Collapse Iron: I just transmigrated! You want me to save the Black Tower?!

Jiang Jiu did not answer immediately.

The moment he saw the child, he gave up on the idea of ​​dealing with the breeding remains on this planet. At worst, he could just find another planet, which wouldn't be a difficult task for him.

but......

Why does it seem like there's only one child here?

Was there anyone else? Or was it also because something was blocking his perception that his senses were impaired?

He fixed his gaze on the little girl in front of him.

They did not embark on their destined path.

There was no fluctuation of power.

...He is an ordinary person.

“My name is Jiang Jiu,” he finally spoke softly, his voice softer than he had expected. “I’m here… to take care of some things.”

The girl nodded without asking any further questions. Her attitude gave Jiang Jiu the illusion that she would accept whatever he said without hesitation.

She didn't ask him what he needed to deal with, nor where he came from. She simply held a piece of ice-blue crystal, tilted her head back, and quietly looked at Jiang Jiu.

After watching for a while, she asked, "Are you here to clean the cemetery?"

Jiang Jiu was stunned for a moment.

"Cemetery?"

The girl turned to the side, raised one hand, and pointed to a place not far behind her.

It was only at this moment that Jiang Jiu noticed an extremely low building in that direction.

Although... it's less of a building and more of a protrusion rising from the ground, covered in gray-white rock, blending into the desolation of the entire planet, and from a distance, it's almost indistinguishable.

If she hadn't pointed it out, Jiang Jiu probably would never have given it a second glance.

"There." After saying that, the girl turned around and walked in that direction.

She took two steps, then stopped and looked back at Jiang Jiu.

There was no wariness, no fear, and not even expectation in that look.

It's as if this scene has happened countless times.

Jiang Jiu remained silent for two seconds, but still chose to follow.

It wasn't until he got closer that Jiang Jiu could see what it was. Rather than a building, he thought it... seemed more like a cave.

Because the entrance here is extremely low, you even have to bend over to enter. The door frame is made of gray-white stones and has no decorations. There is only a line of very faint writing carved above the threshold.

He couldn't recognize the script.

Without hesitation, the girl bent down and crawled inside.

Jiang Jiu stood outside for a few seconds, hesitated for a moment, and then bent down and followed her inside.

The cave was larger than he had imagined.

The space was about 20 to 30 square meters, with a low ceiling. An adult standing upright would almost hit their head. Jiang Jiu didn't know if this could be considered a residence, or what kind of residence would have such a low ceiling.

We can't keep living with our heads down forever, can we?

The low, cramped space seemed out of place with its surroundings, which were quite elaborate, with relatively smooth walls inlaid with crystals as decorations.

The crystal emitted a faint glow.

It's probably something like "lighting".

The little girl put down the crystal in her arms, raised her hand to lift the hood of her head, and lowered her eyes, her gaze never leaving the crystal.

"I thought I was the last gravedigger."

She finally raised her head, her icy blue eyes staring unblinkingly at Jiang Jiu. Her dark blue hair, tucked into her hood, looked somewhat messy.

"The gravedigger?"

The little girl blinked, looking puzzled by his question: "Don't you remember? This is the 'Place of Memories,' a place we've guarded for generations. I thought I was all alone now, but then I met you."

"But deserting in the face of battle is wrong. Even if you change your mind and come back in the end, you will still lose the qualification to be a gravedigger."

Jiang Jiu paused for a moment, and for reasons unknown, he did not reveal his identity.

...This seems to be a civilization on the verge of extinction?

A gravedigger?

A faction I've never heard of before.

The young girl naturally fabricated an identity for Jiang Jiu that would allow him to stay. She only pretended to be aloof and reserved for a while before dropping her pretense.

When she noticed that Jiang Jiu wasn't talking to her, she assumed he was angry.

She hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help but say, "Well... although you've lost your qualification to be a gravedigger, I can still allow you to clean the cemetery..."

