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Lin Qingmo was taken aback, feeling as if he were dreaming. Xi'er was equally astonished. Suddenly, Lin Qingmo jumped up as if pricked by a needle, tearing open his cloak to shield Lin Xiao tightly behind him. The moon rolled out from behind the clouds, casting a faint light over the world. The wind billowed Lin Qingmo's fur cloak, making him stand on the turtle shell like a flag bearer, a provocative and warlike banner. Ao Yan's eyes blazed with an even fiercer flame.
After a moment of silence, Ao Yan suddenly opened his palm, and a powerful gust of wind pulled Lin Qingmo onto the back of the Azure Water Golden Eye Beast. Lin Qingmo's words got stuck in his throat. "Let him go, please," he pleaded anxiously as soon as he settled down. A fierce wind rushed into his mouth, causing his nose to sting and tears to well up in his eyes, but he still clutched at Ao Yan's front with desperate pleas: "Let him go... please... uh..." His chin was forced upward by Ao Yan's grip, causing sharp pain in his bones. Tears and snot covered his face, making him look utterly disheveled. Yet what awaited him was Ao Yan's biting kiss.
"Mm... no... don’t... mm." Lin Qingmo was terrified, his mind blank as he stared at Ao Yan's enlarged face. He reached out to strike him but was seized by the wrist and twisted behind his back. With the other hand, Ao Yan tightened his grip around Lin Qingmo's waist while tearing open his collar with ruthless intent. Realizing Ao Yan's intentions in an instant, Lin Qingmo's eyes widened, and he instinctively bit down hard. "Ugh—" Ao Yan jerked back in pain, losing his direction and reason for a moment. He raised his hand to strike but ultimately tightened his grip on Lin Qingmo's chin again, turning it toward Lin Xiao. His cold voice cut through the air like the chilling wind: "If you don’t want me to show him what I can do, then speak..."
Lin Xiao had turned to stone since Ao Yan kissed Lin Qingmo. Images of Lin Qingmo’s torn clothing and flickering eyes flashed through his mind. An unbearable pain slowly seeped from his heart.
"Lin Xiao, I... I have already become engaged to Ao Yan, the Eighth Prince of Dragon Palace." Lin Qingmo’s entire face trembled like a dry leaf in Ao Yan’s grip. The cold wind carried Lin Qingmo’s voice to the rigidly still Lin Xiao. For a moment, there was silence. "I said it! I said it! Let him go! I’ll go back with you! Let him go! Please!" Ao Yan lifted Lin Qingmo off the back of the Azure Water Golden Eye Beast and stepped lightly onto the water surface. As Lin Qingmo slid down, he continued to plead incessantly until Ao Yan’s grip around his waist prevented him from collapsing to the ground. Yet Ao Yan remained silent.
Suddenly, Lin Xiao raised a stiff finger at Ao Yan and declared, "You forcibly took Qingmo! That night... that night you took him by force! Let him go!" He glanced around at the dark water surface and the surging sea beneath him. He wanted to jump in and swim to Lin Qingmo’s side. But suddenly, an invisible hand seized his throat, lifting him higher and tightening its grip until he hung helplessly in midair. "Ao—Yan." Lin Qingmo shouted desperately as he slipped down to Ao Yan's legs, clutching them and shaking with pleas: "I beg you! Whatever you want me to do, just let him go!"
Standing firm, Ao Yan extended his arm; his fingers formed a half-arc that subtly moved, causing Lin Xiao’s legs to jerk violently in midair.
Lin Qingmo soon realized that the more fervently he pleaded, the tighter Ao Yan’s grip became; yet he did not directly kill Lin Xiao but seemed intent on torturing him slowly until all breath was squeezed from his body. Death became a slow-motion spectacle where each action sent chills down one’s spine and deepened despair further still. Anger ignited within Lin Qingmo alongside a surge of hatred—why should he and Lin Xiao be treated like mere weeds? He was born noble as the prince of Dragon Palace while he and Lin Xiao were just ordinary mortals; yet why should they be trampled underfoot like ants?
He pulled a hairpin from his head and thrust it fiercely toward Ao Yan's wrist. Caught off guard, Ao Yan was pierced through the palm by the jade pin which embedded itself into flesh; blood trickled down along his wrist and pooled at his elbow before falling away in a large droplet. At that moment, Lin Xiao plummeted from midair.
The Giant Turtle had been waiting for this opportunity; it turned its massive body and paddled frantically through the water to catch Lin Xiao as he fell onto its shell. However well-meaning it was, its shell was as hard as stone; the consequences of having someone land on its back would be disastrous—but ultimately, Lin Xiao did fall.
Suddenly Xi'er spread its wings and soared into the air; in an instant, its body swelled larger while its wings elongated further with feathers becoming vibrant and full against the dim night sky like exploding fireworks trailing long ribbons behind it. With a piercing cry reminiscent of a phoenix rising from ashes breaking through darkness, Xi'er caught the falling Lin Xiao and placed him safely on the turtle shell.
Lin Qingmo had already been struck away by an enraged Ao Yan’s palm and fell into the water with a splash that sent waves crashing up; several droplets landed on Ao Yan’s face—a brief chill quickly overshadowed by rising heat across his cheeks. Dressed in golden robes that seemed to ignite flames from beneath as he walked, Ao Yan was enveloped instantly in fire-like energy.
