chapter 52

"We'll talk about it another day?"

It was impossible to continue. Zhan Yun Wei pushed his hand away.

He tried again with an expression of indifference, but this time, no matter what, Zhan Yun Wei refused to cooperate.

Yue Zhi Heng stared at her for a while. After the demonic energy had entered his body, his mood was unpredictable, resembling the way he had been when they first met. Or perhaps it was more like the notorious hunting dog of a dynasty that Zhan Yun Wei had heard of in rumors a few years ago.

His face was expressionless, and his voice was calm yet commanding: "Open your mouth."

Zhan Yun Wei didn't know whether to be angry or annoyed. She had seen what happened to those who went against Yue Zhi Heng—her second uncle had been a prime example.

People who had fallen to the demonic energy often lacked rationality. If Yue Zhi Heng had asked for something else, she might have been able to hold him off for a while.

But what were these demands?

Or rather, was this the true Yue Zhi Heng? The demonic energy often revealed one's worst nature.

Compared to usual, Yue Zhi Heng seemed even colder, more selfish, and stubborn.

Looking at the nearly dismantled underground palace, Zhan Yun Wei figured that even those evil souls probably hadn't fared well. Why couldn't Yue Zhi Heng, like the weapon spirit, go look for any remaining treasures in the palace?

Yue Zhi Heng seemed impatient, and with a single hand, he pulled her out of the coffin. He would get what he wanted himself.

Zhan Yun Wei's gaze flickered to the lamp on the nearby table. It had originally been lit to soothe the spirits. She breathed a sigh of relief, took the lamp, and used what little spiritual power she had left to channel it into Yue Zhi Heng's mind.

He seemed to pause for a moment. When he lifted his eyes again, although his pupils still showed signs of demonic influence, he was noticeably much clearer.

"Yue Zhi Heng?"

Yue Zhi Heng was silent for a moment. Though he had been momentarily controlled by the demonic energy, his memory was not lost. He recalled what he had wanted to do earlier. He also felt a headache coming on, releasing Zhan Yun Wei and answering, "Hmm."

Zhan Yun Wei relaxed a little, seeing that he had come to his senses.

Yue Zhi Heng met her gaze and said, "Stop staring. There's nothing for me to explain."

Zhan Yun Wei: "..."

Lord Yue's occasional honesty truly left her speechless.

Zhan Yun Wei knew he had come to rescue her. After all… as long as Lord Yue was conscious, he wouldn't be like that.

Zhan Yun Wei asked, "You broke in; are your injuries okay?"

"It's nothing," he replied nonchalantly. "The underground palace has been sealed by the previous owners. It should be impossible to drag someone inside. What happened to you?"

"I don't know either. It seems like those evil souls wanted to take over me." Zhan Yun Wei hesitated for a moment before speaking the truth. "I feel like the atmosphere here is familiar. It might be related to my mother."

Yue Zhi Heng had only heard Zhan Yun Wei mention her mother when she was feverish. As far as he knew, the Lord of Changya Mountain had publicly claimed that Zhan Yun Wei's mother had passed away after giving birth to her.

Zhan Yun Wei briefly explained the scene from her dream. After a moment of thought, Yue Zhi Heng said, "The scene you described doesn't seem like it was in the Spirit Domain, but it does resemble Du'e City."

Zhan Yun Wei nodded. She had always wanted to visit Du'e City.

Yue Zhi Heng saw her thoughts and frowned. However, he didn't try to persuade her not to go. After all, everyone had the right to search for their past and discover who they truly were.

He said, "If you want to go, you should make thorough preparations. The barrier around the area is already unstable. The Fang family has been struggling with it for over half a year. The evil disasters will likely worsen in the next two years. Miss Zhan, you must grow stronger if you want a chance of returning. At the very least, you need to strengthen your spiritual body and master spiritual control to the point where you can control someone at the eighth level of cultivation."

Zhan Yun Wei listened carefully and nodded.

Yue Zhi Heng glanced at her and said, "So… Miss Zhan isn't asking me how to strengthen your spiritual body?"

The issue with her spiritual body could likely be solved with magical tools. Though such items were rare and not even recorded in ancient texts, it wasn't impossible to give it a try.

Zhan Yun Wei blinked, unsure why he was staring at her.

At that moment, the weapon spirit floated back. It was visibly fuller and had gained some weight, finally shaking off its previous weakness. It mumbled to itself.

