It's so hard being a hero!

Sophia descended slowly and landed at the city gate.

She looked up at the mottled plaque above the city gate. The three characters "Tianfeng City" were somewhat blurred, but they looked exactly the same as they had decades ago.

She took a deep breath and stepped inside.

The streets in the city were more than twice as wide as those in Kyle City, lined with shops on both sides. The clanging of blacksmiths, the smell of herbs wafting from the herbal shops, and the shouts from the taverns all blended together, creating a noisy and lively atmosphere.

People came and went on the street, most of them wearing leather armor or light travel clothes, with weapons hanging at their waists. Some carried bows and arrows, some carried large shields, and some magicians in robes hurried by.

Sophia walked among the crowd, looking at all this, and felt a mix of emotions.

"Sigh! It's still the same as always."

She said it in a low voice.

The most distinctive feature of Tianfeng City is its chaos, but this chaos is an orderly kind of chaos.

She turned right at the street corner and entered a slightly quieter alley.

At the end of the alley, there is a small clinic.

Sophia saw the sign from afar; the wooden plaque had four characters engraved on it: Lingxiang Medical Clinic.

Sophia stood in the alley, looking at the clinic, and remained silent.

What storms hadn't she weathered over the years? She'd been killed by Lilith and then reborn, but now she hesitated, a strange tension creeping into her heart.

She thought she had long since let go of that memory, but when she actually got here, she realized that some things were just hidden deep inside, not truly forgotten.

Inside the clinic, an old woman dressed in blue cloth was treating the wounds of some injured adventurers.

Her hair was gray, her face was covered with wrinkles, and her hands had lost their vitality, but her movements were still gentle and skillful.

Sophia stared at the old woman, completely stunned.

She recognized him at a glance.

Although nearly forty years have passed and the other person's appearance has aged so much that it is almost impossible to find any trace of what it used to be, those eyes and that temperament are exactly the same as in my memory.

This old woman is named Xiangyun. She is Su Lan's friend, a rather special friend.

Sophia stood at the door, her throat feeling as if something was blocking it, unable to utter a single word.

She just watched from afar, her eyes filled with struggle.

But in the end, she suppressed the urge to go forward and acknowledge them, turned around, and prepared to leave.

After all, so much time has passed, and she herself has died once and become a woman.

"Don't disturb her life. She's doing well now, with students and a clinic, living a simple and peaceful life. That's enough. I'm just a passerby in her life, just a passerby," Sophia murmured to herself.

However, before they had taken more than a few steps, a commotion suddenly broke out inside the clinic.

"Teacher, teacher, what's wrong?"

"Quickly, quickly help the teacher to bed."

Sophia stopped in her tracks when she heard the voice.

She quickly turned around and saw the old woman in blue lying on the ground in the clinic, clutching her chest and looking like she was in great pain.

Two young women and several teenage girls rushed over in a panic.

But the old woman's face grew paler and paler, her breathing became rapid, and large beads of sweat rolled down her forehead.

Without a second thought, Sophia turned and rushed toward the clinic.

"Excuse me, move aside, I know healing magic."

She pushed aside the adventurers surrounding the doorway and strode over to the old woman.

When the two young women saw her rush in, they were stunned for a moment, and then instinctively wanted to stop her.

"Hey, who are you?"

Sophia didn't have time to explain further. She quickly squatted down, placed her hand on the old woman's wrist, closed her eyes, and channeled her magic into the woman's body.

Upon seeing this, her expression immediately changed.

Because Xiangyun's life force was almost exhausted, her vitality was as weak as a candle in the wind, and she could be extinguished at any time.

Without much hesitation, Sophia quickly raised her hand and placed it on Xiangyun's chest, a warm golden glow emanating from her palm.

Light Magic Blessing of Life.

Warm, luminous energy flowed from her palms, slowly seeping into Xiangyun's body to strengthen her vitality.

The people around quieted down, because it was indeed healing magic.

You should know that people who understand healing magic are very few, and they are almost all controlled by the Vatican.

Chapter 73 Like a Different World

Under Sophia's healing power, Xiangyun's life force, which was as fragile as a candle flickering in the wind, gradually stabilized.

The people inside the clinic also quieted down.

After confirming that there was nothing wrong, Sophia removed her hand from Xiangyun's chest.

Xiangyun's breathing gradually returned to normal, and her lips regained some color.

"All done," Sophia said with a sigh of relief.

Upon hearing this, the two young women nearby immediately stepped forward to check on him and offer their greetings.

"Teacher, how are you feeling?"

Xiangyun's eyelids twitched, and then she opened her eyes.

Her gaze slowly focused.

The first thing she saw was a young, innocent face.

Xiangyun stared at that face, momentarily lost in thought.

Her expression turned incredulous, her lips trembled, and an indescribable emotion welled up in her eyes.

"Su Lan, my little brother? Have you come to pick me up?"

These were Xiangyun's first words after she woke up.

Her voice carried a cautious anticipation, as if afraid that everything before her was an illusion.

The words "Su Lan's younger brother" made Su Feiya's heart clench.

In that instant, she almost blurted out, "I'm back," but she swallowed the words back down.

Because she is no longer the Su Lan of the past.

So she slowly avoided Xiangyun's gaze, trying to calm herself down.

"Excuse me, sir, you've mistaken me for someone else."

However, Xiangyun seemed not to have heard Sophia's reply and continued to stare at her face.

Then he slowly glanced around again, and seemed to understand something.

But her cloudy eyes were still churning with emotion.

There are memories and longings, or perhaps an obsession that has not been let go for decades.

She never left Tianfeng City in her entire life.

But she never missed any news about that young man.

She had heard about every single thing Su Lan had done, from leaving Tianxing Academy to becoming an Imperial Warrior, to being named a Holy Son of the Holy See, and then to becoming an Imperial Grand Duke.

She was happy for him.

Because that young man is realizing his dream step by step.

She always waited in Tianfeng City, hoping that one day he would come back to see her.

She didn't ask for anything, because their ideals were different, and they were destined not to be on the same path.

But that day never came.

Later, she received news that Su Lan had died in battle.

That day she locked herself in her room all day, doing nothing but sitting by the window, staring blankly outside.

Later, she grew old and became a wrinkled old woman.

She devoted herself to teaching students and trained several doctors who could stand on their own, which made her life worthwhile.

But that place in her heart remained empty, and she never married because of it.

Now, that face appeared before her again.

Although she was a girl, her eyes were so familiar that they made her want to cry.

She knew her own body well, so when she saw the other person, she thought that the other person had come to pick her up.

"Old, old man?"

Sophia called out again.

Xiangyun seemed to be startled awake from a dream, blinked, and finally came to her senses.

She looked closely at the face in front of her, then slowly shook her head.

"You are not him."

Her voice carried a hint of disappointment, but more than that, a sense of relief.

The young woman next to her finally couldn't help but interject.

"Teacher, you've mistaken me for someone else. This young lady is the one who treated you just now. If it weren't for her, you would have..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but everyone understood what she meant.

After hearing this, Xiangyun gradually calmed down.

She looked at Sophia again, this time with a much clearer gaze than before.

"Thank you, little girl."