This place was nurtured by Ah Yin with all her heart and soul, its value immeasurable. Apart from her, no other force in the world could create such a treasure trove out of thin air.
Then he looked down at the delicate figure still curled up on the ground before him.
Blue hair cascaded down, her meticulously crafted palace dress sprawled casually on the ground, stained with many undeserved spots, just like how she had drifted through life.
However, while clothes can be cleaned, the events that have transpired cannot be erased.
"But the future is long, so everything can start anew."
Su Cheng slightly bent down and extended his arm to her.
"Let's tackle those cultivation challenges together from now on."
Ah Yin stared blankly at the outstretched hand before her, her heartstrings trembling, and the cooled blood in her veins reigniting.
For a moment, she couldn't believe it, remaining frozen in place without moving.
"What's wrong, do you have any concerns?"
"No, nothing."
Tears that had been welling up in her eyes fell to the ground. She suppressed her sobs, lifted her arm, and placed her hand into his palm.
Her delicate fingers, soft skin, and elegant curves were all felt clearly in Su Cheng's hand.
Then, he exerted some force and pulled her up from the ground.
The two walked slowly through the garden.
Walking beside Su Cheng, A Yin felt a mix of emotions.
After the emotional outburst and release, she felt mentally exhausted but physically and mentally relaxed and comfortable.
With the knot in her heart untied, the pent-up resentment, frustration, and grievances accumulated over a long time were all dispelled, leaving her feeling unprecedentedly light.
Usually, Ah Yin appeared calm and serene on the surface, but there was always a shadow of sorrow and anxiety between her brows.
Now, with her mind clear, she seemed even more beautiful than before, and even her soul power appeared more active.
Despite this, she walked with her head lowered, trying to hide her face in the shadow of her long hair.
She felt so embarrassed that she wanted to find a hole to crawl into.
Just a moment ago, the long-term suppression and agitation, coupled with the incident of examining her body, caused her emotions to surge, acting as the fuse.
Various emotions intertwined, and she ended up saying those words in a burst.
Otherwise, with her personality, she might have held it in until it killed her and still not said those things.
Now, with her emotions released, she couldn't help but regret saying too much earlier.
It was like arguing or debating with someone, where you might say something inappropriate in a moment of excitement.
Later, you would regret it, thinking if you had said "this" first and then "that," wouldn't the effect have been better?
Ah Yin was in this mindset now.
She couldn't help but wish she could turn back time or somehow modify Su Cheng's memory of the recent events.
The earlier words were like exposing her heart and soul without reservation to the other person.
Her mind was in turmoil, feeling increasingly shy and embarrassed the more she thought about it...
"Sigh, what's wrong with me, this is too disgraceful, how could I say such things."
"No, I shouldn't think this way. I did it for the future of the soul beast clan, and Su Cheng can help me."
"Besides, I always saw him as a younger brother and benefactor. As an older sister, I shouldn't be too stingy."
"He isn't heartless towards me. He didn't kill me due to a misunderstanding and even granted me freedom afterward. When he talked about 'starting over,' he probably still recognizes me as his sister and shouldn't look down on me?"
"Resolving the misunderstanding is already very lucky. Otherwise, the rift would grow deeper, and we might truly become strangers unable to reconcile one day."
"But..."
Ah Yin glanced at their still-clasped hands, looking conflicted.
After she stood up, he didn't let go but continued holding her hand as if forgetting about it, making her feel very embarrassed.
"..."
Though the warmth from his palm brought her comfort and reassurance.
Especially after enduring so long with cold eyes and loneliness, everything finally returning to normal was something she had longed for.
However, the peculiar emotions sprouting from the depths of her heart told her she couldn't continue like this...
After some hesitation, Ah Yin gently exerted force on her wrist, trying to casually withdraw her hand.
"What are you doing?" Su Cheng glanced at her and asked casually.
"Ah? Nothing."
She didn't expect him to be so blunt, with no sense of tacit understanding, making her face instantly flush, and she immediately stopped struggling, stammering, "I just remembered a new variety of tea tree I got. I wanted to show you."
"Really? That's great, let's go have a look."
Su Cheng's face lit up with surprise, and he quickly motioned for Ah Yin to lead the way.
Seeing this, Ah Yin had no choice but to reluctantly lead him by the hand towards another direction in the garden.
Walking beside her, Su Cheng silently observed the head-bowed Ah Yin.
Her long lashes cast shadows in her blue, lake-like eyes, and her pink lips outlined a gentle and serene demeanor. Her ample chest rose and fell with each step.
He wasn't a fool; he naturally understood Ah Yin's earlier actions. He merely pretended not to know.
After venting those words, Ah Yin's anxiety was genuine.
Hearing her words, Su Cheng also wasn't as calm as he appeared.
Before today, saying he liked A Yin a lot would be an exaggeration.
She was undoubtedly beautiful, but there were many beautiful people in the world, and he wouldn't like someone solely based on their appearance.
However, although it wasn't deep affection, there was certainly a considerable amount of goodwill.
Apart from Qian Renxue, Ah Yin was the first mature woman Su Cheng had close contact with in reality.
Her personality was innocent, kind, and as gentle as water. Even if she was displeased, she rarely got angry. When she did, it was light and without any intimidation.
These were qualities Su Cheng lacked.
In fact, not just him, but none of the people close to him had such traits.
Moreover, she played a significant role in his early cultivation.
Even excluding the spirit bone, her assistance in taking him to the Blue Silver Grass Forest, persuading the Blue Silver King to help him condense his spirit ring, and the initial balance and coordination of the Five Elements in his martial soul, as well as the optimization effects of the hundred-thousand-year right leg bone technique, were countless.
Besides, there was one thing Ah Yin hadn't misunderstood. Her appearance timing was crucial.
At that time, among the people Su Cheng knew in reality, apart from Qian Renxue, there was no one else he could fully trust and freely communicate with.
He had to hide his extraordinary strength and couldn't reveal the ten-thousand-year spirit bone to anyone around him.
His strength was still too weak then.
Whether it was Chen Xin, Dugu Bo, or Ning Rongrong, he could only partially trust them, selectively revealing secrets, not daring or needing to challenge the limits of human nature.
Humans are social animals, and loneliness isn't pleasant.
With Qian Renxue far away in Spirit City, Su Cheng wouldn't act like a childish brat, stirring up trouble over trivial matters.
Later, Zhu Zhuqing appeared, but they couldn't stay together for long either.
Ah Yin appeared shortly after Qian Renxue left Heaven Dou City.
Constrained by the Eternal Sword, she was harmless as a soul body. Even later, when she had a physical form, Su Cheng helped forge it, making her an excellent confidant and communication partner.
Of course, she also satisfied his need to display his growing power in front of an audience.
When Ah Yin was reborn in the Blue Silver Grass Forest with Soul Saint strength, Su Cheng's combat power had also reached the Soul Saint level, far surpassing ordinary Soul Saints.
She was still bound by the Eternal Sword, so he had nothing to fear.
In Su Cheng's early days, Ah Yin accompanied him through most of his journey, holding a unique significance.
"...We're here. It's right here."
Suddenly, an extremely cold voice interrupted his thoughts.
Ah Yin didn't know what Su Cheng was thinking.
She just felt that during this walk, his gaze, initially subtle, had gradually become almost glued to her.
The warmth from his palm seemed to burn through her arm to her heart.
Ah Yin's face was so red she felt like steam was about to come out, yet she could only pretend not to know, feeling flustered and annoyed inside.
She didn't understand what Su Cheng meant by this.
Even if her earlier words were humble, did he really not take her seriously?