For Yun Ruo Xiâs own sake, the decision to scurry away was the right one because in the moment she was gone, the rope binding the old coot promptly snapped apart in its entirety. What followed next was the senior flying down the valley in pursuit like some bounty hunterâ¦.
â¦â¦
A hundred meters beneath the valley was a stretch of land littered with withered trees. Thereâs no sunlight here, only darkness and spookiness that sent the skin tingling with discomfort. This was the place where Bai Yan landed in after they fell into the trap activated by the wretched bitch.
Loosening her arms thatâs hugging the boy tightly, this worried mother wanted to examine her son when Bai Xiachen suddenly pushed her away. âXiachen?â Surprised by the act, she appeared shocked at the denial.
âDonât come over Mother, please donât come!â Stepping away, his shoulders were slouched downwards in a dejected manner as well was his head. Itâs obvious something bothered the boy to the point where he didnât want to face his own mother.
âXiachen, whatâs wrong with you?â Bai Yan didnât listen and continued to draw closer.
Forced to step back again, his little body shook with fear against the overstep of boundary: âMother, Iâm very ugly right now, please donât look.â
So thatâs it, heâs afraid Bai Yan would see his current appearance after having a relapse with the inner monster inside his body. But who was this woman here? Sheâs Bai Yan, the boyâs loving and caring mother. Thereâs no way she would turn away at his plead. Embracing him with her own body, the womanâs warmth made the boy go stiff but kept his head down anyways to avoid eye contact.
âXiachen, no matter what happens you will always be motherâs precious boy. Now look up and let me see whatâs wrong.â Speaking softly in an almost cooing voice, she reaches over to tip the boyâs chin so she could get a clear look.
As nervous and frightened as he was, the little steambun didnât resist the gesture and slowly raised his head. Bai Yan could tell how much this affected her son so she didnât rush it and guided him with the upmost care. Then thatâs when she realized why. Heâs still as cuddly and adorable as ever, the same handsome young boy from her memories. However, one of the eyes there had turned a deep red shade. Itâs evil and cold in nature, that much she was certain because even her body was shuddering for a second when confronted with that gaze.
Finding no words would come of the grim reveal, Bai Xiachen took this as a form of rejection. Tightly clinging onto that sleeve, tears came swelling out as he sobbed away.
Mother doesnât like me anymoreâ¦.
âHmmâ¦.â Realizing the blunder sheâs made, Bai Yan hurries to rectify the mistake by drawing a gentle smile. âYour new look isnât so bad, itâs quite handsome even.â
Startled at first by what heâs heard, the boy stares up in disbelief: âMother doesnât dislike me?â
âYou silly, why would I dislike you? You are motherâs precious baby boy, no matter what you change into, I will always love you. That will never change.â Hugging to give her son a peck on the forehead as reassurance, Bai Yan didnât lie and said everything from the heartâs down.
âBut Mother, Iâm scared stillâ¦â Throwing his head into the womanâs chest to cover his eyes, those fingers gripped even harder against Bai Yanâs sleeve to show his insecurity. âIâm afraid I will hurt youâ¦.â
Taken aback by that comment: âWhy you say that?â
After a long while of silence and contemplation, Bai Xiachen finally mustered another wave of courage to give his reasoning. âMother, do you remember the last time when you were attacked by the shadow guards from the palace? In order to fend them off, something happened within my body and allowed me to gain more power than I normally would haveâ¦.â Gently snugging his head against her breast to gain some more comfort, he continues with a sad face: âBut this time, I completely lost control, I didnât even recognize myself during the process. If not for that amulet around the bad womanâs neck suddenly intervening with that strange light, Iâm scared I wouldâve continued to attack everyone indiscriminatelyâ¦.â