"Kongshan Ridge".
As he spoke, he grabbed her hand, his clenched fingers like an iron lock that could never be opened.
flash flood
Ban Lan tried to shake off his arm, but accidentally pulled on his wound and cried out in pain.
"What's wrong?" Cen Ji quickly turned around and asked.
"I pulled on the wound." Ban Lan winced in pain as she bent down, used her Qingguang sword to cut open the hem of her skirt, tore off a corner, and bandaged the wound layer by layer.
She tried to tie a knot in the strip of cloth with one hand, and after struggling for a while, she finally gently pushed Cen Ji and said, "Hey, help me tie a knot, don't just stand there like an idiot."
After saying that, Ban Lan suddenly froze.
She saw an unprecedented dejection on Cen Ji's face, his eyes filled with deep helplessness and self-blame.
Cen Ji was pushed and swayed. He slowly raised his hand and groped for the layers of gauze wrapped around her arm.
His movements were very light and slow, and his cautious manner made Ban Lan want to urge him on, but she couldn't bear to.
The rain was still heavy, so when Cen Ji uttered the words "I'm sorry" with trembling lips, Ban Lan didn't hear him clearly. She only saw Cen Ji slightly open his mouth, as if he were saying something.
"What did you say?"
Cen Ji didn't say anything more. After bandaging Ban Lan's wound, he took her hand, pulled her around, and walked away.
"Hey, I'm not going to Kongshanling!"
Seeing that Ban Lan was about to exert force, Cen Ji quickly let go of her hand.
Where are you going?
"Fish Eye Valley!"
“Okay, let’s go to Fish Eye Valley then.” With that, Cen Ji pulled her along and walked in the opposite direction.
Ban Lan didn't move. She looked at Cen Ji's face and said, "Cen Qi, if you can't find evidence to prove your innocence, no matter how good you are to me, I will still avenge my junior brother."
Cen Ji paused for a moment, then regained his composure.
"I know."
Ban Lan pursed her lips and said, "Good to know. I'm leaving now, don't follow me." After saying that, she turned and ran, as if afraid that Cen Ji would chase after her.
She had only run a few steps when she couldn't help but look back.
With just one glance, she was unable to take another step.
She didn't know why, but the silence at that moment made her feel sad and heartbroken.
She watched as Cen Ji frowned, looking up in the direction she had left. His gaunt face seemed to grow even thinner from the rain, as if the rain would eventually wash away his silent figure.
His long gown was somewhat torn, and the fabric at the hem, ripped by branches, lay silently open, revealing the rough edges of the cloth.
Ban Lan walked forward step by step, reaching out to touch the cuts.
These were probably torn while searching for her.
Yes, he can't see. How could she forget?
Noticing Ban Lan's touch, Cen Ji reached out and slowly took her hand in his, sighing, "Let's go. Go wherever you want, but you're not allowed to run away again."
Banlan didn't know when the rain would stop; all she knew was that her heart was soaked. She began to wonder if her heart was made of cotton, why it became so heavy after being rained on, suffocating her.
Ban Lan looked up at Cen Ji, and after a long while, she finally spoke, saying, "I'll go back to Kongshan Ridge with you." After saying that, she actually grabbed Cen Ji's hand and walked up the mountain as if leading him.
Cen Ji couldn't help but laugh: "Are you afraid that I'll run headfirst into the rocks because I can't see?"
"That's right." Ban Lan didn't hide anything.
The two remained silent the entire way until they reached the halfway point of the mountain, when Cen Ji suddenly spoke up: "Do you remember what you asked me that time?"
Ban Lan asked, puzzled, "Which time are you talking about?"
Cen Ji said, "If you change for me, I will not like you."
Ban Lan's expression changed slightly, but she remained silent.
Cen Ji continued, "I shook my head..."
Ban Lan interrupted, "I remember."
Cen Ji suddenly stopped and turned to Ban Lan: "Why do you always have to interrupt me?"
Ban Lan turned her face away: "I know what you're going to say, that's enough."
Cen Ji paused for a moment, then turned around, pulled Ban Lan up, and continued walking.
“I don’t want you to change, so I shook my head.”
Ban Lan looked up at Cen Ji with some surprise.
She suddenly remembered what He Bi had said. Was this the misunderstanding he insisted on explaining to her in person?
Ban Lan suddenly felt a little flustered. Just as she was thinking about what to do, she suddenly heard a rumbling sound coming from afar.
Cen Ji's hearing was far more acute than Ban Lan's, and upon hearing the sound, his expression changed drastically: "The rain is too heavy; there may be flash floods!"
Ban Lan panicked a little and was about to speak when she suddenly saw countless rocks of different sizes rolling down the slope above her head, about to hit the two of them.
Ban Lan was so shocked by such a sight that she forgot to move.
"Run!" Cen Ji heard it clearly and suddenly grabbed Ban Lan and ran forward.
Before they had run more than ten feet, they heard a series of crashing and clattering rocks. First, there were scattered collisions, followed by a torrent of rocks falling like rain.
