Yunxue awoke with a splitting headache, as if someone had just smashed her skull with a blunt object. Her vision swam, stars bursting behind her eyes. Her body felt unbearably heavy, wracked with pain, barely able to move.
She was lying beneath a colossal tree—one that resembled a peach tree, yet its size was utterly unreasonable. Its trunk soared into the heavens like an eternal tower, nearly a hundred stories tall, its girth wider than an open field. Gigantic roots burst from the earth like frozen dragons, clutching the ground with ancient, primal force.
Yunxue's memories were empty.
She didn't know how she had come to this place, nor could she recall anything from before. All she felt was pain spreading through every inch of her body, along with a crushing weakness that made steady breathing difficult.
In her limp right hand, she still clutched a peach—half-bitten, its flesh already darkening, as if the energy within had been completely drained.
She tried to remember something. Forced her mind through the hollow fog within her head, but it was useless. No past. No faces. No events. The only thing that remained was a single name, faintly echoing in her mind.
Xue Yunxue.
"Hey! You're awake? Finally! I thought you were dead—you were unconscious for almost a full day!"
The voice was bright and cheerful, appearing out of nowhere and making Yunxue's heart leap violently.
She pushed herself halfway up and looked around in alarm.
There was no one there.
"Who are you?" she shouted warily.
Her hand moved on instinct, drawing the dagger strapped to her ankle. "Show yourself right now! Don't hide like a coward!"
"Hahaha! I guarded you while you were unconscious, and now you threaten me?" The voice chuckled lightly. "Looks like you've recovered some strength."
Yunxue narrowed her eyes, following the direction of the sound.
Among the massive roots of the peach tree, she saw something strange.
A small tree, barely a meter tall, looked pitifully tiny compared to the giant beside it. Its trunk was slender, its leaves shimmering gold, and its roots were tightly entwined with the main tree—like mistletoe, yet radiating a powerful vitality. Its branches swayed slowly, almost like… a living creature breathing.
"Don't tell me…" Yunxue murmured. "You're the one talking to me?"
If trees could talk, then her head really must be damaged. She began to doubt her own sanity.
"Aha! Of course it's me!" the little tree snapped irritably. Its branches crossed like arms folded over its chest. "Who else could it be, you nasty fox!"
Yunxue fell silent.
That tree… was actually mimicking human gestures.
"So… I'm not crazy?" she asked slowly.
"You came here like a madwoman," the little tree replied casually, "but at least you've regained your sanity now."
"What do you mean by that?"
Seeing her confusion, the little tree began to explain.
Some time ago, Yunxue had stumbled into the Forbidden Forest in a miserable state. Her body was covered in festering wounds, her clothes torn to rags, her hair tangled and filthy. She staggered as she walked, her eyes empty, her behavior far from that of a sane person.
No normal human would dare enter this forest. Ferocious beasts and terrifying monsters roamed everywhere, and the deeper one went, the deadlier it became. By all logic, it was impossible for Yunxue to reach the forest's core alone.
The little tree's conclusion was simple and cruel: Yunxue had been thrown here to die. Someone had erased her memories, stripped away her power, and shattered her soul core.
Yet in that chaotic state, she had wandered like a zombie all the way to the heart of the forest—where the Peach Tree of Immortality stood.
Moved by pity, the great tree gave her a single healing peach. After she collapsed, a strand of energy-light flowed into her body, originating from the Immortal Peach Tree itself. When she awoke, she no longer looked like a zombie, but like a normal human once more. Her soul core had recovered. Her sanity had returned.
Only her memories… remained completely gone.
The little tree told her everything it had witnessed.
Hearing all this, Yunxue's chest filled with boiling rage. Yet she didn't know whom to direct that fury toward.
"I can help you recover your strength," the little tree said gently. "But as for your memories, you'll have to find those yourself."
Yunxue's eyes lit up.
"Really? How?"
"Let's make a deal," the little tree said quickly. "I'll help you—on the condition that you take me along on your adventures. I've been stuck here for thousands of years. I'm bored to death."
Its small branches waved about, almost pleading.
Yunxue gave a stiff smile. Carrying around a tree nearly a meter tall sounded like trouble.
As if reading her thoughts, the little tree snorted.
It detached itself from the main tree, its body shrinking rapidly—until it was only about twenty centimeters tall. In a flash, it leapt onto Yunxue's wrist, coiling around it like a tiny snake, then plunged its roots into her pulse point.
Golden light flared.
The tree vanished, leaving behind a golden peach-shaped mark branded clearly onto her dirty skin.
A cool energy surged through Yunxue's body. Her wounds eased. The festering sores dried and disappeared, replaced by a refreshing, soothing sensation.
"From now on, we'll always be together," the voice said, now echoing directly inside her head. "We won't merge—we'll remain two souls in one body. I can talk to you through your thoughts, and I can help cleanse any lingering negative energy within you."
"Y-you're really that little tree?" Yunxue whispered.
