Purple bamboo shimmered, and ripples danced across the lake.
A woman stood there, her skin fair and translucent as jade. Aloof from the mortal world, she outshone every sight around her.
This was Qing Yao, the Heaven Mending Sect's previous Saintess!
At that moment, Lin Fan approached without a sound. He looked at her. After all these years, her radiance had not diminished, and her beauty remained peerless.
"You... came." Qing Yao raised her head to look at him, her heart anything but calm. A tangle of emotions stirred within her, and she wanted to step forward, only to stop herself.
Too much had happened between them in the past. There had been bonds and threads of affection, but certain later events had driven a wedge between them.
Thus, a hurdle remained in her heart, one she could never cross or let go of. She felt she had wronged Lin Fan.
"The past has turned to dust. I never blamed you for what happened back then. Let it pass." Lin Fan was utterly calm.
To him, certain hardships were merely tribulations, great and small, scattered throughout his long years. He no longer cared very much about them.
In the future, he would face even greater tribulations over the course of his life. Only by always looking ahead could one reach boundless seas and open skies.
Of course, not everything could be let go. Some experiences were etched into his bones and heart, and some obsessions were impossible to forget...
It was precisely because of these that he had crossed the boundary between life and death, stubbornly survived, and continued onward, hoping to make amends for what remained.
"You must be bored staying here alone. Would you like to take a walk with me?" Lin Fan extended an invitation.
At his