Blue Phoenix

“Did I say something wrong?” Zhu Jun asked worriedly as he saw that Hui Yue scurried after Wang Ju Long, rushing towards the infirmary.

“Not really,” Deng Wu laughed. “It is just that they have not yet reached the point where they can be called a couple. I doubt that Hui Yue has ever even held her hand yet, let alone touched her.”

“That’s not entirely correct,” Rong Xing laughed. “When we were back at the academy, they used to spar with one another. Unfortunately, he did not know her secret back then.”

“How ironic, back then they were like cats and dogs, constantly barking at one another.” Gao Yan snickered while remembering how everything had been all those years back.

“I can hear you!” Hui Yue yelled as he rushed to the infirmary and the friends all quieted down, but laughter was still visible in their eyes. Xiao Ning and the three other Saints could easily guess that this woman was Hui Yue’s weakness.

Stepping into the infirmary tent, Hui Yue saw many wounded experts, some with gaping wounds on their bodies, others with severed limbs. Wood affinity experts rushed back and forth summoning their spiritual energy to heal the most wounded experts first.

A steady stream of experts appeared in the infirmary. Although the Saints had set off many traps, there were still many that had not been triggered. These lower ranked experts were incapable of noticing them, and accidentally setting them off resulted in them becoming severely injured.

Hui Yue quickly glanced around the infirmary, but he saw no one that he knew. A few experts seemed somewhat familiar, but it was not anyone he had directly interacted with before.

Looking through the tent, he did not see Wang Ju Long, so he walked passed the many people who were laying on the ground until he reached the other end. A flap led to the back, towards a part of the tent for the healers, but knowing this Hui Yue showed no signs of stopping. Instead, he went straight through, and he was delighted when he saw Wang Ju Long seated within.

“We need to talk,” He said as he leaned against one of the poles holding the tent, his voice causing Wang Ju Long to jolt and turn to look at him. She was like a rabbit in front of the fox; her eyes flickered from side to side as though contemplating how to get away.

“No more running. They will just keep making fun of us if we don’t get this talked through… You cannot run away forever you know.” Hui Yue said gently as he moved closer to Wang Ju Long and sat down next to her.

“Would you rather I leave you alone?” He asked gently, but within his eyes was a yearning that made Wang Ju Long’s heart beat rapidly.

“No!” She called out before realizing what she had said. As soon as the words escaped her lips, she covered her petite mouth with her snow-white hands. Her eyes widened, and she instantly looked away as her porcelain-white face turned beet red from embarrassment.

The shout that Wang Ju Long let out shocked both Hui Yue and Wang Ju Long, but while the woman was shocked, Hui Yue was delighted. This caused the gentle smile on his face to increased as he placed his hand under Wang Ju Long’s chin and turned her face towards him.

Although she did not resist her eyes were downcast and the red hue on her face was as brilliant as before.

“I am sorry for putting you in this position,” Hui Yue said as he looked at Wang Ju Long’s face. He would never get tired of looking at this beautiful face in front of him. Although she was not a peerless beauty, there was a grace and elegance to her that no other being possessed.

“I know you hate talking about this,” He apologized. “But I really need to know. I want you to be always by my side. I want to travel the worlds with you. I want to grow strong with you, grow old with you, and I want you to experience everything with me.” He continued, and soon he noticed tears in her downcast eyes as a tear slid down her face.

Catching it with his finger, he gently removed the tear and was quiet for some time. While he was quiet, Wang Ju Long shook her head silently and forced her tears back. She then stole a peek at Hui Yue’s face only to realize that he was looking at her.

The red hue from before was now even more crimson than it had been before and she bit her lip, clearly anxious and worried. Seeing her cute expression, Hui Yue sighed deeply as he forced himself to hold back.

There was nothing more in this world Hui Yue wanted more than to hold the woman in front of him in his embrace, but he knew that if he did this, then she would without a doubt run away.

“Please. I know you’re listening to me. All I want is an answer. If you want me to leave you alone, then I promise I will leave you alone, but I need you to tell me yourself. I need you to say it to me.” His words causing Wang Ju Long to shake her head once again.

Slowly she reached her hand out and grabbed the sleeve of Hui Yue’s robe before a mumble could be heard, a mumble so low that even Hui Yue’s sharpened senses were incapable of hearing what she said.

“I can’t hear you,” He whispered but said no more as he knew that Wang Ju Long needed time to overcome her fear of giving in to her emotions. It was as though Wang Ju Long feared that their relationship would change. If things did not work out then that wouldn’t that mean they would leave each other? Leaving things as they were, they could be by each other’s side forever as friends. The one thing Wang Ju Long truly feared was a life without Hui Yue.

