The morning sun had barely risen when Xiaoyu opened her eyes.
For a few brief moments, everything felt normal.
Then her gaze landed on the table.
Her entire body froze.
An object sat quietly in the center of the table.
Cold.
Silent.
Waiting.
The moment she saw it, her heartbeat accelerated.
She recognized it immediately.
Not because she had seen it before.
But because she had read the report.
It was the same object discovered in Elder Luo's residence before his death.
The very object that had caused Elder Luo's expression to change completely.
The very object that had left him pale with shock.
Beside it lay a folded piece of paper.
Xiaoyu slowly approached.
Every step felt unnaturally heavy.
At the top of the paper was a symbol.
The same symbol.
The symbol Elder Luo had reportedly seen before his death.
A chill ran down her spine.
With trembling fingers, she unfolded the letter.
Only a single sentence greeted her.
"We need to talk."
The room became deathly silent.
Xiaoyu stared at the words.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Nothing changed.
No explanation.
No name.
No signature.
Just four simple words.
Yet those four words carried a terrifying weight.
Someone had entered the Sect Master's residence.
Someone had entered her room.
Someone had left this behind.
And worst of all...
Whoever sent it clearly believed Yuchen would understand.
But she was not Yuchen.
A sudden sharp pain exploded inside her head.
"Ah!"
The paper slipped from her fingers.
Her vision blurred.
The room twisted.
The pain intensified.
Countless fragments burst into her mind.
Darkness.
A narrow stone corridor.
Cold walls.
A hidden tunnel beneath the sect.
Torches flickering against ancient stone.
Footsteps echoed through the passage.
Yuchen.
The real Yuchen.
Walking silently.
Ahead of him stood several masked figures.
The moment they saw him, they knelt.
Not one.
Not two.
All of them.
Their heads lowered respectfully.
One stepped forward.
"We have completed the observation."
Another voice followed.
"Elder Han continues investigating."
The memory trembled.
The scene shifted.
Documents exchanged hands.
Maps spread across a table.
Names written in secret reports.
Then another voice.
"The elders are becoming suspicious."
Silence.
Then Yuchen spoke.
His voice was calm.
Cold.
Yet strangely exhausted.
"Continue watching."
The memory shattered.
Xiaoyu gasped.
The pain vanished as suddenly as it had appeared.
She found herself kneeling on the floor.
Her entire body covered in cold sweat.
"What was that..."
Her voice trembled.
A memory.
Those were memories.
Yuchen's memories.
Not dreams.
Not imagination.
Actual memories.
Slowly, she stood.
Her gaze drifted toward the object once more.
The symbol.
The tunnel.
The masked figures.
Somehow, they were connected.
The original Yuchen had known what this symbol meant.
And now that symbol had appeared in her room.
The realization made her skin crawl.
For the rest of the day, her thoughts remained restless.
Everywhere she went, the fragments lingered in her mind.
The hidden tunnel.
The masked individuals.
The reports.
The investigations.
Questions piled upon questions.
Yet answers remained nowhere in sight.
By evening, exhaustion had settled over her shoulders.
Still, she forced herself toward the study.
Li Jianghong would arrive soon.
And they still had an investigation to conduct.
---
As expected, the familiar knock came shortly after sunset.
Li entered quietly.
The atmosphere between them had changed over the past few days.
Not comfortable.
Not yet.
But less strained.
Less distant.
The sharp hostility that once existed between them had gradually softened.
Soon, papers covered the table once again.
Tonight's topic remained the same.
Elder Han.
Elder Luo.
The strange object.
The mysterious deaths.
Hours passed.
The more they discussed, the stranger everything became.
Li tapped one of the reports.
"Elder Luo definitely recognized it."
Yuchen nodded.
Li continued writing.
"People only react like that when they have seen something before."
Another note followed.
"He knew what it represented."
Yuchen lowered his gaze.
That was exactly what bothered him.
If Elder Luo recognized the object, then its origin likely stretched far into the past.
Far beyond the current investigation.
Perhaps even beyond the current generation.
As the thought crossed her mind, the pain returned.
Stronger than before.
The brush slipped from her fingers.
Ink splattered across the table.
Her vision darkened.
A sharp gasp escaped her lips.
Immediately, Li stood.
"Yuchen!"
For the first time in years, he did not call him Sect Master.
The title disappeared completely.
Only concern remained.
The room spun violently.
Another memory surfaced.
This time, there were no tunnels.
No masks.
No secrets.
Only sunlight.
A younger Li Jianghong.
A younger Yuchen.
The two sat beneath a tree.
A book lay between them.
Li was speaking animatedly while Yuchen listened.
Another fragment.
A training field.
Several disciples surrounded Yuchen.
Hostile.
Mocking.
Then Li stepped forward.
Standing directly in front of him.
Protecting him.
Another fragment.
Rain.
Yuchen sitting alone beneath a pavilion.
Li arriving with food.
Without saying anything, he sat beside him.
Neither spoke.
Neither needed to.
Another fragment.
A festival.
Lanterns illuminated the night sky.
People laughed.
Families gathered.
Yet Yuchen stood alone.
Watching from afar.
Li eventually found him.
Then dragged him into the crowd despite his protests.
Another fragment.
A room.
Dark.
Silent.
Yuchen sitting alone.
Studying.
Training.
Working.
Again.
And again.
And again.
No celebrations.
No friends.
No rest.
Only expectations.
Only responsibilities.
Only pressure.
The memories continued flooding into Xiaoyu's mind.
One after another.
Loneliness.
Isolation.
Endless comparisons.
Tianyu was better.
Tianyu was more talented.
Tianyu was more suitable.
The words echoed repeatedly.
Over and over.
As if they had followed Yuchen throughout his entire life.
Xiaoyu's chest tightened.
This was not the villain from the comic.
This was a lonely boy.
A lonely boy carrying burdens far too heavy for his age.
Strong hands suddenly grabbed her shoulders.
The memories shattered.
Reality returned.
Li was kneeling beside her.
One hand supporting her arm.
The other resting on her shoulder.
His expression was filled with concern.
Pure concern.
Nothing else.
He had completely forgotten status.
Completely forgotten etiquette.
All that mattered was whether Yuchen was alright.
Their eyes met.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Xiaoyu felt her heart skip.
Not because of embarrassment.
Not this time.
Because of confusion.
The memories still lingered.
The warmth.
The friendship.
The trust.
They had been so close.
So unbelievably close.
Then why?
Why had everything fallen apart?
What happened between them?
How could two people who once shared everything become strangers?
The question struck her harder than any headache.
Almost immediately, she looked away.
Unable to continue meeting his gaze.
Across from her, Li slowly withdrew his hand.
His brows remained furrowed.
Worry lingered in his eyes.
Yet Xiaoyu barely noticed.
Her thoughts were elsewhere.
Lost among the fragments.
Lost among the memories.
Lost inside the life of a young man she was only beginning to understand.
A young man the comic had labeled a villain.
A young man whose life seemed to be nothing but loneliness and misery.
And for the first time since arriving in this world, Xiaoyu found herself asking a question she had never considered before.
What if Yuchen was never the villain at all?