“Don’t worry, I’m inside the Secret Realm.”
That sinister voice drifted out from the depths of the Secret Realm, carrying with it an indescribable power to bewitch.
Zhu Siyao’s face changed instantly when she heard it.
This uncanny feeling was exactly the same as when she had once encountered an Outworld Heavenly Demon in the Small World.
Without any hesitation, she turned and was about to flee, unwilling to stay even for an instant.
But that demonic voice clung to her like a shadow, slipping seamlessly into her mind:
“What use is it if you leave?”
“Even if you walk away from here, how will you face him again?”
“Or do you really believe, with your meager talent, that you are worthy to stand at his side, and that one day you can ascend to the Immortal Realm with him?”
Every word was like the sharpest needle, piercing straight into the most vulnerable, most secret corners of her heart, infinitely magnifying her deeply buried unwillingness and fear.
That voice seemed able to evoke the darkest desires of human nature, its charm and twisted power endless.
“You… how do you know?!” Zhu Siyao suddenly turned, staring intently at the ever-shifting entrance of the Secret Realm, trying to muster her spiritual energy to resist the soul-corroding demon voice.
Yet her cultivation was still shallow; her mind was violently shaken, and that other self—suppressed by reason—was gradually seizing control.
“I have seen far too many so-called geniuses.”
“Some stand out from the moment they begin cultivating with Jade Nectar and Qi, but in the end, those who can truly carve their way through thorns, ascend to become Saints, and reach Great Ascension are but a handful.”
“You have met many senior experts of lofty realms, but ask yourself: are you truly worthy?”
The voice enticed her relentlessly, like a poisonous serpent flicking its tongue.
Zhu Siyao crouched down in pain, clutching her head tightly, shouting angrily, “Shut up! I don’t need you to tell me! These things… I don’t need you to say it!”
Of course she knew; she had never been worthy, just blessed with a good mother.
And later, her good mother became a concubine of Jiang Huai, which allowed her to become the Master Senior Sister of Jiutian Palace, to meet top experts like Qin Qingyue on the Five Provinces Continent.
The entrance of the Secret Realm flickered with strange light as the voice ruthlessly battered her crumbling will.
“In this world, things never go as you wish.”
“You want to work hard, to transform, to defy fate…”
“But sadly, these efforts are mostly futile.”
“If hard work really worked, why would the path to immortality be littered with so many bones?”
“Your talent… is utterly pitiful.”
These last words were the final straw, completely breaking Zhu Siyao’s mental defenses.
In that instant, her vision twisted and vivid hallucinations surged forth.
Jiang Huai, dressed in brilliant red, sat serenely within a lavish Red Sedan.
On either side, in crimson wedding garb and crowned with dragon horns, stood the peerlessly beautiful Qin Qingyue, her chin lifted with a look of pride.
A little farther off was Su Yingman, also in wedding attire but far less dazzling than Qin Qingyue.
And her mother, Zhuxin, stood quietly beside Su Yingman, watching her from afar.
There was also the Tang Sect Leader, and… Zhu Siyao’s heart suddenly tightened—there was a girl about her own age whose features she couldn’t make out.
That girl had bright red dragon horns on her head, a graceful red tail swaying elegantly behind her, exuding a noble, radiant aura and a curvaceous, enchanting figure—natural-born talent shining from her entire being.
She was the woman from the Red Dragon Clan, Jiang Huai’s newly-wedded wife.
The existence of this girl was like a poisoned dagger, stabbing deep into Zhu Siyao’s heart, wounding all her pride and the last threads of hope.
Everything she longed for—cultivation, status, the right to stand at Jiang Huai’s side—this girl, of the same generation, had effortlessly seized them all.
Sometimes, the deepest blow does not come from a distant immortal like Qin Qingyue, but from a peer who possesses all you ever dreamed of, including Jiang Huai’s attention.
In the illusion, Zhuxin looked at her, her gaze complex and unreadable—was it disappointment, or reluctance? In that moment, the resemblance between mother and daughter felt especially mocking.
“From now on, the Nine Heavens Palace will be yours to manage.” “You must take good care of it.”
“Mother! Jiang Huai! Don’t leave me! Don’t!” Zhu Siyao wailed, her voice hoarse within the illusion.
“I don’t want to be left here alone, waiting! I don’t want it! I don’t want it!”
But no matter how she cried and pleaded, the illusion played on mercilessly.
The Red Sedan bearing Jiang Huai, surrounded by many women, rose slowly into the sky, flying toward the distant Heavenly Realm, leaving her behind.
“Mother, don’t…” Zhu Siyao stared blankly at this scene of despair, tears pouring down like a breached dam.
“Jiang Huai, don’t leave me…”
“Didn’t you say… we’d live and die together…?”
From then on, only endless clouds would accompany her, endless empty years, abandoned forever in this Nine Heavens Palace until nothing remained but bones.
“Hmph, if not for that Yin-Yang Body interfering back then, even the Black Dragon would have fallen to me.”
The voice from deep within the Secret Realm muttered resentfully.
It recalled the days when even Qin Qingyue had nearly been ensnared by it—let alone this mere Golden Core Cultivator before it now.
“Hopefully, this time I can use this girl to kill that Yin-Yang Body. If not, then I’ll have to activate the Grand Array I’ve spent years setting up.”
Sensing Zhu Siyao teetering on the edge of emotional collapse, it instantly switched to a temptingly gentle tone:
“Come, come here.”
