Under the starry sky, everything falls into silence.
The night breeze gently carries the scent of flowers from an unknown place, along with faint roars of demons and monsters, gradually dissipating into the wind.
Only the sound of paper folding remains.
In the empty courtyard, it is particularly clear.
Like a lighthouse on the dark sea, it is so noticeable that it’s hard to miss.
“Creak—”
Xu Xi pushes open the door and walks through the dim courtyard, easily finding the source of the sound—a familiar figure in red and white robes.
At this moment.
She is clumsily folding an old piece of paper with her disobedient fingers.
Xu Xi recognizes the paper.
It comes from the original book of the “Nourishing Origin Technique.”
After the development of the “Fool’s Technique,” the Nourishing Origin Technique became unnecessary waste, and no matter how it’s handled, Xu Xi wouldn’t feel heartbroken.
He only wonders what the girl is doing.
“Ahem—”
Xu Xi stands behind the girl.
In the narrow space illuminated by the faint moonlight.
He coughs lightly, trying to get the girl’s attention.
“Ugh, why can’t I get it right…”, the girl mutters to herself, completely oblivious to Xu Xi’s presence. She frowns, lying on the stone table, folding the paper.
So, Xu Xi raises his voice.
“Ahem!”
“!!!”
This time, the 17-year-old Wu Yingxue finally hears him.
She turns around quickly, startled, and instinctively grabs the Dragon-Patterned Long Spear beside her.
But upon seeing Xu Xi.
Her expression freezes.
“Mr… Mr. Xu? Why are you…”
Wu Yingxue’s voice trails off. She was about to ask why Xu Xi is here but suddenly realizes she might have disturbed his rest.
Thus, an apologetic look appears on her face.
“Sorry, Mr. Xu…”
“It’s fine.”
Xu Xi waves his hand, cutting off the girl’s apology.
The night’s tranquility is like a deep pool of stagnant water, swallowing all light, making everything dim and hard to discern.
But even so.
Xu Xi sees it.
The crumpled, uneven paper clutched in the girl’s hand.
“Yingxue, what are you doing?”
Faced with Xu Xi’s question, Wu Yingxue’s expression turns slightly awkward.
Her small, pretty face shifts through various emotions.
Finally, she admits sheepishly, “I’m folding flowers.”
“Folding flowers? You woke up just to do this?”
“Ah, no, actually… I didn’t sleep.”
Xu Xi is an Innate Martial Artist, while Wu Yingxue is at the Fifth Stage of Body Refinement, Blood Replacement.
Logically, Xu Xi, with his stronger physique, should have woken up earlier, but he saw the girl first.
The answer is simple.
After their farewell during the day.
Wu Yingxue didn’t sleep at all.
“I wanted to sleep, but once I lay down, I just couldn’t fall asleep,” like a playful child caught by a parent.
In the thick night, the girl explains with an awkward smile.
Tonight’s moonlight is dim, not very bright, casting a faint, hazy veil, highlighting the girl’s fumbling fingers.
“It’s fine, if you can’t sleep, then don’t.”
Xu Xi smiles reassuringly, putting the girl at ease.
Then.
His gaze focuses on the “flower.”
No, it’s more appropriate to call it a “crumpled piece of paper.”
Despite the girl’s insistence that she wanted to fold a flower, the product of her fingers resembles more of a randomly crumpled paper ball.
“?”
Facing Xu Xi’s puzzled look.
Wu Yingxue exclaims, “Because it’s too dark, I can’t see clearly! I was afraid of disturbing your sleep, so I didn’t dare to light a lamp!”
As if to prove something.
The girl quickly fetches an oil lamp from the room, the oil inside derived from demons, very durable.
“Sizzle—”
The flame rises, carving out a small space in the night with its weak light.
Though not bright.
Though very faint.
It’s enough to see the lines and small marks on one’s palms.
“Watch me,” Wu Yingxue takes a deep breath, lays the paper flat on the stone table, and slowly pinches the edges with her fingers.
Step by step, carefully.
Shaping the paper into—
A paper ball.
Starlight scatters like silver fragments, mixing with the faint moonlight, illuminating the silent scene and the inexplicable embarrassment that arises.
“I, actually…”
The girl hesitates, wanting to say more but stopping herself.
As if she still wants to argue something.
“Let me do it,” Xu Xi says helplessly, picking up the mangled paper ball and smoothing it out again.
His fingers precisely control the paper, folding it in half, then diagonally.
He works quickly, so fast that the girl’s eyes widen.
As if out of thin air.
The previous paper ball suddenly transforms into a paper flower, a strange, never-wilting flower with a white-brown surface.
“So amazing…”
“Wait, Mr. Xu, you know how to do this too?”
The girl first exclaims in awe, then looks at Xu Xi with a bewildered gaze.
She can’t connect the Xu Xi before her, who is skilled in martial arts and slays demons like dogs, with the image of someone who can fold paper flowers.
“I learned a bit when I was young.”
Seeing the girl’s disbelief, Xu Xi explains with a light laugh.
“So amazing, so amazing…”
Wu Yingxue murmurs.
Holding the not-so-precious paper flower, she gazes at the bright moon in the night sky, examining it over and over.
Her eyes filled with nostalgia.
She can’t put it down.
Seeing the girl like this, Xu Xi can’t help but ask, “Yingxue, why did you suddenly think of folding paper flowers in the middle of the night?”
“Actually…”
The girl hesitates for a moment, then finally reveals the reason.
She couldn’t sleep because she was thinking of her deceased parents. When she was young, Princess Dingyuan had taught her how to fold paper flowers.
“Back then, I wasn’t interested in folding paper flowers at all…”
“I only wanted to save the country and its people, to become a great hero…”
Wu Yingxue’s expression is somewhat desolate.
With a light flick of her finger, the paper flower spins in her hand.
Xu Xi rarely sees such an expression on the girl. In the past, Wu Yingxue always appeared strong.
But.
No matter how strong a person is, there are times when they feel lost.
“Mr. Xu, tell me…”
“In this world, where do people go after they die?”
Wu Yingxue looks down at the paper flower, asking such a question.
Xu Xi looks at the girl, at the night sky above her head, and answers in a gentle tone:
“In my hometown, there’s a saying that after people die, they turn into stars hanging in the sky, continuing to watch over their loved ones on earth. Whenever the stars shine brightly, it means they have come.”
“Is that so… That’s a nice saying.”
The girl smiles.
She knows it’s not true, but she likes it.
“Mr. Xu, teach me how to fold paper flowers. I want to learn.”
Youyou Novel provides book lovers with great online novels for free. If you like this site, please share it with your friends!
If you think “Life Simulation: Making the Female Sword Immortal Regret for Life” is a great novel, please paste the following URL and share it with your friends! Thank you!
![[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return](https://i3.wp.com/novelhitam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/TS-Obsessed-Gamer-The-Ultimate-Return2.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return")
