The Vast Memory

Late at night.

Gu Yan sat on his bed, staring at the familiar memory bubble before him.

This time, the affection level had directly risen to 96%, and the size of the memory bubble far exceeded any previous ones.

"......"

As the affection level increased, Leng Qingqiu had also started acting a little strange.

It seemed... her emotions had become richer.

What did this mean?

By now, he was certain—the memories inside the bubble were undoubtedly connected to Leng Qingqiu.

So, would the new memories... contain the answers he was searching for?

After a moment of silence, Gu Yan reached out and touched the memory bubble.

In an instant—

A familiar dizziness washed over him...

......

.....

Consciousness returned, and the sound of heated arguments echoed in his ears.

"Trash, trash~~ Someone like you only deserves to eat our leftovers, got it?"

"Yeah, as a male loser, you should be grateful we even let you have our scraps!"

?

Listening to the voices around him,

Gu Yan slowly opened his eyes.

He found himself sitting on a cafeteria bench, with a plate of thoroughly mixed and mashed food in front of him.

Not only that—

Several girls were pointing and laughing at him, their faces twisted in mocking sneers.

The one leading them... was none other than Leng Qingqiu!

Gu Yan stared at her, frozen in place as he took in her amused smirk and the condescending way she looked down at him.

Huh?

What kind of scenario was this now?

Seemingly irritated by his lack of reaction, Leng Qingqiu’s expression darkened. She grabbed a spoon and aggressively stirred the food in front of him, her voice icy. "What, do I need to feed you myself?"

Perhaps due to the script of this memory,

Gu Yan, though tempted to say "That wouldn’t be so bad,"

instead let out a frightened whimper: "S-sorry! I’ll eat it right away!"

Huh? Not bad, actually. The taste was... decent.

??

The laughter of the other girls rang in his ears.

But—maybe it was just his imagination—

Leng Qingqiu’s expression seemed to soften slightly.

Like a slideshow glitching, the surroundings shifted.

Time had apparently skipped to evening.

During this transition,

Gu Yan pieced together the nature of this world.

Turns out, this was a world where women ruled and men were subordinate!

In a school equipment room.

Leng Qingqiu had called Gu Yan there, and before he could process why—

The next moment—

Thud!

She pulled him into a tight embrace, whispering apologetically, "Gu Yan, I’m sorry for how I treated you earlier. But... this world is just unfair like that."

"I promise, I’ll fight to make this a world where men and women are truly equal!"

Ah, so that’s the plot here...

Gu Yan finally understood, and as he did,

the scene around him began to shift again.

This time, it seemed to be an open plain.

Gu Yan stood amidst a crowd, a sword in hand.

New memories flooded his mind.

This world was a supernatural one.

His identity? A demon slayer.

And Leng Qingqiu’s? A vengeful ghost.

Surrounding him, and standing before him,

were men and women in strange attire, wielding all manner of weapons—practitioners of the occult arts.

A man holding an umbrella stepped forward, his voice sharp with accusation. "Gu Yan! Humans and ghosts were never meant to love each other! If you stop now, there’s still time to turn back!"

"Gu Yan! Don’t throw everything away for this!"

"Leng Qingqiu is a crimson ghost! If she lives, the world will fall to ruin!"

"For the sake of one ghost, are you really willing to fight all of us?!"

"If the ghost isn’t eradicated, chaos will reign! Can you bear that responsibility?!"

"Gu Yan! You’ll become humanity’s greatest sinner!"

The accusations came one after another.

But Gu Yan only took a deep breath.

He raised his sword horizontally, his gaze unwavering as he spoke, each word deliberate. "Qingqiu has never harmed anyone. Before her identity was exposed, she even helped every single one of you here..."

"Enough talk."

Hum!

A surge of formidable energy erupted from Gu Yan as he glared at the crowd. "Come at me together."

Amidst the clashing of blades, flashes of spells, and brutal combat—

The scene shifted once more.

By the time Gu Yan regained his bearings,

the ground around him was littered with corpses.

And in his arms,

lay a pale-faced woman draped in crimson robes.

It was... Leng Qingqiu...

Gu Yan felt an overwhelming grief, tears streaming uncontrollably down his face.

Because he realized—

Leng Qingqiu’s life force was fading, fragile as a flickering candle flame.

"Gu... Yan..."

"It’s not you or me who’s wrong..."

With her last ounce of strength, she raised a trembling hand to his cheek.

Her expression was one of sorrow as she whispered,

"...It’s this wretched world."

Crack!

The vision shattered.

Once again, the scene began to change.

Each transition brought a new world, a new identity—for both Gu Yan and Leng Qingqiu.

The scenes had shifted dozens... or perhaps scores... maybe even close to a hundred times by now.

Gu Yan hadn’t bothered to keep count.

He was already lost in them.

Sometimes, he was a handsome scholar, and Leng Qingqiu the girl next door. Childhood sweethearts, he buried himself in books for the imperial exams while she waited quietly by his side.

On his way to the examinations, misfortune struck, and Leng Qingqiu spent the rest of her life waiting in loneliness.

Other times, Gu Yan was a valiant general of ancient times, and Leng Qingqiu the maidservant he had rescued.

Their love ran deep, but war tore them apart—Gu Yan fell in battle, and on the day the city fell, Leng Qingqiu chose to drink poison rather than live without him.

In another life, Gu Yan and Leng Qingqiu were heirs to rival martial sects, their love tangled in the grudges between their families.

Their story ended as it began—in bloodshed, their lives cut short by the very feud that kept them apart.

Then there was the time Gu Yan was a modern-day tycoon, and Leng Qingqiu a princess displaced through time.

They found love in the cracks between eras, only to be torn apart by the chaos of time itself.

In the end, Leng Qingqiu was swept back into her own era by the turbulent currents of time, leaving Gu Yan alone in the modern world with nothing but memories.

Memory after memory.

Life after life.

Truth and illusion blurred together.

Gu Yan could no longer tell the difference, no longer choose between them.

So many memories, all of them his and Leng Qingqiu’s.

Time passed.

In the stillness of the deep night,

Gu Yan’s consciousness returned.

He opened his eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Perhaps it was because he had cultivated the Path of Pure Love,

but even after absorbing so many memories at once, he remained untouched.

If anything, they were etched into his mind with painful clarity.

Unforgettable... and agonizing.

"Every one of them... a tragedy..."

Gu Yan murmured to himself.