Xu Xi awoke in the midst of a jerking motion.
His consciousness had already half-stepped into the final abyss of death.
But perhaps.
Someone did not wish for him to die.
So, repeatedly, they kept him moving, running, and jolting him back and forth. And amidst this flicker of movement, Xu Xi opened his tired eyes.
What first came into view was a sky where the moon was absent, and the stars were incredibly brilliant.
The stars tonight seemed to grow brighter and brighter.
So much so that the moon gradually faded, to the point where it was almost invisible.
"How similar..."
Xu Xi's eyelids drooped, as he felt the intense pain throughout his body, and his thoughts grew increasingly muddled.
Just like the dimming moon.
It was about to disappear under the light of the stars.
Xu Xi knew.
He was dying.
Or rather, he should have died long ago. It was the effect of the perseverance secondary trait that had allowed him to keep pushing through, over and over again, defending the people of the Qiuhuo Army against demons.
But this time, after the battle with the dragon (a legendary dragon-like creature), Xu Xi had truly burned himself out.
Leaving behind only an empty shell.
He could even sense that the time left until his consciousness completely faded away was less than ten minutes.
"Yingxue."
Xu Xi gently called out, addressing the girl who was staggering under his weight as she ran.
From earlier, it had always been Wu Yingxue carrying Xu Xi, carrying the bloodied, unrecognizable figure of Xu Xi.
It was this constant bouncing motion that had temporarily roused Xu Xi's final remnants of consciousness.
"Master, that's great, I knew you wouldn't die!"
The girl was incredibly happy, speaking excitedly as she carried Xu Xi forward.
"Yingxue, I'm actually..."
"Master, we're almost out, following the path you cleared, we'll soon be out of the Ten Thousand Mountains!"
"I've already..."
"Everyone is waiting for us, Master!"
Wu Yingxue smiled at Xu Xi.
But that smile was extremely forced, extremely close to crying.
No.
It was crying.
Xu Xi was stunned for a moment, clearly seeing the tear marks on the girl's face. Her trembling voice was full of fear.
The girl understood everything.
She just didn't want to accept it.
In her heart, she still clung to a faint hope, hoping that nothing would happen.
Wu Yingxue carried Xu Xi away from the battlefield, following the path Xu Xi's fists had blazed, rushing toward the outside world beyond the Ten Thousand Mountains.
She hoped.
She escaped.
Hoping to somehow secure Xu Xi's survival through this action.
Starry skies glittered, the stars shone brightly, and the quiet night was free from the howls of demons.
Xu Xi's battle with the dragon had silenced all the surrounding demons, preventing them from making a sound. Only the girl's steps grew increasingly hurried.
In the end.
Xu Xi chose not to reveal the bloody truth.
Allowing the girl to cling to her fantasies.
Sometimes, a sensitive and fragile heart needs a few kind lies to protect itself.
Lies are lies, they can never become the truth, but their existence can shield the girl's heart from collapsing.
"Yingxue, you've worked hard."
Xu Xi spoke with a weak smile, his voice feeble.
His condition was too terrible, and despite just waking up, he felt a kind of indescribable exhaustion.
Not just physical exhaustion.
But also mental exhaustion.
So tired that he just wanted to close his eyes and sleep peacefully.
Wu Yingxue seemed to notice this, and so she kept looking for topics to chat with Xu Xi about, trying to talk as much as possible.
"Master, what will the world outside the mountains be like?"
"It will probably be harsh, but at least people can live."
"Master, will there be a world where everyone can eat their fill?"
"Yes, such a world exists."
"Master, tonight's stars..."
The girl asked many questions, about everything, no particular focus.
But she was actually an awkward talker.
Not knowing what topics were interesting, she was as awkward as Xu Xi.
After a while.
The girl fell into a dilemma when she ran out of topics, her heart in a frenzy, and her running pace becoming more erratic.
"It's okay, Yingxue."
Xu Xi tried his best to keep his eyelids open, every breath bringing him pain and overwhelming drowsiness like tides.
But he still smiled, using a hoarse voice to comfort Wu Yingxue: "If you can't think of anything, it's okay. By the way, I have something I want to tell you."
Xu Xi coughed violently a few times.
Blood was coughed out.
His complexion became even paler. Amidst the pain and suffocation, he told Wu Yingxue many things.
From breakthrough experiences in martial arts to small daily life anecdotes.
He told her everything.
Wu Yingxue listened very seriously, extremely so, her nose tingling as she listened to Xu Xi's whole story, occasionally responding with a choked cry.
As time went on.
The distance of running stretched.
Gradually, they could see the Qiuhuo Army's formation.
And Xu Xi's voice, amidst the whistling wind, became increasingly faint, almost imperceptible.
"Master, we're almost meeting everyone, soon, soon we'll be out of the mountains!"
Wu Yingxue told Xu Xi.
"Yingxue, put me down, I'm a little tired..."
"Master?"
The girl's smile froze.
That forced smile, that endured smile, became even more "fake" at this moment.
"Master, what are you saying, we're going to escape together from the Ten Thousand Mountains..."
The delicate face trembled uncontrollably.
Beneath the suppression, there was a hint of suppressed sorrow.
"I will, but right now, I want to take a short nap."
Xu Xi was really tired, his speech fragmented, often struggling for breath. With an apologetic tone, he again asked the girl to put him down.
"I'm sorry..."
"Yingxue, you go ahead with everyone first, I'll catch up when I wake up..."
It was still a lie.
A kind lie.
At Xu Xi's request, Wu Yingxue finally stopped insisting, trembling as she laid Xu Xi down on the ground.
This was Xu Xi's path.
The road he had opened for everyone.
He would stay here, watching the girl and the people leave, and also watching himself leave.
"Master..."
The starlight still sparkled, but it couldn't illuminate the girl's face.
It was a face that couldn't stop crying.
Wu Yingxue had truly grown a lot, not as noisy as Xu Xi imagined, nor did she have any extreme actions. She only wiped her tears away with the back of her hand and asked Xu Xi a question.
"Master, how is my performance today rated?"
"Rating, is it..."
Xu Xi looked at the girl's face, at the starry sky behind her, tired but smiling and saying, "It's an A, an excellent A."
The girl was very happy, so happy that she couldn't stop crying.
Tears uncontrollably streamed down, soaking the ground in front of her.
"Go, the future's road is still long."
Xu Xi wiped the girl's tears away, his fingers gently pushing her back, urging her to take steps forward.
Toward a new future, toward the outside world.
That familiar crisp footsteps, slowly became inaudible, disappearing alongside Xu Xi's own breath. He couldn't help but want to sleep.
Beneath the radiance of the starry sky, in the silent darkness, the moon's shadow completely disappeared, covered by the stars.
[You died]
[Simulation ends]