The vast sky stretched endlessly into the horizon, devoid of clouds to obscure it. The scorching sunlight poured down upon the yellow sands that extended as far as the eye could see. The hot wind blew intermittently, stirring up small waves of sand that danced to and fro, resembling a sea without water only boundless desert as far as the horizon. In the distance, undulating sand dunes rose and fell like an endless barren ocean.
The children had been trudging through the desert for a long time. Though they wore garments to protect themselves from the sun's heat, exhaustion from the journey had begun to set in. The sound of footsteps pressing against the sand echoed rhythmically, in tune with the wind that swept through in waves.
Nearly two hours had passed, yet the journey continued without a clear destination. Only the distant horizon remained always seemingly unreachable, no matter how far they walked.
Ye Juan walked beside Xin Tingting, a girl whose beauty was almost otherworldly. Her soft golden hair fluttered in the breeze, and the sunlight that touched her strands made them gleam like pure gold. Her blue eyes shimmered with a mysterious light, reflecting the vast sky above, as if they contained both storm and ocean within them.
Amidst the quiet atmosphere, Ye Juan finally voiced the question that had been lingering in his mind.
"Xin Tingting, you and Liang Yi... you're both so beautiful. I've never seen any girls as beautiful as the two of you in my life. And Xin Tingting, you're the goddess of restoration—who are your parents?"
Xin Tingting continued walking without answering immediately. She lifted her gaze to the sky. The desert heat made the air around them appear slightly distorted. She lowered her eyes slightly, as if lost in thought, before finally replying in a soft voice.
"I was born from a cluster of stars..." she said gently, yet every word carried a cryptic weight that was difficult to grasp. "No parents, no siblings, no clan or lineage."
Her words made Ye Juan frown slightly, and those walking nearby fell silent as well, seemingly trying to listen closely.
"I have only Grandpa..." Xin Tingting continued, her eyes gazing toward the distant horizon. "But he's not my real grandfather. He raised me since I was a child, but he never told me anything about his past. All I know is that he possesses a power far beyond anything I could ever imagine."
She paused her steps for a moment. Amidst the hot wind blowing past, she looked down at the sand, her eyes filled with hesitation before she continued.
"I've wondered for so long who he really is... why he took me in," she said, pausing briefly before speaking in a soft tone, "I remember once when Grandpa left the house. I couldn't resist my curiosity... and I decided to secretly read his diary."
A flicker of sunlight reflected in Xin Tingting's blue eyes.
"In the diary, I saw that Grandpa wrote about several companions... and there was the name of a woman as well."
Ye Juan could sense the air around them shift slightly, as if Xin Tingting's words had stirred something long buried in the past.
"But I couldn't read any further," she said with a sigh. "Grandpa had cast some kind of spell over it. I couldn't open the pages beyond that point, as if he didn't want anyone to uncover those secrets not even me."
Xin Tingting fell silent, and so did everyone else walking with them. The desert around them became still, with only the sound of the wind whispering through the sands.
Ye Juan squinted at Xin Tingting thoughtfully. Her story was full of mysteries. Who exactly was her grandfather? Why had he hidden his past so carefully? And who was that woman mentioned in the diary?
The hot wind carried grains of sand dancing into the air. The sunlight that struck Xin Tingting's golden hair made it glow with a holy brilliance. The path ahead still stretched far, and the secrets behind it seemed just as deep.
Xin Tingting smiled softly, her blue eyes radiating warmth. She looked down at the infant in her arms. The tiny body was wrapped in soft cotton cloth, skin as white as pure jade. His round little face was peacefully asleep, innocent and fragile.
She lifted her slender hand gently to shield the infant's face from the harsh sunlight. Her fingertips moved softly, as if trying to cradle the sun and make it gentler.
A soft breeze passed by, bringing with it a sense of serenity that surrounded her. Even in the vast desert, the child in Xin Tingting's arms seemed to be her entire warm, tender world.
She gazed at the baby with loving eyes. She never once regretted the decision she made to sacrifice her four-pointed golden wings, a part of herself, to cleanse the poison that had consumed the infant's body.
Those wings had once symbolized her power and divine status. They were a gift from the heavens, granting her boundless restorative abilities. But when faced with the choice between her immense power and the fragile life of the child, she didn't hesitate for a moment.
Because to her... nothing was more valuable than seeing him continue to breathe.
The evening sunlight cast its rays across her golden hair, a soft radiance glowing upon her fair face. She raised her hand to block the light from the child's face, then gently brushed aside his fine hair with her fingers.
'As long as you live, I will never believe that my sacrifice was in vain.'
She spoke in her heart with a gentle smile. She couldn't foresee what lay ahead, but just knowing that the baby still breathed that was enough for her.
The sunlight shone down upon the vast desert. The yellow-orange sand glistened under the intense rays. The hot wind blew once again, lifting grains of sand into the air before they vanished into emptiness.
The children continued to walk forward, each step leaving a footprint that sank into the sand only to be quickly erased by the wind, leaving almost no trace of the journey behind.
Liang Yi, the girl walking beside Xin Tingting, had long black hair with fiery red streaks at the tips. Her large pinkish eyes shimmered in the afternoon sun, reflecting a profound brilliance.
She glanced at Xin Tingting for a moment before speaking seriously.
"I believe your Grandpa hides a mysterious past. He must be keeping something secret from you."