Chapter 64

Yan Chaosheng’s actions made the other sand people even more “afraid,” though they didn’t understand what true “friendship” was.

Once they forgot the fear of the death of the blue gem, they were once again drawn to the spiritual energy emanating from Liu Shuang.

She was in the stream where she used to bathe.

There were no stones in the stream, but instead, there were gems sparkling under the sunlight.

The sand people initially thought that the little immortal had met with misfortune, but when they approached, the terrifying demon was right there, guarding her.

He sat with his back to the stream, his expression dark, not looking at the half-naked girl in the water.

The sand people, holding hands, came closer.

He sneered, sucked a few of them over, and crushed them: “I’ll say this for the last time, get lost.”

Gems scattered at his feet.

He wasn’t joking; he would crush all the sand people! This time, the others didn’t dare provoke him and scattered in all directions, even dropping the vessels containing the spiritual dew in their panic.

Yan Chaosheng watched the spilled spiritual dew with cold eyes, silent.

The sun above was scorching, and behind him, the sound of rushing water continued.

He never turned to look at her.

Liu Shuang couldn’t see and didn’t know that the little sand people who had been whining for her hugs had turned into scattered sand.

After finishing her bath, she stumbled out of the stream.

In the past, the sand people would have rushed to help her, but this time, they didn’t do their duty and didn’t come to her aid immediately.

She tilted her head, waiting for a while, before someone grabbed her and dragged her toward her small hut.

His movements were not gentle, carrying a rough, demonic edge.

She couldn’t sense it and could only follow him, appearing unusually obedient.

Yan Chaosheng glanced back at her.

His unstable demonic form amplified all his negative emotions.

Liu Shuang’s heartless words from that day still echoed in his ears.

He felt suffocated, not understanding why he still wanted to be near her.

She had already said it herself—she wanted to stay away from him.

Once back in the hut, she seemed much more at ease.

Having lived on Mount You for some time now, she had gradually familiarized herself with the layout of the room, even with the white silk blindfold covering her eyes.

She sat by the bed, looking up at “him,” and reminded him, “Little sand people, it’s time to eat.”

Yan Chaosheng didn’t move, his gaze icy as he watched her.

The spiritual dew she was supposed to consume had been spilled earlier, and she was completely unaware.

The girl before him was now as fragile as a mortal, like a lamb completely unaware of danger.

The memories buried deep within him screamed at him to act.

A pure spiritual heart was within his grasp.

From now on, his interactions with her should have no other purpose but this.

Yan Chaosheng raised his hand, a dark golden light gathering in his palm.

The sand people lined up to complain to Zhan Xueyang, crying that the big demon was going to kill them.

Zhan Xueyang, with his legs crossed, pondered, “Has he discovered it?”

He grabbed a ruby sand person, spread his fingers, and extracted a white feather-like energy from its head—clearly spiritual energy.

He then tossed it aside.

The little sand person scratched its head.

They were all quite foolish, unaware that they had been used as tools to siphon spiritual energy from Liu Shuang, and they couldn’t understand what Zhan Xueyang had done.

They continued to chatter and complain.

“Alright, alright, I get it.”

After collecting the spiritual energy from them, Zhan Xueyang stroked his chin and couldn’t help but smile, though the smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“Interesting.”

On the surface, Yan Chaosheng seemed intent on harming Liu Shuang, but in reality, he had thwarted Zhan Xueyang’s plans.

The spiritual energy was equivalent to Liu Shuang’s life force.

During this time, Zhan Xueyang had taken advantage of her blindness and spent days with the little sand people, placing restrictions on them to steal her spiritual energy.

Zhan Xueyang had never done such a thing before.

Though he was a mix of good and evil, he had never mistreated his patients.

This was why Jimo Shaoyou trusted him so much.

Zhan Xueyang had a strange temper, but he had always been diligent and responsible with every patient.

