For a moment, silence filled the vast underground chamber.
The disciples of the Azure Flame Sect stared blankly at King Nanshan and Mo Chongyang, their expressions as if they were seeing ghosts.
Mo Chongyang snapped out of his panic, flung King Nanshan’s hand away, and even swung his sword at him: “Get away!”
King Nanshan immediately dodged, tears streaming down his face as he looked at him: “My wife, my lady, I am your husband. How can you treat me like this? My heart is broken by you.”
Mo Chongyang’s eyes brimmed with utter disgust. He turned to Chi Yu: “What’s going on?”
Chi Yu blinked: “Um, that crystal stone contains the soul of his wife, and there’s a Marriage Pact on it. He wants to resurrect her, so he captures women for sacrifice. But now you’ve absorbed it, so… congratulations on your eternal union?”
Mo Chongyang’s face darkened: “You knew there was a problem and still threw it to me?!”
Chi Yu shrugged: “Well, I didn’t tell you to spit blood on it.”
“… Then what should I do now?!”
Chi Yu: “I don’t know. Maybe you can ask your husband?”
She said this, gesturing for him to ask King Nanshan, who was still immersed in sorrow.
“…”
For a moment, Mo Chongyang felt a sense of absurdity rising spontaneously, and he deeply regretted why he had taken the thing Chi Yu threw at him.
King Nanshan recovered from the grief of being scolded by his “wife” and gazed tenderly at Mo Chongyang, though his tone was sinister: “Once I kill all these worthless scum, I can spend my life with you, my lady.”
As he spoke, he prepared to act, targeting Chi Yu first. Fortunately, she reacted quickly and swiftly hid behind Mo Chongyang.
King Nanshan paused his hand movement, his expression turning extremely ugly: “Stay away from my wife!”
Chi Yu peeked out from behind Mo Chongyang: “I’m so scared, but your wife seems to not want you now.”
King Nanshan was furious: “You’re lying!”
Under the influence of the Marriage Pact, he now felt overwhelming tenderness toward Mo Chongyang, completely uncontrollable.
He couldn’t help but ask: “My lady, do you want me, or these worthless scum?”
Mo Chongyang: “”
Absolutely unnecessary.
He didn’t want either.
Chi Yu tugged his sleeve and whispered: “Quick, say you want him. Then coax him a bit, persuade him to let us go. Men, a few sweet words will settle them.”
Mo Chongyang felt utterly numb.
Having lived for so many years, he never imagined that one day he would have to coax a man.
His tone was stiff: “I can’t!”
“Just treat him as Chi Shuyun, then you’ll know how?”
Mo Chongyang was instantly speechless.
Chi Yu: “Hurry up. We can’t fight him, so this is the only way. Otherwise, everyone will die.”
She had just asked the System: to dissolve the Marriage Pact on Mo Chongyang, they must first kill King Nanshan and then refine that crystal stone using Spiritual Qi.
Based on the earlier battle situation, killing him would require some effort. But there were also many innocent girls here, easily harmed by collateral damage. Even if they were to fight, they needed to send these people out first.
So she could only ask Mo Chongyang to coax him.
Mo Chongyang gritted his teeth: “I can’t say it!”
“Ah, so troublesome. Just repeat what I say.”
Chi Yu coughed and personally instructed.
In the tense atmosphere, the disciples of the Azure Flame Sect heard their always righteous and stern Mo Chongyang say to King Nanshan, a male Grudge Spirit:
“Of course I choose you. You are my heart, my soul, my little treasure.”
“There are three kinds of love in this world: friendship, passion, and you—the adorable one.”
“My body is strong enough to carry water and rice, but it can’t bear the weight of missing you.”
“Before coming here, I ate a lot of peaches. Guess what kind?”
“It’s the kind that makes loving you inevitable~”
The Azure Flame Sect disciples: “…”
Behind them, Shen Yanzhou let out a timely: “Ugh…”
The scene was too much.
He couldn’t bear to watch.
For the first time in five lifetimes, he was subjected to such torment.
He was even more relieved that it wasn’t him being tricked by Chi Yu.
Mo Chongyang himself was almost sick.
But then King Nanshan withdrew his hand, and his killing intent vanished completely, replaced by bashfulness: “My dear, this is the first time you’ve ever said such things to me.”
In truth, his wife had never been gentle with him when she was alive.
Back then, he was a wandering cultivator, and she was a mortal. They grew up together as childhood sweethearts, and he had been bullied by her since they were young, willingly letting her have her way.
