Yun Zhan said calmly, “No, Senior Brother, you’re overthinking it.”

It wasn’t just his imagination; it was what others had been saying. Bai Fanlu had overheard other disciples discussing Yun Zhan, suggesting that he had suffered cultivation damage due to helping someone unblock their meridians.

But the problem was that he clearly hadn’t gone into Qi deviation, so how could Yun Zhan’s cultivation be harmed? If there was any damage, it might have been because Wuchen absorbed his cultivation, but it’s impossible to know how much was absorbed.

Seeing Yun Zhan now, Bai Fanlu felt that the damage wasn’t just to his cultivation—it was as if his essence, energy, and spirit had been diminished. He had become withdrawn and listless.

Yun Zhan appeared lethargic, and the conversation was hard to sustain. Bai Fanlu felt frustrated, as if he was the one desperate for reconciliation. He decided to drop the matter.

After they finished setting up the chicken coop with the children, it was already dusk.

Later, Bai Fanlu discreetly asked Yinyin about Yun Zhan’s strange behavior. The response was similar: Yun Zhan had been acting oddly since his return.

Although he could still talk as usual, he often seemed a bit slow to react. The strangest part was that every so often, he would grab Yinyin and insist that she call him “Brother Xiao Liu.”

This perplexed Bai Fanlu. Why was Yun Zhan so fixated on this name? It made Bai Fanlu feel a bit conflicted.

Yun Zhan had genuinely cared, which led him to face punishment from Wuchen. But was that enough reason to forgive and ignore everything?

Maybe yes, maybe no.

After dinner, with moonlight shining, the children were reluctant to sleep and continued playing in the courtyard. Yun Zhan showed no intention of leaving, while Bai Fanlu was planning to return to the Tianxu Sect tonight.

Although he was still upset with Yun Zhan, avoiding the problem wasn’t a solution. The first time he fled was because the situation was unexpected, but after all these days of reflection, he couldn’t justify running away again.

After all, Yun Zhan was the protagonist, bound by fate to his own. With his body damaged and seemingly on the brink of giving up, if he kept wandering aimlessly, he would be ruined, let alone capable of fighting any final boss.

With these thoughts in mind, Bai Fanlu steeled himself and approached Yun Zhan, determined that this conversation wouldn’t be left unfinished.

Yun Zhan was leaning against a pile of straw, carefully examining something in his hand. As Bai Fanlu got closer, he realized it was a small, clumsily woven grass figure with two little horns—possibly a rabbit, or maybe a donkey.

“Did you make this?” Bai Fanlu asked.

Hearing his voice, Yun Zhan immediately closed his hand around the figure.

Bai Fanlu then noticed a more finely crafted grass rabbit resting on Yun Zhan’s lap—the one he had made himself. Among the batch he made last night, there were only two rabbits. Yinyin had taken one, and he hadn’t realized Yun Zhan had taken the other.

“I just made it casually. It’s ugly, isn’t it?” Yun Zhan said, clearly dissatisfied with his own handiwork, and frowned as he stashed both rabbits away.

In that moment, Bai Fanlu sensed a familiar hint of childishness in Yun Zhan, and his tone softened slightly.

“Come with me outside; I have something to talk to you about.”

Yun Zhan agreed and followed Bai Fanlu out.

They walked to the edge of the courtyard.

“I’m heading back to the Tianxu Sect. Will you come with me?”

Yun Zhan didn’t answer immediately. Bai Fanlu waited, unsure what was going through his mind, but there was something he needed to say.

“The war between immortals and demons is inevitable, and we need every hand we can get. The juniors are giving it their all, and Master needs you as well. I hope you’ll come back.”

Yun Zhan then asked, “Do you hope I’ll come back?”

Having already made up his mind, Bai Fanlu calmly replied, “I do. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be standing here talking to you about this. You’ve been out there for days, and you’ve seen how unstable the world is. We should both do our part.”

He just wanted Yun Zhan to return and fulfill his duties as the sect leader and the protagonist. Everything else was secondary.

Yun Zhan stared at Bai Fanlu for a while, then asked, “Do you want Yun Zhan to come back, or…‘him’?”

Bai Fanlu was taken aback. Looking at the person in front of him, the “young man” who had haunted his thoughts countless times, he now felt uncertain.

Bai Fanlu countered, “Who do you think you are?”

Yun Zhan remained silent.

Bai Fanlu finally realized that all his doubts boiled down to one question: “Yun Zhan, did you pretend to be Xiao Liu just to tease me?”

Was that persona fake? Were the things you did with that facade genuine or not?

