An Changqing's Gift

"What's this thing?"

Unable to tell, Chen Guan stopped guessing and just asked An Changqing directly.

"I mentioned it to you once before, back at the Northern Border Ruins."

Chen Guan thought for a moment, and yes, that was true.

Back then, at the Northern Border Ruins, just as he was about to face that voice, An Changqing had stopped him, saying he wanted to give him something when they got back.

But then various things came up, and the matter was set aside.

"I remember now."

Chen Guan placed the box on the table, leaned against the edge, and crossed his arms, watching An Changqing.

"Still, coming all the way here in the middle of the night just to give me a gift—isn't that a bit too dramatic?"

That was what he couldn't figure out. Giving a gift—was it really worth rushing over so late, and with his hair still wet?

An Changqing's lips curved slightly into what was barely a smile.

"Because I was afraid that if I waited any longer, I might never get the chance."

The words were spoken softly, like an offhand joke, but there was no hint of humor in his tone.

Chen Guan's fingers stopped moving on the wooden lid. He looked up at An Changqing.

That was heavy.

It felt like a bunch of red flags were suddenly being planted all over him again.

An Changqing didn't avoid his gaze. He walked to the window and pushed one side open. The night wind poured in, rustling the loose papers on the desk.

"Tonight, underground, Yue Teng said you were swallowed by the cocoon."

An Changqing stood outlined in the moonlight, his voice softer than before.

"In that moment, I realized there was nothing I could do."

"I couldn't even get close to the altar."

"I'm a fifth-rank, the student council president, the son of the Association President."

He turned around, his face complicated, a tinge of melancholy in it.

"All those titles were worth nothing in that scene."

Chen Guan said nothing.

An Changqing leaned against the window frame and continued.

"I've always believed I could protect the people around me—that's how I was raised, and it's what I demand of myself."

"But this time, if you hadn't come out of that cocoon on your own, I don't dare imagine what the outcome would have been."

A few seconds of silence hung in the room.

"So you came all the way here in the middle of the night just to tell me this?"

Chen Guan broke the quiet. He thought it was something serious.

This kid, An Changqing, was always acting like he was some kind of savior.

A very textbook protagonist, sure, but as a person, it was just exhausting.

"An Changqing, you're overthinking it."

"I'm not overthinking."

An Changqing shook his head.

"So you think I would have died in a place like that?"

An Changqing was choked by the question and gave a helpless smile.

How was he supposed to answer that? Say yes, and it'd be admitting defeat. Say no, and he'd be contradicting himself.

"You really never make it easy for anyone, do you?"

Chen Guan shook his head. "You're being sentimental. I'm not great at handling that kind of talk."

An Changqing was taken aback for a moment, then let out a laugh—much more natural this time.

"Fine, let me put it another way."

He pointed to the wooden box on the table, skillfully steering the topic away.

"Open it first and take a look."

Chen Guan looked down and pushed the lid open with his thumb.

A piece of pure white jade appeared before him.

An overwhelming surge of life force all but crashed into him, becoming almost tangible.

Chen Guan's fingertips hovered over the jade. Even before touching it, warmth crept from his skin into his bones.

The warmth felt different from spiritual power—closer to the beating pulse of life itself.

"Soul-Renewing Jade."

An Changqing spoke. "It can repair damage to the soul level and has a soothing effect on spiritual fissures."

Chen Guan's fingers froze. He didn't look up, his gaze locked on the white jade.

Soul damage.

Spiritual fissures.

He thought of the other self in the coffin.

"This thing wasn't cheap, was it?"

Chen Guan's tone sounded casual, but his expression gave him away.

An Changqing leaned against the window frame, moonlight streaming in behind him, casting his long shadow across the floor.

"I came across it and bought it."

An Changqing said it with an easy face, showing no concern over the cost.

Chen Guan's mouth twitched. "If President An finds out how much you spent, he's going to want to have a word with you."

"My dad doesn't get involved in things like this."

An Changqing's tone was light, but Chen Guan could tell the gift's value was far heavier than it seemed.

A thing like Soul-Renewing Jade—if it were up to him, he wouldn't be able to buy it through any channel. It was beyond any monetary measure.

Chen Guan was silent for a moment, then closed the lid and tucked the wooden box into his storage ring.

"I'll take it."

That was what An Changqing had been waiting to hear. He nodded, not adding any more sappy words.

"Thank you, An Changqing."

Chen Guan nodded, the gratitude for An Changqing's thoughtfulness ringing true in his heart, even if he could never say it out loud.

The state of the entity inside the coffin had always been a constant worry for him. That black hole was an endless pit, and waking up every day to count the gaps in it was draining, even for him.

The Soul-Renewing Jade came at just the right time.

But An Changqing didn't leave after handing over the gift.

"There's something else. I can't quite make up my mind, and I want to hear what you think."

"What do you make of those spells Yuehe used tonight?"

Chen Guan thought back, recalling the moves Su Yuehe had pulled underground.

His first reaction... honestly, he was a bit surprised.

"You're worried about the backlash from the forbidden arts on her?"

"The backlash is just one part of it."

An Changqing's brow furrowed. He sat up straight, cross his hands on his knees.

"I've known her for over a decade. We grew up together. Her ability is word-based, a knowledge-type, support-specialty."

He paused.

"But what she used tonight was way beyond the scope of her word system."

"Soul extraction, deep slumber—all those forbidden arts came with a blood-red spiritual energy fluctuation."

An Changqing lowered his voice.

"Her spiritual power is white, leaning toward the warm spectrum—that's basic knowledge."

"But when she released those arts, a blood-red color lingered around her fingertips. Other forbidden-arts users don't change the color of their spiritual glow. So I'm worried she might have modified these spells herself."

Chen Guan sat on the edge of the bed, arms crossed over his chest.

He was thinking of one thing.

Baal.

That being had once said something cryptic.

"Su Yuehe is made of two parts."

He still couldn't grasp the meaning of those words. But well, Baal didn't usually speak without reason.

Together with what An Changqing had just said, it didn't look like a good sign.

"I've never heard of a case like this before, but after class tomorrow, I happen to be heading to the library anyway."

An Changqing nodded. "Sorry for the trouble."

Different fields required different expertise. An Changqing got decent grades, but that was only for textbooks. Asking him to dig into something off-syllabus was as hard as making a deaf-mute cry in pain.

And finding an outsider was out of the question—was this the kind of thing you could just tell anyone?