Jun Anshui was in a coma. Under these circumstances, Jiang Huai guided the dual cultivation technique, assisting Jun Anshui in merging their energies and refining them. Gradually, he seemed to truly perceive that Jun Anshui’s body, which had been like a lamp running out of oil and burning out, had gradually regained much of its vitality.
It was an exceptionally wondrous sensation, akin to dead trees reviving in spring. Jiang Huai faintly felt the flames within her body gradually extinguishing, transforming into a part of his cultivation, replenishing his previously depleted spiritual qi. An urgent breakthrough followed.
However, gazing at Jun Anshui’s head, which was slightly bowed at this moment, Jiang Huai truly didn’t know how to proceed with a second dual cultivation session. It wasn’t until he suddenly heard a tender voice, tinged with a hint of killing intent amidst its coldness, reach his ears.
“…Get out.”
The moment he lowered his head, he met Jun Anshui’s open eyes.
Almost instinctively, Jiang Huai obeyed her command without hesitation. But perhaps due to his rather flustered state, he caused Jun Anshui to let out a soft reprimand. Her toes curled up completely, and even her snow-white little feet unconsciously lifted slightly. Her fingers still tightly gripped Jiang Huai’s arm, and she gritted her teeth, her breathing becoming rapid.
Jiang Huai stood rooted to the spot, daring not to move an inch.
When she raised her head, the delicate pink corner of her lips was still faintly glistening. Her voice was slightly slurred. Even though Jiang Huai wanted to offer a thousand apologies, the words at the tip of his tongue vanished without a trace. Jun Anshui’s eyes, at this moment, were as cold as a blade, making Jiang Huai feel slightly breathless.
The instant she heard Jun Anshui’s voice, Jiang Zhi’s eyes opened, and she appeared beside Jun Anshui.
Jun Anshui looked at Jiang Huai, then at Jiang Zhi. She pursed her lips but couldn’t utter a sound for a long time. She simply stared at them, her eyes filled with mist that gradually condensed into water vapor, swirling in her eye sockets.
Her eyelashes drooped slightly. The rage she had felt earlier had finally subsided, but the color in her eyes seemed to have dimmed as well. She finally spoke softly, her voice already exhausted, “You can leave. I know you did it to save me. I don’t blame you.”
Jiang Huai looked at her in surprise, but the next moment, Jun Anshui’s eyes turned hysterical. “Get out!!!”
In an instant, she was like a furious little dragoness, yet tears welled up in her eyes at that very moment. Jiang Huai was instantly at a loss, only able to stammer out, “I’m sorry…”
“You don’t need a junior like you to apologize. Disappear from my sight.” Jun Anshui turned her face away, her voice choked with sobs.
Jun Anshui’s appearance was utterly disheveled at this moment, naked, her cheeks streaked with tears. One second she was furious, the next she was weeping profusely. Jiang Huai silently put on his clothes but didn’t rush to leave. Instead, Jiang Zhi was the first to approach Jun Anshui. She reached out towards Jun Anshui’s forehead, but before she could touch her, Jun Anshui suddenly raised her hand and slapped hers away.
Jun Anshui looked up, her eyes glistening as she looked at Jiang Zhi, “Why are you doing this?”
Jiang Zhi was silent for a moment, then said softly, “I don’t want to see you perish like this.”
“Why did you save me? Didn’t I say… didn’t I say… I don’t want to live anymore… I don’t want to endure this loneliness anymore… I don’t want to talk to myself in this deep sea cage anymore… Why did you still save me… Why… I treated you like an older sister, I respected you as an elder… Why…”
She stared blankly at Jiang Zhi, her voice hoarse, a hint of hysterical madness in it.
No child had ever chosen to come into this world by their own will. From the moment she was born, she had been accompanied only by endless loneliness and cold. Since her birth was filled with pain, living became an alternative form of torture, and death, conversely, offered release.
When everything subsided into darkness, there would be no fear of loneliness, no fear of pain, and no more worries.
Jun Anshui’s tears began to flow more torrentially. At this moment, she truly wailed like a crying child. Her tears fell, and the moment they landed on the ground, they transformed into glittering diamonds.
The tears of the Dragon Emperor were the most precious jewels in the world. They rolled and clinked on the ground, her fingers tightly gripping Jiang Zhi’s arm, her eyes looking at her with grief and pain.
Jiang Zhi remained silent. She raised her hand again, gently placing her palm on Jun Anshui’s forehead. She could sense that Jun Anshui’s lifespan had been extended by more than a thousand years just from this encounter. She also possessed the seed of the Heavenly Way Authority within her body. As long as she could fully refine the Heavenly Way Authority within her, the Dragon Clan World would receive the favor of the heavens once more. The spiritual qi within the Dragon Clan World would gradually recover, and the probability of dragon clan reproduction would return to what it was before.
