Chapter 19 — The Abyssal King Returns

In the middle of the chaotic square, the silvery white light from Thục Di's bloodline and the black aura from the dark contract continued to struggle fiercely, both like two giant snakes entwined tightly together, emitting an invisible pressure that made those standing closest step back because of the feeling of suffocation. Tiểu Yên was in the center of that supernatural fight, her small body trembling, but her eyes still tried to stay open, her small hand tightly grasped Thục Di's hand as a last support.

Suddenly, the black gas roared with a shrill hiss, gathering all its final strength to roll back, swallowing the silver-white halo that was enveloping Tiểu Yên. The girl's eyes rolled back, her breathing hitched and then stopped for a long, suffocating moment. From afar, Bách Uyên felt his heart stop beating along with his child's breathing, a silent scream choked in his throat because he could not leave the life and death struggle with Cố Thanh Vũ for even a moment to rush to his daughter's side. Right at that moment when it seemed like all hope was about to be swallowed up by darkness—

"You can't let go, Tiểu Yên, listen to me!" Thục Di shouted loudly through the howling wind of two conflicting energies, feeling her body gradually exhausted from the increasing amount of blood flowing out, but she still gritted her teeth and put all her will and heart into the flowing blood.

In that moment of despair, the image of the ancient temple, the piece of jade carved in the shape of a lotus flower, and the words the old hermit once said, all suddenly came back to Thục Di's mind like a reminder. She closed her eyes, no longer trying to forcefully control her blood, but completely relaxed, letting the hidden power in her veins guide itself, like an instinct that had been dormant for generations of ancestors now awakened.

The moment she let go of all restraint, the silvery white light suddenly flared up much stronger, no longer a weak stream of light supporting it, but turned into a rolling tsunami of light, swallowing the black aura of the contract in the blink of an eye. A painful howl rang out from the token in Cố Thanh Vũ's hand, that evil object began to crack, each pitch black fragment dissolving into ash in mid-air.

"No! No way!" Cố Thanh Vũ screamed in horror, feeling the source of strength he had relied on for the past seven years was disappearing right before his eyes.

The black lines on Tiểu Yên's body shrank rapidly, gradually fading and disappearing completely, revealing healthy, rosy skin that had not been seen since the night she was born. She took a deep breath, as if for the first time in her life she was able to breathe completely and unencumbered, then burst into tears, not from pain but from a strange, unprecedented feeling of relief.

"Dad! I... I don't feel pain anymore!" The little girl screamed amidst her cries, her eyes searching for her father's figure in the chaotic crowd.

Bách Uyên, who was fighting with Nhiếp Bách Khương against Cố Thanh Vũ, heard his daughter's voice, his whole body stopped for a moment, an emotion burst so intense that it almost made him unable to stand. In seven long years, this was the first time he heard his daughter say those words — no more pain.

In his mind, the image of the night Tiểu Yên was born seven years ago suddenly appeared - the cold air flowing into the delivery room, the invisible string wrapping around her child's young soul that he felt from the first moment he held her in his arms. Seven years of carrying that fear like a rock in my chest, now that rock has broken.

"Tiểu Yên..." he whispered, tears suddenly flowing from his eyes, but immediately had to put aside his emotions to avoid a sudden attack from Cố Thanh Vũ, who was in a frenzy because his life's plan had collapsed.

"Do you think just breaking the contract is enough?! I'm still here, I still hold the power in my hands!" Cố Thanh Vũ roared, unleashed a crazy palm force, no longer retaining any rational calculation as before, leaving only the despair of a person who saw all his life's ambitions vanish into thin air.

Just as Bách Uyên had calculated from the first moves. Each provocative word he launched was not to vent his anger, but to force a man who was more accustomed to using tactics than actual combat into the exact state of losing control when pushed to the ultimate limit - dedicating all his strength into a single attack instead of keeping a reserve. He saw Cố Thanh Vũ's breathing begin to stutter, the magic power around his body trembled instead of being stable like before, and knew that the only opportunity had come.

But just as that palm force was about to touch Bách Uyên, Chu Bách Thành, despite being exhausted from his previous injury, still managed to swing the old sword horizontally, changing the direction of a part of the force, while Nhiếp Bách Khương rushed from behind, using his own body to fill the gap, at the same time dozens of loyal old gods also approached, surrounding Cố Thanh Vũ from all sides.

"He used all his strength for that attack just now, now is the time!" Chu Bách Thành shouted loudly, signaling all forces to rush in simultaneously.

Cố Thanh Vũ, although his remaining magic power was still formidable, was alone in front of a forest of people surrounding him on all sides, gradually losing his strength after a while of defending. A blow from Nhiếp Bách Khương's knife finally hit him in the shoulder, forcing him to kneel down, the weapon fell from his hand, his breathing was interrupted by exhaustion and the wounds all over his body.

