The Emperor's Domineering Favor, the Evil Consort's Unparalleled Reign

"Ice Shadow, turn around! Turn around!!!"

Someone was shouting. Bingyin frowned, opened his eyes, and saw Li Xiyue and Qingqing sitting opposite him. The proprietress of Sanxi Town was busy running around, and the room was filled with the aroma of cooking.

The proprietress brought over a large plate of meat pie and then several porcelain bowls for the group. She watched as Li Xiyue and Bingyin brought the little girl from the jewelry shop in the north of town into the shop, and for a moment she felt a sense of novelty.

The little girl was very gentle and had a small face; for some reason, she always had a smile on her face.

"Mmm, delicious, delicious, sister, you should have some too." Qingqing held a meat pie in each hand, completely ignoring the chopsticks, and ate while urging Li Xiyue to eat.

Bingyin sat in front of her, his face slightly cold.

Li Xiyue asked in confusion, "Didn't you make money selling those jewelry pieces? Why are you still so hungry?"

Qingqing swallowed the pastry in her mouth and said, "That money isn't enough to eat. I have a big belly, and I'm never full no matter how much I eat."

Bingyin stared at her for a long while. Then, the smile on Qingqing's face disappeared. She put down the meat pie and said helplessly, "If you want to ask something, just say it. You don't have to look at me like that, as if you want to kill me."

Bingyin smiled slightly and said, "Young Master Ye Zhen of the Leng family is also here. Aren't you afraid he'll catch you and take you back after you ran away?"

Qingqing asked in surprise, "You mean our young master is here too? How is that possible? Could it be... you're the Ice Shadow Senior Brother from the Red Jade Palace?"

Bingyin nodded and said, "That's right."

Qingqing opened her mouth, turned to look at Li Xiyue, and pointed at her, saying, "Is she Lianyi? She's quite pretty, but I heard you don't like her. What's going on?"

Li Xiyue frowned slightly and looked up at Bingyin. The other party's face was indifferent, and he didn't react at all when he heard the name.

"She is not Lianyi. As for what happened between me and Lianyi, you don't need to know. Getting back to the point, how do you know about the Bone Ring? The Red Jade Palace doesn't even have any records of the Bone Ring. Where did you get this information from?"

Qingqing looked at Bingyin, her expression somewhat uneasy, and said, "The legend of the Bone Ring has existed since ancient times, and even Daoist Huanzhen knows about it. Why don't you ask him? He's your master, and he'll definitely tell you. I'm just fooling ordinary people to make a living. I escaped from the Leng Mansion to play, but it was out of necessity."

Bingyin said, "You say my master knows? What makes you say that?"

Qingqing blurted out, "What doesn't he know? He's the old Taoist Huanzhen, the master of the Red Jade Palace, the number one secret technique palace in the Spirit Realm Continent. He knows everything. Our young master also secretly searched for the Bone Ring in order to please Miss Lianyi. Of course, he didn't find it, otherwise he wouldn't be so distraught now."

After a moment's hesitation, Bingyin suddenly said, "I'm going to find my master." His voice was devoid of any emotion, and as he spoke, he glanced at Li Xiyue with a detached look in his eyes.

Li Xiyue said, "I want to go too."

Bingyin said, "No, you must wait for me here. Illusionary Realm Mountain is too far away. If you come with me, the journey will be very arduous."

"But I'm not afraid of hardship, I'm not afraid of anything."

Bingyin crossed his arms and smiled slightly after hearing Li Xiyue's words, but for some reason, there was a hint of bitterness in that smile.

Qingqing poked at the meat pie with her chopsticks, scooped out the meat filling, put it in her mouth, stared at Bingyin and Li Xiyue, and said, "Did you two have a fight?"

Li Xiyue's eyes darted around, she picked up a meat pie, took a bite, and after a long while said, "No, nothing happened between us."

Qingqing put down her chopsticks and said, "Sister Yue, how come you can't even tell a lie?"

Li Xiyue was stunned for a moment, and Qingqing continued, "Didn't you see how ugly Senior Brother Bingyin's face was when he heard you say that you had nothing to do with him?!"

Bingyin lowered his head, ignoring Qingqing's words, "I'm going to Illusionary Realm Mountain first thing tomorrow morning. Wait for me here until I come back."

Li Xiyue stopped chewing the meat pie. She looked at Bingyin's lowered head, swallowed the food in her mouth after a long while, and finally said, "Mm."

Bingyin raised her head and met her gaze. Li Xiyue's long eyelashes fluttered slightly, her eyes still resolute.

Bingyin took a deep breath, stood up, turned to look at Qingqing, smiled slightly, and said, "Since you're out having fun, then do me a favor."

"Go ahead," Qingqing replied readily.

“Take care of her for me, at least until I get back. Otherwise, Ye Zhen is nearby, and I don’t mind telling him you’re here.”

Qingqing shrank back slightly and quickly said, "I like Sister Yue so much, of course I'll play with her. Isn't that right, Sister Yue?"

Li Xiyue stared at her for a while, then smiled.

Bingyin lowered his arms, gave Li Xiyue a deep look, and then went upstairs.

Moonlit night, bright moonlight, a quiet little courtyard.

