Chapter 219

Chapter 219

"Of course, it is necessary," Su Yi replied with a smile, even though her situation was already quite dire.

Even at this moment, Su Yi's attitude remained unchanged. One might look for signs of her putting on a brave face, but none could be found.

"Even if defying the heavens means your certain doom? You were destined to perish under the thunder tribulation (a catastrophic event in cultivation lore), but you gained a chance to come here. What more could you possibly desire? You can no longer return. Once cast out, only annihilation awaits you. Even so, you still wish to continue?"

The Heavenly Dao, which had initially held the upper hand, saw that Su Yi still refused to yield despite her dire situation. Apart from feeling offended, it also wanted to suppress her.

She had not been annihilated by the thunder tribulation but had instead come here to survive in another form.

It was only through His will that she had this opportunity, yet Su Yi still did not cherish or show gratitude. Now, she was even willing to risk her life, daring to challenge Him.

Did she truly think He wouldn’t cast her out, bound by the laws?

"Even if the mark of the Beast Lord (a powerful symbol of authority) grants you some power to oppose Me, I am still the ruler of this realm. Without a physical form, your soul alone is nothing but futile defiance."

This was why the Heavenly Dao had always sought to brand Su Yi with the mark of 'Destiny.' Such caution wasn’t just due to a past anomaly.

The mark of the Beast Lord, even after crossing into another world, was still recognized by the cosmic laws of another realm.

The mark of the Beast Lord, acknowledged by the cosmic laws of another great world, could not be denied even by the laws of this world.

If she willed it, she could draw power from all living beings, and this was something the Heavenly Dao could not prevent!

Even now, she was wielding His own power against Him, even though He was the sole ruler of this realm.

The Heavenly Dao had contemplated stripping her mark when she was most vulnerable, thus solving the most troublesome problem, but it had ultimately failed and could only work on other aspects.

As the Heavenly Dao, He could enforce the fates of this world’s inhabitants, forcing some to follow the destiny He had ordained, drawing power from them to solidify His control over the world.

But if anyone dared to defy these bonds and resist their fate, it would pose a threat to His control.

As long as others were still bound by destiny, they would follow the path set by the Heavenly Dao.

Just like Niu Gu Lu Min Yi, fated to perish in childbirth.

And this was the fate the Heavenly Dao had chosen for the outsider, Su Yi.

Su Yi could no longer remain herself; she had to fully become Niu Gu Lu Min Yi.

Only by fully embodying Niu Gu Lu Min Yi could that body truly awaken.

And that body had not yet awakened.

Su Yi had always eluded control, which made the Heavenly Dao's patience grow increasingly thin. The longer this persisted, the more it undermined His authority.

As a mere pawn, she had stubbornly refused to take her assigned role, and even her disobedience could affect the entire game. How could this not make the Heavenly Dao anxious?

Originally, to restrain Su Yi and later use the laws to expel her, He had not acknowledged her identity. This also hindered His ability to bind her to follow the set destiny.

Thus, the Heavenly Dao sought to manipulate those bound by fate, those He could control, to push forward the situation He desired, in order to shake Su Yi.

"Without the heart to defy the heavens, how could I dare to be so presumptuous before You?"

Su Yi spoke with a gentle tone, using respectful language, but in the face of the Heavenly Dao's veiled threats, she showed no signs of backing down.

She even thought He might be out of His mind. He already knew where she came from, so why was He still saying such foolish things?

It's as if defying the Heavenly Dao is some kind of heinous, heaven-defying act.

Isn't this what everyone in the cultivation world does?

Seeking eternal life through cultivation is inherently a struggle against the Heavenly Dao, competing for the spiritual energy of all things, and harnessing the spiritual power of heaven and earth. If you fear death, then cultivation isn't for you.

Without a heart willing to defy the Heavenly Dao, even if you don't perish under the Thunder Tribulation, you will eventually be trapped by your own mental state, unable to progress, enduring the torment of your spiritual energy gradually depleting, powerless to stop it.

The closer you get to ascension, the more you come to understand certain truths. The Mahayana stage is just one step away from ascension to immortality. Although Su Yi has only recently entered the Mahayana realm, she is already able to grasp some of these truths.

Even if she managed to survive and come here, she wouldn't allow herself to fall into a trap.

Su Yi's stubborn determination, as if she would rather exhaust her soul energy than stop, even the Heavenly Dao, which is supposed to be devoid of emotions, couldn't help but feel a feeling of disgust.

At this point, even if she were to stay, she wouldn't obediently comply, and a decision was reached.

In the sky, purple lightning converged, carrying a fearsome aura, and struck towards Su Yi.

The countless sword shadows transformed into a giant sword, which swept across and collided with the terrifying heavenly thunder, generating a massive energy shockwave that impacted the boundary between heaven and earth.

It almost caused the boundary to collapse, and even though it didn't, it caused an unusual tremor.

The giant sword at the center of the thunder zone began to dissolve from the tip.

Su Yi's once-solidified soul body became semi-transparent again, and her figure appeared even more translucent, as if she were about to vanish along with the giant sword.

In the rain, a drenched figure in bright yellow robes hurried along, almost breaking into a run.

Boots splashed through the puddles, and the wet hem of the robe clung to his legs, dripping water continuously, but it didn't slow him down at all, leaving the others far behind.

In such conditions, the oil-paper umbrella couldn't offer full protection, and with the owner's movements, it seemed increasingly fragile and easily torn in the wind and rain, like a mere prop, almost abandoned by the owner.