"Could you please talk to me... I haven't spoken to anyone in a very, very long time..."

Jiang Jiu was taken aback: "Are you all alone here?"

The little girl nodded.

He was indeed just a child, about twelve or thirteen years old. His features hadn't fully developed yet, his skin was pale from years of not seeing the sun, and the childishness in his voice hadn't completely faded.

Those ice-blue eyes were so clean, so pure, that Jiang Jiu couldn't help but think of the sky over his hometown.

very beautiful.

But there was something in those beautiful eyes that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

It's not about feeling wronged, but about getting used to it. It's about facing the world alone for too long and doing the same thing day after day.

“How long is a long time?” he asked softly.

The girl thought for a moment, then shook her head: "For a very long time, I counted the sunrises and sunsets, but then... then I don't know why, one day, there were no more sunrises and sunsets here."

"The sky has always been this color, a hazy gray, so I can't count it anymore."

Jiang Jiu remained silent for a moment.

This planet has no day or night, only an eternal gray-white. Jiang Jiu had thought it had always been like this, but it seemed to have encountered some kind of problem.

"Have you been staying here all by yourself?"

“No, the role of the gravedigger has been passed down from generation to generation,” the girl said earnestly. “My father said that my job would only be finished when the last piece of memory has calmed down, so I have been waiting.”

When she said this, there was no hint of complaint or grievance in her tone; it was simply a statement.

Jiang Jiu's gaze fell on the crystals on the wall.

They emitted a faint icy blue light, and came in various sizes and shapes. These crystals were embedded in the wall in a staggered arrangement.

These are...

"Memory."

Chapter 205 It's okay, you don't need to be afraid.

The girl followed his gaze, her eyes crinkling into a smile: "In each crystal, there is a person who has left, their last appearance, their name, and their memories!"

She took a thumb-sized crystal from the wall, held it in her palm, and brought it close to Jiang Jiu's face.

"Look, this is Aunt Li's." There was a hint of pride in her voice. "She loved to sing, and this contains some lullabies she hummed. Listen..."

She held the crystal to her ear, tilted her head slightly, and squinted her eyes, as if listening to some beautiful sound.

After a while, she opened her eyes, looked at Jiang Jiu, and smiled with a hint of expectation: "Was it very light? Was it very pleasant to listen to?"

Jiang Jiu did not hear any sound.

But he nodded.

"Hmm...it sounds very nice."

The girl's smile deepened as she carefully placed the crystal back in its place and then removed another one.

"This piece belongs to the big uncle."

She spoke a little faster, in a cheerful tone, probably because she had finally found someone to talk to and couldn't wait to share everything she had treasured.

"He's a craftsman, a really, really skilled one! This is what his most prized piece looks like... Look at these things, aren't they exquisite!"

Her fingers traced the surface of the crystal lightly, as if there were actually some kind of pattern there.

Jiang Jiu simply watched quietly.

He can't see anything.

“This one belongs to Grandpa Lin,” she said, picking up another piece. “He always loved to tell stories in the evenings, and this is his favorite story, about…about…”

Her voice suddenly paused.

Her face went blank for a moment, and she paused for a second.

"...About what?" She blinked, her brows furrowing slightly. "I remember it from yesterday."

Jiang Jiu remained silent.

But the little girl quickly shook her head, put the crystal back, and picked up another one.

"It's okay! Look at this one, it is—"

She continued speaking, her pace quickening, as she enthusiastically recounted her story to Jiang Jiu.

Jiang Jiu simply stood in the center of the room, quietly listening to the little girl tell these stories.

One crystal after another was removed and put back.

One name after another was mentioned, and then put down.

The girl's voice echoed in the small space, sometimes with laughter, sometimes with a touch of pride.

—Look, I have many good things here, and I am protecting many things.

She talked for a long time.

Jiang Jiu lost count of how many crystals she had introduced.