Xin Lan glared at him, not happy with what he had heard at all. Tian couldn’t do anything? Don’t make him laugh! This person was the so-called sovereign of all realms. Whether it was the skills of the dragons, demons, or gods, he had all of them. More than that! His abilities went far beyond that.

Just thinking of the Mark of Wisdom the fallen gods sported that allowed them to access the knowledge of the whole world, he was sure that Tian surely wouldn’t fall short. How could he not know what was going on with Hua Lin Yu’s past?

Tian saw that he wanted to argue but his expression didn’t change. “I know what you are thinking. And yes, I have many skills but changing emotions isn’t part of them. Nobody can do so.”

Xin Lan shook his head. “I’m not asking you to.”

At this, Tian’s lips actually curled up in a faint smile. “You are. You just don’t realize that. What you want,” he interrupted Xin Lan’s protest, “might not be for me to make Xiang Yu fall in love with you but you do expect me to somehow influence his feelings for Yan Xia. That is something I can’t do.”

He raised a hand, motioning at the palaces around them. “The fallen gods exist because of their emotions. Them being unable to control them is what makes their soul shatter in the first place and that will not be fixed on its own.

“For Xiang Yu, what made him fall was his love trial. No matter how bad of an idea it is, he loves Yan Xia and continues to do so. He has lost the capacity to make any rational decisions in regard to that man and merely acts based on instinct. That fact will not change no matter what you or I do.”

Xin Lan’s expression finally changed when he hurt that. “So there is no chance at all to win him back?”

Tian shook his head. “That is not what I am saying. You can. But it doesn’t depend on you. It depends on him.”

Xin Lan’s brows furrowed. It depended on him? But how? “If Xiao Yu is influenced by his past life to this degree, then surely, the outcome won’t change. Not to mention that this Xiao Li is a demon as well.”

Tian gave a hum. “He has some of their blood, at the very least. But that doesn’t matter. Even if he had less demonic blood or even if he was a full-blooded human, the attraction would still be there because his appearance touches upon the link to Yan Xia.”

He looked at Xin Lan for a while before lowering his gaze. “Actually, you can count yourself lucky. For the trials — even if it is the trial of a fallen god — the soul does not reincarnate normally and is not refined. Its state is exactly the same as before, the memories are still there, any imprint left behind in the last life as a god remaining untouched. All of it merely gets obscured.”

“I know.” Xin Lan had just been reminded of that over in the dragon realm when Jinde helped Qiu Ling obscure the memories in his soul. That was literally what the water from the River of Forgetfulness was for.

“You do but what you might not realize is that this means that remembering or at least … sensing is easy to do.”

Xin Lan’s eyes narrowed and he faintly tilted his head. “Sensing?” He chewed on that word for a moment and suddenly had a faint guess. “Hua Lin Yu, he doesn’t remember being that fallen god Xiang Yu but he has some access to his past life, doesn’t he?”

Tian nodded. “Yes. He can’t directly retrieve his memories but their impression is there. That is why he reacted to you the way he did when you first met: You felt familiar.”

Xin Lan could only stare blankly. He had felt that it was strange. Now, it turned out that there was such a reason behind it. Well, no wonder. “Then about Yan Xia …”

“Of course, it has an impact as well. He can’t remember him clearly either but there is a faint impression. In fact, it is stronger than the one he has of you because the time with Yan Xia was longer, spanning not just a trial but also some time as a trueborn god, and also the reason for his fall.

“They are … some of his most important memories. Their influence is bigger than that of others. As a result, his reaction to anything concerning Yan Xia will be bigger as well. A similar appearance touches upon that to a large degree but now imagine what could happen if he found the same soul.”

“The same … You mean …” Xin Lan’s expression turned horrified. “Yan Xia is dead. His soul …”

“Has gone to reincarnate, yes. Back then, Xiang Yu was a newly fallen god. He didn’t know his powers, he was in a state of agitation, and the killing blow he dealt was laced with some traces of magic. They shredded Yan Xia’s soul to the point where, when he was reincarnated, it wasn’t among the demons any longer although there is some remnant blood. Right now, he is in the mortal realm. If Xiang Yu were to meet him …”

Tian didn’t finish the sentence but his meaning was clear: Were Hua Lin Yu to meet the reincarnation of the man he was still hung up on, then forget about Xiao Li, Xin Lan would have a much bigger problem.

Xin Lan clenched his hands, his body actually trembling at the thought. There was still a fighting chance with Xiao Li and Bai Mu and he was willing to take it no matter how small but when it came to Yan Xia’s reincarnation themselves, he realized there would be no coming back.

He forced to give a strained smile, looking at Tian with his gaze still hollow. “The mortal realm is so big. It’s unlikely for them to meet, isn’t it?”

Tian gave a hum but his gaze was unreadable. Either way, he didn’t need to say anything. Xin Lan also knew that fate was unpredictable.

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