Chapter 601 519: Brother Pei's Amnesia: Nangong Jin's Lie and Selfishness

WHOOSH—

Countless rifts tore open the lead-gray sky, unleashing a torrential downpour of sulfur-scented acid rain.

The raindrops hammered the scorched-black rocks, throwing up corrosive spray. A disheveled, slender figure stumbled along the muddy mountain path.

Nangong Jin's simple robes were soaked through, clinging to her body and outlining her frail frame. She clutched a bundle of wet firewood bound with vines to her chest.

"Please, be safe..."

Nangong Jin muttered, biting her lower lip. She worried that the sudden storm would drive the forest's beasts to seek shelter in the cave, threatening the still-unconscious Brother Pei.

Her heart pounding, Nangong Jin forced her exhausted body to move faster.

Ignoring the thorns that tore at her and the mud that stained her clothes, she scrambled toward a hidden cave.

Nangong Jin let out a long sigh of relief when she saw that the traps she had set at the mouth of the cave remained untouched.

She had exhausted all her Spiritual Qi to heal the unconscious Brother Pei. Here, the Spiritual Qi was murky and polluted by Demonic Qi, preventing her from absorbing the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to replenish her Qi Sea.

If she were to encounter a powerful beast, her situation would be dire.

Nangong Jin cast a warm glance toward the back of the cave, where Brother Pei lay concealed beneath a pile of grass.

Then, she took a deep breath and prepared to start a fire with a fire drill. She hoped the flames would drive out the cave's damp chill and warm Brother Pei's body.

...

...

An unknown amount of time passed.

Pei Yuhang slowly opened his heavy eyelids. His vision was a blur for a moment before it gradually sharpened.

He felt a weight on his chest. Looking down, he saw a woman sound asleep on top of him.

A woman so beautiful she hardly seemed to belong to the Mortal World.

Her jet-black hair cascaded like satin, a few strands resting gently on his lapels, a stark contrast to her snow-white skin.

Her long lashes were cast down, throwing small shadows beneath her eyes. Her breathing was soft and even, and though her lips were a little pale, it did nothing to diminish her breathtaking beauty.

Pei Yuhang started slightly and shifted instinctively.

Seemingly sensing his movement, Nangong Jin's eyelashes fluttered before her eyes snapped open.

Her limpid eyes, clear as autumn pools, were vacant for a moment before they lit up with joyous surprise.

"Brother Pei! You're awake!"

She sat bolt upright in an instant, gripping his sleeves tightly, her voice trembling with an emotion she couldn't suppress.

"How do you feel? Does anything hurt? Are you dizzy?"

Pei Yuhang frowned, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

He slowly pushed himself up, glancing around the cave. "How... how did I get here?" he asked, his voice hoarse. "What happened?"

Nangong Jin opened her mouth, ready to explain everything.

'After our life-and-death battle with the Ox Demon Venerable, we both fell into the river. You took the Demon Venerable's fatal blow for me, Brother Pei. You were nearly dead, and you passed out instantly. I've been dragging your body ever since, and the river washed us ashore here...'

But the words caught in her throat.

Nangong Jin gazed at Pei Yuhang. His eyes, once as sharp as a sword, were now as clear and guileless as a boy's.

Confused. Innocent.

A daring idea sparked in the depths of Nangong Jin's mind.

Her heart gave a violent lurch, and her fingers clenched instinctively.

"Brother Pei..."

She spoke softly, her voice barely a whisper. "Do you remember who I am?"

Pei Yuhang faltered. He furrowed his brow, as if trying hard to remember, but in the end, he just shook his head, a flicker of apology in his eyes.

"I'm sorry... My head is throbbing. I can't remember anything."

Nangong Jin fell silent.

A cold, damp wind gusted in from the mouth of the cave, brushing against the ends of her hair.

Her gaze traced every inch of the White-clothed Sword Immortal before her—from his noble brow, to the high bridge of his nose, and finally to the thin lips that always sent her heart into a flutter.

Nangong Jin still remembered that night, the sky full of fireworks, when Brother Pei had told her, his voice gentle but his words cruel:

"Junior Sister, we are just family."

But then there was that night, the moonlight like liquid silver, when she had clearly heard Brother Pei and Yueqiu...

'I hate it! I, your Junior Sister, am family, but Qing Yueqiu, your disciple, she isn't family? She gets to be your lover?!'

'Why?! Why is it that when it comes to Qing Yueqiu, 'family' means something different!'

'But... I've known you longer, Brother Pei. I was here first...'

But in the end, Nangong Jin never found the courage to say those words aloud.

'Perhaps,' she thought, 'the only reason I could hear what was happening next door that night was because Brother Pei wanted me to.'

'He did it to make me sever all worldly attachments, to devote myself to Forgetfulness, and to pass the tribulation to reach the Mahayana realm.'

'But now... she no longer had any chance of reaching the Mahayana realm.'

The battle against the Demon Fiends had not left Nangong Jin unscathed.

Her Qi Sea was now filled with traces of Brother Pei's Spiritual Qi, and his blood now mingled with her own...

The Forgetfulness Dao demanded that a Cultivator remain pure, but her body and soul were now marked by Brother Pei. She was no longer pure.

'And now... most importantly, Brother Pei doesn't remember a thing!'

'I don't need Forgetfulness anymore, and Brother Pei has forgotten all our past history... That means—that means—!!'

Nangong Jin's heart pounded faster and faster, her throat tightening as a nearly-frantic idea took root in her mind.

"Brother Pei..."

"What is it? Mph!"

She whispered his name, then suddenly leaned forward and, under Pei Yuhang's astonished gaze, pressed her lips to his.

Soft. Cool. With a faint, fresh scent.

The kiss was over as soon as it began.