Yue Zhi Heng said, "It says it found quite a bit of stuff in the underground palace."

A moment later, Zhan Yun Wei and Yue Zhi Heng arrived at the deepest part of the underground palace.

The underground palace had been standing for many years. Though there was a thick layer of dust everywhere, traces of its former splendor could still be seen.

The innermost room was filled with many magical tools.

Zhan Yun Wei hadn't seen many of them before. She glanced at Yue Zhi Heng, who confirmed her suspicion: "They're a few thousand years old."

They were the wisdom of their predecessors.

Most of the magical tools were broken, but a few were still usable. Zhan Yun Wei only took a quick glance before her attention was drawn to something else.

It was a book, carved from green bamboo. It didn't seem like an ancient artifact, but rather something from the past few decades. The book had already begun to show signs of wear.

She opened the bamboo book and discovered it was a handwritten journal from a predecessor.

The handwriting was chaotic, indicating it had been written hurriedly with spiritual power, pressing through the bamboo.

She continued reading and found that the journal described an event from 26 years ago.

"Year 20 of the Zhaoqing era, the disaster of evil spirits. Hundreds of spirit guardians were killed and captured into Du'e City, never to be heard from again. My three friends and I decided to enter Du'e City to rescue them. After half a month of fierce battles, we still couldn't find any trace of the spirit guardians. Many of our disciples died or were injured, and my friends were also gravely wounded."

The handwriting became more blurry here. Zhan Yun Wei continued reading, noticing that the writing grew even more frantic.

"By chance, we entered a forbidden area. The formation inside was complex and hidden with ancient divine power. We didn't have time to examine it, and dozens of evil kings surrounded us. Each of us took something from the forbidden area."

"The forbidden area collapsed, and we fled in haste. Penglai Zun... Divine Sword..."

Zhan Yun Wei was quite surprised. Though a portion of the text had been omitted, she could guess what was written.

She had thought the Divine Sword was a secret passed down through the generations of Penglai, but it turned out to have been taken out of the forbidden area by the Lord of Penglai 26 years ago.

As for the other three items, they were more obscure. She could vaguely make out the characters "菉" and "纹."

But the last item was not even mentioned by the predecessor, as if it were a taboo. That item was likely the source of the collapse of the forbidden area after it was taken.

Zhan Yun Wei didn't know what "菉" referred to. But "纹"?

She couldn't help but glance at Yue Zhi Heng and ask, "Lord Yue, what is the compassion lotus mark on your body?"

Yue Zhi Heng had been examining the broken magical tools. There were two items that were still intact. Upon hearing her question, he looked up and saw that Zhan Yun Wei, holding the bamboo book, was curiously asking about the lotus mark.

He replied, "It's a secret technique."

"Is it something you can't talk about?"

Yue Zhi Heng fell silent for a moment before answering, "Mm."

Zhan Yun Wei was very curious, but she knew that everyone had their own secrets. Seeing that Yue Zhi Heng wouldn't elaborate, she didn't press the matter.

In the underground palace, the faint light from the lamps barely illuminated the surroundings. The man beneath the light had a cold and stern expression as he lightly examined the magical tools in his hand.

Zhan Yun Wei gathered her courage and walked up to him.

Yue Zhi Heng immediately sensed that there was something difficult for her to speak about. He pinched the jade stone in his hand and said, "If you want to say something, just say it."

So, she said it.

Zhan Yun Wei spoke, "Lord Yue, I know you might find it ridiculous for me to ask this, but I still want to ask..."

She raised her gaze to meet his. "The Spirit Emperor isn't a good person. You've seen the suffering of the people over the years. The death of Dongfang Jibai, the fall of the former leaders of the Che Tian Mansion—none of them ended well. They are the lesson from which we should learn. The Yue family serves the dynasty, but it's like a lone boat crossing a turbulent sea. I know you're not as bad as others say. If, and I mean if..."

"If the Immortal Sect can grow the medicinal herbs that Sister Qingluo needs, is it possible for you to leave the dynasty and join the Immortal Sect?"

Yue Zhi Heng was leaning against the cold stone wall, looking down at her without speaking.

His expression, however, revealed everything.

Zhan Yun Wei couldn't help but ask, "Why?"

Yue Zhi Heng smiled faintly. "Because I love power, Miss Zhan. Without power, one is nothing. Never mind the things I did six years ago to become the head of the Che Tian Mansion. Have you ever thought about what I'd do in the Immortal Sect? Being looked down upon, judged for the evil deeds I've done these years? Even the life I lived when I was young was better than that."

