Chapter 662 547: Conquering Ji Shenyun (Part 2)

"Your Majesty's beauty is unmatched in all the universe. In the past, my perspective was too narrow. I was foolishly attached to my unremarkable Dao Companion and other women, failing to appreciate Your Majesty's beauty sooner."

Ji Shenyun was tickled by his sweet nothings and let out a soft laugh, saying nothing more.

Although she was now at the end of her strength, she was confident that Pei Yuhang was utterly incapable of threatening her in her current state.

Since Pei Yuhang was now taking the initiative to curry favor, willing to serve her so attentively, she was more than happy to enjoy a moment of pleasure amidst the lurking dangers. She treated it as a final chance to relax before the decisive battle.

She relaxed her body and slightly narrowed her soul-snatching, beautiful eyes, allowing herself to sink into this fleeting moment of warmth.

Pei Yuhang gazed at the Empress in his arms, who seemed to have lowered her guard and closed her eyes in comfort. But in the depths of his gaze, a cold, sharp light flashed for just an instant.

Right now, after being refined by the Demon Cauldron, the Female Demon's Life Force was at its absolute weakest. It was the perfect opportunity to unleash the Secret Technique from the *Yang Emperor Heart Scripture*.

He leaned in and whispered softly in her ear, his breath warm, his tone so gentle it was almost hypnotic:

"Your Majesty... rest assured. I will do everything in my power to bring you pleasure."

...

...

「Outside.」

Blood River True Monarch sensed Shang Miaoyan's aura come to a halt on the eighty-ninth floor, and his eyes filled with suspicion and uncertainty.

'Something's not right...'

'Why did they stop at the eighty-ninth floor? Couldn't they just fly a little higher to find Yuan Tianming and ask for his protection?'

'Did Pei Yuhang abandon Shang Miaoyan, or... was Pei Yuhang never on Yuan Tianming's side to begin with!'

'His real goal was to rescue the person trapped on the eighty-ninth floor!'

"Oh no—!"

Blood River True Monarch instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

'He had helped Yuan Tianming suppress that being. If Pei Yuhang really does rescue her, I'm a dead man!'

Blood River True Monarch instantly increased his speed, arriving on the eighty-eighth floor in the blink of an eye. Just as he was about to race forward again...

WHOOSH—

The entire space distorted in an instant.

As light and shadow swirled, the space transformed into a lush bamboo forest.

Bamboo shadows swayed, and a gentle, cool breeze drifted through.

"An Array?"

Blood River True Monarch's expression darkened. He hadn't expected to be caught off guard and lured into an Array.

He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, a flicker of annoyance and disdain in his eyes.

"Fine. It won't be so easy for that being to escape anyway. I'll deal with you all first, then it won't be too late to go after Pei Yuhang!"

Before the words had even left his mouth, Blood River True Monarch raised a hand, pulling a crimson Blood Blade from his palm.

The blade flashed like a blood moon crossing the sky. A surging tide of blood roared out, slicing through all the surrounding bamboo at its base.

The severed bamboo stalks crashed down. Leaves flew through the air with a great RUSTLE, filling the sky with emerald shadows.

The next moment, however, the fluttering bamboo leaves froze in mid-air. They then transformed into countless sharp, cyan Sword Qi, raining down like a torrential storm and swarming toward Blood River True Monarch to annihilate him!

Blood River True Monarch formed hand seals, and the Blood Saber shot from his grasp, tangling with the sky full of bamboo leaves.

At his feet, scarlet, bloody water began to spread out under the influence of his Divine Abilities.

In an instant, the bloody water had submerged the entire bamboo forest. Countless ghastly specters reached their hands out from the blood, roaring and shrieking.

Just as Blood River True Monarch was about to completely devour this small world created by the Array...

WHOOSH—

Light and shadow distorted and warped once more.

When Blood River True Monarch opened his eyes again, he felt scorching soft ground beneath his feet, and the air had become incredibly dry.

He had been transported into a scorching sea of sand.

...

...

"Pei Yuhang, something is off about you."

Ji Shenyun's voice was as soft as a whisper, but a profound, cold light flickered in the depths of her eyes.

"How so?"

Pei Yuhang's breathing was a little ragged.

"You shouldn't be this tired. With your vitality... this level of exertion shouldn't have drained you so much."

Ji Shenyun's voice suddenly turned grave, her fingertip coming to rest on his trembling Adam's apple.

Pei Yuhang pursed his lips, about to offer another explanation and continue numbing Ji Shenyun's suspicions with sweet talk.

But then, the small, White Jade-like hand hovering at his throat suddenly closed, gripping his neck!

"Ugh..."

Pei Yuhang's breath hitched, but he didn't struggle.

He merely lowered his eyes to look at the Empress beneath him, whose gaze was as cold as ice. His voice was hoarse, but it still held a hint of a smile.

