Hao clapped slowly, his mouth curling into a grin that dripped with menace watching Yan Rou break each second that went by.
Next minute, someone ran up to him, tapping his shoulders softly. "Some intruders? I see the party is just getting interesting. Yan Rou, your friend and guests just arrived." He tilted his head mockingly, watching Yan Rou clutch Ji Weilan like a shattered treasure. "And who do we have as our guests?"
With a flick of his fingers, the air shimmered again.
From the darkness beyond the clearing, four shadowy guards emerged—faces emotionless, eyes empty. They dragged behind them two figures, bloodied and bruised, but still breathing, their faces covered with a black shawl.
Lu Mo.
Shao Shu.
Yan Rou's breath hitched as she recognized the special robes of the imperial Yan Empire physicians. "No…"
Lu Mo's head was bowed, his once-proud stature reduced to a limp frame as he was shoved to his knees by a kick to his spine. Blood streaked down the side of his face, his hands bound behind him with the same ethereal ropes. Shao Shu tried to fight back, struggling against her captors, but a sharp blow to her ribs weakened her.
"Let them go! They have nothing to do with this!"
Hao raised a brow. "Nothing to do with this?" He stepped forward, circling her like a predator toying with its prey. "You're wrong, Madam Yan. They have everything to do with this. They represent your hope. Your strength. And I? I'm here to crush that."
He crouched beside her, brushing a lock of hair from Ji Weilan's pale face. "Your love is dying. Your friends are at your mercy. So now, tell me, strong Madam Yan… how much are you willing to give to save them?"
"What do you want? I'd give you anything. Anything!" Yan Rou stumbled to her feet, her hands trembling.
"I can see you are cooperative enough. Tie her hands and cover her face." On his orders, Yan Rou's body was lifted from the ground, a black cloak wrapped around her faces with ropes bound to her arms.
The ropes dug into her skin, but Yan Rou hardly felt them. Her mind had gone numb, her limbs heavy as they forced her into the imperial carriage. Not a word passed her lips on the long journey back to the Yan Empire—only soft sobs internally.
But nothing could've prepared her for what awaited.
The moment the gates of the imperial city loomed into view, the carriage paused as the gates was drawn open. Her breath hitched at the deep, coppery scent hung in the air—familiar. Terrifying. Blood.
Her eyes widened having guards lay stabbed on the skull at the gates, civilians littered the streets, faces contorted in terror, lifeless.
And then she saw it.
There, at the base of the Phoenix Jade Hall steps—where flowers used to bloom and children used to play—a small figure lay in the arms of someone bleeding heavily.
Yan Rou's vision blurred.
Her legs gave way, sending her crashing to the ground with a thud. She clawed forward, her fingernails cracking on stone as she dragged herself toward the bodies.
"Chu… Mian…" she rasped, her voice no longer her own.
"Ma---Dam Yan. I tried so hard, I tried. They attacked us as soon as Lady Shu and Physician Lu left. I tried to warn them, they got to us and then to Yao yao." Spewing out blood, Chu Mian's eyes went white, the last ember of strength vading off as her arms fell stiff.
"Yaoyao," she gasped.
Her daughter.
Her baby.
A primal scream tore from her throat, loud enough to shake the skies. The ropes binding her snapped and at once she bolted to them, collapsing at their side, gathering the two cold bodies into her arms, blood soaking her robes.
"WHO DID THIS?! WHO TOUCHED MY CHILD?!"
Yan Rou broke down in tears, her fingers tracing the contour of Yaoyao's face and stopped at the dagger perieced into her chest. Weakly, she pulled it out from Hao's lifeless body tossing it to the ground away from her dead body, more blood gushed out.
"Great. Just perfect—You've won! Isn't that what you want to hear?" Ragingly, I yelled, my feet taking the first step toward the cloud of smoke in front of me.
"They are all dead. You killed them!" I screamed, but no response.
I could feel his presence, taste his raging breath from afar. Hell, did I know who was powerful enough to orchestrate such a blow on the Yan Empire.
Thud!
My head fell backward, my heart suddenly stopped beating as I felt something pierce through me from behind. My body stiffened as the sharp, icy pain spread throughout. I could feel my body pale instantly—run cold. I looked down, trembling weakly as blood profusely seeped through my armor, forming drops on the ground before me.
