Re-birth: The Beginning after the End-Chapter 200: LITTLE FIREFLY & MIAN MIAN

"Master," she greeted, her voice a melodic whisper that carried in the quiet pavilion. Her ruby eyes turned slowly toward Li Hua, narrowing with a mixture of curiosity and unmistakable wariness.

"Hmm?" Mo Xing responded, his attention still partially focused on adjusting the barrier's parameters.

Mian Mian hopped closer to his ear, her shadow-feathers ruffling with evident agitation. "Do you plan to stay with this woman forever?" she whispered, though not quite softly enough to prevent the words from reaching Li Hua's sensitive hearing.

Li Hua found herself unconsciously leaning forward, fingers stilling on the ancient text before her.

Mo Xing's hands paused in their intricate movements, golden eyes lifting to meet Li Hua's gaze directly across the pavilion. A smile curved his lips—not the teasing smirk he often wore, but something deeper, more genuine.

"And if I do?" he replied, not bothering to lower his voice, the three simple words carrying weightier implications than any elaborate declaration could have conveyed.

The silence that followed stretched between them, filled with unspoken histories and futures neither was ready to fully acknowledge.

"Master?" Little Firefly's voice echoed in Li Hua's consciousness, a warm presence brushing against her thoughts. "May I emerge as well?"

Li Hua hesitated momentarily, watching as Mo Xing and Mian Mian continued their hushed exchange, their whispers too low now to distinguish individual words. Something about their secretive communion sparked a subtle possessiveness she hadn't known she harbored.

"Yes, come out," she agreed softly.

A mote of golden light manifested above her palm, expanding in gentle spirals until it coalesced into Little Firefly's delicate form. Unlike Mian Mian's shadow-wrought appearance, Little Firefly embodied radiance—his golden wings shimmered with amber light that cast a warm glow across Li Hua's features. The diminutive spirit beast settled on Li Hua's shoulder.

The reaction was immediate and unexpected. Mian Mian's whispers ceased abruptly, her ruby eyes widening in what could only be described as shock—perhaps even recognition. The obsidian bird let out a startled chirp that sounded almost like a gasp, her wings flaring defensively.

Li Hua frowned slightly. Spirit beasts often displayed territorial behavior around others of their kind, but Mian Mian's reaction suggested something beyond simple dominance posturing. The obsidian bird seemed genuinely unsettled by Little Firefly's presence, as if confronted with something impossible rather than merely unexpected.

Mo Xing's expression shifted subtly, his golden eyes narrowing as they moved between the two spirit beasts with calculated assessment. A flicker of something—realization? confirmation?—crossed his features before his practiced mask of casual amusement returned.

"Well," he said lightly, though Li Hua could detect the faintest strain beneath his casual tone, "it seems our companions have much to discuss as well. I almost forgot to have you introduce him."

Li Hua reached up to gently stroke Little Firefly's luminous wing, simultaneously directing a thought toward the spirit beast's consciousness. What's wrong, Little Firefly? You seem disturbed.

The golden sparrow remained fixated on Mian Mian, tiny form trembling not with fear but with what seemed like profound emotion. Master, Little Firefly responded, the mental voice wavering, everything here feels... familiar. Not this place, but this configuration—you, me, this man and his spirit beast. It resonates with something deep within my soul, as if... A pause stretched between them. As if we've always existed together.

Little Firefly's wing tips began to emit a subtle golden light that reached toward Mian Mian like tendrils of sunlight breaking through storm clouds. I know her, Master. I can't explain how, but I know her.

Li Hua glanced between the two spirit beasts, then at Mo Xing, whose expression had grown unusually still, golden eyes reflecting both caution and what might have been anticipation. The tension in the pavilion shifted, no longer merely between two cultivators with their complicated attraction, but between four beings whose connections apparently transcended their current incarnations.

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"Your spirit beast seems quite... illuminating," Mo Xing remarked, his casual tone belied by the intensity of his gaze. "I don't believe you've formally introduced us."

"Yes, I suppose I haven't," Li Hua acknowledged, then hesitated. Her brow furrowed slightly as she recalled Elder Fu's warning. "Though perhaps this isn't the best time or place for names, given what we learned about the forest's—"

"The barriers I've established prevent such concerns," Mo Xing interrupted, his voice carrying quiet certainty. "Multiple layers of sound dampening, spiritual isolation, and perception redirection. Nothing we say here will reach the forest's consciousness." A ghost of his usual smile returned. "I'm quite thorough when privacy is required."

Li Hua pursed her lips, studying him with narrowed eyes before offering a slight nod of acceptance. She watched as Mo Xing moved from the perimeter to settle beside her, close enough that she could feel the subtle heat that always seemed to radiate from his form.

"This is Little Firefly," she said finally, gesturing to the golden spirit on her shoulder. The formal introduction felt strangely significant, as if acknowledging something that extended far beyond a simple introduction. "My spirit beast and companion."

Mian Mian tilted her head, ruby eyes blinking once before she made a decision. With a graceful hop, the obsidian bird left Mo Xing's shoulder and glided to the low table between them. Her feathers seemed to absorb the pavilion's light, creating a small pool of shadow wherever she moved.

Little Firefly responded without prompting, floating down from Li Hua's shoulder to land on the table as well. The two spirit beasts faced each other across the polished wood, a study in perfect contrasts—one formed of concentrated light, the other sculpted from living shadow.

The two spirit beasts began to circle each other on the table's surface, neither threatening nor particularly friendly—simply... assessing, as if confirming something long suspected. Their movements created a mesmerizing pattern, Little Firefly's golden aura and Mian Mian's shadow essence occasionally brushing against each other where they passed, creating brief flickers of something ancient and powerful.

"I know you from somewhere," Mian Mian said, her melodic voice carrying a note of bewilderment. "But I cannot place when or where our paths have crossed."

Little Firefly paused mid-step, luminous wings folding against his small form. "Do you remember your existence before bonding with your master?" The question held more weight than its simple words suggested.

Mian Mian tilted her head, ruby eyes narrowing in concentration. "Not clearly," she admitted after a moment. "I recall being trapped in endless darkness, suspended in a void where time had no meaning. Then one day, light pierced through—white and blinding—and I took flight toward it." Her obsidian feathers rippled with the memory. "I was drawn to Master from that moment, as if following a thread woven into the fabric of existence itself." She fixed her gaze on Little Firefly. "And you?"

"Similar, yet different," Little Firefly responded, his form brightening slightly. "I existed in perfect awareness yet complete immobility, watching as epochs passed and the world transformed around me. When Master's essence called to mine, it felt less like a new beginning and more like..." The spirit hesitated, searching for the right words. "More like awakening from a dream into a familiar reality I'd always known awaited me."