A familiar yet unfamiliar figure flashed through Dong Qianqiu's memory.
Just seeing that figure made Dong Qianqiu's heart ache, and tears welled up in her eyes once more.
Seeing Dong Qianqiu's expression, Gu Xun frowned and reached for a tissue to wipe away her tears.
"What's wrong?"
"I... I don't know. This birthmark feels so familiar, like it belongs to someone very important to me."
"Very important?"
Gu Xun looked utterly confused, and Paopao looked just as baffled. Gu Xun pondered for a moment—perhaps the person important to Dong Qianqiu was Xiao Bai.
Xiao Bai, the First Sea God's mount—the Demon Spirit Great White Shark King. Gu Xun recalled Xiao Bai had been devoured by the Demon Empress.
In the end, the Demon Empress was slain by Tang Hao, so Xiao Bai's soul was freed?
Then, since the Demon Spirit Great White Shark Clan's royal bloodline belonged to Dong Qianqiu, and Dong Qianqiu had no mate...
Xiao Bai reincarnated here? Gu Xun found the notion absurd, yet the concept of reincarnation did exist in the Douluo Continent.
Didn't Tang San and Xiao Wu follow this path? During the Ultimate Fighting Era, he directly reincarnated onto the Fairy Continent of Falan Planet.
[T/N: This talks about Soul Land 5]
Thus, even though Gu Xun deemed this idea ridiculous, he couldn't shake the feeling it might be true.
Proverb... If one were to release the three Deep Sea Demon Whales, could the Demon Whale King, the Demon Empress, and Tang Buddha also be reincarnated?
The Demon Whale King likely couldn't—its soul resides within Tang San's Spirit bone. As for the Demon Empress... her soul seemed devoured by the Abyssal Saint.
If the Demon Spirit Great White Shark and the Deep Sea Demon Whale became friends, that would be fascinating!
Gu Xun thought it was worth a try—it sounded like fun. But now clearly wasn't the time for games.
Gu Xun patted Dong Qianqiu's back as if to comfort her. Dong Qianqiu took the tissue Gu Xun offered and wiped away her tears.
"Thank you. I think I've recalled some more memories."
Dong Qianqiu's eyes were slightly reddened. She looked at Gu Xun with gratitude, and Gu Xun nodded in return.
"Then congratulations on recovering some memories. I hope you regain all of them soon."
"Thank you."
Dong Qianqiu reached out to stroke Paopao, her mind constantly drifting back to that figure who had brought her so much warmth.
But whenever she thought of that figure, she felt profound sadness and grief, as if she had lost something incredibly important.
"Feeding time. Want to try feeding Paopao?"
Gu Xun brought out a bucket and filled it with a bunch of ten-year-old crucian carp. Hearing this, Dong Qianqiu perked up with interest.
"Sure, sure! I'll feed it!"
Upon seeing it was feeding time, Paopao immediately began wagging its tail happily. Gu Xun watched his little shark, which seemed to have been raised like a dolphin, wondering if he'd spoiled it.
"Wait, is this even a shark? I thought sharks were natural predators. Why does it look so clear-eyed and innocent?"
Gu Xun observed its clear eyes. Over the past month, Paopao seemed to have befriended the fish living in the lake.
Wait, what? A shark and a carp are friends? Huh?
Dong Qianqiu froze upon hearing this, then glanced at Paopao, noticing its rather dim-witted, goofy demeanor.
Dong Qianqiu began to doubt whether Bubble was truly a shark. Shouldn't a shark's gaze be sharp and piercing? But this one...
It was like a Siberian Husky had snuck into a pack of wolves. The other wolves had sharp eyes, while the Husky hung its tongue out, its eyes revealing pure, innocent stupidity.
It was probably that kind of feeling. For a moment, Dong Qianqiu fell silent, pausing the motion of feeding the fish.
"Um... she... probably, maybe... possibly... perhaps... is a shark... at least species-wise."
Dong Qianqiu didn't know what else to say. Maybe this was the difference between domesticated and wild.
"Whatever. She's my little shark anyway. Being a bit dumb doesn't matter. She's kinda cute when she's silly."
Gu Xun said this while shooting Dong Qianqiu a meaningful look. Dong Qianqiu froze under his gaze.
"Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Nothing. Just thinking that your martial soul is also a Great White Shark. So now I have two silly sharks at home."
Dong Qianqiu instantly realized Gu Xun was calling her dumb. Furious, she leapt to her feet and smacked him square in the chest with a pink fist.
"You're the dumb one! I'm perfectly smart!"
"Alright, I won't tease you anymore. Paopao's waiting to be fed."
"Hmph!"
After a few grumbles, Dong Qianqiu sat down with Gu Xun to feed Paopao.
Dong Qianqiu placed a crucian carp in front of v, who immediately opened its wide mouth and snapped at the fish.
Finding feeding the little shark rather amusing, Dong Qianqiu continued the task.
Time passed slowly. Once Paopao had eaten her fill, she performed a somersault for Gu Xun and Dong Qianqiu before swimming off to play with the other fish.
However, the moment the other fish spotted Paopao, they scattered like they'd seen the plague, darting away at top speed. Paopao, unfazed, trailed leisurely behind them.