Joke? Promise?

The blood on her hem had dried into dark brown stains, like an abstract painting.

Yun Zhiyu lowered her head and looked at herself—her ink-black hair was soaked with sweat and plastered against her pale cheeks; one of her dark brown contact lenses had shattered, revealing the exhaustion in the purple eye beneath; the front of her work uniform had been burned full of holes by the evil soul master's corrosive fluid, their edges blackened and curled. She tugged at the corner of her mouth. If she went out looking like this, she would probably scare half the passengers in the carriage.

"Sister Mo Lan," she said, looking up at the conductor standing by the door. "Could you help me switch carriages? And... lend me some clothes?"

Mo Lan's gaze lingered on her for a moment, moving from the shattered contact lens to the scorched hem before finally settling on the ring flowing with starlight between her fingers. She did not ask any questions, merely nodding. "Come with me."

The crew room at the rear of the train was small but tidy. There was a narrow bed, a desk, and a photograph of Mo Lan in uniform hanging on the wall. In the photograph, she wore a crisp dark blue uniform, the silver-white insignia on her epaulets gleaming brightly, while her smile was far livelier than it was now.

"This is where I rest." Mo Lan pulled a brand-new train attendant uniform from the storage cabinet beneath the bed. "It's new. Never worn. It might be a little big, but make do with it."

She took out a box of hair dye and a pair of ordinary black contact lenses as well. "The train keeps these on hand for passengers who need to disguise their identities. You... should need them."

Yun Zhiyu accepted them, thanked her, and slipped into the cramped washroom. The sound of running water rose from within. Mo Lan leaned outside the door, listening to the faint movements inside as her gaze fell upon the necklace at her throat—the shield-shaped gemstone flickered beneath her uniform collar, radiating a faint warmth.

Ten minutes later, the door opened.

Yun Zhiyu walked out, her black hair now evenly dyed, her eyes black like those of any ordinary child. Only her complexion remained far too pale.

The oversized uniform hung on her body. She had rolled the cuffs up three times before her wrists showed, while the hem dropped to the middle of her thighs, making her look like a child who had secretly put on an adult's clothes. Yet she stood perfectly straight, and beneath the disguise of those black eyes remained a composure that could not be ignored.

"You look like a little train attendant." Mo Lan curved her lips into a smile. "Sit. We still have half a day before we reach East Sea City."

The two sat facing each other on the narrow bed, separated by a small table. Outside the window, fields sped backward. A thin layer of frost covered the withered yellow grass stems of winter, as though the earth had draped itself in an old fur coat. Yun Zhiyu took out her Tang Sect Bracelet, lightly tapping its surface. Faint blue runes lit up and projected a screen of light.

"Dad," she said to the screen. "It's me."

The screen flickered a few times before Yun Ming's face suddenly appeared. On that handsome face, which was usually so composed, was a fury and panic Yun Zhiyu had never seen before. His black robes snapped wildly amid surging soul power, while overturned bookshelves and shattered soul devices lay behind him. He had clearly torn his entire study apart.

"Zhiyu!" Yun Ming's voice was hoarse with strain. "Your communications were cut off for forty-seven minutes! Your bracelet's location showed you moving violently through the Heaven Soul Mountains tunnel, and then your soul power fluctuations dropped to zero—"

"Dad," Yun Zhiyu interrupted, her voice calm yet soothing. "I'm fine. I just encountered evil soul masters. The battle consumed too much of my power, and the bracelet temporarily malfunctioned from the impact."

"Evil soul masters?!" Yun Ming's pupils abruptly contracted. The soul power behind him surged even more violently, sending the remains of the bookshelves floating into the air. "How many? What cultivation? Were you injured?"

"Seven. Two Soul Elders, three Soul Ancestors, and two Soul Kings," Yun Zhiyu reported truthfully. "I used half a portion of Quasi-God Power. My soul power is exhausted, and my meridians suffered some damage, but I've taken a Soul-Recovery Pill. My life isn't in danger."

She paused, glancing at Mo Lan beside her. A faint curve touched her lips. "Thanks to this conductor sister. She had no soul power, yet she stood in front of me and bought me time to recover."

Yun Ming was stunned for a moment on the other side of the screen, then turned his gaze toward Mo Lan. He looked at the woman in the dark blue uniform, at the scrape still at the corner of her mouth, and at the familiar necklace around her neck—he recognized his daughter's handiwork. The fury in his eyes slowly settled into a complicated scrutiny.

"...Thank you," he finally said, his voice deep as the resonance of a cello. "Shrek owes you a favor."

Mo Lan shook her head awkwardly. "Pavilion Master Yun, you're overstating it. I only... did what I should have done. Besides, it was your daughter who saved everyone. She's a hero."

