The whole family is insanely eavesdropping on my thoughts Chapter 538
Chapter 538: A Heart Free of Dust
“You still have the heart to joke…”
“Your eyes are blind!” Xie Yu Zhou looked at her, both angry and amused, but in the end, his heart ached for her.
“Actually, there’s no need to be sad for me. Not seeing has its benefits too. At least… I don’t have to do my homework anymore…” The little girl tugged at Xie Yu Zhou’s robe, her face beaming with a bright smile as she tried to comfort him.
Her once dazzling eyes, as bright as the stars, were now dull and lifeless, devoid of any light.
Xie Yu Zhou felt a pang of sorrow. Seeing the redness around her eyes, he knew she was far from calm inside.
The air in the hall was unbearably heavy, as if a massive stone weighed down on everyone’s chest, making it hard to breathe.
At lunch, Xie Yu Zhou carefully fed Chao Chao. The dishes were all her favorites, yet she only took a few bites.
In just half a month, the little girl had grown noticeably thinner. Her once chubby cheeks and arms, fair as lotus roots, had now lost most of their baby fat.
“Everything today is what you like. Won’t you eat a little more?”
“Don’t you love roasted meat? How about we have Windchaser prepare some for a barbecue in the courtyard tonight?” Xie Yu Zhou coaxed and persuaded, but the little girl pressed her lips together tightly, her expression filled with resistance.
Xie Yu Zhou drooped his head, looking utterly dejected.
Suddenly, Windchaser’s eyes lit up. “Why not let Chao Chao soak in the spirit spring at the rear hall?”
“It’s known as the Sacred Spring of Healing. A soak might do no harm.”
Xie Yu Zhou immediately agreed. Without another word, they abandoned their meal and carried little Chao Chao toward the inner hall.
Over the past days, they had tried countless medicinal baths and treatments, yet none had worked, leaving them all near despair.
Xie Yu Zhou had grown more irritable with time. Once a plump little boy, he had now slimmed into a graceful young noble.
If Chao Chao couldn’t eat, how could he?
His carefree attitude had always depended on Chao Chao being safe and sound.
As the stone door opened, a dense white mist rushed forward, engulfing them.
“This spirit spring has the power to cleanse the marrow and refine the body. It will hurt at first, so bear with it…” A-Wu had soaked in it just the day before, and the pain had left her trembling all over.
She was from the Phoenix Clan, with a body far sturdier than humans, yet she had barely endured it.
Chao Chao was only four and a half. She would surely suffer.
At the center of the stone chamber, a small, crystal-clear spring bubbled, continuously spilling its waters.
“This spring has a mysterious origin. Its water seems to appear from nothing, endlessly overflowing and spreading throughout the Demon Realm.”
“Back when the Heavenly Dao collapsed, the Demon Realm nearly fractured beyond repair. But as the spring water seeped through, it stabilized once more.”
“It has since been regarded as the Demon Clan’s greatest treasure.”
“If one with a wicked heart enters, they will be reduced to bones in an instant.”
Long ago, when the spring was discovered, the demons had thrown their worst criminals into it. The moment they touched the water, they let out blood-curdling screams. In mere seconds, they dissolved into bones, which soon disintegrated, leaving no trace.
From that day on, the Demon Clan sealed the spring with a massive stone and locked it away with chains.
Yet the waters continued to flow, spreading into the underground rivers of the Demon Realm.
Since it could not be sealed, they built this stone chamber to contain it.
A turning point came a hundred years later when Windchaser, in a battle for the Demon King’s throne against Fu Tu, suffered severe injuries and sought refuge in the chamber. By accident, he fell into the spring.
To his astonishment, his wounds healed instantly.
Half a year later, after cultivating near the spring, he defeated Fu Tu and claimed the throne.
From then on, the spring became the Demon Clan’s sacred treasure.
A-Man dipped her hand into the spring, and immediately, a burning sensation spread throughout her entire body.
“Hiss—”
She yanked her hand back, shaking it vigorously, trying to rid herself of the pain.
“It burns! It burns!”
The pain wasn’t just physical; it clung to the soul like an unrelenting fire.
Within moments, a thin layer of sweat covered her forehead.
A-Wu’s eyelids twitched. Zhu Mo grabbed her hand at once. “Why didn’t you tell me when you came back? Soaking in this spring is that painful? If I had known, we wouldn’t have let her try.”
His eyes were filled with distress.
A-Man and A-Wu were both mortals. A-Man had only brushed against the water and already found it unbearable.
But A-Wu had endured an entire day inside.
Leaning gently against Zhu Mo’s chest, A-Wu’s voice was soft. “I wanted to be with you for a little longer. I’m not afraid of pain. Mortals live short lives, while the Dragon Clan lives for millennia. If I leave, what will you do? I can’t let go of you.”
Her words filled Zhu Mo’s heart with warmth.
“I… I bear resentment toward the Celestial Sovereign. That’s why it hurts,” A-Man huffed, blowing on her reddened hand while instinctively distancing herself from the affectionate couple.
For some reason, every time they showed their love, A-Man felt a strange sense of dread.
Xie Yu Zhou was deeply anxious. “How much suffering will Chao Chao have to endure?”
“We have to try.” Even the Divine Healer had no cure—this was their last hope.
Chao Chao was only four and a half. If she lost her sight forever, how would she live her life?
Xie Yu Zhou understood this, but he still turned his back, unable to bear watching.
A-Man and A-Wu helped Chao Chao change into a light inner robe and led her step by step onto the white jade steps into the water.
Windchaser watched closely, ready to pull her out if she couldn’t endure it.
The moment her soft little foot touched the water, she paused.
“Does it hurt?”
“Does it burn?” The others leaned over, tense with worry.
Just as they spoke, the little girl grinned widely, her crescent eyes full of joy. “It doesn’t hurt! Not one bit!” Then, with a splash—
She jumped straight into the water.
The splashing droplets landed on the others, searing their skin with pain.
But Lu Chao Chao swam freely within, even dipping her head fully under.
“Wow, this feels so nice…”
She cupped water in her hands and let it spill through her fingers, completely unaffected.
“How… is this possible?” Windchaser murmured in shock, unable to believe what he was seeing.
When he had fallen in, his whole body broke out in blisters from the pain.
Even after half a year of acclimation, he could barely last an hour in the spring.
Yet Chao Chao had no reaction at all.
Seeing this, Xie Yu Zhou’s worries vanished in an instant. He chuckled to himself. He had been so blind to the truth.
“Because her heart is free of all corruption,” he murmured.
She could have become the strongest sword immortal in the Three Realms, but she had willingly abandoned all power, fame, and fortune to sacrifice herself for the world.
Her heart remained pure, unswayed by darkness.
And even now, she had no regrets.
“I have never seen someone so utterly without impurity…” Zhu Mo whispered, unable to suppress his admiration.
Even after saving the world and being rejected by the Celestial Realm, she remained untainted.
As Lu Chao Chao swam around joyfully, the scorching pain in her eyes faded into a soothing coolness.
She reached up to rub her eyes—
Then suddenly, A-Man let out a cry of alarm.
“Look! Look at the water!”
Her trembling hand pointed to the spring, where ripples had begun to swirl, forming a vortex around Lu Chao Chao.
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