in the underwater light.

Shen Mi was stunned, his mind almost stolen away by those eyes.

His eyes... had miraculously healed. There were no bloody tears, no hollowness; they were so clear they seemed to penetrate the water and strike straight to the heart.

In her stunned state, she forgot to move her legs and not only failed to break free in time, but was instead suddenly pulled by the blade—

Suddenly, I was pulled back underwater!

The icy liquid instantly filled her mouth and nose. Chen Mi struggled frantically, her limbs flailing in the water, but she couldn't break free from the grip of that hand. Her last breath seemed to rush out of her throat, not a drop left. Her consciousness gradually blurred, and her heart began to pound in her ears.

This time, she was really going to die.

But she quickly realized that Ren hadn't let go, nor had he pulled her any deeper. He held her tightly in his arms, his other hand supporting the back of her head and pressing her forward with an unyielding force, while he himself lowered his head—

The moment her lips touched his, Shen Mi's eyes widened.

The warm breath entered her mouth through her lips and teeth, instantly relieving the suffocating feeling in the water.

There was no unnecessary touching, only precise movements and urgent transmission. He breathed into her mouth, sending every last breath of his into her lungs. Chen Mi froze, instinctively struggling, her eyelashes trembling in the water, before her were the man's almost cold eyes.

She had never seen a blade this close before.

The light from the Golden Man's searchlight flickered a few times in the water before going out. Before the short circuit, the faint light floating in the water reflected on his profile, outlining his deep features with an unfamiliar softness, even carrying a hint of tenderness that shouldn't have appeared on his face.

Chen Mi's eyes stung slightly, and before he could think it through, he was pulled into the next breath-giving session.

As their breaths mingled, she felt the blade's arm tighten slightly for a moment.

The breath transfer ended quickly, and Ren released his hand, pushed her away, and let her continue swimming forward with him.

Until all that could be heard was the sound of flowing water, until the world returned to darkness.

They finally surfaced. Shen Mi coughed up a mouthful of water, choking and tears streaming down her face. Ren dragged her toward the shore, being pushed back by the waves time and time again, but she gritted her teeth and persevered each time, never letting go even when her palms were cut by the rocks.

Finally, the two collapsed in the mud on the shore, lake water dripping from their clothes and soaking the grass.

Shen Mi turned her head to the side and coughed violently. The struggle had made her swallow a lot of water. She was breathing heavily and her vision was blurry. She saw Ren lying face up to the side, his chest heaving violently. The wound on his hand was still bleeding, but his expression was clearer than ever before.

Shen Mi stared at him, her lips trembling slightly, her breathing still unsteady, yet she still struggled to raise her hand and point to those captivating eyes in the water.

“Your eyes…” Her voice trembled as if she were trying to spit out the shock and unease that had been suppressed deep in her throat.

Blade coughed a few times with his eyes closed, as if he had heard her words, but simply replied calmly, "You mean—completely intact, right?"

Shen Mi's throat tightened, words stuck in her throat, and she couldn't utter a single sentence. She clearly remembered those eyes; they had once been bloodshot, festering, full of new tissue and pain. But now, they seemed as if they had never been injured, just like when she first met them, even clearer than before.

She could only watch him silently lean against the lake shore, his eyelashes drooping wetly, his face as pale as paper, blood and water mixed together, winding down his cheeks, outlining a chilling silence on his silent profile.

“That’s right.” Blade suddenly spoke, his voice low and husky, yet utterly calm. “This is the real me.”

He slowly sat up straight and raised his right hand—

The blood-stained, mangled hand was clearly visible in the moonlight; the knuckles were broken, the bones were dislocated, and the torn flesh at the wound trembled slightly. But just as Shen Mi was about to cry out in alarm, the flesh began to heal itself in some strange rhythm.

He was displaying what seemed like a precious yet absurd artifact, slowly raising his scarred hand in front of her so she could see it more clearly.

“Did you see that?” he said, his tone almost dismissive.

Shen Mi stared at him blankly, her mind a complete mess. She watched with her own eyes as the wound healed at a speed visible to the naked eye, the blood congealed, the torn skin stitched back together, the texture, the skeleton, the blood vessels... everything was being "reconstructed".

Only broken fingers cannot heal on their own due to misalignment.

Blade glanced down at it, then grabbed the crooked knuckle with his right hand and snapped it back into place with a "click".

Shen Mi gasped sharply; the sight was horrifying, let alone the thought of doing it himself.

"Doesn't it hurt?" Shen Mi's voice was a little hoarse, as if it had been dried out by the wind, and even the end of the sentence was trembling.

