Chapter 192: We Will See Each Other Again Soon

Chu Chuyan let out a series of whimpers. She instinctively tried to push away the man on top of her, but she couldn't move an inch. As she felt his dominance, her cries grew weaker and weaker.

Soon, a chill ran through her as she felt her clothes slide completely off to the side. Her mind was in turmoil. Was she truly going to surrender herself to the man before her, right here?

From a young age, she had been the ducal estate's beloved treasure. With her breathtaking beauty and extraordinary cultivation talent, she was always the center of attention, adored by many wherever she went. Most men felt too unworthy to pursue her, keeping their affections buried deep within their hearts.

Only a select few, the most outstanding men in every aspect, would dare to express their admiration, but she had never been swayed in the slightest.

Her envisioned true love was a peerless hero, someone she could adore like a small woman, who would cherish and love her unconditionally.

However, she herself was already exceptionally accomplished; few could surpass her, not even among the older generation, let alone her peers. Therefore, the hero of her dreams simply didn't exist, and she could only satisfy her childhood fantasies by reading about fictional characters in storybooks.

Yet, the more perfect the male protagonists in those stories were, the more her heart closed off in reality, making her increasingly disdainful of ordinary men.

So, when it came time to marry, she simply chose a notoriously useless man from the city, for in her eyes, whether a man was considered excellent or mediocre by the world, he was equally worthless.

To her, Zu An was merely a shield. Perhaps after decades of living together, they might develop a bond somewhere between kinship and friendship, but she had never once considered that love could bloom between them, nor did she ever see him as her true man.

However, too much had happened during this expedition into the secret realm. She still remembered how he had remained by her side through life-and-death situations, his warm embrace protecting her fiercely during their bloody battles.

As her thoughts swirled, she had no idea the profound impact her flawless, jade-like body, sculpted as if from ice and snow, had on the man.

Feeling the man's heavy pressure, her heart pounded as if it would burst. She was about to protest, but it was already too late.

The moment Zu An broke through her final barrier, her emotional defenses crumbled completely.

Chu Chuyan stared blankly at the man before her, clear tears silently tracing paths down her cheeks. She didn't understand why she was crying; it was as if her body's reactions were completely beyond her control.

...

Meanwhile, Qiao Xueying sat near the entrance of this level, feeling utterly forlorn.

Earlier, she had withheld something from Zu An: the "Half-Life Bond" was a technique only a very few among her clan could perform, and even those who could might never use it in their lifetime. If used, it was always for a deeply beloved partner—indeed, from ancient times, the "Half-Life Bond" was exclusively employed for one's lovers.

"What a huge loss!" Qiao Xueying bit her lip tightly, her small boots restlessly kicking pebbles on the ground. The thought that her "Half-Life Bond," originally intended for her beloved, had ended up being used on someone else's husband, made her even more depressed.

Her mood grew increasingly agitated as she imagined the two of them celebrating their wedding night inside. The force behind her kicked pebbles grew, peppering the opposite wall with holes.

...

After an unknown amount of time, Chu Chuyan's icy gaze on the stone platform gradually softened. The tear stains on her cheeks had long dried, but her eyes still seemed to hold a pool of shimmering autumn water.

She seemed to feel a faint return of strength in her limbs. Her lingering modesty and shyness instinctively made her want to push the man off her, but he rudely pinned her aside.

Never in her life had Chu Chuyan felt so powerless. She was secretly frustrated; normally, she could subdue him with a single finger, yet now he was having his way with her. She vowed that once she recovered, she would make him understand what true strength was.

However, the moment this thought arose, it was immediately swept away by him.

Chu Chuyan's cheeks burned. Her faint resistance gradually transformed into unwitting cooperation.

A moment later, Mi Li's voice, transmitted directly into her mind, suddenly sounded in her ear: "Focus your mind and circulate your vital energy according to the chant I taught you, to completely refine that precious essence."

Chu Chuyan trembled, her entire body flushing crimson. So, everything that had just happened had been witnessed.

A complex mixture of shyness and embarrassment flooded her, making her feel as though she might go mad.

"Don't get distracted!" Mi Li's voice rang out again.

Chu Chuyan was, after all, an exceptionally skilled cultivator with strong willpower and judgment. Given the situation, she knew it would be too great a waste to miss this opportunity.

So, she followed the chant, drawing the man's vital energy to nourish her broken and injured meridians. Unfortunately, several times, just as she reached a crucial point, his actions disrupted the flow.

She bit her lip tightly, her jade-like cheeks burning. She wanted to remind him, but her overwhelming shyness prevented her from speaking, so she endured it in silence.

