Liu Sumeng's injuries were overshadowed by his alarm. He left the manor in a hurry in the middle of the night.
Liu Suye caught up to him before he could reach the manor gates, "Liu Chao! Where do you think you're going?"
"Loupu Province," he said in a rush, eager to reach the gates and leave, uncaring about Huamian-jun who was trying to stop him.
"What? Why Loupu Province? Don't tell me you're having your rebellious phase now!" Liu Suye grabbed his younger brother's shoulder and attempted to pull him back.
He turned around and faced his brother, "Zhao Fanyu was captured."
Eyes widened, "What? What happened to Sect Leader Zhao? How do you know?"
"I was told," he said simply without explanation and dodged around his brother to open the gate. "I need to find him."
"Wait!" Liu Suye called again. He reached out but he knew that his strength wouldn't be enough to hold back the Ivory Sword Saint. He could only use words instead, "Think this through carefully, A-Chao. I understand your concern over Zhao Fanyu's absence. But there's no reason to run off! We've already sent people to check on his well-being. And plus if you leave now, what would uncle say?"
Liu Sumeng looked at his brother dead in the eye, "It doesn't matter what he says. You're his favorite now."
Liu Suye, for the first time, was stunned speechless by his younger brother. He couldn't say a thing as he watched the Ivory Sword Saint hop on Mingshui and whiz off in the air. "Liu Chao!" He called one last time in vain, for it was hopeless for him to catch up, even if he drew his own flying sword.
"Is it truly wise to leave things as is?" Huo Tang nudged his neck from under his collar.
Liu Sumeng said nothing. Perhaps it wasn't. And he was terrified of the punishment he was due to face upon returning but to say that he wasn't troubled and upset would be a gross lie.
This was just what he had feared! Putting all their attention on these pathetic excuses of skirmishes would distract them from any real trouble unfolding in southern parts. How did he let them be so careless? He should have seen this mess with Zhao Fanyu coming and done something about it from the very start! But now he could do nothing but chide himself for his own folly.
Liu Sumeng's mind was in turmoil as he zipped above the treetops on his sword. Huo Tang didn't warn him when a beam of lightning came his way and only ducked back into his robes.
Liu Sumeng, distracted, was only able to react at the last moment, dodging the powerful strike. His flying wavered and he had to guild his sword back to the ground. He veered around, eyes attentive for any enemies that might be coming his way. But he couldn't help but think that that attack was strikingly familiar.
Someone rushed towards him from the shadows and he could hear the crackling of lightning and something like the roaring of fire. Liu Sumeng raised Mingshui, blocking the oncoming attack.
But he was so stunned by the sword that came down upon him, his muscles locked and eyes widened as Silei's crackling fire clashed against Mingshui, heating the steel into a bright orange-red color.
"Hey." With only a few months, Yuan Xuelan's voice was already deeper and his height taller. "Long time no see."
"Hi." Liu Sumeng replied awkwardly. Yuan Xuelan broke their stalemate, his eyes ablaze with challenge. Liu Sumeng shook himself out of his initial shock and dropped down into a readied stance.
It felt like ages since he last faced Silei's terrifying might. To think this younger Yuan Xuelan could forge it so quickly was truly terrifying. In only a few month's time, Yuan Xuelan had gained notable muscle mass. His power and speed were greater and not to mention his swordsmanship skills had clearly been refined since the last time they met.
But despite these improvements, the Ivory Sword Saint was still his better and was able to evade Silei's destructive spells that were thrown at him. He parried all of Yuan Xuelan's powerful blows and countered with elegance and grace.
Yuan Xuelan refused to be forced on the defensive and met all of Liu Sumeng's attacks with moves that both blocked and thrust, evaded but also slashed. Liu Sumeng's heart overflowed with both pride and terror. This speed of improvement was fearsome and he was reminded of how Yuan Xuelan had managed to force the entire world on its knees before him in a previous life.
It was Yuan Xuelan who broke off the fight, stepping back and lowering his sword. The sizzling power that buzzed around Silei quieted. Without the blade's glow, Yuan Xuelan's expression was difficult to make out in the night.
Liu Sumeng was at a bit of a loss and sheathed his sword. "Xuelan…you…" He wanted to say so many things and couldn't say anything at all.
"You're injured." The first thing that Yuan Xuelan said was dripping with low annoyance. "I can't believe that you're injured."
Was he? With the words as reminder and adrenaline finally wearing off, the awful pain across his back was making itself known to him. Even breathing seemed to irritate it. "It's fine."
"As if." He could hear the annoyance under a thin visage of calm. "Just what have you been- never mind. Don't say anything. Hey, do you think that old cabin's still around? Remember the one we used when we were traveling to the Hidden Mist together?"
"...Yes." Liu Sumeng nodded. Slowly, he was recovering from his initial shock and was besot with questions. For one, where did Yuan Xuelan come from? How did he find Liu Sumeng? He obviously hadn't come with Chen Leike, then why…? And how was he doing? What had he been up to these past few months? Had he eaten well?
