Meanwhile,
The dim glow of lanterns flickered across the interior of a small bar in Heaven Dou City. The scent of stale wine and smoke hung in the air.
Flender sat slumped over a wooden table, a few empty wine bottles scattered on its surface. His head hung low, his shoulders heavy. The faint hum of drunken chatter around him did nothing to fill the emptiness in his chest.
The Golden Iron Triangle which was once a name that resounded across the soul master world, was now broken.
Should he feel relieved? With Yu Xiaogang out of the picture, wasn't this his chance to finally confess his feelings to Liu Erlong?
But no, he knew her too well. Liu Erlong was a woman of fierce loyalty and a straightforward heart. She would never accept anyone else. To her, there had only ever been Yu Xiaogang. And even now, despite what that man had done, she would still carry him in her heart.
Flender let out a long sigh and put his spectacles away. Flender's chest tightened with frustration. He reached for the last bottle when a small shadow fell across the table.
He looked up in mild annoyance, only to hear a young girl's soft voice say,
"Uncle."
Without thinking, Flender replied with a hint of irritation, "I'm not an uncle. I'm just in my early thirties."
He reached for the spectacles lying beside him and slipped them onto his nose. His blurred vision sharpened, and he finally got a clear look at the one who had addressed him.
She was a blonde-haired girl, no more than eight years old, her features plain and unremarkable, perhaps the daughter of some merchant. But her eyes… her eyes were unlike anything Flender had seen before. Deep purple, like still water under moonlight, it was the most beautiful pair of eyes he had ever seen.
Flender adjusted his glasses with a push of his forefinger against his temple, studying the little blonde girl.
"How can they leave a child like you wandering here alone?" he asked, his tone half-concerned, half-incredulous. Then, with a mischievous glint in his eyes, he leaned forward and added in a low voice, "Don't they know there are slavers roaming around?"
The girl's wide violet eyes grew even larger. "R–Really?" she whispered, her voice trembling as if the very word had conjured shadows in the room.
Flender couldn't hold back a chuckle at her genuine fear. He had only been teasing, his personality might be stingy, but he wasn't the kind of man to actually frighten a child for sport. Still, her reaction was oddly endearing.
As he looked again into those unusual purple pupils, an uninvited thought crept into his mind. 'What if… I had married Liu Erlong? Would we have had a daughter like this?'
Almost immediately, he shook his head sharply. 'No. Liu Erlong's daughter would be fierce, headstrong, and impossible to scare, not timid like the girl standing before me.'
Just then, the girl tilted her head and asked softly, "Uncle… why are you so sad?"
Flender felt a sudden rush of irritation at being called "uncle" again, heat rising to his face, but before he could snap, the next words out of her mouth made his anger dissolve in an instant.
Flender gave a wry, self-deprecating smile.
"So my emotions are that easy to read, huh?" he muttered, half to himself.
Then, looking at the small figure before him, he sighed.
"Girl, this is an adult problem. Even if I explained it to you, you wouldn't understand."
But the girl didn't flinch or step back. Her voice was steady, almost stubborn.
"My parents taught me—if you don't get something when you try… then try harder."
For a moment, Flender froze, her words echoing in his mind. His gaze locked on those unusual purple pupils, and a sudden spark lit in his own eyes.
"Yes… try harder. Pursue harder. Why didn't I think of that?" he murmured, more to himself than to her.
In a single motion, he rose from his chair. The drowsiness brought on by the wine seemed to evaporate, replaced by a quiet determination. Throwing a few coins onto the table, he turned and strode toward the door, completely forgetting the little girl he had been speaking to.
It was as if the talk was nothing but a forgotten dream.
Left behind, Qian Renxue watched him go, her expression unreadable. Standing in the same spot, her lips curved into the faintest smile as she whispered,
"All it takes… is a little push."
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Author notes: Qian renxue gave Flender a mix of psychological cues and hypnotism