Qingqing had already gone to sleep. Li Xiyue particularly envied her; she could eat and sleep well, without a single worry. Unlike her, she was just an ordinary person with many worries. She couldn't protect the important people in her life, and she was constantly being used as a pawn.

Li Xiyue sat on the small stone bench in the courtyard, holding the bronze mirror. A faint divine consciousness on the bronze mirror was trying to squeeze out. After a while, a head squeezed out, and a small transparent body was still in the mirror. Li Xiyue smiled slightly at the mirror, gently stroked the bronze mirror with her right hand, and let out a long breath, saying, "Sixth Brother, wait for me. No matter how precious the Bone Ring is, I will find it. Then we will always be together."

Sixth Brother's faint consciousness was still struggling in the mirror. Li Xiyue saw that his consciousness was no longer transparent, just like when she hadn't left home. Back then, Sixth Brother was by her side, and no matter what happened, she could get through it. If it weren't for the fortune teller's appearance, if it weren't for the fat brother's pancakes, Li Xiyue would have thought that her father would never abandon her. But life is unpredictable, and what's meant to happen will happen.

The memory was deeply rooted in Li Xiyue's heart. She stretched out her right index finger and gently touched her sixth brother's forehead. As expected, her finger went right through him.

"Hehe, Sixth Brother..." Li Xiyue smiled slightly, "If only I could truly touch you. For this wish, I would pay any price."

Bingyin leaned against the corner of the wall, his figure hidden in the shadows. Looking at the woman in the light red dress, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly. He lowered his arms and then walked to her side.

Li Xiyue turned around, her icy body blocking the moonlight. Her eyes were dark, and the surroundings were also dark.

Sixth Brother shrank back, and Li Xiyue put the bronze mirror into the cloth bag, looking at Bingyin and saying, "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Bingyin looked at her, sat down on the stone bench beside her, and said, "You weren't asleep either, were you?"

Li Xiyue frowned slightly and said, "That's not important. I want to go to Illusionary Realm Mountain with you. I'm not at ease waiting here."

Bingyin crossed his arms, staring intently at Li Xiyue's furrowed brows, and said, "You don't believe me?"

Li Xiyue shook her head. "No, I just don't want to rely on others. As long as you tell me where Illusionary Realm Mountain is, I can find it myself. I can ask your master for help myself. I can..."

Bingyin's face was as cold as frost, and his body suddenly released a chill. Li Xiyue shivered. She raised her head and looked into Bingyin's eyes. The warmth that she had felt when they first met was gone from his eyes. Now, his gaze was as deep as the sea, and Li Xiyue couldn't tell what the person in front of her was thinking.

“That day…” Bingyin said, “In the bamboo forest, everything I said was a lie. I was just afraid that Ye Zhen would hurt you because of me, so I left. But I didn’t expect that Ye Zhen would treat you like that without even knowing the truth.”

Li Xiyue's eyes dimmed. She suddenly recalled that day, the image of Ye Zhen's bloodshot eyes as he walked towards her with his hands behind his back. If Bingyin hadn't appeared, she might already be dead.

"It's alright, I'm perfectly fine now, nothing's wrong with me. Besides, there's nothing wrong with someone like me dying," Li Xiyue murmured.

The stone bench was icy cold; Li Xiyue's fingertips felt as if they were touching ice. After a while, she saw that the stone table in front of her was covered with a layer of white gauze.

She looked up at Bingyin, who had a smile on his face, but the chill seeped into her bones.

"I told you, I'll go with you to find the Bone Ring, so you can't die before that."

Li Xiyue reached out and touched Bingyin's face. His face was very cold, but Bingyin frowned slightly because Li Xiyue's hand was practically devoid of warmth.

“Bingyin, there’s a dark aura around you. Just now, there was a very strong dark aura around you. That day in the capital, the Immortal-Slaying Sword…” Li Xiyue didn’t finish her sentence. She saw Bingyin’s eyes, which were blood red.

His face was flushed, and his eyes were flashing rapidly. Li Xiyue abruptly pulled her hand back. Bingyin looked at her for a long while, as if he had thought of something. He lowered his head and placed his right hand on the stone table.

The ice gauze on the stone table melted instantly, and Li Xiyue's expression changed slightly when she saw the layers of black energy wrapped around Bingyin's hands.

The redness on Bingyin's face disappeared. He looked at Li Xiyue, then looked down at himself, and smiled slightly after a while. "It seems that your husband's skill is quite good. I admire his ability to cast curses."

Li Xiyue's expression changed drastically. She bit her lip, and after a long while, Bingyin saw traces of blood seeping from her lips. He felt a pang of regret; those words he had just spoken...

“He is not my husband, not now, and never will be. I have absolutely no relation to him.” Li Xiyue trembled all over, clutching the bronze mirror tightly in her hands.

Bingyin suddenly felt annoyed, annoyed that he had been invaded by the black energy just now, and even more annoyed that his unconscious words had made Li Xiyue feel so uncomfortable.

He extended his right index finger and slowly touched Li Xiyue's forehead. The latter stiffened for a moment, then looked up at Bingyin. The other man had a smile on his lips. Seeing that Li Xiyue was looking at him and had stopped biting her lip, he said, "No, he's not, he... doesn't deserve to be."

……