Ji Lin’s expression did not change in the slightest.
His eyes remained calmly fixed on her, so composed that Luo Yan felt as though her words had never reached him at all—or as though her very presence no longer held any meaning in his eyes.
He had known Luo Yan for a very long time.
Perhaps he understood her better than she understood herself.
She had been born with the Yin Lotus Physique, an extraordinary constitution that did not grant her strength from the very beginning.
Instead, the primordial essence slumbering deep within it continuously drained a portion of her body’s vitality to sustain its own growth.
As a result, she had lived in a constant state of frailty.
Waves of agonizing pain struck her again and again, while her body grew weaker with each passing day and her vitality steadily diminished over time.
Because of that, the previous Ji Lin had devoted a significant part of his life to her.
Although he possessed no exceptional talent for cultivation, he was the finest physician in all of Azure Cloud City.
He spent most of the money he earned purchasing rare spiritual herbs before isolating himself for countless hours inside his medicine room.
Again and again, he repeated the painstaking processes of purification, refinement, and combination, tirelessly experimenting until he succeeded in creating a medicinal formula perfectly suited to her unique physique.
It was never a fleeting effort.
Year after year, he continued his research and refinement until the medicinal remedy she took every single day became the culmination of years of dedication, experimentation, and relentless perseverance.
It was that medicine, more than anything else, that allowed her to live a life that appeared perfectly normal in the eyes of others, rather than spending her days confined to a sickbed.
Yet none of those sacrifices were enough to earn him a place in her heart.
The moment Ye Fang entered her life, the years of unwavering devotion Ji Lin had given her collapsed in an instant.
She needed neither an inner struggle nor a moment of hesitation.
She simply chose to stand at Ye Fang’s side, as though the man who had spent years protecting her and caring for her had merely been fulfilling an obligation—someone who did not deserve even a single word of gratitude.
Nor did it end there.
When Ji Lin later lost his life while sacrificing himself to save Ye Fang, Luo Yan’s grief lasted only a short while before fading away completely, as though his death had left nothing more than a fleeting ripple in her heart.
Then came the greatest irony of all.
When Ye Fang extracted Ji Lin’s Supreme Bloodline Essence to use for himself, Luo Yan neither tried to stop him nor voiced a single objection.
On the contrary, she was among the first to support the decision, urging him to make full use of the bloodline rather than let such a priceless treasure go to waste.
It was as though the body of the man who had devoted his entire life to protecting her had, after his death, become nothing more than a valuable resource to be exploited.
And just like that, Ji Lin vanished entirely from her world. The source of this chapter is g.com.
His name disappeared from her memory.
So did every shared moment.
Not even the faintest trace remained to suggest that he had once been the most important person in her life.
Ji Lin emerged from his memories before lifting his gaze to meet hers, his eyes cold and utterly devoid of warmth.
So this is how you ask someone for a favor?
Or have you grown so accustomed to everything I’ve done for you that you’ve started believing it’s simply your right?
His eyes paused upon her pale face before he continued in the same calm, unhurried voice, free of even the slightest hint of courtesy.
Do you have any idea how valuable the spiritual herbs required to produce a single bottle of that medicine are?
Or how much time, effort, and wealth I have invested to refine it to this standard?
A mocking smile slowly formed on his lips as he watched the subtle changes in her expression.
Luo Yan truly was suffering.
After relying for years on the medicinal remedy Ji Lin had personally prepared for her, her body had gradually come to depend upon it to maintain its stability.
Missing it for even a single day was enough for the pain and exhaustion to become plainly visible on her face.
But the man standing before her now was no longer the Ji Lin she had once known.
The Ji Lin of the past had foolishly believed that sacrifice could purchase love, and that sincere devotion would one day be returned with equal affection.
That was why he had given her everything he possessed without ever expecting anything in return.
Reality, however, rewarded him with nothing but betrayal.
It shattered those illusions without the slightest trace of mercy, leaving behind nothing but memories worthy of ridicule.
What a foolish belief it had been.
Enough with your stubbornness…
Luo Yan’s voice was noticeably softer this time, with most of its usual arrogance gone.
You know perfectly well that I can’t do without the medicine…
Her complexion gradually turned pale, the natural color draining from her cheeks as a faint haze clouded her eyes while the pain gnawed ever more fiercely at her body.
The Yin Lotus Physique had begun consuming her vitality once again.
A chilling sensation spread through her limbs before slowly creeping into her bones and meridians.
Each breath became heavier than the last, and she quickly realized that without the medicine she had relied upon for so many years, her condition was deteriorating far faster than she had anticipated.
Even so, she continued staring at Ji Lin with quiet confidence, fully expecting his heart to soften, just as it always had.
But what happened next completely shattered her expectations.
Ji Lin moved calmly.
He took only a single step forward, yet it was enough to erase the distance between them until he stood directly before her.
Then he lowered his gaze, looking down at her in silence.
His eyes no longer carried the warmth she had grown accustomed to over the years.
Nor did they hold the concern that had always appeared whenever her pain worsened.
There was only an unfamiliar coldness, as though the woman standing before him were nothing more than a complete stranger.
Luo Yan’s heart trembled, though she could not understand why.
You…what are you planning to do?
Her voice emerged weaker than she had intended.
Instinctively, her fingers tightened around the edge of her robe as she took half a step backward, caution appearing on her face for the first time.
She simply could not comprehend the transformation Ji Lin had undergone.
The man who had always greeted her with a smile and fulfilled every one of her requests without hesitation had vanished completely.
In his place stood someone whose mere presence filled her with an inexplicable sense of pressure and unease.
Even so, it never once crossed her mind that Ji Lin might refuse to help her.
Deep down, she regarded it as the most natural thing in the world.
For all those years, he had been nothing more than the physician who prepared her medicine every single day and the man who took care of her of his own accord.
The possibility that their relationship had ever meant anything beyond that…
Had never entered her mind, not even once.