"Surrender, Cố Thanh Vũ. All your crimes have been exposed before the entire court and common people, you have no way to deny or escape anymore." Bách Uyên stepped forward and stood before the person who had ruined his life for the past seven years. His voice was no longer angry like before, but only the cold calmness of someone who was sure of victory in his hands.

Cố Thanh Vũ raised his head, his eyes full of bitterness and helplessness. "Do you think you've won? You've lost everything you ever had, just in exchange for an ordinary life in the human world, and I..."

"And you, have lost your very soul because of your blind ambition for power," Bách Uyên interrupted, his voice low and filled with the bitter philosophy of a person who has gone through all the ups and downs to understand what is truly precious. "I have never regretted giving up the throne to save my daughter. And you, in the end, what have you gained after seven years of trampling on so many innocent lives?"

"I still remember the sentence you just shouted in the middle of the battle, about a rainy night and a sentence from the emperor," Bách Uyên continued, his voice no longer angry, only a cold understanding remained. "You hate being criticized as unworthy just because you don't have royal blood. But have you ever wondered if you, with your own hands and strategy, could have become a respected Prime Minister and recorded in history books, if you had chosen the right path? You did not lose because of bloodline, Cố Thanh Vũ. You lost, because you chose to believe that only destroying others can prove your worth."

Cố Thanh Vũ suddenly looked up, his eyes were bloodshot, his lips trembled as if he wanted to refute, but not a single word came out. In forty years, no one had ever dared to speak directly to the root of his pain in that way—not with contempt, but with an sympathy more cruel than contempt.

Cố Thanh Vũ could not respond, only bowed his head in silence, when two newly liberated loyal soldiers approached and tied him up in accordance with the court's rules.

The square in front of Huyền Khương Hall gradually quieted down after the terrible battle, the joyful cheers of the common people and loyal soldiers gradually replaced the sound of clashing weapons. Bách Uyên ran to Tiểu Yên's side and hugged her daughter, who was being held by Thục Di. Even though he was exhausted from blood loss, he still tried to gently cradle her in his arms.

"My child, you are okay, really okay." Bách Uyên choked up, hugging tightly both of the most important women in his life, tears of happiness mixed with drops of sweat and blood stains on his shirt.

Thục Di, even though exhausted to the point of almost fainting, still smiled with satisfaction, her eyes looking at Tiểu Yên who was healthy in her father's arms, knowing that all her sacrifices, all the dangers she had accepted to commit to, had finally been rewarded in the most complete way - the life of an innocent child had been completely saved from the curse that had followed her for seven years of her short life.

"Auntie..." Tiểu Yên reached out from her father's lap and held Thục Di's bleeding hand, her voice shaking with emotion. "Thank you for saving me."

"You don't need to thank me, as long as you're healthy, that's the most precious thing," Thục Di replied, her voice weak but still warm, before her eyes began to close from losing so much blood.

"Thục Di!" Bách Uyên panicked and supported her when he saw that she was about to collapse, and quickly called out to find a royal physician to come and treat her immediately. He hugged her, leaned close, his voice trembling in a whisper just enough for her to hear amid the joyful noise of the surrounding crowd. "Don't leave me, Thục Di. I've just learned not to be lonely anymore, I'm not ready to learn that lesson again."

Thục Di opened her eyes slightly, a weak but teasing smile flashed across her lips before she completely fell into a coma. "Then... don't feed me the bad porridge yourself... let Grandma Diệu Nga cook..."

The surrounding old gods also rushed to support. An old royal physician who had served in the palace quickly ran over, checked her pulse and bandaged the wound on her hand with the most precious elixirs left in the royal reserve.

"The wound is not too dangerous, it's just that I lost a lot of blood and am exhausted, I need to rest and be fully nourished for the next few days." The royal physician reported, causing Bách Uyên to breathe a sigh of relief, wrapping his arms around her tightly as if not wanting to let go another moment.

Chung Diệu Nga, even though she still had pain in her head from being beaten up earlier, was able to squeeze closer and look at her student lying peacefully in Bách Uyên's arms, her eyes filled with both pride and sadness. "This girl, always so reckless, doesn't know how to take care of herself at all."

Nhiếp Bách Khương, after personally escorting Cố Thanh Vũ to the hastily established law enforcement force on the spot, also walked over and looked at his cousin who had been apart for many years. Both were speechless, just hugged each other in the middle of the square, surrounded by the constant cheers and joy of the people witnessing the entire truth being revealed.

"Bách Uyên, you're really back." Nhiếp Bách Khương choked, his voice shaking after seven long years of suffering in the dungeon. "I thought I would die in there and never see this day."

"I owe you an apology, for letting you suffer for what I should have shouldered," Bách Uyên replied, squeezing his loyal cousin's shoulder. "But now, it's finally over."

The sunset gradually fell on the square in front of Huyền Khương Hall, dyeing a warm orange color on the dried dark pools of blood and the dark fragments of the broken token still scattered on the stone floor. An afternoon wind passed by, blowing those ashes away and then disappearing into the air, as if carrying away seven years of darkness that an entire world had to endure.