Hikaru Uchiha wasn't angered by Chen Duo's defensive reaction.
Instead, he simply repeated his words, calm and steady:
"I came to offer you a choice."
Ignoring her flinch, he reached out with gentle fingers and lightly touched the top of her head—as if calming a startled bird.
His voice, low and resonant, seemed to ripple directly through her heart:
"You can choose to come with me—I need you.
Or you can choose freedom, and I'll erase the curse of the Gu-body Saint Child.
Your life is yours now. So, what will you choose?"
Chen Duo froze.
No one had ever said that to her.
Her life had been dictated since the day she could remember—
Adopted by the Gu Immortal Society, chosen as a vessel, shackled by others' expectations, crushed beneath the weight of Liao Zhong's impossible hopes.
Choice was never an option.
Yet here it was.
A stranger, powerful and unshaken, asking nothing… but offering everything.
She stood in silence, overwhelmed by a sudden flood of warmth and confusion.
Could she really… be free?
Hikaru waited patiently, his gaze unwavering. He knew how much this decision meant.
After a long, trembling breath, Chen Duo slowly raised her head. Her voice was barely audible, but filled with resolve:
"I… I want to go with you."
"I don't want to go back there ever again."
A flicker of approval crossed Hikaru's eyes.
He stepped forward and gently took her wrist in his hand.
A warm current surged through her body. She could feel it—
power, hope, safety.
Then, reflexively, she pulled back.
Her instincts screamed: Don't touch anyone. You're poison.
But Hikaru sensed it.
Instead of releasing her, he drew her softly into his arms.
She didn't struggle. Not at first.
Because… this was new.
No one had ever held her like this.
Not with fear.
Not with control.
But with… warmth.
Eventually, she began to squirm.
She didn't want to hurt him—she didn't want to risk losing this.
Yet her resistance was weak. Almost playful.
And for the first time, the walls around her heart began to lower.
Hikaru held her gently, not with desire, but with deep, wordless empathy.
There was no lust in his eyes.
Only intent.
Then, silently, Hikaru activated the rules of Life Release he had mastered.
A light shimmered through Chen Duo's body.
Her cells, long corrupted by Gu-toxin, began to renew.
The source of her mutation—the very root of her suffering—was purged.
She blinked, shocked. The ever-present agony in her bones… was gone.
She took a deep breath.
No stinging. No heaviness.
Only… lightness.
She looked down at her hands—no longer trembling, no longer venomous.
The power that defined her as the Gu-body Saint Child—was gone.
And she didn't feel lost.
She felt… reborn.
Tears welled in her eyes, but she didn't know what to say.
No words could express this flood of relief.
Then, a flash of memory from some old drama came to her—
A girl, grateful beyond words, had kissed the man who saved her.
So she decided to try.
She stood on tiptoe.
Leaning in.
Eyes closed.
Soft lips pressed to Hikaru's.
Hikaru blinked in surprise.
But seeing her pure, vulnerable expression, he understood.
She had no words.
Only this.
So, he returned the kiss. Gently.
His fingers stroked her hair.
For the first time in her life, Chen Duo felt shy.
Her face flushed pink, her heart skipped.
It wasn't love—not yet.
Just the body finally responding to warmth instead of poison.
She broke away, flustered, looking down at her feet, unsure what to say.
Hikaru chuckled lightly.
That alone made her ears turn red.
But he didn't tease her further.
Instead, he turned toward Ma Hongxian, and spoke evenly:
"Chief Ma, our deal still stands. I'm ready—please share the method of Divine Mechanism Refinement."
Ma had watched the entire healing unfold.
And now, his belief in Hikaru's ability to restore memory had grown tenfold.
Without hesitation, he began detailing the technique.
Hikaru absorbed every word—and soon, the System inside him chimed.
Another forbidden skill acquired.
Seven out of eight.
Only one remained: the elusive Grand Luo Vision, whose successor had never been identified.
With the deal complete, Hikaru acted immediately.
He raised a hand—light flared—and dove into Ma Hongxian's mind.
A groan escaped the elder's lips as pressure swelled in his skull.
Then—
Memories surged like a tide.
The blade that severed his grandfather's leg.
The pursuit.
The desperate flight.
The betrayal.
The ambush.
The face of the one who led it all—
Qu Tong.
His fist clenched.
"Qu Tong!!"
The past had returned.
And with it… a reckoning.