"Then come to Changya Mountain." Her bright eyes gleamed, and she smiled slightly. "Changya Mountain doesn't care about one's origins. My father will understand, and I will protect you and the Yue family."

Yue Zhi Heng hadn't expected her to say such a thing. The cold indifference in his eyes seemed to melt slightly, and he no longer cared how absurd her words were. He gave a faint smile.

After Zhan Yun Wei said it, she suddenly realized that her words seemed to carry another meaning, as if she were inviting him to Changya Mountain to marry into the family.

But now that the words were out, although she felt embarrassed, she didn't take them back.

It was indeed an insult to ask the head of the Che Tian Mansion to go to Changya Mountain, which didn't even have a proper entrance. But Changya Mountain had accumulated many treasures over the years, which could provide him with the best tools.

In her past life, Zhan Yun Wei never imagined that she would one day say such a thing to Yue Zhi Heng.

She held her breath, waiting for his response.

Yue Zhi Heng said, "Stretch out your hand."

"What for?"

"Let's see Miss Zhan's sincerity."

Though Zhan Yun Wei was confused, she still extended her right hand. Yue Zhi Heng took her hand and placed it over the stone in his palm.

A long time passed, but the stone remained dull and gray, showing no sign of light.

The air was still and quiet. Yue Zhi Heng remained motionless, and Zhan Yun Wei's hand started to feel tired. Only then did he look down and release her hand.

Zhan Yun Wei was puzzled, but Yue Zhi Heng didn't explain. The weapon spirit floated out and stared at the stone for a long time.

It had been born from Yue Zhi Heng's talent in refining tools, and was half a master of the craft itself. Things from ancient times that Zhan Yun Wei didn't recognize, the weapon spirit knew well.

That was the Stone of Past Life Affinity.

It was said that when it glowed, it meant the people involved were in love and could grow old together.

But when Yue Zhi Heng placed Zhan Yun Wei's hand on it, the stone remained dark and dull.

The weapon spirit anxiously circled around Zhan Yun Wei. How could this be? How could this happen?

It couldn't help but look at Yue Zhi Heng's expression, afraid that he would be disappointed, but it found him much calmer than it had imagined.

Zhan Yun Wei asked, "Did you see something?"

Yue Zhi Heng tossed the Stone of Past Life Affinity aside and said faint , "Nothing."

He didn't believe in this thing. If he had believed in fate from the beginning, he would have died in the underground palace of Du'e City, never seeing the light of day.

Yue Zhi Heng looked up at Zhan Yun Wei, unsure whether it was because she was missing half a soul, or if this was a sign of his ultimate fate.

The weapon spirit didn't understand, and he couldn't tell either. Was it more cruel to believe that Zhan Yun Wei didn't love him enough, or to accept that he would ultimately die alone, unable to be with her?

Zhan Yun Wei asked, "Then, would you be willing to come to the Yue family?"

The dull pain in his chest was the aftereffect of the Compassion Lotus Mark. The vow he had made at sixteen seemed to ring in his ears, deafening in its intensity.

Yue Zhi Heng looked down on the stone. If he wanted it, even if it meant breaking his bones and scattering his soul, so what? He didn't care whether Zhan Yun Wei's feelings for him were deep or shallow; he had never expected to receive this kind of pity.

But Yue Zhi Heng still had things to do. At least for now, he couldn't go to your Changya Mountain, Miss Zhan.

Yue Zhi Heng said, "Zhan Yun Wei."

She lifted her gaze to look at him.

"Then I'll ask you, would you be willing to come to the Yue family and become the head's wife?"

Zhan Yun Wei hesitated. Naturally, it was impossible. She had just barely escaped. The dynasty wouldn't tolerate Immortal Sect spirit guardians, and even if Yue Zhi Heng could protect her from the Spirit Emperor, her father would never agree. The things she wanted to do would always be restricted.

"You understand?" Yue Zhi Heng said, his expression neither happy nor sad. He looked at her and said, "In matters of the heart, if there were ten parts, Miss Zhan's feelings for me are probably only three."

Zhan Yun Wei bit her lip, unsure how to respond. She didn't know how to measure such things.

He lowered his gaze.

"I feel the same," he said. "So, I won't go to Changya Mountain to become a disciple. We'll talk about it another day."

Zhan Yun Wei's heart sank slightly.

She sighed. Just three parts...