The two ran for a while longer when Ban Lan suddenly slipped and fell forward. Cen Ji quickly reached out to help her, but the muddy ground was slippery, and Ban Lan's fall was quite strong, causing Cen Ji to slip as well, and they both fell down together. In the blink of an eye, Cen Ji's mind raced, and he suddenly reached out and grabbed Ban Lan, doing a somersault so that he fell backward onto the ground.
There were many stones on the ground. Cen Ji felt a sharp pain in his back as some sharp stones pierced his flesh. Cen Ji couldn't help but groan and clench his teeth.
Ban Lan glanced at the rubble scattered on the ground, her heart clenched, and she hurriedly tried to get up to check on Cen Ji's injuries.
Before she could even straighten up, she heard a loud, booming sound, like a surging tide. She looked up and saw countless rocks mixed with muddy water rolling down the slope, about to crush the two of them.
Upon hearing the sound, Cen Ji sensed something was wrong and quickly pulled Ban Lan into his arms, rolling her towards the roadside. Before Ban Lan could react, the two had already fallen from the roadside onto the slope and tumbled down the hillside. As soon as they landed, they heard a loud rumble overhead, indicating that the spot where they had just stood had been covered by mud and rocks.
Kongshan Ridge is quite steep, with many bushes growing horizontally on the mountainside. Their intertwined branches inevitably tear at clothes and skin. Cen Ji held Ban Lan tightly in his arms as they rolled down the mountain. Ban Lan felt a sudden dizziness, followed by a chill as she fell into a wide, fast-flowing river in the mountains.
The two had barely fallen into the river when a gust of current swept them away, causing them to choke on several mouthfuls of water.
The torrential rain continued, and the water level of the mountain river rose rapidly. The two were swept up and down several times by the raging water, unable to stand, and were carried downstream by the rapid current. Cen Ji heard the sound of the water getting louder and louder, and was greatly alarmed.
"There's a waterfall ahead!" Cen Ji shouted.
Ban Lan was extremely anxious. She strained her neck to look, and suddenly saw a thick log lying not far from where the river was flowing. With quick reflexes, just as the two of them were being swept downstream, she swiftly reached out and grabbed the log.
Cen Ji couldn't see anything, but he felt their momentum being blocked. Then Ban Lan's voice rang in his ears: "Cen Qi! Grab the crossbar!"
Upon hearing this, Cen Ji freed one hand and reached forward to grab.
Seeing that he was still clinging tightly to her with his other arm, Ban Lan shouted, "I'm fine! Don't worry about me, let's get ashore!"
Cen Ji interrupted, "You go up first!"
Knowing that he wouldn't change his mind, Ban Lan hugged the crossbeam and slowly moved towards the shore.
Just as they were about to reach the shore, Ban Lan suddenly felt a lightness on his back, and a chill ran through him. He turned around and looked back. It turned out that when the two of them rolled down the mountain, the bundle on Ban Lan's back had already been torn to shreds by thorns and bushes. Now, being swept away by the rapid current, the Qingguang Sword on his back finally fell out of the damaged area and was instantly washed away without a trace.
"The sword has fallen!" Ban Lan shouted, and without thinking, he plunged into the water and never looked back.
Cen Ji was taken aback, and his heart instantly turned cold.
"Banlan!"
"Banlan!!"
The sound of water filled my ears, but that crisp, clear sound was missing.
Cen Ji pushed aside the thick log and was immediately swept forward by the rushing water. In a short while, Cen Ji felt a lightness all over his body and then plummeted down, falling into a crystal-clear lake below the waterfall in the blink of an eye.
Cen Ji swam more than ten feet away from where he had fallen into the water and shouted Ban Lan's name. However, the sound of the river crashing down was too loud, and his voice was drowned out by the rushing water as soon as he spoke.
As Cen Ji swam, he called out to Ban Lan. Before long, his feet touched the bottom of the lake, indicating that the shore was approaching.
Cen Ji suddenly stopped, panting heavily.
He was waiting, waiting for that clear and bright voice to ring in his ears again.
He choked on water quite a bit when he fell from the sky, but for some reason, his throat was incredibly dry now.
He stopped shouting and yelling, and just stood silently in the lake.
The cool lake water washed over his shoulders, and his distraught expression was reflected on the clear lake surface, shattered by the countless raindrops.
Thunder rumbled and rain poured down. Cen Ji's mind went blank, and he had no idea where he was.
Another rumble of thunder sounded, so close it seemed to echo right above our heads.
Cen Ji was stunned for a moment, then suddenly came to his senses.
He finally realized that he had lost her.
But he didn't feel any heartache at all.
Yes, when the heart is dead, of course you won't feel pain.
Cen Ji frowned slightly, slowly pressing his hand to his chest; the regular beating beneath his palm proved that he was still alive.
If the heart is clearly dead, why is it still beating?
No, it shouldn't have jumped! Cen Ji unconsciously clenched his fist and punched it hard against his heart.
Although his attacks contained no internal force, they were extremely heavy and merciless. In just two or three blows, his ribs felt as if they were shattering, yet he seemed oblivious, continuing to slowly and heavily pound his chest. After several such blows, as he raised his hand again, he suddenly felt a tightness in his wrist, followed by the sound of rushing water, as if someone was emerging from the water.