Chapter 9: This Hate

Zhou Yan was taken out of that strange place.

Even though my eyes were covered, I still had a special feeling when I left there, as if I had surfaced from the bottom of the water and was able to breathe fresh air all of a sudden, and my whole body felt relaxed.

After protecting him and rushing out of the Demon City, the man's hand moved away and Zhou Yan saw the sky outside.

It was night and the sky was dark, but it was different from the village where one could only see darkness when one looked up. The night was filled with stars and the bright moonlight fell, making everything white.

Zhou Yan looked back at the man and saw that his right arm was empty, with the arm armor fallen off. There was a scar on his left eye. His eye was tightly closed, bleeding, but his face was still resolute.

I paid this price just to save myself.

Zhou Yan felt a strong sense of guilt.

"Don't talk, we haven't left the Monster City yet."

The man reminded Zhou Yan that there was a tall black horse outside. The man took Zhou Yan to the horse, hung the sword on the side of the horse, patted the side of the horse, and whispered: "Thank you for your hard work, old brother."

"Walk!"

The horse neighed, and started running quickly under the moonlight. Zhou Yan was too exhausted from the day's experience, and coupled with the moment of relaxation and peace of mind, he fell into a deep sleep without realizing it.

He dreamed that he returned home, saw his parents and friends, chatted with them, and then played a game. While playing, he felt thirsty and his mouth was dry, so he opened the refrigerator, took out a bottle of Coke, opened it, and took a big gulp.

The cool bubbles rushed into the dry throat.

That refreshing and relaxing feeling spreads throughout the body at once.

Zhou Yan drank the happy water in big gulps. It is said that 80% of the price of iced cola is in the first sip. Sure enough, the cola became more and more bland after that, just like water. However, he was so thirsty that he still swallowed it in big gulps.

It's becoming more and more like water.

"Xiao Yan, come and eat, your favorite twice-cooked pork."

"Your father's craftsmanship."

His mother was calling him, and he was about to answer when he found that his parents' voices were getting farther and farther away. He turned around and saw that his parents, the familiar small living room, and the warm yellow light had turned into a spot of light, getting farther and farther away.

Zhou Yan was so anxious that he was suddenly choked and started coughing violently.

"Cough cough cough!"

Zhou Yan was choked awake and opened his eyes with difficulty. He sat against a tree and saw a man squatting in front of him, holding a water bag in his hand and feeding himself water. The inky mountain-patterned armor leaves were rippling with a circle of pale and gentle ripples under the moonlight.

Then all the experiences of the day came flooding into Zhou Yan's mind.

The man moved the water bag slightly away and said, "Awake."

Zhou Yan said: "Well, this is..."

The man stood up and sat down next to him. He said, "We are out of the Monster City now. We are safe now. Who are you and why are you in such a dangerous place?"

Zhou Yan hid his true origins, saying only that he had rolled down a mountain and had forgotten many things. He was picked up and sold by a man named Wang Chun. Then he pulled himself together and said, "I haven't thanked you for saving my life yet. I don't know your name."

The man said: "Shen Cangming."

After a pause, he said, "It doesn't count as saving you."

Zhou Yan asked: "What?"

Shen Cangming said: "Nothing."

"Do you remember where your home is?"

Zhou Yan said: "I don't remember."

"Where are your parents?"

Zhou Yan thought of that dream. It was just a dream, but he felt his heart ache. He felt a sense of suffocation that was distant but real. His face was unconsciously confused and sad. He said, "...I, I don't know."

"I may never see them again..."

Shen Cangming paused and said, "Is that so?"

He made a deal with Qing Ming Fangzhu, and lost an arm, one eye, and his memory of archery, but he did not suffer from obvious blood loss. He was just tired. He did not know how to comfort people. He was silent for a long time and just said:

"It's late today, and it's hard to escape. You should get some sleep first."

"I'll help you find a place to stay tomorrow."

Zhou Yan originally wanted to say that he was not tired yet and wanted to find out more about this world and this era, but his body obviously had a different opinion, and after saying just a few words, he fell into sleep again in a daze.

