Chapter 28
Wuming's gaze returned to Wei Zhi, his expression unchanged.
"Don't worry about it," he said casually.
"It's handled."
And for him—
That was enough.
Wei Zhi didn't reply immediately.
She just looked at him.
Quiet.
Thinking.
Wuming noticed it, his gaze steady on her face, trying to read what passed behind those forest-green eyes. There was always something calculating there—something that didn't show fully.
"You're a really skilled soul reaper," he said after a moment.
She blinked once.
Then nodded.
"Yeah."
Simple.
Flat.
As if it wasn't something worth discussing.
A brief silence settled between them before Wuming spoke again, his tone shifting slightly.
"You slappd me and hugged me… why?"
Wei Zhi didn't hesitate this time.
"You are angry. And so was i."
Wuming's brows furrowed faintly.
"I'm not."
She looked at him straight.
"Liar."
Her voice wasn't loud.
But it was certain.
"I know you're angry. I heard your heartbeat earlier." Her gaze didn't waver. "It had a melody… a melody of wrath."
Wuming stilled.
Just slightly.
Wei Zhi continued, her tone calm, almost analytical now.
"You see… human emotions are twisted and annoying." She tilted her head faintly. "The peak of happiness is crying. The peak of sadness is laughing."
A pause.
"And the peak of anger… is silence."
Wuming looked at her for a long second.
Then—
He smiled.
Faint.
Almost amused.
"That hug was uncomfortable."
Blunt.
"Fast. Unnecessary."
His eyes narrowed just a fraction.
"I don't need anyone's hug… or sweet words to heal my heart or ease my anger."
Wei Zhi didn't react to the words.
Not visibly.
She just watched him.
Then answered—
"I didn't hug you because you needed it."
A small pause.
"Or because I understand how you feel."
Her voice softened.
Just slightly.
"I hugged you because I know you're in pain. Your my friend i can't leave you alone in your misery. I won't. That's what friends are for."
Wuming's gaze sharpened.
"You're suffering from within," she continued, steady now. "And you know it."
Her fingers curled faintly in her lap.
"You can't rely on anybody… because no one can simply understand you. No matter how much you want them to."
Silence.
Then—Quietly—"One of the hardest battles we fight… is between what we know and what we feel."
Wuming exhaled slowly.
"I'm not going to argue with you."
He leaned back slightly.
"I don't have the energy."
A faint glance at her.
"And from that slap of yours… I assume you have tremendous."
Wei Zhi's brows lifted.
"Are you saying indirectly that I'm eating your mind?"
"I never said that."
"But you meant it, didn't you?"
Wuming groaned softly, rubbing his temple.
"No. I meant I really don't have the energy to argue about it."
A pause.
Then his tone shifted.
Lower.
Observing.
"You must have a family… a loving one."
Wei Zhi didn't respond.
Not yet. But her eyes turned a bit cold wuming noticed it. She held no warmth.
Wuming didn't knew her story and neither did Wei zhi knew his. Both were asking questions and making statements which were meant to hurt.
"You understand human emotions deeply," he continued, looking at her carefully, "like no other… especially at this age."
A slight pause.
"And I'm not very familiar with that."
She frowned faintly.
"You're older than me."
"So?" he shrugged lightly. "What does that change?"
His gaze turned distant for a second.
"I may have lived a thousand years… or more."
A quiet breath.
"But I've been on my own the whole time."
Wei Zhi's eyes widened just a fraction.
"Ooh… you must have friends," she said quickly. "Don't lie. Everyone makes friends."
Wuming's expression went cold.
"Someone can live a millennium… and still not know whether to choose power or love."
The room fell quiet again.
Wei Zhi stared at him.
Then—
A realization flickered.
"…so you do admit you're old," she said, narrowing her eyes. "Older than anyone here."
A pause.
Then sharper—"Wait… you must have knowledge too."
Her gaze locked onto him.
"…is that why you knew who I was at a single glance?"
Wuming didn't answer immediately.
His thoughts moved quickly.
Telling her won't harm anything… right?
A pause.
Right?
