Su Ming closed his eyes. The scenes he saw that night weighed heavy against his chest and tightened around his heart. It was a desolate and sad kind of feeling.
‘Just who was that corpse in Fire Berserker Tribe..? Why was he the only one who managed to end his own life before he turned into a Wings of the Moon..? Perhaps he was… one of the stronger Berserkers in Fire Berserker Tribe…’
As Su Ming recalled the strange corpse in his head, he sighed, then turned his attention to the thing that occupied his mind even more – the complicated words he saw.
‘The desire to obtain Berserk spreads to all corners of the earth. Let fire burn in mine blood, let mine thoughts burn the skies, let fire burn heaven into ashes… If "t be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth… I wilt sink into deep bethought as the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and wors.h.i.+p the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire!’
Su Ming did not understand what the words meant. While he was thinking about them, he saw Bai Ling standing by his side. She was looking at her surroundings. Her gaze was curious. It was clear that she was unaware of the place’s purpose.
"Let’s go, Miss Bai Ling." Su Ming smiled slightly and crawled out of the cave through the entrance.
Bai Ling quickly followed him. She had wanted to leave a long time ago. Every breath she spent at the place made her feel uncomfortable.
The moment they got out of the tunnel, a gust of wind immediately brushed against their skins. They felt like they were about to be blown away by the storm. Bai Ling’s face was pale as she held onto a rock next to her.
She had been pampered as she grew up in the tribe and practically never climbed such a mountain before. Even if she gritted her teeth to endure it, her increasingly ashen face exposed her fears.
Su Ming looked at Bai Ling. He had never seen a girl of her beauty before. Her pale face especially made her look delicate.
"It’s fine, I’ll carry you." Su Ming scratched his head but his heart was starting beat quicker.
"You…" Bai Ling hesitated for a moment then looked at the bottom of the mountain. It looked like an endless abyss. Finally, she nodded her head.
Su Ming’s spirits were lifted and he squatted down in front of Bai Ling. Bai Ling blushed as she climbed onto Su Ming’s back silently. Her arms found their way around Su Ming’s neck instinctively.
Su Ming blinked. She was a soft presence on his back. He could also clearly smell a nice fragrance wafting into his nostrils. He took a deep breath as an indescribable feeling blossomed in his chest.
"Hey… Hold on tight. If you fall, don’t blame me," Su Ming said instinctively. However, he did not hear any sound coming from his back. After a moment of hesitation, he s.h.i.+fted his focus on climbing down the mountain.
With his agility and familiarity with the mountain, carrying someone would not have affected his speed too much. Yet, for some reason today, Su Ming only took the steep paths. Sometimes, he would even jump down, making the person on his back scream. Then he would grab onto some rocks or vines as he fell.
When he felt the delicate person on his back holding onto him tighter, a pleased expression appeared on Su Ming’s face.
The time required to descend from the top to the foot of Black Flame Mountain was actually quite short but Su Ming spent an entire two hours to climb down. When Bai Ling got off his back, her face was entirely red and her eyes were filled will fear. Su Ming felt a slight hint of pity that this whole thing had ended. He coughed into his hand and looked at Bai Ling.
"We’re in the forest now. The snow is very thick here. There are also quite a lot of traps placed here. There’s also some distance left before you can reach Dark Dragon Tribe. It’ll be dangerous for you go back alone. How about this? I’ll escort you to Dark Dragon Tribe first, then I’ll go back home," Su Ming spoke slowly and kept an eye on Bai Ling’s expression. When he saw that Bai Ling hesitated, joy blossomed in his chest and he quickly spoke again.
"But the road back to your place is rather difficult to travel. Look, I don’t mind carrying you on my back again. This way, we can save time and I can go back home faster too." Su Ming frowned and spoke once he looked at the sky.
"Then…" Bai Ling bit her lip as her cheeks flushed red again. She could tell he did everything earlier on purpose when they were descending from Black Flame Mountain. If it continued… Her eyes flashed with anger due to the embarra.s.sment she felt.
"Hey, I saved you, you know?" Su Ming widened his eyes. He saw the anger in Bai Ling’s eyes and felt a little guilty. Nonetheless, when he remembered that he had saved her, he felt his actions were justified.
"You don’t want to? Fine, you’re a Berserker anyway. There may be a lot of wild beasts and traps here, maybe even some Wings of the Moon. But, if you’re careful, you should be fine… Alright, I’ll be taking my leave." Su Ming yawned and turned towards the direction of his tribe. However before he could even take a few steps forward, he heard a gentle voice speaking anxiously.
"Then… thank you… I don’t know the way, please send me back to my tribe…"
Su Ming’s spirits immediately lifted but he kept a straight face. He even frowned a little, looking as if he was extremely reluctant to escort her back. He cast a glance at Bai Ling, then crouched down and spoke impatiently.
"Hurry up. We’ll see whether we can get back before night falls. If we can’t, we’ll have to find a place to spend the night."