But what was the point? She was still alone.
Jiang Zhi couldn’t speak. Perhaps she had wanted to apologize to Jun Anshui, but she didn’t know what to say. Jun Anshui continued to cry uncontrollably, holding her arm, her tears falling one by one onto the ground. Jiang Zhi and Jiang Huai stood there, like two repenting statues.
After a while, Jun Anshui raised her head slightly. “You can leave now… both of you leave… I won’t seek death… I will refine the Authority within my body and restore the Dragon Clan’s fortune… You all leave…”
Since she had obtained the Authority, this was her duty as the Dragon Emperor.
She murmured, her voice somewhat hollow, as if she had completely lost the vitality that life should possess, like a walking corpse. Only now did Jiang Huai finally take a step forward. The moment Jun Anshui looked up, her gaze towards him turned fierce again.
Given the pride of the Dragon Clan, she was still angry. The instinctual anger was suppressed by her reason, but looking at Jiang Huai’s face now, she couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t truly resent him to the point of wanting to kill him. Her consciousness had been clear the entire time, ever since she fell unconscious. She had been unable to move, listening to all the conversations between Jiang Huai and Jiang Zhi, inwardly praying, “Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t…” But what she feared and dreaded had ultimately come to pass.
Even though his movements were gentle and slow, and even though the subsequent pain gradually faded, turning into an itch that penetrated to the bone, all that remained now was anger.
“That…”
Jiang Huai gazed into her eyes. He slightly lowered his head, moving a little closer. “What if, I’m just saying, what if His Majesty were to learn that in this world, there is another of your kind, and to sense his aura, would he no longer be so lonely?”
“What are you talking about?” Jun Anshui looked at him coldly.
“On this matter, I wonder what His Majesty would think?”
“That day will never come. I am the last Dragon Emperor in the world,” Jun Anshui replied coldly.
“What if?”
“There are no ‘what ifs’!”
Jiang Huai’s persistence became the source of Jun Anshui’s renewed fury. These two sentences had reopened the deepest scar in her heart, causing it to bleed anew. But in the next moment, Jiang Huai moved a little closer. As Jun Anshui’s anger reached its peak, Jiang Huai’s body underwent a slight transformation.
His dark hair turned silver, and a pair of bright silver, coral-like dragon horns grew on his forehead, just like Jun Anshui’s. His original fair skin now seemed to possess a more lustrous, jade-like texture. His dark pupils were now pure silver.
Appearance could be faked, but aura could not.
Almost instantly, Jun Anshui’s body instinctively trembled. Her eyes couldn’t stop shaking. In a flash, she lunged towards Jiang Huai, bringing her nose close to him, sniffing his scent. Sensing the familiar aroma, tears streamed down her cheeks, and she began to weep uncontrollably once more.
Jiang Zhi watched this scene in silence, her eyes now unreadable, whether with relief or self-mockery.
Jiang Huai was unaware, but she was fully aware. Her otherworldly Master had merely taken away what rightfully belonged to her and then allowed her to regain it, thus fostering an almost boundless attachment and dependence on Jiang Huai.
As an outsider, she felt like she was watching a ridiculous joke, but though she tried to move the corners of her mouth for a long time, she couldn’t bring herself to laugh.
Jiang Huai looked at Jun Anshui, who was now lying on him, her chest pressed against his. Her eyes were like those of a puppy, devoid of their previous coldness and anger. Yet, a sense of unease began to stir within Jiang Huai. After a moment, he gently lifted the girl’s slender waist and carried her small, delicate body onto the bed. He said softly, “Please, Your Majesty, put on your clothes. I don’t know how to explain it to Your Majesty, but after dual cultivating with Your Majesty, this bloodline appeared within me…”
Jun Anshui stared blankly into his eyes, but instinctively wanted to move closer to him. Jiang Huai reached out and gently pressed against her forehead, saying softly, “Clothes, Your Majesty.”
His words seemed to possess a strange magic, and Jun Anshui obediently complied. She picked up the undergarment used for binding her chest and put it on. She then lowered her head slightly, seeing that her body was still somewhat disheveled, partly from Jiang Huai and partly from herself. She stared blankly for a moment before quietly replying, “Dirty.”
Jiang Huai hesitated for a moment, then fetched a handkerchief and cautiously approached to wipe her. But in the brief moment he leaned closer, Jun Anshui wrapped her arms around his neck again. Her delicate body clung to him, and she slowly said, “Bathe.”
Jiang Huai hesitated for a moment, then no longer argued. He gently picked her up. Jun Anshui directed him to the bathhouse in the backyard. He carried her to the steps beside the bathhouse and sat her down. He first used a ladle to scoop water and soak her body, then applied flower dew to her delicate skin. The moment he saw her tender body, his heart paused for a moment.
