CH 18

“You uncovered my hidden secrets and used them to threaten me. I wanted you to keep your mouth shut forever,” Xiao Zhenyun said, his tone oddly calm, yet the colder he appeared, the more ruthless his words felt. Si Di’s gaze turned fierce, a predatory light in his eyes, as if he could devour him right there.

“But later, when I saw you barely clinging to life outside the operating room, I regretted it. You’re my nephew, one of the few family I have left in this world. I didn’t want you to die like that. So, I didn’t hesitate to expose my recovered guide powers to save you.”

“Oh? Are you no longer afraid?” Si Di provocatively taunted, “Not afraid that I’ll expose your secrets?”

“Not afraid. You can spread those things however you want when we return, I don’t care,” Xiao Zhenyun’s gaze remained steady, and he looked at Si Di without flinching. He genuinely didn’t care about his reputation… though the world administrator might go crazy, and he’d have to resort to his knife-throwing skills to silence Si Di.

“But Si Chu…”

Xiao Zhenyun cut in as soon as that name was mentioned, “I admit, I did have some unhealthy thoughts about Si Chu before. It’s a complicated feeling, partly driven by envy – envy of his awakening, envy of his family, his personality, and everything he possesses that I want. A fierce mix of joy and jealousy. But since my guide powers recovered, I’ve become clear-headed. I no longer have those feelings for Si Chu. We share a purely familial bond now.”

Si Di impatiently interrupted, “Words alone are empty.”

“After we return, you’re welcome to supervise me anytime,” Xiao Zhenyun responded immediately.

“… “

It had to be said that Xiao Zhenyun’s strategic retreat was executed masterfully. He harbored subjective malice, yet refrained from taking any concrete actions, avoiding an outright whitewashing of his past. It was incredibly believable. Si Di pondered for a moment, then reluctantly accepted all of Xiao Zhenyun’s explanations.

A person with ill intentions but lacking the courage to act on them, and now considering turning over a new leaf… a complex character. Si Di made a note of this and added a question mark regarding the ‘turning over a new leaf’ part – that would require further observation.

With the truth laid bare, Si Di wrapped a piece of snake meat in a leaf and handed it to Xiao Zhenyun. It was a peace offering, and Xiao Zhenyun accepted it with both hands.

This snake was likely the island’s champion of movement, perhaps a competitor in land, sea, and air categories. Its muscles were taut, and Xiao Zhenyun struggled to tear and chew it with his bare hands and teeth. He thought to himself that if rescue didn’t arrive soon, let alone one for months, even a week of barbecue feasting might cause indigestion.

Seeing him make slow progress with the food, Si Di noticed he seemed lost in thought and asked curiously, “What are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking how nice it would be to have a drink right now… but can I be honest?” Xiao Zhenyun struggled a bit and then asked, “Is there any water?”

“No,” Si Di replied decisively, “But the water source isn’t far from here. Eat first, and once you’re done, you can go get some water.”

“So, I’ll have to run for water every time? Isn’t there any container around?”

Si Di took a bite of his meat, his expression revealing that he was holding back less pleasant words. Xiao Zhenyun’s inner alarm bells rang, but before he could intervene, the sentry chuckled and said, “Actually, the readymade container we have is our shoes, especially these long boots I’m wearing. They have astonishing capacity and won’t leak. If you don’t mind, you can wait here. I’ll reluctantly part with them and fetch you two bootfuls of water.”

Xiao Zhenyun: “…”

Xiao Zhenyun: “Help me onto the deer.”

After speaking, he noticed the greasy hand of Si Di reaching out to hug him without even wiping it, “Hold on, your hands are too dirty, don’t touch me.”

Si Di didn’t seem pleased with this remark, “Do you think your own fingers are any cleaner?”

At his words, the Stag, who had obediently walked to Xiao Zhenyun’s side, who was waiting to be picked up, turned his head and instantly leaped away, clear fear in his eyes. It was obvious: you rascal, do you really want to grasp my antlers with those filthy hands?

“You heartless being!” Xiao Zhenyun sighed.

