"Li... Li Zhexian..."
"Let me... let me see you…"
Xue Qinghe's voice was hoarse and choked with sobs, trembling uncontrollably.
She carefully used her sleeve to wipe the mud and dried blood on Li Zhexian's face.
As that familiar face slowly emerged from beneath the cloth—
She could no longer hold back. She threw herself into his arms.
"Hss—!"
Li Zhexian sucked in a sharp breath.
The place she grabbed just happened to be the exact spot where his wrist was fractured.
"Hm?!"
Xue Qinghe looked up, tears still glistening in her eyes. Without a word, she pulled up his tattered sleeve.
The moment she saw the dark purple bruising running from his wrist to his forearm—
A cold, murderous gleam flashed in her eyes.
"Zhao Wuji did this?"
Li Zhexian pulled his sleeve down to cover the wound and smiled:
"It's mostly healed already."
"Next time we meet, I'll kill him."
Xue Qinghe glanced at him, then nodded lightly.
Just then, Porcupinefish and Snake Lance Douluo stepped forward, eyeing Li Zhexian with undisguised astonishment.
"Li Zhexian, your aura…"
"It's strange. You're standing right in front of us, yet we can't sense your presence at all."
That, in fact, was why they hadn't noticed when he passed by them earlier.
Li Zhexian assumed they were Crown Prince's personal guards and casually explained:
"I was lucky enough to come across a spirit herb that allows me to conceal my aura."
"If not for that, I wouldn't have escaped Zhao Wuji."
Porcupinefish and Snake Lance Douluo clicked their tongues in amazement.
"To survive a full-force pursuit from Zhao Wuji…"
"At your age, that's already an incredible feat."
Li Zhexian simply smiled and said no more.
Incredible?
A loss was still a loss.
He'd win it back next time.
"Let's go, Your Highness."
Li Zhexian turned to Xue Qinghe, whose eyes were still slightly red.
She nodded.
"There are still many people out there looking for you."
The two walked together toward the edge of the forest.
But just as they reached the treeline—
Xue Qinghe suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong?"
Li Zhexian turned back with a puzzled expression.
"Wait a moment."
She raised a finger.
A thread of pure Light-attributed Spirit Power emerged, forming a mirror-like energy screen in the air before her.
Facing the light mirror—
She began tidying her hair, which had become messy in her emotional state.
Then she pulled out a simple white handkerchief and wiped the smudges of dirt from her cheeks.
Only after all this did she notice Li Zhexian standing beside her, shaking his head with an amused smile.
On his dirt-smeared face, his white teeth were especially striking.
"What are you laughing at?"
Xue Qinghe glanced at her reflection again, confirming she looked presentable.
Li Zhexian's smile deepened:
"I'm laughing at how much you care about your appearance."
"Look at me—covered in mud and blood, practically crusted over—and I haven't even tried to wipe any of it off."
Xue Qinghe shot him a glare, though the tips of her ears were faintly red.
"That's your fault. The mud on my face—wasn't it all from you?"
"If I go out looking like this, what would people think?"
Li Zhexian gave a helpless smile:
"Well, now that you're cleaned up, let's go…"
"What's the rush?"
Xue Qinghe stepped in front of him again, raised that same white handkerchief, and began gently wiping the dirt from his face.
"I've already used this handkerchief," she said, her eyes cast down. "You don't mind, do you?"
Li Zhexian looked into the light mirror—
At the reflection of Xue Qinghe, her movements delicate and focused, her expression unusually soft and earnest.
As his face gradually emerged beneath her touch—
He chuckled:
"And what if I say I do mind?"
"Then deal with it."
Xue Qinghe didn't even lift her eyes, her tone laced with the soft assertiveness of someone who wouldn't take no for an answer.
Meanwhile, Porcupinefish and Snake Lance Douluo had deliberately fallen several paces behind.
From a distance, they watched the two figures who now seemed inseparably close.
Porcupinefish glanced sidelong at Snake Lance, his eyes full of meaning.
