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

"I don't like him at all. He's so old and ugly. Why would I marry him? Unless I'm dead! Otherwise, I will absolutely, absolutely not marry him!!!" Chu Lianyi trembled all over as she stared incredulously at the eldest boy's face, which was filled with panic from her.

"You say Master is ugly? Master isn't ugly at all..."

“Since she’s unwilling, let’s not force her! Master’s health isn’t good, senior brother, we…” The little boy interrupted the big boy, his eyes darting away.

The eldest boy was startled. He looked at Chu Lianyi, who resembled a wounded little animal, making them both somewhat at a loss. They had almost forgotten why they came here, but after spending time with Chu Lianyi, they knew she wasn't a bad girl. How could they possibly believe it?!

"Useless! If Master is counting on people like you, he'll never see the next Ghost Spirit Fruit grow! Get out of here!!" A furious voice rang out from the mountaintop, and a man dressed in black with a cold expression stood in front of Chu Lianyi.

"Sixth Senior Brother?! We'll be there soon!" the two boys argued in unison, but the man called Sixth Senior Brother slightly raised his hand to stop them from speaking.

He walked up to Chu Lianyi, and without saying a word, grabbed her arm and pulled her up. Chu Lianyi's expression changed drastically. She struggled and looked at the cold man in front of her. He was so young, but there were several deep lines on his face. He looked like a cold-hearted person!

"What are you doing?! Let me go! Let me go!" Chu Lianyi shouted, but the man's strength was immense. He pulled on Chu Lianyi with his right hand, while his left hand revealed a dagger, its cold light flashing suddenly in the night sky!

Chu Lianyi's voice disappeared into the pitch-black night. A cut appeared on her left wrist, a white line that was barely visible. A long time later, a red line appeared. Chu Lianyi felt no pain. Only after a long while, when she turned her head and saw the faces of the two children, one big and one small, holding white porcelain bowls, appear before her, did she realize that the pain had seeped into her very bones.

"Sixth Senior Brother, that's enough. Give this to Master first, he should be fine. This girl can't die yet, what will happen to Master if she dies?!" It was the eldest boy's voice. Chu Lianyi felt a wave of dizziness, her eyes staring blankly at the eldest boy who was close to her. The sound of blood dripping from her wrist into the white porcelain bowl was suddenly amplified. When she fainted, she seemed to see Xuan Ye walking towards them, and then she couldn't hear anything anymore.

When Chu Lianyi woke up, she was lying in a palace. In the antique palace, she lay on a soft couch, and a faint fragrance wafted into her nose. She felt as if she were floating in the rich fragrance.

Her left wrist was in excruciating pain. She rubbed her head and sat up. In the mirror opposite her sat a woman in a red wedding dress. The woman's hair was tied up and she wore two blue hairpins. Blue beaded ribbons were pulled out from the hairpins and inserted deep into her hair. The beaded ribbons seemed to grow on her hair and swayed up and down with the beaded flowers on the hairpins.

A very beautiful woman. After a long time, Chu Lianyi suddenly realized that the woman was actually herself!

"Ah!!!" Chu Lianyi screamed, and the woman in the mirror also screamed suddenly. Chu Lianyi roughly pulled out the two hairpins and threw them on the table. Her hair was messy, and the wound on her left hand was torn open, with blood gushing out!

"Hiss!" Chu Lianyi gasped, staring blankly at the blood on her left hand, biting her lip tightly. She had made up her mind: if she was forced to live a wretched life, she would rather die!

"What are you yelling about?! If you hadn't eaten the Ghost Spirit Fruit, do you think a little brat like you could have married my master?!" A cold voice rang out. Chu Lianyi looked at her sixth senior brother Xuan Qi, who had pushed open the door, and the two boys hiding behind him, and suddenly sneered.

He raised his slashed left wrist and said, "Isn't this enough?!"

