In Prince Xuan's residence, Xiao Lin held the woman in purple robes and asked the person by the bedside, "How is Shang'er?"
The man in white closed his folding fan and said with a grin, "The situation is naturally not good. I say, senior brother, you’re having quite the unlucky streak as Prince Xuan. Just after moving residences, first came the Crimson Flame Bee attack, and now your concubine is haunted by a nightmare demon. Truly an ill-fated year."
Xiao Lin showed no anger and replied gently, "Yu Qing, I’m discussing serious matters with you. How can we pull Shang'er out of this nightmare?"
Yu Qing clicked his tongue. "Senior brother, you overestimate me. You must remember, back on Buzhao Mountain, you studied sword arts while I learned demon extermination. You mastered the essence of the old man’s sword techniques, but my demon-slaying skills... well, they’re not exactly stellar. I rushed here from Prince Zhao’s estate at great personal risk to help you." Prince Zhao would never have imagined that the guest he treated with such honor was actually Xiao Lin’s junior brother.
Xiao Lin sighed. "I’ll give you Master’s storage jade."
Yu Qing quickly asked, "Really?"
Without another word, Xiao Lin removed an ordinary-looking jade pendant from his waist and tossed it to Yu Qing. Fumbling to catch it, Yu Qing beamed with delight. "Ah, when senior brother’s consort is in trouble, Yu Qing’s assistance is naturally indispensable."
After storing the jade safely, Yu Qing dropped his playful demeanor. "The nightmare demon is different from lesser demonic creatures. I can’t even locate where it’s hiding. With my level of cultivation, I can’t subdue such an evil entity, but there is a way to awaken the concubine."
"The reason she can’t wake is because she’s lost in the dream realm. As long as she’s roused within a set time, she’ll be fine."
"However, to enter the nightmare demon’s dream, one must first break through their own dream to save another. If you fail to wake her, the one who enters the dream will also perish within it. So, senior brother, are you willing to try?"
Xiao Lin nodded without hesitation. "Yes."
Yu Qing looked him up and down. "Do you truly care for this concubine? You’ve given me the old man’s treasure and are even willing to risk your life for her. Or is it your innate sense of justice and responsibility at play—would you save anyone in her place today?"
Xiao Lin pondered Yu Qing’s words seriously and said, "Isn’t there a time limit? Stop wasting words."
Yu Qing laughed heartily. "So you can get angry too! This concubine is quite beautiful, no wonder my gentle, jade-like senior brother is moved to compassion. Speaking of which, do you really dislike the Third Miss of the Ye family so much? I think that girl is rather amusing. You didn’t see it, but she once dared to beat up Prince Zhao."
Jokes aside, Yu Qing, now in possession of the treasure, quickly began setting up the formation.
"The concubine has a red thread on her neck. Once it reaches behind her ear, she’s beyond saving. So you must wake her before the thread spreads," Yu Qing instructed gravely. "Remember, in the nightmare demon’s dream, a single flower can be a world—everything is shaped by what one fears or desires most."
"No matter what happens, senior brother, you must hold fast to your true self, break free from your own dream, and only then can you enter your concubine’s dream to bring her back."
Xiao Lin gripped his sword and nodded solemnly. "I understand."
Yu Qing’s hands moved swiftly through hand seals as he closed his eyes and recited incantations, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
The folding fan hovered mid-air and opened—
"Enter!"
At the same time, in the outskirts ten li from Prince Xuan’s residence, a youth in black walked through a forest.
Dark mist shrouded the woods, and the youth’s footsteps crunched softly on the accumulated snow.He extended his hand, his pale fingertips already enveloped in black mist. He grasped the mist, which struggled violently in his palm.
Tantai Jin licked his lips as a gnawing hunger rose from the pit of his stomach.
The black mist seemed to sense something and frantically tried to escape through his fingertips. Deep within the forest, a pair of eyes larger than lanterns appeared, and its voice echoed through the air.
"How dare you!"
A mere mortal actually dared to attempt devouring its Demonic Energy.
Tantai Jin watched regretfully as the Demonic Energy dissipated. He met those terrifying eyes in the air and said indifferently, "Release her."
