CHAPTER 589: CHAPTER 589: WOKE UP

"These emotions will destroy you. If you let them in, they will kill you. And if you die, you will fail your mother. You will not be able to protect her wish."

Something inside Gu Jin cracked. Suddenly, she shouted, her voice shaking but loud.

"No! I will not! I need to go back to them. They are real! My emotions are real, and I can feel them! Since my mother is alive, I do not need to carry that promise anymore. If I want to die, I can die however I want. She will not force me to live this time. I am free! And I have my family now. I can show emotions. I am not alone anymore. And there is someone outside waiting for me. He loves me, and I can feel his warmth too!"

The voice that had always been calm suddenly grew harsh. "Have you forgotten everything you learned in the Mafia World?"

Gu Jin’s entire body stiffened. Her heart turned cold, and a numb feeling spread through her limbs. She shivered, her hands curling into fists.

The voice pressed on, its tone sharp like a blade.

"In the Mafia World, you learned the truth. Trust no one. Love no one. Anyone you love will betray you, or they will die, or they will leave you. Do you really want that to happen again?"

Gu Jin’s lips trembled. Her voice came out weak, like a child’s. "No... I do not want that."

"Then forget about him," the voice commanded. "Do not believe his love. If you believe, you will only get hurt. Remember, he refused your proposal at the start. Do you think he truly loves you now?"

Gu Jin’s face froze. Conflict filled her eyes. She wanted to speak, but the voice did not give her the chance.

"And what about Gu Aihan?" the voice pressed.

"If Gu Aihan had not stepped back, do you think Long Yifan would be with you? No. His affection for you is only a shadow. If you believe in it, you are a fool. Maybe he is only with you because he could not have Gu Aihan. Maybe he only saw similarities between you two. Do you really want to trust such love?"

Gu Jin’s body shook. She covered her ears, shaking her head hard. "No... stop it. You are speaking nonsense. It does not make sense!"

But the voice would not stop. It sounded colder than ever.

"You can pretend not to see the signs, but I will not. Listen to me, Gu Jin. If you keep these emotions, if you keep that person in your heart, it will lead you to your destruction. You will die because of it. This is your last warning."

Gu Jin pressed her hands harder over her ears, her face pale. She whispered again and again, "You are wrong... you are wrong... he loves me... they love me... my family is real... my emotions are real."

But deep inside her heart, doubt had already planted its seed.

..................................

The next day, when Gu Jin woke up, she stared at her family members who were waiting by her side. Their eyes were full of worry, but when they saw her awake, their faces lit up with joy.

"Jin’er, you are awake!" Madam Gu rushed to hold her hand.

Gu Jin blinked slowly. Her throat felt dry, but she forced a smile.

Seeing her smile, Gu Jichun jumped forward. "Sister! You scared us so much. We thought you would not wake up." One by one, they hugged her tightly.

Her father’s eyes even turned a little red. "You must never do that to us again. Do you understand? We cannot bear losing you."

Hearing all this, Gu Jin stayed quiet for a moment. Then, in a small and soft voice, she asked, "Will you truly stay beside me for a long while?"

The Gu family froze. Their hearts ached hearing her words. Madam Gu quickly nodded, tears shining in her eyes. "Of course we will. No matter what happens, we will always stay with you."

Her siblings also nodded one after another. "Yes! We will never leave you."

Gu Jin finally gave them a smile, though her eyes still carried a trace of pain.

For many days after that, the Gu family treated her like a treasure. They did not scold her even once.

They kept asking what she wanted to eat or where she wanted to go. One day, her father even said, "If you want to travel somewhere, just tell me. We will book the ticket right away."

But Gu Jin only shook her head. "I just want to stay by your side."

So for a week, she spent her time quietly with them, eating together, walking in the garden, listening to their laughter. She tried to feel the warmth of family, and sometimes it made her smile.

Yet deep inside her, the voice from before still echoed faintly, leaving her with doubts.

Finally, the day came when she had to leave for Lightning Mountain. Long Yifan insisted on going with her.

When he arrived, he smiled at her gently. "This time, let me stay by your side. It will be safer."

Gu Jin only gave a slight nod. Her face was calm, almost cold. It was as if a thin wall stood between them.

At first, Long Yifan thought maybe it was only his imagination. But as they spent more time together on the road, he realized she truly avoided him. She did not smile at him.

She ignored his words as if he was not there. His heart ached, but he said nothing.

"Did someone tell her something bad about me?" he wondered. But soon he guessed the truth.

"Maybe she faced something in her inner world when she fainted. Something that made her act like this."

He could only hope she would heal with time.

After a long journey, they finally reached Lightning Mountain.

Despite its name, the mountain did not look like a place full of thunder.

At the base were narrow paths, green trees, and rocky cliffs. Because the paths were too tight, teleportation arrays were useless.

Travellers either hiked or used special buses. Long Yifan drove his own car there.

When they reached the entrance, he parked the car and stored it in his storage space. He turned to her and asked, "Do you want to rest here or should we continue?"

Gu Jin did not reply. She only walked forward, her long robe brushing the ground.

Long Yifan gave a small sigh and followed.

On the way up, they met several mutated beasts. A wolf with shining blue fur jumped out from behind a rock, its fangs sharp. Before Gu Jin could even lift her hand, Long Yifan released a bolt of thunder. The beast cried out and fell to the ground.

Another time, a giant snake slithered toward them, spitting venom. Long Yifan frowned and used his psychic element to control its body, then finished it with a strike of thunder.

Through all of this, Gu Jin stayed quiet. She only kept walking ahead, her face calm. She did not even try to help him fight.

Long Yifan glanced at her. He was stunned, but he was not disappointed. Instead, he quickened his steps and cleared the path for her again and again.

But Gu Jin’s heart was full of complicated feelings. Whenever she looked at him, she felt a strange numbness. Her instinct told her to avoid him, so she did. She believed that if she kept her distance, everything would be fine.

Maybe Long Yifan sensed it too, because during the whole journey he never made any jokes or teased her like before. He only focused on protecting her quietly.

Along the way, they also saw other travellers. Some were camping in tents. Some were climbing the steep rocks. Many of them talked excitedly about the thunder mystic seed.

"I heard it is hidden deep inside the storm," one man whispered to his friend.

"Yes, but to reach it, you must cross rivers of thunder. Many have tried, but not many returned," the friend replied.

Gu Jin listened silently, her eyes thoughtful.

After many hours, they finally reached the edge of the thunder field.

From where they stood, the land stretched forward for several kilometers. But unlike the mountain path, this place was covered in dark black stone.

Lightning crashed down again and again, leaving deep marks on the ground. The air trembled with each strike, and the sky above was filled with rolling purple clouds.

Gu Jin looked at the storm in silence. "So this is where the thunder mystic seed is."

Long Yifan nodded, his expression serious. "Yes. It lies at the very center. Can you see that faint glow in the distance?"

Far away, through the storm, a soft light shone. It looked small from where they stood, but it was brighter than anything else in that land.

"That glow is the seed," he continued. "But to reach it, we must pass through all of this."