At this moment, Mu Anxiao knew Feng Qishi had overheard her conversation with Yin Ye, but she didn't want him to come in.
It was because she truly felt hurt by Feng Qishi.
She feared that the situation with Shen Yan would repeat itself. Experiencing that once was enough; she couldn't bear it a second time.
Meanwhile, Feng Qishi also felt too ashamed to face Mu Anxiao and turned to leave.
After Feng Qishi had gone far away, Ah Xia and Gu Xiao walked through the temple gate and approached Mu Anxiao.
Ah Xia: "You knew he was outside, why didn't you let him in?"
"There's no need," Mu Anxiao said, turning and walking to the table, where she sat down.
Ah Xia: "Are you still angry with him?"
Mu Anxiao picked up her cup. "Yes, I hate being misunderstood without reason." She felt she didn't need to hide anything from Ah Xia and spoke her mind.
Gu Xiao: "I think he was also heartbroken..."
"If he was heartbroken, he shouldn't have easily believed the demon soul's words. That's no excuse," Mu Anxiao said, picking up the teapot and filling her cup.
"You were fine before this. How did you change so much after attending that meal?"
"I saw Yin Ye."
"Yin Ye?" Ah Xia exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes, she admitted she deliberately spoke ill of me. Shen Fengzi actually believed her and misunderstood me like that. Hmph." As she spoke, Mu Anxiao picked up her cup and drank the water in one gulp.
Gu Xiao: "You weren't like this before, were you?"
"Then what kind of person do you think I am?"
"You wouldn't be bothered by such trivial matters."
"..."
As Gu Xiao had said, Mu Anxiao rarely worried about such minor things.
She herself didn't know why.
After returning from the mortal realm, she had suddenly become petty, even speaking ill of Feng Qishi in a roundabout way.
Thinking of these things, she looked up at Gu Xiao and said, "This isn't good."
"What's wrong?"
"I've gained human thoughts."
"Huh?"
"I seem to be swayed by emotions. I didn't think about it so much last night, but for some reason..." Mu Anxiao couldn't explain what was happening to her. She put down her cup and touched her head, saying, "I've suddenly become so particular about these things. It's really strange."
"Humans are just like that, full of contradictions," Ah Xia added.
Mu Anxiao looked at Ah Xia. "..."
Before she got lost, Mu Anxiao had been a sentimental child. Even a small matter could make her overthink, even possessiveness. She particularly disliked her friends being with others.
It was only after she got lost and experienced all that that she gradually became the person she was now.
And now, her personality had reverted to that of her childhood. Thinking about it filled her with a sense of dread.
Ah Xia: "What's wrong?"
"It must be the imposter," Mu Anxiao stated firmly.
Ah Xia blinked. "What do you mean?"
"The imposter cast a spell on me, making me constantly recall the past. No, I must find out his true identity quickly and capture him, then I won't be like this anymore." Mu Anxiao said, raising her fist and hitting the table with force.
Ah Xia: "..."
Gu Xiao: "Are you missing your loved ones?"
Upon hearing this, Mu Anxiao's heart sank.
"If I recall correctly, it's been decades since you were completely separated from your family?"
"What are you trying to say?"
"Are you very lonely?"
"What loneliness?" Mu Anxiao chuckled bitterly.
"You were human once. After meeting Shen Yan, you embarked on a different path. Therefore..."
"Get to the point."
"I heard that immortals who have been to the underworld bring back memories. Although you've seen much of life and death separations, most of those were demons. You rarely witnessed human life and death separations, so they didn't touch your heart. But going there is different. I think," Gu Xiao said, "it has nothing to do with the imposter. It might be your own issue."
"My own issue?"
"Yes. While I don't want to say it like this, it's a fact. I thought of this based on the emotional side you just showed."
"..."
Separation from loved ones, Lin Yan's death, setbacks in the underworld, promises to demon souls – all these had essentially ended in failure.
It seemed that this had also caused some damage to Mu Anxiao's psyche.
Moreover, when she was in the underworld, she had seen many souls leaving in tears, including a childhood friend. At the time, her friend recognized her, but she dared not respond, only turning to leave.
She didn't want to admit these things, but after hearing Gu Xiao's words, she had no choice but to acknowledge them.
Age, she didn't know how long a person could live. Anyway, her childhood friend didn't seem old in her eyes, but in reality, the friend had died.
As for herself, she felt she was merely clinging to life.
If she hadn't met Shen Yan, she thought she might have died even earlier than her friend, perhaps even being tortured to death by that fatuous man.
Thinking of these things, she felt an indescribable sadness.
"Mu Anxiao, how was your childhood?" Ah Xia asked curiously.
Immediately, Mu Anxiao looked up at Ah Xia, lowered her eyes, and smiled. "My childhood wasn't good. No one loved me, no one doted on me. Everyone wished I would die sooner, just because I was a girl."
"..." Ah Xia's eyes darkened, as she hadn't expected Mu Anxiao's life to be so different from Gu An's.
"Surprised?"
"Yes."
"I got lost, and no one looked for me. Before that, my elder brother bullied me all day long. Although he wasn't always bad to me, but..." Mu Anxiao took a deep breath. "I still hated him."
"You got lost, and your family didn't look for you?"
"If they had looked for me, I wouldn't have met Shen Fengzi."
"You're so pitiful."
"Not really pitiful. There are many people more pitiful than me. I'm actually quite lucky. It's just had some unpleasant minor episodes."
"What minor episodes?"
"It's just..." Mu Anxiao couldn't explain, she just gave a silly laugh to brush it off. "It's just unpleasant things in between."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, in short, I can't go on like this. If I continue, it will affect my mission."
Ah Xia: "I don't think you need to hold such a grudge against Feng Qishi. He finally took in a disciple, and then he died like that. Anyone would feel bad and lose their composure. So, I hope you won't dwell on it anymore."
Before talking with them, Mu Anxiao had been resentful of Feng Qishi for misunderstanding her, even wanting to sever ties with him.
But after talking with them, she suddenly came to her senses.
Indeed, Feng Qishi had been so happy when he accepted Lin Yan as his disciple that day. And less than a day later, his disciple died. If it were her, she wouldn't be able to bear it either.
Perhaps, she too would have believed the demon soul's words and misunderstood him!