Ying Zhen didn’t give himself time to hesitate. He pushed the door open and entered. The stench of blood hit his face but after all those years on the battlefield, he didn’t care anymore.

Laryana recoiled and clasped a hand over her mouth though. "What is this?"

Ying Zhen looked back. The corners of his mouth lifted humorless. "This?" He motioned to the blood-soaked entrance hall with his head. "It’s a gift the gods left us."

"The gods?" Laryana furrowed her brow. "What does this have to do with the gods?" She glanced at the blood on the ground. Even though she had always lived in the underworld, she had never seen something like this. The battle had been new to her as well but despite the constant death occurring in front of her eyes, she hadn’t felt it to be as revolting as this. But no matter what, she had given Ying Zhen her word so she gathered her skirt and followed the demon into the building.

Ying Zhen stared at the white hem that ended a few finger’s breadths above the ground. He had looked at her when they first met but her face had captured most of his attention. He hadn’t even noticed what she was wearing. Now though, he was distracted for just a moment. This woman … how had she passed through the battlefield like this?

Without thinking, he extended a hand and grabbed her sleeve. It was thin like a cicada’s wing and shimmered silver in the glow of the magic flames that illuminated the building. If she had been a demon, her status should have been incredibly high to be able to wear something like this.

Most likely, not even the wife of the demon king Yaarak would have dared to wear such a robe outside of special occasions. But here she was, running around the underworld in it as if it was her everyday clothes. How had he not noticed that before?

Ying Zhen looked back up at her face, realizing that she was actually quite beautiful. This woman … who exactly was she? He had never heard of her name before but he felt like he should have. How many people could there be in the underworld who weren’t just the souls of the dead? Clearly, her status should be special. He couldn’t help but question what exactly it had been.

Laryana requited his gaze questioningly, not sure what was going through his mind. In fact, it was quite odd to her to see him stand in one spot for so long now that they had left the battlefield behind and solved the first issue. But who knew what he was thinking about? She didn’t want to rush him either so she just kept quiet in the end.

When she looked at him like this, Ying Zhen realized that he had been staring at her. He hastily retracted his hand and turned around without another word. Things were awkward enough. He tried to ignore what had just happened and instead let his gaze roam over the bodies that were strewn around the floor. Well, this wasn’t the place yet that he should go to. He passed through the hall and entered the estate’s courtyard.

Laryana followed him hesitatingly. She felt ill at ease. The men who lay on the floor of this room didn’t wear armor. Clearly, they weren’t warriors ready for battle. Instead, they seemed to have been regular people. And yet, they didn’t look less battered than the men she had seen on the battlefield: Cuts clad their clothes and uncovered the bloody skin below, some lacked limbs or even their heads.

Laryana hurried past the bodies and followed Ying Zhen out, hoping to leave this nightmarish scene behind her. But the courtyard didn’t look any better. On the contrary: The men in the entrance hall had at least given the impression of being able to defend against their attackers somewhat but the same couldn’t be said for the victims in the courtyard.

Laryana descended the steps and found herself in front of the body of a demoness. Her long hair flowed over the steps. She had probably tumbled down the stairs when she tried to flee. Her eyes stared at the gray sky, widened in fear, and a glistening red pool surrounded her dark dress.

Laryana averted her gaze, gulped, and hurried to Ying Zhen’s side. She didn’t bother any longer about what he would think and grabbed his arm.

Ying Zhen raised his brows in surprise but one look at Laryana’s face was enough for him to understand what her problem was. He wasn’t quite sure how to react though. It had been a long time since he last needed to comfort a person. He faintly cleared his throat and tried to be practical. "You could wait outside."

She shook her head. She certainly could have done that but she would have needed to know beforehand. Now … she did not want to go back by herself and Ying Zhen did not have time. He couldn’t bring her back and then return. Also, it was better if she was here. Maybe she would notice clues that he overlooked. Not that she currently dared to look around. Thinking of that, she shuffled a little closer to Ying Zhen, hoping that his presence would drive off some of the chill she felt seeing these things.

Ying Zhen looked at her fingers on his arm. He didn’t mind but … had her skin always been this white? Or could it be that she had been frightened to this extent? He glanced at her eyes and realized that her gaze was indeed darting around uneasily. She obviously felt uncomfortable. But that seemed to be all. She wouldn’t pass out on him.

