Qushui Liushang, Weiyang.
Liuguang under the Moon, Lingering Melody Around the Beams.
The morning light was hard to discern.
Anna’s apricot lips let out a low moan, her chest heaving.
Yunshu lifted his weary head, strands of golden silk dancing.
A faint glow filtered through the glazed window, casting its light onto Luoye’s profile, as if the hand of a deity had bestowed holy radiance.
His expression was pure and spotless, his eyes calm, as clear as a lake, without a trace of desire.
Even though the porcelain-white girl was still sitting atop him, her spring beauty laid bare, he felt nothing—not even when looking up at those snowy, sacred peaks.
Heh, women.
Lust is emptiness, emptiness is lust.
Women—merely stumbling blocks on his path to strength.
He didn’t need them.
He disdained them.
He saw through the red dust of the mortal world.
At this moment, even if a hundred women of unmatched beauty stood before him, displaying their most primal and perfect forms, flirting with their eyes, he would feel nothing.
It absolutely wasn’t because of Sage Time!
On top of him, Anna was also panting softly.
Her jade fingertips brushed aside a strand of hair by her cheek, tucking it behind her ear, revealing a translucent, rosy earlobe.
The blush on her face had yet to fade.
Taking advantage of her exhaustion, Luoye pondered the current situation while preparing the questions he intended to ask Anna soon.
It was obvious that the relationship between Elysia and Anna, master and servant, was not normal.
Or rather, while Elysia was still alive, it had been normal.
But the bodyguard’s feelings for her—though always suppressed—could not be contained after Elysia’s death.
All that pent-up emotion was released, and it was directed toward him, the Princess’s Widower.
Still, it wasn’t all bad news.
At least Luoye understood that, when it came to preserving the Princess’s reputation, he and Anna were on the same side.
Now that things had come to this, they were birds of a feather.
Though Anna was rather partial to women and Xianren, she was also the only one in this world he could draw to his side.
With his status as the Princess’s Widower, it wouldn’t be hard to win over this Princess’s Bodyguard.
He just needed to show utter devotion to the Princess before her.
Just some flattery—Luoye thought to himself—it’s not that hard.
Luoye forced out crocodile tears, gazing at Anna with deep sorrow, his tone full of feeling: “Anna, if doing this helps ease your heart, then there’s nothing wrong with it.”
“But, if Elysia were still here, she wouldn’t want us to sink into despair like this. You wouldn’t want her Heavenly Spirit to grieve, would you?”
“There are so many shameless people coveting Elysia, slandering her, unwilling to openly profit off her name. We should join forces and root out the villain who conspired against her.”
“Let us become Elysia’s strength together, clear her name, all right?”
Luoye reached out his hand, pausing beside Anna’s cheek as if to stroke her gently.
He knew all too well that children starved of love would crave new warmth in their emptiness.
He looked up at Anna, who seemed both satisfied and hollow, and thought, Got you now, haven’t I?
Can I win her over?
I can!
Hearing Luoye’s words, Anna snapped out of her lingering afterglow and looked down at him.
Huh?
Coveting the Princess, slandering the Princess, finding the culprit who harmed the Princess…
Becoming Her Highness’s strength?
“……”
Don’t be ridiculous!
Someone like you, who barged into the Princess’s room, rifled through her letters, and cut off every habit and memento of hers right after her coffin was buried—how dare you talk about becoming her strength!
And don’t say such sanctimonious, wheedling things!
You’re the one who needs the Princess most! But just look at what you’ve done so far?!
Ah, no.
No, no.
Anna hurriedly suppressed her thoughts.
She almost blurted out those golden words the Princess had once said—such beautiful sayings must never be shared with a disrespectful ant like him.
Even after having taken his body and done things she’d never dared do with the Princess, Anna had never felt happy to share a room with him.
A usurper like this—she would carry out the Princess’s justice herself.
As for how to administer the final punishment… yes, that way would do.
If the Princess knew that her favorite toy—one she hadn’t even had the heart to use—had been broken by Anna herself, what would she feel?
Just imagining it made Anna’s whole body heat up, her heart racing.
She reached out, her slender hand searching for that warmth.
“……”
Eh?
It was no longer as it was before.
Only six hours had passed, and he was already spent?
Anna felt deeply betrayed.
“How is this possible? How could the Princess ever marry a man who can’t keep going!!”
“If you couldn’t do it, you shouldn’t have stolen the Princess from me in the first place!!!”
Anna grabbed Luoye’s throat, lifting him up by sheer force.
Her violet eyes, bright as stars, were now filled with twisted, crazed anger.
She couldn’t hold back.
Luoye: ???
Huh?
Luoye, deep in Sage Time, was full of question marks.
Are you serious, woman? You’re truly a Xianren!
Do you even understand the limits of the human body?
