Lao Tzu is Ji Gong

After the old patriarch's visit, Wen Chong never returned. It wasn't until one day when Wen Chong returned home that Wen Xiang realized that the old patriarch had indeed taken Wen Chong to do that experiment. Moreover, Wen Xiang discovered that many things had changed since Wen Chong's return, and were developing in a direction that shouldn't have been. Wen Xiang began to feel a little panicked.

Because of this, Wenxiang decided to find out what was going on. Deep down, he had serious doubts. He didn't know if he had gone mad, or if everyone else had, everyone was enjoying themselves, completely oblivious to the fact that everything around them had changed. Wenxiang fell into deep thought. He suddenly felt lost, completely clueless about the path ahead, unsure of what to do next.

Later, after a long period of observation and secret data collection, Wenxiang realized that he was living in a deception. Wenxiang's feelings towards the Wen family grew increasingly uneasy, with an inexplicable sense of unease. Wenxiang panicked, so he took Wenchong out time and time again, taking him to places that had left a deep impression on him, trying to awaken another, perhaps even unknown, soul hidden deep within Wenchong's heart. But as time passed, Wenxiang took a good rest, ostensibly to practice his martial arts in seclusion, but in reality, he sealed himself away, hiding in a cave to carefully review the entire affair from beginning to end.

In the end, perseverance paid off. Wenxiang did indeed discover a small and seemingly insignificant clue, which was precisely why it was overlooked or ignored by everyone. That was, apart from the old patriarch, no one knew what role Wen Chong had played in that catastrophe.

Before the catastrophe began, Wen Chong was summoned by the old patriarch for a private meeting. Even the patriarch's most trusted confidant was not allowed to stand within a mile of their conversation. Furthermore, their meeting was conducted under a massive energy shield to ensure that no one could know the content of their conversation. Despite this protection, their conversation lasted a very long time, from dawn until midnight, before they emerged from the energy shield. Although their expressions remained intimate, a subtle and unmistakable solemnity inevitably lingered beneath the surface.

That night, after returning home, Wen Chong went straight back to his quarters. He didn't see anyone except his trusted confidants, and even when they did see him, he only nodded and said nothing. The next day, Wen Chong disappeared, as if he had never returned at all. If it weren't for his confidants saying they had seen him briefly, it would have seemed as if Wen Chong had truly vanished.

Less than a month after Wen Chong left, the Wen family was struck by disaster. Throughout the entire battle, Wen Chong never appeared, and no one heard of his whereabouts; he truly vanished into thin air. The patriarch, needless to say, remained completely silent. When Wen Chong finally returned home, he didn't go back to his residence but was directly taken away by the patriarch to participate in the experiment.

Having figured all this out, Wenxiang suddenly felt a sense of clarity. He felt as if he knew something, and he had a vague feeling that Wenchong or the old patriarch had been replaced. Although this sounded unbelievable, as the old patriarch's most beloved son, Wenxiang knew that his feeling couldn't have come from nowhere.

Chapter 1215 Deception

Less than a month after Wen Chong left, the Wen family was struck by disaster. Throughout the entire battle, Wen Chong never appeared, and no one heard of his whereabouts; he truly vanished into thin air. The patriarch, needless to say, remained completely silent. When Wen Chong finally returned home, he didn't go back to his residence but was directly taken away by the patriarch to participate in the experiment.

Having figured all this out, Wenxiang suddenly felt a sense of clarity. He felt as if he knew something, and he had a vague feeling that Wenchong or the old patriarch had been replaced. Although this sounded unbelievable, as the old patriarch's most beloved son, Wenxiang knew that his feeling couldn't have come from nowhere.

Thinking it over, Wenxiang seemed to have figured something out; he gradually understood the crux of the problem. But years of experience told Wenxiang that he couldn't act rashly. Otherwise, if he were exposed, being eliminated himself would be the least of his worries; it would implicate Wenchong and the rest of his family. So Wenxiang remained patient, secretly accumulating his capital and power, and using many pretexts to eliminate any potential informants around him.

Several years passed after all this preparations were completed. Wen Chong seemed to have become familiar with his new body, or perhaps he simply hadn't considered his previous, other thoughts. In any case, Wen Chong safely passed through the safe period mentioned by the old patriarch. Although the plan had some flaws and caused some casualties, it was generally a very successful project and gained widespread recognition among people in the martial arts world. The Wen family also took the opportunity to win over a large number of allies.

