Douluo Continent: Gretchen at the start, empowered by the Star God.

Chapter 106 Heartbreaking Red of Longing

Lang Lei felt extremely tired, his eyelids seemed to be glued shut.

He felt that countless pieces of information wanted to remain in his mind, but when he actively sought them out, those memories were like quicksand, quietly slipping through his fingers, leaving only faint remnants.

outside world--

Langley lay quietly on the bed, his eyes closed, as if immersed in an endless dream. Alicia and little Gretchen sat close together beside him, their faces filled with worry. The air in the room seemed to freeze; only the ticking of the clock on the wall could be heard.

Alicia gently held Lang Lei's hand, her eyes filled with concern, determination, and trust.

"Xiao Du, you have to wake up soon, or I'll be very worried..." she murmured softly, her tone full of determination and expectation. "It's not gentlemanly to make a beautiful girl worry..."

Little Gretchen leaned on Alicia's shoulder, tears glistening in her eyes, her little hands tightly gripping Langre's clothes, as if she could pull Langre's soul back and hasten his awakening.

"Brother Lang Lei, you will wake up, you definitely will." Little Gretchen's voice choked with emotion, yet still carried an indomitable hope.

She recalled the happy times she had spent with Langley, their laughter still echoing in her ears. Little Gretchen couldn't accept that Langley had simply fallen into a long, inexplicable sleep.

If Lang Lei hadn't been genuinely unharmed and his breathing hadn't been steady, even if the two women were incredibly kind and easy to talk to...

At this moment, the Heavenly Dou Imperial Palace is probably going to be razed to the ground, right?

They had witnessed his departure in their past, which made them cherish the time they spent with him even more.

Alicia stroked little Gresh's head, comforting her, "Don't worry, little Gresh. Little Gresh will definitely wake up! He's so strong, so brave. He's someone who has overcome so much despair, how could he be defeated by such a small difficulty? He'll be alright... he'll be alright."

Despite this, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. Lang Lei had been unconscious for far too long, and they weren't skilled at healing. The healing-type Soul Master that the girl named Qian Renxue had hired couldn't figure anything out either. But she refused to give up. She wanted to stay by Lang Lei's side, accompany him through this difficult time, and welcome him back the moment he opened his eyes.

It's obvious that Greta thinks so too.

Just then, Lang Lei's finger twitched slightly.

Alicia and Little Gretchen immediately perked up, their eyes fixed on Langrei's face. Langrei's brows gradually relaxed, and his eyelids trembled slightly, as if he were struggling to break free from the shackles of the dream.

"Xiao Du, can you hear me? Xiao Du?" Alicia called his name excitedly, and little Gretchen held her breath nervously.

Slowly, Lang Lei opened his eyes. He stared blankly at the ceiling, seemingly not quite back to his senses.

"Xiao Du, that's great!" Alicia's face was filled with undisguised joy as she tightly grasped Lang Lei's hand.

Little Gretchen jumped onto the bed and snuggled into Langley's arms, excitedly saying, "Brother Langley, you're finally awake!"

Lang Lei slowly turned his head to look at the two girls in front of him. His voice seemed a little weak, but it was full of warmth: "I'm back... Don't worry... It's nothing..."

Upon hearing this, Alicia and Gretchen finally relaxed, and smiles returned to their faces.

Lang Lei woke up, and their hero returned.

"This tone doesn't sound like you, Ellie." Lang Lei was still a little weak, and this was the first time he had spoken since acquiring the [Solid Footprints] skill.

"They care about you so much, and this is all you're focusing on!" Ellie raised her fist, seemingly wanting to punch Lang Lei, but slowly lowered it because she was worried about Lang Lei's health.

"Sister Alicia stayed by Brother Langlei's side after he fell into a coma," Little Gresh said, then added after thinking for a moment, "Me too."

"Yes, thank you." Lang Lei was somewhat moved, but out of consideration for his pride, he suppressed his emotions.

"Hmph, come shopping with us, or we won't forgive you! You made me and Gretchen worry so much." Alicia tried to act fierce and menacing, but from Langrei's perspective, it was actually quite cute.

"Okay, okay, I agree." Lang Lei nodded.

"Also, you gave flowers to that blonde girl, and Greta said you gave her flowers too, but not to me? I'll be sad~"

Upon hearing this, Lang Lei thought for a moment, then took out a magical herb that he had previously dared not take out and handed it to Alicia.

This is a seemingly ordinary white flower, about the size of a palm, shaped like a peony, without any leaves. Its stem is connected to a large stone, which is jet black and incredibly heavy. On the white flower are several striking red petals, as red as blood, giving it a somewhat breathtaking appearance.

Although the Black Stone was very heavy, Alicia took it easily.

"Wow, what beautiful flowers!" Alicia happily accepted the fairy grass.

"This is the 'Heartbreak Red' variety," Lang Lei explained. "There's a story behind it. Would you like to use it?"

"I want to hear it! I love listening to stories!"

"Brother Lang Lei, I want to hear it."

Lang Lei took a deep breath and slowly began to speak:

Long, long ago, there was a young man, gentle by nature, who loved tending to flowers and trees. His garden was filled with lotus blossoms and lotus roots, a riot of colors. He would often compose poems about flowers and raise his cup to the moon, but whenever a flower fell and its petals withered, he would be filled with endless sorrow. He would gather the petals, dig a hole, and bury them, weeping repeatedly.

As the saying goes, love can move heaven and earth. His love for flowers touched the hearts of the flower fairies in heaven, who secretly descended to the mortal world to marry him, and their blissful union was beyond description.

But good times don't last. When the gods learned of this, they were furious. They decreed that a celestial being and a mortal should not be together, and ordered the flower fairy to be sent back to the divine realm. Since losing his beloved, the young man had been sighing and lamenting all day long, and had given up on his flower-related work. As a result, the walls collapsed, the fences crumbled, the flowers and trees withered, and the garden became a desolate place.

One day, an old man with white hair came and told him that the white peony in his garden, which he loved so dearly, was the embodiment of his beloved wife. He explained that if the flower was destroyed, the flower fairy would lose her celestial body and descend to the mortal realm to reunite with him. However, he must not destroy the flower. Having said this, he vanished in a gentle breeze. The young man suddenly realized his mistake and deeply regretted his neglect of the flowers. He carefully tended to the plants, and although he loved his wife dearly, he couldn't bear to burn the peony. He cherished it even more, weeping day and night before it. His tears dried, his heart broke, and he died of unrequited love. At his death, he shed his blood on the petals. The peony instantly transformed into grass, its pure white petals stained with the red threads of the young man's blood. Thus, the flower became known as the "Red of Unrequited Love."

"What a poignant story..." Alicia said sadly. "This flower doesn't seem to have fully bloomed yet..."

"That's right. Just like in the story, when picking the Acacia Heartbreak Red, you must think of your beloved and then drip your heart's blood onto the Acacia Heartbreak Red. If the Black Stone falls off, the Acacia Heartbreak Red will reveal its most dazzling appearance," Lang Lei explained.

Alicia smiled, glanced thoughtfully at Lang Lei, and without hesitation dripped a drop of her heart's blood onto it.

(End of this chapter)