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Although everyone was worried about the commander's safety and felt anxious and sad, none of them were as distraught as the commander's "personal bodyguard."

These soldiers, who had fought on the battlefield for many years, treated death like an old friend, and did not find it particularly unbelievable. After such a long search, most of them suspected that their commander had probably died of thirst, and they wanted to comfort Tuosang. However, seeing Tuosang's appearance, they were all puzzled and horrified, so no one dared to speak.

Of all the people, only Lu Ling knew Jun Yu and Tuosang's special identities. Compared to the others, he had followed Jun Yu for a long time and felt extremely anxious and sorrowful. However, seeing Tuosang's terrifying appearance, if things continued, he feared he would die before finding Jun Yu. At this moment, Lu Ling disregarded his sorrow, took the water bag from the soldier, stepped forward, and called out loudly, "Young Master Jun, have some water!"

His voice was loud. Tuosang glanced at him, shook his head, and raised his whip again to continue the search.

"Young Master Jun, Marshal Jun may be waiting for you! If you fall, she will live but never see you..."

Tuosang's heart jolted, and he seemed to clear his head a little. He murmured, "Yes, how could she not see me?! I must see her alive, and she must see me alive too... We... We..."

These soldiers were all loyal to Junyu, but they were all even more horrified to hear Tuosang's incoherent words, such as "I must live to see her, and she must live to see me."

But when they saw him take a swig of water from the water pouch and then chew on some dry rations, everyone finally felt a little relieved.

After a short rest, the group set off again to begin their boundless search under the moonlight.

As the sun rose again, the group still hadn't found a trace of them. Moreover, the further they went, the fewer animal carcasses they found. There wasn't a breath of wind in the sky, nor a sound on the ground; the world seemed to have come to an end.

Tuosang glanced at the terrifyingly scorching rising sun and was about to continue his journey when the guide he had hired at great expense cautiously called out to him, "Young Master Jun!"

Seeing the guide's almost trembling expression, he stopped and asked, "What is it?"

"We're already in the 'Sea of Death,' a notorious death trap in this desert, avoided by merchants and devoid of life. I've traveled this desert for years and led many caravans, but my experience only extends this far. I dare not venture any deeper; any further and we'll never come out! Marshal Jun might not be inside, even if he is..."

He didn't continue, meaning that Junyu was alone and had no food or water, so even if he was inside, he would have already died, and there was no need to search any further.

Tuosang understood what he meant, but shook his head. Although the terrible thought had crossed his mind many times, he immediately rejected it when he heard someone say it. How could Junyu die so easily? The more critical the situation, the more he needed to find her.

Some soldiers, looking at the lifeless desert and the occasional skeleton, felt a sense of dread. They didn't want to retreat, but the thought of getting lost and dying of thirst after running out of food and water was far more terrifying than dying in battle.

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Chapter 336: The Liar

Tuosang looked at the vast Dead Sea ahead, then at the guide, then at the group of soldiers, and smiled: "Continue searching around here, and wait for my signal."

Lu Ling shook his head: "Let's go in together. The more people there are, the wider the search area will be."

Tuosang looked at the boundless "sea of death." These few hundred people were like tiny specks of dust in it. Why let them die in vain?

He immediately said, "Search this area. Send a signal if you find anything. You have seven days. If I don't come out, you all go back and don't worry about me!"

"Young Master..."

"I set off with three camels."

Seeing his resolute expression and complete return to his usual composure, Lu Ling immediately said, "Young Master Jun, I'll go with you!"

"No need! You're in charge of leading this group. They came out safe and sound, so they should return safely!"

Seeing his stern gaze, Lu Ling had no choice but to nod: "We'll wait for you here."

"There is a team waiting for you on the edge of the desert. If you can't wait for me, return immediately without delay!"

Lu Ling stared at him in surprise and suspicion: "We should at least wait for you to leave together..."

"You don't need to wait for me!"

Seeing his resolute and calm expression, Lu Ling felt even more frightened, but dared not say anything more. She could only lower her head, neither answering nor continuing to ask questions.

