Original God Zhongli BG Xiao Qinglong traveled through time

Dusk, like blood, stained the desolate village at the foot of Tianheng Mountain. Broken walls and ruins were bathed in the dim light, and the wind whistled through the empty window frames, a low, sobbing sound. Paimeng's voice, tinged with resignation, was particularly clear amid the silent ruins: "It seems Yunjin was right. Hello, old man, we'd like to get some information!"

The old man called Mingjun had a hunched back and showed no reaction to the sounds around him, like a stone sculpture frozen in time.

"What should I do, Ying? He seems not to have heard me..." Paimon flew back to the traveler with a wrinkled face.

Yun Jin stepped forward, her aquamarine sleeves tracing a gentle arc in the twilight. Her voice was clear and polite, "Excuse me, Elder, for interrupting you. We are passing through here and would like to inquire about the Secret Stone."

The only response she got was still deathly silence.

Paimon sighed: "Do you mean for us to look for clues in the village ourselves? There's no other way, it seems we have to do it ourselves. Ying, Shenhe, Yunjin, let's look for it together!"

Shen He, who had been standing quietly by, suddenly spoke. Her voice was like the sound of an icy spring hitting stone, breaking the stagnant air. "Sorry. You guys go ahead and look for him first." Her icy blue eyes fixed on the hunched "stone sculpture." "I want to talk to him." She took a step forward and asked softly, her tone carrying a strange, tentative tone of trying to awaken something: "Is it okay? Uncle Mingjun."

The "stone sculpture" trembled violently, then slowly and with great difficulty raised its head. Its cloudy eyes struggled to focus, finally capturing Shen He's snow-white hair and his cool, otherworldly figure. "You are...!" His voice was hoarse, like sandpaper being rubbed against it.

"Shen He."

"Ahe... are you still alive? Are those rumors true? You've been..." Mingjun's words were broken and rapid, filled with incredible shock and some deep-buried guilt.

"Sorry, everyone." He snapped back to his senses and turned to Yun Jin and Ying, his voice still dry. "I'm not sure how to find the secret stone, but there should be some records in the village... This place is deserted and not many people come here, so you can look around."

"Huh? Does Shen He know this old man?" Paimeng opened his eyes wide in surprise.

Shen He did not answer, but just looked at Ming Jun in silence. The silence itself was like a deep gap.

Yun Jin pulled Paimeng at the right moment and said, "Thank you, old man. We'll go look for her first." She glanced sharply at Mingjun's complicated yet harmless look when he looked at Shen He, and whispered, "Uncle Mingjun has no ill will towards Shen He. Miss Shen He will be safe. Don't worry."

"Okay," Paimon nodded, "Then let's go look in the village first."

The search didn't last long. Inside a half-collapsed house, a dusty, tattered manuscript revealed a cruel truth. Yun Jin picked up a fragile page, her fingertips trembling slightly: "This is..."

"Perhaps this is the real "Goddess Splits the View." Ying said softly, her eyes solemn.

Yun Jin read each word, her face gradually paling. "Shen He... is actually the goddess in the opera?" Her mind flashed back to Shen He's transcendent temperament and unique understanding of opera, and all the clues connected instantly. "No wonder I always have a strange feeling when chatting with her... I should have noticed it sooner." Her voice dropped. "And judging by this record, the goddess in the opera is actually the couple's daughter. She didn't volunteer, but was pushed into the monster by her own father... himself."

A long silence fell over the three of them, the only sound being the wind whistling through the ruins.

"...The truth is so sad." Yun Jin finally spoke again, his voice filled with complex emotions. "No wonder she said the goddess wasn't as brave as portrayed in the play, because she was forced to face such a dangerous situation. It seems that my father's work, 'The Goddess Splits the View', may need some revisions..."

She continued flipping through the pages, piecing together a more complete picture of the tragedy. "It seems that Shen He's father didn't summon a god with his secret technique, but instead summoned a monster transformed from the remains of a demon god. His obsession with his deceased wife led to the tragedy, and the villagers, unaware of the truth, moved elsewhere... No wonder this place is abandoned. I just wonder what the relationship is between Mingjun, who we just met, and Shen He's family..."

"That's it!" Paimeng suddenly pointed to another piece of tattered leather with a vague route map engraved on it. "In other words, if we go to the center of the lake in the southern part of Tianheng Mountain at dusk, we can find the Secret Hua Stone. Okay, let's go back and tell Shen He this news!"

As they returned to the village entrance, they overheard Mingjun's old, hoarse voice: "...One year when I returned, I also heard the story of the 'White-Haired Fairy' from a passing merchant, but I never imagined it was you. Your father and I were close friends. I had the opportunity to stop him from holding the ceremony, but out of soft-heartedness, I let it go, ultimately leading to a disastrous mistake. Every year, I bring back flowers, and I always feel like I owe you an apology."

Shen He's voice remained calm, but beneath that calmness, an indescribable undercurrent surged: "Why apologize? Even if you had stopped him at the time, he would definitely find a way through other means. For the sake of his lover, he can do anything."

"So... do you still hate him?"

"I don't know." Shen He's answer was filled with an inhuman detachment. "I was originally a lonely star, a calamity demon. My master gave me a red string to bind my soul, which helped me suppress my violent temper and made me as emotionally indifferent as an immortal. Now when I think of the past, it's better to say I don't feel anything rather than hate it."

"You've really worked hard over the years..." Mingjun sighed as heavy as a mountain.

"Shenhe—we are back!" Paimon's shout broke the heavy atmosphere.

Mingjun seemed to have woken up from a long dream and stood up tremblingly: "Then I'll say goodbye first. Knowing that you are okay makes me feel better." He leaned on a cane and his figure slowly disappeared into the twilight.

"Look, Shen He," Paimon showed the clue he had found impatiently, "It records the whereabouts of the Secret Stone. You can find it by going to the center of the lake over there!"

"Really?" Shen He turned around, his expression returning to his usual coldness. "Then let's rush over now."

"...Ms. Shen He, wait a moment." Yun Jin suddenly spoke, stopping her. She clutched the tattered pages of her notes tightly in her hands, her fingertips turning slightly white from the pressure. "I want to discuss something with you."