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"Alright! Let’s all hear it together. Gu Xiaoxi, tell us again about how you got married to your superior officer..."

Gu Xiaoxi didn’t have much to say, only recounting the fabrications she had made up for everyone.

Yun Xiao secretly gazed at Gu Xiaoxi’s profile, finding her serenity heart-wrenching.

Despite being the one who was hurt the most, she still faced everything calmly, deceiving others with those lies.

"Wow, I admire your courage. You actually dared to ask your superior officer for a billion-dollar breakup fee." Zhu Yin gave Gu Xiaoxi a thumbs up.

*

Not far from the command center was Lover’s Valley.

Gu Xiaoxi and Yun Xiao walked on a path where spring flowers were blooming, the evening breeze blowing softly, both of them silent.

"Xiao Xi, will you feel sad? I can offer my shoulder for you to lean on," said Yun Xiao. She actually hoped to see Gu Xiaoxi cry her heart out over a breakup, just like she had.

Once the crying was over, one would feel much better.

Her quiet demeanor made her feel uncomfortable.

"Yun Xiao, what can you do even if you’re sad? Rather than being unhappy, it’s better to work on becoming stronger. As long as he’s alright, my sacrifice is worth it," said Gu Xiaoxi in a calm tone.

She too had felt heartache and shed tears.

But it was in the moments unknown to others, quietly letting the tears fall.

She didn’t want to expose her vulnerability to everyone.

They say that as people grow older, they gradually become more mature.

And she was no longer the carefree, playful Gu Xiaoxi she once was.

Yun Xiao took Gu Xiaoxi’s hand. "Compared to you, the setbacks I encounter seem inconsequential. Xiao Xi, I’m so grateful I met you."

"I’m also glad I met you. You’ve always believed in me, stayed by my side," said Gu Xiaoxi sincerely. She just hoped that Yun Xiao wouldn’t turn into another Song Jingyi.

"The moon is so round tonight. Gu Xiaoxi, we’ll be best friends for life, right?" Yun Xiao faced the moon and raised her head high.

Gu Xiaoxi looked up too, her voice firm. "We’ll be comrades for life."

"Thank you!"

Yun Xiao felt very fortunate. Even though the person she liked didn’t reciprocate her feelings, at that moment she was still happy.

"I have something to tell you. Ai Xiang has acknowledged me as her younger sister, so in the future, I can live with you at Yearn Residence," Gu Xiaoxi’s gaze fell on Yun Xiao’s face.

Yun Xiao was taken aback for a moment before sighing, "I can no longer face going back there now; I broke his most prized possession."

"How could he hold that against you? Besides, your room is still there being kept for you. Let’s go back together next time," Gu Xiaoxi patted Yun Xiao’s shoulder.

"If you really like him, let go of all your pride and step into his world.

You have to believe that one day, he will see your sincerity. "

"Is that really possible?" Yun Xiao was somewhat incredulous.

Quan Shaoqing and Ai Xiang were different, Ai Xiang had someone in her heart.

Although the chances of finding that person were slim, he always kept her in his heart.

"Every sincere person will get their reward. This world has its karmic laws," Gu Xiaoxi said with a smile.

Gu Xiaoxi thought.

The karmic connection she had with Quan Shaoqing might be because in the beginning, she had too much, too much happiness.

Later, even the heavens couldn’t stand by and watch.

They had to be separated.

Quan Shaoqing returned to the villa as usual.

A little rabbit was bustling around the entrance, and upon seeing him return, it immediately scurried over to his feet.

Quan Shaoqing squatted down and instinctively picked up the little creature. "I remember I never used to keep pets, this rabbit doesn’t seem too bad. Strange, why did I buy you in the first place? Lin Mi, do you know why?"

"How would I know that! You must have had a whim and bought it yourself," Lin Mi immediately chuckled. The rabbit Gu Xiaoxi had brought over had gone missing, and to keep her from being sad upon return, he had personally bought one to look after.

The rabbit had grown, but Gu Xiaoxi had returned and never got the chance to see it.

Quan Shaoqing looked at the little grey rabbit in his arms, feeling like many things in his memory were obscured by fog.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall.

"Superior officer, don’t fret over it. The last time you were injured and unconscious for several days, you hit your head and lost some memories. Didn’t you consult a doctor about it? It’s called disorganized amnesia," Lin Mi quickly explained.

Quan Shaoqing looked at the sky and sat on a chair in the small garden holding the rabbit.

He stared blankly at the nearby swing, which seemed like something a woman would like.

