In a small, almost isolated village, as dusk approached, the sky darkened, and the orange-yellow to reddish sunset lit up half the sky. This secluded village was sparsely populated.

"You good-for-nothing, hurry up and go fetch some water!"

"Yes, I understand, Mother..."

With a bang, a little girl in tattered clothes was ushered out, dragging a wooden bucket that was almost taller than her. She then limped towards the river.

The little girl was running along, dragging the wooden bucket, and almost fell over on the riverbank, but she wiped her dirty little face and didn't care at all.

Just as she was about to fetch water—

On the clear river, the water rippled and spread out in layers of waves. Suddenly, the little girl stopped what she was doing because she suddenly saw a figure on the water. The figure was tall and beautiful, like jade.

"Who...who are you?"

The little girl looked up blankly at the other side of the river.

On the other side of the river, Shen Changlin, dressed in white, rested one hand on the hilt of his sword, looked down at the little girl opposite him, and opened his mouth.

"Sect Master of the Myriad Paths Sect, Shen Changlin."

"What is the Myriad Paths Sect? And what is the Sect Master?"

The little girl paused, then thought the young man's voice was particularly pleasant, and earnestly asked him back, "I don't know any of that."

"...is a very good place."

Shen Changlin sighed softly, walked past the little girl, flicked his slender fingertips, and used his spiritual power to cleanse her of the filth. Then he said, "Come with me."

"Why?"

"I'm going to take you as my apprentice."

As Shen Changlin spoke casually, a faint trace of melancholy appeared between his brows and eyes, as if he were recalling something, but it quickly vanished.

Seeing that the young man in front of her didn't seem to be waiting for her, the little girl, after a moment of surprise, quickly caught up and asked in a chattering voice, "What does it mean to take on an apprentice? Do I have to call you master?"

"You should call me Master."

"After I go to the Myriad Paths Sect, can I not work?"

"You need to cultivate."

The young man strolled ahead, followed by a girl jogging behind him. His expression seemed devoid of any emotion, yet he resembled the white-clad woman with a long sword slung across her waist back then, whose cool demeanor held a subtle protectiveness towards her disciple.

In a daze, he seemed to have become her.

It wasn't just her identity, but also her temperament; the coldness in her eyes was like frost, just like her, as aloof as the bright moon—after her, he grew up and became like her.

...

Ten years later, at the foot of Yanlai Peak, in the Wandao Sect.

A young girl in a blue robe, holding a sword, spoke in a clear voice.

"A-Qiu has a question and may wish to see Master?"

"...Come on up."

As Shen Changlin's voice rang out, the restriction that had sealed off Yanlai Peak finally broke open, allowing one person to pass through.

A girl named A-Qiu walked in.

Soon, after bypassing the path, she saw a cave in the mountains and forests. Shen Changlin sat down at the stone table in front of the cave and waited quietly.

Upon seeing this, A Qiu quickly stepped forward and bowed to Shen Changlin: "A Qiu greets Master. How have you been, Master?"

"Shang Ke, what do you want with me?"

Upon hearing this, A Qiu paused for a moment, her gaze unconsciously sweeping over the surrounding scenery, and suddenly asked, "Since I was accepted as a disciple by you, Master, and came to this Myriad Paths Sect, you have always made me live on the affiliated spiritual peak next to Yanlai Peak, and never let me live here. Why is that?"

"..."

Shen Changlin didn't speak, but paused in his hand as he picked up the teacup.

But at this moment, A-Qiu spoke up: "Master, is it because Yanlai Peak once belonged to someone else? I... I heard it from Elder Shouge, that Yanlai Peak—"

Before A Qiu could finish speaking, Shen Changlin took a sip of tea and said calmly, "Yes, I don't want you to live here, that's all."

When Shen Changlin spoke these words in a natural and straightforward manner, A Qiu's tense emotions and unconsciously trembling hands calmed down. She looked at Shen Changlin seriously and said, "Master, I am afraid that what I am about to say may offend you."

"But, without asking for an answer, A-Qiu felt resentful."

"explain."

Although Shen Changlin said this, he seemed to have guessed something.

After taking a deep breath, A-Qiu finally said, "Elder Shouge said that my master once loved his master, who was also my grandmaster, but she passed away. The reason I was able to become your disciple and be brought back by you is..."

He said it was because I was the reincarnation of his master.

The atmosphere in the cave seemed to have frozen. A Qiu appeared restless and at a loss. After learning the news, she didn't even know how to face her master, let alone what her master thought of her.

But Shen Changlin's attitude was far too natural.

He simply looked up and suddenly laughed: "What are you worried about, Qiu? Are you worried that I might have ulterior motives towards you?"

