Dugu Yan stood rooted to the spot for a long time, light and shadow mingling in her eyes as conflict and struggle churned within them, her emotions tangled in a bitter medley.
Deep in her eyes lay the hatred of losing family, the resentment rooted in blood-her grandfather had died a miserable death.
Yet rising alongside it were the good fortune of rebirth and the debt of having her life saved.
The person before her was the true culprit behind her grandfather's death, yet also the benefactor who had given her a new life and saved her.
She slowly raised her head, then bowed deeply once more, keeping her back straight.
"My grandfather died because of you. I ought to hate you, to resent you."
"But I also live because of you. I ought to remember your kindness and seek a chance to repay it."
"My heart is torn by countless contradictions, and I cannot find peace. Repaying kindness with enmity would betray my conscience. I could never do it."
"But to bear a blood feud and endure without seeking revenge is not how I, Dugu Yan, conduct myself."
"From this day onward, I will first repay your kindness. Another day, I will settle this sea of blood between us."
Qian Renxue quietly watched the clarity and understanding in her eyes, a trace of approval passing across her face.
"You're very clever."
She saw through Dugu Yan's intentions at a glance.
Once she repaid the kindness first, she would no longer have grounds for revenge.
With no way to repay that kindness, there would naturally be no path left to avenge her sea of blood in the future.
It seemed to honor both obligations, but in truth, she had already willingly abandoned every possibility of revenge.
She lifted her gaze