Hearing the commotion, Cloud Retainer rushed out just in time to witness the scene.
The two brought little Shenhe back to the abode to let her rest properly.
After settling Shenhe down, Cloud Retainer emerged from her room.
Mu Yang stepped forward and asked, "Is this the first time something like this has happened?"
Cloud Retainer indicated there had been some warning signs before, though never to this severe extent.
Shenhe had previously been able to keep herself under control.
Mu Yang's expression darkened with concern. "As she grows older, this condition may worsen further..."
Cloud Retainer also shook her head imperceptibly. If things continued this way, it wouldn't be long before she harmed both others and herself.
Mu Yang asked Cloud Retainer, "Surely there must be some method to help?"
He searched his memories but found no occasion where he'd discussed the "Red Rope Binding Soul" technique, making it inappropriate to mention directly.
Truthfully, he still hoped another solution might exist.
Over these years of interacting with Shenhe, he'd observed something:
The little Shenhe whose emotions weren't bound could laugh and cry like any normal child.
She only lacked common sense in certain matters, but these could be considered charming quirks—endearing traits that made her lovable.
Yet once the Red Rope Binding Soul method was implemented...
Her human emotions would gradually become sealed away.
While the red ropes would restrain her baleful aura and killing intent, they would also imprison these fundamentally human feelings.
From then on, trivial matters would find it increasingly difficult to stir her heart, and things ordinary people cherished would become passing dust to her.
As her humanity faded, she would slowly transform into a beautiful sculpture devoid of human passions.
Until Lumine's appearance...
But that was still many years away.
And Lumine's arrival would only improve the situation slightly, not cure it entirely.
Unfortunately, no matter how much Mu Yang wished for an alternative, Cloud Retainer's answer remained unchanged:
"There is one method—the 'Red Rope Binding Soul' technique."
Mu Yang sighed. After all, this simulation was just a simulation—it would only follow the original course of events...
Implementing the Red Rope Binding Soul technique wasn't simple either; it would require Moon Carver's assistance as well.
The two could only wait—and they needed to consult Shenhe's opinion first.
When Cloud Retainer reentered Shenhe's room, she found it empty.
They hurriedly searched, and Mu Yang eventually found her atop a mountain peak.
He landed gently beside Shenhe, who was staring blankly at the sea of clouds.
Mu Yang rarely viewed Liyue from this angle, but he recognized the direction—toward Mt. Tianheng.
Which was also Shenhe's original home in the mortal world.
Mu Yang sat down silently, refraining from asking questions.
For years, this little girl had never spoken to anyone about what had truly happened to her.
It was as if she had cleanly severed all ties with her past.
But could emotions truly be cut off so easily?
Not even Cloud Retainer or the other adepti—perhaps not even Zhongli himself—could achieve such detachment.
Otherwise, there wouldn't be that famous lament:
"Osmanthus wine tastes the same as I remember... But where are those who share the memory?"
Little Shenhe hugged herself, burying her face between her knees.
"Master Mu Yang... please stop worrying about me. I'm so scared... I'm afraid I'll hurt all of you..."
Mu Yang patted her head. "Do you want to hear what I really think?"
Shenhe lifted her head. "Yes."
Instead of indulging her melancholy, Mu Yang teased, "With those pitiful skills of yours? You couldn't hurt me if you tried. Don't tell anyone I taught you."
Shenhe clearly hadn't expected this response and froze momentarily.
"Master, how can you say that..."
The gloomy atmosphere dissipated under Mu Yang's jest.
He then spoke gently, "Don't worry. We've already found a way to manage it. It's just..."
"Just?"
Mu Yang's expression turned solemn. "While suppressing your cursed fate... you'll gradually lose your human emotions."
(Actually, Mu Yang exaggerated slightly—the soul-binding would only numb Shenhe's feelings, not erase them entirely.)
After hearing this, little Shenhe fell deep into thought.
She gazed toward Mt. Tianheng, remaining silent for a long while.
Finally, she spoke: "Master Mu Yang... would you like to hear my story?"
Mu Yang nodded. He understood—Shenhe had made her decision.
She was ready to sever her past completely...
——————
In a small village at the foot of Mt. Tianheng lived a loving couple.
They welcomed a daughter into their happy home and named her Shenhe.
Little Shenhe's arrival brought her parents boundless joy.
The family lived in harmony and warmth.
Until Shenhe turned five—when her mother suddenly fell gravely ill and passed away.
This abrupt tragedy shattered the family's peace.
Little Shenhe, barely old enough to comprehend death, was forced to endure everything that followed.
Her father, overwhelmed by grief for his wife, could not bear the pain.
Over time, his sorrow twisted into resentment, and resentment bred inner demons—until he left home in a frenzy, wandering the world.
For an entire year, he traveled without rest, neither stopping by day nor sleeping at night—all to find a way to resurrect his deceased wife.
Then came that fateful day when the father returned in manic delight.
With him, he brought an esoteric ritual known as "Life for a Life."
By offering a living sacrifice to the mystical spirit summoned through this art, one could supposedly reclaim a life from death's grasp.
At the time, Shenhe had no inkling of the impending disaster.
She was just an ordinary child overjoyed at her long-absent father's return.
"That person said he'd prepared a big surprise for me in a cave on the back mountain... that he'd take me to see it right away..."
What followed became Shenhe's most horrific nightmare—one that haunts her to this day.
A grotesque black "spirit" was summoned into the cave.
Its blood-red eyes fixated solely on Shenhe's vibrant young life.
Shenhe didn't understand where the monster came from. She only knew one thing:
The creature wanted to devour her—and she wanted to survive.
Clutching her mother's relic—an exorcism dagger—she faced the black spirit with trembling yet unwavering resolve.
"At first, I believed that person would return to save me... It took days before I realized the truth..."
In the end, her rescuer wasn't Shenhe's father—but Cloud Retainer, who happened to pass by.
The adeptus brought Shenhe to her abode.
This was everything the six-year-old girl had endured...