The nightmare demon replied ominously, "Are you negotiating with me? What will you offer in exchange?"
Its voice was deep and deafening. Its dark red eyes scrutinized the seemingly frail human youth before it.
The man before it carried a scent that made it drool. Having escaped from the cracks of the Desolate Abyss, the nightmare demon was already starving. If it weren't for its limitation of only being able to kill within dreams, it would have lunged forward long ago to devour Tantai Jin.
Tantai Jin tilted his head. "Negotiate? You think I'm negotiating with you?" He covered half his face and let out a low laugh, as if hearing some great joke.
The nightmare demon said greedily, "Give me your soul, and I'll release that woman."
Tantai Jin curved his lips and whispered, "Fine, come and take it."
In an instant, the nightmare demon's mist enveloped him.
Su Su arrived just in time to witness this scene. Her scalp tingled with horror as she rushed forward and grabbed him.
"Tantai Jin!"
Tantai Jin turned to look at her from within the black mist.
"Let go," he said impatiently.
Su Su clung to him. "Have you gone mad? Once you enter this monster's dream, how will you get out?"
The archives recorded that nightmare demons were born from desire and obsession. The deeper one's inner desires, the harder it was to escape the dream.
Only those with pure, unblemished hearts and firm resolve could resist the nightmare demon's temptations.
Tantai Jin was the Demon King—how could a Demon King possibly be free of desires? At best, his actions could be described as sacrificing for beauty; at worst, it was sheer suicide.
The main issue was that if he died, he'd better stay dead! The nightmare demon couldn't possibly devour the Evil Bone. If Tantai Jin's physical body perished in the nightmare demon's dream, all beings across the Three Realms would be doomed along with him.
Tantai Jin looked down at the slender, pale hands gripping him.
Su Su dodged the mist while trying to pull him out.
Her face flushed red with effort. Seeing the indifference in Tantai Jin's eyes, she couldn't hold back her anger. "Are you thinking with your dick? No matter how wonderful or beautiful Ye Bingshang is, she's someone else's wife. You lunatic!"
Tantai Jin said coldly, "She is mine."
"To hell with that!" Su Su wished she could stab him with her sword and be done with it.
Tantai Jin looked down at Su Su. She stubbornly refused to let go. The black mist brushed against the girl's delicate skin, and her face grew increasingly pale.
He stared at the hand tightly gripping his—soft yet tenacious. In his eyes, it was utterly irritating.
Seeing the nightmare demon determined to devour its future master, Su Su's temper flared.
A bunch of idiots!
"By the spirits' enlightenment, violet mystic lightning—strike!" A hastily drawn Talisman flew from her sleeve.
A purple lightning bolt as thick as an arm shot out from the Yellow Talisman, striking toward the nightmare demon.
Furious at being interrupted from devouring Tantai Jin by this meddling mortal girl, the nightmare demon roared as the purple lightning split its mist apart. Moments later, it rapidly reformed and cackled, "Come, all of you, into the dream!"Tantai Jin’s dark eyes watched Su Su. Her small, jade-white hand still held onto his finger.
Her large eyes, clear and bright, stared at him with fury, her lips nearly bitten until they bled. She looked as if she were about to explode with anger.
Even her cursing was so full of life.
Suddenly, Tantai Jin felt an inexplicable irritation.
Before the dark energy could engulf Su Su, he said coldly, "Get lost."
He pried her fingers away.
Su Su was shoved out of the black mist, stumbling and falling to the ground. The fingers he had forcefully pried open throbbed with pain. Tantai Jin truly did not care whether he might break them.
The nightmare demon’s eyes suddenly loomed before her.
"Perfect timing. None of you are leaving!" It sniffed her neck and sighed greedily.
Overwhelming black energy instantly enveloped Su Su.
When Su Su woke, a man in green robes was looking at her with a grave expression.
She exclaimed in surprise, "Father?"
The Green Robe Immortal Venerable nodded. "Su Su, Tantai Jin died in the nightmare. Your mission has failed. The curved jade sent you back five hundred years. The Demon God has already awakened."