You were the one who promised everything would be fine…
Snake Lance Douluo sighed silently.
Seeing the gentle affection that their Young Master showed while wiping Li Zhexian's face, even he, a bloody killer with hands soaked in blood, felt a warmth in his heart, as if it had been ironed smooth.
He murmured softly:
"Our young master infiltrated Heaven Dou City alone at age nine…"
"A little girl, surviving alone in the treacherous depths of the imperial palace, suffering who knows what pains and struggles…"
"Only you and I saw it with our own eyes, felt it in our hearts."
"But Her Holiness the Pope…"
Porcupinefish Douluo's face suddenly stiffened.
Snake Lance Douluo continued, voice grave:
"Knowing Her Holiness the way I do…"
"She would never allow our young master to be without surveillance. There are definitely hidden agents near her."
"Now that Li Zhexian is this close to her…"
"He must already be in the Pope's sights."
Porcupinefish clenched his fists tightly.
He knew all too well what the Pope was capable of—how ruthless and calculating she could be.
If she deemed Li Zhexian a threat to Spirit Hall's grand plan…
What she might do was unthinkable.
"After Li Zhexian went missing, and the way the young master fell apart—"
"We both know what that meant."
"If the Pope really does move against him…"
"I don't dare imagine how the young master will react."
Snake Lance Douluo's voice dropped even lower:
"Let's just hope… Her Holiness still holds some trace of maternal feeling for her daughter."
—
When Li Zhexian and Xue Qinghe stepped out from the forest—
And appeared in the sights of the anxious search teams—
After a moment of stunned silence, the crowd erupted in cheers, everyone surging forward like a tide.
Dugu Yan froze for a heartbeat—
Then suddenly broke into a wild sprint, tears flying behind her like rain.
Without hesitation, she threw herself into Li Zhexian's arms, her voice trembling with fear and relief:
"Li Zhexian…"
"Wuuu… you—you scared me to death…"
Ye Lingling also ran up.
Her arms lifted slightly, as if she too wanted to embrace him—
But in the end, she timidly pulled them back.
She only stood there with teary blue eyes, whispering:
"As long as you're okay… that's all that matters…"
Far off, Madam Ye watched the scene unfold.
She frowned slightly.
"Lingling… you're too passive!"
"With an opportunity like this, if you won't act first, when will your turn come?"
At the same time, Dugu Bo, seeing that Li Zhexian was safe, stroked his white beard with a smile—
and disappeared on the spot.
The other members of the Heaven Dou Imperial Battle Team also beamed at the reunion.
Yu Feng was the most dramatic.
A grown man—covering his mouth, crying like a child.
Osler's scalp went numb just watching.
"Yu Feng, what the hell?! Why are you crying?!"
Yu Feng shot him a teary glare:
"My idol's okay! This moment's so touching—I can't cry a little?!"
Osler had had enough of the man's sobbing.
He turned to the Shi brothers and said:
"Punch this guy for me."
"On it!"
—
After calming the crowd—
Li Zhexian borrowed a hundred gold coins from Xue Qinghe.
He reserved the entire Fragrant Pavilion Restaurant and held a feast to thank his friends.
—
At the same time—
On the other side of Heaven Dou City—
Yu Xiaogang and Flender, consumed with worry, had just left Suotuo City.
Flender had used his Martial Soul True Body—the Four-Eyed Owl—to carry them both in flight.
With such haste—
They arrived at Heaven Dou City by the next day.
There, Liu Erlong—who had been waiting—led them to the village where Ma Hongjun was hiding.
And when they saw him—
Lying on the bed, missing his right arm and lower body, still unconscious—
Yu Xiaogang clenched his jaw hard, his face stiff with a stormy expression.
Flender, who had personally carried Ma Hongjun out of the village, turned red-eyed at the sight.
—
And as all of this unfolded—
Zhu Zhuqing was still galloping full-speed on horseback toward Heaven Dou City, dust trailing behind her.