But so what? Zhan Xueyang thought: They come and go, but the one trapped in this lifeless realm is always me. I expend my spiritual energy and treasures to heal them, and once they recover, they rush to leave, not even bothering to spare me a word.

Thousands of years of loneliness and solitude are enough to turn a noble man into a despicable prisoner.

One day, Zhan Xueyang decided that he would either leave this place or live more freely.

He began making strange demands and stopped treating everyone who came to him for help.

Once, he even demanded that someone stay with him for a year.

She agreed and stayed for a full year, long enough for him to feel joy, thinking that he could keep her, that someone was finally willing to stay with him in this lifeless place.

But when the last day of the year passed, he never saw her again.

Zhan Xueyang sat in her empty hut for a day, countless times trying to break out of Mount You’s entrance.

He was thrown back each time, blood spilling from his mouth.

After a long while, he returned to the hut.

For the first time, he deeply understood that to leave this place, he would have to break the ancient oath his ancestors had made: “Unless the spiritual veins are united, Mount You will not fall, and our descendants will never leave, waiting for the return of the prince to revive the Xiangliu royal family.”

Zhan Xueyang couldn’t remember how many years he had waited.

Several times, he thought that living like this was meaningless, like a dog left behind here.

Dying would be better, but any injuries sustained on Mount You would heal, and even death here would only result in revival.

How ironic.

The only way to truly die was to have someone bear his descendant, passing the mission to another child, so that he could die on the demon mountain—Zhan Xueyang’s father had done just that.

Zhan Xueyang didn’t want to do that.

Perhaps it was for that faint glimmer of hope, or perhaps it was for that spirited immortal girl who had stayed with him for a year, planting trees with him, forcing his head into her embrace, and teasing him until he blushed.

Too much time had passed, and he could no longer remember her name or even her face.

It didn’t matter.

It was all in the past, Zhan Xueyang thought with a mocking smile.

He wanted to leave this place, even if it meant dying the moment he stepped out.

He didn’t want to spend his days here, heartbroken and yearning like a starving dog in a cage, hoping that every passerby would become his master.

To achieve that, becoming despicable was a small price to pay.

The prince must not soften his heart; he must retrieve that Huiling heart! Too many of his clansmen had sacrificed themselves, paving the way with their bones and blood, for his arrival.

Zhan Xueyang waved his hand, intending to see what was happening in Liu Shuang’s hut, but his vision was blocked by a barrier.

Zhan Xueyang laughed in anger.

Fine, very well.

He had never seen anyone more stubborn and foolish than himself.

What good would it do for the prince to treat her so well? Would she even know? She would never like him and would eventually marry Jimo Shaoyou!

Alright, alright, it’s been ten thousand years since I’ve seen such a joke.

The deeper he falls, the more I want to see how he’ll handle it!

The little sand people clung to the window, nervously peeking inside, but they couldn’t see anything.

Oh no, what was the big demon doing? Was he going to kill the little immortal?

The little immortal was so kind and had such a sweet scent.

The big demon was too cruel!

Yan Chaosheng thought of the current slaughter order the immortal realm had placed on demons, trying to ignore his inner feelings and only see her as the “Huiling heart.”

But in his hand, he held a crystal bowl containing spirit fruits he had picked the night before.

The fruits were sweet and fragrant, far more delicious than the spiritual dew, though Liu Shuang couldn’t tell the difference.

He sat beside her, coldly commanding, “Open your mouth.”

She couldn’t hear him and tilted her head in confusion.

Yan Chaosheng didn’t waste words and simply pressed the spoon to her lips.

She paused, then opened her mouth.

He fed her spoonful by spoonful, his expression more like he was feeding her poison than fruit.

He wasn’t very good at taking care of others, and he fed her quickly.

Before she could swallow one spoonful, the next was already at her lips.

The little immortal endured it for a while before finally biting the spoon and mumbling, “Could you wait until I finish one spoonful before giving me the next?”

He withdrew his hand, watching her cheeks puff out as she chewed.

After a while, when he didn’t make any further moves, Liu Shuang thought to herself that today’s little quicksand person seemed particularly clumsy.