As the days passed, Wenxiang's heart grew increasingly restless, unsure of the reasons or the feelings he was experiencing. Wenxiang had a feeling that something was bound to happen eventually. Furthermore, he believed that if this matter escalated, its consequences would be significant, and its impact undeniable. Therefore, Wenxiang decided to accelerate his efforts and expedite the implementation of his entire plan. The final result was that, not long ago, Wenxiang decided to betray the Wen family and take Wenchong to the Dark Forest.

But what he hadn't anticipated was encountering the hermit, nor had he foreseen Vice Dean Wang Lin of Tianwu Academy suddenly appearing behind him. This gave Wenxiang a glimpse into numerous possibilities, but he dared not speak them aloud, much less unveil the truth. Life and death hung in the balance; one wrong step could jeopardize the rest of his plan. If it were just him alone, Wenxiang wouldn't care, but the problem was that the whole affair would ultimately involve far more than just Wenxiang, nor could it be resolved by two or three people. This matter would eventually escalate into a far-reaching, multifaceted mass incident, so Wenxiang dared not gamble.

"So, my decision to take you away from the Wen family wasn't a rash one. I sacrificed a lot for this, consulted many people, and witnessed countless things. After making the final decision, I considered countless possibilities. You might sever our father-son relationship, you might ignore my advice and return to the Wen family, you might even have thoughts of killing me, and so on. I thought about so many things. But I'm also uncertain about so many things. I'm really scared, I'm really scared, you know, Wen Chong. Sometimes I really want to just give up, but I'm not willing to." As he spoke, Wen Xiang looked up at Wen Chong, who stood opposite him, completely stunned, his eyes filled with reluctance and inner turmoil.

“I’m truly unwilling to let you lose your original self like this. I’m truly unwilling to let this matter pass like this. I’m truly unwilling to let my own son become a victim of political struggle in the end. I’m truly unwilling. But I’m also very afraid. Afraid of losing you. Afraid that this whole thing will turn out to be just an illusion. Afraid that I will end up hurting you. Afraid that I will end up putting you in a position of injustice and cruelty.” As Wenxiang spoke, his hands began to tremble uncontrollably, his eyes lost their light, and tears streamed down his face.

"But in the end you still brought me out, you still gave up all those thoughts you had, you still decided to let me wade into this mess myself, you still..." Wen Chong finally came to his senses and began to continue speaking after hearing Wen Xiang's words. However, as Wen Chong spoke, he took a deep breath and calmed himself down before continuing.

"In the end, you still decided to let me bear all of this myself, just for your somewhat unrealistic illusion? So you decided to leave me here to play with you, to go crazy with you, even if it turns out you're wrong! You're a complete madman! You're willing to do anything, aren't you!" Wen Chong couldn't suppress his anger and resentment as he spoke. He really didn't know that his father, his beloved father, would drag him into this mess just to prove his own far-fetched theories.

Wen Chong didn't resent Wen Xiang's words, nor did he care whether they were right or wrong. Wen Chong felt that the truth was unimportant. What he cared about was very simple: he just wanted to know that his father hadn't deceived him, hadn't hidden anything from him, and hadn't fabricated these unheard-of lies.

Wen Chong even felt that even if Wen Xiang himself told him, "I'm going to betray the Wen family, I want you to walk this path with me," Wen Chong would follow him without hesitation. Even if he ended up disgraced, even if he received the Wen family's harshest punishment, even if he was despised by everyone and infamous for a thousand years, Wen Chong felt he would do anything. But Wen Xiang chose to deceive him; at least in Wen Chong's eyes, Wen Xiang was indeed betraying his trust in him.

Weiwei paused for a moment, sensing that the black-robed woman's aura hadn't weakened, before adding a final sentence. "Don't worry, Senior Sister, I definitely won't be a burden to you or Xiu Chen. I'll take good care of myself. So, Senior Sister, you must take good care of yourself too. Listen to me, I'll go call the Dean for you. Please wait a moment and don't overthink things, okay?"

"Weiwei, I'm sorry," the woman in black robes said suddenly after Weiwei finished speaking.

"Huh?" Weiwei was a little confused; she didn't know what the woman in the black robe was talking about.

"Thud!" A sharp dagger pierced Weiwei's back. Weiwei's eyes widened as she stared intently at her senior sister in front of her.

"Weiwei, I'm sorry."

