CHAPTER 34 — Falling Petal Valley (Part Three)
The valley held its breath.
Even the petals seemed to stop falling.
The girl turned slowly, as if time itself obeyed her pace.
Zheng Wen Te's fingers curled helplessly at his sides.
His heart felt too loud.
Too human.
Too guilty.
Her face came into view.
She was young.
Too young.
No older than seventeen.
Skin pale as moonlight.
Lips soft, almost colorless.
But her eyes—
Her eyes were wrong.
Not demonic.
Not monstrous.
Just…
ancient.
As if something far older than her body was staring out.
Lian's sword lifted higher.
"State your name."
The girl looked at her, expression mild.
"…Names are fragile."
Then her gaze shifted.
Past the blade.
Past Lian.
And landed on Zheng Wen Te.
The moment she saw him—
Something changed.
The calm cracked.
Not into rage.
Into something quieter.
Something worse.
Recognition.
Zheng Wen Te whispered, barely audible:
"…Is it you?"
The girl blinked slowly.
"You ask that…"
"…as if you have the right."
His throat tightened.
"I don't remember."
A smile touched her lips.
It wasn't warm.
It was heartbreak sharpened into elegance.
"I remember enough for both of us."
Lian stepped forward sharply.
"Answer me. Are you the disciple reported by the sect?"
The girl did not look away from Zheng Wen Te.
"I was reported…"
"…because people disappear."
Lian's voice turned dangerous.
"Did you make them disappear?"
The girl finally glanced at Lian.
Her gaze was polite.
Almost pitying.
"I did not kill them."
Lian froze.
Zheng Wen Te's blood ran colder.
The girl continued softly:
"They simply could not bear…"
"…to stay."
Zheng Wen Te swallowed hard.
"To stay where?"
The girl's eyes returned to him.
"To stay near someone…"
"…who owes too much."
Silence.
The mist thickened.
Lian's sword trembled now, not from fear—
from instinct.
"This valley is a formation," Lian said. "You built it."
The girl nodded faintly.
"Yes."
"Why?"
The girl's voice was gentle.
"To wait."
Zheng Wen Te's chest tightened painfully.
"…Wait for what?"
Her lips parted slightly.
"For the moment you finally returned."
A long pause.
Then Zheng Wen Te forced the words out.
"What… happened between us?"
The girl stared at him.
So long that the air became unbearable.
Then she spoke.
One sentence.
A sentence that struck deeper than any blade.
"You promised…"
"…and then you chose Heaven over me."
Zheng Wen Te staggered as if slapped.
Lian's eyes widened.
"Heaven?"
The girl smiled again.
"You don't even know."
Her gaze softened, almost lovingly—
almost cruelly.
"Zheng Wen Te…"
"…do you want to remember?"
The petals began to rise.
Not falling now.
Rising.
Swirling around them like a storm.
The valley's formation awakened.
And the girl whispered:
"Because once you remember…"
"…you won't be able to leave again."