Chapter 178: Silent Tears Streamed Down
Chapter 178: Silent Tears Streamed Down
Three days later!
Deep within the Hundred Thousand Mountains, inside a cave, Tang Yilin, who had been unconscious, finally awoke.
Tang Yilin looked at the unfamiliar cave but showed no surprise. Instead, her face held a serene expression, for a man sat not far away from her.
“You’re awake!”
Feeling that Tang Yilin had regained consciousness, Tang Jinbiao turned his head and looked at her, a hint of gentleness in his eyes as he spoke evenly.
“Hmm.”
The pale face of Tang Yilin no longer held the haughty aura of before; she simply nodded meekly and offered a soft sound of assent.
“Long time no see.”
Gazing at the beauty before him, Tang Jinbiao felt not a flicker of lecherous thoughts. Though this version of Tang Yilin possessed a different kind of allure, his heart was filled mostly with guilt.
“Yes, long time no see.”
Tang Yilin clearly had much she wished to say, yet she held it all back. She nodded as well and replied.
For a moment, the atmosphere descended into stillness and awkwardness.
They were formally betrothed, nominally husband and wife. Yet their separation had spanned five years, and with the fall of the Tang Family, that marriage seemed null and void to Tang Jinbiao—especially given the vast chasm now separating their identities, statuses, and cultivation levels.
At this moment, Tang Jinbiao seemed to understand why Wei Wuya had called him a man who depended on women for a living the moment they met.
“Heh, living off women? Perhaps, huh,” he wryly thought.
Recalling the events of that day and looking now at the stunningly beautiful woman before him, a trace of helplessness surfaced in Tang Jinbiao’s eyes.
To put it simply, even just a month earlier, perhaps he wouldn’t have acted this way towards Tang Yilin. Though he likely wouldn’t have done anything outrageous, some teasing would certainly have occurred. But after Jia Longwu’s scheming, his heart had died.
Or rather, the moment Captain Wang had stabbed him the first time, he had known this day would come.
“You’ve grown,” Tang Yilin thought silently as she also looked at Tang Jinbiao without uttering a word.
She, too, had many things she longed to say. If she’d met Tang Jinbiao two years earlier, she definitely would have thrown herself at him, weeping desperately. But she was not the same person she was two years ago.
The wait had been excruciatingly long, especially a wait of five years!
How many five-year spans are there in a person’s life? Ten? Twenty?
When she had first arrived, Tang Yilin had spent days and nights longing for her mother who had long passed away, missing her family, yearning for Tang Jinbiao—her nominal husband.
But time is always dreadful. It can take away all human hatred, sorrow, worries, pain, joy, happiness, and even bliss!
It can take away absolutely everything!
Including longing and love.
It is not time that flows away, but ourselves—we who constantly move forward, even when we don’t know where the future lies. Yet we keep moving onward, ever onward.
Silence!
The cave wasn’t large, only about ten feet across. In this profound silence, the atmosphere grew even more eerie.
Yet neither of them felt it was awkward. Instead, they found it peaceful.
They had been rushing about for far too long; they needed to quiet down and reflect on their path forward.
Glisten!
Glisten!
In wordless silence, tears welled up in both their eyes. Unconsciously, their eyes began glistening with tears—they were almost on the verge of weeping.
Yet neither made any move to wipe them away, instead letting the teardrops trickle down freely.
For they knew not what to say. They feared this was merely a dream, that speaking even a single word might shatter this beautiful illusion, or break this sweet reverie.
Drip-drop!
Though her hands were already stained with blood, Tang Yilin’s tears still traced paths down the corners of her eyes, slipped over her cheeks, and finally fell to the ground, spattering onto the bluestone slabs like scattered, glistening diamonds.
Plop!
Similarly, tears flowed from Tang Jinbiao’s eyes. He seldom cried. Always carefree and thick-skinned, even he couldn’t hold them back at this moment.
Wordless silence, tears in both eyes. In this silence, more powerful than any words!
The air within the cave fermented and thickened, intensifying relentlessly.
Though overcome with sorrow and weeping silently, neither broke into open sobs. They could not allow it. They understood that a long, arduous road still lay ahead. Should either succumb to weeping now, it would signify bowing to fate—admitting defeat.
Tang Jinbiao was not one to yield; Tang Yilin was the same; both possessed unyielding spirits. Yet sometimes, they had no choice but to bend.
Drip-drop… drip-drop…
As their tears continued to fall, the heavy silence remained unbroken. Time crept by, minute by minute, second by second.
Uncertain how much time had passed, the tears seemed to have dried up in both their eyes. No more fell; only the redness and swelling remained, the aftermath of grief.
“You know by now, don’t you?”
At last, Tang Yilin spoke. Her voice was hoarse, likely from her prolonged silence.
She was asking Tang Jinbiao if he knew of the Tang Family’s annihilation. It was the sole reason propping her up now, the one thing she clung to.
Without this reason, she had no idea how much further she could endure.
“Yeah, I know.”
Tang Jinbiao understood her question perfectly. He nodded.
Meeting under such circumstances; they ought to have shared tender words. But Tang Jinbiao was no longer the man he once was. He knew exactly what he faced, accepted this harsh reality with newfound clarity.
Survival was the rule imposed upon them, not a choice they could freely make.
“What will you do?”
Seeing that Tang Jinbiao understood, a faint glimmer flickered briefly in Tang Yilin’s eyes before vanishing without a trace. She spoke, her tone detached.
Tang Jinbiao had, indeed, reached Body Refining Third Tier. Tang Yilin, though her powers were not yet restored, still possessed the discerning eye of a Mid Nascent Soul Stage cultivator; she could perceive it instantly.
“I will strive!”
Tang Jinbiao caught that fleeting change in her gaze but chose to let it pass unspoken. Instead, firm resolve shone in his own eyes as he answered.
