Chapter 179 Compensation "Let's go together and find your body back..."

Soaring through the air on their swords, they vanished in an instant, leaving the Li family ancestral tombs on Qingwu Mountain far behind, along with the people on the mountain.

Wen Yizhan wasn't oblivious to the lingering gazes of those behind him, but he never turned back. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but rather that he dared not.

I fear that if I turn back, my heart will waver.

After flying a long distance, the spirit sword gradually descended, its blade tilted, and Wen Yizhan fell from mid-air onto the hillside, rolling all the way down until a broken piece of wood stopped him.

With a mouthful of blood, Wen Yizhan could no longer hold back. He knelt on the ground, clutching his throbbing head, and a large amount of blood gushed from the corner of his mouth, revealing all the unbearable pain he had tried so hard to hide in this deserted mountain forest.

Inside the tomb, when the winged man recited the incantation, his body reacted as well. Unlike Li Mengbai's pure killing intent, he was awakened to his inner desires.

The voice he had forcibly suppressed almost completely took over his consciousness, driving him to kill, to rob... to kill everyone and take back his junior sister who originally belonged to him.

If we bring her back to Zhenyang Peak, they can be like before again. Only he can see her, and only he can see her!

She had too many men around her, and he loathed them all. The fact that Li Mengbai's first thought was to kill him ignited Wen Yizhan's bloodlust to its extreme; he was almost about to attack Li Mengbai, if Jiang Yuhuo hadn't intervened.

But Wen Yizhan still had a sliver of reason left, and that reason wouldn't allow him to show his ugly side in front of her.

While the merman prince was being interrogated by the winged people and uttered those words that sounded almost like a confession, he was in a corner, struggling with the inner demons that had been summoned. Spiritual energy surged wildly within his body, tearing at the wounds on his soul. It was here that the demonic energy had an opportunity to take hold, stirring up the curse hidden in his bloodline and pushing him into an even darker abyss.

He could no longer tell whether the demonic energy had fueled the curse or the curse had amplified the demonic energy.

He only knew that his soul had been torn apart painfully enough, and he no longer had the strength to be controlled by those desires.

Wen Yizhan thought he had hidden it well until he returned to Wen Ruoxin's tomb.

The pale, transparent soul still looked familiar to Wen Yizhan; he had grown into an adult, but Wen Ruoxin's face remained unchanged.

But the gaze directed at him held a deeper sadness.

"Zhan'er..." Wen Ruoxin wanted to smooth the wrinkles between his brows, but her transparent hand slipped past him just as it was about to touch Wen Yizhan's forehead. "Fighting against those things must hurt a lot..."

Unexpectedly, her mother had noticed. Wen Yizhan felt a pang of sadness and could only say that she was fine.

Wen Ruoxin's eyes were full of guilt. There was nothing she could do but watch him silently weep. "It's my fault for giving birth to you in such a place."

Despite having done nothing wrong, they are unjustly burdened by the curse of this family.

Such a vicious curse that has been passed down through generations.

No one knew about this, so how could he bear to let Wen Ruoxin, who had already suffered so much, blame herself?

Wen Yizhan forced a smile, "It's alright, Mother. Look, I've got it under control, haven't I? I left the Li family a long time ago, and those things aren't planted in my body much anymore."

Wen Ruoxin simply looked at him. "If what you say is true, then why did you leave in such a hurry? Mother's soul has been separated from her body for many years; a little sunlight means nothing to her. She wanted to talk to you, but you didn't give her the chance."

"I don't want her to find out that you actually..." Wen Ruoxin paused, her transparent soul gently stroking the top of his head, "That girl, is she the one Zhan'er likes?"

She saw how Wen Yizhan instinctively protected that person along the way.

Wen Yizhan remained silent for a long time.

"Yes, I like her." He pursed his lips. "...I like her very much."

He loved her so much that he was willing to give up his freedom and accept the order to become the head of the family from Li Shichuan. He loved her so much that he was willing to be trapped in this place he hated most for the rest of his life just to be with her.

But he didn't know he was cursed; the darkness that welled up within him would never disappear. Perhaps one day, he would become like Li Mengbai, recognizing no one during his episodes and transforming into a bloodthirsty monster. Perhaps he might even accidentally harm those around him…

How could I dare to stand beside her again? I'm just glad I never revealed anything to her, so she doesn't know anything yet.

"Zhan'er, promise your mother one thing."

Wen Ruoxin's soul is fading more and more.

The seal in the ancestral tomb has been broken, and her soul can no longer linger. When night falls again, she will embark on her journey to the underworld.

Wen Yizhan nodded, her eyes filled with reluctance.

"In my life, I haven't been able to give you a happy family, but I'm so glad to see you grow up to be who you are today. I want you to be free, and I don't want to see you suffer. Promise me, don't get involved in the Li family's mess, leave this ominous place forever, never do anything against human ethics, and never... become like the Li family."

Upon hearing those four words, Wen Yizhan trembled all over, and it took her a long time to speak with difficulty.

"Yes, I agree."

*

"Hmm, where are we going?"

Upon hearing this reply, Jiang Yuhuo couldn't help but carefully recall what she had just said. She was quite certain that she meant she was leaving, that she was going to leave alone, and that she wasn't inviting him.

