The Protagonist is Always Intimidating Me - Chapter 78

The entire Abyss was shrouded in darkness, devoid of light. At this moment, the youth had no time to change any of it. He needed speed—greater speed—to find Mo Hankui and take him away while there was still hope.

Bai Meng rushed aimlessly through the darkness when a white light suddenly appeared in the distance. He squinted uncomfortably, then slowly opened his eyes once he had adjusted to the brightness. Not far away, he saw someone kneeling, someone wholly unexpected.

—Bai Fan.

Bai Meng frowned. As he approached a few steps, he saw the man half-kneeling in a sorry state, holding the corpse of a young boy in his arms. The boy was covered in blood and filth, and the beast ears beneath his white hair were especially striking.

That was himself.

…How could this be…

Bai Meng froze where he stood. A ridiculous thought suddenly surged through his mind, sending a chill through his body. The cold crept from his ankles up to his chest.

He had once died…

And Bai Fan’s later disappearance…

“Don’t be afraid… It’ll be over soon…” The man’s golden eyes, once filled with pride, now shimmered with tears. His voice was hoarse as he asked, “Xiao Bai, does it hurt a lot…? It’s all my fault…”

“I really am useless…” The man let out a bitter smile, and Bai Meng saw that his back was already covered in wounds, some so deep they exposed bone. Then, Bai Fan inserted his hand into his dantian and, without a sound, pulled out his inner core.

“!!!”

“You’re insane!!” Bai Meng rushed forward with red eyes. He reached out to stop him, but his pale hands passed right through Bai Fan’s body, unable to do a thing.

Bai Meng froze.

The man continued his actions, oblivious to the person beside him. He carefully placed the bloodstained inner core onto Bai Meng’s body.

A thunderous roar exploded behind him.

It was the gods’ usual method, Heaven’s Tribulation.

“Maybe I can accompany you again someday…” Tears slid down the man’s cheeks, falling straight onto the boy’s face in his arms. “Will you forget me…?”

“No… Never…”

Large tears fell. Bai Meng half-kneeled before the man. Even though the man couldn’t see, hear, or touch him, Bai Meng still responded to his murmurs over and over, tears streaming down his delicate face.

“We are all pawns of the gods. We can only accept this fate…”

In a daze, a voice sounded, hazy and illusory.

Bai Meng lowered his head, tears continuing to slide down his face.

Footsteps slowly approached, finally stopping in front of him.

“Do you want to go with me?”

Bai Meng looked up and saw Bai Fan as he had once been, with proud golden eyes brimming with defiance, dressed in an exquisitely embroidered black robe, and a perpetually mischievous smile on his lips.

Bai Meng shook his head and remained silent.

“Why not…”

Bai Fan’s smile faded, and his thin lips pressed into a straight line.

The youth slowly stood up. His pitch-black eyes gleamed even more brightly after being washed with tears. He grinned and said, “You’re not him.”

Touching memories brought pain, but he could clearly distinguish between illusion and reality. In illusions, he could lose the person ten thousand times and grieve ten thousand times, but in reality, whether that person was real or not, he would always know the truth. He was too rational, to the point that even self-deception failed.

Bai Meng once again reached into the man’s chest. Just like before, there was nothing there. It was hollow, devoid of that soft organ.

Enraged, the demon tore off his outer disguise, revealing sharp claws and horrifying fangs. Bai Meng stepped back a few paces and finally saw his true form.

His features were handsome, black scales grew along the sides of his face, mid-length black hair veiled his pointed ears, and his black-violet horns glowed faintly. His dark purple eyes had no whites.

His movements were extremely agile. After nimbly dodging Bai Meng’s attacks several times, he lunged forward, pinning Bai Meng down with his sharp claws. His tail, covered in scales, curved menacingly behind him, and the sharp, cold glint at the tip sent a chill down one’s spine.

“Why…?”

The demon’s eyes were wide, bloodshot and terrifying. “Why do you reject me again and again? I have Mo Jiuge’s memories, Bai Fan’s memories… Whoever you like, I can be them…”

“But you don’t even have a heart…”

Bai Meng shot him a cold glance. The words infuriated the demon, who pressed down even harder, and Bai Meng could even hear the sound of his bones being crushed and distorted.

“I’ll kill you, I’ll kill you…”

The demon’s sharp tail tip kept circling around Bai Meng’s pale, slender neck, but Bai Meng simply closed his eyes, as if not bothering to care.

“Why…”

The demon looked pained as he gazed at the young man beneath him, who remained unmoved, and even asked, “If you kill me, will you let Mo Hankui go?”

“!!!”

The demon’s pointed tail pierced into his chest, stopping just an inch away from his soft heart. Tears shimmered in the demon’s eyes, yet his mouth curled into a terrifying smile as he asked with confusion, “Is it because I don’t have this…?”

The tail tip slowly inched toward the heart.

“If you lost yours too, would that make us the same?”

“Then I would die.”

Bai Meng’s black eyes stared into the endless darkness above, his face showing no fear in the face of imminent death.

Blood poured ever more profusely from his chest. Bai Meng frowned slightly. Seeing this, the demon hurriedly withdrew his tail, a faint flash of fear and regret flickering in his eyes. But Bai Meng seized the opportunity to break free of his restraints, gripped his Xuan-Tie sword tightly, and slashed straight down at the demon’s head.

“…Why…”

The demon’s head fell to the ground, yet his mouth stubbornly repeated the same question.

“You don’t even have a heart.”

No heart…

Bai Meng walked away without looking back. His thin figure slowly vanished into the darkness, while the demon’s mouth still opened and closed, muttering something…

Tears slipped from the corners of the demon’s eyes. At last, he saw clearly and closed his eyes in resignation…

—Bai Meng, I return your memories to you. In the end, I was always alone. I should never have dared to reach for the light…

The sigil on his hand grew ever more radiant, becoming the only source of light in that underground darkness. Bai Meng ran forward without pause until he finally stopped before a pillar shaped like an altar.

The man looked at Bai Meng with a pale face. Bai Meng simply grinned back at him. Then Bai Meng forcefully cut through the chains binding the man, and the two stood there, chatting about trivial things.

“How do you feel?”

“Not bad.”

“That’s good.”

“Mm.” The man nodded. His beautiful golden eyes were filled with emotion. Though countless words seemed to hover in his gaze, in the end, he merely embraced the youth tightly and said, “…Xiao Bai, it’s been a long time.”

“…Mm.”

Bai Meng smiled gently. In his obsidian-clear eyes, it was as if stars were reflected, countless starlights shimmering within.

“Now, let’s go home.”

There was once someone who searched the mortal world for a long time. He endured the sorrow of longing, the torment of immortality, and struggled through the red dust. In the end, fate did not disappoint him.

To hold the hand of the one he longed for, to grow old together. How wonderful.