Free Web NovelChapter 236: Chapter 236: The End of All Enemies (02)
The ember at the tip of the cigar flickered again, its faint glow cutting through the darkness.
Xing Luoguang stared at the city for a long moment before finally speaking, his voice low and firm, carrying the weight of everything left unsaid.
"...We’ve already taken revenge."
He paused, his gaze unmoving as he continued to look at the city that did not belong to him.
"But what of it?"
There was no answer waiting for him, yet he asked anyway.
"Our city is still gone."
The wind howled softly around them, slipping through the silence like a quiet lament.
"Can we rebuild it like that?" he asked, almost to himself, his voice losing its edge as the question settled into something deeper.
"Can we go back... in just a moment?"
The words lingered in the air, unanswered, hanging between them like a truth neither wanted to face.
Then came the quiet response.
"...No."
Xing Luoguang’s lips barely moved as he spoke; the answer was simple and final, leaving no room for doubt or hope.
He took a slow, heavy breath.
"...But life must continue."
The words felt heavier than anything he had said before, as though they carried the burden of everything they had lost.
"They’ve paid for their sins."
Silence followed once more, settling over them like a familiar companion.
But it did not last.
Xing Luoye spoke, his tone calm, yet layered with something deeper, something that could not be hidden behind composure alone.
"And even if they have..." he began, exhaling softly as smoke slipped past his lips, "...can they bring our home back?"
The cigar burned lower in his hand, the ember dimming slightly.
"Can they return what was lost?"
His gaze lowered, his voice softening, yet each word struck with quiet force.
"Our people... living in cramped spaces now..."
"Those homes we built are gone..."
"In a moment."
His fingers tightened faintly around the cigar, the fragile object seeming almost symbolic in his grasp.
"...because of someone’s greed."
The ember flickered again, weaker this time, before dimming further.
This time, Xing Luoguang did not respond.
He simply sat there, silent and still, his eyes fixed on the city that was not his, watching it as if searching for something he knew he would never find.
After that, neither of them spoke again.
Xing Luoye continued to smoke, slowly and quietly, each inhale and exhale measured, as though time itself had slowed around them.
The cigar burned down gradually, the ember inching closer to his fingers.
The flame finally reached his skin, scorching. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Yet he did not react immediately.
Only when the heat became too sharp to ignore did he release it.
The small, burnt piece fell from his fingers, spinning as it descended into the darkness below.
The ashes broke apart midair, scattered and carried away by the wind until nothing remained.
Just like everything else.
The silence stayed between them for a long time, stretching endlessly across the rooftop as though it had no intention of ever breaking.
It was not the peaceful kind of silence that brought comfort or ease; instead, it was heavy, suffocating, as if something unspoken was pressing down on both of them, settling deep into their chests and refusing to lift.
The wind continued to pass by, carrying with it the faint chill of the night, brushing against their still figures as they sat side by side at the edge of the rooftop, looking out over a world that did not belong to them, a city that stood whole while theirs existed only in memory.
After a long while, Xing Luoguang finally spoke. His voice was low, calm, almost too calm, as if whatever emotion should have been there had long since been buried. freewebnøvel.coɱ
"Brother... you have happiness in your life." He paused briefly, his gaze still fixed ahead.
"You are going to become a father." There was no fluctuation in his tone, no warmth, no jealousy, no trace of anything that could be grasped.
It sounded like nothing more than a simple statement of fact, and yet that made it feel even heavier, as if the absence of emotion carried more weight than any visible reaction ever could.
Beside him, Xing Luoye froze slightly. His fingers, which had only moments ago let go of the burnt cigar, stilled completely.
His gaze lowered instinctively, and for the first time since they had come here, something uneasy crossed his face.
"...Luoguang..." he murmured, his voice quieter than before, hesitant in a way that did not suit him.
"...I’m sorry."
The words slipped out almost reflexively, as though he had not fully thought them through before speaking them aloud.
But the moment they left his lips, even he realized how they sounded...weak, empty, unable to carry the weight they were meant to hold.
"...I didn’t mean it."
Xing Luoguang did not respond. He did not move, did not acknowledge the apology in any visible way.
He simply turned his gaze slightly, looking deeper into the vast darkness ahead, as if those words had never reached him at all.
That silence, that complete lack of reaction, felt far worse than anger ever could have.
Xing Luoye felt his chest tighten, but he did not stop. "...I’m sorry," he repeated, this time softer, more genuine, the weight of his guilt finally beginning to seep into his voice.
"I know... I’ve done very wrong to you... and to Yue Yue." His words slowly lost their steadiness as he continued.
"I became the culprit... between you and her."
A faint bitterness appeared in his expression as his fingers curled slightly against his palm.
"I should have never judged her... never doubted her..."
His voice faltered for a moment before he forced the last words out. "...I’m sorry."
The wind howled faintly between them, carrying his apology into the night. Still, there was no reply.
Then suddenly, Xing Luoguang turned his head. His eyes landed directly on his brother, dark, deep, and unreadable, holding something that was impossible to fully grasp.
"Brother," he said quietly, "do you regret it?"
The question itself was simple, almost deceptively so, but the look in his eyes was not.
It carried something strange, something that seemed to pierce straight through Xing Luoye without leaving him any space to hide.
