"I… didn't I already offer myself as a sacrifice?"
Xiao Wu's voice was so faint it was almost inaudible.
"Wasn't I… dead?"
Bai Mu bent down beside her, his expression calm and composed.
"Sister Xiao Wu, you promised to entrust everything to me," he said gently.
"How could I let you disappear so easily?"
He explained without embellishment:
"The moment I obtained the soul skill, the first thing I did was revive you."
Xiao Wu froze.
"Revive… me?"
Her eyes slowly turned toward him, filled with disbelief.
"The soul skills I left behind—none of them can resurrect the dead," she whispered.
"If such a power existed… my mother would never have stayed gone."
"You don't need to understand it now," Bai Mu replied evenly.
"Just know this—your fate is no longer separate from mine."
Xiao Wu closed her eyes.
She felt exhausted beyond words.
Death had not freed her.
Instead, it had bound her even tighter.
Bai Mu handed her a small portion of food.
"You've only just returned. Your body needs strength."
After a long hesitation, Xiao Wu accepted it. Warmth spread through her body, easing the emptiness left by death.
Her condition stabilized slightly.
Bai Mu observed her carefully.
"How do you feel?"
Xiao Wu checked herself, her face turning pale.
"My soul power has dropped… to Rank Ten. My foundation is damaged. My future cultivation speed may never recover."
Once, she had been born with true full innate soul power—something few could rival.
Now, it was gone.
"I see," Bai Mu said quietly.
He did not mock her.
Nor did he comfort her excessively.
"This is the price of defying death," he continued. "But it also means you're alive."
Xiao Wu let out a bitter laugh.
"Alive… but no longer free."
She gathered her courage and spoke carefully:
"Since you no longer need me right now… can you send me back? I want to see my brother—just once."
Bai Mu's expression cooled instantly.
"That won't happen," he said flatly.
"You made a choice. That choice severed your past."
Seeing her trembling, he continued more calmly:
"If you remain obedient and recover properly, I may allow you to meet familiar faces in the future. But not now."
Xiao Wu fell silent.
She finally understood.
There was no bargaining left.
Bai Mu turned away, his voice measured and controlled.
"Rest. Recover your strength. Your life has been returned to you—but it now carries purpose."
Xiao Wu lay there quietly, tears sliding down the corners of her eyes.
She had crossed death's boundary—
Only to awaken in a future that no longer belonged to her.
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