"I can't feel the pain anymore." Blade lowered his head and casually wiped away the remaining bloodstains on his palm with his fingertips, his movements as calm as if he were cleaning up a drop of water.

Shen Mi stared blankly at him, pondering his words. It was pain to the point of not being able to feel pain anymore, not numbness that prevented her from feeling pain.

Then, he looked down at his abnormally bent left leg, which had been broken by the force of the water when he jumped off the cliff. Without making a sound, he lifted his injured leg and placed it in front of him, then picked up two thick branches from the wet grass and branches beside him, comparing their lengths one by one.

Shen Mi then realized what he wanted to do.

She immediately moved closer, squatted down beside him, and said in a softer voice, but with an unusual firmness: "Let me help you."

She took the wooden branch from his hand, her fingertips trembling slightly, but she suppressed her discomfort and carefully compared it to the location of the fracture. When her fingers touched his injury, she could almost feel his muscles tense up slightly for a moment, then immediately relax.

Blade didn't refuse, but merely glanced at her indifferently: "Aren't you afraid?"

"I wouldn't say I'm scared, but just looking at it is painful, and I can't bear to look at it," Shen Mi said softly, but her eyes were more serious than ever before.

Shen Mi tore a strip from her clothes to secure the blade. The soaked fabric was difficult to tear, so she gritted her teeth and forced a corner open. Her knuckles turned white from the force, and the sound of the wet fabric tearing was subtle yet exceptionally jarring. When the fabric finally tore open, she instinctively gasped, even scraping her lips slightly.

She crouched down, carefully lifting her injured leg and gently threading the strip of cloth through it, completely unaware of her broken lip.

In no time, under Ren's guidance, he successfully immobilized his injured left foot. Chen Mi's fingers paused slightly at his ankle to check if the bandage was tight enough before releasing his grip and looking up at him: "How do you feel now?"

"That's enough." Ren nodded, his gaze lingering for a moment on the barely perceptible bloodstain at the corner of her lips, but he said nothing.

The wind still whistled by the water, and the forest was deep and secluded. Chen Mi, supporting herself on her blade, stood up and looked around. The surroundings remained deathly silent, save for the rustling of the wind through the treetops and the occasional soft ripples on the lake. She looked back uneasily, her heart pounding as if forced against her eardrums, its rhythm growing increasingly rapid.

They've been here for too long; they need to move as soon as possible.

“We can’t stay here too long,” she said in a low voice, her expression alert. “They might catch up soon.”

Ren nodded slightly, gripping her shoulder tightly with one hand for leverage.

For some reason, Shen Mi felt that Ren was very familiar with this place: "Ren, do you know how to get here?"

Ren turned to look at her, a hint of surprise flashing across his brows, as if he hadn't expected her to ask such a question.

"I don't know."

He answered quickly, so quickly it seemed like he didn't think, yet so quickly it aroused suspicion. Shen Mi always felt that he seemed to be deliberately hiding something.

"Are you really not sure?" she asked in a low voice, her gaze fixed on his profile.

The trees provided shade, casting dappled sunlight through their branches and leaves. A mountain breeze, carrying the fresh scent of damp grass, gently brushed against her cheek. The once-silent forest was suddenly broken by the fluttering of startled birds, as if responding to her question and shattering the oppressive tranquility.

Finally, she was able to hear any living creatures other than the two of them.

Blade's expression remained indifferent, showing little change, but his newly healed eyes concealed secrets he didn't want to tell others, hiding too many things he refused to say.

The eyes are indeed the windows to the soul.

Shen Mi didn't ask any more questions. Since he didn't want to talk about it, she didn't need to press him. In short, as long as he could get her out of there safely, that was enough.

She silently withdrew her gaze and continued to support him as they walked slowly forward. Their footsteps rustled softly on the thick layer of fallen leaves in the forest, each sound like a heavy, unsettling weight on her heart.

Blade's body temperature was abnormally low; when she was close to him, it felt like a block of ice resting on her shoulder. The two had just escaped from the icy lake, their clothes still soaking wet and clinging to their bodies, each step carrying a bone-chilling cold. Moreover, Blade's left leg was badly injured, and she could barely move a step without Blade's support.

"We need to find a place to spend the night as soon as possible," Shen Mi thought to himself, searching the dense forest for a hiding place.

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Author's note: Blade: Jingyuan, have you ever kissed her?

Jingyuan: No.

Blade: Danheng, what about you?

Danheng: No.

Blade: Sorry, I have one.

Chen Mi: This was an accident!!!

If you enjoyed this chapter, please leave a comment with a "good" rating! [Kiss][Starry eyes][Starry eyes][Starry eyes] Seeing everyone's voices gives me even more motivation!