Wei Zhi leaned slightly forward.
"…right?"
He sighed.
"…yes."
Then added, almost lazily—
"Then you should show some respect. I'm an old man."
A beat.
"And don't slap me again."
Wei Zhi grinned.
"Oh yeah?"
Her eyes gleamed.
"Be prepared to be slapped again if you make an idiotic choice."
Wuming stared at her.
Pure disbelief.
"I… can't believe you."
He turned his face away slightly.
She crossed her arms.
"I'm serious."
"So am I."
A pause.
Then she waved her hand dismissively.
"Ugh, whatever. Are you able to walk?"
"Yes."
"Then get lost to your room."
Wuming looked back at her.
A flicker of confusion crossed his face.
First she was worried… now she's throwing me out?
Before he could say anything—She sighed.
"Ugh, leave it. Stay here."
She turned away, already moving back toward the floor.
"I'll sleep on the ground."
Wuming watched her quietly.
Thinking.
Her IQ… her EQ…people with high emotional intelligence often struggle. Not because they can't open up but because they already know the reasons behind their pain, having high emotional intelligence makes people really good at noticing and talking about their inner world, they see their triggers, think deeply and can explain their emotions clearly. That's already healing in some way but research showed that just knowing why you feel certain way usually doesn't change behavior. The brain stores emotional memories not only in words but also in body. This means that if you can explain your anxiety perfectly, our nervous system may still react.
Having emotions is a tough thing and acknowledging them is much harder.
A faint pause.
Both are high.
Then—Almost casually—"Hey… Wei Zhi."
She didn't turn.
"What?"
He looked at her.
Directly.
"Where's your family?"
Those words landed harder than anything else he had said.
Not loud.
Not sharp.
But precise.
Where's your family?
Wei Zhi froze.
Not visibly at first.
But inside—
Something tightened.
Her spine stiffened, a faint chill running through her as if the air around her had suddenly turned colder. Her fingers, which had been adjusting the sheet beneath her, stopped mid-motion.
For a second—
She didn't breathe.
Her eyes lowered slightly, not looking at him anymore, not looking anywhere in particular.
Just—
Away.
"I don't have one."
The words came out flat. Her voice was cold and detached. She had no feelings, no emotions could be heard in her voice.
Too flat.
No hesitation. No explanation. Just a statement.
Wuming watched her.
Closely.
He didn't miss it—the pause, the shift, the way her voice had lost something it carried before.
"That's… pretty astonishing," he said slowly.
A faint pause.
"…and surprising."
His tone wasn't mocking.
Just observant.
But then—
He stopped himself.
A small exhale.
"Never mind."
He didn't push further.
Didn't question it.
Didn't dig.
The conversation ended there.
But the silence that followed—
Wasn't empty.
It lingered.
Heavy.
Unspoken.
Wei Zhi remained still for a moment longer before finally lying back down on the floor again, turning slightly to face away from him this time.
Her eyes stayed open.
Staring into nothing.
Her expression calm—
Too calm.
But her thoughts weren't.
They didn't stay in the present.
They slipped.
Back.
Into something she had buried deep.
I don't have one.
She repeated it in her mind.
As if confirming it.
As if reminding herself.
Her fingers curled slightly into the sheet beneath her.
That's the truth.
Not a lie.
Not entirely.
Just—Simplified.
Behind her, Wuming shifted slightly on the bed, but didn't say anything else.
He understood enough.
Or maybe—He chose to.
The room fell quiet again.
But this time—It wasn't peaceful.
It was the kind of silence that carried things both of them chose not to say.
And neither of them tried to break it.
Wei Zhi lay on the floor, turned slightly away from him, her body finally going still after everything that had happened.
The room was quiet again.
Truly quiet this time.
Only the faint sound of breathing—his, steady on the bed… and hers, slowly evening out.
A soft draft slipped in through the half-open window.
Barely noticeable.
But enough.
It brushed past her gently—
And her hair moved with it.
Dark strands lifted lightly from the floor, flowing in the air with a quiet grace, as if they carried a life of their own. They shifted and settled in soft waves, catching the dim light of the room before falling back against her shoulder and the sheet beneath her.
