After returning home, Hongye rarely did anything, but quietly curled up on the sofa in a daze. Although Zhou Yu could not empathize with her, it could be seen that this night's defeat had a great psychological impact on her.
It's not that he doesn't want to comfort the other person, it's just that he doesn't know how to speak. In fact, he couldn't even figure out why Hongye was so depressed. It's true that they can't defeat Sang Lian at the moment, but in that case they can just look for countermeasures again. The emotion shown by Hongye was not so much helplessness about the situation as dissatisfaction with her own performance. To use a more classical expression, it is like the humiliation of being kicked down in public during a martial arts competition.
The gloomy atmosphere surrounding Hong Ye at this moment made Zhou Yu constantly have such associations. And since Zhou Yu doesn't think of himself as a chivalrous hero, nor does he consider rolling off the ring tactically as a stain on his personality, he is completely unable to resonate with Hongye.
So, he put away his redundant words, took Hongye's boots from the entrance, dipped a towel in soapy water and washed them over and over again - Hongye's coat had already been soaked in the basin, and as for that unflattering piece Yu Huanxin's yellow sportswear was thrown into the trash can early on the way back. When he brushed it for the fourth time, the red leaves on the sofa finally recovered from the daze.
She walked to the bathroom door and said seriously to Zhou Yu: "Zhou Yu, I have to leave for a while."
"Well, clean your boots before going out." Zhou Yu said without raising his head.
"Zhou Yu, you really care too much about hygiene. People like you can't survive in a place where insects swarm and corpses rot. When I was there, it took almost half a month to take a shower..."
"Hongye, that's it. If you keep talking, I'll have to brush you over again."
Upon hearing his threat, Hongye put his hands on his hips and silently expressed his dissatisfaction. Probably because she felt that she could not convince Zhou Yu in the short term, she finally skipped the topic and continued: "Zhou Yu, I am ready to leave here, which means leaving this city."
Zhou Yu finally stopped what he was doing and turned to look at her in surprise.
"That person named Sang Lian, don't you care about his affairs?"
"No, I am traveling just for this matter. Sang Lian's ability is just limited to mine. In my current situation, I cannot subdue him. I must find outside help."
When he said this, Hongye paused for a moment, with obvious unwillingness on his face, but finally continued: "I am going to the mountains to ask for my teacher. If the master is not here, I will have to find another friend."
"your friend?"
"Well, we are friends who grew up together."
Zhou Yu looked at her a little surprised. To be honest, he had almost never imagined Hongye's life as a child before. This matter is really curious, but now is obviously not the time to be concerned.
"Even you can't handle Sang Lian, can your friend be stronger than you?"
"This is not a question of strength, but a matter of physical strength. When facing Sang Lian, she should be more advantageous than me."
Hongye's expression gradually softened. Just by looking at her current expression, you can understand the importance of "friends" in her words.
Facing her determination, Zhou Yu had no reason to object other than being surprised. He asked: "About how long will you be going?"
"If everything goes well, it will only take ten days. If Master is not here, it may take some time. At most, I will come back to resolve Sang Lian's matter in a month."
"I understand, then you can go ahead after the boots are finished brushing."
Although Zhou Yu said this, Hongye did not walk away, but stared at him seriously.
"Zhou Yu, while we are away, you cannot go to Sang Lian alone."
"I have no reason to ask for trouble. From what you said before, he can't solve Student Zhang's problem, right?"
"Well... I'll think of something else about this."
"You should focus on getting rid of that Sang Lian first. I visited classmate Zhang a few days ago and he was in very good spirits. He won't die if he waits for a month."
Zhou Yu took the dry towel next to him and hurriedly wiped Hongye's boots clean. Because it had already started to rain lightly when the two returned, and it would inevitably get dirty again when they went out. He only wiped the boots twice before returning them to Hongye.
Hongye held the boots and thought for a while, then suddenly said: "Zhou Yu, come with me."
She led Zhou Yu to the living room and pulled out a wing-shaped bone blade from under the sofa.
"This is……"
Zhou Yu naturally recognized this strange bone sword. Ever since Ondy was sent away by Hong Ye, this sword has also disappeared. He always thought that Hong Ye took it elsewhere, but he didn't expect that the other party would hide such a thing under the sofa.
