Chapter 202: The Scheming Woman

"You were all brave warriors loyal to Great Qin, but alas, you were betrayed by your own people and died unjustly," Mi Li paused, noting the angry expressions that appeared on the faces of the spirits. She then continued, "You were the last pillars of Great Qin. Soon after your deaths, the Guanzhong region fell, and our Great Qin was usurped by rebels."

"Therefore, I am as heartbroken as you are. We are not enemies, but comrades-in-arms in the same cause," Mi Li's tone shifted. "Who is the culprit responsible for all this?"

"Zhang... Han..."

The spirits roared in unison, and the entire pond seemed to boil. Chilling echoes resonated throughout the underground palace.

Zou An secretly clicked his tongue. These spirits had little sentience left, only instincts. Before this, they could only utter meaningless roars and were utterly unable to speak.

Yet, at this moment, they clearly spoke Zhang Han's name, demonstrating the depth of their hatred for him. Even as spirits, they remembered their enemy's name.

"That's right, it was Zhang Han. Our Great Qin entrusted him with great responsibility, yet he betrayed the court, surrendered to the rebels for his own selfish gain, and caused Great Qin's last main force to be massacred. He deserves death a thousand times over!" Mi Li declared with conviction.

Zou An subtly frowned. In truth, he felt some sympathy for Zhang Han. Zhang Han could have been a hero who turned the tide for Great Qin, but due to machinations by political enemies at court, he feared death whether he won or lost. He made a crucial mistake, choosing to surrender, and became an eternal sinner of Qin.

The massacre of his 200,000 Qin soldiers was also not his idea; unfortunately, at that point, he was powerless to stop it.

One wrong step led to another, and ultimately, there was no turning back.

Of course, sympathy aside, Zou An knew it wasn't the time to speak out. He simply observed from the side, waiting to see how Mi Li intended to conclude her act.

"Just now, I personally executed this traitorous minister, Zhang Han, avenging Great Qin and all of you," Mi Li said, winking at Zou An and sending him a telepathic message to throw the armor and spear into the pond. "These are his helmet and weapon!"

Zou An felt a pang of reluctance. Both the spear and the helmet, with their dark, lustrous sheen and tangible sense of weight, clearly indicated they were extraordinary artifacts. If they were to circulate outside, they would undoubtedly incite countless factions to vie for them. It seemed such a waste to simply discard them.

However, seeing countless spirits staring intently at him, he felt a shiver of apprehension. He had initially considered using this to lure them up but worried it would interfere with Mi Li's plan. In the end, he reluctantly abandoned this reckless idea.

As Zhang Han's helmet and spear landed in the pond, the spirits rushed forward as if driven mad, frantically lunging at the items as if they were Zhang Han himself, tearing into them with their open mouths.

Zou An watched, wide-eyed in disbelief. *This* was actually happening?

He knew that Zhang Han's spear and helmet were no less formidable than the current Tai'e Sword. And they were biting such divine weapons with their teeth?

But what shocked him even more came next: before long, the spear and helmet visibly began to diminish, and eventually, there was nothing left but dust.

Zou An was speechless.

After devouring Zhang Han's helmet and weapons, the angry spirits' expressions became significantly calmer, and many even showed a sense of peace.

Seizing the opportunity, Mi Li said, "You were transformed into vengeful spirits by your hatred for Zhang Han. Now that Zhang Han is dead, do you wish to continue existing in this state of neither life nor death, never finding peace?"

Hearing her words, countless spirits showed expressions of confusion and struggle, clearly indicating that their current state of restless existence was causing them great suffering.

"Your long-held obsession should now dissipate. Let go of everything and go reincarnate," Mi Li pressed on. "I will assist you. Soon, a Gate of Rebirth will appear here. Step through this gate, and you can embrace your next life."

Zou An was watching the scene unfold when suddenly, incantation words appeared in his mind. Mi Li's qi transmission instructed, "Activate the second layer of your *Primordial Chaos Scripture* to harness primordial energy, then cast this *Incantation of Rebirth* as follows..."

Zou An dared not delay and immediately complied, drawing on the primordial energy between heaven and earth while murmuring, "Dust to dust, earth to earth, this is not my home, what shouldn't stay, let go..."

As her words resonated, a large white gate suddenly materialized in the void. Initially, it was only palm-sized, but as the incantation continued, the gate grew larger and larger, eventually reaching several yards in height, exuding an unusual sense of sanctity and grandeur.

Zou An's eyes widened. Such a magnificent effect! He thought, if he used this to show off in the future, wouldn't everyone revere him?

He quickly looked towards Mi Li. This woman was truly mysterious; she knew so many incredible things.

However, to his surprise, Mi Li's figure had already vanished.

Had she left him?

A hollow feeling emerged in Zou An's heart, and he instantly became deeply disappointed.

Such a beautiful Queen sister, just like that, missed...

Mi Li: "..."

Rage points from Mi Li +555!

"He truly is a lecherous, shameless scoundrel!"

Zou An, however, was not angry but instead pleased. "You're still here! You scared me to death! Where did you go?"

