Traveling through thousands of years, I only love you

The faint light of dawn filtered through the mottled window lattice, casting a shadow over the bed between Xiao Yi and Li Lingyuan. Xiao Yi slowly awoke and instinctively reached out to embrace Li Lingyuan, but only felt a chilly emptiness. He suddenly opened his eyes and looked around. The room was silent and still, and Li Lingyuan was nowhere to be seen.

"Lingyuan?" Xiao Yi called softly, but no one responded. A sense of unease welled up in him, and he stood up, dressed, and searched the chambers. The palace maids, upon hearing the commotion, rushed over, all claiming they hadn't seen the Empress.

Xiao Yi hurried to the Imperial Garden, where they often strolled and admired the scenery. He hoped to find Li Lingyuan in a familiar corner. The flowers in the garden were still blooming, and the butterflies were dancing, but the figure that had always worried him was missing. He anxiously called Li Lingyuan's name along the path, his voice echoing in the empty garden, but no one responded.

He returned to the study, thinking that Li Lingyuan might be browsing there. Inside, brushes, inkstones, and paper were neatly arranged. An unfinished ancient book lay open on the desk, as if telling of its owner's hasty departure. Xiao Yi's gaze fell on the ancient book, and his uneasiness grew stronger.

"Go ask the guards if they've seen the Empress leave the palace?" Xiao Yi instructed the attendant beside him. The attendant took the order and left. A moment later, he returned to report that the guards had not seen the Empress leave.

Xiao Yi's brow furrowed, his heart filled with doubt and worry. He rushed throughout the palace, exploring every hall and corridor. He repeatedly questioned the palace maids, eunuchs, and guards, but received only negative answers.

As time passed, Xiao Yi's anxiety gradually turned to fear. He couldn't imagine Li Lingyuan disappearing without warning. They had been through so much together and promised to be together forever. Horrible thoughts kept flooding his mind. Had an enemy secretly infiltrated the palace and abducted Li Lingyuan? Or had she met with an accident?

"Pass the order down! Seal off the palace. No one is allowed to enter or leave without permission. Search for the Empress!" Xiao Yi issued a stern order. The palace was immediately bustling with activity. Guards searched every corner, and the maids and eunuchs assisted, searching every room and cabinet.

Xiao Yi personally led a team of guards to search the palace's remote corners and hidden passages. They entered the long-sealed basement, where the dark, damp air was filled with a foul odor. Xiao Yi, suppressing his discomfort, held a torch and carefully explored the basement. Cobwebs clung to the walls, the floor was covered in dust, and a few old items were piled in the corners, but there was no sign of Li Lingyuan.

Next, they arrived at the hills behind the palace. The woods were dense and overgrown with thorns, often infested with wild animals. Xiao Yi, disregarding the danger, plunged headfirst into the woods. Branches scratched his skin, but he remained oblivious, calling out Li Lingyuan's name. They searched the woods for a long time, but still found nothing.

As night fell, the palace was ablaze with lights. Xiao Yi sat in the palace's main hall, his face haggard, his eyes filled with exhaustion and despair. A day of searching had yielded no results. He didn't know where to look for Li Lingyuan, or whether she was safe.

"Could it be that the Queen was cast under a spell and disappeared out of thin air?" an old palace maid said tremblingly.

Xiao Yi's heart skipped a beat when he heard this. Coming from the modern era, he didn't believe in demons and monsters, but now he couldn't help but feel a little suspicious. He recalled some mysterious disappearances he had heard of in modern times. Could it be that some kind of supernatural power really existed in this ancient world?

"Stop talking nonsense!" Xiao Yi scolded, but his heart was restless. He decided to expand the search area, not only in the palace, but also in the capital and even the surrounding areas.

The next day, Xiao Yi dispatched a large number of personnel to post Li Lingyuan's portrait in the streets and alleys of the capital, offering a large reward for clues. At the same time, he personally led a team of elite soldiers to search the villages, mountains, forests, and rivers around the capital.

