Bai Fanlu was momentarily stunned, but the ice silk had already been properly tied to his forehead.

The turbulent demonic energy within him was instantly suppressed, and Bai Fanlu immediately felt a sense of physical relief. However, this physical relief was quickly overshadowed by a heavy weight on his mind.

Although Bai Fanlu still didn’t want to acknowledge it, given the current circumstances, he had no choice but to respond to that voice.

“You saw everything?” he asked.

Actually, asking this question wasn’t the hardest part; the hardest part was turning around to face the owner of that voice.

Fortunately, the person’s face and figure were hidden in the shadows of the trees, so Bai Fanlu didn’t need to see them clearly. He just needed to step back, putting some distance between them, and then hear the response, “Yes, I saw.”

Honest and succinct.

Bai Fanlu still couldn’t understand how Yun Zhan had managed to enter his barrier without causing any disturbance, but there was no point in dwelling on that now.

“So what are you going to do? Report me to the Celestial Realm? I killed Sect Leader Shen Tongshan and his two disciples.”

“I killed this person.”

Yun Zhan pointed to the disciple lying on the ground with a sword wound to the throat.

“… Does that mean we’re in this together?”

Bai Fanlu wanted to say more, but Yun Zhan casually tossed the body of that disciple onto the ground, piling it together with Shen Tongshan’s corpse. Then, he activated a fire spell in his hand.

“Wait!” Bai Fanlu said, throwing the disciple he had hidden behind the tree onto the pile, making three bodies in total. He clapped his hands, “Alright, go ahead and burn them.”

“Don’t you want the spiritual herb?” Yun Zhan asked.

“No, if you want it, take it,” Bai Fanlu replied, not caring about sharing the spoils. He wished the protagonist quick success in increasing his power and ascending to the grand finale.

Unexpectedly, Yun Zhan shook his head, “I don’t want it either.”

With that, he cleanly incinerated the bodies with a single fire spell.

Watching the three bodies turn to ashes, leaving no trace of human form, Bai Fanlu felt a sense of satisfaction. Just as he was about to leave, a bright green glint caught his eye in the ashes.

[Ding Ding: “Congratulations on completing the hidden event ‘Emerald Thread in the Ashes,’ you have obtained ‘Divine Herb: Huasheng.'”]

[Ding Ding: “‘Divine Herb: Huasheng,’ purifies the heart, soothes the soul, and can cure the three rarest poisons in the world.”]

Purification, Soul Reaver, and Lingering Sorrow were the three rare poisons mentioned in ancient texts, long thought to have vanished from the world.

Bai Fanlu didn’t know what the system intended with this item. Last time, the system mentioned that these items would eventually be useful, but he had no desire to test any of those poisons—not even one.

Frowning, he glanced up and saw the person across from him, illuminated by the faint flickering embers, staring at him with a deep, contemplative gaze.

The system’s voice was clearly ringing in his mind, but Bai Fanlu couldn’t help but wonder, standing in front of Yun Zhan, could he hear it too?

Ridiculous! Bai Fanlu dispelled the barrier and flew back to the small village that had just caught fire.

He thought that after being gone for so long, the fire would have spread up the mountain. However, when he arrived, he was relieved to see that the fire hadn’t reached the forest; only a few houses had burned down, leaving some smoldering embers.

The scene was desolate, with only two survivors rummaging through the charred remains of their homes, a sight that tugged at the heartstrings.

Bai Fanlu couldn’t bear to watch any longer. When he turned around, he saw Yun Zhan behind him, deliberately keeping a certain distance, and a mix of emotions swirled within him.

Those villagers had been full of life just the day before, and now, after a single night, they had become ghosts in the fire. The couple had been separated, one in life, the other in death…

Bai Fanlu recalled what Shen Lanshan had said: he envied them, for they still had time to be together.

But was that time truly in their control?

As Bai Fanlu walked, Yun Zhan followed him, not too close but never too far.

Without a doubt, there was no one else around. It must have been Yun Zhan who used magic to stop the fire from spreading up the mountain, preventing a larger disaster. But why was he following him?

His behavior reminded Bai Fanlu of that rainy day when Yun Zhan had kept a similar distance, appearing to maintain space, but in the end, something serious still happened.

Bai Fanlu said nothing, choosing to fly back to the wooden hut on his sword, ignoring Yun Zhan, and lay down on the straw pile.

But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was bothering him. After a while, he turned over, opened his eyes. A while later, he turned back and closed his eyes again.