After activating the Dragon Emperor bloodline he had just acquired, he found that he harbored more lust towards Jun Anshui’s delicate body than usual. However, he had only gained the Dragon Emperor bloodline; he himself was still human. Maintaining the Dragon Emperor bloodline state consumed spiritual qi, and his spiritual qi couldn’t withstand much depletion. It would be exhausted within at most one night.
“This Dragon Emperor bloodline is maintained by my spiritual qi. Perhaps by tomorrow, when my spiritual qi is depleted, it will disappear.” Jiang Huai’s movements were exceptionally gentle and careful as he applied the foamy flower dew to her small body, trying to suppress the chaotic desires in his heart, explaining slowly.
“When you sensed the aura of your own kind, Your Majesty, do you feel any better?” Jiang Huai asked softly.
“Much… much better…” Jun Anshui replied dazedly. When Jiang Huai’s fingertips touched her skin, she heard her heartbeat pounding in her chest, as if every inch of her skin was being brushed by electricity. The immense joy made her feel almost dizzy, on the verge of fainting.
“That’s good. I apologize for what I did to Your Majesty earlier.”
“I… I don’t blame you,” Jun Anshui answered nervously. But a moment later, Jiang Huai said softly, “Your Majesty currently feels more favorably towards me, perhaps only because of the aura of this bloodline. These auras will disappear tomorrow, and perhaps… when those sweet illusions vanish, that fondness will also fade.”
“No… I feel… as if I’ve suddenly gotten much, much better… For a long, long time, I won’t be sad anymore…”
“Is that so?” Jiang Huai nodded thoughtfully. “Then it’s good.”
He had finished applying the flower dew to Jun Anshui. Jun Anshui was now placed on the steps. He should probably bathe as well. His mind was still somewhat muddled. Everything that had happened tonight was rather absurd. He just wanted to finish bathing quickly and hug his icy cold immortal master to calm down. He didn’t want to do anything else afterward. But Jun Anshui timidly walked out of the water. She came closer and hugged Jiang Huai. She was too petite, her cheek pressed a little below Jiang Huai’s chest. She asked very, very softly, “Can we… dual cultivate again?”
“Can I refuse Your Majesty?” Jiang Huai asked softly and politely as he lowered his head.
“Yes…”
Jun Anshui bit her lip tightly, a sourness she couldn’t describe welling up in her heart. Tears welled up in her eyes again. A moment later, Jiang Huai sighed softly and gently lifted her. “If you really want to, it’s not impossible. Consider it compensation for Your Majesty.”
Jun Anshui raised her slender, delicate arms and tightly embraced Jiang Huai’s neck, her face greedily approaching, sniffing his scent. Jiang Huai couldn’t evade her for a moment. Looking at her fair, tender face within his sight, what was in her eyes? Affection? Dependence? Or instinct?
Jiang Huai’s mind drifted back to his experiences in the Monster Clan. It seemed that for the Monster Clan, love was like an instinct, unlike for humans. At this moment, he felt somewhat at a loss.
This time it was almost effortless… but the next moment, Jun Anshui hugged his neck tightly, and Jiang Huai gritted his teeth slightly.
He was bitten, and couldn’t move much.
He leaned close to Jun Anshui’s ear and softly coaxed her, “Relax, relax… don’t be nervous…”
“Mm…”
But Jun Anshui seemed even more bewildered at this moment. Jiang Huai had no choice but to lean closer and gently kiss her neck, trying to slightly divert her attention. But at this moment, Jun Anshui’s legs were entwined around his waist, pressing closer and closer. Jiang Huai hastily reminded her, “Your body…”
“Don’t be afraid,” Jun Anshui replied softly, pressing closer and closer, her pale silver eyes revealing a full measure of stubbornness.
At this moment, it had nothing to do with love, only the instinct of carnal desire.
But Jiang Huai had to teach Jun Anshui to be more obedient, not too greedy. Qingyu, who usually liked to be bullied so much, wouldn’t want to be bullied like this every time. But Jun Anshui didn’t seem to fear it at all. Instead, it made Jiang Huai slightly exasperated. Looking at Jun Anshui’s slightly curled toes, his feeling of awkwardness reached its peak, but seeing her ecstatic expression, Jiang Huai found release.
Since she took pleasure in it, he would consider it compensation for his previous transgressions.
In his confusion, Jiang Huai finally forgave himself. Perhaps he had always been so morally corrupt, shameless, merely feigning decency and acting like a gentleman in the past. Now, once tempted, his true colors were revealed.
When his mind was filled with emotions, chaotic and muddled, evasion became the best choice, surrendering all reason to the drive of instinct.
Jun Anshui’s legs swayed gently in the night.
