“No, there’s no need, Father Emperor, you don’t have to look for it…”
Ling Muxue let out a broken whimper, her whole body as if all strength had been drained away.
Slowly, painfully, she sank to her knees.
Large teardrops broke free from the confines of her eyes, falling one after another onto the cold bluestone floor, splashing into tiny blossoms of despair.
This brief moment, to her, was no less than enduring a long and savage punishment.
Regret stabbed into her like countless red-hot needles, piercing her flesh and fiercely grinding into her heart over and over again.
She was filled with regret.
Endless, boundless remorse completely engulfed her.
All for that Mufeng, she had actually stolen with her own hands the only Nirvana Elixir that could save Sun Nian’s life.
If not for this, how could Sun Nian have fallen into a hopeless situation where she could only wait for death?
That divine medicine, meant to save her dearest kin, had actually been handed over by her to that person—someone who had only ever lent her a single helping hand.
That kindness, there had been countless chances to repay it.
But why… why did it have to be now?
Why did she have to use Sun Nian’s life as payment?
If, if the Nirvana Elixir were still here, she wouldn’t be so powerless, watching as Sun Nian suffered and waited for death.
Ling Muxue clutched her hair with both hands, her nails almost digging into her scalp.
Sun Nian’s voice and smiling face surged into her mind like a tide— the one who had accompanied her as she grew up, who had cared for and spoiled her more than even her birth mother, who had taught her, tolerated all her willfulness, and showered her with love… that elder whom she regarded as her true mother.
Now, when she should have given everything to save her, the only hope of survival had been foolishly destroyed by her own hand.
The immense, unbearable pain and self-reproach made her curl up on the ground, tear-streaked cheeks crossed with muddy trails like a dirt road washed by a torrential rain.
She hugged herself tightly, her body shaking uncontrollably, as if she wished she could shrink into a corner where she could escape reality, unwilling and unable to face the cruel ending she herself had created.
Ling Ze looked at his daughter’s lost, kneeling and weeping form, and in the end, a trace of compassion flitted through his heart.
Lu Qiancha’s scheme was meticulous and relentless, calculating every aspect of human nature; its precision and ruthlessness even gave him, the Emperor, a chill.
But on his face, he still maintained just the right amount of confusion and concern: “Muxue, what’s wrong? Don’t frighten Us!”
“Father Emperor…” Ling Muxue raised her head, tears mingling with despair as they flowed down. Her voice was choked and broken.
“That bottle of Nirvana Elixir… actually… it was I who took it… You don’t have to look for it any longer…”
At first, she had done all she could to cover up her mistake.
Before she was caught in the act, and when no one noticed the elixir had been stolen, Ling Muxue had even felt a secret delight.
But now, only endless shame and the crushing weight of guilt remained.
This heavy debt to Sun Nian was like the sharpest blade, mercilessly shattering all her excuses for Mufeng, exposing the absurdity and selfishness at her core.
“You took the Nirvana Elixir?!”
Ling Ze’s voice abruptly rose, filled with shock and deliberately heightened anger, his brows knitting as sharp as blades.
“Such a precious thing, crucial to the foundation of the nation, and you dare take it without permission?”
“No, this isn’t just taking—it’s stealing! Muxue, how could you be so muddle-headed, to commit such a grave act of treason?!”
He rebuked her sternly, then seemed to forcibly suppress his rage, taking a deep breath, his tone softening with a hint of leniency.
“Enough. Since it’s come to this, if you still have the medicine, go quickly and save Sun Nian. As for your crime… after you save her, We will decide your punishment!”
“Father Emperor…” Ling Muxue’s body trembled violently. She bowed her head low, almost burying her face in the cold stone slabs.
Her voice was weak, but clear as a final verdict. “The Nirvana Elixir… I’ve already… given it to Mufeng.”
At these words, she was nothing like the bold and self-assured Ling Muxue of before.
Then, she would shout, “I saved someone, it’s you all who are wrong!”
Now, only thick, suffocating regret remained; every word was steeped in bitter pain.
“What did you say?!”
Ling Ze suddenly took a step back, his face instantly overtaken by disbelief and horror.
His voice trembled slightly with shock. “You gave the Nirvana Elixir… to… Mufeng?! That demon?!”
“Father Emperor! I’ll go find Mufeng right away!”
Ling Muxue grasped at her last fragile hope, struggling to her feet in a stagger, her voice hurried as she tried to explain, “He definitely hasn’t taken it yet! I’ll get it back! I definitely will…”
She tried to comfort her nearly shattered heart with these words.
As if fate wished to mock her cruelly, just as she finished speaking—
“Report—!!!” A shrill, urgent voice rang out, tearing through the heavy air of the treasury.
Ling Ze’s brows shot up and he strode quickly out of the treasury.
He saw a messenger, dust-covered and travel-worn, kneeling on one knee, his voice trembling with panic.
“Your Majesty, urgent report from the palace dungeon! The traitor Mufeng has attacked the jailers, killed four, seriously injured several others, and has already broken out and escaped!”
This message, like the toll of a funeral bell, rang clear in the ears of Ling Muxue, who had followed him out.
“Uh…” The legs she’d just tried to stand up with instantly lost all strength, as if struck by an invisible hammer, and she collapsed heavily back to her knees, her eyes going utterly vacant, as if her soul had been sucked away.
Mufeng could break out and kill… this could mean only one thing—he had already taken the Nirvana Elixir and undergone a complete transformation.
That last bottle, that final sliver of hope, was extinguished for good, vanishing into endless darkness and despair.
“That wretch!!” Ling Ze erupted with a terrifying aura, roaring furiously at the guards outside, his voice echoing through the treasury.
“Seal off the royal city at once, hunt him down for Us! Dig up every inch of ground if you must, bring that scourge back to Us, dead or alive!”
The guards replied in unison, murderous intent surging as they received the command and hurried away.
In truth, Mufeng had already escaped from the dungeon at dawn, with someone arranged to follow him—this entire scene was just an act Ling Ze staged for Ling Muxue.
When the guards hurried off, Ling Ze suddenly turned, his gaze as sharp as a tempered blade, stabbing fiercely at the collapsed Ling Muxue. “Unfilial daughter—!!”
That rebuke, filled with both thunderous rage and boundless disappointment, was the last straw that finally broke Ling Muxue’s already taut nerves.
The mountain of grief, regret, and despair inside her instantly crashed through the dam of reason.
Her eyes rolled back, her body went limp and fell backward, and she completely lost consciousness.
The moment Ling Muxue fainted, Ling Ze’s stormy expression faded swiftly, replaced once again by his usual calm and depth.
He waved his hand carelessly, his voice as even as ever. “Take the Princess down to rest. Watch over her carefully.”
The palace attendants immediately stepped forward, gingerly lifting the unconscious Ling Muxue and hurried away.
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