After several such cycles, Bai Fanlu finally couldn’t stand it. He sat up, looked around to confirm that no one was there, and began to scan his surroundings.

Nothing…

Yun Zhan had left again!

A sudden wave of irritation surged in Bai Fanlu’s heart. He was the one who had been deceived and had decided to give up on these petty emotions to protect his master and sect, to pursue his own goals.

So why did seeing Yun Zhan now make him waver again and again?

He hadn’t felt it at first, but now that the person was gone, Bai Fanlu realized that his presence seemed to have been there for a long, long time. His mind flashed with scenes of their journey together, clear and vivid, refusing to fade no matter how hard he tried, like a dual-layered memory overlaying itself, highlighted prominently.

Bai Fanlu took a deep breath and casually grabbed a handful of dry grass, inspecting it.

Unable to sleep, he decided to pass the time by weaving the grass. He selected two longer strands of grass and twisted them into the shape of a small bird with a few quick flicks of his fingers.

Bai Fanlu placed the small bird in his palm, and a slow smile spread across his once troubled face.

The material wasn’t ideal, but if he had some flexible reeds or stalks, he could easily weave a little rabbit or dog. But for now, this would have to do.

Since he couldn’t sleep, Bai Fanlu continued weaving small items out of grass, and soon enough, he had built a small mountain of them next to the straw pile. By now, it was almost dawn, so he bundled them up and placed them in a corner of the courtyard.

When Yin Yin and the others came out, they would surely be delighted.

With the early morning light, Bai Fanlu flew on his sword to the nearest market. When the carpenter’s workshop opened, he bought a small cradle. Fortunately, there was a ready-made one that didn’t need to be custom-ordered.

He then went to the fabric shop to purchase bedding for the cradle and a few outfits for the children. The few large silver ingots that Old Master Shen had given him had finally found a use.

After all this, the market was getting busier. A vendor was selling candied hawthorns, so Bai Fanlu bought a few sticks as well.

On the way back, Bai Fanlu was already thinking about where to place the cradle and how excited the children would be when they saw the things he had bought.

He was so preoccupied with these thoughts that he didn’t pay attention to the surroundings as he opened the door.

Holding the cradle, Bai Fanlu called out Yin Yin’s name, but when he looked inside, it was too late to regret it.

Yun Zhan was sitting on the floor, hammering some wooden planks. When he saw Bai Fanlu enter, his movements paused for a moment.

Bai Fanlu frowned, not because he couldn’t bear to look at him, but because Yun Zhan’s expression when he looked at him was very odd.

When they met during the day yesterday, Bai Fanlu wasn’t mentally prepared, so he hadn’t looked at Yun Zhan directly, and last night was too dark to see clearly.

But now, face to face in the bright morning, the air fresh and the sun shining, Yun Zhan appeared somewhat dazed, as if he hadn’t fully woken up.

Especially those eyes, which inexplicably gave off a feeling of being deeply trapped in fog, dull and hollow, yet clearly fixed on him.

It was a stark contrast to the spirited young man he used to know, impossible to ignore.

“Senior Brother, you’re back,” Yun Zhan said softly, then lowered his head to continue hammering.

Bai Fanlu walked silently toward him, and at that moment, the children ran out from the inner room, laughing and playing.

Each of them clutched a small grass-woven toy, and when they saw Bai Fanlu, they cheered and rushed toward him, “Brother Lu Fan! Brother Lu Fan! Did you make these? Brother Xiao Liu said you did; they’re really nice!”

Yun Zhan knew he made these things? Was he nearby last night?

Yin Yin held up the grass-woven rabbit, which was actually quite rough by Bai Fanlu’s previous standards, but the little girl cherished it as if it were a treasure. The other children argued over whose toy was better.

Bai Fanlu glanced at Yun Zhan and said, “If you like them, I can make more for you. Come over; I brought some things from the market.”

He placed the cradle on the ground and took out the new clothes and the candied hawthorns wrapped in sugar paper.

This made the courtyard lively, with everyone bustling about. Even Aunt Zhang and the two elderly men were drawn out.

Seeing the cradle, Aunt Zhang exclaimed in surprise, “Oh my, it’s already finished? It’s beautiful! Xiao Liu, you’re really quick…”

But just as she finished praising him, Aunt Zhang noticed the scattered wooden planks in front of Xiao Liu and realized she might have made a mistake. Hesitantly, she turned to Bai Fanlu, “Brother Lu Fan, this cradle…?”

