The spring breeze was gentle, and the sunlight was just right.
The little fox turned her head and met Gu Changqing’s unblinking gaze.
In an instant, the little fox seemed electrified. Her small face flushed, and she felt a secret joy.
The scenery was so beautiful, and there were only the two of them here.
He’s looking at me like that all of a sudden—could he be about to confess to me?
Has this guy finally awakened his emotions?
Well, it’s no wonder—I’m so pretty even a block of wood could be moved…
Wait!
Should I refuse? A girl should be a bit reserved, right?
Forget it, forget it—there’s no guarantee I’ll get another chance*…W**ho knows when he’ll come to* his senses if I refuse now.
Gu Changqing slowly moved closer to her.
At that moment, the little fox couldn’t help but feel nervous. Her heart fluttered like a butterfly’s wings and her mind went blank.
Seeing Gu Changqing drawing nearer and nearer, for a moment her entire body froze.
Then.
She heard Gu Changqing lean toward her ear and say, “Don’t move, there’s a big fish behind you.”
Splash!
The peerless Heavenly Emperor leapt into the water, and the splashing waves drenched the little fox’s clothes—and her enthusiasm—to the bone.
“Gu Changqing!!!”
…
At night, beside the bonfire.
“The little fish is so cute, how could you eat it?” the little fox was still angry about what happened during the day.
But the next moment, the aroma of the roasted fish awakened her appetite, exposing her true nature. “Make it extra spicy—if it’s not spicy, I won’t eat it.”
…
They stayed by the waterfall for three days.
On the third day, Gu Changqing noticed that the little fox beside him seemed a bit off.
Her smile hadn’t faded, but Gu Changqing felt that her smile no longer seemed as genuinely happy.
Deep into the night, after finishing the roasted fish, the two stayed in the cave.
Gu Changqing lay on a rock with his eyes closed, resting.
The little fox moved to lie down beside Gu Changqing. She shifted her position as if trying to squeeze onto the same rock with him.
“Xiao Wu, the way you’re lying down beside me isn’t appropriate, is it?”
Gu Changqing’s cheeks warmed slightly.
Previously in the Forbidden Zone, the two often leaned on each other like this. But at that time, survival was at stake.
Moreover, the little fox was always in her fox form.
This was the first time they were in a situation like today.
“The wind is strong today,” the little fox murmured, burying her face in Gu Changqing’s arms. “Besides, I used to shelter you—today, it’s your turn to shield me from the wind.”
As she spoke, she unceremoniously snuggled closer into Gu Changqing’s embrace, curling up.
Her frame was slender like a cat’s—soft and limber—with a faint fragrance about her that was intoxicating.
For some reason, Gu Changqing did not push her away. Instead, he pulled her into his arms.
Perhaps because they had shared near death experiences in the Forbidden Zone, in his heart Gu Changqing had never rejected her. He had even placed her in an important position within his heart.
“Will you forget me?” the small body in his arms asked abruptly.
Gu Changqing felt puzzled but still said, “How could I? Once I avenge my parents, I will stay with you—wherever you want to go, we’ll go.”
“That’s wonderful.”
The little fox in his arms seemed to smile. She lifted her head, took off an exquisite little pendant from her neck, and looped it around Gu Changqing’s arm.
“This is for you—take good care of it.”
She smiled, but her blue eyes carried a somewhat complex expression.
After saying this, she buried herself again in Gu Changqing’s arms and, before long, fell into a deep sleep.
…
“Have you noticed that the two of them are getting closer and closer?”
Outside the mirror, a cultivator murmured to himself.
Many cultivators nodded in agreement, but nobody found it out of place.
The two of them were people with similarly tragic fates. Each could see the other’s reflection in themselves.
They already shared more pity and tenderness toward each other to begin with.
Then, they went to the Forbidden Zone and went through such harrowing experiences together.
After going through that ordeal, their bond naturally deepened quickly. The only reason they hadn’t become lovers yet was most likely due to the Heavenly Emperor being too dull.
“Nothing bad must befall the little fox, otherwise, the Heavenly Emperor will surely fly into a rage,” a cultivator sighed inexplicably.
But that remark suddenly made all the cultivators freeze in shock.
Only then did they remember that the little fox later died!
In other words, perhaps it wouldn’t be long before an accident would befall the little fox??
…
Dawn broke.
Gu Changqing felt he had never slept more soundly.
After all, he was a cultivator.
Yet he had even dreamed last night.
He dreamed of traveling the lands with the little fox, of frolicking and laughing with the little fox, and in the dream he promised her, “I will protect you well.”
Gu Changqing slowly awoke.
The small body that had been in his arms had vanished.
“Missing yesterday’s fish again, huh?”
Gu Changqing gave a helpless smile and walked out of the cave.
The great waterfall flowed and the sun shone brightly, but there was no sign of the little fox in the water.
Gu Changqing was stunned. He leapt into the firmament and scoured the area.
Yet across this realm, there was still no trace of that familiar figure.
Thud.
Gu Changqing’s heart seemed to stop for a beat.
He suddenly recalled the little fox’s strange behavior last night and inexplicably felt a surge of panic.
He shot up into the sky, riding a divine rainbow as he flew through the world at unparalleled speed.
But he couldn’t find any trace of the little fox anwhere.
“The little fox has left without saying goodbye…”
Gu Changqing felt as if he had been struck by lightning.