Late at night in a secluded valley, the wind whistled softly through jagged rocks, carrying echoes that resembled cries from the abyss. Diệp Vân Sơ sat quietly by the hearth, her eyes lost in the flickering firelight. Lăng Tiêu was still in meditation after his strange breakthrough, and Bé An had already fallen asleep, murmuring "Master..." in his dreams.
She closed her eyes, but the dream seized her like a flood tide pulling her under.
1. The Dream of a Previous Life
In the dream, she stood amid a blood-soaked battlefield. The sword in her hand dripped with red. Rain fell softly, veiling the scene in a misty haze. Before her stood a man in white, his body wounded and bloodied, but his gaze remained calm—serene like an autumn lake.
"Diệp Vân Sơ," he spoke gently, "so this is the path you've chosen?"
She clenched her sword, but her hand trembled. Behind her stood tens of thousands of sect disciples—waiting for her to strike.
"You are a demon. Killing you... is justice," she whispered, as if to convince herself.
"I have never harmed the innocent. I only walk a different path," the man smiled faintly.
And then—perhaps out of duty, fear, or something else—she thrust the sword through his chest. Blood splashed across her hand, hot and trembling.
2. Awakening in Panic
Diệp Vân Sơ jolted awake, drenched in cold sweat. Outside, the moon still hung in the sky, but its light seemed tinted with red. She clutched her chest, her heart as though torn in two.
"Could I... really have been the one who killed him?" she murmured.
Lăng Tiêu opened his eyes from nearby. Feeling the turbulence in her aura, he approached her.
"What's wrong? A nightmare?"
She shook her head, voice hoarse.
"Lăng Tiêu... if I... If I had harmed you in a past life, would you hate me?"
He paused, then smiled lightly.
"If that were true... perhaps I did something then that made you feel you had to. Past debts and karma—I do not dwell on them."
"But what if... I was the one who struck you down?"
"Then this life... I was reborn to forgive you."
3. Tormented Heart
After Lăng Tiêu left to cultivate, Diệp Vân Sơ remained seated in silence. The images from the dream replayed in her mind: his calm eyes, her trembling sword, and the emptiness after the final blow.
"Wasn't that him? No... it was him. If that's true... how do I atone?"
A voice stirred deep within—a voice she hadn't heard in a long time.Not someone else's, but her own. From another life.
"This time... you can protect him. Don't repeat the same mistake."
4. A Conversation with Bé An
The next morning, while Lăng Tiêu went out to forage for spirit herbs, Diệp Vân Sơ sat beside Bé An, who was playfully weaving blades of grass.
"Bé An, if you accidentally did something wrong to your master, would you regret it?"
"I don't want Master to be sad. I want to stay with him forever."
"Then... if you had to do something big to protect him, would you do it?"
Bé An tilted his head, thinking. "If I could, I would. He's the only one who's never feared me."
Diệp Vân Sơ looked at the child—small, innocent, but burdened with fate.It was clear now. Both she and Lăng Tiêu were indebted to this little soul.