Chapter 70 – The Storm and the Wanderer
The Crimson Forest slept under a sea of mist, its canopy whispering with the language of rain.
Every few days, Luo Shuang returned — basket in hand, steps light on the soaked ground. She always left small gifts by the old clearing: dried fruit, herbs, and fresh salves she'd prepared with quiet care.
At first, Liu Ren never appeared. But she always knew he was near.
Whenever she returned, the traces of her gifts were gone, and the wild beasts that once roamed the clearing stayed far away.
Once, when a Shadowclaw Lynx crept from the fog, its killing intent like a blade across her spine, a streak of black-gold flame erupted between the trees.
The beast dissolved into ash before she could even scream.
Liu Ren stepped from the shadows, his coat soaked by mist, eyes sharp yet distant.
He said nothing.
Only nodded once before vanishing again.
But that unspoken act—protecting her without reason—anchored something inside her. A fragile bond in a merciless world.
Weeks later, a storm fell upon the forest.
Thunder cracked like divine wrath, lightning tearing the sky in jagged veins. Luo Shuang struggled through the downpour, clutching her basket as she searched for shelter. Her boots sank into the mud; every gust of wind threatened to push her off balance.
Suddenly, a hand caught her wrist — strong, calloused, warm.
Liu Ren's voice came through the rain.
"Come."
He led her into a small cave hidden behind a curtain of vines. Inside, the air was dry, the faint glow of a spirit crystal casting silver light across the stone walls. Rain pounded outside, an endless rhythm of chaos.
Luo Shuang sat near the fire, her hair damp, eyes wide. She watched as Liu Ren set down his black coat, kneeling silently to feed the flames. Steam rose from his shoulders, his aura dim yet vast — like the calm before a storm.
The silence stretched until she finally spoke, her voice barely above the crackling fire.
"Ren… have you ever loved someone?"
He froze. The flicker of flame reflected in his eyes. For a moment, he didn't answer.
Then, slowly, he said, "No."
Her heart sank.
But then he continued, his tone lower, almost a whisper.
> "I had a family once. Not by blood, but by bond — stronger than any chain of fate. They're gone now."
His gaze drifted into the fire, and his mind slipped somewhere far away—into a memory buried in eternity.
Flashback – A Place Beyond Time
A quiet chamber.
A young boy sat cross-legged, flipping through an old book titled Human Feelings. His brows furrowed. "Ren," he asked, "what is this thing called love?"
Beside him, Liu Ren, younger and softer in spirit, looked up from his meditation.
"I don't know about love," he said honestly. "Maybe it's something I was never meant to understand."
The boy tilted his head, dissatisfied, then turned toward another youth nearby—one whose face mirrored Lin Xuan's.
"Big Brother, what do you think?"
That youth smiled faintly, his tone calm and thoughtful.
> "I don't know much either. But I think… love is something, or someone, you want to protect—no matter the cost."
The air shimmered faintly, and the vision faded.
Back to the Present
The rain continued to fall outside the cave.
Liu Ren's expression softened as he murmured, half to himself,
> "I don't know much about love either… but I think I understand one thing now."
He turned to her, voice steady despite the storm.
> "I just want to protect you."
Luo Shuang's lips parted, her chest tightening as warmth flooded her heart.
But before she could speak, his tone shifted—haunted, distant.
"I'm running from someone… and searching for someone."
She frowned. "Who?"
He hesitated. The firelight cast long shadows across his face, revealing pain buried beneath stoic calm.
> "I seek a lost brother… Torn from me by fate. And I flee those who'd erase us—those who fear what we are."
His hand clenched, revealing a deep scar across his palm, a mark that pulsed faintly with divine energy.
> "The name I told you wasn't true," he said quietly. "My real name… is ShenYi Ren. But forget that surname, Shuang'er. If the heavens hear it, they'll come for you too."
Her eyes widened, tears gathering at the edges. "Ren…"
He looked away, jaw tight.
> "If I told you more, you'd be in danger. Let it be."
Luo Shuang nodded, trembling. "Then I'll stay silent… but I'll still stay."
For the first time, his expression cracked—a small, genuine smile flickering through the storm.
Outside, thunder rolled like the growl, yet inside that cave, the air felt still—peaceful. Two souls, one running from heaven, one rooted in earth, found solace in shared silence.
Meanwhile – In a Sealed Domain Beyond the Stars
An ancient world trembled.
A figure, wrapped in molten light and divine flame, slammed a clawed fist against a crystalline barrier.
> "Damn it! ShenYi Ren and his companions are still alive!"
His roar shattered constellations; cracks spread across the sealed domain.
> "We must kill him—and the one who carries the Demon God Omni Codex!"
A surge of energy leaked through the fracture, lashing outward.
In a distant corner of the cosmos, a planet crumbled into dust—destroyed by the faintest echo of his rage.
A white-glowing deity emerged beside him, wings folded like blades.
> "Didn't we already destroy him?"
Their master—halo fractured, divine essence bleeding light—growled in fury.
> "No. We only split his soul. The beasts he commands still breathe. Find them before they awaken again!"
The sealed realm quaked, the order of stars shifting under divine wrath.
Back in the Mortal Realm – Crimson Forest Hill
Under the fading storm, Liu Ren stood atop a hill overlooking the forest.
Luo Shuang was below, kneeling among spirit flowers, her hands brushing dew from the leaves. She turned and smiled up at him—simple, unguarded.
He felt it then—a pulse from the heavens. A celestial ripple brushing the mortal plane.
His eyes darkened.
That night, as moonlight bathed the clearing, he carved runes into the earth—each line glowing with silent intent.
A Spirit-Gathering Formation, vast enough to bend the surrounding flow of energy, burying their presence from celestial sight.
When it was done, he stood beside her. The air shimmered with residual power.
> "Shuang'er," he said quietly, "this peace we've built—it's fragile. Born from danger. But I'll choose it anyway."
Her eyes glistened as she smiled through her tears.
> "Then I'll choose it too."
They stood side by side, wind tugging at their clothes, the stars watching silently above.
Somewhere beyond those stars, gods raged in fury—
but down below, a fugitive and a healer found their small corner of eternity.