The wind at Jialing Pass gradually softened, yet it still could not blow away the gloom in their hearts. Liu Erlong held the letter addressed to Ma Hongjun, her trembling fingertips still unsteady, tears swirling in her eyes. Her voice carried an unresolved sob as she read it aloud, word by word.
"Hongjun, when you touch this letter carrying the scent of stardust, I should already have caught up with Zhi Nian's footsteps and crossed the wind and sand filling Jiayu Pass..."
Ma Hongjun clenched his fists, his eyes red as tears slid down his dark cheeks and fell onto his clothes, spreading into small wet patches. He remembered how Lin Zhixia always loved stealing the roasted meat from his bowl, yet would secretly save the tenderest piece for herself and Chenxiang. He remembered the two of them collecting shells by the sea, Zhi Xia smiling as she said, "This can suppress your fire nature. I'll make Chenxiang a bracelet with it later." Those vivid memories had now become the most painful longing in his heart.
"That day, fire and blood mingled atop the city wall... At the moment that arrow flew out, he smiled, as though a thousand-pound burden had been lifted from his shoulders. That was when I knew I hadn't done anything wrong."
Liu Erlong's voice paused, thick with tears. Ma Hongjun seemed to see the endless wind and sand of Jiayu Pass that day, see Zhi Xia's resolute figure clutching the Star River Shattering Bow, see that arrow carrying both longing and determination tear through the sky—he finally understood that the pain Zhi Xia had endured was far deeper than anything they had seen.
"Now I'm going to find him. Don't be sad for me... But Hongjun, you have to promise me that you'll take good