The three camels set off with plenty of water and dry rations.

These camels were used by caravans that had long been accustomed to the desert. They were not only familiar with the routes but also very docile. Tuosang had already become very familiar with the nature of camels when he was doing large-scale livestock trade at the border. Therefore, he didn't care about them and just rode his own horse, letting the camels follow him.

At the edge of this world, the distinction between time and space is almost indistinguishable; one only sees the sunrise turn into sunset, and the sunset into the moon.

That vibrant and alluring face gradually came into focus before him, and a surge of joy filled his heart. He reached out his hand, "Junyu, Junyu, I've been looking for you for so long..."

It seemed like I was about to touch it, but then my heart went empty, and my hands went empty too. What landed on my hand was a grain of sand blown by the night wind!

Has that person already departed from this hustle and bustle of the world?

The thought tore at his heart. In this suffocating, deathly silence, the three camels and horses seemed to have turned into wooden camels and horses, motionless and silent. Tuosang looked at them and suddenly felt that they were no different from the sand that filled the world.

"Tuo-san, I always feel like it's all a dream. I feel like I'm in a dream..."

"Tuosan, I really hope the war ends soon. That way, you can comb my hair every day."

"Tuo Sang, let's go sightseeing first, and then we can do whatever we want..."

"Junyu..." he called out, his voice echoing in the boundless moonlight. For a long, long time, only his long shadow remained on the sand.

"Junyu, where are you? You promised to leave with me..."

"Junyu, you promised... You've never broken your promise to anyone before, why are you breaking your promise to me alone? You liar..."

"Junyu, even if you're going to leave, you should wait for me..."

"Junyu..."

Every grain of sand in the vast desert was imbued with this heart-wrenching cry of despair. Slowly, the sound faded away, leaving only a low sigh, "Junyu, if you are gone, where shall I find you?"

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Chapter 337: The Enemy

The sky was already ablaze with stars. Yet, this dazzling night sky was filled with the aura of death.

Junyu lay on the sand, sometimes lucid, sometimes confused. Gradually, the moments of lucidity became fewer and fewer. In her confusion, she seemed to hear faint, soft whispers in her ear—Tuosang's voice, and his outstretched, gentle hands: "Junyu, I've come, I've come to find you..."

"Tuo Sang... Tuo Sang..." She opened her mouth and tried her best to call out in response, but the sound from her chapped lips was so faint that she couldn't even hear it clearly herself.

Junyu shook her head and blinked. There was no one in front of her; it was all an illusion. Her last glimmer of hope and her burning desire to live were completely extinguished. Her vision went black again, and she lay on the sand, almost unconscious.

The starlight had faded, leaving only a thin, equally dim crescent moon hanging coldly overhead. In a daze, Junyu suddenly felt a dampness on her lips.

She barely opened her eyes. A dark figure sat silently beside her, resting her head on his chest. The wetness on his lips was from him dripping water into his mouth.

At this moment, she was completely dehydrated and could not drink water; she could only slowly drip water like this.

"Tuo Sang..." Junyu's eyes were blurry, and she couldn't see the person next to her clearly. Overjoyed, she lowered her head and leaned into his broad embrace, stretching out her weak hands to try to hug his waist.

"In your heart, there will always only be one Tuosang!"

The tone was as flat as still water, definitely not Tuosang's voice.

Junyu's arms, which had been barely holding his waist, fell limply. She looked up suddenly, but her head felt heavy, and she could barely struggle.

He looked at her limp, powerless hand, then at the deep wound on her left shoulder, and slowly moved the water pouch away from her hand, carefully placing it aside.

The water bladder was still more than half full. Next to it was a small bag of dry rations that had been stolen.

For the first two days, he drank water sparingly, maintaining his strength and estimating how long he could last. However, after two days, he also stopped drinking completely. No matter how thirsty he was, he endured it, almost forgetting he had that life-saving water bag. Because he knew all too well that those ahead, struggling to find direction and water, had never drunk a drop. By now, she had gone seven whole days without water, and with the added burden of traveling every night, if it weren't for her profound internal strength, she would have already perished in the desert.