"What did you say?!" Xuan Qi stared at Chu Lianyi's chilling smile and said, "You stole my master's Ghost Spirit Fruit, so you must pay the price!!! You dare ask me why?! Greed will ultimately pay the price!!!"

"Isn't my blood debt enough to repay?! Isn't it enough that I've paid with my blood and my life?! What are these things?! Who said I was going to marry your old and ugly master?!!!!" Chu Lianyi roared hysterically, while the young boys and girls dodged away, not daring to look into Chu Lianyi's eyes.

"You've taken my kindness for granted! You're utterly ignorant! You said my master is old and ugly, I just think you're crazy! Put on your clothes and come out, the wedding ceremony is about to begin! I don't want my master to wait for you, you little brat!!!" Xuan Qi said fiercely, his face showing impatience.

"Girl, you'd better listen to me, or you'll lose your life! Sixth Brother isn't a patient man. You saw it yourself on the top of Yunshan Mountain. Hurry up, get dressed, let's go out." The eldest boy advised, not wanting Chu Lianyi to really die here because of this.

“That’s right, little girl, hurry up and get dressed. Let’s go out and see Master, okay? Master has been waiting for a long time. Let’s… go out quickly?” The little boy looked at Chu Lianyi, who was retreating, and suddenly had a bad feeling.

They knew Chu Lianyi's stubborn nature to some extent. If pushed too far, she might really do something foolish. But he really couldn't understand why Chu Lianyi was so resistant to their master, who was such a good person. Was their master really old, ugly, and unpleasant? No, it couldn't be.

Chu Lianyi kept backing away, her right hand hidden behind her back. After listening to their words, a bitter smile played on her lips. "Why should I be grateful to you for this?! You imprisoned my friend, you forced me to marry someone I don't love, you bled me dry—wasn't that enough?! Didn't I promise you that as long as my friend left safely, I, Chu Lianyi, would make amends with my life?! But why are you forcing me?! I will not marry that person! Even if it means death! I will never compromise!!!"

"Lianyi, no!!!" The two boys watched as Chu Lianyi gathered spiritual energy into a sword in her right hand, and in a swift and decisive motion, the spiritual sword pierced through Chu Lianyi's body!

Their worst fears came true. Chu Lianyi was no pushover. Even if her spiritual power was low, even if she was in dire straits, even if she had a dark and shadowy childhood, she was never a pushover! She would never give them the chance to bully her. If pushed to the limit, she would show them her indomitable spirit!

She would never marry that old, ugly man, the man she once admired most, the man who had destroyed her dreams!

"Heh...you all want me to marry?! Wait until I...wait until I die...then you can let this soulless shell of a body marry him! I, Chu Lianyi...am not going to...participate!"

As Chu Lianyi spoke, she continued to back away. She saw the dejected and panicked look in those people's eyes, and a smile appeared on her lips. She saw the ugly face of the Great Sage Jue Ling appear opposite her. He was wearing the same black clothes as Xuan Qi. Chu Lianyi suddenly realized that they were all wearing the same black clothes, and the sleeves of those clothes were embroidered with the character "Xuan".

What...what...is going on?!

Chu Lianyi lost her strength and clutched her chest tightly. The blood slowly flowed through her fingers onto the ground in front of her, like clusters of red plum blossoms. How beautiful!

“Lianyi…” A familiar voice called her. Chu Lianyi stared straight ahead, and through the blurry vision, she saw Xuan Ye.

Xuan Ye was dressed in a bright red, tight-fitting outfit, made of the finest fabric and with the best tailoring. His face was as gentle as jade, and his temperament was elegant and refined. He walked towards Chu Lianyi in his red attire. Chu Lianyi looked at the people dressed in black behind him and they all called out to him in unison, "Master!"

Was it an illusion?! Chu Lianyi's legs went weak, and she knelt down in front of Xuan Ye. She looked up at him and murmured, "Master?"

Then everything went black, and he collapsed heavily onto the cold, stiff ground.