Yun Zhiyu looked back at the screen, her expression turning solemn. "Dad, I have two requests."

"Speak."

"First, please send members of Shrek's Inner Court to guard the major cities and soul guide trains." Her voice carried a steadiness far beyond her age.

"The evil soul masters are becoming increasingly active. Ordinary passengers have no power to resist them. Shrek's duty is not merely to nurture the strong, but to protect the weak."

Yun Ming fell silent for a moment before slowly nodding. "...Approved. I'll discuss it with Zhuo Shi and Yue'er and establish patrol units."

"Second," Yun Zhiyu said, glancing at Mo Lan, "I gave Mom's communication number to Sister Mo Lan. If she ever needs treatment in the future, please help her for my sake."

Yali's voice came from the other side of the screen, hoarse from crying. "Zhiyu! You child, you scared your mother to death!"

Yali squeezed into the screen, her eyes red and swollen, her hair disheveled. She had clearly just gone through a panic of her own. Looking at her daughter's pale face, tears welled up again. "You... how are you? Does it hurt? Let Mom see..."

"Mom, I'm fine." Yun Zhiyu's voice softened, carrying a hint of childish coaxing. "Really. I just... missed you."

Yali cried even harder, but she smiled and nodded. "Fine, fine. Give Mom's number to whoever you want. As long as they're Zhiyu's friends, Mom will treat them. You... you need to take good care of yourself. Don't make the family worry. Zhishu asks a hundred times a day where her sister is, and I..."

"Tell Zhishu," Yun Zhiyu said with a smile, "that her sister brought her shells from East Sea City. Shells that glow."

"Mm, mm..."

Yun Ming pulled his wife behind him and looked at his daughter again. The panic in his eyes had settled into deep exhaustion and pride. "Zhiyu, you've grown up."

"Dad." Yun Zhiyu gave a solemn salute. "Your daughter will never disgrace Shrek's name."

The screen went dark, and the faint blue runes dimmed. Silence returned to the cramped crew room, broken only by the clatter of wheels against the tracks, like some ancient rhythm.

Mo Lan looked at Yun Zhiyu with a complicated expression. "You... really are Pavilion Master Yun Ming's daughter."

"I am." Yun Zhiyu did not deny it. She took a token from her clothes, engraved with the emblem of Sea God's Pavilion. "Shrek Academy, Sea God's Pavilion. Yun Zhiyu, ten years old, three-ring Soul Elder, Xuanyuan Sword martial soul."

She put the token away and looked at Mo Lan, amusement in her black eyes. "Sister Mo Lan, you're the first person to know all this. Outside Shrek, even my hair and eye colors have to be disguised. My identity is even more secret. Please keep it secret for me, all right?"

"Why tell me?" Mo Lan asked. "Aren't you afraid I'll leak it?"

"When you stood in front of me," Yun Zhiyu said softly, "you didn't ask who I was. So now, I don't need to ask whether you're worth trusting."

Mo Lan froze. She looked at the ten-year-old girl before her—the oversized uniform, the pale face, the ancient secret she could not touch hidden beneath those black eyes. Yet that frankness, that unwavering certainty of I trust you, made her eyes burn.

"...All right!" She nodded. "I'll keep it secret. I won't say a word, even until I die."

Yun Zhiyu smiled. It was her first genuine smile after the battle, carrying the innocence of a child and yet an ageless depth beyond her years. "Sister Mo Lan, let me tell you a story."

"What story?"

"A story about the future." Yun Zhiyu leaned against the head of the bed, gazing at the scenery racing past outside. "Many years from now, someone will appear on the continent. She will stand at the highest place, a sword in her hand and a group of trustworthy companions behind her. Beneath her sword will be the lights of countless homes. Evil soul masters will not dare show themselves. The Abyss will not dare invade. Ordinary people will be able to walk alone at night without fear, without trembling, because that person once said she would return peace to the continent."

She paused, then turned to Mo Lan. Daylight from the window reflected in her black eyes. "That person will be me."

Mo Lan stared blankly for a moment, then laughed. It was not mocking laughter, but a gentle, indulgent smile, like one listening to a child describe an impossibly fanciful dream.

"Good." She reached out and ruffled Yun Zhiyu's hair. "I'll wait for that day. I'll wait for our little train attendant to become the continent's hero."

"Not a hero." Yun Zhiyu shook her head. "Just someone... who wants ordinary people to be able to walk at night without fear, like you."

Mo Lan's hand paused. Looking at Yun Zhiyu's serious expression, she suddenly felt that this dream might not be so far away. At least, on this train, this ten-year-old girl had used her flesh and blood to shield her from the evil soul masters' attack, then used her most precious Quasi-God Power to protect an entire carriage of strangers.