He then looked at Tai Ji. Tai Ji immediately got up as if unconcerned, arched his back lazily, stretched in a leisurely manner, and swiftly hid behind Si Di, even tucking in his tail.

“…”

Finally, Si Di still ended up piggybacking Xiao Zhenyun to the riverside. Xiao Zhenyun spread oil on Si Di’s shoulders and neck, while Si Di rubbed oil on his legs and waist, mutually causing harm to each other.

The resilience of a sentinel was truly remarkable. When Si Di had fallen from the flying aircraft into the sea, it took all his strength to crawl ashore. His left wrist was broken, swollen and bruised, so he tore a piece of cloth to hang in front of his chest. 

Now Xiao Zhenyun was leisurely bathing in the creek. Seeing Si Di slowly testing the bones near his left wrist under the water, Xiao Zhenyun was surprised. Si Di had fractured his wrist and was testing its recovery by gently moving it. While an ordinary person would take three months to heal, a sentinel only needed three days… Xiao Zhenyun was truly amazed.

Tai Ji was resting on the bank, looking at the clothes drying with a kind expression. The stag was excitedly chasing butterflies all over the place, lifting its hind legs and kicking trees as if it had gone mad, depleting the energy within.

Si Di slowly turned over in the water, looking at the stag hesitatingly. Xiao Zhenyun glanced at Si Di, urging, “If you have something to say, just say it.”

“Its true personality… is quite different from my initial impression of it,” Si Di’s expression was diplomatic. His initial impression of the deer could only be described as breathtaking, as if it were a celestial being descended to earth, an exquisite and graceful male deer, fearless and skilled, disdainful of all things.

“Hmm, silly deer,” Xiao Zhenyun said casually. “By the way, it hasn’t been named yet. Do you have any ideas?”

He deliberately asked this question because Si Di’s previous reaction implied that he had some thoughts. And indeed, Si Di did have an idea. “I once gave it a name on my own, but… it doesn’t seem quite appropriate now…”

“Go on.”

“…” Si Di looked at the deer that was crazily kicking the tree, “Tian Lu.”

Tian Lu, like a divine deer, a symbol of auspiciousness.

The stag kicked the tree again vigorously, leaves rustling in protest. It looked up, then suddenly leaped away, and three or four thudding sounds were heard as something fell from above.

Si Di immediately leaped from the water onto the shore effortlessly. His underwear had been half-dried, so he simply skipped that step and pulled on his pants, barefoot, heading towards where the stag was. Behind him, Xiao Zhenyun, who had no legs, poked his head out, puzzled, but he couldn’t see anything. Soon, Si Di returned to the bank, holding three coconut-like objects in his arms, and Xiao Zhenyun furrowed his brows, “Did it kick these down?”

“Yes.” Si Di tossed one to Xiao Zhenyun, who caught it. It was lighter than expected, probably hollow inside. Its size and shape resembled a coconut, but the texture of the shell was more like a macadamia nut. One of them had a cracked opening, and Si Di used his bare hands to widen it. Inside were some fibrous and fluffy substances. He took them out, sniffed, walked to the river to clean the shell, and said, “Here you go, a water container as you wanted.”

Xiao Zhenyun looked at it and indeed, it was an excellent container. He turned to look at the stag and saw that it was resting, having tired itself out.

Tossing the water container up and down, Xiao Zhenyun couldn’t help but smile brightly, “Let’s call it Tian Lu then. Tian Lu—”

The stag had no idea it already had a new name, so it didn’t react. 

Tai Ji walked over and nuzzled it, then turned to look at its owner, who was waving at it and calling it Tian Lu. 

Si Di turned his face slightly to look at Xiao Zhenyun, observing his long hair cascading from his shoulders, gently swaying in the water like ink spreading on paper, the perfect blend of black and white. When he shifted his gaze away, Xiao Zhenyun also lifted his head. He saw the sentinel, standing tall and straight, with well-proportioned muscles, and a posture that seemed to have been meticulously crafted with words by an ingenious writer.

Tian Lu expressed satisfaction with its name in its straightforward way, licking Xiao Zhenyun’s forehead before circling around Si Di’s leg, finally going to wash Tai Ji’s fur with lapping sounds.

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