Chapter 190: Restoration Method

Mi Li's phoenix eyes narrowed. "A counter-move?"

Zhang Han slowly said, "Back then, His Majesty initially considered your past relationship and only sealed you away, without attempting to kill you..."

Before he could finish, Mi Li interrupted him with a sneer. "As if he could have killed me even if he wanted to!"

"That's right," Zhang Han replied. "Initially, His Majesty indeed couldn't kill you and could only seal you. But later, he found something that could kill you. However, considering you were already sealed, he entrusted it to me for safekeeping, in case it was needed in the future. I never thought we would actually have to use it."

"I'd like to see what could possibly kill me!" Mi Li sneered, clearly not taking it seriously.

Zhang Han chuckled sinisterly. "Have you ever heard of 'Crimson Tears of the Xiang Concubine'?"

"Crimson Tears of the Xiang Concubine?" Mi Li frowned, clearly having no recollection of it.

"Of course, you wouldn't remember," Zhang Han said, lost in thought. "This happened after you were sealed. Once, during an imperial tour, His Majesty encountered a great storm near Xiangshan Temple and could barely cross the river. He asked the High Priest, 'What kind of deity is Lord Xiang?' The High Priest replied, 'It is said to be the daughter of Emperor Yao and the wife of Emperor Shun, buried here.'"

"His Majesty was furious with Lord Xiang, believing the deity was deliberately defying him. So, he ordered all the trees on Xiang Mountain to be cut down."

"Just then, a single crimson drop fell from the sky. The entire land of Xiang Mountain turned red at a visibly rapid pace. Any soldier touched by it disintegrated into ash. That incident resulted in heavy casualties for His Majesty's guards, and His Majesty himself narrowly escaped harm. Afterward, some claimed it was Lord Xiang's wrath, a divine punishment. His Majesty then sent the High Priest and a group of cultivators to extract three drops of potent venom from that crimson mountain, naming it 'Crimson Tears of the Xiang Concubine.' His Majesty used one drop himself, and the remaining two were given to me for safekeeping, to prevent you from breaking free of your seal."

Mi Li scoffed. "Sounds quite mystical. I don't believe any poison could be that potent."

Zhang Han sighed deeply, looking towards the pool. "During the failed Battle of Zhangyu, two hundred thousand Qin soldiers were buried alive. But the Qin army was the world's elite, filled with masters. Even if they laid down their weapons, how could they be so easily massacred?"

Mi Li's heart stirred, and she blurted out, "Did you use this poison back then too?"

"Indeed," Zhang Han nodded, his voice still trembling. "One drop, just one drop of 'Crimson Tears of the Xiang Concubine.' Two hundred thousand elite Qin soldiers, bristling with masters, vanished into dust overnight. Two hundred thousand..."

Mi Li's expression suddenly changed. She raised her right hand and noticed a crimson tear-shaped pattern on her palm that hadn't been there before. The lower part of the tear suddenly extended into a thin red thread, which began to spread up her arm.

"Get out of me!" she shrieked, as an incredibly powerful aura burst forth. A surge of black qi poured down from her shoulder, instantly engulfing the thin thread, intending to expel it in one swift motion.

At her level of cultivation, most poisons were meaningless to her.

However, she quickly frowned. Though the red thread was thin, it was incredibly sharp and resilient; her vast qi dissipated without a trace upon contact. Even with all her might, she could only slightly slow its spread.

"It's no use. 'Crimson Tears of the Xiang Concubine' is a true deity's poison; it can even kill Earth Immortals. How could you possibly resist it?" Zhang Han's voice held little joy, but rather an inexplicable melancholy and fear. Clearly, using this poison brought back memories of the past, as a torrent of guilt, regret, and other emotions flooded his mind.

The three who had been watching the spectacle were stunned. Mi Li had appeared incredibly powerful, effortlessly beating Zhang Han like a dog. Had it all just been a shocking reversal?

Zu An mused that while Mi Li was fierce, Zhang Han was more terrifying to him. He found this outcome hard to accept and quickly said, "Cut off your hand quickly, before the poison reaches your heart!"

Zhang Han scoffed. "If 'Crimson Tears of the Xiang Concubine' were that easy to nullify, it wouldn't be known as a deadly poison capable of felling Earth Immortals. From the moment she was poisoned, the venom had already spread throughout her entire body. Cutting off her hand would be useless."

Mi Li turned her head, her phoenix eyes scrutinizing Zu An. "You don't wish for my death?"

Zu An replied, "How could I wish for Queen Sister to die? Putting everything else aside, simply from an aesthetic point of view, you're much more pleasing to the eye than Zhang Han."

Chu Chuyan and Qiao Xueying exchanged glances, thinking how audacious this man was to even flirt with such a powerful female zombie.

In their view, no normal person could live for such a long time. Mi Li was clearly a zombie, just like Zhang Han, but much more beautiful than an ordinary one.

Zhang Han was even more speechless; no one could be called ugly and remain unaffected.

Rage points from Zhang Han +444!

"You're courting death!"

Zhang Han transformed into a streak of black qi and lunged at Zu An. Even without his hands, the difference in their cultivation levels was so vast that he could easily kill Zu An, even if he were to fight with both hands and feet tied.