"Zhou Yu, you will keep this sword."
"are you sure?"
"Well, this sword was originally something that my father gave to Osl. Since he gave it to you, it belongs to you. I shouldn't have hidden it originally, but frankly, I don't want you to be exposed to this kind of thing. Evil thing."
"Then take it back, I don't want this kind of thing." Zhou Yu replied honestly.
No matter what kind of rare magic weapon that bone sword was, it had little meaning to him who had no foundation in swordsmanship. Moreover, such a ostentatious form is impossible to bring casually to the street. In fact, the effectiveness of fighting may not be as much trouble as it causes. In contrast, he would rather choose a short and practical switchblade.
Hongye hesitated for a moment, but still insisted on handing over the sword.
"It's better to hold it just in case. Although this is a fierce sword, it is not a sinful thing in itself. If you are really in danger, Zhou Yu, don't hesitate to use it directly. With this, Even a guy like Mo Tian would probably shy away from you."
"Even if you say so, I don't know much about swordsmanship. This kind of thin sword requires a lot of basic skills in actual combat, right?"
Zhou Yu said as he reached out and took the bone sword. The blade looks cold and hard, but is surprisingly warm when touched, almost giving the illusion of burning the palm of your hand. He only held it for a few seconds before he had to put the sword back on the table. Seeing his reaction, Hongye smiled reassuringly.
"You don't need to think about swordsmanship, just leave it at home. Try to go out as little as possible, so there is no need to use it... By the way, the name of this sword is 'The Second King's Sword' .”
"Is there any number one?"
"Yes, there are five swords in total, and they were awarded to five people respectively."
Hongye tilted his head slightly, as if he was attracted by the louder sound of rain outside the window. The topic of swords ended smoothly.
"There is about five days worth of Wumengxiang. I put it in the drawer on the right side of the sofa. Zhou Yu, you can use it according to the situation... So without further ado, I will set off now."
Five minutes later, Hong Ye, who had put on her boots, simply said goodbye to Zhou Yu, put on her raincoat and walked out. Because her coat was still soaked in the basin, she was wearing only Zhou Yu's clothes.
Zhou Yu stood in front of the window, watching the red leaves coming downstairs onto the street and gradually disappearing.
The blue dress under the transparent raincoat gave him an illusion in a trance. It seemed that the person leaving him at this moment was not Hongye, but Zhou Yu. He almost wanted to catch up desperately, but then he suppressed this inexplicable urge.
Why chase the red leaves? I'm afraid no one in the world knows the difference between Zhou Yu and Hongye better than him.
In a daze, Hong Ye's figure had disappeared around the corner of the street. Zhou Yu stood quietly for a while, until the rain was blown by the wind on his face, and then he thought about closing the window.
At this time, there was a sound like flapping wings in the dark rain curtain. A crow came through the window. It suddenly passed over Zhou Yu's head and landed on the coffee table in the middle of the sofa.
Zhou Yu turned around slowly and took a while to find it. This pitch-black bird was like a shadow at night, folding its wings on the table and staring at him quietly and strangely.
Zhou Yu saw a piece of smooth cloth tied to its left paw. The familiar material and pattern looked like a fragment cut from a silk carpet.
This ominous guest flying from the window first twisted its head as if it were mischievous, and then released its right paw. A ball of paper with mottled green streaks fell from its claws.
Zhou Yu stepped forward. It immediately fluttered its wings and quickly escaped into the rainy night outside the window. Only the old and dirty paper ball was left on the table.
Zhou Yu picked it up and unfolded it.
The ball of paper is covered with messy and crazy handwriting, with only one word written on it: kill, kill, kill...
He turned around suddenly and rushed to the bedroom, took out the diary that he had not read for a long time from under the pillow, and turned the pages with trembling fingers.
February, January, last December, November…
October was the day of his birth, the day Zhou Yu lost him before that.
He pressed the broken piece of paper onto the broken page of the diary, the same paper, the same tear.
The last piece of the puzzle, which had been missing for several months and had almost lost any hope of being found, was easily restored to its original position.
