"Huh?"
Hearing this, Qiong Tong was utterly bewildered. Confronted with these unfathomable people and circumstances, she suddenly felt a little regret. While the beautiful goddess watched her with a smile, she quietly edged backward. From the look of her, she would flee at the slightest rustle of wind through the grass.
The goddess naturally understood exactly what Qiong Tong was thinking. Watching the little girl's wary manner, she suddenly broke into a radiant smile and said:
"Qiong Tong, do you know where this is, or who I am?"
"No!"
"Then let me tell you."
The goddess said kindly:
"Qiong Tong, this entire expanse of snowy mountains and icy plains before you is called the Hanging Garden, because it hangs in the heavens above Kunlun. The nine-tiered White Jade Terrace behind me is called Langfeng Garden. The Jade Pool winds around its left, and Emerald Water encircles its right. I am the mistress of this place, known as the Queen Mother of the West..."
"Ah!"
Qiong Tong let out an involuntary cry. A moment later, both startled and delighted, she fluttered her lashes and said:
"You're that Auntie Queen Mother?"
The little girl pressed a hand to her heart and let out a long breath, secretly rejoicing:
Thank goodness I didn't meet a bad person!
Seeing this, the great Queen Mother, foremost among Kunlun's immortals, could not help laughing aloud. Hearing Qiong Tong call her "auntie," she said delightedly:
"Yes, Qiong Tong, I am the great Queen Mother! Not only that, I am your mother! I was the one who originally gave you the name Qiong Tong. That boy merely happened upon it later!"
"Speaking of that, it truly was a remarkable stroke of fate. As they say, heaven's secrets are difficult to fathom. Even your mother never imagined that the