Where the Heart Belongs

Time was like the gentle waves beyond Tidewatch City, silently smoothing over the scars etched deep into their souls and settling into the most precious peace.

Tang Wulin and Gu Yuena could both clearly feel the changes within themselves. It was not only their increasingly stable spiritual power, as deep and vast as the ocean, but also a sense of release and rebirth that came from within. When they recalled the events of ten thousand years ago now, those fragments of memory that had once pierced their minds like needles and brought unbearable pain remained somewhat blurred, as though seen through frosted glass, but they no longer caused agony. They were more like old belongings stored away in the attic of the heart, covered in dust. They knew they were there, but no longer sifted through them constantly, disturbing their peace of mind.

They even discovered that part of their memories seemed to be missing. The most intense emotional eruption before the final freezing, the causes and effects behind certain details—all remained shrouded in mist. Yet strangely, neither of them cared very much.

"If we can't remember, then let it be." Once, Gu Yuena leaned against Tang Wulin's shoulder and looked up at the stars as she spoke. Her tone was casual, yet carried the calm of understanding.

"Those past events, whether good or bad, were ultimately the path that led us to each other. Since the most important result is already here..." She took his hand and pressed it against her heart.

"How much of the process we remember—what does it matter?"

Tang Wulin felt the same. A gentle smile rippled through his dark eyes as he lowered his head and kissed her hair.

"Mm. As long as you're here, that is the ultimate meaning of every memory."

Over these three years, the final trace of gloom and bitter silence that had settled on Tang Wulin after ten thousand years of separation and the loss of his friends and family had been washed away. It was as though he had truly returned to the sunny, optimistic young genius from ten thousand years ago, the one who had led his companions fearlessly forward at Shrek Academy. His smile had become bright and unclouded once more, like sunlight that never held back its warmth. Yet this sunlight was no longer as blazing and overwhelming as it had been in his youth. It had merged with the steadiness and depth granted by time, like an ocean that had endured the rise and fall of tides—calm and gentle on the surface, yet containing endless strength and vastness within. The losses and gains, conflict and fusion of ten thousand years ago had finally crystallized into the Tang Wulin of today—a man who truly understood how to cherish the present and protect happiness.

Perhaps Gu Yuena had changed even more. Ten thousand years ago, the responsibility of the Silver Dragon King had been the heaviest of shackles, binding her love for Tang Wulin tightly beneath a cold shell. Countless times, she had struggled painfully between duty and personal feelings, even sealing away her own memories again and again to escape that unsolvable fate. She had once resented this world, wondering why it alone had given her such a torn destiny, making her unable to embrace the one she loved without restraint. That helplessness and pain, carved into her very bones, had shaped her into the cold, aloof, and seemingly unfeeling ruler of all soul beasts in everyone's eyes.

But now, that layer of ice had long since melted away beneath Tang Wulin's day-after-day warmth and the quiet nourishment of this ordinary life. She still possessed that peerlessly beautiful face and those deep violet eyes, but the eternal frost within them had been replaced by tenderness as gentle as water. She had learned to smile without burden. When Tang Wulin cooked, she would wrap her arms around his waist from behind and press her cheek to his back. At the market, a strangely shaped jewel could delight her like a little girl. In the sea breeze at night, she would softly hum an unknown yet lilting melody. There was now an indescribably gentle air about her, one that belonged to a "home." It was a unique grace that could only be nurtured by being loved securely and loving another without reservation. This ordinary yet solid happiness was a beautiful dream she would not have dared hope for even in her wildest imagination ten thousand years ago.

Although their memories were still incomplete, deep within their hearts they held an almost instinctive conviction—Shrek Academy, the place that carried the marks of their youth, their laughter, and their tears, might be the key to completing the final piece of the puzzle. Sea God Lake was there, as was the Golden Ancient Tree. Their traces remained there, along with that unfathomable Pavilion Master. Returning there might not only unravel the mystery behind the Silver Dragon Spear's disturbance, but also allow them to truly reconcile with their past and become whole.

On the night before their departure, the moonlight was exceptionally bright, spreading over the sea and the cottage terrace like a veil of silver.

Neither of them went to rest early. Instead, they embraced each other on a lounge chair on the terrace, savoring their final night before leaving. The sound of the waves remained soft, carrying a touch of lingering tenderness.

"Come to think of it," Gu Yuena suddenly said softly, her violet eyes glinting mischievously beneath the moonlight, "Wulin, do you remember what happened after our first martial soul fusion skill at Shrek Academy's outer court?"