I’d love to be that strong, but people have limits!
Even a stud horse needs rest, okay?
But he couldn’t even argue back now, and even if he could, Anna probably wouldn’t listen.
In her heart, Elysia was perfect, and by extension, everything around her had to be perfect too.
“No need, no need, no need…”
“Broken is fine, broken is fine, broken is fine…”
Anna muttered, her eyes growing vacant—yet suddenly, as if recalling something, color returned, but with a strange new light.
She extended her slender jade hand, fingers sharpening into a blade, and thrust them at Luoye’s chest, as if a little force could pierce right through.
“Say, Lord Luoye, if you died here, Her Highness wouldn’t be angry, right? She’d probably thank me for sending you to reunite with her, wouldn’t she?” Anna propped her chin with one hand, smiling dreamily. “Ahhh, what a wonderful thought. Lord Luoye, please offer your final radiance to Her Highness!”
Luoye: ???
Does that sound like something a human would say?
Elysia, did you know your bodyguard was this deranged?
How did you tolerate her at your side for so long?
Right now, Luoye didn’t dare bet that the magic in his predecessor’s memories could instantly subdue Anna.
Her hand was simply too close to his heart.
If she struck out in her death throes, with her body’s physical strength, just one moment would be enough to pierce his chest.
Suppressing his final hope, Luoye shouted, “Wait! Don’t kill me yet. Elysia was murdered—don’t you want to know who did it?”
“Murdered?”
Suddenly, Anna’s grip weakened, though her fingertips still pressed against him.
At least the feeling of impending death faded.
She tilted her head, confusion and puzzlement in her eyes as she looked at him.
“You mean… you know who killed Her Highness?”
Luoye saw his words had worked and was inwardly delighted.
He suppressed his joy and replied seriously, “I’ve already got some clues. Just give me a little more time to gather more evidence, and I’ll be able to draw a conclusion. Then we can avenge Elysia together.”
It was a lie.
Luoye hadn’t found any clues at all.
He only guessed from Elysia’s letters that she couldn’t have died from illness, and almost certainly not from suicide.
But as for the culprit behind the scenes, he had no idea.
Still, only by claiming to have clues could he demonstrate his value.
He didn’t say outright that he knew the murderer, so as not to be killed once he’d outlived his usefulness.
He was gambling—gambling that this crazy woman, Anna, would be swayed.
Sure enough, Anna released his throat.
Luoye felt a surge of relief, just about to take a deep breath—when suddenly, a searing pain shot through his chest!
In disbelief, Luoye looked down at the sword impaling him.
Then, struggling, he looked up at Anna, who smiled with bewitching eyes.
“Why?”
“Oh dear, did I dirty Her Highness’s bedroom? How troublesome. There are still so many places in her room I haven’t used or experienced.”
Anna’s eyes were full of feeling.
After a moment’s sigh, she finally answered Luoye’s question. “Lord Luoye, did you think I didn’t notice?”
“Then why kill me? We could have worked together…”
Luoye stared at Anna, wiping the sweat from his brow.
Blood trickled from his lips, and his vision was already blurring.
“Work together?” Anna tilted her head, then smiled sweetly, but her tone was icy cold. “Sorry, Lord Luoye. In my eyes, you’re also a suspect in Her Highness’s murder. So I’ll handle the investigation alone.”
“You…”
Just as Luoye tried to speak, Anna drew the sword from his chest.
He clutched at his chest, but it was a hopeless struggle.
His body grew colder by the second.
He couldn’t believe it—he’d only just transmigrated, and now he was already going to die?
Even cannon fodder didn’t die this quickly, right?
“Oh dear, Lord Luoye, don’t look so resentful. Didn’t you say you loved Her Highness most? I’m just sending you to reunite with her.”
Anna caressed her belly, and for a moment, her expression softened with tender affection. “Besides, Lord Luoye, I’m also giving you the chance to leave behind a child for Her Highness. So rest easy. If there really is a child, all they need to know is that their mother is Her Highness. As for their father…”
Anna’s cherry lips parted, then curled into a sly smile.
“I’ll praise you as a Sage, as someone truly great. I’ll make sure the child grows up proud.”
What the hell?!
Luoye wanted to protest that, after killing him, this could hardly count as reuniting with Elysia.
But when he heard the last part, his mind went blank.
He’d slept with Anna—so how could it be Elysia’s child?
What kind of biological relationship was that supposed to be?
Luoye had so many questions, but blood loss made his head grow heavy, his eyelids drooping—he could barely keep them open.
Leaning against the wall, he gasped for breath, but his strength faded far faster than he’d imagined.
[Sleep now]
Just as he was about to close his eyes completely, he seemed to glimpse Anna’s faint, ambiguous smile, and heard a voice—one not belonging to any human, echoing directly in his mind.
Suddenly, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.