AYM Chapter 106

His heart suddenly gave a violent thump. The feeling was both familiar and strange.

Before, this would have been followed by unbearable, twisting pain. But this time, just as Yan Yihuan instinctively frowned and pressed a hand to his chest, something gentle stirred within him, as though a force had finally broken free of its restraints and surged forth.

This made Yan Yihuan’s eyes fly open in shock. It felt as though he had suddenly understood something, but the situation left him no chance to think it through.

The force flowed through him like a warm spring, surging endlessly from his heart to every part of his body. Yan Yihuan abruptly looked up into the Emperor’s eyes, which were fixed on him.

That gaze had not changed. Yet moments ago, Yan Yihuan had felt nothing but anxiety. Now, to his disbelief, an unfamiliar ache welled up inside him. He could not describe the feeling, but his own gaze had already changed without his realizing it.

Others might not have noticed anything, but to Li Xuanming, the calm composure he had maintained was instantly torn open by that look, and his steady heartbeat suddenly quickened.

He had seen countless emotions in Yan Yihuan’s eyes. Even in their most tender and passionate moments, he had never seen a look like this.

There was anxiety, confusion, and panic.

But woven into that complicated gaze were also affection, love, and longing.

Even if it was only the slightest trace, Li Xuanming saw it clearly.

Could it be that he…

This was obviously not the time to dwell on it. Li Xuanming forced himself to focus again and looked toward Li Xuanjing, who was growing visibly impatient. The time had come.

Far in the distance, another streak of light split across the sky. The shrill whistle was too faint to hear clearly, yet it came like a whistling arrow, driving straight into everyone’s heart.

Then one signal after another shot into the air in rapid succession, each following closer behind the last, leaving no time for one to catch a breath. Li Xuanjing was so startled that he nearly forgot he was still facing an opponent. He turned back blankly, faint flashes reflected in his eyes.

What happened back there?

Why was there such a huge commotion?!

Li Xuanjing desperately wanted to turn around and check out the situation for himself, but he could only remain frozen where he stood. The moment he turned his head, he would be exposing his back completely to Li Xuanming.

“Go. Find out what’s happening in the rear,” Tang Tong ordered the personal guard beside him. His hand quietly settled on the hilt of his sword, gripping it ever tighter.

Although Li Xuanjing felt a sense of dread, he glanced at Du Yunsong and found some reassurance.

No matter what, Du Yunsong was allied with his residence of King Qin. If something had gone wrong at the back, there was no reason to wait any longer. They should seize Li Xuanming as soon as possible.

He turned his gaze to Du Yunsong again, only to find that after meeting his eyes, Du Yunsong looked away as though he had seen nothing at all. Li Xuanjing’s scalp tingled as he instantly realized something was wrong.

Only then did it dawn on Li Xuanjing that he had let Li Xuanming lead him by the nose without realizing it and stall for all this time.

As he watched Li Xuanming smile confidently at the distant lights, the confidence that had filled Li Xuanjing’s own eyes was gradually replaced by unease.

He could not drag this out any longer. No matter what had happened at the rear, he still vastly outnumbered Li Xuanming. As long as Li Xuanming was killed, everything would be over.

“Generals, hear my command!” Li Xuanjing’s furious roar instantly silenced the restless troops. Du Yunsong’s eyes sharpened, and he immediately spurred his horse forward to place himself in front of Li Xuanming. Li Xuanjing then raised his sword high and swung it down fiercely.

“Kill them! Whoever brings me Li Xuanming’s head will be richly rewarded!”

The emperor’s name carried an authority that could not be ignored. The soldiers behind Li Xuanjing froze for a brief moment before erupting into battle cries. In an instant, dust billowed into the air as the earth shook with the force of their charge.

At the same time, the soldiers behind Li Xuanming answered with a thunderous roar of their own. Shouting, “Destroy the traitorous ministers! Wipe out the rebels!” they charged forward without fear.

