The blaze was growing fiercer, and the empty hall was almost reduced to a ruin. Lintels were falling and smashing mercilessly down on the seats, with the thick grey smoke consuming everything, as if hell-bent on destruction—no different from a demonic beast that would only rest when it reduced all living things to ashes.

“Li Shaoling!”

Ignoring all else, Ji Weixi rushed inside the hall.

Cough-cough—

The smoke was too heavy. Ji Weixi started hacking violently, unable to breathe.

She held her nose with her hand, withstanding the smoke that stabbed into her eyes as she searched as hard as she could.

Suddenly, she paused.

Before her and in the heart of the flames, the man had his back to her. His black hair was flapping against the scorching winds, but he stood upright and unruffled by the fire, like a lifeless statue awaiting its melting and shattering.

“Li Shaoling!”

She yelled as loudly as she could.

Li Shaoling seemed unable to hear her. Before his eyes, scenes of the past were replaying in his mind even as his face was brightly reflected. His eyes, dark and empty showed no shred of humanity, just like a puppet drained of every vigor.

Beside his ears were empty, hopeless screams.

“Shaoling, you must live on—”

“Shaoling, you must claim a place so that everyone fears you. Only then could you get your revenge—”

“No one loves you in this world. Those who do are dead!”

No one loves you.

No one—

None, ever.

Li Shaoling felt as if he had fallen to hell thousands of leagues below, with magma eating away every inch of his body with great, clear agony while every single strand of his nerves screamed.

The world became silent, when a woman’s voice suddenly broke out.

It was a rather sweet voice, carrying an urgency and scolding.

“Li Shaoling, you’re f*cking crazy! Come out right now!”

His eye whirled and he turned slightly.

Boom—

Another lintel collapsed suddenly, blowing crimson sparks as it fell between them.

Now, it was as if a galaxy separates them.

The woman’s hair was a mess, and her clothes blackened—perhaps scorched by some sparks, her frail body was shaking, and yet she wouldn’t leave even as her tears fell freely. Hacking loudly, she glared at him viciously as she roared. “Don’t you try to drag me with you just because you have a death wish! Come out right now! What’s gotten into you!?”

Ji Weixi…

It was as if she had come down from heaven to save him. He saw tenderness, despite her potty mouth.

But…

His head was about to split. His temples were throbbing as everything went dark.

His eyelids closed as his huge figure slammed down heavily on the floor.

Ji Weixi’s eyes tightened. The air left her lungs as she watched the fire around him about to consume him.

Unable to care about that much, Ji Weixi tore off her skirt which was impeding her, withstood the burns from the flames and strode ahead determinedly.

She knelt beside Li Shaoling and held him up, shaking him as hard as she could.

“Wake up, Li Shaoling!”

The air there was too thin. Ji Weixi felt as if her chest was about to burst apart.

She glared at Li Shaoling’s seemingly lifeless body, gritting her teeth in indignation. “What were you even doing in here? I was outside! The hero fainting before he saves the beauty? How embarrassing could you be!

“And can’t you wake up, Li Shaoling?!”

He simply lay in her arms without any reaction.

Now in total panic, Ji Weixi’s tears were falling over his face—but she held back from bawling even if she was crumbling a little. “How could I get you out? You’re so heavy! Can’t you wake up? We would be reduced to ashes before our son even knows!

“I don’t want a lovers’ suicide, you hear me?!”

“Not getting up, fine! I’m off! Die away, this has nothing to do with me!”

Steeling herself, Ji Weixi threw him off and strode off, but soon yielded and returned.

But the man on the floor never moved. His face was calm, as if he was merely sleeping.

Meanwhile, the air became even thinner. It was the first time that Ji Weixi found breathing so painful, but she withstood the needles in her lungs and kept dragging Li Shaoling out.

Even so, they did not move more than a few feet when she tripped. Her head hit something with a thud, and with the sudden sharp pain, she lost all consciousness.

***

Meanwhile, outside the hall.

“Maestro, don’t go in! The firefighters would be here soon!”

The assistant was doing all he could to hold Su Yang back, roaring helpless. “You have asthma, Maestro! You would die inside!”

Even so, Su Yang firmly pushed him away. His eyes were red, but his meek voice had suddenly turned cold with a menacing, demanding hoarseness. “And I’m telling you, I wouldn’t be able to live if there’s someone inside!”

The assistant was taken aback. When he recovered, Su Yang was already gone.

“Maestro! Maestro!”

Su Yang did not hesitate to rush into the raging flames.

He started to hack violently after breathing just once.

His asthma triggered, narrowing his trachea severely. He had to wheeze twice every step as if he was a fish out of water, struggling against the despair.

The flames raged everywhere, its wild and rampant waves streaking away as it greedily devoured everything into its bowels, even the blue sky.

Su Yang was at once burnt and suffocating, his vision dimming like a stranded fish, bent on rushing towards the infinite withered land in front of himself as long as he could leave water.

He stumbled, almost fainting several times.

Finally, he found Ji Weixi.

She was holding Li Shaoling in her arms, her eyes tightly shut as her jet-black hair scattered loosely.

Still hacking, Su Yang stumbled forward, his silver hair darkened a little by the smoke.

He held her like a treasure he lost, and smiled like a child.

“Qing…”

Boom—

Suddenly, the pillar lost all traction and descended towards them, wrapped in crimson flames.

Unable to avoid it in time, Su Yang held Ji Weixi tightly in his arms.

Sizzle—

The sound of flame meeting flesh was instantly drowned in the sea of flames.

Hacking, Su Yang’s face was frighteningly pale. There were red circles around his eyes as he watched the woman in his embrace, quietly comforting her. “Qing, you don’t have to be afraid…”

“I’m… here…”

***

Beep… Beep… Beep…

The machine worked on coldly.

It was the middle of the night. The patient on the sickbed was breathing in an oxygen mask but sleeping soundly.

“Maestro, have you forgotten the doctor’s orders? Hurry up and get some rest!”

Su Yang’s assistant was staring at the man who sat beside the sickbed motionless, beside himself with worry.

Su Yang’s upper body was completely bandaged with fresh blood seeping out from time to time. Droplets of water would slip across his pale cheeks from time to time.

His white lips parted then, and his voice was hoarse as he endured the pain.

“I will wait… until she wakes…”