"I'll wait," she said softly.

Half a day later, the outline of East Sea City appeared on the horizon.

It was a coastal city, its buildings rising and falling in uneven layers. Massive ocean-going soul guide ships were docked at the harbor, their mast flags snapping sharply in the wind. Unlike the ancient solemnity of Shrek City, East Sea City possessed the openness and bustle unique to the sea. Even the air carried the salty tang of the ocean breeze.

Yun Zhiyu stood by the carriage door, having changed back into her own clothes. Her dyed black hair and ordinary contact lenses remained in place, while the Star Ring on her finger and the Silver Dragon Hairpin on her wrist were hidden beneath her sleeves. She looked like an ordinary girl from Heaven Dou City. Only that calm bearing seemed out of place amid the surrounding clamor.

Mo Lan stood at her side, her dark blue uniform stirring faintly in the harbor wind.

"We're here," she said, her voice carrying the melancholy of parting. "East Sea City."

"Mm."

Yun Zhiyu took out a jade pendant from her clothes—it was a sword shield condensed from Xuanwu Power, containing her full-force Azure Sword Shield. It could activate automatically in a critical moment, forming a dark blue defensive barrier.

"Sister Mo Lan." She pressed the jade pendant into Mo Lan's palm. "This is for you. It's more direct than the necklace. It activates automatically in danger and can block a full-force strike from a Titled Douluo."

Mo Lan lowered her head to look at the jade pendant, feeling the vast water soul power contained within. Her nose suddenly stung. "You... already gave me the necklace, and now this too..."

"The necklace was thanks," Yun Zhiyu interrupted, her voice gentle yet firm. "This is... a promise. A promise that you'll live well, until the day I can return peace to the continent. When that day comes, you have to see it with your own eyes."

Mo Lan clenched the jade pendant tightly, her knuckles turning white. Looking at the ten-year-old girl before her, she suddenly remembered what she had said—"That day will come. I promise."

At the time, she had thought it was merely comfort. Yet now, she felt it might truly have been some kind of prophecy.

"...All right." She nodded heavily. "I'll wait. I'll live until that day."

Yun Zhiyu smiled and reached out to hug her. At ten years old, she only came up to Mo Lan's waist. The hug was brief but tight, as though she wanted to pass some kind of strength to her.

"Goodbye, Sister Mo Lan."

"Goodbye, Yun..." Mo Lan paused, lowering her voice. "Little train attendant."

Yun Zhiyu waved, turned, and stepped off the train. The harbor wind lifted her dyed black hair. The oversized uniform had long since been changed out of, and she now wore an ordinary gray cloak. Like a drop of water disappearing into the sea, she quickly vanished into the crowds of East Sea City.

Mo Lan stood at the carriage door, staring in the direction that figure had disappeared for a long time. The necklace at her throat radiated faint warmth, while the jade pendant in her palm felt heavy, as though she were holding a future that had yet to be born.

"I'll wait..." she murmured, a faint smile curving her lips.

No one could have imagined that years later, when that silver-haired, purple-eyed figure truly stood at the summit of the continent, when evil soul masters trembled beneath her sword light, when the Abyss roared beyond the plane barrier, and when ordinary people could finally walk safely at night—Mo Lan would remember this winter afternoon, the oversized uniform on the train, and the certainty in those words: "It will be me."

For now, however, she merely tightened her grip on the jade pendant, turned, and returned to the crew room to continue her journey.

On the streets of East Sea City, Yun Zhiyu walked slowly onward.

Her soul power had recovered to around forty percent, and the damage to her meridians was gradually healing under the Soul-Recovery Pill's effects. Her spiritual power silently spread outward, sensing the pulse of the city—the bustle of the harbor, the noise of the markets, the roar of soul guide trains, and certain dark presences hidden in the corners.

"East Sea Academy," she silently recited. "Tang Wulin, Gu Yue, Xie Xie, Xu Xiaoyan..."

She recalled the plot of the original work. She remembered the boy forging at the East Sea City Blacksmiths Association, the cool black-haired, black-eyed girl who would meet him at the academy, the young master Xie who had clashed with him only to become his brother in life and death, and Xu Xiaoyan, who should have been timid but would ultimately become the greatest control-type soul master beneath the stars.

"One step at a time," she warned herself. "Steady and sure."

The Tang Sect Bracelet on her wrist glimmered faintly, while the Star Ring on her finger flowed with deep light. She raised her head toward the sky over East Sea City. Clouds hung low, and the sea breeze swept past, carrying an unknown yet expectant air.

"East Sea," she said softly, her voice scattering into the sea breeze. "I'm here."