“He didn’t marry you!”
Wu Zhaohua, under immense pressure, swung her Immortal Sword at Jiang Huai with all her strength. Her momentum surged like a rainbow.
Unlike the ordinary Great Ascension cultivators such as the old monk and the old woman, Wu Zhaohua was less restricted by this Formation and could spare the effort to fight back.
Jiang Huai gazed at the stunningly beautiful woman before him. Only from her voice did he finally recognize the familiar feeling of Wu Zhaohua.
“Wu Zhaohua…” Jiang Huai took a step forward, reaching out his hand toward her.
“Qin Qingyue, don’t hurt her.”
Jiang Huai’s feelings toward Wu Zhaohua were complicated. He felt she wasn’t as bad as Qin Qingyue claimed, that she hadn’t simply used him all along.
If she had only wanted to use his tough fate to survive the Human Tribulation, Wu Zhaohua should have returned to Wenxuan Sect and become Sect Master by now, not come here seeking him, speaking of the future.
Everything needed his own judgment.
Yet, Jiang Huai’s words had no effect. Qin Qingyue glanced at him, then flicked her hand.
“Jiang Huai, come home with me, let’s go home!”
“I want to bring you into Cultivation, to have you by my side as before!”
A glimmer of tears appeared at the corner of Wu Zhaohua’s eye. Her slender hand gripped the Immortal Sword tightly, the blade shining like a rainbow as she advanced step by step to kill.
She seemed to be sinking into a kind of madness. In the Formation, blades and spears struck her Immortal Body, falling with heavy, muffled thuds.
But Wu Zhaohua endured it all, sword swinging relentlessly.
All these years, Jiang Huai had felt bound to her, inseparable.
No matter how late he came home, no matter what he did, no matter what mood he was in.
Wu Zhaohua knew that, every Evening, he would always come home—he would definitely come home.
Back at home, whether it was doing laundry or gardening, whatever it was, Wu Zhaohua could always see Jiang Huai nearby, hearing him bustling about inside and outside the house.
If they were separated, in the evenings to come, who would she see? Who would she wait for to come home?
Was she to face the empty Closed Cultivation Chamber as before?
Unable to see Jiang Huai, Wu Zhaohua felt as if a piece of her heart was missing, impossible to heal.
There would never again be a Human Tribulation, and the world would never see another Jiang Huai.
Watching Wu Zhaohua’s madness, hearing the familiar voice from these years, Jiang Huai recalled all their memories and wanted to walk to her side.
After taking care of each other for so long, bickering and bantering for so long, how could there be no feelings?
“Jiang Huai, come home with me!”
“Alright,” Jiang Huai blurted out.
But the word never left his lips—no sound at all came out, stuck in his throat.
Why couldn’t he speak?
Not only that, Jiang Huai found that his body was no longer under his control, frozen in place, unable to move an inch.
Qin Qingyue let out a cold snort, sealing Jiang Huai where he stood. She stepped forward, held his hand, Black Light covering his palm to heal his wounds, and pulled him to her side.
To be fair, Jiang Huai’s actions just now had touched her heart, letting her feel an unprecedented sense of trust.
Yet even so, her feelings for Jiang Huai were nowhere as deep as Wu Zhaohua’s—Qin Qingyue knew this well.
Feelings depend so much on the right time, place, and people.
But Qin Qingyue still wasn’t willing to let Jiang Huai go, nor to give him to Wu Zhaohua.
This man’s fate was unbelievably tough—having him by her side suited her perfectly, without fear of her own innate misfortune harming him.
Besides, stealing her rival’s man brought Qin Qingyue a secret, inexpressible joy and satisfaction.
“Sorry, he came to find me wearing wedding robes.”
“I was the one who received his bridal sedan, so he’s my man. I can’t give him to you.”
“Wu Zhaohua, this time, the ‘Secret Treasure’ is mine.”
Jiang Huai suddenly felt his body lighten, toes leaving the ground, as Qin Qingyue, right in front of Wu Zhaohua, scooped him into her arms. A Dragon Claw gently caressed his face.