She forced her eyes open, looking into those calm and numb eyes, "Zhu Yu... why did you come back?"

"I can't kill you with my own hands, so I'll just have to watch you die!"

"oh!"

He listened to her weak voice and looked at her, unable to even lift her hand. For many years, he had never seen or imagined that the once dashing young man would one day be as ordinary as an ordinary person in dire straits. At this moment, she was no longer the Flying General of Fengcheng, and her unparalleled beauty had completely vanished. She was disheveled, on the verge of death, and utterly withered!

The pale moonlight shone on her, making her face appear deathly white. A pang of pain shot through him. He gently embraced her, touched her cold cheek, and said bitterly, "Junyu, I've never seen a woman uglier than you!"

"oh!"

The pain in his heart couldn't suppress the deep hatred within him. He glared at her fiercely: "You were lost and had no water. I hoped you would at least follow the hoofprints to find me. But I waited all night, and you still didn't catch up..."

"Zhu Yu...you...I..."

He stared intently at her: "What? What about me?"

Junyu shook his head slightly without saying a word.

A self-deprecating smile played on his lips. "In this desert, water is life. I'm not Tuosang, so why would I share my life with you, Junyu? That's what you think, isn't it?"

"No! I don't want to drag you down... if..."

"If I were truly your enemy, you would follow without hesitation, wouldn't you? You might not drink the enemy's water, but it wouldn't hurt to follow an enemy who knows the way, would it?"

Junyu remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

He stared at her hatefully, his gaze almost as frenzied as when he was chasing her, "I'm not even as good as your enemy!"

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Chapter 338: Enemy or Lover

"If I were truly your enemy, you would follow without hesitation, wouldn't you? You might not drink the enemy's water, but it wouldn't hurt to follow an enemy who knows the way, would it?"

Junyu remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

He stared at her hatefully, his gaze almost as frenzied as when he was chasing her, "I'm not even as good as your enemy!"

"Besides, after I mocked you like that, we're neither enemies nor friends anymore, right? That's right, I was never your friend to begin with, so why did you insist on treating me like one?"

"I still stubbornly believe that, all these years, even though you didn't like me, you should at least know how I feel about you!" Seeing that Junyu remained silent, he angrily shouted, "You don't like me, and you're afraid that drinking my water will make you owe me even more, so you'd rather die than 'drag me down'..."

Seeing that he was getting louder and louder, Junyu couldn't help but smile: "Do you think you're so great? You're the one who's not great! You have a lot of faults too, you have a bad temper and you're so difficult..."

"So what if I'm stubborn? So what if I'm bad? I can't control others, but you absolutely have to understand and believe in me!"

"Why should I forgive you? You chased me and tried to kill me, how could I dare to chase after you again?!"

"You're afraid too? What excuse? Even if you see me go crazy, see me chasing you, you can't doubt me! You may not like me, but you should at least trust me as much as you trust Tuosang!"

Junyu was speechless and simply shut her mouth to save herself the energy.

Seeing that she remained silent, Zhu Yu smiled self-deprecatingly again. "Junyu, you keep saying you trust me, but you still harbor suspicion towards me! If it were Tuosang, even if he went mad, you wouldn't be wary of him, would you?"

“If it were Tuosang, no matter how crazy he got, he wouldn’t have tried to cut me with a knife. If it were Tuosang, he would never have mocked me and left in that situation; if it were Tuosang, he would never have asked me to compromise just out of spite!”

He was delighted to hear her weak voice suddenly become fluent, and he couldn't help but grasp her limp hand, saying resentfully, "Can you please stop talking about that annoying person all the time? I want to kill someone just hearing his name!"

She didn't answer. Those drops of life-saving water slowly brightened her eyes a little. She looked around: "Zhu Yu, where's your horse?"