At this moment, the old monk also realized what was happening and swung his staff to save her, but unfortunately, he was a step too late.

Yan Qing watched helplessly as her body flew to Chu Jiang's side, and at the same time, a sharp claw gripped her neck.

"Old ghost, try moving again?"

Chu Jiang's expression remained calm, but the hand gripping Yan Qing's neck pressed down gently, his long nails piercing her skin and slowly staining it bright red.

As far as Yan Qing could see, Chu Jiang's arm had turned completely bluish-black, and his fingernails were about an inch long, shimmering with black light.

Her eyes dimmed, and she ultimately chose to say nothing.

"Amitabha! Benefactor Chu, why are you doing this?"

The old monk wanted to continue persuading the other party, but unfortunately, he was now almost completely opposed to Chu Jiang, and Chu Jiang clearly had no intention of continuing to reason with him.

"I'll only say this once: you get out, she stays, or I don't mind taking care of her right now."

“Benefactor Chu—” The old monk wanted to say something more.

"Ugh—" Chu Jiang exerted force with his arm, and Yan Qing's neck instantly became covered in bloody marks.

"Very well, this old monk will leave now—Benefactor Chu, please don't act rashly!"

The old monk was very sensible; he took Xiao Tao's hand and turned to leave.

Only the Bloodthirsty Demon King remained, arms crossed, watching the spectacle. He saw Chu Jiang looking at him, but simply waved his hand.

"I have accomplished my mission and it is time for me to retire."

He was even more swift; before the old monk had even taken a step, he had already vanished completely.

Now, the old monk's face became even more sorrowful.

"Are we just going to let it go like this?" Xiao Tao asked, puzzled.

Let's go—

After everyone disappeared beside the stone platform, Chu Jiang suddenly let go of his hand.

"Cough cough cough—"

Yan Qing finally got to breathe fresh air again, and immediately collapsed to the side, coughing violently.

She stood up after a while, only to find that Chu Jiang had walked to the side of the woman in red on the stone platform. His black fingernails slowly traced across the woman's smooth face.

"Tell me, is she a fool or not?"

Chu Jiang didn't look up, but Yan Qing knew he was talking to her.

"I don't know either," Yan Qing said carefully, choosing her words carefully.

"Perhaps, from the perspective of fate, I think she really suffered a lot."

Abandoned, murdered, and subjected to all kinds of torment, she still harbored kindness and helped others. Then she was abandoned again, and her unborn child was forcibly aborted…

All of this, even just what Yan Qing knows, is already tragic enough. If this had happened to someone else, they might have already sought revenge on the world, let alone tried to save it.

Chu Jiang's voice was somewhat ethereal, "In my memory, there are memories related to her. The first man actually regretted it."

For some reason, he suddenly became interested. "Yan Qing, do you still remember that high priest of Yelang Kingdom? Why did he forcibly strip King Jinzhu of everything and even create a fake Azure Dragon Coffin for himself? Didn't you ever have any doubts?"

Yan Qing certainly had her suspicions. The high priest's behavior was indeed a bit strange. He not only dismembered King Jinzhu Yelang into eight pieces, but also suppressed each piece of the corpse with the most vicious "Nine Deaths Soul-Suppressing Curse." In the end, he even placed King Jinzhu Yelang's head in his own coffin as a burial item.

Such heinous acts could only be committed by someone with a deep-seated hatred.

So, starting from the short film she saw in the mirror, she had already begun to suspect the truth behind the Azure Dragon Coffin.

The result is obvious: the originally terrifying Azure Dragon Coffin Riding instance, in retrospect, was nothing more than the revenge of two lovelorn lovers.

Therefore, the high priest's identity is easy to guess. He should be the woman in red's first love and the father of her child.

Yan Qing had only seen a few fragments of their story. And the truth about the people in the story was certainly far more complex.

But one thing she was certain of: this man ultimately regretted his actions. That's why he came to find her, enduring considerable suffering along the way, only to discover she had become the favored concubine of the King of Jinzhu Yelang. The man was likely driven to despair, which led to the scene where she stabbed him to death.

"Back then, that man betrayed his family, abandoned everything, and went through countless hardships just to find his wife again. However, when he found her, she had already become someone else's wife. In despair, he even lost the courage to live, thinking that he could atone for his sins with his own life."

Chu Jiang spoke softly, his movements still gentle.

"However, he didn't know why he didn't die, even though his heart was pierced. When he woke up, the news he received was a notice from King Jinzhu Yelang, saying that the queen was a demon and had been killed."

As he spoke, he suddenly burst into laughter. "Hahahaha, that man killed her again! Only this time, he never found her again, even in his death. Even though he avenged her, how can he ever bring her back?"

"So—" Yan Qing suddenly spoke, "that's why you hate King Jinzhu Yelang so much? You're willing to tear him to pieces and suppress him for eternity, making him suffer for all eternity?"

"Yes!" Chu Jiang's features contorted, veins bulging on his face, and a bluish-black tinge began to creep up his neck and face. He spoke through gritted teeth.

"Why not?! That King Jinzhu Yelang, without her help, how could he have built a country from a barbaric tribe?! She clearly did everything for him, yet he still betrayed her! He deserved to die!"

Yan Qing sighed; this time, she really didn't know what to say.

Looking at the woman on the stone bed, a thought suddenly popped into her mind for some reason.

"I think perhaps that's not what she thought. Whether it was your past life or the King of Jinzhu Yelang, she may have loved deeply. It's just that you betrayed her, and although she met a tragic end, she never felt sorry for herself."

"A woman like her, someone who can get a phone call from a powerful Buddhist master, must be a very insightful person. Perhaps what you are thinking about is, in her view, suffering has already been experienced, and people must eventually look forward."

Yan Qing even felt that if it weren't for her bizarre identity as the world's first person to hold a Gold Rank title, she could continue to love and strive openly and honestly. For a woman like her, her world was destined to be more than just the past; a vast and boundless future was her ultimate pursuit.

"But fate is cruel—" Yan Qing's tone shifted, her eyes hardening.

"Tell me, what exactly do you want to do by leaving me alone?"

"Clap clap clap—"

Chu Jiang began to applaud, "Smart girl, I think if I hadn't met Qingqing more than a hundred years ago, I really would have fallen in love with you—"

Yan Qing wasn't going to be fooled by her sweet talk. "You flatter me. I can't accept your love. Of course, I'm not without my own demands—"

Where did Yue Qi go?