A gentle wind blew across the vast field of martial artists gathered at the entrance of Sword Village. The man in the iron mask's eyes were fixed solely on Mu Dishi, his gaze never wavering.
A tender smile escaped his lips, and it was that smile, a sight meant for Mu Dishi, that sliced straight through Ma Jingguo's heart.
Ma Jingguo slowly walked toward Mu Dishi, his expression grave. "Everyone is aiming for your life," he said quietly. "I don't see how you'll get out of here alive."
The man in the iron mask smirked, his gaze fixed on Ma Jingguo. "Keep smiling," he sneered. "It will be the last one on your face." He then turned to Mu Dishi, his voice shifting to a chilling softness. "You are my special little butterfly."
Mu Dishi's eyes widened. His heart began to pound faster and faster as he took three unsteady steps toward the masked man. "Who are you?" he asked, his voice shaking. "Have we met before?"
The man in the iron mask smiled. "If you want to know, please come closer," he said.
Mu Dishi took a step forward, but Ma Jingguo grabbed his left arm. "Xiao shushu, stop," Ma Jingguo said, his voice filled with urgency.
But Mu Dishi yanked his arm away, his eyes fixed on the man. As he approached, the man in the iron mask pulled him into his arms. Mu Dishi offered no resistance.
"No matter what you wear, my Dishi is always beautiful," the man whispered, kissing Mu Dishi's right temple. He then leaned into Mu Dishi's ear. "Dishi, you're no longer eighteen. Shouldn't we get married?"
A painful grunt tore from Ma Jingguo's lips as he shouted, "Let go of him! Let him go!" A gout of blood immediately sprayed from his mouth.
The crowd stood in a state of confused shock. Murmurs rippled through them as they tried to make sense of the scene.
"Oh, Mu Dishi seems to be attracted to that masked man."
"If Mu Dishi sides with him, what chance will we have?"
Kuo Changchang grabbed Ma Jingguo's arm. "Ah Chen, you're injured!"
He grunted in agony, violently yanking his arm free from her grasp. Ma Jingguo's eyes were filled with a crazed desperation as he screamed, "Let go of him!"
Mu Dishi slowly reached out a hand and removed the iron mask. As he did, a complex mix of emotions crossed his face: a bitter scoff, a tearful smile. He looked at the familiar features before him and whispered, "It's you..."
Wang Biming gently wiped the tears from Mu Dishi's eyes and kissed his forehead. "Yes," he said softly. "It's me."
With that, Mu Dishi stretched out his arms and wrapped them around Wang Biming. He buried his face in Wang Biming's chest, just as he had before, holding him as if he would never let go. "I really missed you," he said.
In that moment, Ma Jingguo knew the man standing with Mu Dishi had to be Wang Biming. His heart shattered into a million pieces. The sight of Mu Dishi weeping for him filled Ma Jingguo with an overwhelming sadness and watching Mu Dishi stretch out his arms to hold him felt like a physical blow.
He had won Mu Dishi over the ghost of a dead man, but now that ghost was alive, standing right in front of him. In the face of a living Wang Biming, what could he possibly do to win back Mu Dishi?
What made Ma Jingguo's heart ache even more was the cruel contrast. Mu Dishi had always handled their relationship with a cautious distance, never holding his hand or showing affection in front of others. Yet here, before a crowd of martial artists and guests, Mu Dishi was holding Wang Biming tightly, burying his face in his chest without a moment's hesitation.
A crushing thought hit Ma Jingguo with the force of a physical blow: Had Mu Dishi only been with him because Wang Biming was gone? In that devastating moment, he realized he had always been nothing more than a replacement.
His heart ached with a pain more profound than any he had ever known. His spirit was utterly broken, and his lips trembled with a raw emotion he could no longer hide. Before he even realized it, tears slowly began to fall from his eyes.
Kuo Changchang noticed the tears in Ma Jingguo's eyes. "Ah Chen..." she said softly, her voice filled with concern.
Ma Jingguo quickly wiped the tears away with the back of his hand. "I'm okay," he said, pushing her hand away. Without another word, he walked toward Mu Dishi and Wang Biming. He placed his hand on Mu Dishi's shoulder and spoke his name with a strained, quiet reverence.
"Xiao shushu."
Hearing Ma Jingguo's voice, his voice softening into a whispered, "Jingguo."
A violent impulse seized Ma Jingguo—the urge to yank Mu Dishi away and bury his dagger in Wang Biming's chest. But he swallowed the feeling, knowing that if he did, Mu Dishi would surely leave him. The love of Mu Dishi's life was standing before him, alive, and Ma Jingguo was just a second choice. Swallowing his pride, he said sadly, "If you've hugged him enough, then let's go home."
Overwhelmed with joy, Mu Dishi's mind went blank, forgetting that Ma Jingguo was standing right behind him. He pulled away from Wang Biming and reached inside his robe, retrieving the handkerchief that held Wang Biming's necklace.
Wang Biming knew what Mu Dishi was about to do. He gently held Mu Dishi's hands, refusing to accept the gift. They had just been reunited after twelve long years; he couldn't bear to accept something that might be an omen of their next separation. He looked at Mu Dishi and said quietly, "Shifu, is still waiting for you to help him."
Mu Dishi's expression changed instantly. He looked up at Wang Biming, his voice a strained whisper. "Long da ye."
Wang Biming simply nodded.
"Where is he?" Mu Dishi demanded, his voice filled with urgency.
