Bengtie: My death fueled their madness.

Tingyun had not lost his memories of traveling merchants and his ability to judge people. Subconsciously, he judged that the young man being led by the hand was definitely not as old as he appeared.

"Zhi Mu." Qi Zhi Mu was used to concealing his surname from outsiders.

"This must be Lady Black Tower. It is a great honor for me to meet the Genius Club #83."

Heita was in a good mood, and returned Tingyun's faint smile before his mind began to work.

Ruan Mei seemed unaware that Qi Zhimu had regained everything, and she probably wouldn't dare bring up the past, which meant...

Hey, you won't be bored from now on.

Ruan Mei hesitated for a long time before finally finding an opening to speak.

"...Mr. Zhi Mu, why do you look so much younger than I have been here?"

"This—" Qi Zhimu was reluctant to speak up, so he gently shook Hei Ta's hand to let her handle it.

"Oh, we're playing a role-reversal game, experiencing shared memories from our youth, so I shrunk Zhi Mu," Hei Ta said with a smile.

Upon hearing the keywords, Ruan Mei was taken aback, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

Their shared experiences in their youth, Qi Zhimu as a child...

Hei Ta and Qi Zhimu's experiences in their youth were something the former had told her back on Azure Star.

At that time, it was Qi Zhimu who protected the Black Tower, overcoming one dangerous situation after another, and successfully sent it back to Azure Star.

Qi Zhimu himself disappeared without a trace, and was later rescued by Changsheng Moke, but lost his memory.

In retrospect, Black Tower's initial statement contained some concealment.

Qi Zhimu most likely died saving the Black Tower and was reincarnated, but... those experiences are probably real.

Otherwise, the Black Tower wouldn't be playing this so-called role-swapping game here.

If you stare at Qi Zhimu for too long, it's easy for someone to notice something amiss.

Ruan Mei adjusted her mindset, suppressed her longing and reluctance, and forcibly looked away, pondering how to invite the two of them to travel together.

However, before Ruan Mei could even think of a reason, Hei Ta offered her a way out.

"Since it's such a coincidence, let's walk the rest of the way together. We're not in a hurry to get out anyway."

Black Tower's response was neither particularly enthusiastic nor indifferent; it sounded like a casual suggestion.

"Oh, by the way, you suddenly left the space station without telling anyone where you were going, and we can't contact you anymore. That's really not very considerate, is it?"

"I have reasons for having to leave," Ruan Mei replied calmly, without intending to explain in detail.

…I almost glanced at Amu again, but thankfully I managed to hold back.

What else can you do after leaving? Naturally, you should focus on the future.

Ah Mu forgot about her, but the past cannot be mended, and the same mistakes must not be repeated.

It is precisely because she tried to mend the past thousands of years ago that the present result has been born.

She didn't take Yu Qingtu's words that had woken her up to reality seriously.

While Heita and Ruanmei were thinking different things, Qi Zhimu was thinking about what had happened between Tingyun and Huanlong.

Ruan Mei also had a little bit of it, but it wasn't really related to her personally.

The train crew and the ship's captain jointly commissioned him to find clues about Tingyun.

He was not ready to set off at the moment, so he transferred the commission to a more professional leader of the rangers.

The clues provided by Immortal Path some time ago have now been confirmed: Tingyun is not dead; she was rescued by Ruan Mei.

…it's just a tiny bit of a coincidence.

Qi Zhimu felt that Ruan Mei's motive for saving Tingyun was unimportant and unnecessary to guess.

Heita said that Ruan Mei was interested not only in research related to the Star God, but also in the Commander.

Two years ago, the strategist had already had Ruan Mei study her.

Tingyun, having survived the attack by the Destruction Order, was a rare research subject for Ruan Mei.

It has considerable value, so its rescue is not surprising.

After all, in their first life, Ruan Mei worked tirelessly to remove the virus from him, partly because she was interested in him.

A commission can be considered complete, or it can not.

Although they found clues about Tingyun and he returned to Luofu, he could still have come back even without the commission.

No one knew what Qi Zhimu was thinking; Ruan Mei's attention was entirely focused on Hei Ta's casual suggestion.

"what ever."

Subconsciously, Ruan Mei habitually replied with two words, but the next second she almost lost control of her emotions.

But she couldn't suppress the urge to look at Qi Zhimu.

Thinking back to the day she took Amu away from Huaimu Star, she also uttered those two words...

Amu didn't react much...

That's right, he's forgotten everything about the teacher, so how could he possibly react?

A self-deprecating thought flashed through Ruan Mei's mind, and she subtly shifted her gaze to Ting Yun.

"We can proceed to the next coordinate where we've sensed something, Tingyun."

"Okay, Ms. Ruan Mei."

The four of them traveled together for the time being, constantly moving between the bronze mirrors.

The two geniuses had completely opposite thoughts about certain sounds reflected in the mirror.

Ruan Mei wanted Qi Zhimu to hear it. Even if the content was false, he would still be curious if he heard her voice.

Curiosity leads to questions, and once asked, she can reveal the truth of the past.

Perhaps that way, things will work out...

However, Black Tower had already seen through her scheme.

"These bronze mirrors possess spatial abilities and pose unknown risks, so we can't let Xiao Mu get too close."

Hei Ta had Qi Zhimu follow beside Ting Yun, while he himself, without a word, took Ruan Mei's arm and subtly pushed her forward, saying as they walked:

"We're geniuses, so we should step up without hesitation, even if it means eliminating risks, right?"

"…Um."

Ruan Mei could only nod, feigning calmness as she explained:

"The voices of people you know will appear in the bronze mirror, including but not limited to relatives and friends."

"I heard your voice not long ago, but the content was all false, so please be careful to verify it."

"I understand, I understand," Black Tower chuckled inwardly.

Ruan Mei desperately wanted to use Qi Zhimu's voice in the mirror to create topics for talking about the past.

You think you're so great? Pshaw... It's not that easy!

Before Qi Zhimu is willing to accept Ruan Mei back, she's determined to use Black Tower to create this obstacle.

Glancing at the profile of the person next to him, Black Tower felt virtually no guilt.

Ruan Mei, to be honest, I wholeheartedly acknowledge your past efforts for Zhi Mu and your feelings for him.

But everyone has to bear the consequences of their actions, and you are no exception.

You only have yourself to blame for saying those heartless words that meant we owe each other nothing.

Being even means no longer wanting to maintain that bond, and the connection can be severed.

For Qi Zhimu back then, the severing of bonds meant losing everything.

From the day he was taken back, 90% of his vast inner world revolved around his teacher.

Once you lose your teacher, ninety percent of what you have is gone. What's the point of having anything left?

Thus, the necessity of existence is extinguished, and the attachment to the human world is lost.

Its subsequent impact is completely different from Ruan Mei's efforts to save Qi Zhimu; they are not related by the same cause and effect.

If she doesn't bear the consequences, who will?

If one had to put it bluntly, Yu Qingtu, the completely innocent black swan, indirectly bore some of the consequences for Ruan Mei.

Isn't this an undeserved disaster?