"Her Majesty the Empress... Are you going to kill me?"

"What did you do to me?"

Ji Shenyun's voice was bone-chilling. Her grip tightened, her nails digging into his neck and drawing blood. "You expended so much of your energy. What exactly did you leave—inside my body!"

Dark red beads of blood seeped from the wounds, sliding slowly down her White Jade-like knuckles.

"Heh heh..."

Pei Yuhang forced a smile. "It seems... hiding things from you is as difficult as I expected."

A monstrous wave of hatred and killing intent erupted in Ji Shenyun's eyes. She abruptly flipped over, pinning Pei Yuhang beneath her, her nails digging deep into his flesh.

"You humans... are all liars! And to think I actually believed you!"

She spat the words through gritted teeth, her grip tightening as fresh blood gushed from his neck.

"You've got some nerve, daring to plot against me. Aren't you afraid of dying?"

Pei Yuhang's face was turning purple from the lack of air, but he still managed to force his eyes open and choke out, word by word:

"Your Majesty... choking me this hard... don't you feel any pain... yourself?"

Ji Shenyun snapped her head down. On her own snow-white neck, identical purple bruises were appearing, a perfect match for Pei Yuhang's, as if an invisible shackle was binding them together.

Her pupils shrank, and she abruptly let go.

"What exactly did you do to me?"

She touched the bruise that was becoming more distinct on her own neck, her voice filled with incredulous fury. "Why are your injuries... being perfectly reflected on my body?"

"The Mother-Child Unity Curse," he murmured.

"It's rather ironic. Of all the Cauldron Slave Seals in the Yang Emperor Heart Method, this is the only Spell meant to be used on one's truest love."

Pei Yuhang gasped for breath, the wounds on his neck still aching, but his gaze remained clear as he looked at Ji Shenyun. A complex smile touched his lips.

"This Spell binds the lives of Dao Companions together... to live and die as one, to share all fortunes and sorrows, to never betray one another."

"You were too greedy. Ever since you fled the Dao Sect, you've been insatiably taking my Original Yang Qi. The Yin Yang Qi within your body is now filled with my traces; it's no longer pure."

Pei Yuhang lifted his wrist, revealing a circular band of blood-red Runes that seemed to pulse with life as light flowed through them.

"And this," he said, "is the foundation of the Mother-Child Unity Curse."

"Inside the Demon Cauldron, you were at the end of your rope. Your Life Force and your guard were at their lowest... yet you were still consumed by lust. It was the perfect time to cast the Spell."

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, a circle of purple Runes materialized on Ji Shenyun's snow-white neck, glowing in response to the red band on Pei Yuhang's wrist.

An invisible chain seemed to pierce through the void, connecting Ji Shenyun's neck to Pei Yuhang's hand, binding their fates together.

Sharing all joys and sorrows, living and dying as one!

After hearing Pei Yuhang's explanation, Ji Shenyun froze on the spot, her eyes a storm of churning emotions. Then, she started to laugh, softly at first.

The laughter, at first suppressed, grew louder and louder until it became a hysterical, crazed roar, tears even welling at the corners of her eyes.

Pei Yuhang simply watched her, his expression placid and unmoving.

The next moment—

The laughter stopped dead.

Monstrous killing intent erupted in Ji Shenyun's eyes as she shot to her feet!

She threw a punch, and the terrifying force of the blow swept through the entire space inside the cauldron, instantly extinguishing the burning lava!

"You dare enslave me?! You're courting death!!!"

The punch, carrying world-shattering power, flew straight for Pei Yuhang's face!

Yet, just an instant before it could touch the tip of his nose—

Ji Shenyun's fist froze.

Her brow throbbed violently as her powerful survival instinct screamed a frantic warning—if this punch landed, her own Divine Soul would be annihilated!

Pei Yuhang didn't dodge. He didn't even blink. He just watched her quietly, as if he had predicted this outcome all along.

A deathly silence filled the air. Ji Shenyun's fist trembled slightly before she finally, slowly, lowered it.

She didn't have the courage to kill herself.

"To think that in the end, I would be defeated by you... Heh, what a joke."

"It seems I didn't conquer you. You conquered me."

All the strength drained from Ji Shenyun's body. Her limbs went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.

Her world turned gray. After accepting that she had been defeated by Pei Yuhang—defeated by her own desire—she felt all her self-confidence drain away.

She no longer had any interest in even leaving the cauldron.

'Might as well just wait here to die... and drag Pei Yuhang down with me.'

Pei Yuhang got up and straightened his clothes. As he watched Ji Shenyun, the light gone from her eyes, he suddenly spoke.

"But, Ji Shenyun, if you agree to a single condition, I can undo this curse, restore your freedom, and even help you take the final step on your path of the Dao."