Soulbound: Chronicles Of A Shadow Assassin-Chapter 39: His Fate

Jiang Yichen’s head paused beside Mingyu’s face, his warm breath sending a shiver down Mingyu’s spine. Almost leaning against Mingyu’s shoulder, Jiang Yichen whispered into his ear, "All my life, no one ever seemed to know how desperate I was. No one has ever risked their lives for me... like you did."

Ignoring the warm breath that was fanning against his skin Mingyu turned to face Jiang Yichen, intending to argue that he hadn’t risked his life solely for Jiang Yichen’s sake and to remind Jiang Yichen that he also had a goal which both of them were very much aware of.

But when their eyes met, Mingyu saw genuine gratitude mixed with emotions Jiang Yichen had never shown him before. It was a look that made Mingyu’s chest tighten, his words caught in his throat.

Jiang Yichen hadn’t anticipated Mingyu’s sudden movement, and their faces ended up mere inches apart, their lips nearly touching. He almost jerked back in shock, a faint flush rising to his cheeks. He mistook Mingyu’s action as trying to assert dominance, and for some reasons, that sent tingles down his spine.

Coughing to clear his throat and the slight tension in the air, Jiang Yichen leaned back and stood up from the bed. He composed himself, his expression serious once more. "Since I survived as promised, I can now serve you as my master, right?"

Mingyu, oblivious to the misunderstanding, simply looked up at Jiang Yichen, nodding his head in approval.

....

"Jiang Yichen’s spiritual core is finally opened after 23 years," Lin Xiaoyan said in a hushed tone. Unlike earlier, his voice was no longer tinged with displeasure. Instead, it was laced with a sense of silent surrender, a acknowledgment that there was nothing he could do to change the situation.

"Right." Master Zhang who was in Lin Xiaoyan’s room and was seated at the table beside him spoke, releasing a weary sigh as he was still recuperating from the exhaustion of expending a vast amount of spiritual power to restore Jiang Yichen’s health. "He was even willing to end his life. I couldn’t just sit back and watch that happen. I guess he knew we would never just let him kill himself. He poisoned himself knowing he would surely be saved." A cough racked his frame when he was done speaking.

Lin Xiaoyan, who had been keeping his head lowered, raised it, concern etched on his face as he gazed at Master Zhang. "Are you alright?" he asked, his voice laced with worry.

Master Zhang waved a hand dismissively, as if saying it was nothing. "Unsealing Yichen’s spiritual core and treating him has probably drained my spiritual power reserve to the point of near-collapse," he said with a wry chuckle, attempting to lighten the sour mood in the room.

However, his attempt only seemed to darken the atmosphere.

Lin Xiaoyan’s face clouded, and he sat up straight, his tone sharp and scolding. "So you didn’t just open his spiritual core, but also transferred extra spiritual power to him?!"

"Aiyah, it’s no big deal," Master Zhang said in a placating tone. "He was poisoned, so I transferred him some spiritual power to speed up his recovery. Besides, what good is it for an old man like me to keep his spiritual powers saved up?"

Lin Xiaoyan wasn’t having any of it, though. He still had a scowl on his face as he said, "Once he fully recovers, you must retrieve it from him, no matter what."

"Is that even necessary?" Master Zhang asked in amusement. "He’s twenty-three years behind when it comes to practicing spells, so even with his spiritual core opened, he will at least have to be sixty years to do anything impressive." He laughed at his own joke, eventually coughing in the process.

Lin Xiaoyan remained serious, not even cracking a smile at Master Zhang’s joke. "It is his fate to never stand out when it comes to practicing spells, and we must keep it that way. Whether now, or when he becomes sixty."

Master Zhang was taken aback by how serious Lin Xiaoyan was taking the matter—it was almost as if Lin Xiaoyan knew something he wasn’t letting on. He squinted his eyes at Lin Xiaoyan, but the latter had an invisible yet impenetrable wall over his face. He even had an expression that screamed, "Do not ask."

"Fine," Master Zhang almost rolled his eyes in surrender. "If that’s your wish, then I’ll retrieve it once he fully recovers. Ugh, I’m so exhausted. Kindly get me something to drink."

Lin Xiaoyan stood up, intending to prepare tea for himself and Master Zhang, but he suddenly went still when he heard the kind of drink Master Zhang requested.

"I’m in the mood for some good wine. Hehe," Master Zhang said, his light lighting up at the mere thought.

"Wine?" Lin Xiaoyan turned to face Master Zhang, incredulity evident in his voice. "I mean... why would you even think there would be wine in the room of a responsible mage like myself—the leader of the great Jinxing, at that?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately walked away to avoid the topic, but Master Zhang’s next words stopped him in his tracks, his body going rigid in shock.

"Drop the act. I saw it. I was snooping around your room one day, and I happened to find it hidden... somewhere."

"You were snooping in my room?" Lin Xiaoyan’s voice thundered in the room, jolting Master Zhang a bit. Master Zhang placed a hand over his chest, as if trying to hold in place his heart, which had almost jumped out of his throat.

Although he was older, Lin Xiaoyan was scary whenever he was mad.

"Aiyah, calm down. I wasn’t just snooping. I came to find you, but you weren’t in, and so I just, you know..." In the middle of explaining himself, he waved his hand, giving up on coming up with a reasonable excuse.

"Fine. Yes, I was snooping, so what? Are you going to bring the wine or not?... I know you want it too." His voice turned taunting at the last statement.