Eternal Night

Chapter 190

The towering peaks stretched into the clouds, and my fingers ached terribly.

I finally managed to stand on a protruding rock halfway up the mountain. I couldn't help but cry. No matter what I did, I couldn't climb any further; there was nowhere to hold on, and even my light-footed skills couldn't get me up there.

I don't even know how much longer I can hold out here.

My fingers were firmly stuck in the crevice, and I shouted at the top of my lungs, "I can't get up!"

No one paid any attention to me. As I stared at the mist surrounding me, my head grew increasingly dizzy. Finally, I let go of my hand, screamed, and fell off the cliff.

A soft laugh came from the top of the cliff, and a figure flew down, grabbed my waist, and jumped up along a rope.

Little White stood on the cliff, and it was the Valley Master who pulled me up.

I looked at him; his eyes held only heartache, his brows slightly furrowed. Suddenly, he knelt before the Valley Master and said loudly, "Eagle Feather is willing to die; please, Valley Master, release her from the valley."

His name is Yingyu (Eagle Feather), it sounds nice.

I snorted and asked the Valley Master, "Do you really keep your word?"

"nature."

"You said that as long as I can get to the top of the cliff, that's fine, but there's no rule about who pulls me up. Anyway, I got up, didn't I?" I said confidently.

The Valley Master paused for a moment, then a smile appeared in his eyes: "Yes, you've come up. Eagle Feather can pay attention to you now."

I laughed happily, grabbed the eagle's feathers, and exclaimed, "See? I did it! Let's go!"

Eagle Feather stiffened, looked at me, and said, word by word, "You should leave. This place is not suitable for you."

"You clearly said that as long as I could get up here, you wouldn't ignore me." I felt so wronged that I wanted to cry. My hands hurt. I had climbed the cliff like a monkey for him, and he actually told me to leave?

The valley master smiled: "The rules of the valley are that if you want to leave, you can only do so by venturing into the valley."

"Go ahead and try, Eagle Feather, are you scared?" I looked at the Valley Master defiantly.

Eagle Feather turned to look at me and asked, "Are you afraid of death?"

I shook my head.

Without saying a word, he grabbed my hand, pulled on the rope, and flew down the cliff like an eagle. I hugged him tightly, feeling happier than ever before.

When we reached the cliff, he carefully took my hand and pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket to bandage my wound.

That was the handkerchief I used to wrap his wound. I asked him in surprise, "You still have it?"

A blush crossed his face, and he said softly, "If you want to leave, I'll go with you, even if it means death."

I was deeply moved and hugged him, choking back tears: "As long as I'm with you, I'm not afraid of death."

He took my hand and we slowly walked towards the mouth of the valley.

Reaching the flower field at the valley entrance, I saw a man standing there—it was indeed the Valley Master. My heart pounded with nervousness. Eagle Feather released my hand and drew his sword.

I witnessed him exchange five hundred blows with Yi Zhongtian. His sword was already exceptionally sharp, but in the hands of the Valley Master, it took less than a hundred moves.

Eagle Feather lay on the ground looking at me, his eyes filled with sorrow, as if he could no longer take me with him.

The man smiled at me and said, "If you can't get through, you'll only die."

As he spoke, he swung his sword down at Yingyu.

Without thinking, I pounced on Yingyu. Looking into Yingyu's eyes, at that moment, I felt that death was not a painful thing.

A strange expression suddenly appeared in Yingyu's eyes. I didn't know why that sword hadn't fallen for so long. When I looked back, the person was already gone.

We easily made our way out of the valley. When we reached the valley entrance, I stopped and said with a smile, "Let's go back."

"Why? Didn't you not want to stay in the valley?"

I blinked: "It's actually very good here, and it's the same outside. Anyway, we've been out here once, so if we're not comfortable in the future, we can just go out again."

A smile played on his lips; it was the first time I'd ever seen him smile. He looked so handsome when he smiled. He pulled me into his arms and sighed, "Because you were willing to die for me, that's why he let us go."

"Why?"

"There are too many secrets in this valley. You are an outsider. Once you know them, you will never be able to leave. Are you willing?"

I nodded. I am content with being with him. I have experienced power and wealth, but nothing makes me feel as secure and safe as having him by my side.

Eagle Feather led me back to the valley.

Only then did I realize that this was the famous Youli Valley.

Extra Chapter: An Xiaosi

My elder brother said that my mother had accepted the betrothal gifts and betrothed me to the Third Prince of Anguo, who was then General Li Tianxiang.

Rumor has it that the Third Prince of Anguo has the air of the former Prince Duan, handsome and dashing. I couldn't help but scoff. He's just relying on his father's influence. Even the battle where he defeated the Chen army at Sanyu Pass with Prince Duan was probably just Prince Duan taking care of this nephew. Anyone with a brain could figure out what great abilities an eighteen-year-old could possibly have.

But the rumors made many young ladies admire him. They kept saying that I had been betrothed to a good family.

Although my An family is wealthy, we are still merchants. Given his status and position, I'm marrying above my station. Even a fool could tell that he's only marrying the An family for their money. The thought makes me miserable.

I heard he was in Qin Chuan. I made up my mind, took some silver, and sneaked across the Qin River to see for myself what kind of person he was.

As soon as I entered Qin Chuan City, I was surrounded by soldiers. I asked disdainfully, "Are the soldiers of Anguo going to abduct women in the streets?"

“Miss, you are mistaken. My subordinates are here to protect you.” The speaker was young, dressed in a scarlet brocade robe embroidered with golden dragons. He was tall and imposing.