ETR | Chapter 22

Xiao Xueman figured he’d already warned Qin Lou. If the guy still refused to listen, then he couldn’t be blamed for what came next.

His fingers twitched slightly, and he let out a faint sigh, almost without realizing it.

Once upon a time, things between them had been good. But in the end, they had gone their separate ways. And now, it seemed even a peaceful breakup wasn’t possible. After over a century, the past was still haunting the present.

He and Qin Lou had been through hell together—survived the hardest days side by side. But in the end, their downfall came from the fatal wound of mistrust.

What started as a crack had been left unpatched. Over time, it had widened and deepened until it became irreparable. There was no going back.

Looking back, maybe… they’d never fully trusted each other to begin with.

Xiao Xueman didn’t pretend he was innocent either. He’d gone to the Sixteenth Heaven to find Qin Lou with a clear agenda. He wasn’t doing charity work—it had been a trade.

He’d helped Qin Lou unlock his sealed talent, promised to make him the strongest under heaven so no one could ever bully him again. In return, Qin Lou had to regularly offer a drop of his heart’s blood, and eventually, kill Yuanshu, the Sect Master of Tianshu Academy, the number one sect at the time.

It was a mutual transaction, plain and simple. Qin Lou had been in such a pitiful state then—he had no reason to say no.

The sealing technique Xiao Xueman now used with near-perfection? He’d learned it from Qin Lou. From the moment he was born, his fire-type talent had been sealed. That made him look like a spiritual dud, falling from the Upper Realm all the way to the Sixteenth Heaven.

He should have been a prodigy, but instead suffered eighteen years of torment.

Xiao Xueman was the medicine to release Qin Lou’s power, and in turn, Qin Lou’s blood was medicine for Xiao Xueman. Wood fuels fire—used correctly, that spark of fire held miraculous effects for him.

In truth, by their third year together, they no longer needed each other’s “cures.” By the time they’d climbed from the Sixteenth to the Sixth Heaven, all their physical afflictions had healed. What pushed them upward from there was a shared desire—

—To become the strongest.
—To kill Yuanshu.

Qin Lou’s obsession was rising to the top. Xiao Xueman wanted revenge. It wasn’t just a deal anymore. It became a shared dream.

Wangtian Immortal Sect had been founded by the two of them. They gradually gathered spirit practitioners, built up resources, and once Xiao Xueman stole the Eternal Heart Lotus for him, Qin Lou’s power skyrocketed. More and more people came flocking to join.

As the sect grew, Xiao Xueman quietly faded into the background, only staying in contact with core members. Qin Lou did the opposite—his underdog-to-legend story inspired many. His reputation flourished, which in turn benefited the sect’s growth.

From nobodies to a top-tier sect, Wangtian’s rise had been fast. Still, Tianshu Academy had a long history and solid foundation—it couldn’t be shaken easily. But Xiao Xueman never doubted that he could win in a straight fight. And when it came down to it, that belief proved true: the new generation could surpass the old.

What Xiao Xueman failed to see was people’s hearts—the scheming that happens long before a battle begins. Plenty of sects had the strength to fight back, but most crumbled before the fight even started, destroyed from within by suspicion and division.

Yuanshu? A master manipulator.

And naturally, he didn’t spare them either.

Looking back, Xiao Xueman could now understand Qin Lou’s mindset better. But at the time, immersed in it all, he couldn’t see it. Especially at the end—when they were already sharing a bed, when they felt closer than ever—it seemed like nothing could go wrong.

But the deeper it got, the worse it became.

Not many had suffered the way Qin Lou did, falling from the Upper Realm to the bottom. The humiliation, the emotional toll—those wounds weren’t something even Xiao Xueman could heal. And when you started as a mutually beneficial transaction?

That left a scar on Qin Lou’s heart.

Even if he didn’t realize it, that doubt only grew deeper with intimacy.

Does he really love me?
Or is he just using me again?
Will he leave me once I’m no longer useful?

With love came even more suspicion. More insecurity. Not less.

Not to mention, Wangtian Immortal Sect had grown too fast. Compared to old-established sects, their foundation was weak and unstable.

Xiao Xueman had nurtured his own group within the sect—seven elite cultivators known as the Silver Eagles. At the time, he hadn’t drawn any lines. They were all members of the same sect. And in his mind, the sect belonged to Qin Lou.

He thought, We’re partners now. What’s mine is yours.

But the rest of the sect didn’t see it that way.

People gossiped. Whispers turned into wildfire. Add that to the already fragile foundation of their relationship… and cracks started showing.

Tianshu Academy had been the clearest-eyed of all. They saw the instability and used it. Their scheming was more effective than any sword.

With suspicion from within and pressure from without, their bond withered. Disappointment turned to betrayal. One thing led to another—until it all fell apart.

If not for Xiao Xueman staking his life in the final battle, they probably would have lost everything.

In the face of overwhelming power, schemes mean nothing.
But love, once wounded by betrayal—can never be fully healed.

Xiao Xueman hadn’t meant to think of these things. But with Qin Lou standing right in front of him, it was impossible not to remember. Some things… just couldn’t be suppressed.

“…Ah Qin.”

His voice softened, and his gaze followed. He called Qin Lou’s old name—and gently reached out, brushing his fingertip against Qin Lou’s.

Not a full grasp. Just a soft, testing touch, like between lovers sharing a secret.

