C2 (1/2)

It was slightly cold.

Fan Mu sat paralyzed beside an elm tree, as if he had regained his life. Everything seemed like a dream, but the pain was so excruciating, yet there was still some blood left on the corner of his mouth. He had suffered a crushing defeat, and he had no strength to fight back.

Fan Mu's memories were still stuck after the first time he had fainted. It was as if the huge black shadow had not been controlled by him. Fan Mu did not know at this moment that Fan Yun had been personally killed by him from this world.

Back to the main topic, when Fan Mu recalled how he passed out. He did not move an inch, the white skin on his legs was still extremely swollen, but the pain on his soul was even more unbearable, it was difficult to breathe as he pounded his chest. Fan Mu tore off the jade he carried with him and bellowed, ”Why are you doing this to me? I can clearly do it, it's all because of your damn jade contract. It makes it impossible for my elemental energy to condense.

After complaining, Fan Mu fell into deep thought once more. He had already suffered countless times, but he didn't care one more time. He lowered his head, and slowly let go of the jade in his hand, and looked at the white rock. He mumbled to himself, ”Mother, oh, why did you give it to me? You said it to make me stronger, and now I'm nothing but a piece of trash, a piece of trash in everyone's eyes, hehe …” As his words reached a breaking point, Fan Mu smiled instead of crying.

The laughter contained helplessness and bitterness. In the quiet forest with Xiao Sen, the people who heard it were shocked and could not help but feel sorry for him.

When he was tired from laughing, a tear rolled down the corner of Fan Mu's eye as memories flooded his mind …

That year, when Fan Mu was very young, his father had left him in a hurry due to his mission. However, the inside story said that he was summoned to the Imperial City by the Emperor. Since then, there had been no news of him.

However, a few years ago, the Long Wu Empire's church bewitched the royal family into waging an aggressive war. Fan Mu's father, Fan Kui, was appointed to defend the city by the Emperor of the Nine Prefectures. Fan Kui was able to defeat 20,000 enemies with a mere twenty thousand elites and strike down the enemies with a heavy blow. He became famous in one battle.

In the war that followed, both Fan Kui and the Dragonhawk Regiment displayed their impressive abilities. In the end, they were awarded the title First Warrior of the Nine Regions by the Emperor of the Nine Prefectures with outstanding military exploits. Their fame spread far and wide, but strangely, after a few months, Fan Kui disappeared into thin air, and no one knew where he had gone to. Furthermore, all the information regarding Fan Kui's battle had been completely sealed off. It was no wonder that Fan Mu didn't know anything about his father.

Before he could say anything about his father, his father had already been recruited. Whenever he mentioned this matter, his mother would smile warmly and say in a quiet voice that his father had gone off to do great things. When Mu Er grew up, his father would naturally come back.

Therefore, Fan Mu had always been full of hope and happiness. He diligently practiced his combat skills and flipped through the various ancient books, his soul force increasing day by day. But before his father could return, his mother had left another letter and left as well.

The letter read: Mu'er, please forgive my mother for leaving without saying goodbye. The days I spent with Mu Er were my mother's happiest days, but for some reasons, my mother could not wait any longer. My father was calling for my help. Mu Er, you must take care of yourself. The letter is beside the contract jade that I left for you, but if possible, mother really hopes that you don't walk this path. However, that was your decision, and I won't interfere with you. Your father and I are fine. Your father is a hero, don't worry. If Mu Er really wants to look for us, we'll meet again when your elemental energy has reached the Black Rank or higher. Mu Er has to listen to Aunt Redbud, so … Mu Er, take care.

The simplest piece of paper was covered in tears from her mother's reluctance to part with it.

”Bang!” Fragments of memory mercilessly split Fan Mu's heart. He roared again, and the bird flew into the air, ”Ah! How do you expect me to become stronger with this kind of jade? Did you all not want to see me from the beginning?

After piercing the sky and roaring, Fan Mu calmed down. The only thing he could do now was hope that everything was settled and that everything would be fine.

Fan Mu raised his head in desolation. The moonlight was obscured by the dark clouds. There were a few scattered stars. ”Father, mother, where are you? What should I do …” He could not help but shiver, and his vision began to blur as he fell into a deep slumber.

”Big Brother Mu, wake up! How can you lie here? Wake up!” A man in green robes shook Fan Mu's body vigorously as he yelled.

Although they had different personalities, they knew each other very well. In the area of jade cultivation, Fan Qing's affinity for the various jade stones was not excellent, and so his strength was not on par with Fan Mu's, but fortunately, he was not as stubborn as Fan Mu. He was not interested in why Fan Mu was his own type of brother, so his family background would definitely be much better if he wanted to be a merchant.

