"It's because of some personal matters, so I wanted to inquire about that... about that Xiao Jinr. If you know anything, little brother, could you tell me? Anything at all related to Xiao Jinr would be fine."
The girl's pair of pure, clear, and lively large eyes looked pitifully at Gu Qingfeng as she pleaded, "Little brother, can you? I would... be very grateful to you, and I would repay you properly."
When the girl had first arrived, Gu Qingfeng had only glanced at her casually, not paying much mind, thinking she was just some naive little girl new to the world. But now, hearing that she wanted to inquire about Xiao Jinr, it immediately caught Gu Qingfeng's attention, and he couldn't help but examine her more carefully.
This careful examination was no small matter; Gu Qingfeng instantly felt a sense of déjà vu. Especially when his gaze met her incredibly clear, utterly pure eyes, his long-silent heart couldn't help but stir with ripples of emotion.
Immediately, a figure appeared in his mind—none other than Xiao Jinr.
Without hesitation, he quickly released his divine sense to probe.
When it touched the girl's Soul, the stirring in his heart grew even more intense.
Back then.
Xiao Jinr had inexplicably fallen into a demonic frenzy, summoning the Blood Moon of the Wu Dao era.
The Blood Moon sought to fuse with Xiao Jinr, and if the fusion succeeded, Xiao Jinr would likely no longer be that innocent, carefree Xiao Jinr.
To prevent Xiao Jinr from fusing with the Wu Dao Blood Moon, Gu Qingfeng had obliterated her on the spot, but he had preserved her Lifebound Soul.
As long as the Lifebound Soul remained, he had a way to reconstruct a physical body for Xiao Jinr.
Gu Qingfeng was intimately familiar with Xiao Jinr's Lifebound Soul. The moment he probed with his divine sense just now, he was almost certain that this mysterious girl sitting beside him was Xiao Jinr.
But if she really was Xiao Jinr, why didn't she recognize him?
Why didn't she even remember who she was?
And why was she inquiring about her own news?
Suddenly.
Gu Qingfeng remembered what Huode had once said.
Huode said that after Su Hua reconstructed a physical body for Xiao Jinr, worried that Xiao Jinr might trigger the Blood Moon again and that the experience with the Blood Moon would leave her perpetually melancholy, Su Hua had extracted all of Xiao Jinr's previous memories.
In other words, Xiao Jinr no longer remembered anything from before.
But then why had she come here alone now to inquire about her own news?
Could it be that she was starting to remember things from the past?
He didn't know.
Although seeing Xiao Jinr here again stirred great excitement within Gu Qingfeng, he couldn't show it. He couldn't reveal his identity either, because he too feared that Xiao Jinr might recall the past, potentially causing the Blood Moon incident to repeat itself.
"Little brother... what's wrong with you?"
Seeing Gu Qingfeng silent, Xiao Jinr asked curiously.
"I say, young man, just a moment ago I thought you had decent character. How come now you're staring at this little girl without blinking? What nonsense are you thinking?" Luo Xuan Ancestor admonished. "I'm warning you, don't get any improper ideas, or don't blame me for being impolite."
"No, I just suddenly remembered some things and got lost in thought," Gu Qingfeng said, trying to sound casual. Then he asked, "By the way, little sister, what's your name?"
"Me?" Xiao Jinr said softly, "My surname is Su, given name Yao. You can call me Yaoyao, or Yao'er."
"Su Yao..." Gu Qingfeng repeated the name, guessing it was probably given by Su Hua. He asked again, "Yaoyao, you don't look very old, do you? How come you're out here all by yourself? Where's your family? Aren't they with you?"
"This... actually..." Xiao Jinr bit her lip lightly, as if hesitating about something. After a moment, she said, "Actually... I sneaked out from home by myself. My family doesn't know I'm here, but... they probably know by now. They might even come looking for me soon, so... my time here might not be long."
"Your family is too irresponsible! How could they let you run out all by yourself!" Gu Qingfeng was somewhat angry. Because of her special circumstances, Xiao Jinr's mind was fundamentally immature. She was so innocent and naive, her heart so kind she wouldn't even step on an ant. She had no idea how dangerous the outside world could be, believing whatever anyone told her. What if she encountered a bad person?
Most importantly, the fact that Xiao Jinr had come here to inquire about her own news clearly showed she was starting to doubt her lost memories. Things might even be more complicated; she might attract the Blood Moon's Curse again.
Thinking of this, Gu Qingfeng felt a surge of anger.
Back when the Wu Dao Mountain descended, he had specifically entrusted Xiao Jinr's Lifebound Soul to Su Hua, repeatedly urging her to take good care of Xiao Jinr. After all, the Blood Moon Curse of the Wu Dao era was an ill omen, an existence rejected by heaven and earth just like Gu Qingfeng himself. If not for that, when Xiao Jinr triggered the Blood Moon Curse back then, the Three Thousand Great Daos wouldn't have tried to obliterate her.
He had thought that after entrusting her to Su Hua, Su Hua would be able to care for Xiao Jinr properly. Gu Qingfeng had believed Su Hua had that capability.
What he never expected was that Su Hua would be so neglectful, not even knowing that Xiao Jinr had run off here alone, damn it.
"No, no! Little brother, don't misunderstand. My family treats me very well. They're not irresponsible. I sneaked out from home without them knowing. When I left, they had no idea."
"The fact that you could sneak out alone is irresponsible in itself. And..." Gu Qingfeng drank a cup of wine unhappily. "If your family paid even the slightest bit of attention to you, you wouldn't have been able to sneak out in the first place."
"Ah!"
Xiao Jinr furrowed her brows, staring at Gu Qingfeng with some incomprehension. "Little brother, do you know me?"
Hearing this question, Gu Qingfeng's heart skipped a beat. He quickly shook his head. "No, I don't. Why do you ask?"
"But... from the way you speak, I feel like you seem to know me. And..." Xiao Jinr tilted her head, her brows deeply furrowed as she stared intently into Gu Qingfeng's dark, tranquil eyes. She said softly, "I don't know why, but I always feel like you're very familiar, little brother. As if we knew each other before. Especially your eyes... I... really feel they're familiar. It's as if you were... as if you were... a very, very close relative of mine from before."
If he could, Gu Qingfeng truly wanted to tell Xiao Jinr his identity. However, he couldn't do that.
At the very least.
Before he understood Xiao Jinr's current situation clearly, he couldn't say anything.