Chapter 3 — Tu Lien Ky

The man who once held me in his arms, once promised life and death, now ten fingers are tightly intertwined with Can Tuyet Du, his eyes as deep as the sea, containing only one person who is not me. "This king announces - three days later, we will marry Tuyet Du as Queen." "From now on, the emperor is of one mind, forever... not letting a third person interfere." Can Tuyet Du's cheeks turned red, she lowered her drooping eyelashes, looking shy and gentle. But the next second, Hao Thien Trach lifted her chin, hugged her face with all tenderness, bent down... kissed her lips deeply. … I stood silently at the palace gate, the jade light clearly illuminating my tattered appearance, my shirt torn and bloody, each wound deep, but no one saw. It turns out... While I was living and dying in the abyss, he was busy preparing for the wedding with someone else. It turns out... He never, ever, cared about my life or death. It turns out, in this love game, He poured his heart and soul from beginning to end... There was only me. … I curled the corners of my lips, a smile as pale as ashes, bowed down to bow, and joined my voice with thousands of immortals in unison: "Best regards to the Emperor - Queen of Heaven, with one mind as one, the sun and moon are glorious!" (May the Emperor and the Queen of Heaven be of one mind, as bright as the sun and moon!) At that moment, everything in my heart - Love, love, resentment, hatred... Completely let go. … “Fairy Thanh Dao, you… how did you become like this?!” A cry of shock tore through the "joyful" scene in the palace. I raised my head and met the eyes of Fairy Nhuoc Thuy - frightened, surprised, not believing what I was seeing. Immediately, Nguyet Lao ran over in panic, quickly supported me, his voice trembling and choking: "Thanh Dao girl... you... how did you... become like this?" ... Before I could open my mouth, from above, a low, heavy voice echoed throughout the palace: "Thanh Dao..." That voice - it was Hao Thien Trach. … He was about to walk towards me, but Can Tuyet Du suddenly pulled his sleeve. Her fingers trembled as she placed them on her temples, her body was limp, staggering as if about to fall: "Di Quan... I... my head hurts..." Hao Thien Trach immediately changed his expression, quickly hugged her, his eyes looked slightly at me from afar, a hint of guilt appeared in the bottom of his eyes: "I carried her to rest." Having said that, he bent down, hugged her around the waist, hugged her completely, strode quickly out of the palace, heading straight towards Huyen Ngoc Dai. Before leaving, he did not forget to call Lao Quan and the medical officer to follow. But the moment he turned his back — All my strength... collapsed. Consciousness seemed to be engulfed in endless darkness. … It's morning. The robins chirped, the wind gently pushed the windows, and the sunlight just filtered through the bars. I slowly opened my eyes, sat up, and looked around in bewilderment. This body should have been crushed in the abyss, but... There were no injuries left. All the pain of life and death yesterday was like a long dream. However, when I tried my magic power, the meridians sent sharp pain, reminding me - Everything is real. And... my meridians are no longer intact. … “Creak.” The door opened softly. I turned my head to look over and immediately met Can Tuyet Du's eyes - the corner of her lips curved, her smile never reaching the bottom of her eyes. She slowly walked in, waved her hand, and the maids immediately retreated, even closing the door. Sitting on the edge of the bed, her white fingers were gentle Gliding over the brocade covering my thigh, his movements were slow, almost provocative: "Your life... is really big." “But I'm really curious… since it's like this, are you still not planning to give up?” I frowned slightly, looking at her, not understanding what those words meant. Can Tuyet Du curled the corners of his lips and let out a mocking laugh: "Still pretending to be confused?" “As expected… useless people will never understand their position.” Her voice was as light as the wind, but each word was like a sharp knife cutting straight into the heart. She leaned slightly, her eyes drooping, half confessing, half declaring: "I'll honestly tell you... That day, I intentionally pushed you off the cliff." My lips trembled slightly, but I didn't say a word. Can Tuyet Du laughed softly, his fingers caressing the edge of the blanket, his tone was as light as silk but as sharp as a blade: "I just want to see... in that situation, will the Emperor choose you or me." “And it's an honor — I won.” She leaned closer, her fragrant breath blew into my ear, her laughter echoed, carrying obvious arrogance: "Don't you understand, Thanh Dao?" "Clearly knowing that your magic power is low and not enough to protect yourself, yet the Emperor still chose to save me. This... do you still not understand?" Of course I understand. I understand that every word is like a needle piercing my heart, but I will not let the person who wanted my life get any pleasure. I slowly raised my chin, my eyes cold as frost, my lips curled into a faint smile, and I spoke softly: "So... so what?" Can Tuyet Du paused, raised his eyebrows, smiled like a blooming poisonous flower: "Then..." Can Tuyet Du suddenly stood up, his chest heaving with anger, a slap fell straight on