The world around Han Yu shimred faintly, the night air still humming with the residual energy of the Undying Life Charm.
For a few long minutes, his body lay motionless on the cold earth, faint traces of steam rising from his skin as the last of the strange energy dispersed into the atmosphere. Then, with a slow intake of breath, his chest moved.
HUUUUUUU
His fingers twitched next, curling weakly against the dirt before his eyes finally fluttered open. The sight that t him was hazy at first, his vision blurred by lingering dizziness. The stars above looked like drifting streaks of light, their glow too bright and unreal.
It took several seconds before the world began to co into focus.
Han Yu lay there, still as the faint wind brushed against his bare skin.
Every muscle in his body ached. It was a dull, deep ache that felt as if his bones had been reforged and his veins had been torn apart before being sewn together again. For a while, he could do nothing but breathe and let his mind catch up with the strange truth of being alive again.
After a few minutes, he managed to sit up.
His body felt heavy, sluggish, but undeniably alive. He stared at his own hands, turning them over as if seeing them for the first ti. There were no wounds, no cuts, no scars. The deep gash in his waist was gone as if it had never existed. His skin was smooth and pale under the silver moonlight.
"I... really ca back," he whispered hoarsely.
The words left a strange taste in his mouth, relief mixed with disbelief and sorrow. He touched his chest, half expecting to feel so strange mark or lingering energy, but there was nothing. His heartbeat was steady and strong.
For a mont, he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.
The realization that he was still in the sa place hit him soon after. The sa clearing. The sa air thick with the scent of scorched soil. Even the faint traces of blood remained. He looked around, recognizing the marshy earth, the slope of the land and the silhouette of the distant trees.
"I am... still here," he muttered, his tone heavy. "So even after coming back... I might still die again."
He chuckled softly, though there was no humor in it.
It was a tired laugh, one born of exhaustion and grim acceptance. Han Yu stayed where he was, sitting cross-legged on the cold earth, letting the cool night air wash over him. He needed ti to think, to process what had happened.
His gaze wandered absently around the area.
That was when he noticed sothing odd. Near him, half covered in the dirt, lay a few tattered pieces of clothing.
There were two distinct sets.
One bore the familiar green and white pattern of the Twin Leaf Peak Sect, his own uniform, ripped and scorched from the fight. The other was black with deep red trimmings, the kind worn by the black robed man he had killed earlier.
Han Yu frowned. The presence of both sets of robes should have ant that both bodies were here. But there were none.
"Where... are the bodies?" he muttered aloud, glancing around the area.
He stood up slowly, his bare feet mushing lightly on the wet ground. The blood that had once soaked the ground was still faintly visible, but there were no corpses, no remains. Even the sll of death had vanished.
When his eyes moved toward the spot where the large tree trunk had once been, he froze.
The trunk was gone. In its place was a deep crater, roughly two ters across and filled with loose soil. The edges of the hole were smooth, as if the entire section of earth had simply lted away.
Han Yu’s heart quickened.
He stared at the crater, realization dawning on him. "The Undying Life Charm..." he whispered.
He rembered how, during his first revival back in the vault, the charm had absorbed the surrounding materials to restore his body.
’Could it be that the sa had happened again?’
"Did it... absorb everything?" he wondered aloud, looking around. "Even the corpses?"
The thought sent a shiver down his spine. He knelt near the edge of the crater and brushed the soil with his hand. It was warm, still faintly radiating spiritual energy. That confird it, the charm had consud the surrounding essence to fuel his revival.
He sighed again, his eyes tired. "So that’s the price... everything around it gets taken."
Standing up, Han Yu turned his attention back to the scattered robes.
He needed to check if anything had survived. The first thing that ca to mind were his storage pouches. If the charm had absorbed them, he would be left with nothing but his bare hands.
He walked over to the pile of torn cloth and began sifting through it carefully. The robes were damaged but familiar, the embroidery of the Twin Leaf Peak still faintly visible. Beneath the folds of fabric, his hand brushed against sothing firm and smooth. He quickly pulled it out.
Two small pouches, still intact.
His heart lifted slightly as he exhaled in relief. "Still here..." he muttered. He opened one of them briefly to confirm its contents, and sure enough, the items inside were undisturbed.
But then, his expression changed. A sudden realization struck him.
"Chitterfang..." he whispered sharply, rembering the small creature.
He rummaged frantically through the pile, his movents quick and uneven until he finally found what he was looking for, a small bundle of fur curled up near the folds of his old robes.
The little creature was motionless, its breathing faint but steady. Han Yu’s tense shoulders relaxed imdiately. He lifted Chitterfang carefully and held it close to his chest.
"You little fool," he said softly. "You’re still alive..."
A faint smile crept onto his face. It had been a long ti since anything had managed to comfort him, even briefly.
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