“Come here, and I will grant you everything you desire.”
At last, Zhu Siyao could no longer hold on.
With a “thud,” she fell to her knees, sword planted before her as support, her body trembling and tears streaming from her beautiful eyes like broken pearls.
“I don’t want to be left behind. I don’t want to die alone here.”
“I want to go to the Immortal Realm, too. I’m willing to work hard, I’m willing to pay any price.”
“What have I done wrong? I just want to stay by their side, that’s all…”
“I’m willing to pay any price.” She gazed at the sword before her, murmuring to herself.
Yet her talent whispered to her: your price is worthless.
“You are not wrong.” The voice echoed at just the right moment, full of persuasive allure.
“But that is humanity. Divided into ranks, by status and birth.”
“Some are born high above, innately superior to others. Some are born insignificant, fated to vanish into dust, unnoticed, their whole lives.”
“This is not your fault—it’s the original sin of humanity, of all living things.”
“Come to me, and I shall grant you supreme power.”
“Come join me, and let us make this world more equal.”
That tempting whisper echoed through the empty valley, like the devil’s contract awaiting a lost soul’s response.
Kneeling on the icy ground, Zhu Siyao’s grip on her sword turned white from the effort, her inner defenses crumbling with every bewitching word.
Within the Red Dragon residence, candlelight flickered, casting a hazy warmth over the room.
Jiang Huai’s muffled groans resounded intermittently through the chamber, his body swaying slightly beneath the voluptuous figure pressing him down.
Chi Lian’s hands gripped his neck tightly, her strength perfectly balanced between pain and pleasure.
Behind her, the soft crack of a dragon tail striking brought waves of burning pain—yet oddly, it mingled with the surging desire within him.
Jiang Huai managed to lift his gaze, his vision blurred by sweat, to see that Chi Lian had shed all her usual shyness.
Her crimson dragon eyes gleamed with excitement, her gentle features now tinged with a hint of wild, seductive beauty.
Her full lips parted with rapid breaths.
Her waist swayed with power, as if a long-suppressed nature had finally burst forth.
Her black hair tumbled like a waterfall with every movement, the tips brushing Jiang Huai’s chest, sending tremors through him.
So this is the nature of the dragon race…
He thought this in fragments, all the while carefully guiding Innate Primordial Qi and the Chaos Dao Platform into Chi Lian’s body.
Who knew how long had passed before Chi Lian finally calmed from that wild state.
She panted heavily, still immersed in intense satisfaction, her fair skin tinged with a faint pink glow, like the first bloom of peach blossoms.
Beneath her, Jiang Huai, having deliberately lowered his guard, was covered in light red marks on his back, his inky hair loose on the brocade pillow—a picture of one thoroughly bullied.
Candlelight cast shifting shadows on the sharp lines of his back, adding a fragile beauty to the scene.
“Husband…” Chi Lian reached out to gently stroke the marks on his back.
Her voice mixed excitement and tenderness, a trace of guilt flickering in her eyes—quickly replaced by contentment.
“No harm done. I’ll recover soon.” Jiang Huai propped himself up, inwardly marveling at the ferocity of the dragon clan’s passions.
He looked at the still-breathless Chi Lian, gently reminding her, “While it’s fresh, quickly refine the energy you just received.”
“Alright.” Chi Lian obediently sat cross-legged and began circulating her Gongfa.
With eyes closed and mind focused, her delicate face regained its usual gentleness, as if her wild side moments before was only a dream.
The next morning, when Jiang Huai returned to Qin Qingyue, the palace hall was a different scene.
Qin Qingyue and Su Yingman were seated together on a purple sandalwood-carved couch, speaking in low voices.
She wore a black palace gown, golden thread embroidering intricate dragon patterns on the collar, lending an even greater air of majesty to her already coldly beautiful face.
Seeing Jiang Huai enter, Qin Qingyue said indifferently, “Well? Was she especially shy and gentle?”
Her tone was calm, but if one looked closely, turbulent undercurrents flickered in her crimson dragon eyes.
Jiang Huai paused, last night’s events flashing through his mind—where was the shyness or gentleness? It was clearly a shy outward appearance masking a sadistic nature unique to the Red Dragon.
But he answered aloud, “She really is quite shy.”
Qin Qingyue’s expression darkened instantly.
She gently patted Su Yingman’s hand, the force of her fingers betraying her displeasure.
Su Yingman sighed in understanding, giving Jiang Huai a look of ‘good luck’ mixed with a little schadenfreude, then left quickly, the hem of her skirt brushing the floor and carrying a whiff of fragrance.
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Huai asked in confusion, an ominous feeling rising within.
He noticed Qin Qingyue’s dragon tail was twitching restlessly behind her.
“Gripping your neck counts as gentle? Getting whipped with a dragon tail counts as gentle?” Qin Qingyue sneered, her tone laced with self-mockery.
“I’ve never treated you like that.” She stood, her black palace gown outlining her graceful curves as she approached step by step.
Jiang Huai tensed up, forcing a weak smile. “Were you spying on us?”
[This is bad, really bad now.]
“You are mine. Why shouldn’t I look?” Qin Qingyue stood before him, her crimson dragon eyes narrowing.
“Come, let me ‘gently’ treat you as well, how about it?” She stepped closer, her fingers brushing lightly over Jiang Huai’s neck, her dragon tail subconsciously sweeping across the floor.