"To be honest, my past... you probably wouldn't be interested."
Leaning against the railing in Starskiff Haven and watching the skiffs sail slowly below, Dan Heng accepted the milk tea Wende had just bought for him and shook his head.
"Haha, as for my past, I'd rather hope you guys aren't interested."
Wende leaned next to Dan Heng. Thinking about the backstory the system had assigned him, he gave a helpless, wry smile.
If it were anyone else, they probably wouldn't dare take a single step onto the Xianzhou, would they?
His master was a follower of Abundance, and even had connections to the Emanator of Abundance who destroyed the Cangcheng...
Wende took a thoughtful sip of his milk tea, chewing on the boba inside and savoring the feeling of the chewy pearls being squeezed by his teeth before bursting.
If that old man had been more stubborn back then, he might have become an Emanator of Abundance himself, instead of... running off to a subordinate planet of the Xianzhou to live a hidden life with him...
"Somehow, I feel like your past might be even darker than mine."
Dan Heng turned and leaned over the railing, milk tea in hand. He looked at Wende, who was sipping his own tea with a nostalgic expression, and said jokingly.
"Well, maybe both of our pasts combined aren't as dark as Uncle Yang's."
Seeing the smile on Dan Heng's face, Wende also turned to lean on the railing, making a joke at Welt's expense.
"Haha... honestly, I never thought I'd set foot here again looking like this... I imagined I might be sent back to that sunless place, or that I would never see any of you again..."
Dan Heng's tone was calm as he watched the skiffs flowing below the bridge.
"People's plans and reality rarely line up. Take me, for example. I originally just wanted to come to the Xianzhou, open a small clinic, and treat patients. But in the end, I ended up in a shipwreck and got picked up by the Astral Express."
Wende shook his head.
"You're right..." Dan Heng took a melancholic sip of his milk tea.
"Uh... I say, how about we toast?"
"You think this is alcohol?"
"Anything that can wash away sorrows can be considered a drink, right?"
"Treating milk tea like wine... that's a first for me..."
Nearby, an artist who had just arrived at Starskiff Haven saw the two men raising their cups together. Inspiration struck instantly. He set up his easel on the spot and began to sketch them.
And so, the two continued their idle chat, while the artist behind them worked so furiously his brush was practically smoking.
They talked late into the night, a pile of empty milk tea cups accumulating on the ground...
In the end, a security guard from the Starskiff Haven Central Hub couldn't stand it anymore and shooed them away...
Still, Wende felt quite happy. Occasionally finding someone to talk to, to unload on each other—doesn't that mean the baggage just disappears?
"March and the others said they're staying in Changle Tian tonight. They asked if we wanted to go over."
Dan Heng put down his phone and turned to Wende.
"Nah, let's not. Knowing that General's methods, he'd never let the two of us stay idle over there," Wende said, shaking his head.
"Mmm..."
At the mention of the "General," Dan Heng's voice audibly darkened. Wende naturally noticed.
But he didn't try to comfort him. Instead, he asked the hotel proprietress to buy some Xianzhou wine, personally cooked a couple of side dishes, and dragged a reluctant Dan Heng into having a little nightcap.
However, due to their unique constitutions, they couldn't get drunk no matter how much they drank. Before he spent all the credits he'd earned at the space station, Wende decided to stop.
"Next time... let's drink a little less," Wende said with some embarrassment, placing an empty bottle on the table and looking at the pile at their feet.
"Mmm..."
Dan Heng's face was slightly flushed, but he still nodded seriously.
"Haha, even if we can't get drunk, it still affects us, huh..." Wende teased the blushing Dan Heng.
---o---
Jingliu watched Yanqing before her, who was subjugating Abominations and clearing a path for her. A look of reminiscence flashed in the crimson eyes beneath her blindfold.
"Bad Person, are you sure you want me to... fight these things... alone?"
A young Wende held an iron sword longer than he was tall, trembling as he stared at the creature before him.
It was a massive insect, much taller than him, with a hard carapace, sharp claws, and terrifying compound eyes, each feature a torment to the young Wende's mind.
"If you cannot overcome this barrier in your heart, you will never be able to protect anyone."
The Jingliu of that time had spoken coldly to the small boy.
Little Wende turned to look at her, his eyes filled with a heartbreaking sense of unfamiliarity and loss.
"But... can I really... can I really...?"
"Do not be afraid. Do you want to protect your master?"Jingliu's voice softened as she looked at the timid boy.
"..."
"Gulp..."
"But... isn't Master really strong too...?"
"Then what if one day, your master needs you to protect him? What if one day... I need you to protect me? At that time, will you have the strength to protect your master, to protect..."
...me?
Jingliu never spoke those last two words, only thinking them in her heart.
"I... I will! I'll protect Master! And I'll protect you too, you Bad Person!"
At that moment, little Wende's eyes filled with determination. The conviction in his heart briefly triumphed over his fear. He swung his sword and charged chaotically at the man-sized insect. It was clear he had courage, so much so that he completely forgot all the sword techniques Jingliu had taught him...
In the end, it was Jingliu who had to intervene, saving the little Wende who was about to be turned into bug food.
"Waaaaah! You're a bad person! Waaah! I'm going to tell Master on you!"
That night, Jingliu carried little Wende on her back up the mountain. All along the way, the boy, his clothes in tatters, wailed and threw a fit, his face a tear-streaked mess.
But she merely wore a faint smile.
Now, time has flown by... that planet has been turned to cosmic dust under the might of the Reignbow Arbiter... and that warmth...
Looking at Yanqing ahead, an unconscious smile graced her lips.
The little one who used to do nothing but cry and throw tantrums... has now grown into someone who can protect others...
It's just a pity...
"Hm? Big sister, what are you smiling about?"
Yanqing, having sheathed his sword, looked at Jingliu's serene smile with curiosity.
"Mmm... I was just thinking of a rather interesting memory."
Jingliu shook her head, her smile slowly fading, returning to her usual cold and otherworldly demeanor.
That smile was as ephemeral as a night-blooming cereus. It made Yanqing unconsciously rub his eyes, thinking he had seen a hallucination.