Weiwei recalled what had happened during the period of unconsciousness the woman in black had described, but suddenly felt a little dazed. He didn't know whether he should tell his senior sister, who looked worried, what she was saying. She was conflicted, and Weiwei was suddenly indecisive. He just stared blankly at his senior sister. Although he knew that what he had just experienced was fake, an illusion, Weiwei couldn't be sure that what he was experiencing now wasn't an illusion either. Weiwei looked at the woman in black before him, his mind racing with conflicting thoughts. He was truly undecided.

"Weiwei, what's wrong?" The woman in black robes panicked when she saw that Weiwei hadn't spoken for a long time. She herself felt a little unsure of what to do, what to say, or what to do to ease the current atmosphere.

"Weiwei, if you can't remember, or don't want to talk about what you just experienced, then you don't need to say it. Your senior sister is just worried about you. Those things aren't important, they're all in the past. It's good that you're alright." The woman in black robes suddenly remembered something. She guessed that perhaps her question had given Weiwei a headache or troubled her, or perhaps Weiwei's sudden exhaustion had caused her to faint.

Although the woman in black knew the chances of the last possibility occurring were extremely small, almost negligible, she dared not take the risk. After all, Weiwei possessed a rare ice-cold constitution. If something were to go wrong, it wouldn't just be a matter of who was responsible; it would be a responsibility that no one could bear.

Secondly, Weiwei was taken away from Li Xiuchen by the woman in black robes years ago. The woman in black robes vowed to guarantee Weiwei's safety and ensure nothing happened to her. Now, if anything were to happen to Weiwei in this dark forest, the woman in black robes would create an enemy for Tianwu Academy. Although Li Xiuchen isn't a big shot at Tianwu Academy now, and they don't take him seriously...

However, Tianwu Academy is ultimately still an academy, and he couldn't simply kill Li Xiuchen outright. Otherwise, if some malicious individuals found out, it would inevitably give others ammunition for criticism and cause significant damage to the academy's reputation. Besides, nothing stays hidden forever. Although the leadership of Tianwu Academy had taken excellent measures to protect Weiwei's identity, no one dared to take the risk.

Even if Weiwei's Xuanbing physique is affected, ultimately, no matter how many times it's said, the Xuanbing physique is still the Xuanbing physique, and Weiwei is still Weiwei—that's an unchanging fact. Moreover, the martial world is vast; who can guarantee that no one in this world can cure the Xuanbing physique, or that no one can utilize this flawed Xuanbing physique? There are far too many uncertainties, and no one dares to take the risk.

Therefore, after careful consideration, the woman in black robes decided that as long as Weiwei's safety could be ensured, what Weiwei had gone through was not important, because no matter what, there would definitely be an answer in the end, it was just a matter of time. The woman in black robes was not worried about those things, after all, she was Weiwei's senior sister, and also the closest person to Weiwei in Tianwu Academy.

"Senior sister..." Weiwei looked at the familiar face in front of her, who was worried about him, and spoke.

"Senior sister, when I was unconscious just now, I don't know why, I dreamed that you were injured." Weiwei said to the woman in black robes, word by word. The woman in black robes was startled when she heard Weiwei say this. She suddenly became curious and wanted to know what Weiwei had encountered in her dream.

"In my dream, we were still running in that direction, just like we are now. But when you stopped and turned back to ask me which way to go, a sharp sword instantly pierced your chest. I wanted to help you, but you wouldn't let me. Only then did I realize that at that moment, neither of us could use our fighting spirit. Later, after the sword's power dissipated, I still couldn't help you. You told me to go back to the academy to find the dean, and I listened. But after I left for a while, bamboo arrows flew towards me, and then I fell down. Only then did I understand what you felt back then." At this point, Weiwei paused, quietly looking at the woman in black robes without continuing.

"Is that all?" After a long while, seeing that Weiwei had stopped talking and remained silent, the woman in black couldn't help but ask.

"No, it's not over yet. There's still one more dream, but..." Weiwei trailed off, deep in thought.

“But…” The woman in black robes seemed to understand something, and she frowned slightly. “But this is a bit hard to say, or rather, a bit unexpected.” The woman in black robes continued her sentence. Weiwei nodded.

“The other ending is…” Vivi finally decided to reveal the ending. “You killed me.”

Chapter 1216

"Is that all?" After a long while, seeing that Weiwei had stopped talking and remained silent, the woman in black couldn't help but ask.

"No, it's not over yet. There's still one more dream, but..." Weiwei trailed off, deep in thought.

“But…” The woman in black robes seemed to understand something, and she frowned slightly. “But this is a bit hard to say, or rather, a bit unexpected.” The woman in black robes continued her sentence. Weiwei nodded.

