Qian Renxue let out a soft laugh. There was a trace of regret in it, a trace of relief, and another indescribable emotion. "What a pity. We won't have another life."
The three fell silent for a moment. The three phantom figures in the darkness drew closer and closer, as if they wanted to feel each other's warmth one last time before fading away.
"Lady Qian Renxue." Zhao Feng suddenly spoke, his voice carrying a hint of hesitation. "There are some things I've never said."
"Me neither," Lin Mo said.
Qian Renxue was silent for a while before speaking softly. "I know."
Those three words contained a thousand words. A century of fighting side by side, a millennium of inherited protection, the feelings they had never voiced, and the tenderness hidden behind their battles—all of it became those three words at that moment.
I know.
"If there is another life..." Qian Renxue's voice grew softer, and her phantom grew fainter. "I'll wait for you."
"Definitely," Zhao Feng said.
"Definitely," Lin Mo said.
The three phantom figures simultaneously erupted with their final trace of light. It was warm and gentle, like the tenderest embrace, like the most heartfelt farewell. The light flickered once in the darkness, then vanished completely.
Silence returned to the darkness, as if nothing had ever happened.
But some things would never fade.
Continent Calendar 1026, late autumn.
Three months had passed since that great battle.
Heaven Dou City had regained its former prosperity. People came and went along the streets, vendors called out their wares one after another, children played and ran about in the square, and the elderly sat on benches by the roadside, basking in the sun. Everything looked the same as before, yet everything was different.
At the center of the square, a massive