"Of course. Call me Moa," it replied proudly. "I've absorbed knowledge from the Immortal Peach Tree for five thousand years. What I know is vast—far more than most beings in this world."
"Good," Yunxue said firmly. "Then how do I regain my strength?"
"You must kill monsters and absorb their soul cores," Moa explained. "Your current level is zero. But before… you were at least level fifty. I can tell from the residual layers of energy left in your body."
Yunxue clenched her fists.
"So I'll have to work hard to become strong again."
"And be careful," Moa added seriously. "If you die, I die with you."
"I have no intention of dying," Yunxue replied calmly. "I want to know who tried to destroy me—and threw me here to die."
With Moa's help, Yunxue left the forest. She hunted weak monsters, absorbed their soul cores, washed herself in a river, and changed clothes using what little remained in her storage space. Moa explained that beast-humans usually possessed a personal storage space connected to their minds and urged her to check it.
Her storage was in chaos, clearly looted. Only a few worn pieces of clothing remained—usable, but barely. She discarded her tattered rags and changed into what she found: a women's shirt, high-waisted pants, and a pair of boots suitable for travel. Unfortunately, there was no survival gear at all—no weapons, no supplies, not even food.
Xue Yunxue lowered her head, gazing at her reflection in the calm surface of the river.
The water shimmered softly, reflecting the twilight creeping across the sky. Within it appeared the face of a young woman—skin as pale as jade, delicate features, deep and tranquil eyes, a modest nose, and small pink lips.
Beautiful… yet completely unfamiliar.
She stared at the reflection for a long time.
It stirred no memories at all.
As if she were looking at a stranger.
"Wow, you're actually quite pretty after a bath," Moa's cheerful voice rang in her mind. "I almost forgot how you looked when we first met—you were practically a zombie."
Yunxue smiled faintly, but the smile never reached her eyes.
"…I don't remember this face at all," she murmured.
She reached out and touched the water. The reflection rippled, shattering into countless fragments.
"It feels strange," she continued softly. "This face is mine… but I don't recognize it. It's as if I woke up inside someone else's body."
There was a brief pause before Moa answered, its tone gentler than before.
"Maybe your memories aren't gone," it said quietly. "Maybe they're just waiting until you're strong enough to accept them."
Yunxue took a deep breath and stared again at the now-still water.
Is this body truly mine?
The doubt churned within her, as if her soul had yet to fully merge with the body it now inhabited.
Sensing her unease, Moa spoke again.
"If you're still uncertain," it said softly but firmly, "I'll examine your mind and spiritual energy completely. At the very least, I can confirm whether this body truly belongs to you—and whether anything hidden is wrong within you."
"There's nothing wrong," Moa added after a pause. "Your soul has perfectly fused with this body. But your memories are entirely empty—not a single fragment remains… like an empty shell that was only just filled."
Xue Yunxue froze slightly at those words.
After finishing its examination, Moa's tone turned bright with excitement.
"My dear," it said, "you still have five beast marks within you."
"…What do you mean?" Yunxue asked, stunned.
Moa chuckled.
"Oh, you weren't just a level-fifty beast-human. The presence of five beast marks in your soul means you once bound your spiritual energy to others—meaning you have five savage husbands, each from a different race."
Yunxue went rigid, her head throbbing painfully. Five husbands? Was the universe mocking her?
"If we find them," Moa continued meaningfully, "your memories might return."
Recovering her memories would be good news.
But five savage husbands?
That was not something she was prepared to accept.
Right now, Yunxue wanted no bonds, no complicated past, and certainly no relationships she couldn't even comprehend. She wanted only one thing: power—enough power to crush whoever had stripped everything from her and abandoned her to a slow death in the Forbidden Forest.
Moa fell silent for a moment, as if weighing its words.
"You have husbands from the wolf, eagle, serpent, merfolk, and…" Its voice faltered for the first time. "…a half-vampire."
Yunxue stiffened. A vampire? Another type of beast-human? Just how many races existed in this world?
Along the rest of the journey, Moa chattered endlessly about the Beast World—a planet called Qui, inhabited by beast-humans of countless races and strengths. In this world, pure-blooded vampires stood at the top of the hierarchy. They were known to be cruel, cold, and arrogant—beings who regarded all other races as inferior. Merely approaching them was a gamble with one's life, let alone forming a marriage bond.
Yet now Moa claimed that she—a girl who had awakened without memories, nearly powerless—was soul-bound to someone with half-vampire blood?
It wasn't just strange.
It was terrifying… and extraordinary.
If this news spread, the Beast World would be shaken. A half-vampire bound to Yunxue meant unimaginable strategic value—whether as an ally or as a target.
Yunxue took a deep breath, calming the turmoil in her chest.
"Whoever they are," she said at last, her voice cold and resolute,"whatever relationship we had in the past… I don't care right now."
Her eyes narrowed, resolve freezing within them.
"I'll reclaim my strength first. After that, I'll face my past—including them."
Moa fell silent, smiling faintly to itself.
"So that's how it is…" it murmured. "It seems our journey will be far more interesting than I imagined."