Liu Sumeng had all these questions on his mind but didn't ask any of them as he watched Yuan Xuelan walk ahead. Xuelan looked over his shoulder and asked, "Are you coming?"
Obediently, he followed. After a few quiet minutes of walking in the dark, Liu Sumeng finally remembered his earlier urgency, "Xuelan we have to go quickly. To Loupu."
"Loupu? Is that where we're going?" Yuan Xuelan mused, "What's in Loupu?"
"Zhao Fanyu."
"Huh? What the heck?" Yuan Xuelan scratched the side of his jaw, obviously confused and not caught up with Liu Sumeng's intel, "And here I thought everyone was going to Xinlei."
"Xinlei is a trap."
Yuan Xuelan laughed, "Yeah! It totally is. But seems fun, no?"
Liu Sumeng frowned. "War is not fun."
"Hm. You're talkative," Yuan Xuelan remarked, which only made Liu Sumeng frown further. People had been saying that to him a lot lately, but Liu Sumeng didn't particularly feel like he was speaking a lot. In fact, he was plagued with the struggle of never being able to get across what he desperately needed to. And where in the past, he wouldn't have cared about misunderstandings, now he was painfully stunted by his lack of communication skills.
"Oh hey, look." Yuan Xuelan pointed forward, distracting Liu Sumeng from his thoughts. The old run-down shed was up the twisting road, still standing like it had months ago on this same very trail.
Liu Sumeng wasn't particularly keen on stopping there though. He still had energy, he could still travel and- "I will go ahead."
But a strong hand gripped his wrist and pulled him towards the cabin, "Don't be stupid. It's already really late. And plus we can wake up early tomorrow."
"..." Liu Sumeng wasn't sure. But in the darkness, he could see Yuan Xuelan's calm expression and hidden warmth in deep brown eyes. The Ivory Sword Saint felt weak and followed after.
The cabin, once a protector against the blistering chill of winter now offered them shelter on a humid summer night. It was hardly that cold but now that Liu Sumeng could finally allow himself to unwind, he felt a chill crawl up his spine.
"Sumeng," Liu Sumeng looked over his shoulder and saw Yuan Xuelan glaring at him, "Seriously, what is it with you?" He came over and prodded at the Ivory Sword Saint's robes. "Take this off already!"
Liu Sumeng blinked, eyes going comically owlish as heat rushed all the way up to his face. W-what was he saying!?
But Yuan Xuelan only continued to scowl, "You can't tell me this is punishment, because what the heck!"
Liu Sumeng blinked and then followed Yuan Xuelan's gaze his back. Blood had begun to seep through, coating the back of his white robes. The embarrassment that rumbling in his stomach flipped from one cause to another, "Oh."
He shrugged off his robes until a haphazardly bandaged back was revealed. Yuan Xuelan clicked his tongue in disapproval, "This is too much." He pulled out a pill and dropped it in Liu Sumeng's hand. "Take this. It's a healing pill. Not the best quality but it's better than nothing."
Liu Sumeng didn't take it and instead stared at Yuan Xuelan with an unreadable expression.
Feeling a bit flustered, Yuan Xuelan complained, "What? Aren't you going to take it? I really don't want to make it a habit of bandaging your wounds."
That made sense. So Liu Sumeng took the pill. He was still made to sit and Yuan Xuelan still tended to his injuries, just like he had done months ago, back at the Hidden Mist Manor.
It was quiet between them. And Liu Sumeng was assaulted with sudden bone-deep drowsiness he couldn't escape. Pain still ate at him when Yuan Xuelan carefully wrapped up the last bit of marred skin on his back. Liu Sumeng couldn't say awake.
"Sorry," Yuan Xuelan muttered when he caught Liu Sumeng in his arms. The pill he gave him earlier wasn't a healing one but a sleeping one instead. Since the grade was so low, it was difficult to tell the difference. And even though it was a low-leveled pill, Liu Sumeng was affected by it quite strongly because he was already extremely exhausted and ready for rest.
Yuan Xuelan felt a little guilty for tricking him, but it was for his own good! This time he pulled a real healing pill out, this one of a clear higher grade, and pressed it past Liu Sumeng's lips. Yuan Xuelan felt his own lips go inexplicably dry has he brushed his fingers across Liu Sumeng's mouth.
The Ivory Sword Saint was now asleep in his arms and he felt extremely reluctant to let go.
An odd several months had passed where Yuan Xuelan thought too little about the dawning war and too much about Liu Sumeng.
He dreamed about him too often and he was sick of seeing the weird imagined version of Sumeng in his mind. The real one, the one that he could hold and touch, was much cuter. Sweeter, attentive, and caring.
And now finally, Yuan Xuelan was able to hold this person in his arms. His heart was beating against his ribs and Yuan Xuelan couldn't resist the temptation of running his hand though long silky locks.
"Missed you," he mumbled in quiet confession.