A steady heartbeat travels from the chest to the palm, giving one a sense of peace and reassurance.

As Yin Ming was wondering what Ling Yao meant by this, he heard him say, "So... Yin Ming chose to leave because he was afraid I would hate you?"

Yin Ming nodded, saying nothing aloud, but inwardly he couldn't help but mutter, "More than that, in the original story you would have killed me too. Do you think I wouldn't have run away back then?"

"So that's how it is. I almost misunderstood Yin Ming. Luckily..."

"The Grand Elder told me long ago that everything you did was for me, but at the time..."

Lingyao paused, then didn't continue.

After a long while, his voice was heard again, "Will Yin Ming resent me... He did so much for me, but I said those hurtful things to you."

"You must be feeling very wronged, right?"

He raised his other hand and stroked Yin Ming's long hair, which was draped like brocade behind him, and sighed softly.

"Actually, I came to believe it later, and believed that Yin Ming had always been on my side. I just couldn't understand why Yin Ming faked his death and left."

"I don't want to speculate anymore, because I'm afraid I'll repeat the same mistake and misunderstand you again. So I thought, no matter where you are, I will find you and hear the answer from you in person."

"I thought that even if you left me because you really hated me, as long as you said it clearly, I would not pester you too much... But when I asked it just now, I was still afraid."

"I told myself that all of that is in the past, and as long as you are willing to be with me now, then everything before doesn't matter."

"Even though I think that way, I still feel sad—"

"It's sad that you almost abandoned me."

Lingyao pressed Yin Ming's hand, which was covering her chest, down harder, as if trying to make him feel her heart more clearly. "Until you said that you were just afraid I would hate you."

He chuckled softly, his tone becoming relaxed and cheerful.

"Now listen carefully, I have never hated you. Even what I said during Nirvana was just said in anger. I never thought of doing anything to you, let alone taking revenge on you."

"Although you and Liu Ying later staged a charade of escaping, your death was real, and the injuries you suffered for me were real."

“I am no stranger to the feeling of death. The fact that you have done so much for me is enough to atone for those bloody sins.”

"So, Yin Ming, you haven't wronged me in any way. If we really have to nitpick, it's me who owes you... I'm the one who dragged you into this mess."

"I should be the one apologizing to you, and... thank you for enduring so much pressure and still not leaving me."

Yin Ming listened quietly to Ling Yao's story, his eyes welling up with tears.

His Ah Yao, as expected, wouldn't blame him for anything.

As always, she was very understanding.

At this point, he should have said something emotional to respond to his sincere feelings, but Yin Ming really didn't want to prolong this atmosphere any longer—

Since they can understand each other's feelings and let go of the hurt they suffered in the past, it's time to move on from this matter.

Lingyao said something very true: all of that is in the past.

Since happiness is just around the corner and within reach, why dwell on past sorrows? Of course, we should extricate ourselves from this depressive mood in time.

So Yin Ming took a deep breath, forcing back the tears welling up in his eyes, and said in a deliberately lighthearted tone, "That's what you're saying. I can't let go of it even if I wanted to."

Perhaps the sarcasm in Yin Ming's voice went a little too far, because Ling Yao's breath caught in her throat after hearing it, as if she had never expected Yin Ming to say such a thing.

Yin Ming sensed his emotions and, fearing he might overthink things, quickly explained:

"I didn't mean anything by saying this; I just didn't want to lie to you just to say nice things."

After waiting for a while without receiving a response from Lingyao, Yin Ming had no choice but to explain again:

"When I transmigrated into this body, the Grand Elder had already entrusted me with this task, and I couldn't refuse..."

Realizing he was getting more and more incoherent, Yin Ming quickly stopped talking.

Just as he was about to try to make amends, Lingyao, unable to bear it any longer, flipped him over and pinned him down, silencing the mouth that was about to utter words that would displease him.

Sometimes, I wish you would use more sweet words to deceive me.

"Even if it's fake, at least I'll be happy to hear it."

Yin Ming struggled to push him away, and as he prepared to pounce again, he said in a very serious tone:

"That won't do. When two people are together, they should be honest with each other."

"When problems arise, we should work together to solve them, rather than cover them up."

"So, I know what I'm about to say might hurt your feelings, but I still want to say it—"

"For some reasons, I did consider leaving you at first. Although the Grand Elder's orders forced me to stay by your side, I eventually decided to stay."

"Ah Yao, you're really great, I really like you for that. You said you've never disliked me, and neither have I, even if..."

Yin Ming stopped abruptly, annoyed that he hadn't thought things through and had brought up this topic.

But the words he hadn't intended to say any further came out of Lingyao's mouth: "Even if it's me, the terrifying one after Nirvana?"

Yin Ming looked up in surprise. Although he couldn't see Ling Yao's face clearly in the darkness, he could feel that Ling Yao's gaze was fixed on him.

For a moment, Yin Ming was stunned.

How did Lingyao guess? Although what he originally wanted to say was that he never disliked even the Lingyao in the book.

But for Yin Ming, the character in the book who deserves to be hated is none other than Ling Yao, who becomes unpredictable and wields the power of life and death after his rebirth.

Therefore, Lingyao's guess is pretty much accurate.

"When you say 'because of some reasons,' you're probably referring to what I would do to you in that storybook, right?"

"Your demise is inextricably linked to me, and perhaps, in fact, it was orchestrated by me?"

As he spoke, getting closer and closer to the truth, Yin Ming's eyes widened in astonishment.

No, the one who's read the original novel should be Yin Ming, not him, right? But how come he always guesses correctly!

Seeing this expression on his face, Lingyao, who could still see clearly with his divine sense even in the dark, knew that he had guessed correctly.

Seeing his still incredulous expression, I couldn't help but chuckle and explain:

“You were carrying out the mission assigned by the elders. They have no reason to abandon you after you’ve served your purpose. If even they can’t protect you, then there’s only one possibility: in the story, the one who wants to kill you is me—”

"They don't have the guts to disobey me, nor the power to stop me."

Lingyao's tone rose slightly, as if he was somewhat displeased.

"Didn't we say we should be honest with each other? But you still didn't mention the things that would make me feel guilty, and you even said some nice things to make me happy."

He changed the subject, his voice softening, "But I also like Yin Ming like this."

"Since we're going to be honest with each other, then I'll tell you the truth too."

"I used to blame you a little, but now I don't."