“Strive?”
At hearing the word “strive,” mist once again veiled Tang Yilin’s swollen eyes. A wry smile tugged faintly at the corner of her lips as she murmured the word, her voice laced with unidentifiable emotion.
The word sounded utterly absurd to her. Had she not worked hard enough?
She knew all her achievements—rising from late Foundation Building Stage to her current mid Nascent Soul Stage within five years, even becoming the youngest Nascent Soul Cultivator on the Divine Wind Continent—were earned through relentless effort. Yet despite this, mortals remained mere mortals in the end.
“En!”
Although unsure about Tang Yilin’s sudden shift in demeanor, Tang Jinbiao still nodded firmly, voicing his affirmation.
“Oh!”
Seeing Tang Jinbiao’s steadfast resolve, Tang Yilin offered no further protest. She merely uttered “Oh” before falling silent.
The atmosphere grew quiet once more.
After roughly the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Tang Yilin spoke again, “Tang Jinbiao, step outside for a moment. I’m changing clothes.”
“Alright.”
Without objection, Tang Jinbiao rose and walked out.
Ssss!
As he exited, a faint barrier enveloped the cave, obscuring his view inside.
Half an hour later!
“You may enter now!”
Tang Yilin’s voice echoed from the cave just as the barrier gradually dissipated. Tang Jinbiao stepped inside.
……
Approximately another cup of tea’s time passed before Tang Jinbiao reemerged.
“Huh, seems her ‘injuries’ were indeed severe!”
Glancing back at the cave, he shook his head ruefully. Without lingering, he departed.
But he didn’t go far. Instead, he turned toward nearby rocks, retrieved his Frost Silver Spear, and began carving strikes against the stone.
Fifteen minutes later, a new cave dwelling appeared. After tidying it, Tang Jinbiao settled cross-legged within.
……
In the following days, Tang Jinbiao never disturbed Tang Yilin. Only during breaks from cultivation did he occasionally gaze from afar at her barrier-sealed cave.
Each day repeated: cultivate, cultivate, and cultivate again.
Without elixirs or spirit stones, his cultivation level remained at third-stage initial tier. Yet he began mastering the God of War’s Stride.
……
Time flowed swiftly. Three months vanished in a blink.
By now, Tang Jinbiao’s God of War’s Stride had reached minor mastery. All his qi energy had transformed into frost qi. Each punch unleashed frost power, and his Frost Silver Spear technique bordered on perfection.
“Haaah!”
As Tang Jinbiao paused to catch his breath mid-movement after testing the Stride’s sequence, the long-silent cave finally stirred.
Whoosh!
A white figure shot from its entrance, landing just beyond to watch Tang Jinbiao intently from the distance.
“She’s out!”
Seeing that Tang Yilin had ended her seclusion, Tang Jinbiao walked over.
“Tang Jinbiao, though I’d prefer not to say it, I must. The connection between you and me ends here. Though you have saved my life twice, there is no possibility for us!”
Tang Yilin, now fully restored, looked like a celestial maiden descended from the heavens, her expression filled with haughtiness and disdain. She spoke in a cool tone.
“Mm, I knew.”
Over the past three months, Tang Jinbiao had reflected deeply. He naturally understood the vast disparity between them. Without fuss or protest, he merely nodded silently.
“If possible, live out your days here forever. The world outside is vibrant, yet filled with helplessness.”
Tang Yilin looked up towards the distant sky, a trace of distant gaze showing in her eyes.
“Oh.”
Tang Jinbiao softly acknowledged.
“Alright, that’s settled. Thank you for your watch and company these three months. Farewell forever!”
Turning back, Tang Yilin withdrew the distant look from her eyes. Without another word, her body transformed into a streak of escape light shooting off rapidly towards the west.
Moments later, Tang Yilin’s figure vanished from his sight.
“Hah, this is the gap.”
Tang Jinbiao felt little emotion, shaking his head with resignation.
Indeed, the chasm between them was immense. One was the favored daughter of heaven, barely twenty and already at the Mid Nascent Soul Stage cultivation level. While he, at the Body Refining Third Tier, was a source of pride, it now seemed utterly insignificant in comparison.
Though Tang Yilin said nothing more, Tang Jinbiao fully grasped the difference.
“Perhaps I should leave this place. But… where should I go? Seek vengeance? But against whom? Do I even have enemies? Should I cultivate? But what is my purpose in cultivation? For eternal life? Or to seek… something?”
Confusion!
In that moment, a profound confusion instantly enveloped Tang Jinbiao.
Or perhaps it could be said Tang Jinbiao had always been lost?
He just hadn’t known it. He’d never had a firm goal, drifting through life aimlessly, yet he’d still made it this far.
Now, stopping abruptly, he suddenly realized that what he thought he sought wasn’t truly what he sought. A deep sense of loss and confusion immediately overwhelmed him.
Where did the path ahead lie?
Tang Jinbiao didn’t know. It seemed no one would tell him how to walk the road of his future.
Perhaps, just keep moving forward blindly—that would be the way!
But… where was forward in this vastness?
In that instant, Tang Jinbiao felt like a soulless husk, unable to see any path ahead. With no direction, he simply walked, moving steadily deeper into the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
“Maybe… maybe my path forward is in there?”
Tang Jinbiao lifted his head, gazing into the far greater depths of the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Hazily, he thought he heard a faint voice calling to him from deep within those boundless mountains.
“Hmm, no matter. Just keep walking—that will suffice.”
Looking at the immense, distant peaks ahead, Tang Jinbiao felt his own smallness again. But he didn’t indulge in lamentations. Instead, he pushed forward, setting out into the depths of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
Bzzzzz!
Just then, however, a sudden vibration struck his waist. A black pearl flew out…