“Niu!” Duanmu Wan'er screamed.
It was too late. Huangniu and Ye Fan had already fallen backward into the eye of the storm.
“I hope Niu is happy now! This is what he gets for picking fights with Ye Fan.”
Duanmu Wan'er was thoroughly amused by the incident as she pictured Huangniu's terrified moos as the pair of them spiraled into oblivion.
She was not too worried as Mr. Long had mentioned once before that Huangniu was no ordinary beast.
Though he looked and felt like an ordinary calf, his hide and flesh were as tough as steel.
Mr. Long has also said before that out of the three of us, Huangniu would be the only one to survive the Thundersea!
Back then, Mr. Long tried to persuade Huangniu to venture into the Thundersea to emerge from the other side in pursuit of Duanmu Wan'er's brother to rescue them.
However, Huangniu flatly refused to leave the safety of the cave to plunge into the unknown depths of the well.
This time, he has no say in the matter.
After standing over the well for a moment, Duanmu Wan'er left for the place she had called her home for the past several centuries.
What had been a merry little nest several minutes ago was now ringing with deafening silence.
Ye Fan's specially made deck of cards was scattered all over the floor the way he had left them. The magical bed still bore traces of his body warmth was proof of his existence. Huangniu's yoga mat that he used often was unrolled and spread over the floor as if he was returning soon for another session.
At that moment, it suddenly hit Duanmu Wan'er that she was all alone in the world.
So this is what loneliness feels like. How awful! It's like a hole in my heart that cannot be filled. Like the world has moved on and forgotten all about me.
Unable to bearthe miserable feeling consuming her heart like a cold, clammy hand, She sat on the floor
next to the desk and hugged her knees.
Suddenly, Duanmu Wan'er felt the overwhelming urge to cry.
Before she could do so, a page on the desk with several lines scrawled across it caught her eye.
Shyly, she peeked, lovely as you please, The roses in her cheeks swayed with the breeze.Alas, fare thee well must we say,Sweet melancholy in my heart shall stay.
It was a poem that Duanmu Wan'er had never come across.
Below the stanzas was another sentence.
Only the most beautiful verse for the most beautiful girl. Cheer up! I'll look for your brother after my affairs are put in place.
Signed next to his name was a caricature of himself with a crooked grin.
Duanmu Wan'er could almost see if she squinted her eyes just the right amount, the uncanny resemblance of Ye Fan in the drawing.
Picking up the letter, she hugged it close to her like a girl holding her only matchstick left in the cold winter would.
“Thank you, Ye Fan.”
Her soft murmur reverberated through space and time. An entire space-time conundrum away, Ye Fan awoke with a start.
It hurts! It hurts like I'm being burned!
Ye Fan opened his eyes and he winced from the pain coming from his eyelids.
“He's awake, Grandma!”
Ye Fan's eyes adjusted to the sunlight just in time to see a scruffy-looking boy run out through the door and returned several moments later with an old woman in shabby clothing.
“Hurry, Geetha,” the old woman urged. “Bring him some water.”
Ye Fan regained some of his wits after a sip of water.
As soon as he could sit up, he began channeling Invoke the Celestial Cloud.
The energy in the surroundings began gathering around Ye Fan.
As his strength returned, the searing pain in his body seemed to ebb away slightly.
He gazed about his surroundings, clearly dumbstruck.
“What happened to you?” the old lady asked, clearly relieved by his recovery.
“You looked as if you've been struck by lightning. You were entirely charred when we found you in the mountains. We weren't even sure if you could survive. Look at you now! What a miracle.”
She did not expect Ye Fan to regain consciousness at all.
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