They arrived at a small village, where the villagers, upon seeing the soldiers approaching, were filled with panic. Xiao Yi asked the villagers if they had seen Li Lingyuan, but they all shook their heads, saying they had not. They searched every household, warehouse, and cellar in the village, but still found no clues.

Then, they searched downstream along the river. The scenery on both sides of the river was beautiful, but Xiao Yi had no interest in admiring it. His eyes were always searching the river and the banks, hoping to see Li Lingyuan. They took a small boat and went downstream, leaving no place untouched.

On a riverbank, Xiao Yi discovered a broken jade pendant. He picked it up and carefully examined it, recognizing it as the one Li Lingyuan often wore. His heart sank. Why was this jade pendant there? Had something happened to Li Lingyuan?

Xiao Yi clutched the jade pendant tightly, his eyes flashing with anger and grief. He ordered the search to continue along the path where the jade pendant was found, and to find Li Lingyuan, no matter what the cost.

They entered a dense forest, thick with fog, making visibility extremely low. Xiao Yi led his soldiers cautiously through the forest when they suddenly heard a melodious flute. It was a tune Xiao Yi knew well: it was a tune Li Lingyuan often played.

"Ling Yuan!" Xiao Yi was overjoyed and ran towards the direction of the flute sound. The soldiers followed him. However, when they arrived at the place where the flute sound came from, they found only a flute stuck in the ground and no one around.

Xiao Yi picked up the flute, his heart filled with confusion and despair. This flute clearly belonged to Li Lingyuan, so why was it here? Where was she? Was all this deliberately done to tease him?

He angrily threw the flute to the ground and roared to the sky, "Who is it? Who kidnapped Ling Yuan? If I find you, I will tear you into pieces!"

The soldiers looked at Xiao Yi's furious expression and dared not utter a word. They knew the pain and anger in Xiao Yi's heart at the moment, and they also understood how heavy a blow the Queen's disappearance was to him.

Xiao Yi continued searching in the forest for a long time, but still found no clues. He returned to the palace, exhausted and desperate.

After returning to the palace, Xiao Yi spent his days locked in his study, staring blankly at Li Lingyuan's portrait. He refused to eat or drink, and his body gradually became thinner. The palace maids and eunuchs were worried about him, but they dared not disturb him.

"Your Majesty is blessed by heaven, and Your Majesty, you should also take care of your health." A loyal old eunuch advised outside the study door.

Xiao Yi seemed to have not heard, still immersed in his own pain and longing. He kept recalling every moment with Li Lingyuan, from their first meeting to fighting side by side, to the sweet life after the restoration of the country. Those beautiful memories now became the most painful torment in his heart.

As the days passed, Xiao Yi's mental state deteriorated. He knew this wasn't the way to go, but he couldn't control his emotions. He felt as if he had lost his soul, a mere corpse.

He decided to expand the search area again and sent a letter of help to neighboring countries, asking them to help find Li Lingyuan. At the same time, he also invited some Jianghu masters and mysterious wizards, hoping that they could use their own skills to find Li Lingyuan's whereabouts.

Martial arts masters searched the palace, checking every corner for signs and traces, but found no useful clues. The sorcerers then performed a mysterious ritual in the palace's main hall, chanting incantations in an attempt to communicate with the spirits and locate Li Lingyuan. However, after the ritual, the sorcerers shook their heads, expressing their helplessness.

Xiao Yi watched all this, his despair reaching its peak. He didn't know what else he could do, and he didn't know if he could still find Li Lingyuan. His world seemed to have fallen into endless darkness, with no glimmer of hope in sight.

Despite the pain and despair, Xiao Yi refused to give up his search. He believed that as long as he persevered, he would one day find Li Lingyuan. Even if she had met with an unforeseen event, he would still seek her out and avenge her. He struggled alone in the darkness, waiting for a glimmer of hope, even if it seemed slim, and he was willing to pay any price for it.