Tang Wulin tried hard to recall it, then smiled helplessly. "It's still a little blurry. I only remember that there seemed to have been a fight? Then after the match ended, you held onto me and wouldn't let go no matter what." He could remember the feeling of being drawn to her temperament and power, but the specifics remained hazy. He even felt a little jealous of the younger Tang Wulin who had once been so openly favored by Gu Yuena.

Gu Yuena gave a soft snort, a little smug. "You were so silly back then. Your cultivation was clearly weaker than mine, yet you still stood in front of me. If I hadn't stepped in, someone might have suffered badly." Those fragments of memory were clearer in her mind than they were in Tang Wulin's.

Tang Wulin did not argue. He merely tightened his arm around her and chuckled. "Yes, yes, it was all thanks to Miss Gu Yue coming to my rescue. Otherwise, how could there have been the Divine Dragon Transformation that later shook the world?" He paused, his tone tinged with nostalgia and teasing. "Still, back then, you openly favored me. I always wanted to get a little closer to you."

At his words, Gu Yuena turned slightly to face him. Her fingers unconsciously traced circles over his chest as she spoke with a hint of coyness and reminiscence. "You were always so dazzling back then, always surrounded by so many people. And what I carried on my shoulders... made me afraid to get close to anyone, especially you. But my feelings for you always made it impossible for me to control myself, even though my spiritual power had once reached the God King realm."

Her voice gradually softened, carrying a wistfulness over a past too painful to revisit.

Tang Wulin's heart stirred. He caught her mischievous hand, brought it to his lips, and gently kissed it. His dark eyes gleamed beneath the moonlight as he looked at her slyly. "And now? Do you still dare to come close to me so boldly?"

Gu Yuena met his gaze. Seeing the undisguised devotion in his eyes, her face flushed slightly, but she bravely did not look away. She leaned toward him of her own accord until their noses nearly touched, their warm breaths intertwining. Her violet eyes shimmered with moisture, and her voice was as soft as a dream. "Of course. And..."

She paused. The blush on her face deepened, yet there was a courage in her as though she had cast everything aside. She quickly pecked his lips, then immediately drew back and buried her burning face in the hollow of his neck, mumbling, "...And I only want to be closer to you. Closer and closer."

That unprompted kiss and frank confession made Tang Wulin's heart feel as though it had been fiercely tickled by the softest feather. An open smile appeared on his face, his chest trembling with boundless joy and contentment. He lifted her face, refusing to let her escape, and gazed deeply into those violet eyes that had become even more captivating in her shyness.

"Gu Yue," his voice was husky and full of temptation, "you said that yourself."

With that, he lowered his head and found those slightly cool yet soft red lips with perfect accuracy. It was no longer a light, fleeting kiss, but a lingering and deep exploration carrying the love he had accumulated over countless years, the cherishing of what he had lost and regained, and every emotion he held for her. The kiss was gentle yet commanding, as though he wished to draw each other's souls into it.

The moonlight was tender, and even the sea breeze grew gentle, quietly winding around the embracing pair, unwilling to disturb this enchanting moment. In the distance, the tides rose and fell in steady rhythm, like an eternal melody of love played just for them.

After a long while, their lips parted. Gu Yuena's breathing was slightly unsteady, her eyes soft as water as she leaned limply against Tang Wulin's chest. Listening to his equally rapid heartbeat, she felt herself wrapped in immense happiness, incomparably secure.

"Gu Yue," Tang Wulin held her close, his chin resting atop her head, his voice filled with incomparable resolve.

"When we return from Shrek and recover our complete memories, let's have a real wedding. Not one like ten thousand years ago, filled with regrets, but a true one, witnessed by everyone."

Gu Yuena's body trembled slightly. She raised her head, and a mist instantly clouded her violet eyes—not from sorrow, but from overwhelming joy and emotion. She remembered the helpless, despairing look in his eyes when she had refused his proposal ten thousand years ago. Looking at the man she had loved for ten thousand years, waited for ten thousand years, and finally been reborn beside hand in hand, she nodded firmly. Her voice choked, yet clear.

"Okay."

There were no ornate words, no elaborate ceremony. Just one word and one look surpassed a thousand speeches.

Where the heart belonged, there was wholeness. No matter what unknowns lay ahead, no matter whether their memories fully returned, as long as they had each other by their side, they possessed the courage to face everything and the right to embrace every happiness.

Their final night gently drew to a close beneath the moonlight, amid the waves and their beloved's vows. And at dawn, a new journey—the journey toward the place where memory and the future met—would begin.