73. The Girl from a Forgotten Past

Ling Tian's vision blurred as the mist dissipated, revealing the woman standing before him.

Bai Xue.

Her name echoed in his mind, stirring long-buried emotions. The serene moonlight illuminated her delicate features—skin as pale as frost, eyes deep like an endless winter, and lips that quivered as if trapped between joy and sorrow.

But she was no illusion.

She was real.

And she was standing right in front of him.

Xu Qing'er, sensing the shift in Ling Tian's aura, took a cautious step back. Her fingers curled slightly, prepared for anything. "Ling Tian…" she whispered.

But he didn't respond.

Instead, he took a slow step forward.

"Are you real…?" His voice was hoarse, almost as if he didn't believe what his eyes were seeing.

Bai Xue's lips parted slightly, but no words came out. Her gaze was locked onto his, shimmering with an unspoken sorrow.

"You've grown…" she finally said, her voice like a gentle snowfall—soft yet carrying the weight of time.

Ling Tian felt a sharp pang in his chest. His memories of her were fragmented, mere glimpses of a childhood long lost. But now, with her standing before him, those fragments began piecing themselves back together.

He remembered…

The little girl who used to follow him everywhere.

The one who always smiled no matter how much mischief he caused.

The one who had promised him… something.

But then…

She disappeared.

Vanished from his life like a forgotten dream.

A name that should have meant everything—completely erased from his memory.

"How…?" Ling Tian's voice was barely above a whisper.

Bai Xue trembled, as if struggling to hold herself together. "I… I don't know how much time has passed. But I remember you, Ling Tian. Even when the world tried to make me forget… I remembered."

Her words sent a chill down his spine.

Someone—or something—had tried to erase her existence. Yet, she had somehow defied that fate.

Ling Tian clenched his fists. "Who did this to you?"

Bai Xue lowered her gaze, her expression pained. "It doesn't matter anymore…"

"It matters to me." His voice turned sharp, laced with a suppressed rage.

She hesitated before whispering, "Your father."

A deafening silence followed.

Ling Tian's body stiffened, his breath hitching.

Xu Qing'er's eyes widened in shock. "Ling Tian's father…?"

Bai Xue nodded. "He sealed my memories… locked me away in a place where time could not touch me."

Ling Tian's fingers trembled. "Why?"

Bai Xue's gaze softened. "To protect me… and you."

The revelation sent a storm raging inside Ling Tian. His father—the man who had disappeared without a trace—had done this?

But why?

What was he protecting them from?

Before Ling Tian could ask further, Bai Xue suddenly staggered, clutching her chest as if in pain.

A strange mark glowed faintly at the base of her throat—a seal.

Ling Tian's expression darkened. That seal… it was still restraining her.

Without hesitation, he reached out, his azure-gold aura surging. "I'll break it."

But Bai Xue stepped back. "No!"

Ling Tian halted. "Why?"

Tears welled in her eyes. "Because if you do… you might lose me again."

His heart clenched.

Qing'er stepped forward. "There's something deeper at play here, Ling Tian. We can't rush this."

Ling Tian exhaled slowly, trying to contain the storm in his heart.

Looking at Bai Xue, he finally spoke.

"Then stay by my side. Until we find the truth… I won't let you disappear again."

Bai Xue's lips trembled, and for the first time since she appeared—she smiled.

A bittersweet smile, carrying the weight of lost time.

"Then… I will follow you, Ling Tian."

And just like that, fate had reunited them.

But the shadows of the past still loomed.

And the truth… was yet to be unraveled.

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