You can't wash my brain.

Mu Zhu paced anxiously at the doorway. She hesitated to ask me why I had sealed the basin and why I had taken all the immortal pills sent by the Fairy Zhenyan Palace with me.

She told me that Chen Yi was maneuvering outside Qingning Pavilion, and that I could simply retreat into Moxu Chenyuan and avoid confronting the Heavenly Emperor.

Although I was feeling uneasy, I also had my own plans.

Clutching the silent spiritual thread of the "All Spirits Gathering Talisman" in his hand, he puffed out his chest and thought: If there is any danger, I will just disregard the common people and let the fake Heavenly Emperor suffer all kinds of pain.

Runes are my source of confidence, but the courage to go alone lies in helping Xie Jinhui find out the true nature of the fake Heavenly Emperor in advance.

The fake Heavenly Emperor wants Xie Jinhui to bind the Tai Su Wu Nian Stone ahead of time. Why don't I take this opportunity to further understand the enemy's tactics, temperament, and even discover his weaknesses?

Xie Jinhui is preparing to take risks alone, and I also need to step up and pave a smoother path for him.

The basin was sealed very securely, so Xie Jinhui wouldn't be distracted by me, I warned Mu Zhu.

"The news must not be leaked before I return, and the pots must remain as they are."

Mu Zhu remained silent, frowning and nodding. After I left the room, she couldn't help but ask, "Yuan He, is it a backlash from that incident?"

Backlash? She was referring to the lingering mystery that had been hanging over the Immortal Realm. The immortals all said that the Holy Emperor's temperament had recently changed drastically, perhaps as a backlash from what he had done 320,000 years ago to obtain the throne.

I cannot yet make a judgment, but I vaguely sense that the immortals are gradually favoring Xie Jinhui.

If this trend continues for several decades, I fear that if Xie Jinhui were to raise his arm and call upon the immortals, they would follow him in a coup, just like in a mortal drama, to force him to abdicate and seize the throne.

Xie Jinhui is not only the successor to the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, but also the Crown Prince of Moxu Chenyuan.

No matter how much he acts all lovey-dovey and delirious with me, my fellow immortals will still think that he is the one mediating.

My fellow immortals shared these thoughts with me privately. Mu Zhu also said that even the Twelve True Faces Fairies and the earlier Lady Jieyu had revealed their feelings to me.

Even my master nodded to me secretly. The other day, when I brushed past him, I heard him say, "When evil spirits descend upon the world, no matter who they are, Yuan'e, we must slaughter them."

I find it puzzling that the immortal realm seems to have reached a consensus in just a few days, as if they have secretly laid out a large, intricately stitched net.

They were all weaving, while I, the goddess who knew the secret, only had the opportunity and awareness to thread the needle when the Holy Emperor blocked my door.

"It's much more complicated than that!"

I left Mu Zhu with a message, then leaped up and stood before the fake Heavenly Emperor.

With my gaze fixed on the other person, I descended the steps, each step deliberate and thoughtful.

Today, the Holy Emperor Sheng Sheng rarely showed such a joyful expression.

As soon as he saw me, he grinned, revealing his teeth, and opened the long sleeves of his bat-cloak, which, like greasy and stagnant black fat, rushed towards me.

I couldn't understand what the expression on his face meant—was it something lost and found, a long-awaited reunion, or an overwhelming joy that wanted to bind us together?

It was quite frightening, but what was even more frightening was that the fake Heavenly Emperor revealed a youthful, abrupt shyness. He rolled up his sleeves, and the sandstorm immediately enveloped me.

"Goddess Yuan'e, I'll take you somewhere."

I tensed up, wanting to politely decline his offer, but the fake Heavenly Emperor didn't care about my reaction at all.

The next instant, I was swept away by the monster's whirlwind and landed in a sensitive place that I knew immediately.

Without saying a word, the fake Heavenly Emperor pointed at the palace in front of me and said excitedly, "Goddess Yuan'e, this is the palace of the Empress. Do you like it? Do you want to be the Empress? Right now!"

I had been to this place before when the Holy Emperor Sheng Sheng brought me here, but this fake emperor seems to have no memory of it and doesn't realize that he is blatantly exposing himself.

I pretended to be seeing such a beautiful sight for the first time, and hopped away from his approaching body as he asked questions.

She said calmly, "Yuan'e doesn't like it here. Yuan'e prefers Moxu Chenyuan."

I need to make him angry a little; I can't let him stay in such an excited and euphoric state.