The Giant Turtle panicked and turned its body around while paddling desperately through the water. Lin Xiao remained half-conscious; unable to breathe properly, his face turned purple as if choked by an invisible rope that tightened continuously around his throat—a sensation of suffocation too profound to dissipate quickly.
Xi'er crouched at the turtle's tail without uttering a word but understood that this matter would not end well tonight; without some miracle occurring soon, Lin Xiao’s life would likely be lost.
The intelligent Azure Water Golden Eye Beast dashed towards where Lin Qingmo had fallen into the water; using its mouth it retrieved him from beneath before tossing him securely onto its back.
Finally taking initiative, Xi'er launched an attack against Ao Yan. Its neck adorned with blue feathers stood erect while its eyes glimmered coldly; drawing back its bow it shot itself straight towards Ao Yan. It was unclear how exactly Ao Yan countered; suddenly the jade hairpin belonging to Lin Qingmo shot out from his palm carrying blood and landed deep into Xi'er’s right wing with a shrill cry of anguish echoing through the air.
As Xi'er descended it flapped its left wing furiously sending countless feathers hurtling toward Ao Yan like arrows in a rainstorm. Startled by this barrage of feathers brushing past him leaving cuts on his clothing and skin, Ao Yan hastily retreated while taking advantage of this distraction—the Giant Turtle paddled several feet away.
Xi'er crashed onto the water surface exhausted and barely clinging to life.
The swirling feathers continued battling against Ao Yan enveloping him completely; any contact with them caused wounds upon skin or clothing alike. Suddenly Ao Yan soared into the air surrounded by blinding golden light bright enough to blind anyone who gazed upon it—a dragon ascended high above.
In that brilliance, Xi'er's feathers were incinerated clean away while dragon-bodied Ao Yan unfurled its claws sending forth a bolt of blue lightning aimed directly at the struggling Giant Turtle below. The Giant Turtle barely had time to react before being struck down by that blue whip which flipped over its shell along with Lin Xiao who tumbled into the sea below.
At that moment, a figure rose from the depths of the sea—it was Ao Bi. She shouted at Ao Yan, "Xiao Ba, stop!" As soon as her voice fell, she leaped into the air, transforming into a white dragon, and extended her claws to grasp Ao Yan's tail. Ao Yan quickly turned to block Ao Bi's sharp claws, and the two began to fight fiercely in the air.
The Giant Turtle exerted all its strength to flip over and hurriedly sank to the seabed, lifting the slowly sinking Lin Xiao from the water. The icy seawater jolted Lin Xiao awake. Lin Qingmo, lying on the back of the Azure Water Golden Eye Beast, also regained consciousness. Weakly, he instructed the Azure Water Golden Eye Beast to approach Lin Xiao. As they passed by Xi'er, he pulled the injured Xi'er out of the water. Lin Xiao was clad in a thick Zhaojun Cloak, which became even heavier when soaked. The frigid seawater chilled him to the bone, and with the night wind blowing against him, his face turned as pale as paper.
"Help him, Golden Eye Beast," Lin Qingmo whispered. The Azure Eye Beast extended a paw and placed it on Lin Xiao's hand. In no time, Lin Xiao was dried off and felt warm as if basking in the winter sun. "Lin Xiao," Lin Qingmo struggled to grasp Lin Xiao's hand. "It's my fault for getting you into this." Lin Xiao shook his head, smiled faintly, and tightened his grip on Lin Qingmo's hand. His voice was hoarse as he replied, "It's okay; I’m willing to die with you."
"Lin Xiao, listen to me—just hear me out for once," Lin Qingmo urged. His long hair fluttered in the wind, obscuring his face like a black butterfly flapping its wings but unable to fly away. "Ao Yan is not a bad person; he has actually treated me well. After you return this time, don’t come looking for me again; I’m fine. Please take good care of my mother for me; I will definitely come back to see her. And take good care of Xiaohua too; she’s a good girl and will make a wonderful wife. You must treat her well and not think of me anymore. In this life, I have no fate with her."
"Promise me, Lin Xiao—promise me." Lin Xiao bit his lip and nodded; tears began to flow down his cheeks uncontrollably. "Little Turtle, thank you so much just now. Please take him away and look after him on the way," Lin Qingmo gently tapped on the turtle's shell. The turtle turned its round head and nodded at Lin Qingmo.
As they drifted further away from Lin Qingmo, Lin Xiao felt an emptiness in his heart that mirrored his limbs. It seemed as though both heaven and earth had emptied out for him. He began to understand a painful truth that kept his tears flowing.
To hold off Ao Yan in their fierce battle, Ao Bi caught sight of Lin Xiao moving farther away. Taking advantage of a momentary distraction while Ao Yan dodged her attack, she transformed back into her human form and said, "Xiao Ba, how can you justify wanting to kill an innocent person? If I were Qingmo and saw you like this, I would want to run away too." Ao Yan landed on the water's surface and also reverted to human form. He was indeed exhausted and had no desire to chase after Lin Xiao, who had long since vanished from sight. Glancing at Lin Qingmo lying on the back of the Azure Water Golden Eye Beast calmed his heart momentarily. He wasn't afraid that Lin Qingmo would leave with Lin Xiao; although it would be easy to retrieve him later, if he truly took this opportunity to escape, it would be a deep wound for himself.
He raised his head and shot back at Ao Bi, "Mind your own business." Ao Bi nodded in response, "Alright, alright! I won’t interfere; I’ll find someone else to deal with you." With that said, she turned and walked away.
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