"Lin Mi, what’s with this swing? Who set it up, have it taken down," Quan Shaoqing said expressionlessly.

"No, don’t! It’s pretty, and sometimes I want to sit on it too!" Lin Mi walked up, sat on the swing, and swayed a few times.

The swing had been built when the villa was being furnished, at the direction of Quan Shaoqing.

"It was supposed to be for Gu Xiaoxi to play with," he had said, "All girls like this sort of thing."

Now that it’s about to be taken down, Lin Mi could only try her best to keep it.

After all, they had once been so close.

Quan Shaoqing looked at the swinging swing.

He always felt that such a scene seemed familiar.

Yet he couldn’t remember when he had experienced it.

Just like how he knew he had impulsively bought a rabbit home.

But why he bought the rabbit, that reason, he couldn’t think of it at all.

"Then let it be! You’re not needed here anymore, go back and rest early," Quan Shaoqing began to shoo him away.

Lin Mi chuckled, "I’ll stay with you a bit longer, I’ll leave after you’ve gone to sleep."

He didn’t want to leave.

Quan Shaoqing alone, thinking about all sorts of messy questions that should not be thought of.

"Who assigned you to watch over me, my dad or my mom? Don’t forget, you’re my man," Quan Shaoqing showed displeasure on his face, this guy was getting bolder and even dared to disobey orders.

"I wouldn’t dare to watch over you, I am just worried that you’d be short-handed here. I am here to take care of you," he said.

"Get lost! I don’t need your care," Quan Shaoqing put the rabbit down and said to Lin Shu, "Aunt Lin, prepare my clothes, I’m going to wash up and sleep."

"Alright! Then I’ll head back," Lin Mi said with a beaming smile.

Quan Shaoqing returned to his previous life as the cold-faced King Yama, a life of strict routine.

Although it was boring and simple, he was safe.

At night, Gu Xiaoxi and the others returned to the Land of Kings.

Everyone went to rest.

She sneaked out of the training base, found an open spot with a good view, and started to practice techniques.

Within the purple crystal she had purchased from Dream Island was hidden a volume of cultivation technique.

Just a single volume.

Just like the Spiritual Realm before, there were three volumes of techniques; this purple crystal contained only one volume. Gu Xiaoxi encountered trouble as soon as she started to cultivate!

Because facing a brand new volume of cultivation technique, she hit a significant bottleneck.

Just like the crystal in her hands.

First off, she couldn’t understand what kind of cultivation technique was hidden inside the crystal.

She tried activating it with spiritual power, with inner strength, biting it with her teeth, burning it with fire, illuminating it with moonlight...

Even more methods all proved fruitless.

Every time she inputted spiritual power into this crystal, all it did was emit a resplendent glow.

The purple light illuminated the night, yet she couldn’t see where the techniques were.

Gu Xiaoxi sat on the edge of a branch, staring at the dazzling object in her hand, lost in thought.

This object, Ya seemed to understand very well.

Back then, she regretted not holding on to him to ask about the secrets within.

Now, the techniques she had before were all completed.

To break through, she must find the secret of this crystal and continue her cultivation.

"I knew you would be here," Shao Changfeng said, standing under the tree, looking up at Gu Xiaoxi.

"Do you need something from me?"

"Can’t I look for you if there’s nothing wrong?" Shao Changfeng leaped onto a branch and sat beside Gu Xiaoxi, "Can you tell me about your situation with Quan Shaoqing?"

Gu Xiaoxi put the crystal back into her pocket and looked sideways at Shao Changfeng, "Why is everyone so interested in this?"

"Because I don’t believe you married him just for the ten billion breakup fee," Shao Changfeng said.

Gu Xiaoxi curled her lips and let out a scoff. "If you don’t believe it, why bother asking?"

"I’m just puzzled because he used to be so good to you..."

"Shao Changfeng! It’s precisely because he was so good to me, that’s why I had to leave him. And also, he no longer remembers me. So, don’t bring up this matter again," Gu Xiaoxi said indifferently.

Such a matter, the more you explain it, the more the initial heart-wrenching pain fades away.

"I’m just afraid that you are upset!" Shao Changfeng expressed his concern.

"How are your cultivation techniques coming along, and you still have time to worry about me?" Gu Xiaoxi asked sternly.

"I’ve known you since the first day you joined the military.

Isn’t it normal to care a little about you?

If you don’t want to talk about it, forget it, we are comrades-in-arms and friends.

Speak your mind, don’t keep it all inside," Shao Changfeng’s gaze was incredibly sincere, clearly very worried about her.