XH 291 - Return her to me!

Long Zhu was shocked when Xiao Hua suddenly fell back just as the spring pool started changing. He paid no attention to the latter and immediately caught his wife before she touched the ground.

His arms that had securely wrapped around her started to tremble, extremely frightened when he noticed she had stopped breathing. He grew even more apprehensive when she did not respond to any of his calls and Da Bei started to grow agitated like a wild beast that could not find his master.

He used every healing technique he could on her, but she still remained lifeless, her body warmth slowly dissipated.

"Why...? Why did you take her away from me!" Long Zhu roared with gradually spreading red eyes and sent out a great wave of spiritual energy at the spring pool, but it was treated like a gust of wind, creating a gentle ripple at the surface of the water.

The spring pool was not harmed by the spiritual attack.

Whatever Xiao Hua had thought and assumed, Long Zhu could guess about half of it. But it was enough to know that Xiao Hua's current state was done by the World Spirit.

What was there to fear about the deity when it was his most precious person at stake? He even dared to cut down the heaven just to get back her soul!

"Return her to me!" Long Zhu bellowed like a person that had lost his mind as he kept on lashing strong attacks at the spring pool that continued to remain unaffected by his attacks. The gentle ripple on the surface gave Long Zhu the impression that he was being mocked for his uselessness.

The trembling Long Lian stared at the still Xiao Hua and wished to go to her but her body felt weak all over, unable to carry her to her sister's side. She fell to her knees as tears swam around her eyes, before spilling out uncontrollably.

There was no way Xiao Hua died. She must have only fainted. Her third brother was merely too anxious and wrongly diagnosed Xiao Hua's state. However, no matter how much she tried to convince herself, her logical mind that was able to sense a living person... told her she could not sense Xiao Hua's breath.

"Master..." An Jing stared at the out of control Long Zhu and then at the still Xiao Hua which Duan XiYing had taken over to try to resurrect. Her son was whining like an injured cub and it was Da Liu that restrained him before he would do something crazy that could not be fixed.

An Jing does not understand why Xiao Hua would suddenly stop breathing, or even understand why she would choose to throw her tea into the spring pool. But she truly regrets she had not stopped her young madam from doing so, which had led to this tragic situation that none of them ever wanted.

"The spring water!" Long Lian pointed at the spring pool with a tear-streaked face. "Will Xiao Hua wake up if she drinks it?"

Tian Liang does not want to destroy Long Lian's hope, but he also does not want to lie either. "The water might be dangerous and do more harm than aiding."

"But... but it looks like Xiao Hua's tea!" Long Lian protested half-heartedly.

To An Jing's sharp nose, the spring pool had immediately changed its scent to resemble Xiao Hua's tea after the two different liquids collided. She could not identify any difference at all. But the King of Munzhu's words was reasonable. An Jing would not let any dangerous and unconfirmed liquid to be drunk by Xiao Hua.

"Xiao Hua!" Duan XiYing cried out in relief when the still body suddenly twitched under her hands and her heart started beating again.

The one that paid the most attention to Xiao Hua's state was actually Long Zhu, who immediately abandoned the desire to destroy the spring pool once his wife started breathing again and went to her side.

Even Da Bei stopped his painful whining and stared at his mistress with wet eyes, with his father's arms still wrapped tightly around him.

Long Lian cried in joy and finally was able to gather energy to run to Xiao Hua's side. Tian Liang followed her just to make sure she did not trip over herself with how hasty she was. "Y...You came back!"

Xiao Hua's lashes fluttered before revealing light grey eyes to the spectator.

The grey eyes were filled with pain and haunting despair as Xiao Hua was still riding hard on the emotion of the last meeting with her mother. Tears started to gather and flow out of her sockets like a long river, a sight full of unspeakable grievance that could not be voiced out.

Even the thought of her mother having her new beau by her side was hard to appease her grief. She has no worries for her boss, because she always knew that they have no chance to have a future together, for the other party only viewed her as a friend. His secret crush was a beautiful childhood friend and both side's families have high hopes for them to get together.

He Zhu might be devastated by her death, but it would not take long for him to climb back up and go back to his daily routine. He was not the type to wallow in the past and brought down by failures or mistakes.

It was only when she realized she was wrapped around Long Zhu's arms like a safety cocoon did she realize she was back as Xiao Hua.

The realization and relief of her return hit her hard that she started to tremble. Le Xiao Ting may wish to be with her mother, but Xiao Hua's yearning to stay with Long Zhu was stronger. She was ashamed to be such an ungrateful daughter, but also relieved that her mother could be freed of having a bed ridden daughter to take care of.

