That Is...

At that moment, the surrounding scenery suddenly blurred and twisted.

Endless void and deathly silence enveloped Qian Qizhou.

He appeared once again in that familiar, vast, and boundless space: the Plane of Euthymia.

However, this time, this plane was completely different from before.

The space was permeated with an indescribable restlessness and unease.

The grey-purple mist no longer flowed calmly but churned and surged like boiling water, and the purple arcs drifting through the air had become abnormally violent.

What made Qian Qizhou's heart sink even further was that Ei was gone!

The entire Plane of Euthymia was empty.

There was only that endless void.

"Ei?" Qian Qizhou called out tentatively, his voice echoing through the vast space, but he received no response.

His brows furrowed tightly, and his eyes filled with confusion.

What was going on? Where had Ei gone? If she wasn't here, then how had he arrived?

He pondered for a moment, then waved his hand to disperse the thick, churning fog before him.

Under his will, the mist slowly parted, revealing a corner of the scene deep within the plane.

A lightning orb floated in mid-air, with countless fine runes flickering in and out of existence.

The aura emitted by this lightning orb was of the same origin as the entire plane, yet it carried an indescribable sense of sorrow, determination, and obsession.

Qian Qizhou was stunned and walked forward in confusion.

"What is this?"

He hesitated for a moment, then finally reached out slowly, carefully touching the silently rotating purple lightning orb.

The instant his fingertip made contact with the surface of the orb—

"BOOM!!!"

Countless fragmented images, sounds, and emotions surged into his mind like a bursting dam.

A golden-haired figure, extremely similar to him, appeared.

Was that... himself, grown up?

In the vision, Qian Qizhou said to Ei, full of guilt: "Ei, I'm sorry... I couldn't save..."

The image shattered and reformed.

"...To keep the nation stagnant forever, this kind of eternity... is false."

Finally, the clearest image, and the one that shook Qian Qizhou to his core, suddenly froze—

In the image, it was... himself!

But he was on the verge of death, his aura so weak it seemed he would dissipate at any moment.

He was struggling to raise his hand, trembling as he caressed... Ei's cheek?!

Ei hadn't dodged?

He used his last ounce of strength, speaking to Ei with reluctance: "Ei... I'm sorry..."

At the same time, a tear of blood containing endless sorrow slid from the corner of Ei's eye, piercing through the barriers of time and space, and actually landed on the cheek of the Qian Qizhou in the present.

An indescribable sense of sorrow and determination instantly swept through Qian Qizhou's soul.

In the vision, Ei slowly stood up and looked at him.

"I will wait for your return."

"No matter how long it takes."

All the images came to an abrupt halt.

Qian Qizhou pulled his hand back violently, stumbling back a few steps, his face deathly pale, his eyes filled with disbelief.

What... were those images?

The massive impact of it all caused Qian Qizhou's consciousness to shake violently.

Suddenly, the scene of the Plane of Euthymia faded and dissipated like a receding tide.

He gasped sharply, as if struggling out of deep water, and the scene before him cleared.

Then, his fingertips trembled as he touched his cheek; a dampness still lingered there.

"Xiao Zhou?" Seeing Qian Qizhou wake up, Guang Ling leaned over quickly and said, "You're awake. How do you feel?"

But immediately after, Guang Ling, along with the Snow Empress and the Ice Emperor beside him, frowned slightly.

Qian Qizhou's aura seemed to have become incredibly sorrowful in that instant.

Looking at the three of them, he slowly lowered his hand and took a deep breath, forcing down the emotions in his heart.

Then, Qian Qizhou shook his head, his voice somewhat hoarse as he said, "I'm fine... I just had a dream."

Was that figure himself?

Was that him from his past life? If so, his first encounter with Ei was no coincidence.

He truly wanted to ask Ei what exactly was going on between them, but where had she gone?

Ice Emperor watched him, sighed helplessly, and turned to leave the room.

A moment later, she returned carrying a tray.

On the tray sat a glass of clear water and a bowl of porridge that looked plain but smelled incredibly fragrant.

She placed the tray on the bedside table, then crossed her arms and said in a stiff tone, "Hmph! Human Kid! You've finally managed to pull yourself together a bit."

She glanced at Qian Qizhou's still-pale complexion. "Here, you haven't eaten for days. What's the point of just relying on soul power to keep yourself going?"

"Eat something, otherwise if you actually starve to death, it'll be a hassle for this Emperor to collect your corpse."

However, it was clear she hadn't made the porridge herself; she had taken it from the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect's kitchen next door, though the chef there still hadn't recovered from the shock.

Snow Empress watched Ice Emperor's awkward behavior, a flash of helplessness in her eyes.

Qian Qizhou snapped out of his complex thoughts, his gaze landing on the steaming bowl of porridge by the bed, then shifting to Ice Emperor, who insisted on putting on a villainous front.

He was silent for a moment, then slowly reached out and picked up the bowl.

"...Thank you," he said in a low voice.

Without looking at Ice Emperor's suddenly unnatural expression, he picked up the spoon and began to eat slowly, one mouthful at a time.

Soon, the warm porridge settled in his stomach, and a long-lost sense of warmth and strength slowly spread through Qian Qizhou's body, dispelling some of his weakness and chill.

He looked at the others and said, "Don't worry, I'm fine now, and my soul power is stable as well."

Snow Empress nodded slightly, her cold, clear voice ringing out: "Your physical foundation hasn't been damaged, so recovery won't be difficult. But has your heartache been resolved?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the expression on Guang Ling's face froze instantly, and he was left dumbfounded.

He blinked, looking at Snow Empress in disbelief.

Even Ice Emperor, who had been turning her head away to pretend she didn't care, turned back with an indescribable expression: "Eh?!"

Was that really how one asked such a thing? Even she felt it was a bit too blunt.

Upon hearing this, Qian Qizhou's hand, which was holding the water glass, paused slightly.

He was silent for a moment, then gave a gentle smile.

"Sister Snow," he began slowly, "who can truly say whether something like heartache exists or not, or whether it has been resolved? At the very least, I don't know."

"Perhaps it is still there, like a thorn that cannot be pulled out and will not dissolve."

"Or perhaps it has already transformed into something else."

"But at the very least, I have recovered, and I know what I should do and what I must do."

He drained the water in the glass, feeling the coolness slide down his throat.

"You all should head out first. I want to rest for a while. Starting tomorrow, I will resume my cultivation; I have already wasted too much time."

Guang Ling opened his mouth, but in the end, it only turned into a silent sigh as he gently patted Qian Qizhou on the shoulder. "Get some good rest."