Chapter 165: Section 166: The Lonely Fallen Knight


    “Lord, please allow me to follow you and show my allegiance to you,” Xi Suo half-knelt before Zhenjin inside the tent, his tone sincere.


    “Oh? Do you mean you’d rather forgo the compensation for the ship and seek the opportunity to follow me? Why such a decision?” Zhenjin showed an interested expression.


    Xi Suo took a deep breath and looked up at Zhenjin, “Lord Zhenjin, you are a Holy Temple Knight, the sole heir to the Hundred Needle Family, and the future White Sand City Lord! To follow a person of such stature is an opportunity someone like me might never encounter again in my life.”


    “If I were to accept the new ship as compensation, at most I’d amount to what my father did, becoming the owner of a sea vessel. For a living, I’d have to brave the stormy waves time and again, struggling for survival in the vast ocean. Every voyage requires me to exert all my efforts and wrack my brain, and should we encounter powerful pirates or vicious sea monsters, my ship would risk sinking. Just like this shipwreck.”


    Zhenjin nodded, “You have answered very candidly, I can tell these are words from the bottom of your heart.”


    “That’s good, Xi Suo, I permit you to follow me.”


    ...


    “But also remember this moment, remember your sincerity right now.”


    “I hope you can maintain such excellent qualities.”


    Xi Suo was overjoyed, some stammering in his excitement, “I, I understand, Lord, I understand!”


    But the next moment, a stream of fresh red blood suddenly burst from Xi Suo’s mouth.


    Xi Suo’s eyes widened in shock as he looked towards Zhenjin, “You… you are not a Holy Temple Knight!”


    “Monster, you are a monster!”


    He violently grasped his chest, not knowing when, a fatal wound had appeared there, piercing through his body.


    “I… was wrong about you…”


    With a thud, Xi Suo collapsed to the ground, devoid of any remaining breath.


    “No!” Zhenjin cried out, instantly waking from the nightmare.


    Soaked in a cold sweat.


    He took several breaths before stabilizing his emotions.


    Looking around, all was calm.


    Although in the underground alchemy factory one doesn’t see the sun or moon, whether it be Cang Xu or Jia Sha, Zi Di, they all had ways of keeping time.


    It was already deep into the night.


    The survivors had passed through the Magma Battlefield, leaving only about thirty people.


    As the Fire Element was distracting the golems’ attention, Zhenjin was retrieved by two Guardian Knights and they immediately set forth, the rest of the journey going quite smoothly without any pursuit or interception.


    The defensive golems were artificial, with low intelligence, mainly relying on the command of the Tower Spirit. But the Tower Spirit’s voice had not appeared in the Magma Battlefield.


    This was the middle segment of the passage.


    Jia Sha, using the Extreme Vision technique, discerned that it would be safe to rest here for the night and thus ordered a regrouping.


    He had almost completely exhausted his Divine Power, treating the other survivors’ wounds was already quite strenuous.


    Jia Sha had already completed his evening prayers early and, guarded by two Guardian Knights, had fallen into a deep sleep.


    “How should I explain it to him? Today, in crossing the Magma Battlefield, the priest must have seen my mutated form, yet he does not speak of it.”


    Zhenjin knew that Jia Sha was waiting for his confession.


    But how could Zhenjin possibly find the words?


    “Xi Suo…”


    “It was I who personally killed him!”


    Regret and powerlessness welled up inside him.


    Zhenjin closed his eyes in pain. Seated on the ground, leaning against the metallic cave wall, he felt the icy silver metal, seemingly reaching deep into his heart.


    The young knight was consumed with deep self-blame, “At the time, I should have held back, I shouldn’t have struck so fiercely. I should have remembered, the Scout on reconnaissance would be in Invisibility. Why did I forget? Why did I forget this?”


    Yet, another voice rose from the depths of his heart, “Don’t grieve too much, it was but a misfortune.”


    “No, I am falling… I have already fallen. My hands have been stained with the blood of my companions.”


    “Damn it, I wanted to save him!”


    “I truly wanted to save him!!”


    Zhenjin clenched his teeth, his right hand covering his eyes. He tilted his head back, the back of his skull against the cold wall, his left fist clenched very tight.


    The scene of him killing Xi Suo replayed in his mind.


    When he realized it was Xi Suo, Zhenjin was full of shock.


    Yet, when he wanted to rescue Xi Suo, he found that the wound was fatal, and Zhenjin immediately fell into confusion.


    Faced with Xi Suo’s accusations, he instinctively raised his voice in defense.


    Suddenly hearing the call of the Guardian Knights, Zhenjin felt his heart skip, without time to think further, he rapidly stimulated his Heart Core, directly absorbing Xi Suo!


    “No!”


    “I swore, I would never lay hands on the Human Race. Not only did I do so, but I also killed one of my own.”


    “Why did I hide the evidence? Why?!”


    That question was what tormented him the most.


    He could not avoid this question.


    “It was my cowardice, my fear, my worry about misunderstandings.”


    “I could explain it clearly. I could.”


    “How to explain?” another voice in his heart scoffed.