I can't stand the way he used the face of the Holy Emperor to reveal such a filthy expression of disrespect for elders.

However, I'll hold back for a moment and try to get some details out of him.

When I mentioned Moxu Chenyuan, his gaze swept across the area, landing on the shadowy palace not far away, revealing a chilling glint.

"Then let us do as the goddess Yuan'e said and move the imperial palace to the Moxu Abyss."

I can do it!

I felt a chill and suddenly turned to look at him.

The fake Heavenly Emperor changed his face to a smiling one and stared intently at me.

"Goddess Yuan'e, who are you? Are you someone I know? Are you my flesh and blood? Or are you my..."

He had lost his composure, like the wind talking to itself, whistling around me, sometimes near, sometimes far.

The fake Heavenly Emperor seemed to have forgotten to pretend in front of me; I was like the only person he could get close to.

"Goddess Yuan'e, I am so lonely. Do you know the loneliness of being abandoned in the abyss, never to see the light of day again?"

"Goddess Yuan'e, ever since I met you, I have been dreaming of you. This dream is too lonely. You shall be the Empress. Stay here, stay here."

He muttered to himself, seemingly lost in his own world, but his gaze remained fixed on my face.

Suddenly, his gaze seemed to be ignited, and an uncontrollable urge to confirm something drove him to move closer.

I could even feel the fluctuations in his aquatic aura, and I clenched the immortal power and runes in my hand.

“Goddess Yuan’e.” He merely glanced at my appearance, as if stung by something, and the frenzied impulse quickly subsided, replaced by self-consciousness. He retreated to the side, looking rather ashamed.

"Don't be afraid, I just want you to stay by my side, like now, I'm finally not alone."

He became excited again, shaking his sleeves, startling the white cranes in the palaces and mountains, who cried out and flew into the sky, losing their leisurely air.

"Goddess Yuan'e, rest assured, as long as you become Empress, I will ask nothing more of you."

And also, I can find you a more suitable appearance, so you won't be disgraced.

I can only sigh that fortunes change, and the words I used to ask the Holy Emperor for help have now come back to haunt me.

Could it be that I have some blood relation with this sincere yet insane fake Heavenly Emperor monster, and that we even have the same tricks for coaxing people?

He dared not make any big moves against me, for fear that I would fly away like a crane and abandon him.

I wish I were flowing water, to seep into his body and see what kind of water monster he was, with such an unpredictable temperament, yet he still managed to sit on the throne of the Heavenly Emperor.

"Heavenly Emperor, you said you'd move the Imperial Palace to the Abyss of Moxu, are you planning to seize control of the Abyss of Moxu?"

My words, spoken casually as a joke, struck me like a thunderbolt, waking me from my slumber, where my eyes were fixed solely on myself, like those of a false Heavenly Emperor.

He took a few steps back, forcing an ugly, bitter smile, and sighed, "Goddess Yuan'e, I have no solution yet, I'm not confident, so I think..."

The words came to an abrupt halt, as if an invisible switch had been snapped off.

The eagerness to confide in his eyes vanished instantly, and his eyes regained their brightness. He did not reveal everything because of his urgency.

However, I found the answer in his few words: binding Xie Jinhui to the Tai Su Wu Nian Stone was his attempt to occupy the Mo Xu Chen Yuan.

It was a trap, a contest he himself wasn't confident about.

The fake Heavenly Emperor tilted his head slightly, his shinbone making a very faint cracking sound. Then, a cold smile appeared on his lips, as if he had retrieved a memory from the past of the Holy Emperor Sheng, and his demeanor and movements became graceful and magnanimous.

If he had acted this way from the beginning, I wouldn't have been so wary.

He raised his hand and stroked my head. This time I didn't dodge. He felt like the Holy Emperor!

My eyes instantly filled with tears, because I was certain that the Holy Emperor had become a monster's shell. His original memories, demeanor, manner of doing things, and tone of voice had all become props for the monster to deceive people.

The fake Heavenly Emperor didn't think I knew much about him. As he paced around my head, he asked, "Little Yuan'e, would you like to be the Empress?"

I composed myself and forced a genuine smile.

"I'm willing!" I looked up and met the fake Heavenly Emperor's surprised eyes.

I continued, "If you immediately order the throne to be passed to Xie Jinhui, wouldn't I become the Empress?"

The fake Heavenly Emperor froze, speechless with shock.

I'm not finished yet, let me give him another way out.

"I knew it was the Heavenly Emperor testing me, testing my sincerity towards the future Heavenly Emperor."

