The longsword, burning with black flames and carrying a resolute determination to destroy everything, pierced straight for Su Nian's brow! Before the sword even arrived, the sharp killing intent and violent energy pressure had already frozen her soul and stung her skin, as if she would be completely annihilated in the next second!

There's no way to avoid it, no way to stop it!

In this critical moment, the instinct for survival and the newly established, intense resonance deep within his soul led Su Nian to make an almost insane move!

Instead of trying to defend herself or retreat, she suddenly raised her head to meet the sword of death, gazing into Xie Chen's blood-red eyes filled with rage and murderous intent! She poured all the emotions she had just gained from the deep resonance with the earth's source—that unwavering persistence that transcended worlds and endured shattering, that tenderness and yearning that had been sealed for millennia and buried deep beneath pain—into her eyes, along with all her own "sincerity" and resolve, like the purest and most fervent light, unreservedly projecting them onto Xie Chen!

At the same time, the few golden points of light deep within her soul ignited with unprecedented brightness, resonating with the anxious and painful fluctuations emanating from the source of the earth, emitting a silent cry!

It was not a contest of strength, but a torrent of emotions, a questioning of the soul!

"Xie Chen—!"

She didn't call out "Your Majesty," but his name! It carried a familiar yet painful feeling that transcended time.

The sword tip stopped abruptly less than an inch from her brow!

The burning black flames flickered violently, as if blown by an invisible wind.

Xie Chen's body jolted violently!

The gaze Su Nian cast upon him, imbued with countless complex emotions, pierced deep into his rage-frozen consciousness like a red-hot thorn! It contained things he had long forgotten, or rather, things deliberately rejected and suppressed by his "dark shell"—the promise made under the moon of the Immortal Sect, the search within the e-sports arena, and the unique look he gave her in countless fragmented worlds!

What made his soul tremble even more was that, along with that gaze, an extremely familiar, warm, and instinctively longed sense of "quiet" flowed like a spring, washing away his violent killing intent along with the blood connection he had just drunk from and had not yet fully absorbed!

"Ugh—!"

He let out a low, painful growl, his sword-wielding hand trembling violently. The rage in his blood-red eyes receded like a tide, replaced by utter chaos and struggle! His consciousness seemed to be torn in two: one half was the pure destructive desire of the dark side, wanting to completely obliterate this blood servant who had touched taboos and threatened his existence; the other half was thrown into turmoil by a sudden torrent of emotions and a resonance with his soul, a primal longing and reluctance to part with that light, frantically preventing him from acting!

"What...what did you do to me?!" he roared hoarsely, pressing his other hand tightly against his forehead as if something was trying to break free of its restraints.

It is the origin of the earth! Under Su Nian's relentless resonance guidance, the sealed core is impacting the seal with unprecedented force, trying to respond and influence the dark side that occupies his body!

The energy on the black flame longsword flickered erratically, sometimes blazing brightly, sometimes dim.

Su Nian's face was ashen, and fine beads of cold sweat trickled down her forehead. That last strike had almost exhausted all her mental and physical strength. Looking at Xie Chen, who was struggling violently before her, she knew the crisis wasn't over; this was just a temporary stalemate. The power of the dark side far surpassed hers, and once he suppressed the impact of his primal force and the interference of his emotions, his next strike would not falter.

She has to do it now!

“I didn’t do anything,” Su Nian’s voice trembled slightly with relief, yet remained unusually clear. She stared intently into his chaotic eyes. “I just… showed you what you truly desire deep down. Not destruction, not eternal loneliness and pain…”

She moved forward slowly and very carefully, taking half a step, closing the distance slightly. This movement made Xie Chen tense up warily, the sword tip drawing closer again, but she did not back down.

“...but 'quiet,'” she said softly, her gaze gentle yet firm. “A moment of peace to escape that endless suffering. Didn’t you drink my blood precisely to seek that?”

She tried to slowly transmit a wisp of purer energy, infused with the chilling aura of ice and the intent of "true love," through the subtle blood connection between the two, as if soothing a raging beast.

Xie Chen's body trembled violently again, his knuckles turning white as he pressed his forehead. That cool, pure energy, like a drop of sweet dew in the sweltering summer, landed on his restless and raging soul fire, making a soft "hissing" sound and bringing a brief but real relief. The struggling ferocity in his eyes seemed to have been diluted a little more.