After a long silence, Yun Zhan shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Feeling that this answer was inadequate, he added, “Senior Brother, I really…”

His eyes grew more confused, as if trying to prove he wasn’t lying but genuinely didn’t know.

What Yun Zhan truly wanted to say was that he seemed to have forgotten many things. But such an answer would probably be even more absurd.

The only thing he could be certain of was, “I didn’t want to tease you.”

That was enough. Bai Fanlu sighed in relief.

Should Yun Zhan be blamed for bringing this upon himself? Now that he had become someone else and lost his original identity, no wonder he felt so lost.

Bai Fanlu had already made his decision. He opened his palm, revealing a golden pill.

“This might help. I’m not sure if it will work, but you can try.”

The divine pill, Wuxu, was said to erase all false appearances and restore one’s true self. Bai Fanlu figured he might as well test its efficacy on Yun Zhan.

Yun Zhan accepted the pill, looked at it for a moment, and was about to swallow it.

“You…” Bai Fanlu thought, isn’t he worried it could be poison?

But Yun Zhan paused, lifted his gaze slightly, and asked Bai Fanlu, “Senior Brother, Yun Zhan or ‘him’…who do you really want me to be?”

Surprised by the question, Bai Fanlu responded helplessly, “It’s not about who I want you to be. It’s about who you really are.”

“Who am I really?” Yun Zhan murmured, lowering his head.

Bai Fanlu couldn’t bear seeing him in such a dejected state. He would rather deal with the annoying Yun Zhan from before than this lifeless version.

He said, “If you initially lied to me for some reason you didn’t want to reveal, you later promised not to deceive me again. So, it’s up to you.”

“I said… I wouldn’t lie to you anymore?”

Yun Zhan looked at the golden pill in his hand, which emitted a bright light, as if all illusions were being exposed. After a long pause, he finally said, “I understand.”

“Senior Brother, could you…” Yun Zhan seemed like he wanted to say something more but stopped himself. He shook his head slightly and even smiled a little.

With Xiao Liu’s face, Yun Zhan’s smile was always radiant, exuding a joy that could light up the world. But now, that smile was tinged with sorrow.

Bai Fanlu felt a pang of unease but watched as Yun Zhan resolutely put the pill into his mouth.

He hadn’t expected him to act so decisively. Bai Fanlu’s heart jumped into his throat.

He had anticipated that something might happen, but when the moment actually arrived, all his previous calm evaporated. He heard a soft voice in his mind, unclear who it belonged to.

“Brother, I’m sorry.”

A sudden mist clouded Bai Fanlu’s vision, and his heart felt like it was being torn in two.

The boy’s figure gradually dissipated, golden light rising from his feet and engulfing him completely.

The light eventually covered his face. He seemed to be smiling, trying to say something, but no words came out. Yet Bai Fanlu clearly heard the voice in his mind.

“Brother, can you call me…once more?”

Call you…what?

Bai Fanlu suddenly realized that the two words he had just heard had mysteriously vanished, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t remember what they were.

“Wait!” Bai Fanlu finally shouted, reaching out toward the golden light.

But all he grasped was empty air.

“Brother, goodbye.”

There was no one in front of him anymore.

Bai Fanlu stood there in a daze, searching the empty patch of grass as if he was trying to find something.

He didn’t know what he was looking for, but he had a strong sense that someone had been standing there just moments ago. Who was it?

Suddenly, he spotted a faintly colored object among the green grass. He quickly rushed over to pick it up—it was two little grass figures.

One was the rabbit he had woven himself, easily recognizable. But the other one?

“What is this? It’s so ugly…”

Bai Fanlu examined it, frowning. He felt something wet trickle down, landing on the poorly made figure.

“…What’s happening to me?” he murmured to himself, wiping the corner of his eye, only to find it wet again as more tears followed.

Why did he feel so sad, so much so that he was crying?

The gate to the courtyard creaked open, and Yinyin poked her head out. “Brother Lu, what are you doing out there?”

Bai Fanlu replied, “Huh? What am I doing here?”

He hurriedly wiped his tears and blinked several times, trying to ignore the sting in his eyes.

Yinyin ran over and grabbed his hand. “Brother Lu, are you really leaving today? Can’t you stay?”

“I…” Bai Fanlu began to speak, but then the words got stuck in his throat, and he didn’t know what to say. After a moment of hesitation, he replied, “I have to go back.”

What was he about to say earlier? Was he going to say “we”? We, who?

Yinyin’s hopeful expression fell, and the children watching from behind also looked disappointed.

Before leaving, Bai Fanlu made sure to check on the youngest baby, who was sound asleep in the cradle. Then, driven by some inexplicable impulse, he went over to the woodshed.