my face: "I didn't expect you to be so shameless! In vain, my brother wasted his magic power, healing you for two days... huh!" A "pop" echoed in the silence, my head tilted to one side. His whole face was numb and his heart was shaking violently. … Two days? It turns out... I was in a coma for two days. So tomorrow... is the time when I descend to earth for the wedding ceremony. But... why did the God of War waste his spiritual energy to heal me? He and I have never had a relationship. Before my thoughts could clear, when I turned my head to look back, I saw Can Tuyet Du attentively looking at the jade hairpin in my hair, his eyes seemed dazed for a moment. But when she met my gaze, a malicious glint flashed in her eyes. “In that case… I can't help but teach you a lesson today.” As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly pulled the jade hairpin from my hair, then without hesitation cut a deep line on her arm. Bright red blood oozed out, dripping drop by drop. Immediately after that, she threw the jade brooch straight to the ground. “Crack!” The sound of jade shattering echoed throughout the palace. Before stopping, she let out a pitiful scream: "Help~~!" Before I could react — “Bang!” The room door was broken. In the blink of an eye, Hao Thien Trach stood tall right in front of the bed, his face full of murderous intent, without saying a word - A palm hit straight into my chest! “Phew!” My body shot straight back, my back hit the bed, the wood shattered under the impact, my whole body rolled down, hit the wall hard and fell to the ground. My breath was cut off, I knelt down in the corner of the wall, my throat choked, a mouthful of bright red blood spurted out, spreading on the cold stone floor. “I…” My voice choked, I didn't even say a word floating. Hao Thien Trach looked at his hands, as if he couldn't believe what he had just done. His eyes looked at me tremblingly, mixed with fear and suspicion, but before he could say a word, Can Tuyet Du rushed forward, hugged his shirt, sobbing: "Di Quan... Tuyet Du just wants to apologize to Fairy Thanh Dao... I don't know why she got angry..." "Di Quan... Tuyet Du... it hurts so much..." Her words were like a needle piercing straight into his chest. Hao Thien Trach regained consciousness and quickly used his magic power to heal the wound on her hand. Rays of jade light gathered into a thin net, gradually closing the tear. While doing so, he still secretly glanced at me, as if hesitating between belief and suspicion, but the words that came out of his mouth were as cold as ice: "It was you who were rude, daring to offend Tuyet Du." "This king is taking action... you must not complain." … I slightly leaned over, trying to support myself, the corners of my lips were bleeding but I laughed - a light, hoarse laugh, like ashes moving in the wind. That laugh made Hao Thien Trach's expression change, his eyebrows furrowed, and a rare trace of anger flashed across his face: "What are you... laughing?" I raised my eyes and faced him. His voice was hoarse but each word was as cold as ice frozen for thousands of years: "I smile... because from now on... Thanh Dao, I... don't owe you anything anymore." Pausing for a moment, I raised my chin, my eyes as deep as cold lake, each word cut into the air: "From now on... you and I - you two, we will settle the bill." "Hao Thien Trach, we... both sides broke off our friendship!" That year, when the Tu Lien clan perished, the whole clan's blood stained the galaxy, and only I survived. It was he who saved me in the middle of a sea of blood, brought me back to the Celestial Clan, and protected me for so many years. Later, under the splendid sea of stars, he promised to be by my side forever, with me as an old man. He also gave me a jade brooch as a token of affection, saying... "From now on, for one life and one life, there is only you." Turns out... it was all a promise in the wind. Today, the jade hairpin is broken, the emotions are broken, the heart is broken, even this life... has been paid. Naturally, he and I - Both sides settled the bill. ... Hao Thien Trach's face turned pale for a moment, his lips moved, wanting to say something... but in the end, he couldn't utter a word. When Can Tuyet Du saw that his eyes were still on me, her face became even more gloomy, resentment welling up in her eyes. She tilted her head, deliberately coughed, her whole body trembled, as if she was about to suffocate: "The Emperor... Tuyet Du is so uncomfortable... Tuyet Du... is about to not be able to breathe..." She leaned weakly against his arms, like a willow branch trembling in the cold wind. Hao Thien Trach was startled, hugged her tightly, so worried that he didn't even look at me once, then picked her up and hurriedly left Thanh Ngo Vien. Only I am left, the blood in my mouth has not yet been wiped away, each breath seems to be interrupted in mid-air. … When Nguyet Lao arrived, I had only one breath left. His eyes turned red, he quickly injected magic power into my body, placed a high-level spiritual pill in my mouth, and streams of pure spiritual energy gently enveloped my cracked heart, barely holding on to the last breath. "Thanh Dao girl... you... why did you become like this..." He didn't ask much, just hugged me, helped me leave that humiliating and painful place, and took me back to Nguyet Lao Palace. …