My face blanked, reaching for the sharp pain radiating from my side. The pointy edges only meant one thing—I had been stabbed with a dagger.
"You..." I choked on my blood, wiping it off my lips. I turned my head slowly to see the figure behind me. A shadowed figure stood there, gripping the edge of the blade that had pierced me. His face was hidden by the dark smoke swirling around, but his eyes... Those merciless eyes glowed with a cold light that froze me in place.
I could feel every bit of my last strength disappear as my whole body came crashing to the ground.
"How I do much love to see you defeated, Yan Rou. How about we celebrate?"
His ruthless chuckles echoed in my ears as he gripped the sword and ripped it out mercilessly. That was the final blow—I couldn't get up again.
"You bastard. How you wish!" I scoffed, groaning, my fist clutching around the wound.
"Aiyoo, you really don't know when to give up, Yan Rou?"
His laughter darkened, and from his face, I could tell he wasn't pleased with what I'd said. He crouched down to my level, his embroidered robe flowing behind him. His emotionless eyes never left mine.
Every second that passed, the air between us grew colder. I grunted as he raised my chin with his forefinger, his right hand reaching for my hair but stopping midway with a pained smile.
"What a nice day to get along with you, Yan Rou. I came by to drop Father Yan, but I couldn't stand the sight of you all being so happy after you mercilessly killed me. Tsk, I guess this is truly the end."
I tried to focus on his words, but my mind was clouded by pain and the growing numbness spreading through my limbs. His words didn't make sense. What was he talking about? I had never killed him, never betrayed him like he claimed.
He didn't make sense at all.
"Pathetic person. I wonder how you even knew my father..."
"Oh, I know him. In fact, we go a long way. And same goes for you, Yan Rou. We were really close until you decided to end my life. That moment you pierced your sword into my heart, I knew what I wanted the most—revenge."
My ears rang with doubt at what he had just said. As much as I wanted to hope it wasn't who I thought it was, it could only be him.
Li Zhenyu...
"The disgust lurking on your face tells me you remember me."
He leaned in closer, that unsettling smile still stretched across his face despite the mask he wore. His eyes gleamed with a cold malice that made my blood run even colder. He pulled the sword in, wiping it off with a clean handkerchief from his side, as if it were nothing more than a casual task.
"Yan Rou, the once mighty princess, now kneeling beneath me. A worthless servant."
"Li Zhenyu?" I muttered, barely able to push the name past my cracked lips. I truly didn't like the sound of him somehow being alive after I had killed him decades ago.
My mind raced with pieces of the past building on each other like a puzzle awaiting completion. Decades ago, I was standing in the courtyard, drenched in his blood with my sword stabbed in his chest multiple times.
And now here I was, reaping greatly.
"How could I forget you? When the stars align, it can never be wrong. I always had this feeling you would turn out like this."
I chuckled uncontrollably, a strange peace settling in my mind knowing that I made the right call. I didn't have to feel guilty killing Li Zhenyu, not when the divination said that on my father's eightieth birthday, the devil's bone would possess him and give him the power for revenge.
He would go after the most sorted Marshal and have him beheaded.
That was the final line of the divination.
I forced my eyes to stay open, recalling the words of Zhan Bu Shi. If one thing was clear, the last Marshal standing was my father… Yan Xianfeng.
My gaze darted around the smoky atmosphere, searching for him—hoping, praying he was still alive somewhere in this nightmare.
"You're looking for him, aren't you?"
Li Zhenyu's mocking voice cut through the air like a blade. With a flick of his hand, the smoke parted, revealing a figure sprawled on the ground. My breath caught in my throat as I recognized the crimson robes of my father.
"No!" I cried out, dragging myself forward despite the pain shooting through my legs.
He stepped closer to my father, raising two fingers like a puppeteer controlling invisible strings. My father's limp body suddenly rose from the ground, suspended in the air. His head hung to the side, unconscious or worse—I couldn't tell.
"Drop him, Li Zhenyu! Please, I beg you," I screamed, my voice breaking. "If you want revenge, take it out on me! Don't hurt him! I was the one who killed you, I was the one who stabbed you!"