Zu An could have used his movement technique to evade, but then he thought of Qiao Xueying and Chu Chuyan behind him. What would happen to them if he dodged? So, he gritted his teeth and met the attack with the Tai'e Sword he had acquired earlier.

From a distance, Mi Li flicked her left sleeve. The Tai'e Sword in Zu An's hand seemed to be summoned, flying out of his grasp like a bolt of lightning. It pierced directly into Zhang Han's chest, and the powerful impact sent Zhang Han flying backward, pinning him against the stone wall mid-air.

Zhang Han looked down at the Tai'e Sword embedded in his chest, his face initially filled with disbelief. But soon, a look of relief washed over him as he murmured, "It's better to die, better to die. Living has been torment, torment for thousands of years. It's time to die..."

His voice gradually faded, and he finally lowered his head, breathing his last.

Zu An couldn't help but give Mi Li a thumbs-up. "You actually killed such a powerful Zhang Han in one move! My admiration for Queen Sister flows like a mighty river..."

"Flow my foot!" Mi Li interrupted him before he could finish. "Killing it isn't that easy. Ultimately, it simply didn't want to live anymore."

Hearing her words, Zu An couldn't help but look back at Zhang Han on the stone wall. For a moment, he suddenly understood him.

Back then, he emerged from reclusion during the empire's peril, saving it from collapse, and was on the verge of becoming the savior who would rebuild the Great Qin. Yet, after a devastating defeat, he surrendered to the enemy, leading to the massacre of Qin's last two hundred thousand main forces.

The empire's hero instantly became its greatest criminal. His heart must have been filled with extreme anguish.

His survival instinct led him to cling to a wretched existence, living like a ghost for all these years. Until today, with Zu An's pretense as Qin Shi Huang, Mi Li's broken seal, and the spirits of those two hundred thousand fallen soldiers seeking revenge, the convergence of familiar people and events seemed to transport him back to the past. It finally crushed his will, and he chose to embrace death.

As if hearing his thoughts and knowing he was understood, Zhang Han's body suddenly disintegrated into countless particles, scattering like dust in the wind.

With his death, the black ropes binding Chu Chuyan vanished. Zu An quickly rescued her from the altar. "Wife, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Chu Chuyan replied. Her meridians were still severed, leaving her completely weak. She sagged limply into his arms, a faint blush appearing on her fair face.

Noticing her body was as soft as cotton, Zu An frowned slightly. He quickly helped her into Qiao Xueying's embrace, then rushed over to Mi Li. "Queen Sister, are you alright from that poison?"

"You're probably asking how to save your little wife, aren't you?" Mi Li scoffed, seeing right through his pretense.

Zu An chuckled awkwardly. "I care about you too, of course! Is there anything I can do to help?" He then leaned in, intending to examine her arm.

Mi Li waved her hand dismissively and turned slightly, evading his gaze. "A mere trifle of a poison. What can it do to me?" she said coldly.

"That's good, that's good," Zu An sighed in relief. "Then, Queen Sister, can you fulfill your promise and tell me how to restore her?"

Mi Li's gaze flickered back and forth between Zu An and Chu Chuyan. Her expression clearly changed several times, as if she was making an extremely difficult decision.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?" Zu An's heart skipped a beat.

Mi Li shook her head but remained silent, simply looking at him with a strange expression.

Chu Chuyan, still weak, said, "With my meridians completely severed, even heaven can't save me. Why bother her? Don't worry, I promise I won't seek death anymore."

Zu An and Xue'er had risked their lives to save her. Even if she felt life held no meaning in her current state, she wouldn't want to betray their efforts.

Mi Li scoffed. "Hmph, don't try to provoke me. Saving you is easy. I was just thinking about something else."

Hearing there was a way to save her, Zu An was overjoyed. "Please enlighten me, Queen Sister."

Even Chu Chuyan's eyes gleamed with a sliver of hope. Though she spoke lightly, she had been a cultivation prodigy since childhood and naturally didn't want to spend the rest of her life as an invalid confined to a bed.

Qiao Xueying was also filled with curiosity. As far as she knew, there had never been a case of severed meridians fully recovering. What method could Mi Li possibly have?

"Haven't you learned the 'Primordial Chaos Scripture'?" Mi Li glanced at Zu An. "Primordial Chaos Qi is the purest essence from the universe's dawn, more refined and nourishing than ordinary qi. It can not only temper your body but also help others repair theirs."

Zu An's heart skipped a beat. "You... how did you know I learned the 'Primordial Chaos Scripture'?"

Mi Li scoffed. "Humph, Ying Zheng sealed the 'Primordial Chaos Scripture' in the Tai'e Sword, thinking I wouldn't know. Besides, even if I hadn't known, I could have sensed it the moment I saw you. A body tempered by Primordial Chaos Qi is vastly different from an ordinary person's."

"I see." Zu An was delighted and was about to treat Chu Chuyan.

Mi Li, however, stated, "However, tempering someone else's body is far less effective than tempering your own. This way, you can only help her regain basic mobility and self-sufficiency, but not her original cultivation strength."

Zu An's expression flickered. "That's not what you said before."

"Why are you panicking?" Mi Li glared at him, then continued, "Just recently, I learned something else that makes restoring her to her original state quite simple."