“Our marriage was merely an alliance between clans,” the Spirit Maiden said, her voice trembling with anger. “I have no care for your personal pursuits. But you shouldn’t have left me at the altar, and you certainly shouldn’t speak to me like this now. No one has ever humiliated me this way.”
“There’s a first time for everything,” Liu Yue replied indifferently.
The air seemed to freeze for a moment. I stepped aside to glance at Liu Yue, and he lowered his gaze to meet mine. When my reflection entered his eyes, his gaze softened noticeably. But no matter how gentle he looked, there were still things I needed to tell him.
“Do you know,” I said, “that a sharp tongue can get someone killed?”
Liu Yue smiled. “I do.”
As soon as he spoke, the Spirit Maiden’s demonic aura erupted, shattering the tranquility that had reigned in my courtyard for over a century.
The pear blossom tree in the yard was ripped from its roots, dirt and stones flying into the air. Liu Yue moved to shield me, his power keeping me unscathed without even a ripple of force.
But when my eyes landed on the corner of the courtyard where the tree had stood, my body stiffened.
Underneath that tree was where Qing Han had buried his pear blossom wine.
The dirt covering the wine jar had already been disturbed, and my blood surged in my veins. Before anyone could react, I darted to the old jar to protect it. The Spirit Maiden’s spell detonated at my back, and in that instant, I could hear the sound of my flesh tearing.
Even so, despite my efforts, part of the jar’s neck was broken. The scent of wine, aged for who knows how many years, drifted into my nose.
My heart wavered, and vivid memories of sunlight from a hundred years ago flashed through my mind. They pricked at my heart, filling it with an unbearable ache and a tidal wave of fury I hadn’t felt in centuries.
Power surged from me, sweeping away the Spirit Maiden’s demonic energy entirely. She froze, startled. “What...”
I turned, my gaze piercing through the settling dust like a blade as I locked eyes with her. “Considering your ignorance, I was inclined to show mercy...”
My divine sword, stolen by Qing Han and lost with him in the Demon Abyss, was no longer by my side. But even without it, even in my weakened state, I was far from powerless.
“This is Mistveil Mountain,” I said coldly, “and there is no place here for your arrogance.”
The Spirit Maiden’s eyes narrowed, clearly dissatisfied with my words. Liu Yue furrowed his brows and reached out to stop me, but before he could take a step, I summoned the mountain’s spiritual energy, forming it into a blade. From formless to solid, the sword gleamed in the air as I lunged toward the Spirit Maiden.
The blade reached her neck before she had time to react, grazing her skin before she spun away and leaped back several paces. I didn’t give her a moment to recover. Driving the spiritual blade forward again, I aimed directly for her heart.
Each strike was lethal, and she could barely dodge them, retreating again and again until she had no room left. Forced to disappear into invisibility, her form vanished from my courtyard.
I sensed her presence lingering and drove my sword into the earth, my voice icy. “When I fought your Demon Ancestor Queen, you weren’t even born. And yet, you dare flaunt your arrogance before me? Are you courting death?”
As I spoke, the courtyard trembled with my unleashed power, even forcing Liu Yue to take a step back.
The Spirit Maiden’s aura vanished entirely. She was gone—likely scared off by a combination of blows and intimidation.
The courtyard returned to its usual calm, but I could no longer control the spiritual energy I had summoned. It scattered chaotically in all directions, leaving me drained.
“Well,” I said with a self-deprecating smile, “looks like I’m not entirely useless yet.”
But as soon as the words left my mouth, blood surged in my chest. Unable to suppress it any longer, I coughed violently, blood spilling from my lips. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and stared at the crimson streaks.
I felt... nothing.
Numb.
Yes, I was numb—to this body, to this life. After all, there was no one and nothing left in this world that I cared for, not even the faintest thread of attachment.
My vision blurred, the world spinning around me. Someone caught my shoulders, keeping me from collapsing ungracefully to the ground.
I didn’t thank him. My mind was fixated on only one thing.
“Seal the wine jar under the tree,” I said weakly. “It’s the only thing Qing Han left behind... There’s nothing else...”
It was the last piece of evidence that boy had ever been a part of my life.
I didn’t hear Liu Yue’s reply. My eyelids grew heavy, and, despite my efforts to fight it, I lost consciousness. The world faded, and I was aware of nothing more.
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