It wasn't as warm as I'd expected, nor as delicate as I'd anticipated.

It was a chilling aura that hit us in the face.

Jack's pupils widened, and he shoved Violet hard, tilting his head back as blood flowed from his lips.

A crystal-clear, diamond-shaped piece of ice had frozen right in front of Violet's mouth, now stained with a trace of blood.

Just now, Jack's lips were frozen. Luckily, he stepped back in time to avoid the cold from penetrating, but the skin on his lips was completely torn off.

Blood was still flowing, and his mouth was burning, but this pain was nothing to Jack. He casually wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve, stared intently at Jack, and said in surprise, "This is magic, Violet. How many things are you hiding from me?"

“Much more than you imagine.” Violet, unperturbed by Jack’s earlier offense, answered sincerely, then asked, “So you were the one who assassinated Wu Yu that day?”

“That’s right.” Jack didn’t hide anything. “I originally thought that as long as I killed that man, you wouldn’t leave me. Even if we just lived like before, I could accept it.”

"But you started lying to me back then. You told me that man was just an ordinary person. But how could an ordinary person dodge my attack while he was asleep? And even if my body collapsed because of the modification, I still have a foundation of first-level battle qi. How could an ordinary person possibly beat me?"

“If you don’t verify it, you’ll never know you’ve been deceived,” Violet said nonchalantly.

"Really!" Jack exclaimed angrily. "Then tell me, why did you marry that disabled man? Is he a nobleman? A wealthy businessman? Or a prince who escaped from some country?"

“Can’t it be for love?” Violet retorted.

"Ha." Jack shook his head with a wry smile. "If that man could really bring you happiness, maybe I would wish you well, but look at his silly face. He doesn't even know your gender. Do you remember what you said when we switched identities?"

“I could never forget something important,” Violet said with certainty.

"You told me that our bodies are our biggest bargaining chip, and we should make good use of them when needed. If we meet a suitable woman in the future, I should conquer her, and if we meet a suitable man, you should seduce him. How could you, who could say such things at the age of eight, possibly fall in love with a man you've only known for a month? So what exactly do you want from him?"

Violet paused, staring blankly at Jack. Her gaze seemed to pierce through the present, containing a complex emotion that Jack couldn't comprehend. After a long while, she sighed.

“What I’m carrying is beyond your comprehension, Jack. Take my advice: lift the spatial blockade here, and then, as I’ve arranged, switch identities with me. Then you’ll be free. I’ll only give you a second chance.”

"Well, thank you anyway." Jack's smile gradually twisted. "It's always like this. You don't tell me anything. Do I really not even deserve to help you share the burden?"

"Very well, from now on I will no longer concern myself with you. Now I am Jack, I am the head of the Russell family, the baron of the empire, and you are not my sister. You are just a woman I love deeply but who is not related to me by blood. As long as I defeat you tonight, I will get everything I have ever dreamed of."

"Have you also been corrupted by desire? Or is desire the invincible enemy of mankind?" Violet sighed softly, a faint sadness rising in her heart as she watched the obedient little boy of the past display his ugly side before her.

Because she foresaw it all—she foresaw Jack's self-destructive future.

“This isn’t desire, you forced me to do this,” Jack retorted loudly, then took a few steps back and picked up the magic wand from the ground.

Jack pointed his staff at Violet, as if to encourage himself, and said, "Even if you know magic, I've never seen you practice it. No matter how talented you are, you're at most a mid-level mage, and you don't have the amplification of a staff. You can't possibly be my match."

"Is it really impossible to go back to the past?" Violet's words even carried a hint of pleading.

Looking at the frail girl in front of him, Jack felt a fleeting thought, but he quickly came to his senses and roared, "You're the one who wants to change the status quo!"

Jack resolutely raised the staff in his hand, the gems embedded in it gleaming with an earthy yellow light.

"Clay - Active"

Mud Warriors

The soil gradually emerged from the ground, coalesced into a huge clod of earth, and then began to change, developing limbs, eyes, mouth, nose, and ears, eventually transforming into a two-meter-tall earth giant.

"Fourth-tier magic, with your aptitude, reaching this level is no easy feat," Violet exclaimed in surprise, looking at Jack with admiration.

“Yes, I haven’t given up meditation for a single day in the past ten years. I had hoped to become your help as soon as possible, but ironically, the first person I attacked with magic was you,” Jack said with self-deprecation.

“Violet, I know you will never compromise, so I will just do it directly, but be careful, I don’t want to really hurt you.”

After saying that, Jack pointed his staff at Violet, and the mud giant charged towards Violet with heavy steps.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!