I’ll only stay for a few days

Wang Feng had indeed been incredibly kind to him.

Lu Chen possessed a Five Elements Spiritual Root.

The resources he needed for cultivation far exceeded what most people could imagine.

So why had his cultivation advanced so quickly?

It was because of Wang Feng and the Wang family of alchemists behind him!

At the critical moment when he was breaking through from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment, his master Hu Wei went to beg for a top-grade Foundation Establishment Pill, but no one paid him any attention.

It was the Wang family, thanks to Wang Feng’s pleading, that gave him a high-grade Foundation Establishment Pill, making his breakthrough possible.

“And you, Senior Sister…”

“I came today just to confirm it.” Jiang Huaiyu wiped away her tears and looked at him again, a strange glint in her eyes.

When she first came to find Lu Chen, maybe she wanted an answer, or maybe she wanted someone to hate.

But now that she actually saw him, saw his flustered look, saw the guilt and pain in his eyes, she suddenly found she couldn’t hate him.

Because he was a victim too.

He was just as ignorant as she was.

They had both been toyed with by fate.

But between them, after all, there was a bond.

And these past few days, the treatment she had received in the Wang family, the cold stares she had endured…

Just thinking about it made Jiang Huaiyu’s face twist with pain.

Seeing Jiang Huaiyu in similar pain, Lu Chen’s heart ached too.

“It was me.”

“Back when I was in the Hehuan Sect, I was just a furnace.”

“Everything that happened, I could only watch helplessly!”

Remembering his past, Lu Chen’s face showed a flicker of pain.

Then he started slapping himself hard.

“I was useless.”

“I destroyed your whole family.”

“I deserve to die!”

Seeing Lu Chen sinking into despair, Jiang Huaiyu quickly rushed over and grabbed his arms to stop him from punishing himself.

“You’re a victim too.”

“Senior Sister is also a victim.”

“I don’t blame you.”

“Don’t do this to yourself anymore!”

And so, instead, Jiang Huaiyu ended up comforting Lu Chen.

“Senior Sister, I…” Lu Chen tried to say something but found his voice was terribly hoarse.

“I don’t blame you.”

“I just wanted to know the truth.”

“Mm.”

Lu Chen calmed down.

He felt very awkward, so he stayed silent.

But Jiang Huaiyu didn’t move an inch.

They just sat there, very close, close enough to hear each other’s breathing.

An eerie silence fell over the cave dwelling.

After a long while, Jiang Huaiyu finally spoke softly, her voice trembling with shyness.

“Um, Xiao Lu, actually… Senior Sister has nowhere to go now.”

Lu Chen was stunned.

He turned to look at her.

Her family was quite well-off in the Xuantian Sect, with considerable resources, and she was a good match for Wang Feng in terms of status.

It shouldn’t be possible for her to have nowhere to go.

“You know, this matter has already spread throughout the sect.”

“Even though Senior Sister is a victim too… I can’t stand the pitying looks they give me.”

Lu Chen’s heart tightened.

“Those glances,” Jiang Huaiyu said with a bitter smile.

“Sympathetic, pitiful, curious, and those just waiting for a show!”

“Wherever I go, people whisper behind my back.”

“They say I’m a poor victim, but their eyes are clearly mocking me!”

She lifted her head to look at him, her eyes slightly red.

“I can’t go back to the Wang family.”

“And I don’t want to go back to my own home either.”

“Father and mother just sigh.”

“They tell me to wait, that it’ll blow over.”

“But I can’t wait.”

“Not even one more day.”

“Senior Sister has nowhere left to go.”

Jiang Huaiyu looked at him with a hint of pleading in her eyes.

“So… Senior Sister wants to stay here for a few days.”

Lu Chen’s pupils trembled.

“What?”

“Just a few days,” Jiang Huaiyu said quickly.

“As soon as I find a place to stay, I’ll leave right away.”

“I won’t bother you for long.”

“No, Senior Sister, this isn’t proper!”

“You’re my senior sister.”

“If we stay alone together in the same room, your reputation…”

“My reputation?”

“Lu Chen, do you think I still have any reputation left?”

“Besides, no one knows I came here…”

Lu Chen was speechless.

She looked at him, a stubborn glint in her eyes.

“It’s already like this.”

“How much worse can it get?”

“But…”

“No buts.” Jiang Huaiyu cut him off.

“Lu Chen, just think of this as Senior Sister begging you.”

“I really… really have nowhere to go.”

She looked at him, tears welling up in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

Looking into those eyes, all the words of refusal stuck in Lu Chen’s throat.

Silence filled the cave dwelling again.

“Senior Sister, I…”

“Don’t worry, I won’t disturb your cultivation, and I won’t let anyone know.”

“During the day I’ll stay in the room, and at night… at night I’ll sleep in the guest room.”

“If it’s inconvenient, I can sleep on the floor.”

Lu Chen looked at her, a complex emotion surging in his heart.

She was the recognized fairy of the Xuantian Sect, the object of admiration for countless disciples.

But at this moment, she was just a poor soul with nowhere to go.

And he was one of the culprits who had caused all this.

Even though he hadn’t known, even though he was a victim too, those children… they were indeed his blood.

“Okay,” he could only agree.

Jiang Huaiyu was also stunned.

She lowered her head, and finally the tears slipped down.

Lu Chen watched her trembling shoulders.

He wanted to reach out and pat her back to comfort her, but his hand froze halfway.

In the end, he just sighed.

“Senior Sister, the guest room is over there.”

“I’ll take you.”

Jiang Huaiyu lifted her head, wiped her tears, and softly hummed in agreement.

They stood up and walked deeper into the cave dwelling.

Under Lu Chen’s arrangement, Jiang Huaiyu turned and entered the guest room.

The door closed softly.

Lu Chen also returned to his own room.

He lay down on the bed, stared at the ceiling, his mind in a mess.

Jiang Huaiyu had seen through his identity… and then he had somehow agreed to let her stay.

He closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh.

In the guest room.

Jiang Huaiyu sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the moonlight outside the window.

Her fingers gently brushed over her lower abdomen.

She closed his eyes, and the scene from just now reappeared in her mind.

His flustered look, his guilty eyes, how he had frozen in place and dared not move, and finally his “Okay.”

She suddenly let out a soft laugh.

“Fool,” she whispered, not sure if she was cursing him or herself.