"Master..."

"You were never her."

Unexpectedly, Shen Changlin spoke in a low voice: "I know you are her reincarnation. The reason I took you in is simply because I couldn't bear to see her reincarnation suffer too much, A Qiu."

“You have nothing in common with her, and I will never intentionally mold you into her likeness—she is unique, and even if you were her reincarnation, you would not be her.”

Shen Changlin knew this when he saw A Qiu.

Could she be the reincarnation?

In Shen Changlin's view, the answer is no...

His beloved was dead, and he knew this clearly. How could her reincarnated soul be her? How could he cultivate a so-called "substitute" to defile his master?

Therefore, Ah Qiu cannot be Nguyen Thanh An.

In this world, she is like a gentle breeze and a bright moon, unmatched by anyone.

In the deathly silence, A Qiu understood Shen Changlin's meaning, but she was not disappointed, nor did she feel resentful of being belittled. She just smiled, as if she had breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good then."

"When I heard it, I couldn't believe that Master would be such a person. I also know that no one can surpass Grandmaster in your heart. This is normal, Master, because Grandmaster is special in your heart. But in the future—I will also be special in other people's eyes."

Ah Qiu spoke earnestly, his eyes shining brightly.

She knew perfectly well that in Shen Changlin's heart, her position was not as high as that of the deceased Ruan Qing'an, but that didn't matter, because she would also be the beloved one in the eyes of her beloved.

A Qiu chuckled and looked at Shen Changlin: "A Qiu has always been grateful to Master. Regardless of whether you brought me back because of Grandmaster, it is indeed as if you gave me a second life."

“This is a life-saving grace, which A-Qiu will never forget.”

As she spoke, A Qiu knelt down and performed the most standard apprenticeship ceremony. Her eyes were filled with deep gratitude as she smiled and said, "A Qiu has heard that Master has been painstakingly accumulating merit and virtue for a hundred years. A Qiu is not talented, but I have presumptuously guessed some of Master's wishes."

"so--"

The girl stopped talking.

Shen Changlin paused, subconsciously looking up at her, only to see that A Qiu was holding a ball of wish power radiating a soft light in her hands, which gathered from her body into her palms and then quickly surged into the sky!

That is... the nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-ninth vow.

Shen Changlin had already accumulated enough merit, but he couldn't accumulate enough power for that last wish. How many people are willing to give up everything just to contribute their strength and help others fulfill their wishes? There are far too few, far too few.

And A-Qiu's portion was the last one.

“Master, I am grateful for everything you have done to save me, therefore—A-Qiu also hopes that Master’s wish can be fulfilled.”

"May Heaven grant us the hope that our Master and Grandmaster will one day meet again."

As A-Qiu spoke, the sky was already tinged with golden power of wishes and merits. Not only that, but it even began to condense into large vortexes, as if it were powerful enough to reverse everything.

Upon noticing this, Shen Changlin couldn't help but stand up, his body trembling uncontrollably, as if his long-cherished wish was finally being fulfilled, filled with both anticipation and a sense of fear.

"Thanks……"

He spoke softly, his eyes seeming to glisten with a hint of water.

A Qiu also realized what was happening. Just as Shen Changlin was staring intently at the sky, she noticed the anomaly first and turned her head sharply: "Who's there?!"

The cave dwelling on Yanlai Peak was already quite old, but for some reason, it seemed to have returned to its former state, becoming cleaner, as if... the traces etched on it by time had faded.

The tightly closed cave entrance opened—

"It's like being pulled back from the brink of oblivion just as you're about to drink the Meng Po soup. Chang Lin, what are you doing now?"

Accompanied by a cold voice, the tone carried a sense of helplessness.

The woman, dressed in a crescent-white Taoist robe, was slender and had a cool and aloof air about her, like the bright moon and a gentle breeze. Nothing in the world could compare to her. A long sword was slung across her waist, and when she pressed one hand on the hilt, an invisible chilling aura made her sharp and ruthless.

A-Qiu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed and said, "Is that really so? How could I be like her, like the bright moon hanging high in the sky?"

"Master, Grandmaster has returned."

But at this moment, the young man, who was as aloof as a cold peak in front of everyone, cried like a child, as if he had shed all his pretense, and poured out all his love and grievances. He almost instinctively stepped forward and hugged her, holding Ruan Qing'an's slender waist tightly.

As if confirming her existence, it was done with disbelief.

"Master, Changlin misses you so much..."

"I know, I'm back."

She spoke softly, her eyes lowered, revealing a gentle tenderness in her leaden gray eyes, like the bright moon shining down upon him—

Everything was as beautiful as a dream...

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