Bound by Life and Death, Never Apart, Never Forsaken

Morgan Shangguan reached out with her other hand and embraced him, kissing his lips gently to comfort him. "Don't be so tense, it's just some poisonous smoke!"

Damien Gray spoke in a low voice, "Just in case! If you get lost, I swear I'll raze this place to the ground. Princess Consort, consider it an act of kindness to save the innocent people here!"

Morgan Shangguan laughed softly, "That would be troublesome. I don't think I possess anything called 'kindness.'" Though she said this, her grip on his hand tightened slightly.

Damien Gray curled his lips, "Then just pity me. If I can't find you, I'll be heartbroken!" His voice carried a hint of a smile, but it was not a joke at all.

The smoke gradually dispersed. Morgan Shangguan tried to let go, but Damien Gray wouldn't release her. She glanced at him and didn't insist.

Susie Yun had already taken the antidote pill, so she was unharmed. Half of the others had collapsed, blood streaming from their seven orifices as they died.

Fortunately, the smoke didn't penetrate the skin, or else most of them would already be dead!

After the chaos, everyone remained on high alert, nerves taut, paying close attention to their surroundings. Surprisingly, no one noticed that the Ghostmaster and the Cloud Guildmaster were holding hands.

Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet vanished, and the group began to fall. Damien Gray grabbed Morgan Shangguan's waist, stepped on the shoulder of someone falling nearby, soared into the air, and landed safely. By then, the ground had already returned to normal.

Morgan Shangguan couldn't help but frown. Not only had the ground suddenly disappeared, but there was also a powerful suction force. In the end, only the two of them managed to land safely; everyone else had vanished! These arrays were truly formidable!

Morgan Shangguan sighed and said, "It's time to get serious, let's go find Susie Yun!" She didn't care at all about the fate of the others, but Susie Yun was hers—she couldn't let anything happen to her.

Damien Gray nodded, "Maxwell Jing disappeared earlier." He wasn't too worried about Maxwell Jing, smiled and said, "That's just as well, fewer concerns." He bit Morgan's lip as he spoke.

Morgan Shangguan looked at him helplessly and reminded, "Ghostmaster, we're in real danger right now!"

Damien Gray glanced around and snorted, "This counts as real danger?"

Morgan Shangguan shook her head and simply dragged him away.

Maxwell Jing, alone, hadn't encountered much danger. Though Healer's Sanctuary had changed over the years, he had lived there for so long, and his skills were formidable.

He walked toward the inner valley, searching for Damien Gray and Morgan Shangguan. When he saw the stretch of artificial hills ahead, his steps involuntarily stopped.

On the hills, there were small bridges, flowing water, elegant pavilions, and towers, even a waterfall cascading down. As Maxwell Jing gazed at the scenery, his eyes grew distant.

After a while, he murmured softly, "I didn't expect this place to still be here."

He walked straight ahead until he saw a cave, then stopped. The cave was tall enough for most people; after standing outside for a while, Maxwell Jing bent down and entered. The hollow inside could fit two adults.

He took off his mask, his eyes reddened, and lifted his head, the smile on his lips full of bitterness. He whispered, "I was too greedy. Actually, things aren't so bad now." He had always used these words to convince himself, to forget those feelings, to dispel those unworthy hopes.

He had always been by his side, always within sight, but it was like worlds apart. Between them was an invisible chasm, keeping them apart no matter how hard he tried—he could never get close. The feeling left him powerless, yet he couldn't help but hope, hope to return to the past. But every hope only led to despair. Maybe, if he didn't hope too much, he wouldn't be disappointed, wouldn't despair.

But how could he learn to let go?

What he thought he'd forgotten was now suddenly so clear!

Closing his eyes, he reached out to touch the stone wall. Even without looking, he could still find the exact spot where those words were carved.

Back then, he was lost, just wanting to be alone and think. He stumbled in here by accident, but Ethan Gu still found him. He could almost hear the words spoken back then.

"If all you want is a promise, I can give you one!" With a wave of his hand, four words were etched into the stone wall: "Bound by life and death." That was a promise, one he never wanted to break. "And you?" Ethan Gu never liked to lose, especially when facing him—at least on the surface.

With a wave of his hand, another four words appeared on the wall: "Never leave, never forsake." That was his response.

"Good thing you believed me, or you'd be my test subject!" When Ethan Gu was young, he seemed cold and indifferent to outsiders, but in front of him, he always wore a half-smile, as if always plotting to tease him.

Maxwell Jing chuckled softly, opened his eyes, and gazed at those eight words, his fingers gently tracing the marks.

"Bound by life and death, never leave, never forsake." But why did it end up like this?

Only now did he realize he hadn't truly been lost back then. He knew exactly what Ethan Gu would choose, so he hadn't really been worried.

But now, he truly didn't know what to do!

"Han..." Tell me what I should do?

He didn't know how much longer he could hold on like this. Maybe the next moment, he wouldn't be able to keep from revealing everything!

"Why are you hiding in there?"

The sudden voice startled Maxwell Jing. He paused, made sure he hadn't misheard, frowned, glanced at those words, then gritted his teeth and wiped away the marks.

Staring at the now blank stone wall, his chest tightened with a familiar sense of suffocation. But he knew from experience that the pain would pass—it wouldn't kill him.