Otherwise, you wouldn't feel at ease.

The fake Heavenly Emperor's eyes darkened, and he smiled shrewdly: "Yes, Goddess Yuan'e."

Unexpectedly, after he finished speaking, he immediately waved his hand and let me go.

But I suddenly realized that this was the most dangerous moment.

As expected, the sound of flowing springs and waterfalls in the palace remained the same. My departing footsteps seemed to solidify into a hundred-ton boulder, causing dust to fly from several palaces belonging to the emperor and empress.

A dazed, swaying sensation, a tremor emanating from my entire body and my mind.

The fake Heavenly Emperor attacked me; I heard the manipulative spell he left in my mind.

"Goddess Yuan'e, I will make you forget everything that just happened."

All you need to remember is to say to me when you see me, "Uncle Heavenly Emperor, Yuan'e wants a hug."

I couldn't resist; I heard it clearly.

The defenses Xie Jinhui left deep within my consciousness have already eliminated this intrusion.

I am very clear-headed right now, but I need to be even more clear-headed.

Turning around, I smiled brightly and called out affectionately to the monster who was waiting menacingly with its arms outstretched: "Uncle Heavenly Emperor, Yuanhe wants a hug from you."

I pretended to be friendly in the arms of the fake Heavenly Emperor for a whole day, and he really just held me in his arms without saying a word.

As for me, the talisman in my palm was always ready to be activated, and it secretly entered his body to detect the location of several other spiritual objects.

Unexpectedly, I can both remain chaste for Xie Jinhui and dedicate myself to him.

I wish he would never know about the monster "Embrace" of that day.

*

The stars have filled the sky, and I have never experienced such a cool night in the mountain garden.

I pretended to fall asleep at dusk, and the fake Heavenly Emperor sent me back to my bed in the Mountain Garden.

He sat beside me, watching over me like a block of ice from a deep abyss in the dead of night.

As soon as the sun set, the glint of swords and the darkness of the sky filled the air, and I shivered with cold.

The fake Heavenly Emperor noticed that I wasn't sleeping soundly, and he apologized to me repeatedly, saying that he had chilled me. Then he stumbled away from my den of demons.

I'm still trembling violently. Should I break the seal on the basin and embrace my fire?

No, no, I feel so disheveled and dejected right now. I can only manage to clearly review the location of the spirit object I discovered a few times.

Having roughly determined that the fake Heavenly Emperor would not return, Mu Zhu brought a large wooden barrel and rammed it into my room.

Does that mean she's coming to call me to take a shower again?

I was so angry that my blood rushed to my head and I jumped up. I yelled at her not to think any wild ideas about what I had with the Heavenly Emperor.

Mu Zhu shook her head with pity; she was also rubbing her hands together because of the cold.

"Yuanhe, let's warm up. Our mountain kites were almost frozen."

Her eyes darted around in fear, and she said weakly, "How could the backlash from the Holy Emperor be so bizarre?"

"Yuan'e, are you and Xie Shenjun... confident?"

*

I didn't know how to reply to Mu Zhu. Perhaps because I looked worried and didn't say anything, she didn't ask any more questions.

With arms draped over the edge of the bathtub, her body submerged in warm water.

The weather has warmed up, but I wonder if the flowers and plants in Qunshan Garden can survive this sudden, bitterly cold winter.

The water droplets inside the demon cave, carrying my divine power, formed a warm canopy above the mountain garden, dripping with warm spiritual rain.

I think I feel a connection with the flowers right now, and they must be feeling much better.

The seal on the basin on the table has been broken, and I set it up as a water mirror, suspending it in mid-air.

Through the shimmering surface of the basin of water, I looked at my arms and shoulders, which were not adorned with fairy robes.

A face that had lost its paleness and regained its rosy glow was now disheveled amidst the pile of untied, long hair.

It was already late, and I sighed weakly toward the "Water Mirror".

"Xie Jinhui..."

A flash of light appeared on the smooth, moon-like mirror, and Xie Jinhui's face flushed crimson the instant it surfaced.

He hurriedly opened one eye and covered the other, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Yuan'e, you must never let your lovesickness lead you to become a soul-stealing water ghost."

"Your husband will come and subdue you tomorrow."

I chuckled and flicked a drop of water at him.

"There are still three days left in the ten-day period. Have you finalized your plan?"

Xie Jinhui's eyes, which he had been covering, peeked out from between his fingers. The redness hadn't faded, and his gaze was clear and sharp.

"Yuan'e, there will be a future in this world."