Bai Fanlu answered, “I just bought it from the market.”

“Oh, I see,” Aunt Zhang said awkwardly, “You and Brother Xiao Liu…”

Her meaning was clear: If Bai Fanlu had already decided to buy a cradle, why was Xiao Liu still making one? It could only mean they hadn’t communicated beforehand.

So the strange atmosphere she had sensed between the two of them yesterday seemed to be confirmed, and Aunt Zhang didn’t know what to say.

Xiao Liu paused with the hammer in his hand, then broke the silence, “I wasn’t making a cradle; I was making something else.”

“Oh, I see! I just thought you and Brother Lu Fan… Ah, silly me…” Aunt Zhang laughed loudly to ease the tension, then helped carry the cradle inside.

The children exchanged glances, but no one took a bite of the candied hawthorns.

It was the eldest, Yin Yin, who tugged at Bai Fanlu’s clothes and softly asked, “Brother Lu Fan, are you and Brother Xiao Liu fighting?”

Bai Fanlu patted Yin Yin’s head, “No, I just forgot to tell him.”

“Oh, okay,” Yin Yin still seemed unsure and whispered in his ear, “Then will you explain it to Brother Xiao Liu now? He’s been working on that cradle all morning, and I think… I think he looks really sad.”

Sad? Yun Zhan?

Bai Fanlu looked over at Yun Zhan, who was still hammering, looking very focused. His hands moved precisely, without any hint of emotion.

But upon hearing Yin Yin mention “sad,” Bai Fanlu couldn’t help but feel a strange connection, as if he could indeed sense Yun Zhan’s sadness.

He walked over, intending to say, “There’s already a cradle, no need to trouble yourself.” But when he stood there, looking down at Yun Zhan, the words suddenly caught in his throat.

The closer he was to this person, the more he felt a strange sensation, full of contradictions.

He should hate him, yet he was inexplicably drawn to him. He didn’t want to think about him, but he couldn’t stop recalling many things.

It was as if Yun Zhan himself was a contradiction.

A contradiction so extreme that he could ignore the fact that Bai Fanlu was a demon, so extreme that he could even kill immortals, and now he was here, seemingly in sync with Bai Fanlu’s thoughts, making a cradle for a mortal baby.

Bai Fanlu couldn’t understand it. It overturned the so-called distinction between immortals and demons, the notion of cold-bloodedness. Was this Yun Zhan still the same Yun Zhan from the book?

Thinking back to the time he first killed the flower thief, when Yun Zhan, as Xiao Liu, had confidently discussed the theory of immortals and demons.

Was he playing the role of Xiao Liu too deeply, or was this who Yun Zhan really was?

Which one was the real him?

Bai Fanlu was confused. He realized that ever since Yun Zhan’s identity was revealed, they hadn’t properly discussed past events.

Should he listen to Yun Zhan’s explanation? Would it be too hasty to judge him without talking, especially since the story had deviated from the original?

And Yun Zhan’s current state also made him worry.

If that was the case, they should talk it out. Bai Fanlu thought, at least clear things up, because this unclear state was making him uncomfortable.

“Yun… Xiao Liu, let’s talk.”

Remembering the children nearby, Bai Fanlu changed his tone at the last moment.

Yun Zhan brought the hammer down, directly hitting his hand. But he remained frozen, not caring whether his fingers were bruised or cut, as if he was in a daze, completely unaware.

His fingers were still pressed under the hammer, and Bai Fanlu frowned, secretly using magic to heal the wound.

It was as if Yun Zhan woke up from a dream. He curled his fingers slightly, put down the hammer, and slowly nodded, “Okay, let me finish this first.”

“…There’s already a cradle.”

“I can make something else; the woodshed needs a chicken coop.”

The chicks that the shepherd brought back yesterday, along with the two little rabbits, indeed needed a permanent home, and Yun Zhan had even thought of this.

Bai Fanlu nodded, “Alright.”

He didn’t say anything else, just sat down to help Yun Zhan with the coop.

The children, seeing that the two had returned to their previous state, happily gathered around, eating their candied hawthorns while watching them build the coop.

Bai Fanlu also observed Yun Zhan. Now that he was closer and at eye level, he could see more clearly that Yun Zhan was indeed not in a good state.

Once the children finally lost interest and ran off to play games, Bai Fanlu asked him, “They said you did something harmful to your body to help me unblock my meridians… Did you?”