“My blood can give you ‘peace’,” Su Nian continued, her voice steady and carrying a strange, soothing power. “But if you destroy me, you will lose it forever. The root of your pain is sealed underground, and my existence is the only possibility to alleviate that pain. If you kill me, you will be swallowed by eternal clamor.”

She was gambling, gambling that his desire for "quiet" would outweigh his fear of losing control and his destructive instincts toward the dark side.

Xie Chen stared intently at her, his chest heaving violently, his breathing heavy. The chaos in his bloodshot eyes gradually subsided, replaced by an extremely complex gaze, a mixture of scrutiny and longing. He could feel the impact of the primal force beneath the earth gradually being suppressed again after his intense emotional turmoil, but the logic in Su Nian's words, and the genuine soothing sensation emanating from the blood connection, took root in his heart.

After a long while, just as Su Nian felt she was about to give way to this silent standoff—

"Clang!"

The longsword, burning with black flames, slipped from his hand and fell to the cold ground with a crisp sound. Then the flames went out, and the longsword turned into a wisp of black smoke and dissipated.

He abandoned his murderous intent.

But the oppressive aura emanating from him didn't dissipate; instead, it became even more dangerous and reserved. He took a step forward, instantly closing the distance between them. His cold fingertips, like iron clamps, gripped Su Nian's chin, forcing her to raise her head and look him in the eye.

“You’re right,” his voice was low and threatening, carrying a sense of shame and annoyance at having his hand exposed, coupled with an even stronger possessiveness. “Your blood is useful to me. Your life will remain for now.”

His fingertips pressed hard, causing Su Nian to feel a sharp pain.

“But,” his bloodshot eyes flashed with an undeniable madness, “from this day forward, everything about you—your life and death, your thoughts, your soul—belongs solely to me! If you dare to touch the seal again, if you dare to harbor any thought of betrayal…”

He leaned down, his cold lips almost touching her ear, and declared, word by word:

"I will show you what is more painful than death."

After saying that, he abruptly released his grip, as if disgusted by something dirty, and gave the now-dull black stone and the messy prayer room one last cold look.

“Derrick!” he shouted.

As if the old butler had been waiting outside, he immediately appeared and bowed respectfully: "Master."

"Take her back," Xie Chen's voice returned to its cold calm, yet carried an undeniable will. "Without my permission, she is forbidden from leaving the room. Increase guard."

“Yes,” Derrick replied, his gray eyes looking at Su Nian, devoid of any emotion.

Xie Chen didn't look at Su Nian again, turned around, and strode away from the prayer room he had almost destroyed. He needed to stabilize the seal that had become restless again, and he also needed to calm his mind, which had been turned upside down by a tiny blood servant.

Su Nian stood rooted to the spot, a lingering, cold pain in her jaw, her legs feeling weak. She had survived, but at the cost of more complete imprisonment and Xie Chen's darker, more obsessive possessiveness.

Derrick walked up to her and gestured for her to come.

Su Nian silently followed him out of the broken entrance and back into the cold, familiar corridor. Before leaving, she glanced back at the prayer room one last time. On the ground, the black stone lay quietly, a fine crack now running across its surface.

Although the process was extremely perilous, she didn't come away empty-handed. She verified the power of "sincerity" and soul resonance, and perhaps... she might have even loosened the seal a little. Moreover, Xie Chen's dependence on her blood had become a dangerous yet undeniably effective card in her hand.

Back in her heavily guarded side room, Su Nian leaned against the door and slowly slid down to sit on the floor. Exhaustion washed over her like a tide, and her soul felt a hollow, aching pain from overexertion.

However, just as she closed her eyes, preparing to regulate her breathing—

A faint yet unprecedentedly clear thought, like a gentle breeze piercing through layers of barriers, softly brushed against her soul. That thought was no longer filled with pain and rage, but rather with a weary sense of relief and a more resolute tenderness.

"Well done...read it..."

It's the very essence of the earth! After experiencing that profound soul resonance and impact, he seemed to have regained a clearer consciousness! Even though the seal remained, the connection between them seemed to have become even stronger and... more secretive?

Su Nian suddenly opened her eyes, a surge of indescribable excitement welling up inside her.

But the next second, that thought vanished, as if it had never existed.

However, Su Nian knew that some things had changed.

The shackles remain, but the cage is even deeper.

But in the darkness, the seeds had already been sown.