There was something calm about it.
Something untouched.
For a moment—
She looked peaceful.
Not the sharp, observant girl who read people too easily.
Not the one who carried quiet hatred and heavy thoughts.
Just—Still.
Unburdened.
Her eyes slowly closed.
The tension in her fingers loosened.
Her breathing softened further. And without another thought—Without another word—Wei Zhi drifted into sleep.
Morning came too fast.
Too sharp.
Too unforgiving.
The sky still carried that pale, washed-out color of early dawn when the four of them reached the forest entrance—the exact place Lin Yi had instructed them to gather. The academy grounds ended there, giving way to towering trees and dense shadows that swallowed light instead of reflecting it.
It felt like a boundary.
A line between order and something far less controlled.
7 a.m.
Sharp.
Exact.
They were all there.
Waiting.
And Lin Yi—Was nowhere.
Time didn't rush.
It dragged.
Each second stretching just enough to be noticed.
Just enough to irritate.
Weiyang broke first.
Of course he did.
He stretched his arms high above his head, back arching as a long, unfiltered yawn escaped him, his entire posture loose and unbothered—as if he hadn't been dragged through brutal training just hours ago.
"Ugh… this is torture," he muttered, rolling his shoulders.
Beside him, Yinghua let out a soft laugh, her presence light against the stillness of the morning.
"You say that about almost everything." She exclaimed.
"I mean it this time," he grinned, then immediately shifted into storytelling mode. "Yesterday—listen—you should've seen this guy. He was so confident, right? And then—"
He stepped forward, acting it out.
"—he slipped like this—"
He exaggerated the motion, nearly losing his balance on purpose, arms flailing slightly before he steadied himself again.
Yinghua covered her mouth, laughter slipping through her fingers.
"You're lying."
"I'm not!"
"You are."
"I swear on my life—"
"You just made that up!"
Their voices carried easily through the quiet, bouncing lightly off the trees, filling the space with something warm and alive.
A stark contrast.
Not far from them—
Wei Zhi stood still.
Completely still.
Her arms were folded loosely across her chest, her posture straight but lacking its usual sharpness. Her eyes were half-lidded, heavy with exhaustion—not the kind that came from missing a few hours of sleep.
The deeper kind. The kind that settled into your bones.
Listened to yinghua and weiyang, wondering :" am I a fool or have these two already gone mad from waiting? That they are making things up now? Trying to ease their archives, can't they just be quiet.
Beside her—
Wuming.
Silent.
Unmoving.
His presence was steady, but there was a dullness to him today, something faintly drained. Strands of his white hair fell messily across his forehead, untouched, unbothered to be fixed.
His eyes were open.
But tired.
Not physically alone—But mentally.
He said nothing.
Did nothing.
He simply stood there.
Enduring.
Enduring whom? Of course yinghua and weiyang.
Both were still talking about random idiotic things, rambling who fell on his butt and on his head. Yinghua noticed them first.
Her laughter softened, fading into something more observant as she glanced their way.
"They look dead," she whispered.
Weiyang followed her gaze, then snorted.
"They are dead."
Then, louder—
"Hey! You two alive back there?"
No response.
Not even a glance.
Yinghua stepped closer, her tone gentler now, concern slipping through.
"Did you guys not sleep?"
Wei Zhi's eyes shifted toward her.
Just once.
A brief glance.
Then away again.
"Few hours."
Flat.
No emotion.
No elaboration.
Wuming didn't respond at all.
Weiyang walked over, dropping beside them with exaggerated energy, crouching slightly as if trying to force himself into their space.
He loved their space.
"Come on," he said, nudging the air with his hand, "don't be like that. Talk a little at least."
Nothing.
Silence.
Heavy.
Unmoving.
Weiyang frowned, looking between the two.
"…wow. That bad?"
Still nothing
Yinghua tried again, a small, warm smile forming as she spoke.
"We can wait together, no? It won't be that boring."
Wei Zhi didn't react.
Wuming didn't shift.
And just like that—They failed.
Completely.
End of 28