He hesitated for just a moment and then reached up to pat her hand. "This shouldn’t take too long." He didn’t know what else to say and just turned to observe the person to his feet.

Laryana looked up at his words and then followed his gaze to the body. It was a woman. Just like the one from before, her body was surrounded by blood. Even her sleeves and the upper part of her dress were soaked in it. A wound ran across her chest, deep enough that white bones protruded through the broken flesh.

Laryana rushed behind Ying Zhen, burying her face in his broad back. She didn’t want to see anymore even if that meant she wouldn’t be of any help. "What happened? Who is she?"

"Mn … Her name was Chun Hua." He smiled despite the cruel sight but there was a tinge of sadness in there. "She was … the only woman I ever loved."

Laryana peered past his shoulder and into his face. It had hit him hard enough that he hadn’t been able to save his comrades. She couldn’t imagine that he would have an easier time getting over this. She wanted to ask but when she looked at him, the smile on his lips caught her eye. Her heart leaped. This smile … She gazed at him as if under a spell.

Ying Zhen turned around when he didn’t get an answer and caught her look. The corners of his mouth twitched and his smile widened. When was the last time a woman had looked at him like this? He couldn’t remember. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a good time. And, well, this was the underworld. He didn’t know her status either as he had just realized moments before. This really was a thought he shouldn’t entertain although he had to say that her gaze was certainly a boost to his confidence.

Not wanting to think any deeper into this, Ying Zhen cleared his throat and pulled Laryana out of her thoughts. "Is something wrong?"

"You …" Laryana averted her gaze. For just a moment, she had once again been reminded of her master. Heidan had had a beautiful smile. And it had been especially beautiful when he spoke of Xingula. Just like when Ying Zhen mentioned this Chun Hua.

Laryana knew that she shouldn’t think of these things. It was useless. He wouldn’t come back. She turned to look at Chun Hua instead, making sure to only gaze at her face that was still completely intact. She had been a beautiful woman. "It must have been hard to lose her if you loved her so much."

"Mn. But it has been a long time since then."

Laryana wanted to look up but reconsidered at the last moment. She was afraid to be reminded of Heidan once again. At the moment, that wasn’t good. She needed to help Ying Zhen, not make more trouble by being like this.

Ying Zhen raised his brows, unsure what to make of her behavior. He didn’t know how to deal with this. He didn’t even know if he wanted to deal with this. Unfortunately, he couldn’t ignore it either since he was traveling with her. "Is something wrong?"

"Everything is alright. So … what do you regret?"

Ying Zhen examined her for a moment longer but if she didn’t want to tell him, then there was nothing he could do. So in the end, he turned back to Chun Hua. "Of course, it’s not having been here in a timely manner so as to save her. That day … I felt like something was wrong. But in the end, I just told myself that I had imagined it and walked away. The next day, I found out that something had happened in her estate. I went there at once but it was too late. Chun Hua, her family, her guests, her servants … more than three hundred demons lost their lives that night."

"Why?" Laryana didn’t ask this question just because she wanted to guide him but also because she wanted to understand what was going on between the gods and demons. The information she had was limited. And she didn’t have the time or the guts to venture out of the underworld to inquire further. In any case, so much time had passed that she would be unlikely to find out more about what had happened to her master.

Ying Zhen smiled but it wasn’t the kind that reminded Laryana of Heidan. It was a cold, humorless smile that mocked the whole world. "Why?" he repeated. "Isn’t it because they were demons? Do the gods need more justification than that?" He couldn’t remember a day when there hadn’t been news of things like this happening. Granted, it would hardly be whole estates that were wiped out but a few demons being killed here or there? That was nothing. To the gods, they were nothing.

Laryana couldn’t understand the conflict between them though. "How could that be enough reason to kill them?"

Ying Zhen’s smile got lighter. Looking at her as she stood there in that white dress, gazing at him with that ignorant expression, he felt like his eyes had touched the last pure, unsullied piece of land in a world that had long been tainted. "You have never left the underworld, have you?"

Laryana shook her head but then hesitated, feeling that this wasn’t quite right. "Well, I went out once … for a day or two." That had been the only time though.

Ying Zhen wasn’t surprised. Two days was nothing. She might not even have been to the demons’ territory and only seen the gods’ realm or those of the other races. "Then it’s no wonder that you can’t understand. Being a demon is indeed reason enough for the gods to kill because we are seen as Heidan’s heirs and that is something that the gods hate."