Broken Bonds

Chapter 2

Taking a deep breath, Yan Feili propped himself up and lifted his feet to enter the gateway.

Who could have foreseen, that without the wall for him to depend on, the soft earth beneath his feet would lead him fall and tumble down into the courtyard from the third step.

"AH..." Yan Feili could not help by cry out, as when he had tumbled his abdomen was bumped; causing a burst of intense pain to emerge from within him; forcing him to choke out cry which brought to his attention that something inside him had been damaged, with a current of burning hot liquid soon rushing out of him and slowly flowing down his legs.

His body pulled into a huddle, his form lain on the ground, Yan Feili clutched both hands tightly against his stomach as he had not even the smallest ounce of strength needed to list himself back up. Unknowing of when large flakes of snow began descending from the sky and blanketed all there was, or even when the colour of the heavens had turned dark.

The New Year's Banquet within the main courtyard of the Fuyouju which lay ahead of him, had yet to meet its end, appearing there was no desire for it to stop until the wee hours of the morn.

So there, within that quiet courtyard, the drifting sounds of that lively laughter in the dead of night were all the more distinct. A clear contrast to that deserted Northern courtyard which made it even more lonely.

"Ah...ngh..." Yan Feili had no idea exactly how much time had passed. His sweat from earlier had long soaked the front of his coat, so when the falling snow had then fallen upon him, it froze him to the bone. He could feel that his limbs had long grown numb, yet, within his stomach, that same burning pain had remained—becoming ever the violent and fierce.

Yan Feili struggled within that newly made bed of snow. His house lay just before his eyes, but he simply did not have the strength needed to crawl into it.

Who will come... Who will help him... Who will help.... This always strong and tenacious man, in the end, could not help but cry out for someone to save him.

"General Yan, why are lying in such a place? You... What happened to you?" It seemed that the heavens could not stand by idly and watch Yan Feili keep struggling in pain, all on his own, in the falling snow.

Hua Xingyan lost himself in fright at the sight of Yan Feili lying curled up in the snow, with the thick layer of white built up after falling on the pained man's black coat making it known exactly how long he had been there.

In fact, from since Yan Feili had left the feast, Hua Xiangyan had felt increasingly uneasy. Wishing to know how Yan Feili—a General of the Northern Sect who was highly skilled in martial arts and incredibly competent—would become like that. Even if he were truly intoxicated, his face would not have been so pale, nor would his forehead be covered in a cold sweat. Thus when proceeded to recall Yan Feili's reticent and silently enduring nature, he became even more fearful that the other man was unwell and had simply been forcing himself to endure.

Despite him and Yan Feili being from different Sects, as well as them being no closer than acquaintances, he had always admired how the man carried himself. Therefore upon catching sight of the snowfall outside, he could not stop himself from finally going out to have a look.

Who could have expected, that once he had arrived outside the Bamboo Garden's Gate he would meet them wide open; and upon entering, would lay eyes on Yan Feili at the bottom of their steps—unable to prevent his own fright! Reaching out to support the fallen general, he felt that man's entire body was as cold as ice and trembling violently.

Yan Feili struggled to open his eyes, wanting to see the one who had come to him clearly.

"Hua... General Hua......"

"General Yan, are you injured? What happened?" The black coat hid Yan Feili's figure, making Hua Xiangyan unable to see the condition of his body clearly. So Hua Xiangyan's first thought was that someone brazen had burst into the headquarters of Tianmen's four sects and had harmed Yan Feili.

"Help me... help me get inside......" Hua Xiangyan immediately responded, helping the other man to his feet. Not expecting Yan Feili's lower body had grown heavy, leaving both legs limp and without strength, not even enough to allow him to stand.

"Ngh..." the movement causing a sudden weight to descend into his abdomen; the pain unbearable.

Hua Xianyan lifted Yan Feili, and with him in his embrace, at last carried him inside the house.

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NOTE:
Please note that if you go raw hunting for this story you'll find two versions which have different chapter listings and changes to certain scenes. So after this one is done I'll do the other because I hate myself apparently...😑