At this, Su Qingxue said, "So that’s how it is. I understand everything now."

"Now that you understand, do you know what you must choose?" the Flame Witch asked.

"I do. I’ve long expected my life to end one day. You can merge with me. I’m willing. At least I’ll continue to exist as another form of life, even if I don’t know whether I’ll retain my current memories."

"At this moment, I am willing to offer myself if it can help you!" Su Qingxue declared.

In that moment, every word she uttered came from the depths of her soul. She had never believed in fate, but now that it had arrived, she had no other choice.

The Flame Witch mused for a moment before asking, "Are you pitying me?"

"No. Rather than die a worthless death, I would prefer to help you in a meaningful way. At least then I won’t be so useless, just turning to dust!" Su Qingxue replied.

The Flame Witch said, "But have you considered the other outcome?"

"What other outcome?"

Su Qingxue was filled with curiosity. She had never considered another possibility.

The Flame Witch continued, "The other outcome is that I will complete you."

That one sentence, "I will complete you," left Su Qingxue stunned. She never imagined the Flame Witch would say such a thing, let alone that she would sacrifice herself.

"Why?" Su Qingxue asked.

"You and I are one being. It doesn’t matter which of us completes the other. Either way, we will both live on. I have lived for a thousand years and have grown weary of it all. I want to fall into a deep sleep."

"Besides," the Flame Witch added suddenly, "if you died, he would be upset."

Su Qingxue didn’t quite understand, but she asked anyway, "Do you like him?"

The Flame Witch pondered for a moment. "What does it mean to ’like’ someone?"

Despite her great age, she was clueless when it came to matters of affection. She didn’t know what it meant to like someone, only that she had felt something.

Su Qingxue explained, "Liking someone... it means that when you’re together, you feel as if you could take him or leave him, and you might even get angry at him."

"But when he’s gone, you can’t stand it for a single moment. It feels like your whole world is collapsing. That’s what it means to like someone, though there are many ways to interpret it."

After hearing Su Qingxue’s explanation, the Flame Witch said, "Then it seems I really do like him."

The Flame Witch was surprised. In just a few days of knowing Ye Fan, he had left a deep impression on her. If he hadn’t stopped her, she would have merged with Su Qingxue the moment they met.

She then said, "Actually, I lied to you both. You are merely my secondary consciousness. When I decide to merge with you, no one can stop me, not even if your mind is full of distracting thoughts."

"But I knew that doing so would make him angry, so I gave up on the idea. For days, I’ve wondered why I should care about his feelings. Now I understand. Perhaps this is what it means to like someone."

"This is human emotion," Su Qingxue said, her expression complicated as she looked at the Flame Witch.

The Flame Witch then said, "Our time is short. I hope you can love someone in my place. I’m quite curious about this human emotion."

"But in our current state, it would be better for you to merge with me!" Su Qingxue couldn’t help but feel sympathy for the Flame Witch.

But the Flame Witch shook her head. "No. I have always thought only of myself, but now I realize how boring that was. After all, I have been lonely for a thousand years."

She unleashed her boundless Inner Strength. As the power was released, Su Qingxue suddenly floated up from the bed, drifting toward the Flame Witch.

At this, tears streamed down Su Qingxue’s face. She didn’t know why she was crying, only that she and the Flame Witch were kindred spirits—one and the same.

Then, the Flame Witch also made her move, floating into the air and rushing toward Su Qingxue.

A brilliant Holy Light flared, and Su Qingxue felt herself bathed in its radiance as she began to merge with the Flame Witch. All she could see was an endless field of white lotuses within the Holy Light.

Then, dizziness overcame her, and she knew no more.

But in her hazy consciousness, she heard a voice, "Live well in my place. I will pass on all the power I’ve accumulated in my lifetime to you. You are me, and I am you."

"From now on, I am in you, and you are in me. Rather than saying we are one person, it is better to say we are sisters."

"I understand. Thank you... sister," Su Qingxue cried.

「The next morning」

The first rays of the morning sun pierced through the window, striking Su Qingxue’s eyes. She opened them instantly and stood up, finding herself completely unscathed.

"Strange, why does my body feel so good? Wasn’t I on the verge of death?"

She had truly felt death’s approach. But then, she recalled the conversation she’d had with the Flame Witch in their weakest moment, and she understood everything. Her own consciousness hadn’t changed much, but she could sense that she was no longer alone within it. It was a lot to take in.

"Sister, I will live a good life in your place," Su Qingxue declared. "You liked him, didn’t you? Well, I like him even more than you do. He belongs to both of us, not just to you or to me!"

At this moment, her mindset had undergone a monumental shift. If before her mind had been a calm lake, it was now a vast, churning ocean.

Perhaps this was the result of the Flame Witch’s thousand years of experience.

Su Qingxue also discovered a great secret: she could feel an immense power dwelling within her body, but for now, she was unable to fully wield it. Even so, the portion she could command was far beyond anything Ye Fan could match.

She returned home. Upon seeing the heavily injured Ye Fan, she asked with concern, "Darling, are you all right?"

Ye Fan ignored his own injuries. Without a word, he sized up Su Qingxue. The woman before him now had shades of both the Flame Witch and her former self, a blend of the Witch’s aura and Qingxue’s essence. She seemed to be one person, yet she possessed the characteristics of two.

Su Qingxue asked, "Darling, why are you staring at me? Is there something on my face?" Though she didn’t mind his gaze—in fact, she felt quite happy—his expression had changed, becoming somewhat lecherous and a bit wicked.

"Strange," Ye Fan remarked. "I’ve noticed you’ve changed."

"How have I changed?" Su Qingxue asked, puzzled.

"I’ve noticed your figure has changed!"

Instantly, he slapped Su Qingxue on her shapely behind, giving her a huge fright.

Her face flushing red, she instinctively slapped back. It was a woman’s natural response to being teased, even by her own husband.

Ye Fan met her slap with a grin. To him, this was just playful banter, so why wouldn’t he enjoy it?

However, when her palm connected, Ye Fan felt an immense pressure slam into him.