Chapter 107: The Silver Dragon King Returns to Her Place

Normally, given how often Yuanen Yehui and Xie Xie interacted, she should have been aware of his feelings.

However, ever since her studies at Shrek Academy's outer court began, her thoughts had always remained simple. Aside from that "person" and cultivation, nothing else had ever held a place in her heart.

She had joined the small group that included Xie Xie merely for the convenience of cultivation.

She frequently accepted Xie Xie's challenges in soul duels only because she felt that this tireless classmate was a suitable sparring partner.

She had never expected that her actions would cause him to misunderstand.

Indeed, she did not have feelings for Xie Xie. But as fellow students, she did not want to lead him on, either.

Furthermore, she had never wanted to participate in the Sea God's Fate Matchmaking Convention in the first place.

Had it not been for the academy's strong insistence, and the persuasion of the other female members of the Shrek Seven Monsters—who argued that they should act as a united whole—she would never have appeared here.

She promptly asked, "Senior Lan Muzi, I should be able to leave now, right?"

Lan Muzi, one of the event's hosts, frowned slightly at her inquiry.

At this stage of the matchmaking convention, most of the process had already been completed. Although the rules did not explicitly state whether participants could leave, they also did not prohibit it.

In past conventions, some couples who developed mutual feelings had chosen to leave early, hand in hand.

However, Yuanen Yehui's current actions were more akin to "the falling flower has feelings, but the flowing water is heartless."

Admittedly, she didn't like Xie Xie, but at least they were classmates, and she didn't want to keep him hanging.

If the academy had not insisted on it and the other girls in the Shrek Seven Devils had not persuaded her to become one, she would not have appeared here at all.

Then she said, "Senior Lan Muzi, I should be able to leave now, right?"

After a brief moment of contemplation, Lan Muzi answered honestly, "The rules don't explicitly forbid leaving."

Receiving confirmation, Yuanen Yehui walked across the water toward Xie Xie.

Perhaps due to the distance, he failed to notice the change in her expression. Or perhaps, deep down, he still harbored a sliver of hope.

Watching Yuanen Yehui approach, Xie Xie's heartbeat suddenly quickened.

However, her steps did not slow as she neared him.

A gentle fragrance brushed past his face as she walked straight past him without a word, heading off into the distance.

Xie Xie's expression froze, his pupils dull and vacant.

Her rejection was clear, yet she had given him enough dignity by not saying it outright in front of everyone.

It wasn't until he heard the next participant's confession that he snapped out of his daze, a bitter smile forming on his lips.

However, what he didn't know was the truly heart-wrenching fact: the reason Yuanen Yehui had taken the trouble to walk past him before shaking her head in rejection was simply because the shortest distance between two points was a straight line. The path from the Sea God Lake to the chamber containing the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King mural just so happened to pass through the spot where Xie Xie stood. He had merely been in her way.

Inside the chamber with the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King mural.

Yuanen Yehui had arrived. For the past three years, every time she trained, she would come here.

To outsiders, the reason was said to be that she was using the dragon's aura from the mural to temper her soul power. But in truth, it was simply because being in the presence of Di Tian made her feel at ease.

Moreover, Di Tian would sometimes talk to her. Though their conversations were rare, each one was enough to make her happy for a long, long time.

Just like now.

The golden eyes of the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King mural seemed to come to life, shifting as tendrils of spiritual energy extended toward Yuanen Yehui's spiritual sea.

Di Tian had caught the scent of bloodshed. He had glimpsed a fragment of a future filled with destruction. It was likely to happen tonight.

Therefore, there were things that he needed to tell her.

After listening to him, Yuanen Yehui obediently nodded. Without a trace of reluctance, she turned and left.

At that moment, the Sea God's Fate Matchmaking Convention was still ongoing, but another person had chosen to leave.

Meanwhile, in the midst of talented cultivators like Wu Siduo and his childhood sweetheart Na'er, as well as the many admiring young women surrounding him, Tang Wulin chose Gu Yue.

And he used his own life to force Gu Yue into making a decision.

Inside his room, Tang Wulin had fallen asleep.

A soul master who could go long periods without sleeping had strangely dozed off under the weight of his emotions.

When the door to his room opened, it was already midnight. The stars hung low in the sky.

Gu Yue stepped out with a blank expression, immediately encountering Na'er, who had been waiting for a long time.

Na'er had been standing by the lake for quite a while. The dew had already soaked her shoulders, yet she made no move to brush it off.

Her silver hair swayed gently in the night breeze as she gazed into the misty distance, appearing almost ethereal.

Her large purple eyes reflected the lake's surface, and a faint smile remained on her lips.

Gu Yue quietly approached, stopping beside her without the slightest trace of a smile on her own face.

They stood side by side, both gazing into the clear water before them.

"He fell in love with you and chose to give up on me."

"You won," Na'er said softly, as if relieved.

"You seem like you wanted me to win," Gu Yue frowned.

Na'er chuckled. "That's right. I did hope you would win. And I already knew you would win from the moment we made our bet."

"I understand humans better than you do. And I understand my brother's nature better than you do."

"My confession to him was nothing more than an excuse—a reason to leave."

"You are the sister he loves most. If you leave, he'll be heartbroken," Gu Yue said.

Na'er shook her head self-deprecatingly. "I lost. Do I have any other choice but to leave?"

"Besides, I had to lose."

"Otherwise, he really would have died, wouldn't he?"

Gu Yue remained silent. She did not answer, but her silence was as good as confirmation.

Na'er let out a soft sigh.

"That day, when we made our bet in Star Dou Forest in front of all the soul beasts, you agreed without hesitation."

"I knew then that you simply wanted an excuse to kill my brother—to eliminate the one human who could influence me, and through me, influence you."

"I had no choice but to agree. Because if I didn't, at that time, even if you had a weakness in your heart, you still wouldn't have hesitated to kill him."

"So when Di Tian tried to persuade you, I was truly terrified—terrified that you would listen to his advice."

"But in the end, my fears were unnecessary."

"You are the king. Once you make up your mind, how could anyone change it?"

"So, do you regret it now?" Na'er asked with a mocking smile.

Gu Yue seemed dazed and distracted. In a voice as light as a whisper, she murmured, "Regret...? I don't know."

She truly didn't know whether she regretted it or not.

Perhaps she did.

Perhaps she didn't.

Seeing that Gu Yue had no further response, Na'er continued speaking on her own:

"If you didn't want any of this to happen, you shouldn't have set the plan of integrating into humanity in the first place."

"But in the end, reality proved that your method was correct."

"The only way to completely destroy humanity is to understand them better."

"And you did find a way—human emotions."

"But at the same time, you were defeated by human emotions. That's why I was born."

"When you realized that human emotions were becoming uncontrollable, it was already too late to erase me."

"Left with no other choice, you had to separate me from your body and turn me into an independent existence."