Great Zhou World

On the first day, she didn't come. On the second day, there was no news from her. On the third day, Xiao Yuhuan always spent a lot of time with Ning Yangyang. He didn't mention topics like the imperial concubine or the queen, and just looked at her silently. On the fourth day, Xiao Ziyi became particularly cocky, as if Ning Yangyang and he were natural enemies. His smile always revealed the joy of revenge. On the fifth day, Xiao Ziyi didn't want to accompany Ning Yangyang anymore, but was coerced and induced by Xiao Yuhuan to stay with Ning Yangyang. That was the only time Xiao Yuhuan showed his toughness. On the sixth day, the whole family of Ning Mansion actually came, as if they wanted to see her for the last time. Perhaps it was because she was about to die, and those little villains in this world also showed pity at this moment.

Nangong Xi hadn't even left Dayu when she heard the news of Ning Yangyang's poisoning. Without a moment's hesitation, she galloped back to the capital. On the first day, Xiao Yuhuan ordered the palace gates sealed, but she hadn't arrived yet. On the fourth day, when the palace gates reopened, she remembered Ning Yangyang's actions. Everything was just to allow her to escape, but she had taken the initiative to return to the wolf's den. But the Seven Days of Cold was an untreatable poison, and this was her last day.

The seventh day coincided with the palace's maid selection, a blatant trap and a chance to see Ning Yangyang one last time. Nangong Xi followed the head nurse as they navigated the palace until they reached Qixiang Palace, where she was staying. She found an inconspicuous corner and wandered in. Qixiang Palace wasn't heavily guarded, but it housed nearly all the imperial physicians. As a young maid, Nangong Xi quickly arrived at Ning Yangyang's bedside. She was lucky: Ning Yangyang was the only one there, having been driven outside by her servants.

Ning Yangyang heard the door open and was about to yell at him to stop bothering her, until she caught a whiff of the person's distinctive, faint herbal scent. She couldn't imagine what the herbal blend was made of; it must have been mostly lemon, with some bitter, unidentified flavor.

Sure enough, the one who understood the heroine's baby best was the perverted hero. Nangong Xi was back. She still failed. She turned over and didn't want to talk to her. Ning Yangyang knew in her heart that she was just disappointed in him.

Nangong Xi inched closer to the bed, shrouded in the stench of medicinal herbs and a deadly silence. Beneath the thick, almost nauseating aroma of incense, a faint, yet even more disturbing, rusty odor stubbornly penetrated her nostrils, growing stronger and clearer as she approached. It wasn't blood from a wound, but the despair that seeped out after life was shattered. Her heart sank, as if she had fallen into an icy cave.

On the bed, Ning Yangyang's figure seemed incredibly frail beneath the heavy quilt, as if a gust of wind could blow her away. This sight stung Nangong Xi's eyes more than any sword could. An indescribable panic gripped her, nearly suffocating her. Unable to hold back any longer, she took a sudden step forward, practically falling onto the cold edge of the bed. Her body leaned forward slightly, her voice a hoarse, suppressed yet on the verge of collapse:

"Yangyang...is this what you bought me... these seven days?"

Her question was like a stone dropped into stagnant water, evoking no expected response. Ning Yangyang simply curled herself deeper into the quilt, as if completely isolating herself from this cruel world. Her subtle trembling clearly conveyed a chill that penetrated deep into her bones—seven days of cold, the final icy moment devouring her remaining warmth.

Nangong Xi looked at the fragile figure, who looked like a glass doll, and felt a huge sense of powerlessness in her chest. She stretched out her hand, her fingertips stopped just inches away from the bedding, and finally she could only weakly clench the sheets beneath her, her knuckles turning white.

"This is the last day..." Her voice lowered, with a tiredness that was almost pleading, "Let me stay with you like this..." This was no longer a question, but more like a kind of stubborn companionship even though she knew it was a dead end.

As soon as the words fell, Ning Yangyang felt as if she was hurt by these words, and the quilt moved suddenly!

She actually used up her last bit of strength to struggle to sit up, and with a resolute hatred, she pushed Nangong Xi with her skinny hands. However, the force was as light as a dead leaf, not only did it not push Nangong Xi at all, but it also exhausted her already precarious strength. Her body softened and she fell forward uncontrollably.

Nangong Xi subconsciously opened her arms, and the cold, almost weightless body fell into her arms.

Instantly, the stench of blood, masked by the incense, surged over, so strong that Nangong Xi's vision went dark. The person in his arms was as cold as ice, and every weak breath was accompanied by a crackling sound.

"Cough... cough..." A few suppressed coughs escaped from the crook of her neck. Then, a voice with a thick sobbing tone sounded, and every word was like blood foam squeezed out from between her teeth: "This harem... you can come and go freely... This is a huge trap... Why... Why did you come here? This is all... cough... All of this is my own will!" She screamed out the last few words with all her might, with a kind of despair of being betrayed. Her body trembled violently with excitement, but was held tightly by Nangong Xi's arms.

Nangong Xi tightly embraced the rapidly draining body in her arms. The cold touch and strong smell of blood cut into her heart like a knife. She tightened her arms, as if forcing her own life force through. Her voice, with an almost paranoid roar, burst out:

"But I don't want it! Ning Yangyang, I don't want the freedom I bought with your life!" Her tears finally burst forth, scalding tears pelting Ning Yangyang's cold, disheveled hair. They also shattered the thin layer of ice between them, a feeling of "iron dislike for not being able to become steel," revealing the bottomless pain beneath. The only sounds in the hall were suppressed sobs and Ning Yangyang's increasingly faint, painful gasps.