"How is that possible…" Su Su murmured.
The Immortal Venerable sighed. "Perhaps it is fate." A trace of sorrow flashed in his eyes as he helped her up.
"The Demon God’s followers have surrounded Hengyang Immortal Mountain. Su Su, you must leave with Fuya."
"Father, what about you?"
The Immortal Venerable gently stroked her hair. "I will live and die with Hengyang."
As soon as he finished speaking, a blood-soaked disciple rushed in, weeping bitterly. "Sect Leader, Senior Brother Fuya… he… he…"
Su Su lifted her eyes. Outside the sect, a young man in white robes sat cross-legged before the sect gate, an Immortal Sword plunged deep into the ground. His eyes were closed, his posture one of steadfast defense, but his body was slowly dissipating.
Su Su stumbled toward him. "Fuya!"
Fuya’s vanishing form merged into the mountain-protecting formation, reinforcing Hengyang Sect’s barrier.
Tears streamed down her face unnoticed.
A fellow disciple beside her said, "It’s all Li Shimei’s fault. She was given the only chance, yet she brought the sect to this state. Junior Brother Fuya sacrificed himself to atone for her failure…"
"She should be the one to die."
"Yes, it should be her! Not Junior Brother Fuya!"
Su Su could not hold onto his dissipating form.
In her daze, the boy’s not-yet-vanished soul seemed to open its eyes and give her a pale smile.
"Shijie, it’s so good… to see you again…"
No, this shouldn’t be happening.
Her fellow disciples were right. She had failed to seize the last opportunity. Fuya should not have died—she should have.
The Three Realms were destroyed, Fuya was dead, and her father would sacrifice himself for Hengyang Sect…
Su Su picked up Fuya’s sword.
The sword’s aura shimmered like a rainbow, reflecting her delicate, tear-streaked face and the vivid cinnabar mark on her forehead.
Someone whispered in her ear: Yes, just like Fuya, sacrifice yourself.
At least it might allow Hengyang Sect to endure a little longer.
She raised the cold blade, letting it hover in the air, then thrust it toward herself—
The sword veered away from her body and pierced the black mist behind her. Su Su shouted, "I don’t believe a word of it!"
The black mist shrieked—
"Impossible! Impossible!"
Torn apart by the sword’s energy, the black mist vanished in an instant.
Su Su wiped the tears from her face.
A small, fiery-red spirit bird on her Spiritual Platform chirped proudly.
The illusion shattered instantly.
Su Su breathed a sigh of relief.
The Great Path is pure; without desire, one is strong; without fear, one is clear.
But now, where could she find Tantai Jin and Ye Bingshang?
As soon as the thought crossed her mind, someone shoved her from behind."Yao Yinu, what are you still spacing out for! Her Highness is about to give birth. Where are the scissors and hot water the midwife asked you to prepare?" A maid in crimson clothes glared fiercely at Su Su.
Su Su looked at her hands—the youthful hands were gone, replaced by a pair of wrinkled, yellowish ones.
She had actually turned into a middle-aged woman, and a female physician at that!
Seeing the maid's expression growing increasingly unpleasant, Su Su instinctively replied, "Wait a moment, I'll bring them right away."
The maid said, "If you keep being so absent-minded and something happens to Consort Rou or the young prince, The Emperor will not spare you!"
Su Su replied, "Yes, yes!"
At some point, a basin of hot water and a pair of scissors appeared beside Su Su's left hand.
Though puzzled, she deftly picked up the items and followed the maid.
The maid clasped her hands together, murmuring, "Heaven bless us, may Her Highness safely give birth to a young prince!"
Thunder rumbled overhead, shaking the sky with a deafening roar.
Su Su looked up and saw dark clouds gathering at the horizon, like an unshakeable evil aura, swirling with an ominous presence everywhere.
The swallows under the eaves were startled, flying back and forth in panic.
Above the palace, the color of the sky had darkened almost to the shade of ink.
A man in a bright yellow dragon robe waited anxiously outside, his face full of worry.
Clutching the hot water, Su Su felt her heart pounding with fear.
What in the world was going on?
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