“The other ending is…” Vivi finally decided to reveal the ending. “You killed me.”

Upon hearing Weiwei's words, the woman in black robes didn't react for a moment. After repeating Weiwei's words in her mind, her eyes widened instantly. She stared blankly at Weiwei, her lips trembling as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately no words came out.

She lowered her head absently, staring silently at the ground before her without uttering a word. Seeing her senior sister seemed lost in thought, Weiwei also remained silent, simply watching her. In that instant, an endless silence filled the space between them, so quiet that the faint rustling sounds around them could be clearly heard.

"Weiwei, there's something I think you need to know." Time seemed to stretch on for centuries before the dazed woman in black finally came to her senses. However, she didn't look up at Weiwei, but spoke in a low voice, as if she were talking to herself.

“Actually, there’s a plan within our Tianwu Academy.” The woman in black robes glanced at Weiwei before lowering her head again. “Very few people know about this, and the reason I know about it isn’t because I belong to any particular circle, but because I was the one being experimented on.”

At this point, the woman in black seemed to be in pain, and also reluctant to look back. She held her forehead and slowly lowered her body, burying her head even deeper. Although Weiwei was somewhat surprised to hear the woman in black say this, she didn't open her mouth to ask, but simply watched her senior sister quietly. She knew that if the woman in black wanted to tell her something, she would. But now, the woman in black needed time, she needed time to consider, she needed time to reflect, she needed time to clear her thoughts, and most importantly, she needed time to calm her mind.

"Many years ago, Tianwu Academy made a deal with the Wen family. The two of them spread the word in the martial arts world that they were going to carry out a project called Memory Reassembly. You might ask, since Tianwu Academy and the Wen family spread the word, why are so few people aware of it? It's simple, because only the heads of various sects and powerful families, those who hold absolute power, knew about it." The woman in black robes thought quietly for a long time before she released her hands from her forehead and calmly told Li Wei about it.

"Later, everyone involved in this incident had their memories refreshed. All their previous memories were erased by a powerful force, and all their relatives were secretly executed. Because in their new memories, they were all orphans, and their parents and relatives all died in missions or some kind of random disasters."

"Finally, when the entire plan was executed perfectly, all the leaders who participated in the experiment were very satisfied, because in their view, they now had a brand new crucible, a brand new fighting machine, and a brand new way to deal with hostile forces or individuals who posed a great threat to them but whom they were reluctant to eliminate directly. After a long period of time, all those who were executed lived stably in their new memories."

"Back then, I was one of those sent by Tianwu Academy to participate in this experiment. I was an orphan, so I didn't have the same troubles as them, or rather, I was just paving the way, my fate in the hands of fate. Fortunately, the experiment was successful, at least on the surface. But as you see it now, the plan failed. Or rather, it failed in my case, because I learned a lot of things and remembered a lot of things." At this point, the woman in black robes took a deep breath to calm herself down before continuing.

"After I discovered this, I thought about asking the dean and the vice-dean. But what made me decide was that the night before I was to tell them, I saw them in my fragmented memories. In that memory, I discovered... I discovered..." The woman in the black robe still couldn't control her emotions. As if she had remembered something sad, tears welled up and streamed down her face.

“In my memory, I once begged them to find my biological parents. After pleading for a long time, they finally agreed. But a long, long time passed, so long that I grew from a naive child into an adult, before they told me that my parents had been found. That night, I was supposed to see my parents, but I was suddenly told that they were missing. I was really panicked that night. I hated them for abandoning me, and I hated many, many things, but that night I was really panicked. I really didn't want to lose them again, so I went to the director's room.”

"It turned out that if I hadn't gone to the dean's room that night, the plan would have been successfully implemented on me without any flaws. But in the end, I still went. It wasn't until that night that I realized it was all a lie, a lie bigger than the sky." The woman in the black robe became increasingly agitated as she spoke. Although she tried her best to control herself, the actual result was minimal, and she ultimately failed to maintain control.

"That night I went to the dean's room, and just as I was about to push open the door to ask him what had happened, I suddenly heard his voice." The woman in the black robe fell into deep, painful memories.

"Tian Meng, haven't I treated your daughter well? Over the years, I've raised her as my own daughter, and I've done my utmost for you two, don't you think?" The dean's voice was calm and steady, simply stating a fact.

