Feng Guang’s eyes sparkled. “Then, when did you start liking me?”
“I don’t know either.”
In the Xuan Sect, he was the solemn and disciplined senior brother. Aside from the junior sister who occasionally sought him out with a request—only to storm off in anger when he refused—no other disciples willingly approached him. Xuan Qing was too young, so he rarely spoke to anyone. His days were spent in rigorous cultivation, filling the time with training. His interactions with Feng Guang had been an accident, but he couldn’t deny that they had brought some unexpected amusement into his otherwise dull routine.
Gradually, he found himself drawing his Cold Abyss Sword more often. He enjoyed the lightheartedness that came with talking to her. Even though he rarely spoke, her lively nature ensured their conversations were never awkward or dull.
Fang Yue had assumed he saw Feng Guang as just a friend—until the day he was gravely wounded in the Demon Suppression Tower and, for some inexplicable reason, she appeared before him.
His injuries had been too severe for him to make out her face at the time. Later, he overheard his junior brothers talking about the mysterious woman who had saved him. And every time they spoke of her, their descriptions always started with the same sentence:
“She’s absolutely beautiful.”
It was in that moment that Fang Yue realized something was off about his emotions—because he felt an inexplicable, deeply buried jealousy.
Jealousy that they had seen her clearly when he could not.
Jealousy that they could openly admire her, while he—Xuan Sect’s most revered senior brother, the role model of his fellow disciples—could never so freely express his feelings for a woman.
And when Xuan Qing had handed him the sword tassel—when he held that tassel in his palm—his jealousy only deepened, even as he maintained his usual calm and gentle expression.
For someone who had never experienced love before, it was only then that he belatedly realized he had fallen for this girl.
But with that realization came despair.
They belonged to different worlds.
Feng Guang noticed his sudden silence. She reached out, cupping his face, her thumb gently brushing against the corner of his eye. Her voice was soft as she murmured, “Fang Yue, what’s wrong?”
“Feng Guang…” He caught her hand, his fingers slowly tracing over her smooth, delicate palm. His usually serene gaze darkened. “I’m afraid… If you disappear from this world again, like you did last time—what will I do?”
Feng Guang froze.
She had no answer.
This system-induced transmigration wasn’t something she could control. Maybe tomorrow, in just a few minutes, she could be pulled back to her original world.
That thought was too heavy to bear.
Fang Yue didn’t like seeing her troubled expression. Holding her hand, he brought it to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it. “It’s okay. Even if you go back, I will train diligently. I will find a way to reach your world. When that time comes… will you wait for me?”
“…Alright.” Feng Guang carefully avoided his wounds as she wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face into his shoulder and taking a deep breath.
The easiest promises to make… are often the hardest to keep.
Like how she was desperately calling out to the system in her mind, yet receiving no response.
Fang Yue liked having her so close. The weight in his chest suddenly felt lighter. The faint fragrance of her presence surrounded him, filling him with a quiet satisfaction.
“Feng Guang… I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing?” Her voice was soft, as if she were on the verge of falling asleep. Understandable—after all, she had used up all her energy fighting that old bastard. Now that she was lying down, exhaustion was taking over.