“Will you always be by my side?” She asked hesitantly with a very silent, trembling voice. She asked a question which shook Hui Yue’s heart. He moved in front of her, lifted her face once more, and held her head in his hands. “I will never leave you if you promise to never leave me,” He said gently. “I will protect you with my life; I will value you more than anyone else. I will take you through the good times and be by your side in the bad times. I will treasure you for the rest of our lives and take you with me no matter where I go. If you let me, I will never let you go.”

Wang Ju Long’s eyes went from the ground to Hui Yue, only to see the honest and sincere expression on his face. It was clear that he was completely honest about what he said. He truly meant what he said, and this made Wang Ju Long’s heart quiver. She knew how Hui Yue felt for her; she had known for a long time, but the love he showed her was so real, so comfortable, that the barriers around her heart slowly melted.

Grabbing tight on the sleeve of his robe, Wang Ju Long fought the mix of her emotions. She had always wanted to improve her powers so that she could stand tall by Hui Yue, yet here he was promising to always to be by her side.

It was almost too much for her to deal with and all the emotions were crashing inside her. She was scared that Hui Yue would one day grow tired of her, that their relationship would change for the worse. Still looking at the sincerity in Hui Yue’s eyes made her understand just how honest he was and how drawn she was to him. She was drawn to his beautiful blue eyes, drawn to the playful and gentle smile, and drawn to the sudden care he was showing her.

Sitting still, Wang Ju Long was worried about how she should speak her mind. She dared not open her mouth as she feared that her trembling voice wouldn’t produce any words.

Seeing Wang Ju Long’s pleading eyes, Hui Yue instantly understood what was going on within her mind, and a spark of both surprise and happiness ignited within him as he opened his arms and dragged her into his warm embrace.

At first, she was stiff as a log. Her heart was beating rapidly but after feeling the fast beating heart in Hui Yue’s chest, she calmed down a little, and with shaking hands, she returned the hug. Tears fell from her eyes as she finally allowed herself to drown in the emotions she had been suppressing for years.

Hui Yue allowed for Wang Ju Long to cry her heart out as he gently combed his hands through her hair and gently stroked her back. The two were sitting quietly for some time, however, after half an hour another healer entered the room only to stop in her tracks as she looked at Hui Yue and Wang Ju Long in shock. Hui Yue placed his finger to his lips to signal her to be quiet, and the healer smiled gently at Hui Yue before she quietly left. Afterward, there were no others who entered the backroom of the tent. Wang Ju Long had enough time to finally get her thoughts under control and her emotions tamed.

Noticing that she had been crying on Hui Yue’s shoulder she quickly retreated, and her eyes looked everywhere except at Hui Yue. Her face was once more bright red. Laughing Hui Yue touched her face with his fingers, and a cold, invisible force entered her face, returning her puffy eyes to normal. The redness disappeared, and her beauty once more returned to her usual doll-like expression she had before crying.

“Follow me home. No need to stay with this infirmary any longer,” Hui Yue said gently, and Wang Ju Long just nodded her head. So much had happened today, and she was completely exhausted. She wanted nothing more than to just return home to Muchuan City. She wanted to go back to her everyday schedule with a small change.

A smile played on Wang Ju Long’s lips as she suddenly thought to herself, ‘He is mine now. I might be his, but he is also mine.’

Although she thought this, Wang Ju Long was still as shy as ever. When Hui Yue took her hand and started walking through the infirmary many looked their way, some whistled while others grinned. The words caused Hui Yue to grin in happiness while Wang Ju Long was incredibly shy. She could only face downwards trying to hid her face that had gotten even more red while following Hui Yue.

The moment they left the infirmary, Hui Yue found his friends exactly where he had left them. They were talking to one another, most likely about the many things they had experienced yet Deng Wu quickly noticed Hui Yue and Wang Ju Long coming their way. Their faces filled with shock, surprise, and excitement when they noticed that Hui Yue and Wang Ju Long were holding hands.

“It’s about time,” Deng Wu mumbled, and his words caused Rong Ming to grin and Rong Xing to hit him on the back of his head. “Be nice!” She said. “We know that Ju Long is shy. I think it’s amazing she has shown so much courage if we consider her personality.”

Deng Wu said nothing to disagree with Rong Xing but his expression as he looked at her said more than a thousand words. The longing in his eyes and the tenderness was so apparent that she became breathless and took a step back. Her eyes turned away as she once more focused on Wang Ju Long and Hui Yue, completely ignoring Deng Wu. However, while doing so, her heart started aching, and she could not help but feel odd. For reasons she could not understand, her thoughts kept dwelling about Deng Wu. He had somehow become the one person she thought the most about and no matter how much she tried to ignore him, she found herself unable to do so. Maybe this was because of his constant jokes, calling her the flower of his life, the queen of his heart, and other silly names, or perhaps it was because he had proved his sincerity while fighting against those higher ranked experts to keep her safe. Shaking her head, she ignored these emotions and decided to think about them after she returned to Muchuan City.