He could do nothing. His gaze still lingered on Wu Zhaohua, but his body was left to Qin Qingyue’s embrace.
Though Jiang Huai never managed to say “alright,” the shape of his lips was enough for Wu Zhaohua to catch.
He said it. He agreed to come home with me.
They still had flowers to plant, so many words left unsaid.
Wu Zhaohua stopped in her tracks. Pure White Flame ignited around her, making her appear sacred, her eyes filled with dazzling white light. She raised her Immortal Sword high, her voice hoarse:
“Qin Qingyue, today I’ll fight you with my life…”
“If you have the guts, stake your entire lifetime of Cultivation against mine! Let’s see who dies here today!”
A powerful aura erupted from Wu Zhaohua, stirring the riverbed and changing the winds and clouds. The nearby cultivators paled with anxiety, unsettled by the pressure.
This was the might of a true top expert betting her entire lifetime of Dao attainment—far surpassing ordinary Great Ascension cultivators, like the bright moon against faint starlight.
Sensing this pressure, Qin Qingyue’s expression changed drastically. Her dragon tail lashed out, transforming into a True Dragon and lifting Jiang Huai atop her head as she fled in panic.
This crazy woman would go this far for Jiang Huai? Even her life didn’t matter?
Avoiding direct confrontation had always been Qin Qingyue’s principle. Against Wu Zhaohua, who had passed three tribulations, she dared not face her head-on.
Besides, there was no benefit—winning would only leave chaos behind.
“You’d better look behind you, Wu Zhaohua!”
Leaving these words, Qin Qingyue, now a Black Dragon, hurriedly took Jiang Huai and sped away.
If she was to fight Wu Zhaohua, she’d need a foolproof plan—now was not the time.
“Senior Sister… Senior Sister!”
Qi Yuyong raised her sword, her voice pained, a troubled look on her pretty face, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth and staining her white robes.
Most people here were Great Ascension cultivators. Though not as powerful as Wu Zhaohua or Qin Qingyue, they were at least Great Ascension.
But she was only at the Nascent Soul Stage, still a whole Soul Formation Stage away from Great Ascension. The gap was too great, and within this grand Formation, every step was a struggle.
If this kept up, she would die here!
“Senior Sister…”
Qi Yuyong’s weak, dying call of “Senior Sister” was like a bucket of cold water, dousing part of the Dao Fire burning within Wu Zhaohua and filling her face with pain.
She couldn’t watch the junior who grew up with her die, nor could she let Jiang Huai be taken away.
Between experts, a moment decided the outcome. Qin Qingyue had already become a streak of Black Light, fleeing without looking back.
“Ah!!!!” Wu Zhaohua cried out in agony, pointing her sword into the distance. She wanted to hurl threats at Qin Qingyue but held back.
She feared that her harsh words might cause Qin Qingyue to take out her anger on Jiang Huai.
What if Qin Qingyue treated Jiang Huai badly, made him suffer?
At this thought, Wu Zhaohua suddenly turned back to rescue her junior sister Qi Yuyong, her gaze as cold as death.
Qi Yuyong shrank her slender neck in terror, not daring to say a word.
‘Senior Sister won’t punish me with Closed Cultivation, right?’
‘She shouldn’t, right?’
Jiang Huai lay atop the softest piece of Dragon Scales on Qin Qingyue’s body, watching helplessly as the distance from Wu Zhaohua grew greater and greater. He wanted to speak, but found he couldn’t even make a sound, his heart burning with frustration.
He had always valued freedom, always doing right by himself and others, with a clear conscience.
Even after arriving in this matriarchal world, penniless and starting from nothing, he never once thought of relying on any woman to live an easy, idle life.
He wanted to control his own destiny, to live freely, even if the days were hard—just as before.
But now, even his ability to speak had been stripped away.
After a while, Qin Qingyue sensed there was no danger and released the restraints on Jiang Huai.
She was about to speak when she felt an itch on her back.
Turning her head, she saw Jiang Huai biting down hard on her Dragon Scales.
Such a form of revenge, to Qin Qingyue, was like a cute kitten showing its claws, making her laugh and cry at once.
“Bite gently—don’t break your teeth.”