"Now, my Tianwu Academy is going to make a big deal with the Wen family, but there are conditions. The condition is that I must send someone to the Wen family to work with them and cooperate with their plan, a plan called memory reconstruction. If I don't send someone, this deal cannot continue. I have raised your daughter for so many years, don't you think he should make some contributions? You agree, right?"

"But, Dean, my daughter has done so much for the academy, and you said we could see her after she turns twenty. Dean, my husband and I haven't seen Miaomiao for twenty years. Dean, please make an exception and let us see her." A man and a woman were kneeling before the dean. The man, whom the dean called Tian Meng, was pleading with him.

"Tian Meng! Are you ungrateful?! I've already said your daughter needs to make some contributions to the academy! We've raised her for twenty years! I've raised you two good-for-nothings for decades too, what more do you want? Are you never going to stop?!" The dean glared at Tian Meng with disdain and shouted at him.

"Dean! I, Tian Meng, have dedicated so many years to the academy, and I can't even see my own daughter?! Dean! Aren't you going too far?! That's my daughter! My daughter! She's not yours, and she's certainly not a puppet of your damn Tianwu Academy! She's my daughter!" Tian Meng's voice gradually rose, and he seemed extremely agitated. Without realizing it, Tian Meng stood up, his face red and his neck thick, arguing with the dean in front of him.

"Tian Meng, how dare you!" The dean's gaze gradually turned cold as Tian Meng stood up. He waited quietly for Tian Meng to finish speaking before he reprimanded him. The woman squatting to the side saw the dean's expression growing colder and hurriedly tugged at her husband Tian Meng's sleeve, trying to persuade him. But whether Tian Meng was deliberately ignoring her or was too angry to notice, he continued speaking to the dean in front of him.

"Dean, I'll call you Dean one more time. Do you have any conscience? Don't you know how much I, Tian Meng, have sacrificed for this damn academy? When you were just a worthless instructor, I was already a high-ranking member of this Tianwu Academy! Before, you called me Brother Tian all the time. What happened now? It's because I gave up my position, my family, and my daughter—my daughter who was only a few days old—to protect this damn Tianwu Academy!" Tian Meng became increasingly agitated.

"I gave up everything for this academy, and now you come here and tell me I can't even see my own daughter. Are you even human? Are you even human?" Tian Meng glared at the dean and roared at him.

"When I came back, you said that to protect my daughter, we weren't allowed to recognize each other. Fine, I listened. I refused to see them, and I took my brothers and hid in the deep mountains. All these years, you haven't given us a single bit of help. Do you really think everyone in this world is a fool? Don't they know how you got your position as dean? You're too naive. Who the hell do you think you are?!"

"You still want to use my daughter as a bargaining chip? Do you really think I'm a fool? Do you really think I don't know what you're up to? Do you really think I don't know how my brothers, who sacrificed everything for Tianwu Academy, died? Ask yourself with your own conscience, are you truly without remorse? Do you really think you've covered your tracks perfectly?" Tears streamed down Tian Meng's face without her realizing it.

“They didn’t die at the hands of the enemy, they didn’t ask the academy to treat them as heroes, many of them didn’t even think they would come back alive, but in the end, in the end! In the end, they died at the hands of you, you beast! You are so cruel, you are so cruel! Those people were all your senior brothers, those people were all your senior brothers!” Tian Meng raised his finger and jabbed the dean’s chest hard.

"Tian Meng, you've forgotten something. With your current cultivation level, killing you would be as easy as crushing an ant. How dare you speak to me like that? Who gave you the audacity?" The dean spoke calmly and slowly to Tian Meng, without any intention of refuting or interfering. He simply watched Tian Meng finish speaking and then calmly answered him.

"Tian Meng, do you know what the biggest failure of your life is?" The dean looked at Tian Meng and asked him slowly and deliberately, "Do you know what the most pitiful thing about your life is?"

"Ha, let me tell you. I, Tian Meng, disdain to know these things. I, Tian Meng, have a clear conscience about everything I have done in my life. I dare to say that, so let me ask you, do you dare? Aren't you afraid of going against your conscience?"

Hearing Tian Meng's words, the dean's eyes narrowed, a cold glint in them. He stared intently at the composed Tian Meng before continuing after a long silence.

"Tian Meng, I respect you as a man in this life. However, the transaction must continue, the experiment must begin, and your daughter will never see him again. She will only ever think of herself as a bastard, abandoned and unloved. Tian Meng, are you happy to hear this?" The dean looked into Tian Meng's eyes and spoke slowly. Tian Meng couldn't speak because the dean had already plunged his hand into Tian Meng's abdomen, while his other hand gripped the woman's neck from a distance.