Fan Mu slowly opened his eyes, but his vision was still blurry. It was understandable that he had spent the entire night lying in the cold forest, and all that was left in front of him was a dark shadow. Fan Mu tried his best to see the person in front of him, but unfortunately, Fan Mu could only ask softly, ”Fan Qing, is that you?”

”It's me, it's me. Aunt saw that you didn't come back for the whole night, so she thought you were still at school and had gone to school in the morning. The teacher inside said that you had gone back early and was worried to death, so she told me to come out and find you. Fan Qin replied.

”What's wrong? Is it that annoying fellow again? What did you offend?” Fan Qin looked at Fan Mu with a puzzled expression.

”How should I know? Stop trying to piss me off!” Fan Mu grinned. ”On my way back from the academy, I was preparing to find the books about how to improve my strength, so Fan Yun jumped down from the tree and challenged me to a duel. I've already told him that I'm no match for him. The thought of this infuriated Fan Mu, and his eyes shone with a vicious light.

”Fine, fine, fine. Let him have a good look, but let's go back first. Aunt is dying of anxiety so if we don't go back now, she will probably report to the authorities to investigate the missing person.” Fan Qin shook his head helplessly. Fan Yun was nothing to be afraid of, but considering Fan Mu's current situation, it was better for them all to understand.

”By the way, bro, do you know where Fan Yun is going?” Fan Qin asked in surprise.

Fan Mu had no idea what was going on, so he asked, ”What do you mean?”

”Didn't you say that you were dueling with Fan Yun here? When you went missing, Fan Yun had also disappeared. Now, Fan Yun's family had already gotten into trouble, almost digging their way in?” Fan Qing replied to Fan Mu's question, confused. Fan Mu had thought Fan Qin would know Fan Yun's whereabouts, but Fan Yun had no idea.

”Alright, alright, I didn't know anything after I was knocked unconscious. Let's go back first, in case Aunt Redbud gets anxious again.” Fan Mu had no choice but to decline. His heart was filled with doubts as to where Fan Yun had gone to. If his imagination failed, he would just forget about it. Fan Mu smiled inwardly and stopped thinking about things that were not important to him.

”Erm, you, is your leg alright? Hmm, looking at your appearance, I think I should carry you back?” Looking at Fan Mu's terrible appearance, Fan Qin felt waves of pain coming from his body.

”Cough cough, there's no need. I can go back by myself.” With that, he stood up with difficulty and limped towards the exit of the woods. Seeing his figure, Fan Qing couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness.

Since he was young, Fan Mu had always taken care of him. No matter what, Fan Mu would let him take care of him. He knew that ever since Fan Mu made the contract with the jade, this guy didn't even know how to use his elemental energy anymore. Ai, seeing his brother like this, Fan Qin's face was filled with grief as he softly said, ”Brother, you can definitely do it.”

Fan Mu smiled. ”Yes, I don't know if you can wait until then.”

Fan Qin stared blankly, ”Bro, you don't have to speak like that.” As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Fan Mu laughing loudly, his clear voice sounding as if nothing had happened. If you listened carefully, however, his laughter contained too much helplessness and bitterness.

Fan Mu followed the small path through the forest, walking on mud balls as he returned to Tong Du City. The city was still bustling with activity, but Fan Mu's heart was not happy at all …

Fan Mu dragged his heavy body ahead of him. Fan Qin knew what Fan Mu was thinking, so he silently followed him.

”Buzz …” Lightly pushing open the wooden door, a pair of furious eyes appeared before Fan Mu's eyes. The face that had been magnified many times was now pressed against his eyes, filled with anger and worry …

”You brat, where did you go exactly? I'm dying of anxiety.” Redbud's tone was extremely quick, as if she was slightly crying. ”I've been looking for an entire night!”

”This … Aunt, I'm sorry,” Fan Mu forced a smile as he endured the pain, ”I went to train in the woods last night, but you see, I have improved quite a bit.” I won't next time. ” It was obvious that he had purposely concealed something. If it was the truth, the Redbud wasn't willing to let him cultivate. Most likely, she would make Fan Mu withdraw from the academy this time.

”Hey, child, teacher already said that you aren't a material for a jade elementalist, so why force yourself?” Redbud rubbed his head; she really couldn't hit him. After so many years, she had long treated Fan Mu as her own son.

Your mother left you to me just to ensure your safety, you just need to learn some basic stuff and go find a job as an administrative officer, that's enough, you don't need to walk the path of a jade elementalist, just like my useless one, I think it's pretty good.” While pointing at Fan Qin at the side, Fan Qing was speechless.

”Yes, I know, I won't force myself,” replied Fan Mu. After a moment of silence, he asked, as if to clear his mind, ”Aunt, do you know where my father is?”

”Ah?” I... ”How would I know? I don't know what your father is doing, but he never comes back.” The sudden question was like a bolt of thunder that struck the Redbud's head as it stammered in reply.