Embrace Of The Abyss— 2

"Xia Feng!" Xia Wangrou yelled in anger and worry, "What has gotten into you all of a sudden!?"

Xia Feng wasn't interested in talking. He applied a bit of force and skillfully caused a thin red line to appear on his wrist.

His parents panicked instantly and Mother Xia started wailing. "Feng'er! Feng'er! Stop! We won't send you to school! Please stop!"

Xia Feng paused in his actions and looked at his father. His father's eyes reddened in panic and confusion, everything he wanted to stay was stuck in his throat but with a forced smile, he nodded.

Xia Feng's smile widened.

"Thank you for understanding. Please give me a 100,000 Yuan if possible, I require money. Sorry for troubling you, I'll go back to sleep."

"Mmh." All Xia Wangrou could do was nod with a heavy heart. At the moment he wasn't hearing anything he was saying.

The scene of Xia Feng almost cutting himself was causing his heart to beat wildly.

Xia Feng placed the knife on the table and picked a nearby cloth before wrapping it around his wrist.

"It's just a small wound. It'll heal by itself in a while." He was looking at Mother Xia while saying this.

Mother Xia could only respond with a twisted smile.

Xia Feng then returned to his room.

He had deemed it unnecessary to waste time mingling with a bunch of kids.

From the memories he absorbed, he knew there was no merit in doing so.  

...

"What just happened...?" Mother Xia muttered with a despondent expression before looking at the stressed Xia Wangrou, "Dear..."

"Don't unnecessarily make any contact with him for now. We can't agitate him." He looked at his wife with a pale face, "Did you not see the look in his eyes? If we hadn't agreed our son would've been lying on the ground bleedi-"

"Stop!" Mother Xia interrupted him. "Please don't mention it. I understand. But we can't leave him alone like this right?"

Xia Wangrou nodded, "I'll give him the 100,000 first." A fierce look appeared in his eyes, "It could be that he's being blackmailed by someone."

"...Blackmail?" Mother Xia's eyes widened and the confusion in her heart lessened.

If that were the case it would make sense.

Xia Wangrou held his wife's hand and said gently, "Don't worry. I'll figure this out and solve this. I'll monitor his bank activity and see if I can find anything. I'll make sure such a situation doesn't happen again!"

He declared and Mother Xia could only nod in response, still traumatized by the fact her son was just about to commit suicide.

...

Xia Ling couldn't believe what she just witnessed. Her cute round face flushed red with fear and panic.

Her heart started beating wildly. As she heard her mother yell she noticed a drop of blood falling from her brother's wrist.

Since her vision was limited she could only imagine what was going on. She should've run into the living room to inquire about what was happening but she couldn't move a foot.

After the living room turned silent she calmed her racing heart and tiptoed to her brother's room. She carefully opened it and found her brother sitting on the bed cross-legged.

"Is he meditating?" She said to herself in surprise and her eyes went to the cloth wrapped around his wrist. 

The aura around him was so comfortable that Xia Ling felt her racing heart calm down.

"Can I come in?" She said meekly and to her surprise Xia Feng nodded without opening his eyes.

"Gege¹... Is there something troubling you?" She asked, her eyes full of concern. (Note- Gege is a way of affectionately calling an older brother. Like Oppa in Korea and Onii-san/ Nii-san in Japan)

Xia Feng opened his eyes and looked at his sister curiously.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, he parted his lips.

"Give me your hand."

"Huh? Uhm... Why?" She said so but still extended her fair hand towards Xia Feng. He grabbed her wrist and after a few seconds mumbled, "Acceptable..."

Xia Ling was confused yet still scared and didn't say anything. She was somewhat regretting being impulsive.

"Ling'er do you believe in longevity?"

"Longevity?" Xia Ling was flabbergasted. Has her brother become delusional? Did some accident cause him to go mad? Wasn't he fine just a few hours ago?

"Yes, longevity." Xia Feng nodded with a profound look and seeing the disbelief in his sister's eyes he hummed in agreement.

"Seeing is believing after all..." He muttered, "Come with me."

He got up and exited the room.

"What? Wher-?" Before she could ask he had left so she hurriedly followed him. 

...

With an incredulous expression, Xia Ling followed behind Xia Feng.

The moon in the sky shone brightly and the stars twinkled. The night breeze left her feeling serene.

"So relaxing..." She muttered and thought back to her parents' reaction. They were surprised by Xia Feng and her sudden departure.

Xia Feng just said he had a lot on his mind and wanted to take a walk in the park nearby with her. Her parents didn't dare deny his request but Xia Ling felt like her parents were trusting her with him.

If Xia Feng wanted to leave the house alone after the stunt he pulled it would probably not be so easy.

"Where are we going gege?"

"Somewhere fun." Xia Feng smiled and replied.

As they walked briskly in the night Xia Feng looked at the sky and started speaking.

"What is the average human lifespan?" He suddenly asked and Xia Ling was surprised.

"I think it's around 70-80 years?" She was somewhat unsure but the answer shouldn't be much different from hers.

"Indeed." Xia Feng nodded, "A mere 80 years. Not even a century. Don't you think it's pitiful Ling'er?"

"Is it? Doesn't it depend on individual to individual? Some people live happily even if they don't live long and people that cry out in desperation yet die living their natural lifespan."

Xia Ling felt like she wasn't able to articulate her point well but he should get the gist.

This was what she believed. If you think you've lived enough then you'll die without regrets, if you think you haven't then you'll long for more.

"So that's how you see it." Xia Feng smiled, "So what do you think? Will you be satisfied living a happy life for 80 years?"

"Yes!" She nodded resolutely.

A life full of happiness, who wouldn't want it? Who dared not be satisfied? Wanting more was just being greedy and arrogant.

"I see. Then what if I say I have a way for you to live for a thousand years? Would your answer change?"

"Eh?" Xia Ling frowned, "A thousand years... That would be interesting but what's the point? Everyone around me will keep dying while I won't. Won't that be miserable? But let's say everyone has a thousand years to live then, of course, why not? The more I can live the more I can enjoy. The more I can enjoy the more happy I'll be." 

"I agree. The more I can live the better. Isn't that correct?"

Xia Ling felt something was wrong with that statement but she still nodded.

"Say Ling'er. Would you be willing to live a thousand years with me?" Xia Feng suddenly turned around and asked.

Xia Ling's heart skipped a beat.

"Why are you being ambiguous? If anyone hears you they'll think you're confessing to your love." She scoffed.

"Of course not like that." Xia Feng chuckled.

Just as she was about to answer she noticed that they had reached the entrance to a forest.

"Gongqing Forest Park?" She muttered and looked into her brother's eyes.

A sense of unease filled her heart.