Bai Ling widened her eyes and stared at Su Ming. She was beginning to somewhat understand the person before her. When she thought of the incident that happened at the square, she did not know what to say to him.
More importantly, he appeared when she had given up all hope. She would never forget the resolution and determination in his eyes when he appeared in the cave.
Blus.h.i.+ng, Bai Ling gently walked to Su Ming’s side and climbed onto that frail back of his once more. She could hear her heart beating rapidly against her chest but she could not identify the emotion she was experiencing at that moment.
Su Ming ran through the forest like a monkey with Bai Ling on his back. He really liked the sweet smell she exuded. As he ran, he changed his path and circled around the forest.
After a while, Bai Ling’s eyes glinted with an odd expression. She started to wrap her arms tighter around Su Ming’s neck.
"We’ve walked through this place three times…" she spoke softly as she looked at a withered tree not far from their location.
"What? Really? Am I lost? Wait, I’ll go check." Su Ming faltered in his footsteps. He looked surprised and scrutinized his surroundings before he nodded his head gravely.
"You’re right. I’ve never come to this place before." There was no hint of awkwardness on his face as he changed direction and started running once again.
Time pa.s.sed by slowly. They only managed to cover about half the distance to Dark Mountain Tribe by sunset, a destination they should have arrived at by twilight. However, Su Ming brought Bai Ling to Dark Mountain Tribe on the way back. He looked at his tribe from afar. When he saw no signs of abnormality from within the tribe, he felt at ease and left.
When Bai Ling saw the sky darkening, the expression in her eyes became even odder.
Once the sky became completely dark, Su Ming stopped at a part of the forest and looked at Bai Ling helplessly.
"Looks like we’ll have to spend the night here… The forest is dangerous at night. We can only move ahead tomorrow morning."
The cunning look Su Ming saw the first time he met Bai Ling had returned. She watched Su Ming quietly and did not speak. Under her gaze, Su Ming felt increasingly guilty.
"Alright then, let’s spend the night here." After a while, Bai Ling smiled. Her smile was really beautiful and her wild vibe resurfaced.
Su Ming touched his nose and smiled as well. He got up and built a temporary resting place on a big tree. Then he sat there with Bai Ling.
Both of them fell silent. It was as though they did not know what to say to each other.
"I still don’t know your name." After some time, Bai Ling looked at Su Ming. Her eyes were even brighter under the moonlight.
"I’m Su Ming. I know your name is Bai Ling," Su Ming said as he looked at Bai Ling and smiled.
"You lied to me at the square, right? Hmph, I thought it was odd when I went back to the tribe," said Bai Ling as she blinked and wrinkled her nose. It was really adorable.
"That is…"
"You’re also not the Young Lord of Dark Mountain Tribe, right?" Bai Ling looked around with her bright eyes and spoke while chuckling softly.
Su Ming scratched his head, not knowing what to say. At that moment, snow started falling from the sky. The entire sky was decorated with white flakes of snow.
"Oh, it’s snowing." Su Ming changed the subject by immediately lifting his head and looking at the snow.
Bai Ling smiled through her eyes. She did not continue with the topic and chose to look at the sky as well. She looked at the snow. Some of them fell on her face. It felt cool and comfortable.
The snow became heavier and the two individuals in the forest seemed entranced by its beauty. They were silent.
"Su Ming, thank you…" The sky was already dark to begin with. However as the moonlight reflected off the surface of the snow, their surroundings appeared to be illuminated by a silvery light. As such, the forest was not as dark as it was previously.
"Thank you for saving me… Can you tell me about yourself? Why were you there?" Bai Ling looked at Su Ming and spoke softly.
"I usually go to the mountains to pick herbs. That was a place I found accidentally and I use it as a shelter to avoid the cold. I just didn’t expect to see Wings of the Moon yesterday…" Su Ming did not talk about using the place for quenching herbs. Instead , he told her a different story.
Time pa.s.sed by slowly. During the snowy night, Su Ming and Bai Ling talked with each other more and gradually got to know each other… Their voices were carried away by the winds blowing in the winter.
"The elder of Dark Dragon Tribe is my grandma… My dad and mom left Dark Dragon Tribe a long time ago. I heard from my grandma that they went to a tribe bigger than Wind Stream. They haven’t been back for a long time…" Bai Ling hugged herself and spoke about her past in a low tone under the snow.
"I don’t even know who my dad and mom are… I was brought back to the tribe by the elder…" Su Ming mumbled.
"Ah, so that’s how it is. That’s why I thought you looked much frailer compared to the others. You’re not even as tall as I am. Your elder must have been mistreating you." Bai Ling widened her eyes.
"No way, the elder is very good to me. Besides, you may be tall but I heard from the elder that in a few years, I’ll also be as tall as you. Also, you’re not as big as the other girls in your tribe," Su Ming laughed and said.
"That’s because my elder taught me a Berserker Art. I heard that my mom asked my grandma to teach me the Art when I grow up." Bai Ling looked at Su Ming’s hair, now dyed white with snow. She smiled teasingly as she spoke.