Then....
They were guided away before the crowd could fully surge forward.
It wasn't abrupt, nor was it announced. An elder stepped aside, a path subtly opened, and before Kai quite realized it, he and Rai were already moving away from the central platform. The voices behind them swelled for a moment—congratulations, laughter, the clinking of cups—then they slowly blurred into something distant.
They walked side by side.
For several steps, neither spoke.
The stone path curved gently downward, lanterns lining its edges, their light steady and warm. When Kai finally broke the silence, his voice sounded lower than usual, as if he were afraid of carrying the noise with him.
"So… what now?" he spoke, not asking her just voicing out.
Rai glanced ahead, then back once, toward the glow of the main grounds. "I was wondering the same."
He let out a small breath. "Do we just… leave like this?"
She considered it. "It seems that way."
Kai frowned slightly. "I thought there would be more things to do before we could go. Like, instructions, people stopping us or chatting or something."
He looked at her, and suddenly a thought came to his mind. "They're giving us space?"
"Yes." Rai spoke.
The answer came without hesitation, as if she had also speculated the same thing.
They walked a little farther before Kai spoke again. "I didn't expect that."
"Neither did I," she admitted. "But..
I think it's intentional."
He slowed down unconsciously, noticing that the attendants who had been escorting them earlier were no longer behind them.
The path ahead was empty.
Quiet.
"…They really are letting us go," he said.
Rai nodded.
Before they leave for Zhou city, this is probably the only moment that belongs to them and only them alone.
That thought settled between them.
Kai cleared his throat.
And spoke, "Does that feel strange to you?"
It was not sure what he wanted to talk about.
Rai tilted her head slightly. "What does?"
"That we're already being sent away," he said. "It hasn't even fully sunk in yet."
Rai was quiet for a moment. But finally replied "It hasn't... for me either."
She paused, then added, "But... I think... it will eventually, after all now, we are..."
At the last word Rai stopped speaking but Kai understood what she had wanted to say.
Kai glanced at her again and said "You're very calm today."
She gave a faint smile. "So are you."
He laughed quietly.
They continued along the path, their steps naturally falling into rhythm.
After a while, Kai spoke again, more carefully this time.
"I should say this now."
Rai stopped in her tracks and looked at him as Kai spoke.
"I didn't mean to leave that day without saying anything," he said. "At the gathering."
"I know," she replied.
He blinked. "You do?" Kai was surprised by Rai's reply, he had imagined many things but not this simple reply of hers.
"You looked like you enjoyed that moment," she said. "making fun of me or just trying to surprise me."
That earned him a brief, surprised smile. "That's… well, I can't say it was not like that at all." Kai felt like he was caught red-handed.
There was a pause, then he added, "I'm glad you're not angry."
"I was," Rai said honestly. "A little."
He winced. "That's fair."
"But not enough to matter now," she continued. "That moment already passed."
Kai exhaled slowly, some invisible weight easing from his shoulders. "That's good." He sighed slowly, as if relieved.
They reached the edge of the inner grounds, where the path opened into a quieter courtyard. From here, the noise of the celebration was little more than a distant hum.
Kai stopped.
Rai did as well.
They entered the courtyard. Entered a spacious room and took their seats, the bustle of the wedding grounds falling away behind them.
For a while, neither spoke. The silence between them was not awkward, merely unhurried.
Then they started to talk quietly and unhurriedly, living in that moment completely.
Nothing elaborate. A few exchanged words, simple —about what came next, about the short pause granted before they would leave. Their conversation did not wander far, nor did it need to. It was enough that they spoke, that they acknowledged one another in the quiet left after the ceremony.
Time passed.
Before it could stretch too long, footsteps approached the courtyard.
A figure entered the courtyard after knocking on the door, stopped at a respectful distance and bowed. "Young Master. Young Madam. It is time to depart for the Zhou City."
Kai and Rai both rose from their seats.
For a brief moment, neither moved forward. The quiet of the courtyard lingered around them, as though even the air was hesitant to break the pause.
Then Kai stepped ahead.
Before Rai could take a step on her own, he turned slightly and extended his arm toward her. His voice was calm, steady—yet unmistakably softer than before.
"Let's go," he said, then added, after the faintest pause, "my wife."
The words left his lips without hesitation, but a subtle warmth crept across his expression. It was not boldness, nor confidence—only a quiet shyness, restrained but impossible to miss.
Rai stilled.
She looked at him, her gaze lifting just long enough to meet his face. For an instant, surprise flickered in her eyes. Then, almost immediately, she looked away, as though the weight of those two simple words had caught her unprepared.
Her ears warmed faintly.
Yet she did not refuse.
After a heartbeat's hesitation, she lifted her arm and placed her hand in his. Her fingers curled naturally around his, the contact light at first—then steadier.
They began to walk.
Their steps were unhurried, neither fast nor uncertain, moving together along the prepared path. Stone beneath their feet, lantern light tracing the way forward, the world around them seemed to recede with each step they took side by side.
Before long, figures came into view.
People were already waiting for them.
As they approached, the Zhou family stood gathered ahead, composed and prepared to depart. Their expressions were calm, yet attentive—their purpose clear. The wedding had concluded, but what awaited next had yet to begin.
The baptism still remained.
Beside them stood Su Yan.
Kai's mother was already there, her posture straight, her gaze sharp as ever—yet softened by something quieter as she watched the two approach. She had chosen to accompany them personally, for this was not merely a continuation of ceremony, but a moment that would shape what came after.
As Kai and Rai came to a stop before them, the courtyard fell into a brief, meaningful stillness.
Without words, the path forward was set.
With no further delay, the group moved toward the teleportation array prepared.
Formations hummed softly as spirit stones were placed into their slots, light gathering in faint, measured lines beneath their feet. The air shifted—barely noticeable, yet unmistakable to those familiar with it.
Kai tightened his grip slightly.
Rai felt it and did not pull away.
As the array activated, the courtyard, the lantern light, and the towering halls of the Heavenly Martial Sect blurred and faded before their eyes.
Then, in a single breath—
They were gone.