Under the moonlight, the chicken coop in the corner housed a few chicks huddled together, their little beaks occasionally twitching as they chirped softly in their sleep.

“Brother Lu, they really like the house you made,” Yinyin said.

“…”

He really did make that. Bai Fanlu remembered how he had sat outside, piecing the frame together one stick at a time before covering it with straw. But it felt like there should have been more to it.

“Yinyin, do you remember when I found you all in Ling City…”

Bai Fanlu shook his head, not even sure what he wanted to ask.

Yinyin looked at him in confusion. “Of course I remember. Brother Lu, you saved us. How could I forget?”

That’s not what I meant. Bai Fanlu still couldn’t figure out what exactly he was trying to recall. He thought hard, straining his memory until he felt like he broke through some invisible barrier, blurting out,

“That day, was I alone?”

Even Bai Fanlu was startled by his own question.

If he wasn’t alone, then who else could have been there? Didn’t he deliberately choose to act alone to separate from Yun Zhan?

Holding his breath, Bai Fanlu anxiously awaited Yinyin’s answer.

The little girl looked at him blankly for a moment, then giggled, “Brother Lu, are you being silly? Of course, you were alone. What’s wrong?”

Her definite answer crushed the last bit of inexplicable hope in Bai Fanlu’s heart.

Suddenly, he felt as if something had been violently ripped from his chest, leaving a gaping hole. He didn’t know what had been there, but the pain was real and unbearable.

Trembling all over, he could no longer hold back his emotions. He quickly said goodbye to Yinyin and dashed away.

He ran far, and when he could finally take a proper breath, he summoned his flying sword and sped back to the Tianxu Sect.

Before he even landed, Bai Fanlu flew directly to the Spirit Spring Mountain, ignoring the calls of anyone behind him.

The towering immortal mountain floated amidst the clouds, with streams of spirit water cascading into waterfalls below, turning into mist that wove through the peaks.

Despite the beautiful scenery, Bai Fanlu paid it no mind as he rushed into the Spirit Spring Cave.

The sound of water echoed inside, and someone was already there.

That person sat in the spring, their straight back leaning slightly against a large stone, surrounded by ethereal mist. The blue immortal robe was faintly visible.

When the person turned to look, Bai Fanlu froze in place.

“Senior Brother, long time no see.”

It was Yun Zhan. Bai Fanlu recognized that face, but it also felt unfamiliar.

Especially when he saw the faint, emotionless smile that accompanied Yun Zhan’s “long time no see,” Bai Fanlu could hardly believe he really knew this person.

Standing at the entrance of the cave, Bai Fanlu could still remember how he had carried Yun Zhan down these very steps and how he had eagerly distanced himself, wishing to be miles away from him.

But now, seeing the unfamiliar expression in Yun Zhan’s eyes, Bai Fanlu couldn’t hold back the tears that had been trembling in his eyes. They spilled out despite his best efforts.

He didn’t know why he was reacting like this, only that it felt utterly embarrassing. He turned and fled, only to bump into someone outside.

“Sorry…” Bai Fanlu hurriedly tried to cover up his emotions, but that person gently lifted his chin. Through his tear-blurred vision, Bai Fanlu saw that it was Ling Qingzi.

He quickly wiped his face and was about to explain when Ling Qingzi grabbed his wrist and led him away.

Clouds and mist swirled past them, and in the next moment, they were in Ling Qingzi’s residence.

Bai Fanlu had just managed to regain his composure, but before he could say anything, or even put on a fake smile, Ling Qingzi said, “Mo’er, if you want to cry, just cry.”

“I’m not…”

His weak denial crumbled under the sudden flood of emotions. His throat tightened, and Ling Qingzi pulled him into a firm embrace.

This embrace carried a cool, fresh scent, contrasting sharply with the burning tears, making it impossible to hide the fragile feelings that surged forth.

The faint fragrance that surrounded him used to make him uncomfortable, but now it felt soothing and calming.

Burying his head in Ling Qingzi’s chest, Bai Fanlu gradually calmed down after who knows how long.

Realizing how he had lost his composure, Bai Fanlu felt utterly embarrassed. He quickly took a step back and lowered his head. “Master…”

This subtle distance made Ling Qingzi’s gaze darken slightly. Without waiting for Bai Fanlu to say anything, he spoke, “Yun Zhan has forgotten everything from before.”

Bai Fanlu was stunned.

“He returned just now, remembering who he is and who we are, but when asked about what happened, he couldn’t recall anything.”

He can’t remember anything?