In truth, she had misunderstood Zu An. It wasn't that he lacked tenderness; on the contrary, he had been carefully helping her reconnect her broken meridians. However, his body had just been completely reforged by the Primordial Chaos Qi, making his physical strength far beyond that of ordinary people, and Chu Chuyan, being inexperienced, was too delicate, which led to this outcome.

Chu Chuyan circulated the chant Mi Li had taught her for a while. For some reason, her consciousness gradually grew hazy.

Zu An suddenly felt a stir and looked up to see Mi Li standing nearby.

He was startled and quickly pulled a garment over both of them. "Empress Sister, what are you doing? While I don't mind much, Chuyan is shy..."

"Don't worry, she can't see anything," Mi Li said.

Zu An paused, then looked down and saw the blank look in Chu Chuyan's eyes, startling him. "What's wrong with her?"

"Nothing, I just have something to tell you," Mi Li replied.

Zu An looked embarrassed. "Um, could we perhaps talk about this another time? This situation... won't it offend Your Majesty?"

Mi Li ignored his words and said flatly, "I came to bid you farewell."

"Farewell? You're leaving?" Zu An quickly asked.

"You lifted my seal and rescued me, and I kept my promise to help save your little wife. With everything done, of course, I must leave," Mi Li slowly replied.

"But for you to leave just like this, I'm quite reluctant," Zu An couldn't help but sigh. For some reason, his previously joyful mood suddenly felt a little empty.

Had they developed a deep friendship during their time together?

Bah, it was probably just because the Empress was beautiful.

Glancing at Chu Chuyan, Zu An felt a bit of self-contempt for having such random thoughts in this situation.

Scoundrel!

"You'll miss me?" Mi Li showed a faint, unreadable smile. "Perhaps we'll meet again sooner than you think."

Zu An sighed. "You are a lofty divine being, with high cultivation and noble status—even though the Great Qin has fallen, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. How could we possibly have any more interactions?"

"'A starved camel is still bigger than a horse'... why does that sound so strange to me?" Mi Li snorted. "Don't be so quick to lament. Perhaps the next time you see me, you'll wish you never had."

"How could that be? Empress Sister is so beautiful; who wouldn't want to see her, unless he's not a man!" Zu An declared emphatically.

Mi Li, for the first time, let out a string of bell-like laughter. "I hope you remember what you just said."

As soon as her voice faded, she vanished.

Zu An felt a pang of loss, but he quickly recovered and continued to circulate the Primordial Chaos Sutra to heal Chu Chuyan.

Mi Li's figure reappeared outside the energy barrier she had constructed. She raised her hands, and a red teardrop appeared in the palm of her left hand. A long red thread extended from the teardrop's end, winding up her arm and out of sight.

But she knew that the two red threads from both hands had already spread through her entire body; her whole being was likely now laced with these red threads, just a step away from her heart.

"It seems Zhang Han wasn't exaggerating. The 'Xiangfei's Red Tears' can indeed poison even an Earth Immortal." A trace of hatred flashed across Mi Li's brows. "Ying Zheng, Ying Zheng, I can't believe even in death you won't let me go!"

After a moment, a look of struggle crossed Mi Li's face. "At this point, there's no other way."

A black vortex suddenly appeared in her eyes, followed by a transparent phantom emerging from her body. Any onlooker would have noticed that this phantom was identical to Mi Li.

The phantom flew into the air, then turned to stare blankly at the body on the ground.

Her body was suddenly covered in countless dense red threads. The next moment, her entire form disintegrated into countless shimmering specks, which vanished completely as a chilling breeze swept through.

Witnessing this, the phantom secretly sighed. "Ying Zheng, Ying Zheng, I endured for thousands of years, and yet, no sooner had I escaped than I fell into another one of your traps. But do you truly think this can kill me?"

The phantom extended a hand, flicked a helmet to the side, then, with a flash, swiftly passed through the energy barrier and instantly slipped into Chu Chuyan's body on the stone platform.

Chu Chuyan's previously hazy eyes now also showed the same black vortex that had appeared earlier.

However, Zu An happened to be distracted by a sound from behind him and turned to look, thus missing this sight.

When he turned back around, Chu Chuyan's eyes had returned to normal.

Seeing the beauty staring blankly at him, Zu An gently wiped away the fine sweat from her temples and softly said, "I thought Mi Li had come back. You gave me quite a fright."

"Chu Chuyan" looked at him coldly. "Do you dislike her return that much? That's not what you said just now."

Zu An shook his head. "It's not dislike; it's just that her power is immense, and having been sealed for thousands of years, one never knows if she's human or ghost. It's always a bit stressful."

"Chu Chuyan" slowly raised a hand and reached behind him. Her nails gradually lengthened, stopping at the center of his back. "Then do you think she's human or ghost?"