Chapter 042: Affection

This was in no way Lin Zhan’s fault. That desperate grasp before he lost consciousness again was entirely instinctual—a last attempt to clutch at a lifeline—he could hardly care what he grabbed. The pain alone was enough to make one wince even in retrospect; it was a reckless, heedless grasp.

Yet, who could believe that in the most wretched moment under the heavens, such a coincidence could occur? Even if he’d imagined he might grab the wrong thing, no amount of heads would have guessed that a girl would appear at such a time. And even if a girl did appear, what were the odds that his hand would land precisely on her most sensitive spot?

Miss Yun Yin was now both mortified and furious, shame flooding her face. Already gravely wounded, even after taking the Heartfreezing Pill, her injuries were only slowly healing. Now, with the sudden pain in her chest, her vision blurred, and she fainted away without the slightest surprise.

Curiously, as the “tsunami” receded, the churning waters drew back, carrying massive stones that again blocked most of the passage leading out to Blazing Lake. Soon, the Heroic Pool’s hot spring returned to its former tranquility, as if untouched by disaster. Steam rose in gentle wisps, shrouding the water in a soft white fog.

The two, unconscious and utterly unclothed, tangled in ambiguous postures, remained blissfully unaware of their surroundings.

No one knew how much time passed.

Thanks to the Heartfreezing Pill, Yun Yin was the first to awaken.

“Oh heavens, let me die, let me die!” she wailed inwardly as her eyes fluttered open and her senses returned. In that instant, she wished she could faint again. This—this—!

Here, a thousand words are omitted describing the unspeakably awkward posture.

She pried Lin Zhan’s burning-hot hand off her chest, flung it aside, withdrew her long, smooth left leg from his waist, and scrambled backward in a flurry. Covering herself, she sprang up, finally exploding in rage.

“Lin Zhan, you scoundrel, you shameless rascal! I’ll beat you senseless!”

She hopped with fury, lunging forward two paces before realizing something was amiss. Quickly, she turned to hunch over, fumbling with her storage ring to retrieve spare clothing, and hurried to dress herself. Now both embarrassed and angry, she stormed over to Lin Zhan, eyes half-closed, hand raised for a slap.

“You bastard, go to hell!”

Of course, Yun Yin’s curses and threats weren’t born of true hatred, nor did she truly wish to beat Lin Zhan to death. In such circumstances, for a girl who’d never been touched by a man in eighteen years, it was the most natural reaction to have her “innocence” so carelessly snatched.

As for what happened during her faint—how her long, pale leg wrapped around Lin Zhan’s waist in unconscious initiative—she would never admit to such shameful, accidental intimacy. It was just an inadvertent touch, nothing more—right?

As Yun Yin, flushed and furious, approached Lin Zhan, panic struck anew. He still lay there, utterly exposed, while she was now fully clothed. She’d not even thought to cover him up. Her cheeks burned deeper; nearly overcome with indignation, she produced a scarf and draped it over him.

“Hmph, I don’t care. I must teach this scoundrel a lesson for bullying me!”

She had to vent her outrage to balance the injustice in her heart—otherwise, she would surely fall ill, surely feel miserable.

Her hand hovered less than a finger’s width from Lin Zhan’s piggish face, but she froze.

“Ah, this fool wasn’t intentional. In truth, he’s a victim too—possibly even worse off, thanks to me. How grievously is he wounded? Heaven pity him.”

Her fingertips were about to brush his swollen, bruised face.

“But wait! Why is he so still? Could he be… gone?”

Now Yun Yin was panicking.

A sudden, feverish thought flashed through her mind: did this make her a widow?

One couldn’t blame Yun Yin for such thoughts. She’d first encountered Lin Zhan at the entrance test beneath Blazing Peak. That was the first time she saw him.

Lin Zhan wasn’t especially handsome—his looks were ordinary enough—but when he stepped forward without hesitation to discipline the arrogant disciples, in Yun Yin’s eyes, he seemed to shine in that moment, making her innocent heart tremble.

He left a deep impression on her. Later, after the talent test destroyed the Spirit Stone Gate and Lin Zhan was abducted by Elder Huang, she only recovered from the waves of emotion after some time.

Because of her privileged status, she learned Lin Zhan had been sentenced to three years of servitude—serving under her own father’s domain. She secretly bribed Steward Huo Yi, who oversaw the miscellaneous disciples, disguised herself as a boy, and slipped into the Daisy Hall’s servant squad. The actual servant assigned was, of course, sent elsewhere.

Living close to Lin Zhan, she suffered greatly, forced to conceal her womanhood and suppress her feelings. It was a bittersweet existence.

The rough camaraderie of the servant squad stirred her own heroic spirit, so she boasted and swaggered, helping her brothers out of trouble more than once.

Her feelings for Lin Zhan grew from mild fondness to infatuation; the more time passed, the deeper her affection. As a girl just eighteen, she was certain she’d marry Lin Zhan someday—how could she not?

Now, Lin Zhan lay unmoving. She panicked, unsure what to do.

Guilt and regret welled up inside her.

“Damn it, why didn’t I check Lin Zhan’s condition first, instead of worrying about my own loss?”

“If Lin Zhan’s injuries worsen because of my stupidity, I’ll never forgive myself!”

“So what if he grabbed me? Sooner or later, I’ll be his anyway.”

As she checked Lin Zhan’s wounds, her thoughts spun wildly.

His breathing was faint, her heart sank.

His pulse was barely perceptible; her nose tingled, teeth clenched to hold back tears.

But as she took his pulse, it was as if she plunged into the depths of the sea—his meridians were shattered, an incurable injury.

Tears flooded her eyes. Yun Yin, the only precious daughter of Yun Mo Bei, the Hall Master’s princess who had never cried before, now wept for the first time—for Lin Zhan.

She pulled out a jade bottle containing more than ten Heartfreezing Pills, poured them all into her palm, and stuffed them into Lin Zhan’s mouth.

“Lin Zhan, you idiot, blockhead, wake up and take your medicine!”

“Idiot, blockhead, open your mouth!”