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...Just as her mind was violently shaken, the surrounding environment began to undergo strange changes.
That distorted space, filled with decay, corruption, and darkness, seemed to have been washed by rain. The aura of darkness rapidly receded, the oppressive dark red sky gradually cleared, the cracked earth began to heal, the filthy viscous liquid dissipated, and the nauseating odor in the air was replaced by a freshness akin to the clear sky after a rain shower.
The entire Angel Secret Realm seemed to awaken from a nightmare, restoring its original appearance, which carried an aura of holiness and solemnity.
Sunlight streamed through the clouds, warm and gentle.
The dramatic change in the environment symbolized the dispelling of the darkness within Qian Renxue, allowing her consciousness to regain control of this Legacy space.
Xuan Ming sensed the changes around them, then looked at Qian Renxue, who was still immersed in immense shock and fear, and sighed softly. Ignoring the Angelic Sacred Sword still plunged into his chest, he asked in a slightly weary tone:
"Are you done being angry?"
Qian Renxue abruptly looked up, her eyes misty with tears, not understanding what he meant.
Xuan Ming sighed, "If you're not done, you can stab me a few more times. Do it now... If you don't stab me now, you won't get another chance."
This sentence finally shattered Qian Renxue's last psychological defense.
"Wuu..." Qian Renxue could no longer hold back. She suddenly released her grip on the sword hilt, rushed forward, hugged Xuan Ming tightly, buried her face in his shoulder, and began to cry loudly.
All the grievances, fear, regret, and the complex emotions she couldn't sort out completely erupted at this moment.
Xuan Ming's body swayed slightly from her embrace, and the sword wound in his chest sent a sharp pang of pain, causing him to involuntarily frown. He closed his eyes, his voice low and hoarse:
"Keep it down... it's loud."
"If you're not going to stab me... I need to rest now."
In order to awaken Qian Renxue's consciousness, which had been completely corroded by darkness, he had nearly exhausted his mental force. Now, he was truly tired.
When Qian Renxue heard his voice getting softer and softer—the last phrase "rest now" being almost inaudible—and felt his body seemingly weakening, she was instantly scared Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering!
"Xuan Ming! Xuan Ming! Don't sleep! Don't die!!" She shook him vigorously, her cries becoming even more mournful, believing he was about to die from severe injuries.
Xuan Ming felt dizzy from her shaking. He forced his eyes open slightly, looked at Qian Renxue, who was crying torrentially and panicking, and sighed helplessly.
He raised the hand he could still move, curled his fingers, and lightly flicked Qian Renxue's forehead.
"Dong!"
A crisp flick to the head.
Qian Renxue's crying stopped abruptly. She covered her forehead and looked at him blankly.
Xuan Ming gave her a weak glare, "Quiet down... let me sleep for a bit."
After speaking, he could no longer hold on. His body went limp, leaning against Qian Renxue, and he fell completely into slumber.
Qian Renxue froze in place, feeling the steady breathing and warmth of the person in her arms, and then touching her still slightly painful forehead. For a moment, her mind was blank.
He wasn't dead?
He was just... asleep?
He was asleep because the effort to wake her up consumed too much energy?
The huge emotional drop left her dumbfounded. After a long while, she slowly lowered her head, looking at Xuan Ming's slightly pale profile in sleep, and then at the Angelic Sacred Sword still plunged into his chest, which seemed not to have caused a fatal wound. An indescribable mixture of lingering fear, relief, bitterness, and a certain inexplicable emotion filled her heart.
She carefully adjusted her posture to make Xuan Ming more comfortable, then quietly sat in the restored Secret Realm, guarding him, not daring to move, afraid of disturbing his slumber.
Only occasionally, she would reach out and lightly touch her forehead, where the sensation of that head flick seemed to linger.
On the edge of the Angel Secret Realm, in the shadows.
Qian Daoliu had been standing there quietly, witnessing everything that transpired.
He watched his granddaughter sink into madness and despair, watched Xuan Ming forcefully awaken her consciousness in a near-suicidal manner, and watched the complicated, tangled relationship between the two of them.
His mood was extremely complex.