"Nonsense, of course, I returned to the Tai'e Sword. With the Gate of Rebirth open, if I remained outside as a soul, I'd be waiting to be purified, wouldn't I?" Mi Li's annoyed voice replied.

Only then did Zou An recall that Mi Li had made the deal with him precisely because she feared purification. Unsure of the purification's effects, he quickly looked towards the white gate.

The white gate seemed to possess a mysterious allure. Countless spirits slowly emerged from the pond and walked towards the white gate in orderly lines. Each spirit's demeanor was serene, as if filled with hope for the next life.

A thin, watery film covered the white gate. As the spirits stepped through it, they vanished, as if entering another mysterious world.

Watching this scene, Zou An couldn't help but marvel at its wonder. "Is what's beyond the white gate the next life?"

"Of course not," Mi Li scoffed.

Zou An: "???"

Mi Li explained, "The concept of a next life is ethereal and illusory. Unless one is an incredibly powerful being, capable of reincarnation, ordinary people don't have a next life. This Gate of Rebirth is merely a purification spell. When these spirits step inside, they will be disintegrated into the most fundamental elements of heaven and earth, completely dissipating into the world."

Zou An was speechless.

This woman was simply too cunning. He had been genuinely moved by her impassioned speech just moments ago, only to find out it was all a deception?

From now on, he would have to take her words with a grain of salt, otherwise, he'd be counting money for her even after being sold out.

"Of course, for them, this isn't a bad end either, as being a vengeful spirit means never finding peace, even after death," Mi Li continued.

*I believe you, my foot!* Zou An thought.

However, he wasn't so pedantic as to go tell the spirits the truth.

"Don't waste this rare opportunity. Refine this scattered primordial energy," Mi Li reminded him.

Only then did Zou An realize that as the spirits gradually dissipated, the surrounding primordial energy became much more abundant than before. He hastily maintained the Gate of Rebirth while activating the *Primordial Chaos Scripture* to heal his injuries.

Chu Chuyan stood by, protecting him, while anxiously glancing at Qiao Xueying on the other side. Qiao Xueying's injuries were too severe; though not immediately fatal, a prolonged delay would put her in danger.

"Wife, I'm fine here. Go take care of Xue'er," Zou An said, opening his eyes to her.

Chu Chuyan hummed in acknowledgment. She had already been worried. In previous years, she and Xue'er had lived together, nominally as mistress and servant, but truly as sisters.

She approached Qiao Xueying, noticed she was in a semi-coma, and quickly channeled her vital energy into her. Although not as potent as primordial energy, it could still slowly help heal her injuries.

After an unknown period, Qiao Xueying slowly opened her eyes. Seeing that Chu Chuyan was saving her, her expression became complex. She quietly said, "Thank you."

Chu Chuyan hesitated for a moment, then calmly replied, "Don't thank me. A'Zu told me to save you."

Qiao Xueying smiled faintly. "You're always like this. You have a kind heart, but you're unwilling to admit many things verbally."

Chu Chuyan's face flushed. Their current relationship was somewhat awkward. Logically, as the other was an enemy spy who had infiltrated the Chu family, they should have been irreconcilable. Yet, she could never bring herself to hate this sister with whom she had spent so much time.

However, returning to their previous intimate relationship was also unlikely.

After a brief hesitation, she found a reason to change the subject. "By the way, weren't you and A'Zu like fire and water before? How do you feel your relationship has become so good now?"

Qiao Xueying quickly explained, "Don't misunderstand. There's nothing between him and me. It's purely a cooperative relationship. We fought side-by-side to save you before, so there's some camaraderie, nothing more."

Chu Chuyan couldn't help but smile. "I didn't say anything. Why are you so anxious?"

Qiao Xueying's cheeks flushed, and she stopped speaking, though her heart pounded fiercely. *What's wrong with me? I wasn't lying, so why do I feel guilty?*

Several hours passed before the 200,000 spirits were completely purified.

As the last spirit vanished, the temperature of the entire underground palace seemed to rise by a few degrees. The previously bottomless and murky pond gradually became clear.

At the same time, Zou An let out a long sigh of relief. During this period, by absorbing the primordial energy, his horrifying injuries had completely healed. His overall mental state was better than ever before.

Previously, Mi Li had struck him so hard that flesh and blood flew everywhere, his bones had broken countless times, and he had almost bled dry.

Under the restoration of the *Primordial Chaos Scripture*, his entire body had undergone another complete tempering. His current physical strength was twice what it had been before. He even felt that even a Fifth-grade master, as long as they didn't use elemental power, would inflict only limited damage to his body with a full-force strike.

He then looked down at his lower abdomen. He had once been astonished by the historical account of Lao Ai using his penis as an axle to turn a wheel, but now, he thought it was merely a trivial trick.

However, he quickly composed himself, as he had just realized that he had absorbed only a small portion of the primordial energy; most of the scattered energy from the purified spirits had been drawn into the Tai'e Sword.

Zou An couldn't help but let out a long sigh. "Queen sister is truly brilliant. I toiled for half a day, only to do all the groundwork for your benefit."