Whatever her selfish reason was, Xiao Hua would gladly use them to justify her decision.

Slowly walking towards Xiao Hua with a wagging tail, Da Bei softly whined as he rubbed his head on her hand that moved automatically to rub his furry head. He had been extremely terrified, right down to his beast core, because that blank whiteness had blocked him from feeling anything, including their master and beast bond.

An Jing discreetly tilted her chin and her husband was the first to join her. Her master would want some time alone with his wife that everyone had thought to be dead just moments ago.

Tian Liang pulled the reluctant Long Lian away while Duan XiYing tapped Da Bei's nose playfully and carried the bundle of fluffiness away from the couple.

Heng Xin held back his urge to rush the Third Prince in joining his master. He did have some tact after all. He was sincerely glad that Xiao Hua was alive, because her death would strongly affect His Majesty's mental state.

After calming herself down, Xiao Hua belatedly realized her husband was holding onto her tightly without any movement.

"Long Zhu?" His name successfully pierced a layer of his defense and his arm trembled slightly. "...Sorry, did I scare you?"

Xiao Hua does not know what happened to her body when she returned to her world. But vaguely remembering the other's expression when she returned, and guessed that her body must have been acting like a corpse without a soul.

Although she was thankful to the World Spirit for giving her a final closure with her sole remainder of family, it still left a bitter taste in her mouth for playing with her loved one's heart.

They must be terrified of her corpse-like body.

"Long Zhu... Um!" Her lips were quickly captured by a forceful pair of lips. As she was still lying down with her upper body in his arms, she was easily pushed down without resistance.

This kiss was without lust or desire, just seeking for her warmth and response, for the sake of reassuring him that she was alive. Long Zhu's frame shuddered with stark relief when her arms wrapped around him, running up and down his back to reassure him.

Hia trembling eased and not long after, he ended the kiss to whisper, "I nearly went insane when you left."

Xiao Hua's eyes misted. "Sorry..."

"I have never hoped for the world's destruction in my entire life, just to get you back."

"I... I'm sorry..." The tears that had stopped flowing suddenly re-start with a vengeance that took the aggrieved Long Zhu aback. "I-I also thought I won't return to you again. I'm so scared..."

Suddenly, the role of coaxing was passed to Long Zhu and he did his best to stop his young wife from crying in a manner as if the world had wronged her.

But in a way, the World Spirit had indeed wronged her!

"Let's spend all our time together until Death claims our soul, okay?"

...That was not what she wanted to hear at all!

But Long Zhu's gaze that was filled with bitter acceptance cut off any complaint she wanted to utter. Long Zhu smiled softly at her unwilling expression and rested his forehead on hers, his breath touching her just as hers touching him until they could not differentiate whose breath was whose.

"...Okay."

Long Zhu helped Xiao Hua up, standing on her own two feet. "Now, let's hurry and join others."

Even if he wanted to stay like this longer, he could not just ignore the war.

"Woah... This place looks just like a fairy tale," Xiao Hua said in awe, her head turning around left and right, up and down nonstop.

"We had not moved," Long Zhu said.

Around the spring pool, it was filled with grass and flowers blooming and Xiao Hua imagined this must be a place where Snow White would love to stroll. There was no longer a roof above their heads and they could see the clear sky without hindrance.

"There are many familiar places such as these in the forest where spiritual beasts live," Duan XiYing revealed.

They approached closer so that Xiao Hua could examine the spring pool better.

The spring pool had changed drastically. Its previous gloomy atmosphere had transformed into a bright and peaceful feeling. The water was no longer a clear blue but was now a light green shade that does not give off a dirty and moldy sense.

"Does this not look like your tea, Xiao Hua?" Long Lian asked. "It smells just like your tea."

"I'm not sure..." Xiao Hua glanced at Long Zhu, who looked disturbed from what he could see from the pool. She could not see much difference from before and after thanks to her colorblindness.

"It has a similar shade of green as tea," Long Zhu reported. "Even the smell is similar. Perhaps the old spring water is gone and taken over by your tea."

If that was the case, the World Spirit had chosen the new.

"The Gu bugs are completely wiped out," An Jing reported after going around the place. Even the half-demon corpses had disappeared as if this place could not bear even a tiny speck of ugliness from staining its beauty.

"Xiao Hua, try to bring it back with us," Long Zhu said.

In the end, no one could unearth the spring pool.