That one whisper made Qin Lou’s heart melt. And when Xiao Xueman reached out like that, he immediately grabbed the hand and held on tight, as if afraid it would vanish.

All his defenses collapsed.

That warm, slender hand… it felt like jade, and it had haunted his thoughts for years. It was his treasure. So even when he felt a stabbing pain as spirit power pierced his fingers—he still didn’t let go.

This version of Qin Lou was easier to deal with than Xiao Xueman had imagined.

Even when he fainted, he still refused to release that hand. It took Xueman quite some time to finally pull his fingers free.

He rubbed his wrist, stood, and looked down at the man lying on the floor. That gentle softness from earlier? It had been bait. Now that Qin Lou had bitten, it vanished cleanly.

Xiao Xueman had just finished examining his condition. Qin Lou hadn’t put up a guard—he made it too easy.

His current state wasn’t good. Probably from staying too long in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Heavens. Realm suppression didn’t just cause pain—it built up long-term damage. And with him having just fought too? Xiao Xueman had found it all too easy to deal with him.

But the inn wasn’t the right place for this kind of thing. Xiao Xueman thought it over, then took the unconscious man to a forest outside the city.

He’d noticed a cave here last time while picking the Layer-Born Epiphyllum. The flower wouldn’t bloom again for months. No one would come here for now.

Qin Lou woke quickly. But not quicker than Xiao Xueman.

He was already wrapped in a web of green vines—tied down and completely stuck.

Xiao Xueman’s doing. He knew Qin Lou couldn’t break free in this state. By the time he tried, Xueman would be long gone.

Under the filtered light through the cave entrance, Qin Lou saw him clearly.

Xiao Xueman stood there, holding his storage ring—shaped like a silver ring.

“…Still using the one I gave you,” he said lightly. “The mighty Dijun sure is nostalgic.”

The ring had once been part of a pair. Xueman’s had broken long ago, never recovered.

They’d bought it when Wangtian Immortal Sect was still new—resources were scarce, and other forces were out to crush them. These rings had a neat little feature: dual ownership. Either person could access the other’s ring in an emergency.

It had made sense then. During the hard times, if something happened to one of them, the other could take everything and keep the sect alive.

It still made sense now. Xueman found the crystal orb inside with ease.

Qin Lou had just woken up, his head throbbing painfully. And when he realized what Xueman was about to do, he started thrashing violently.

His voice had been sealed, and in his panic, he could only force out fragments.

“No… Xueman—please…”

The vines didn’t budge. Qin Lou’s voice was desperate, like a plea.

“Please… don’t…”

Xiao Xueman remained unmoved.

And in one flick of spirit power, the crystal orb shattered in his palm.

He’d read about the Star Map before—he knew it could regenerate a new orb if it had access to something of the target’s. The Star Map itself was in the First Heaven, at Wangtian Immortal Sect’s headquarters. Destroying it was a whole different challenge.

Thankfully, the Star Map could only lock onto one target at a time. Once chosen, it couldn’t be changed. That meant he didn’t have to worry about Qin Lou switching to track Shen Guan or someone else.

But even so—Qin Lou had spent years on this. He likely didn’t have much of Xueman’s things left.

Xiao Xueman searched the storage ring. Sure enough, he found more.

Familiar items—things he’d used back in the Seventeenth Heaven and never taken with him. Bedding, clothes, little everyday objects.

He hadn’t expected Qin Lou to take them.

“…That’s a bit much,” he said, raising an eyebrow. “You’re not a junk collector, Dijun. Why keep all this?”

He destroyed them too.

That was all there was. The ring had no trace of his energy. It was Qin Lou’s half of the pair.

Still, just in case, he tossed the ring to a place far out of reach—no way Qin Lou could get to it and pull out some hidden trump card.

He was about to leave, but something caught his eye.

A necklace, tangled around Qin Lou’s neck, had slipped from under his clothes during his struggle. In the dim cave, it glowed faintly green.

“…That’s mine.”

Xiao Xueman recognized it immediately.

He turned and yanked it off.

Even when he’d smashed the crystal orb, Qin Lou hadn’t been this terrified. But now, the more he struggled, the tighter the vines became.

“Please, Xueman—please,” Qin Lou’s voice trembled, almost a sob. “Don’t take it… you can’t…”

The pendant was a teardrop shape, filled with gentle, flowing light. It had been forged from Xueman’s own heart blood.

It wasn’t like ordinary spirit instruments with a star ranking. This necklace couldn’t be measured. If Qin Lou sacrificed his Eternal Heart Lotus, he still wouldn’t have traded this.

Back then, when Xueman had no more use for Qin Lou’s blood, he stopped asking for it. But he remembered how painful it had been for Qin Lou to give it. In a moment of guilt and affection, he took some of his own heart blood and made this necklace—both as a token of love, and an apology.

It had real function—wood-type energy helped accelerate spiritual recovery, and it had healing and protective effects.

Xueman hadn’t planned to destroy it. It was valuable—wasting it would be stupid.

It’d be perfect for Xiao Wan, he thought.

Ever since what happened at school, he’d been looking for something to protect his son. He couldn’t always be there, and Shen Guan’s robe only did so much.

But Xiao Wan was special—most spirit instruments didn’t suit him. This necklace, though? Perfect.

⸻

Author’s Note:

Xiao Xueman’s combat power is seriously OP.
Even if he did take advantage of timing here, honestly, even face-to-face, the top wouldn’t necessarily win against him.