A final, mournful light smeared across the glazed tiles of the palace walls, the air thick with the aroma of medicine and the chill of the evening breeze. Xiao Ziyi, dressed in a dark suit and a black cape, stood tall and straight like a solitary pine tree, a stark contrast to the palace's carved beams and painted rafters. He held a blue-and-white porcelain bowl steady in his hand, containing a life-saving elixir he had just "snatched" from the chief of the Imperial Hospital. The liquid was thick and black, its bitter aroma rising with a last shred of warmth. His knuckles were white from exertion, and a suppressed anxiety lingered deep in his silent eyes. He rushed, swiftly, toward the main entrance of the bedroom.

Just as he was about to step onto the last white marble step, a tall, bright yellow figure silently stepped out from the shadows of the palace gate, blocking his path. Xiao Yuhuan stood with his hands behind his back, his voice as gentle as a knife tempered with honey: "Wait a minute." His gaze fell precisely on the bowl of medicine, and a barely perceptible curve curved the corners of his lips. "This medicine... it's probably cold after carrying it all the way here. How about heating it up first?" His words were considerate, but his eyes were like a cold spider web, entwining Xiao Ziyi with endless calculations.

Xiao Ziyi's footsteps froze in place. He raised his eyes slightly, his piercing gaze now serene, a bottomless pool of cold. He was silent for a moment, his lips curling into an icy arc. His voice was low, each word falling like an icy shard. "Your Majesty," he said, deliberately emphasizing the distant title, severing the false kinship of "cousin." "I have been here with Your Majesty, acting out this 'brotherly love' drama for seven whole days." His gaze, like a tangible blade, scraped across Xiao Yuhuan's carefully groomed face. "Is that enough?"

The moment the three words "Is that enough?" fell, it was like a silent signal!

Xiao Ziyi's wrist holding the medicine bowl seemed to tremble slightly because of "sorrow"!

“Bang—!”

A deafening, piercing crack suddenly shattered the dead silence of dusk! The precious blue-and-white porcelain bowl slipped from his grasp and slammed hard onto the cold white marble steps, instantly shattering into pieces! The thick, black medicinal juice, like desperate, stained blood, splattered and quickly seeped into the cracks in the stone, leaving behind only a pungent bitterness and a hideous mess.

The air suddenly froze, and even the wind seemed to hold its breath.

Xiao Ziyi lowered his eyes, indifferently observing the rapidly cooling stains and debris at his feet. His face showed no trace of surprise or regret, only a cold calmness that bordered on grim. It was as if the shattered object was merely a long-lost, insignificant object.

Xiao Yuhuan slowly crouched down, extending his pampered hand and leisurely picking up the broken porcelain pieces stained with the medicine. His movements were as graceful as if he were picking up jade, unconcerned with the sharp scraps of porcelain slicing his fingertips and the bright red blood that oozed out. He picked up the pieces one by one, and then, with a kind of "considerateness" that bordered on humiliation, he gently placed the small handful of broken porcelain, stained with his fingertips' blood, back next to Xiao Ziyi's clenched fist.

He raised his head and looked up at Xiao Ziyi, who stood like an iron tower on the steps. The mask of compassion covered his face again, but his voice was drenched in coldness: "General Ning..." He paused deliberately, his eyes sweeping across the closed palace door like a venomous snake. Is he really so cruel? She is your own sister. We are connected by blood, flesh and blood." Every word he said was like a poisoned whip.

Xiao Ziyi's gaze swept coldly across the pile of dirty porcelain shards beside him, then slowly lifted, fixing upon Xiao Yuhuan's face like a cold star. "Your Majesty is right. Blood ties bind us, and we are blood relatives..." The icy curve of his lips deepened, tinged with endless sarcasm. "Unfortunately, some sisters in this world... are worse off than nothing." His tone suddenly changed, "But some people are mine—they are mine. Tomorrow, I will take them away!"

The last word resonated like a drop of gold and stone! He didn't even glance at Xiao Yuhuan's face, which darkened instantly, nor did he bother to look at the pile of filthy debris beside him. Xiao Ziyi turned without hesitation and disappeared into the depths of the palace without a backward glance.

Here, there are only the two of them, isolated at the threshold of death.

Nangong Xi slowly leaned down, her movements as gentle as if touching a fragile dream. With endless tenderness, her cold fingers carefully brushed away the few strands of hair stuck to Ning Yangyang's forehead, clung to her by the cold sweat. Her fingertips brushed across the cold, sweat-soaked skin with a tenderness almost devout, a cherishment she had never dared to express. Then, she lowered her head, and with the utmost gentleness and care, her lips pressed against Ning Yangyang's cold forehead. It wasn't a kiss of passion, but a brand, a secret buried deep in her heart, to be kept until death, a silent farewell.

"Yangyang..." Her voice was as light as a falling feather, almost swallowed by Ning Yangyang's weak breathing, but it carried a weight that could penetrate life and death. "The freedom you gave me... is too cold, too heavy..." She paused, as if every word exhausted her energy. "I can't bear it."

The moment the words fell, the last spark of hope in Nangong Xi's eyes completely extinguished, leaving only the endless dead silence of the wasteland. Without any warning, she suddenly flipped her wrist, and a dagger that had been hidden in her sleeve instantly slipped out!

Phew——!

A dull, scalp-cracking sound of a blade piercing flesh suddenly rang out! With all her strength, she thrust the dagger into her heart with a sense of relief and ferocity. Without a single hesitation, warm blood instantly gushed out from the wound, like red spider lilies scalding in despair, quickly staining her plain palace maid's uniform and splashing onto the back of Ning Yangyang's pale, cold hand, leaving a few glaring spots of crimson.

"Host, the heroine committed suicide and the world collapsed. Please evacuate immediately." Ning Yangyang ignored the system's prompts because she already knew the ending of this world. The heroine's world finally collapsed after a grand massacre.