"We're not on the same path." Thinking of the mermaid pearl within her body, Jiang Yuhuo added, "When you need the life pearl's energy, you can come to me again, just like before. I'll transfer the energy to you every three or five days. Anyway, wherever I am, you..."

Before she could finish speaking, a soft kiss landed on her lips, a delicate and persistent kiss from the corner of her lips to her cupid's bow.

Jiang Yuhuo took it as a farewell gesture and patiently endured it. Even in the midst of such tender and delicate kisses, she did not forget to give him her breath.

But Jia Yue's kisses gradually moved elsewhere. Just when Jiang Yuhu thought he was done, his cool breath sprayed on her earlobe. Jiang Yuhu felt her left ear immediately burn up, like a wildfire, making her whole ear buzz.

She heard Jia Yue's voice, "Shall we go together and find your body back?"

Jiang Yuhuo instantly sobered up and almost immediately took a big step back. The blush on her ears had not yet faded, but her face had already turned cold and hard.

"I'm not going."

"Why?" Jia Yue took a step forward, not understanding why she reacted this way, and patiently explained, "That senior has already made it very clear that you need the original body, whether it is to carry the spiritual fire in your body or to go to Cloud City in the future, you need it."

Jiang Yuhuo remained cold and unyielding, refusing to budge. "I don't need it, mind your own business!"

She left after saying those words, as if she were fleeing.

This time, Jia Yue didn't listen to her and chased after her to block her way.

“I’m sorry for what happened back then. I know it’s too late to do anything now, and I know you must have had your reasons for changing bodies, but your current body is not a long-term solution. As your power increases, one day, even the Mermaid Pearl will not be able to protect you. If you don’t want to go, just tell me. Tell me where your body is and who took it from you. I’m willing to pay any price.”

The merman's blue eyes were sorrowful yet sincere and gentle, like water wanting to envelop the person before him. He continued to coax him, "Xiao Jiang, just think of it as me... let me make it up to you, okay?"

Jiang Yuhuo took a few steps back, trying to make amends... He actually thought that regaining his body would be enough to make amends to her.

ridiculous!

But why did hearing him say that make her feel so choked up, as if her heart was filled with warm water, heavy and swollen, making her feel uncomfortable?

Merfolk can always easily sway people's hearts.

In order to suppress the strange feeling in her heart and not be swayed by him, Jiang Yuhuo had to use even colder and sharper words to reject him.

"Why should I do this for you? My affairs are none of your business, they were none of your business before, and they will be none of your business in the future!"

Sure enough, she saw the merman's face turn even paler, and his lips opened but he couldn't utter a single word.

Jiang Yuhuo glanced at it once before turning away. Her past pain, struggles, and unbearable suffering were all borne by that broken body. She didn't want anyone to see it, especially not the merman who had once been with her.

She walked far away and summoned the Peng bird in an open space.

Before leaving, she looked back one last time.

Amidst the verdant mountains, a white-clad, blue-haired merman clutched his chest, his back hunched, his hands gripping the mountainside as if desperately trying to keep from collapsing. Even those who once looked down upon all living beings appeared insignificant beneath the towering mountains.

The long, grey-blue hair fell to the ground, but the merman paid it no heed. After a long while, a pair of elegant black cloth boots came into view.

"I'll take you back to the Heavenly Palace."

As the person finished speaking, she was about to leave when the merman almost immediately grabbed her hand. Her warm, dry hand warmed his heart.

"good."

He quietly followed her onto the Peng bird, never mentioning anything about regaining his body again.

Sitting on the back of the roc, Jia Yue naturally wrapped her arms around Jiang Yu Huo's waist, almost enveloping her from behind.

Before takeoff, Jiang Yuhuo wanted him to let go, but when she thought of how he had saved her in the tomb, she stopped her hands from untying his embrace.

The person behind her rested their face on her shoulder, and their long, grey-blue hair cascaded down in front of her. There was some dust on the ends of their hair, probably from when they had bent over earlier. The soft, cool hair shimmered in the sunlight, making them stunningly beautiful.

As if possessed, Jiang Yuhuo's restless hands picked up one of the strands and blew on it.

As the dust settled and they took off, the wind blew their hair behind them.

Unseen by Jiang Yuhuo, a wisp of wind was weaving two strands of hair, one black and one blue, together, like a knot, which no matter how fierce the wind became, it could not separate.

His deep blue eyes gazed at the strands of hair that swirled and followed him in the wind. He gently kissed the dark hair of the person in front of him. His arms were strong, yet his kisses were light and graceful. He was no longer the weak and powerless person he had been before.

The towering Tianque Mountain was right in front of us, and we could vaguely see cultivators in white robes at our feet.

Jiang Yuhuo wanted to find a place to land. Getting her here should be enough. They were already within the Tianque area, so even if Jia Yue fainted here, she didn't need to worry.

As if guessing what she was thinking, a clear and melodious voice suddenly came from beside her ear, "Don't you want to see Qingping and the others?" Her breath tickled her ear slightly, "She said you promised to go see her."

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Author's note: I repent. I must update before midnight tomorrow.