Hearing those words, Shen Lingxi was startled, and her eyes widened slightly. Her breathing became rapid, and her chest heaved up and down.
‘It really was him — ‘
‘But, why — ‘
Shen Lingxi stared intently at the Alliance Leader and asked, “Where did Gu Ming go?”
“He went to carry out a mission,” the Alliance Leader answered truthfully.
“A mission?” Shen Lingxi knit her brows slightly. “What kind of mission?”
“A mission that can overturn the current world order,” the Alliance Leader replied.
A mocking smile played at the corners of Shen Lingxi’s mouth. “What kind of mission requires erasing everyone’s memories of him?”
The Alliance Leader smiled, yet said, “He is the second son of the Gu Family. His identity is too sensitive, so it had to be this way.”
Buzz —
Shen Lingxi’s head felt as if it were about to explode. What she had just said in passing turned out to be the truth.
Moreover, the Alliance Leader seemed willing to tell her everything without reservation.
Shen Lingxi’s expression darkened, and she asked again, “Since he’s the second son of the Gu Family, why was he chosen to do it?”
“Because he is my brother, and the only person in the world I can trust. Therefore, it had to be him. I don’t trust anyone else,” the Alliance Leader said calmly, though a hint of helplessness seeped into his tone.
“So, you pushed your own brother into the fire?” Shen Lingxi became more bold, testing him again.
The Alliance Leader gave a bitter smile and said, “Stop testing me. Aside from the nature of the mission and his whereabouts, I will not tell you anything else.”
“Furthermore, do not misunderstand. I am not telling you this because you became the Saintess. I am only doing it to fulfill my foolish brother’s request.”
The Alliance Leader stood up and slowly walked toward Shen Lingxi, saying, “I can tell you why he chose to leave you behind to carry out the mission I mentioned.”
“It was for you.”
“For… me?”
Shen Lingxi murmured to herself, her eyes filled with confusion. They had clearly promised that once she came out, they would go see his parents together. Now, he had vanished without a word, running off to perform some mission?!
‘And it’s for me?’
‘Is it because of my background? Did his parents disapprove? So, in order to get their consent, did he reach a certain agreement with his brother?’
‘For example, persuading his parents?’
‘And to do that, he had to carry out whatever damn mission his brother demanded?’
The more Shen Lingxi thought about it, the gloomier her expression became.
Seeing the traces of hostility in Shen Lingxi’s eyes, the Alliance Leader said with a wry smile, “Don’t overthink it. With your current status, you are perfectly worthy of Gu Ming.”
“However, what you are thinking isn’t far from the truth. He indeed made a deal with me,” the Alliance Leader added. “Do you remember that Elder Li and Senior Brother Han?”
Shen Lingxi’s brow furrowed slightly.
The Alliance Leader continued, “In your eyes, the actions of Elder Li and Senior Brother Han may have been monstrously evil. But from the perspective of Saintess Mountain, they were both outstanding — one was an elder with excellent performance, and the other was a disciple with great talent. Tell me, why would Saintess Mountain kill one and cripple the other? Wouldn’t that be like severing one’s own arm?”
Shen Lingxi’s frown deepened.
“Even if he is the son of the Gu Family, Saintess Mountain would never allow him to make such an insolent request.”
“So, in order to have them punished, Gu Ming made a deal with you?” Shen Lingxi’s face was grim. “Then why did the Great Elder listen to you? Because you are the Alliance Leader?”
“Exactly.” The Alliance Leader nodded. “The Great Elder is someone who looks at the big picture. Once he heard my plan, he agreed immediately. Without his cooperation, I wouldn’t have been able to erase the memories of so many people at once.”
Shen Lingxi’s eyes flickered. She hadn’t expected the Great Elder to be in the know. It seemed he definitely knew where Gu Ming was.
Instead of wasting time here with the Alliance Leader, she should go back and question him directly.
She was the Saintess.
The supreme authority of Saintess Mountain.
The Great Elder had no reason to refuse her.
Shen Lingxi took a step back, intending to slip away.
The Alliance Leader seemed to see through her intentions and spoke up, “Right now — no, in the entire world, besides me, no one will know who Gu Ming is or where he went.”
“How could you do this!” Shen Lingxi said indignantly. “He is your brother.”
“That is why he must share his brother’s burdens.”
The Alliance Leader stepped in front of Shen Lingxi, looking down at her from above. “Now, I will eliminate the final hidden danger for him by deleting him from your memory.”
He reached out and placed his hand gently on Shen Lingxi’s head.
Shen Lingxi instinctively tried to retreat, only to find that her body had been [Forbidden].
She looked at the Alliance Leader, the terror in her eyes growing.
“No, you can’t do this!”
“It’s fine. He has already forgotten you anyway. Keeping his memory will only increase your suffering,” the Alliance Leader said, attempting to break down Shen Lingxi’s mental defenses.
Hearing this, Shen Lingxi indeed wavered. For a split second, the strength seemed to drain from her body, and her gaze turned vacant.
‘Forgotten me?’
Shen Lingxi whispered softly.
However, the memories between her and Gu Ming began to flash back continuously.
She remembered their first meeting, when Gu Ming was leaning over the courtyard wall to greet her.
She remembered the scene when Gu Ming returned after disappearing for one week.
She remembered the two of them meeting her parents together.
She remembered the first time she visited Gu Ming’s room and went straight for the space under his bed, and the panicked, helpless expression on his face.
…
The fragments of memory surged like a tide, bringing her longing to its absolute peak.
‘I can’t.’
‘I absolutely cannot.’
A hint of resolve appeared in Shen Lingxi’s eyes, and pure white flames ignited within her pupils once more.
[Truth].
She stared intently at the Alliance Leader and activated her second skill as the Saintess once again —
[Invert]!
In an instant, the Alliance Leader felt a sense of disorientation. He staggered back a few steps, a trace of vacancy in his eyes.
“Saintess?”
He looked at Shen Lingxi, but his head began to ache even more. “…It feels like I’ve forgotten something. I think I had something to tell you, but I can’t remember it?”
He clutched his head, looking pained.
Watching the agonizing Alliance Leader, Shen Lingxi froze. An ill omen surged in her heart.
“Alliance Leader, where is Gu Ming?” she asked urgently.
“Gu… Gu Ming?” The Alliance Leader was stunned, his face completely blank. “Who is that?”
In an instant, Shen Lingxi felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. She stumbled back several steps.
“How can this be?”
But she quickly understood the situation.
The Saintess’s second skill, [Truth: Invert], was an ability that could alter people’s perceptions —
Making them believe things that never happened actually did.
Making them believe lies were facts.
That is, all things that do not exist are considered to truly exist.
When she activated her ability, it likely clashed with the Alliance Leader’s memory erasure power. Then, the Alliance Leader suffered a backlash from his own ability, causing him to forget Gu Ming — he didn’t even know who Gu Ming was.
In other words, the only person left who knew Gu Ming was her.
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