"Come with me," Wang Biming replied. "I'll explain everything."
Mu Dishi knew this was a dangerous choice. His intimate reunion with Wang Biming had already crossed the line of Ma Jingguo's jealousy. If he walked away with him now, their relationship would surely end.
Yet his determination was unshakeable. The opportunity to find Mu Jiao Long was not one he could pass up. If his uncle was still alive, he would go through a mountain of swords or a sea of fire to find him.
All he could do was hope that Ma Jingguo had enough faith in him to understand—the same faith Mu Dishi had for him when Ma Jingguo was locked in that trapped room with Kuo Changchang.
Looking at Mu Dishi and Wang Biming, a wave of pure rage washed over Ma Jingguo. He wanted nothing more than to walk over and plunge his knife into Wang Biming's heart. He had always hated when others touched his things. He knew that most things in life could be replaced, but Mu Dishi was not one of them.
He turned and walked away, taking ten steps, waiting for the sound of footsteps behind him. But none came. When he turned back, Mu Dishi was still holding hands with Wang Biming.
"Xiao shushu," Ma Jingguo pleaded, his voice a broken whisper. "Let's go home."
Mu Dishi looked at Ma Jingguo, his eyes filled with sorrow. "I'm going with him," he said quietly.
Ma Jingguo took a step closer. "Xiao shushu," he pleaded, his voice cracking, "Say it again."
The sadness in Mu Dishi's eyes was replaced by a cold resolve. "I'm going with him," he said again, his voice flat and final.
With a broken heart, Ma Jingguo whispered, "Is that what you really want?"
"Yes," Mu Dishi replied coldly.
Ma Jingguo's voice cracked, full of pain. "Will you regret your decision today?" he asked.
"No," Mu Dishi answered, his gaze unwavering.
Ma Jingguo's voice trembled with a raw mix of pain and fury. "Xiao shushu, when you needed me, you held me tightly. But when you no longer want me... why do you always throw me away like a piece of garbage?"
"I'm sorry," Mu Dishi said, his voice strained with sorrow. "No matter what happens, I will go with him."
Tears streamed down Ma Jingguo's face. "Xiao shushu, are you leaving me again?" he pleaded.
"I'm sorry," Mu Dishi replied, his voice firm. "I must leave with him today."
Tears streamed down Ma Jingguo's face as he asked, "Xiao shushu, how many more times are you going to hurt me? I'm just an ordinary man. My heart can only take so much before it stops beating."
Mu Dishi's heart ached. He knew he had crossed a line, and there was no going back. He knew how patient Ma Jingguo had always been with him, and his heart was just as pained as the one he saw before him. He was trapped between two people he deeply loved: the man who was his only family and the man who was the love of his life. He looked at Ma Jingguo, whose eyes were filled with tears, and tried to speak.
"Jingguo, I..." But the words caught in his throat. He looked away in defeat. "Forget it."
Ma Jingguo let out a bitter, furious scoff. "Forget it?!" he roared, his voice trembling with anger. "You know it's easier said than done!"
Mu Dishi gave no answer.
Tears fell from Ma Jingguo's eyes as he said in a wounded voice, "I know I'm a substitute, but this substitute has feelings. He can feel love, and he can feel pain."
Still, Mu Dishi did not reply. Instead, he simply turned his back to Ma Jingguo.
Ma Jingguo gnashed his teeth, his gaze fixed on Mu Dishi's back, knowing he wouldn't turn around. "Xiao shushu," he said, his voice raw with fury. "If you walk away with him... I will hate you forever."
Mu Dishi closed his eyes and let out a long, pained sigh. When he opened his mouth, his voice was filled with a final, unshakeable resolve. "Then hate me forever," he said. He looked at Wang Biming. "Let's go."
As Mu Dishi began walking toward the sedan chair, Wang Biming approached Ma Jingguo. He smiled, a cruel glint in his eyes. "Little white hair man, he is mine. He has always been mine." With that, he turned and walked away, quickly catching up with Mu Dishi.
Ma Jingguo watched Mu Dishi walk away. His gaze was fixed on the long hair swinging back and forth with each step, growing smaller and smaller in the distance. A crushing pain filled his chest, and his heart sank with a hollow disappointment.
He was caught in an agonizing thought: Did he love Mu Dishi too much, his love becoming something that suffocated him, driving him away? Or did he love him too little, and his love was simply not enough to keep him?
All the happy moments they had shared came flooding back to him. Their whispered conversations about adventures, the days and nights they spent together—the memories assaulted his mind again and again, and with each one, his heart grew more and more numb.
He saw it so clearly now: from the very first day on that dirt road, Mu Dishi had been heartless, a truth made brutally clear in the moment he chose to walk away with Wang Biming. Ma Jingguo had only ever wanted to love him until his last breath, to take that final one in his arms.
But now, that future was gone. He realized that from now on, no one would eat the food he cooked. When he woke in the morning, no one would lie beside him. No one but his own shadow would walk by his side. No one would make him smile or behave like a child.
No one would ever be his Xiao shushu again.
Finally, he understood the old saying: the more you love someone, the more you will get hurt.
Gathering every ounce of his remaining strength, Ma Jingguo screamed with all his might, his voice echoing across the field. "MU DISHI... I HATE YOU!"
With that final ounce of energy, he fell to his knees. A mouthful of blood spewed from his lips as he watched the love of his life walk away with another man. His blood smeared the corner of his mouth as he murmured, "Xiao shushu... why does loving you hurt so much?"