Goodbye, Tian Meng.

Chapter 1217 Change

Hearing Tian Meng's words, the dean's eyes narrowed, a cold glint in them. He stared intently at the composed Tian Meng before continuing after a long silence.

"Tian Meng, I respect you as a man in this life. However, the transaction must continue, the experiment must begin, and your daughter will never see him again. She will only ever think of herself as a bastard, abandoned and unloved. Tian Meng, are you happy to hear this?" The dean looked into Tian Meng's eyes and spoke slowly. Tian Meng couldn't speak because the dean had already plunged his hand into Tian Meng's abdomen, while his other hand gripped the woman's neck from a distance.

Goodbye, Tian Meng.

As the dean uttered those words, the hand inserted into Tian Meng's abdomen clenched down violently. Although the condition inside Tian Meng's abdomen couldn't be seen, the large mouthful of blood he vomited was enough to confirm that Tian Meng's internal organs had been crushed to pieces. At the same time, the other hand clenched tightly in the air, causing the woman's neck to droop unnaturally. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and the blood was still slowly flowing. However, the woman stopped breathing, showing no sign of life whatsoever. Her eyes were filled with tears, glistening with tears, and two clear tears slowly slid down her thin face.

The woman in black robes outside the dean's room was extremely agitated, but she quickly covered her mouth with her hands, letting the torrent of tears flow freely down her face. She dared not make a sound, afraid that she would expose her whereabouts, afraid that she would be silenced by the dean in his rage, and afraid that a single oversight would cause her to lose the chance to understand her parents or avenge them.

The woman in black robes dared not gamble. She knew perfectly well that she had no chance of winning at this point, and going out rashly would only add another corpse to the floor of the dean's room. She had lived in Tianwu Academy for twenty years, and she knew exactly how to survive peacefully in this academy. She understood the ways of development within this academy, and she was also aware of some of the darker aspects of Tianwu Academy.

But only today did he realize, and only today did she truly understand. It turned out that this Heavenly Martial Academy, this prestigious academy on this continent, a sacred place in the hearts of many cultivators, was far darker than she had seen, far more so than she could have imagined. The woman in black robes had no time to think further. Suppressing her grief, she slowly retreated, slowly leaving this place that had caused her such heartbreak.

When she left, she discovered that the usually heavily guarded courtyard of the dean was completely deserted today. She hadn't sensed any energy fluctuations, nor the presence or activity of anyone along the way. The woman in black robes shook her head bitterly, as if suddenly realizing something. She had already cursed herself countless times in her mind for being a fool.

Before this, she had been intimately close to her enemy, even considering the headmaster her own father. She enjoyed his care and warmth. But when all of this was shattered, reality proved to be so cruel. Her body trembled uncontrollably. She was terrified, he was afraid, and he felt a profound sense of helplessness.

When he returned to his residence, the woman in black robes collapsed uncontrollably onto her bed. Trembling, she no longer had the strength to lift her hand to wipe the tears streaming down her face. She was too weak to move; she was consumed by deep despair. Her eyes had never been so vacant; her pupils were unfocused, and her lips twitched intermittently. She was utterly powerless. She dared not relive the scene that had just unfolded, dared not recall it.

Time passed by, minute by minute, and darkness gradually fell. She drifted off to sleep, feeling utterly exhausted, too tired to move. Thankfully, the night passed peacefully. There were no disturbances, no disturbances, no noise. The crescent moon hung low, dark clouds drifted by, and even the usually bustling chirping of insects was silent. The surrounding silence was eerie, chilling. When dawn broke, a new day began, and everything returned to zero.

The woman in black robes, who had slept soundly through the night, seemed like a completely different person. Her once cheerful demeanor had turned cold and silent. The smile that used to grace her lips and eyes was now as cold as ice, sending chills down one's spine. Her once outgoing personality had become as cold as if she had been struck by iron. The woman in black robes used to make everyone feel comfortable and happy, giving those around her a feeling of spring breezes. But now, she made those around her feel as if they had fallen into an ice cave, surrounded by glaciers, making it impossible for them to stay.

Everyone knew the woman in black had changed, but they didn't know why. Even her closest confidantes were clueless about what she had gone through. Everyone was bewildered and confused, yet the woman in black hadn't uttered a single word or shown a smile to anyone. Everyone thought she had gone mad.