Seeing Han Zhen instantly swept into the chaos of battle, Yan Yihuan, retreating into a corner, found himself filled with a courage and urgency he had never known before. He knew his emperor was searching for him through the swirling dust, just as desperately as he himself longed to find him, to truly reach out and touch him.

Return to the Emperor’s side. He had to return to the Emperor’s side!

This was the enemy’s camp. His Majesty could not come. Then I will go to him.

His ears were filled with every kind of sound: battle cries, screams of pain, the clash of steel, and the dull thud of blades sinking into flesh.

He did not know when a stray arrow might fly toward him. He did not know whether the next person he met would swing a sword at him. But Yan Yihuan ran only toward the direction he had been staring at for so long.

One feet. Ten feet. The distance between them was shrinking with every step. Sooner or later, he would see him beyond the curtain of dust.

The fine warhorse beneath Li Xuanming seemed to sense its master’s anxiety. Normally calm and steady, it now stamped its hooves restlessly and snorted constantly.

As smoke and dust engulfed the battlefield, Li Xuanming lost sight of Yan Yihuan almost at once. Knowing he couldn’t blindly rush into the chaos, he could only suppress the urge and try to get closer and closer to search for him.

“Your Majesty!” Du Yunsong drove his spear through a man who had been about to strike Li Xuanming with his sword. “Fall back!”

Li Xuanming understood all of it. Yet he still had not found him. He did not know whether Yan Yihuan was alive or dead at this very moment!

The look Yan Yihuan had given him had been carved into his heart as if with a chisel. He still did not know why Yan Yihuan had looked at him that way, or whether it meant what he desperately hoped it did!

As men were cut down like blades of grass amid the chaos, Li Xuanming’s restraint and patience finally reached their limit. He drew his sword, and although Du Yunsong stared at him in shock, he still instinctively moved to stop him. Just as Li Xuanming was about to charge into the battlefield, a powerful gust of wind suddenly rose from nowhere, sweeping away the dust that filled the sky. In the span of a heartbeat, everything became perfectly clear.

Only now did they realize that they were barely a hundred feet apart. Only now did Li Xuanming see that his Yihuan had been risking his life to reach him all along.

His legs clamped tightly around his horse. The warhorse, which had been whinnying restlessly, seemed to break free of its restraints at last and burst straight toward the heart of the battlefield.

“Protect the Emperor!”

Du Yunsong’s roar was just as thunderous. The several hundred elite soldiers surrounding Li Xuanming sprang into action at once, charging after him and once again filling the sky with swirling yellow dust.

Yan Yihuan’s eyes instantly lit up. Every trace of fear vanished as Li Xuanming rode toward him. He could not help spreading his arms, wishing he had wings so he could fly straight into the embrace he had dreamed of day and night.

But Li Xuanming’s eyes suddenly widened. For the first time since he had appeared, they were filled with sheer terror and panic. “Yihuan, move!”

What was His Majesty shouting at him? Was he telling him to move aside?

Yan Yihuan froze for a moment, but he did not dare look back. Seeing the distance between them growing ever shorter, he gritted his teeth and endured the searing pain in his chest from his ragged breathing. Just a little farther. Just hold on a little longer, and he would be back at the Emperor’s side.

Behind him, where he dared not look, Li Xuanjing’s eyes had turned blood-red. His gaze was locked onto that slender figure charging forward without hesitation. The hatred in his eyes was so fierce it seemed as though it could tear Yan Yihuan’s organs apart.

“Your Highness!”

At Tang Tong’s startled cry, Li Xuanjing suddenly pulled the bow from his back and nocked a sharp feathered arrow. The arrowhead was aimed directly at Yan Yihuan’s completely unguarded back.

If I can’t have you, then no one will!

Yan Yihuan, everything about you will be mine, even your life!

The finger hooked around the bowstring had gone white from the strain. The bow was drawn to its absolute limit. Tang Tong knew Li Xuanjing’s archery was unmatched. He never missed. Once that arrow was released, Yan Yihuan would have no chance of surviving.

Without the slightest hesitation, Tang Tong raised the saber he had been tightly gripping all along.