She sighed inwardly, then reached out to hold his wrist, shaking it slightly to signal that he could continue now.

Yan Chaosheng coldly shoved the bowl into her hands.

He found it somewhat ironic. Was Jimo Shaoyou so foolish as to leave her in Zhan Xueyang’s care? If he wanted to die, Yan Chaosheng wouldn’t mind personally sending him on his way.

Was this the person she had chosen? Her life was now hanging by a thread.

He shouldn’t have cared about her anymore.

That scene under the Weak Water, where she would rather die than be saved by him, breaking free from his embrace, had left a humiliating mark on his soul.

Now, only by treating her as the “Huiling heart,” without any other thoughts, could he remain calm and interact with her without pain.

He opened his palm, revealing the spiritual energy he had retrieved after crushing those sand people.

He wasn’t the master of Mount You and could only resort to such crude methods.

Yan Chaosheng gripped the white feather-like energy, pinched her face, and made her “look” at him as he transferred the spiritual energy back into her forehead.

Her cheeks were soft, and without her senses, she didn’t realize that his cold fingers were deforming her face.

After transferring the spiritual energy, he looked down at her, closed his eyes, and felt a sense of helplessness.

She sat there, holding the bowl, completely unaware of what had just happened.

Today’s little sand person was not only a bit clumsy but also seemed to have a bit of a temper.

Having lost her senses, she wouldn’t feel pain even if her arm were cut off.

She felt uneasy, sensing only that something had bumped into her palm.

She vaguely guessed that the bowl of spiritual dew had been handed to her.

Then he guided her hand to find the spoon: “Feed yourself.”

He restrained himself, unwilling to do more for her, as it would only lead to further humiliation.

He didn’t want the wounds he had been trying to heal to be torn open again upon seeing Liu Shuang.

Liu Shuang, unable to hear, didn’t get angry.

Losing her sense of touch made everything more difficult.

He guided her hand to the spoon, and after much effort, she managed to bring it to her lips and ate quietly.

She didn’t appear pitiful, but with her eyes covered, her delicate appearance struck him differently.

Yan Chaosheng watched coldly, not offering any help.

It took her an hour to finish half a bowl of spirit fruits, but the little immortal was patient.

She didn’t even realize the bowl was empty until someone snatched it away.

She smiled slightly in surprise, “You didn’t leave?” Or had they come back?

She thought Zhan Xueyang had called them away for some task.

Though today’s little sand person wasn’t very diligent, she still tilted her head and asked, “Do you want today’s thank-you gift?”

Yan Chaosheng knew what she meant.

Yesterday, he had stood outside the door, watching a clumsy sand person nuzzle into her embrace.

She had lowered her head and gently kissed it.

The blue gem had been overjoyed, spinning around wildly.

He had remained silent for a long time, his fists clenching and unclenching.

He sat stiffly, not moving as she touched his arm.

He didn’t know what he had been yearning for in that moment, but he had been momentarily stunned.

A soft kiss landed on his cheek.

He shuddered, coming back to his senses, and quickly tried to avoid the kiss, but it was too late.

It had already landed, like a brand searing his heart, tearing away his facade.

Guilt and self-loathing, like entwining vines, wrapped tightly around his heart, almost suffocating him.

What was he doing?

Yan Chaosheng stood up abruptly and walked out the door.

Outside, Zhan Xueyang smiled at him, “Your Highness, are you having fun?”

Yan Chaosheng coldly replied, “Zhan Xueyang, I should be asking you that. When did I order you to tamper with the Huiling heart? An unrefined Huiling heart is useless.”

Zhan Xueyang hadn’t expected Yan Chaosheng to refer to Liu Shuang as the “Huiling heart.” He said, “Your Highness, she’s waiting for Jimo Shaoyou to return.”

Yan Chaosheng’s fingers tightened, almost drawing blood, as he walked past Zhan Xueyang, “I know. You don’t need to remind me.”