When they grew older and married, their life together was peaceful enough. Perhaps because his cultivation progress was too slow and he could never achieve great things, his wife was always harsh with him.
But that was fine too. Coming home to see her every day was his greatest joy.
Later, they had a child. Out of sympathy for his wife’s hardships, he formed the deepest Marriage Pact with her, sharing the pain of childbirth.
However, the child was born prematurely and died not long after. Soon after, his wife also passed away from illness.
Because of the Marriage Pact, he died too, but he had no regrets.
Later, by chance, he became a Grudge Spirit and learned of the Yin Evil Arts, hoping to revive her.
Thus, his wife had never spoken such words to him before.
For a moment, he felt shy: “My dear, come to me.”
Mo Chongyang suppressed his disgust: “No.”
King Nanshan’s face instantly darkened: “Why?”
“You’ve captured so many women to be brides. I’m afraid there’s no room in your heart for your little treasure anymore, is there?”
Chi Yu whispered behind him: “Yes, yes, just like that. Make him send them all away.”
King Nanshan naturally rushed to defend himself, but Mo Chongyang said, “Then release them all now, and we can live a good life together as husband and wife.”
Since the master of the Marriage Pact held absolute emotional control over the subordinate, King Nanshan couldn’t refuse a request from his beloved.
Chi Yu added fuel to the fire: “If you don’t let them go, it means you don’t love him anymore. You must have someone else!”
King Nanshan couldn’t bear to see his wife unhappy: “Alright, alright, I’ll do as you say.”
Mo Chongyang breathed a sigh of relief and instructed a few junior disciples to escort the women out, while the rest stayed behind to deal with the Grudge Spirit.
Chi Yu grabbed Shen Yanzhou: “Go out with them.”
He was taken aback: “What about you?”
“I’m staying here.”
Although she didn’t like Mo Chongyang, he and his junior disciples had saved the brides, which meant they had also saved her. She couldn’t just watch them die here.
Shen Yanzhou hadn’t expected her, who was always scheming against others, to have such principles. He immediately said, “I’m not leaving. I’m staying with you.”
Stubbornly, he grasped her hand and refused to let go.
Chi Yu paused, sighed, and said, “Fine, but be careful and protect yourself.”
Seeing that King Nanshan had lowered his guard against him, Mo Chongyang pretended to comply and moved toward him. However, the moment King Nanshan grasped his hand, Mo Chongyang drew his sword and struck, severing the king’s arm before thrusting the blade into his vital waist and abdomen.
In an instant, blood flowed like a river, and King Nanshan cried out in agony, “My lady, how could you treat me this way!”
“Die, you fiend!”
The disciples of the Azure Flame Sect surged forward as well. Without the brides to worry about, they fought with greater freedom.
Chi Yu, meanwhile, stood at the very back. In a team battle like this, she was content to play a supporting role, avoiding reckless engagement.
But reality seldom aligns with expectations. Perhaps due to the deception, King Nanshan’s Resentment Energy grew even more intense, and he struck with lethal force against the others.
In the blink of an eye, the Azure Flame Sect disciples lay scattered across the ground. At the same time, the underground chamber collapsed, and a bottomless pit suddenly opened beneath their feet. Everyone lost their footing and tumbled uncontrollably toward it.
Chi Yu also struggled to keep her balance but immediately reached out to grab Shen Yanzhou, who was closest to her, fighting desperately to survive.
The System spoke up: “Host, there’s a soul gathering array in the pit. King Nanshan used it to gather the Hundred Ghosts and absorb their Resentment Energy to enhance his Cultivation Base. The Resentful Ghosts devour human flesh and blood. If you fall in, it’s over.”
“But this is Shen Yanzhou’s opportunity. If you let go now, although he’ll be consumed by the Resentful Ghosts, he’ll also absorb the Hundred Ghosts’ Resentment and advance to the Qi Refining Fifth Stage. Afterward, if you save him, you’ll secure 1 Favorability Level.”
“I suggest you pretend to be powerless and let go immediately.”
As soon as the System finished speaking, a disciple who was closer to her was ensnared by the black energy at the pit’s edge and dragged down, letting out a piercing scream before falling completely silent.
Shen Yanzhou looked at her, his eyes dark and unreadable.
Would she, like the Task Executors of the past, prioritize her own safety and let go, allowing him to be consumed by the Hundred Ghosts?
Or would she employ a more sophisticated tactic, risking her life to protect him in hopes of winning his gratitude?