Shen Cangming sat under the tree next to him, and the big black horse was eating grass beside him.

There is a fire in front.

It was already September and the temperature at night was already very cold. He looked at Zhou Yan who fell asleep exhausted. Seeing that Zhou Yan curled up instinctively because of the cold, Shen Cangming silently took off the cloak on his armor and covered Zhou Yan with it.

He walked back, paused, and turned around again.

He bent down and used his remaining arm to cover Zhou Yan's cloak more tightly.

Looking at the young man's sleeping face, he suddenly laughed at himself:

"Shen Cangming, ah Shen Cangming."

"The Tang border troops thought they could save the Tang, but they ended up being traitors. They originally planned to find a big monster and kill a few monsters for the people to atone for their sins, but..."

He survived the brutal battlefield, but lost his more fundamental faith. Shen Cangming had already been determined to die, but after saving this young man today, his determination to die was weakened.

I always feel like it's atonement.

Saving a civilian seems to make the sin on your back a little lighter.

If you pay a price in the process, you will feel as if the weight on your heart has been lifted, and you will develop a tendency towards self-destructive atonement.

But he could see his own despicable heart clearly and see through it.

Therefore, I become more disgusted.

But he is just deceiving himself and trying to survive by saving people!

Shen Cangming looked at his palm, the palm that had once fought against the Tubo cavalry in Xingxu River, and the palm that held the reins and weapons and returned to Chang'an. His cheeks twitched with anger, disgust, and pain.

Slammed hard beside it.

"coward!"

He said.

......

When Zhou Yan fell asleep for the second time, it was like he had taken a nap and he slept very deeply. But this time he recovered quickly. When he slowly opened his eyes, the sky was still a little dark.

The fire had gone out a little, leaving only a dark red color, which was very eye-catching against the dark blue sky.

He sat up straight, and his bloody cloak fell down.

"This is..."

Zhou Yan blinked and saw Shen Cangming sitting over there to rest. The latter was extremely tired, with tremendous torture and pressure in his heart, so he also fell asleep. Only the black warhorse was still alert.

Shen Cangming held the sword in his left hand, with his thumb resting on the handle.

For some reason, Zhou Yan felt that if anyone was hostile to Shen Cangming, the sword in the hand of this seemingly asleep man would be unsheathed instantly.

Rather than saying it was asleep, it would be more like a tired and wounded tiger.

Zhou Yan recalled yesterday's experience, everything was true.

"Is it really impossible to go back?..."

He leaned his head against the tree trunk, feeling melancholy and powerless. He seemed to have no energy at all and didn't want to do anything. However, this state did not last long, and Zhou Yan pulled himself together again.

Now that I'm here, I can't just wait to die.

He suddenly remembered that yesterday at midnight, when he finally killed the butcher, Butcher Zhao's power and soul seemed to be absorbed and engraved on the jade book. Zhou Yan was very curious about this thing that inexplicably appeared in his mind.

Perhaps, the way home may be in this jade book.

His mind was focused on the jade book. This jade book was no longer unresponsive as it was at the beginning. Instead, it unfolded naturally. The pages flipped quickly, then gradually slowed down, and finally fell to the last page.

The pages fell down, with golden writing on them.

What is recorded is the information of hungry ghosts.

Above these words is a picture of a person, as if outlined in ink, with a lively and vivid expression. It is none other than the rough and ferocious-looking butcher Zhao. In his two hands, each hand holds a meat cleaver, and the ends of the two meat cleavers are connected together with a chain.

A pair of bare feet, the left foot on the ground and the right foot raised.

His every move seems to be dancing or performing a sacrifice. On his waist is a delicate abacus with a red rope tied underneath. This dilutes the ferocious and murderous look of this ink-and-wash portrait, making it look strange and eerie.

"Butcher Zhao..."

Zhou Yan looked at the scroll curiously.

Suddenly, new words appeared on the painting. A mysterious feeling emerged in Zhou Yan's heart. The message conveyed made Zhou Yan's eyes widen slightly.

"This is..."

"Magic power?!!"