    “Why did I kill him, if not out of fear he would reveal my secret? With such a wound, he was as good as dead; better for him to die right away. Otherwise, wouldn’t just speaking more put me in trouble?”


    “Think about it, didn’t I save Xi Suo’s life before?”


    “He is ungrateful and even tries to make things difficult for me! Letting the Guardian Knights misunderstand me could have serious consequences!”


    “No!” Zhenjin clutched his head and screamed inwardly, “Get out of my head, I’ve never thought like that, and I am definitely not such a despicable and sly person!!”


    The voice inside his head laughed again. “Let me rephrase that so it’s more acceptable to me.” Sёarch* The N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    “Um… I can’t be misunderstood because I have responsibilities!”


    “The responsibility to rejuvenate my family, to protect my fiancée, and to lead these survivors by my side to successfully escape this island. I promised them, didn’t I?”


    “So, I can’t die, and I can’t be misunderstood. I can’t let others down.”


    “No, no, no, this is all sophistry, nothing but sophistry.” Zhenjin buried his head into his chest, struggling to fend off the darkness within.


    “I am falling! I am descending into the Abyss!” the young knight felt so weak at that moment, like a leaf in the wind.


    But soon, that inner voice spoke up again. “Falling? What does it mean to fall?”


    “Is betraying the path of the Holy Temple Knight falling?”


    “Relax, I’ve just made the most correct choice. It’s a rational choice, sufficient to prove my intelligence.”


    “Look now, no one knows the truth. No one will think you killed Xi Suo.”


    Zhenjin’s eyes snapped open, flickering with light as he loudly contested inwardly, “No, I must confess, I must come clean, atone for my sins!”


    “Heh heh heh, go ahead then…” The voice inside did not stop him.


    “Go on, do it!” the voice inside was taunting him.


    But Zhenjin no longer spoke out against it, his complexion growing paler, like that of a dead man.


    His breathing became so faint, as if a dead man had no breath.


    At that moment, he realized he could never reveal the secret of killing Xi Suo or have the courage to expose the secret of the Heart Core!


    Each time he had mustered his courage before, he felt he was just a step away, but something unexpected or someone’s interference always occurred.


    But was that really the case?


    No, it wasn’t.


    If he truly wanted to say something, he could have spoken up the majority of the time.


    “In fact, I don’t want to say it, I really don’t!”


    “The only reason I thought about confessing to the priest was due to the external pressure to survive.”


    “Who doesn’t want to appear flawless, who doesn’t want to hide their darkness and disgrace? I want to, I really do!”


    Regret, loss, pain, and sorrow tortured the young man, interrogating his heart and making him more aware of his innermost true thoughts.


    The agonizing night passed.


    The group set off again.


    They needed a Scout to check the road ahead.


    “Let me do it,” Zhenjin volunteered.


    Everyone was surprised and objected.


    Zhenjin shook his head, insistent, “Everyone needs more rest, and I am in better condition. We’ve just passed the Magma Battlefield, so there might be more dangers ahead. The road will require someone stronger to scout. This is my decision; I insist on it.”


    He needed to keep himself busy, too busy to think.


    Scouting required more than one person.


    A Bronze Level crew member knelt down, his voice filled with emotion, “Lord Zhenjin, you have saved my life, not just this once. Please let me follow you and join you on this mission!”


    Zhenjin’s action of returning to the battlefield the day before had inspired the crew member.


    But Zhenjin frowned, at that moment he felt as if he saw Xi Suo: “No, I’ll go alone. Get up!”


    The crew member was stunned.


    Zhenjin realized he had overreacted and quickly said to make amends, “Right now, there are no intersections ahead. Just I alone will suffice; what you need more is rest.”


    Zhenjin’s words once again earned him the praise and admiration of everyone.


    However, faced with such gazes and attitudes, Zhenjin wanted only to flee.


    The scouting went very smoothly, so smoothly that Zhenjin began to doubt it.


    Afterward, to everyone’s disbelief, they encountered no golems, no exterminators, and not even any mechanical traps or Magic Traps.


    They traveled on for two more days.


    Zhenjin felt as if every day was an eternity.


    “Lord, you need not grieve for the fallen. What’s more important is to lead those who are still alive and escape from here,” Cang Xu advised.


    “Lord Zhenjin, don’t blame yourself. We certainly won’t blame you. You’ve already done well enough,” Bai Ya consoled.


    “If you have anything to say, you can tell me. Actually, I have many things I want to talk to you about too,” Zi Di approached Zhenjin privately.


    “Child, remember that the Lord of Light’s gaze penetrates everything, and no shadow can hide from it,” Jia Sha encouraged Zhenjin.


    Yet, these encouragements, consolations, and persuasions only made Zhenjin feel more shameful.


    And… more isolated.


    “There is a body ahead!” the Scout relayed urgent information.


    A strong body from the Holy Domain lay in the corridor.


    Signs of a fierce battle were everywhere.


    “He must be one of the attackers who came here. Wait, this outfit…”


    “He’s from the Blood Light Sanction Court!”


    When everyone rushed to the scene, they were all deeply shaken.