On one hand, seeing Qian Renxue finally escape the abyss of degradation, her consciousness returning, and even gaining a blessing in disguise as her heart seemed to undergo a transformation, he should feel relieved and comforted.
Although Xuan Ming's intervention was brutal, the outcome... seemed not bad.
The man he had always viewed as the greatest threat never truly intended to harm Qian Renxue from beginning to end. Even when pierced through the chest by the Sacred Sword, his ultimate choice was awakening, not destruction.
On the other hand, a deep remorse gnawed at his heart like a venomous snake.
If it hadn't been for his tacit approval and indulgence back then, if he hadn't valued the Family's glory and the so-called "orthodoxy" too highly, things might not have escalated to this point today.
Bibi Dong wouldn't have become so extreme, Qian Xunji might not have died, and Qian Renxue wouldn't have grown up lacking maternal love and warped by hatred, nor would she have reached this deep entanglement of loving and killing with Xuan Ming.
Perhaps they could have had a different, more peaceful future.
Alas, it was all too late.
Time could not flow backward, and choices made could not be changed.
Watching Xuan Ming fall into slumber due to the exhaustion of his mental force, and seeing Qian Renxue guard him in confusion, Qian Daoliu knew he could no longer remain silent.
He slowly stepped out of the shadows, his footsteps slightly heavy.
Qian Renxue sensed his presence and abruptly looked up. Seeing Qian Daoliu, a trace of complexity flashed in her eyes, but it was mostly the dependence and confusion of someone who had survived a catastrophe: "Grandpa..."
Qian Daoliu walked up to her, his gaze first falling upon the sleeping Xuan Ming, looking at the Angelic Sacred Sword still embedded in his chest. A subtle fluctuation crossed his eyes before he looked back at Xue'er, his tone gentle yet resolute: "Xue'er, it's good that you're alright."
He paused, seemingly having made up his mind: "There are some things Grandpa has hidden from you for a long time. Now, it is time to tell you."
Qian Renxue's heart tightened suddenly, filled with an ominous premonition.
Qian Daoliu did not hesitate. He told Qian Renxue the full story of what happened back then: about Bibi Dong's suffering, about Qian Xunji's actions, about his own silence and indulgence, and about the root cause of all this tragedy.
"...Therefore, your mother, Bibi Dong, she hates Spirit Hall, she hates the Angel Clan, she hates me, and she... cannot face you. None of this happened without reason," Qian Daoliu's voice was filled with deep exhaustion and repentance.
"Grandpa never dared to tell you, fearing it would hurt you and damage your pride. But now, I must say it. If you must hate someone, hate Grandpa. The events of the past were ultimately my mistake."
The massive amount of information exploded in Qian Renxue's mind like a thunderclap.
All her past questions and contradictions seemed to find their answers at this moment. Why her mother was so cold and even hostile toward her, why her father died, why Grandpa always avoided certain topics... She found that she couldn't bring herself to hate Bibi Dong.
She seemed to understand some of that woman's pain and despair.
She also couldn't hate Xuan Ming anymore. He had avoided this topic again and again, even telling her not to worry about it, saying it was someone else's business... Thinking back now, perhaps he had known all along but was unwilling to be the one to rip open this bloody scar, unwilling to make her endure this cruel truth.
She recalled how, back in Heaven Dou City, she had repeatedly pressured Salas, trying to uncover the truth about her father's death.
If her identity hadn't been exposed later, forcing her return to the Elder Palace, she probably would have pursued the investigation relentlessly.
And Grandpa... his continuous concealment was protection, but how could it not also be a deeper wound?
Qian Renxue sat there blankly, her eyes vacant. The enormous shock made it difficult for her to process everything immediately. Her heart was filled with confusion, sorrow, and an indescribable sense of relief.
Some of the beliefs that had supported her in the past seemed to be collapsing, yet something new was quietly sprouting.
Qian Daoliu felt a pang of pain seeing his granddaughter's distraught appearance, but he knew this was a necessary growing pain.
He could no longer leave this problem for the future, or for Xuan Ming, to solve.
This man, whom he once considered a threat, had already done enough for Qian Renxue.