The person attempting to persuade him to stop was left behind, jogging to catch up, their voice filled with panic and urgency, "Your Majesty, please slow down!" But the voice was quickly drowned out by the thunder.

Liang Jiugong couldn't even manage to hold the umbrella while trying to keep up, as it was already a struggle to catch up.

Just moments ago, His Majesty had already arrived at Consort Yi's palace, but he stopped at the palace gate, ordered the palace servants to escort Consort Yi back, and then turned and left.

It happened so quickly that no one had time to react before His Majesty had already walked a considerable distance.

Consort Yi, who had just breathed a sigh of relief thinking they had finally arrived, hadn't even had time to feel joy before she saw the Emperor calmly order the palace servants to escort her back and then turn and leave.

Just like when they arrived, the Emperor had always walked ahead without looking back, showing no intention of walking side by side with anyone.

Even if Consort Yi wanted to follow, she could only fall behind and be escorted back by the palace servants.

Consort Yi had thought that with the rain, it would be inconvenient to talk on the way, but once they returned to the palace, things would be better. There would be time to change, bathe, and stay the night.

But now, just as they were about to arrive, he insisted on leaving.

Consort Yi, with some unknown burst of strength, shook off the palace servants supporting her and tried to chase after him, her voice almost shouting, "Your Majesty, where are you going in this rain!"

But this time, the departing figure didn't pause or respond, whether he heard her or not.

Consort Yi chased a few steps, but she was already exhausted from the hurried walk, drenched from the rain, and wearing wet clothes that had been blown by the wind the entire way. Her nerves had been on edge, and after a brief moment of relaxation, they tensed up again.

Now, with Kangxi's sudden departure, she was overwhelmed with anxiety and anger, her head spinning.

She shouted with great effort, but there was no response. Under the various stimuli, her body staggered a couple of times, and she was about to collapse.

"My Lady! My Lady!" A chorus of urgent cries followed immediately, as Consort Yi, who was about to collapse, was promptly supported by the servants who had caught up, preventing her from collapsing to the ground.

The waiting servants from Consort Yi's palace now noticed something wrong and quickly gathered around.

The bright yellow figure visible moments ago had now vanished.

Although Consort Yi did not faint, it seemed as if she had exhausted all her strength, lying limp in the servants' arms, her eyes stubbornly fixed on the direction the Emperor had gone, hoping to see his figure reappear the next moment.

But eventually, the worried servants, fearing their mistress would catch a chill from the rain, quickly helped her back, not daring to let her linger outside any longer.

Fortunately, this time Consort Yi did not struggle violently to chase after him again but seemed dazed as the servants helped her back.

When Liang Jiugong urgently pounded on the gate of Yonghe Palace, the servant who answered the door almost didn't recognize him, as Liang Jiugong looked nothing like his usual composed and capable self.

He was even more startled by the Emperor, who looked unusually disheveled, arriving after the gates were supposed to be closed, and in the middle of a sudden, violent storm.

The servants had already lost hope that the Emperor would come at this hour.

After all, it was no time to linger outside, not to mention the slippery, rain-soaked ground, and the nearly constant lightning in the sky made it feel like a strike could come at any moment. Even the servants who usually weren't afraid of thunderstorms couldn't help feeling a sense of dread.

Yet, it was at such a time that the Emperor arrived at Yonghe Palace in the rain, without a carriage, as if he had hurried through the pouring rain, his entire body drenched as if he had been pulled from the water.

Before the servants could bow, Kangxi had already tossed aside the useless umbrella and strode past them.

On the still somewhat dry ground, wet footprints remained, accompanied by the sound of water dripping from his robes.

Without changing his clothes, he quickly reached the bedchamber door, still dripping wet.

Kangxi paused at the door, as if trying to calm the irritation that had plagued him since the thunderstorm started, and without waiting for Liang Jiugong, he pushed the door open and entered.

Just as he rounded the screen, Kangxi's figure froze at the sight before him, his gaze falling on the person lying on the side as if lifeless, his eyes filled with shock and doubt. Then, with the sound of footsteps, Kangxi seemed to snap back to reality and coldly ordered, "Retreat."

The overlapping footsteps stopped abruptly, followed by the soft sound of the door closing.

"Consort?" The seemingly steady voice could not hide a trace of panic within.

Soaked through, with clothes still dripping water, Kangxi had not even bothered to change into dry clothes. He almost rushed forward in three steps to lift the motionless person lying on the side into his arms, even the action of shaking her was gentle.

But such movements did not wake her; her head tilted weakly to one side, showing no reaction, clearly not just asleep as the maid had said, but more like lifeless. She lay quietly with her eyes closed, showing no response.

Kangxi even couldn't help but raise his hand to check her breathing.

The faint breath was almost imperceptible, as if it might cease at any moment, yet detecting her breath did not seem to relax Kangxi, his expression still tense and serious.

Something was wrong.

Looking at the obviously abnormal, pale, unconscious person, Kangxi, who should have immediately called for a royal physician, did not order anyone to summon a doctor.

Nor did he, upon seeing the clearly abnormal scene upon entering, immediately have the servants come in to light the lamps and check if she had fainted; his first reaction was to scold the servants to retreat, not allowing anyone to enter.

Before even coming over to understand the situation, his first reaction was to prevent others from entering and noticing something amiss.

Under Kangxi's gaze, the long eyelashes of the person in his arms fluttered slightly, as if about to wake up, but before Kangxi could breathe a sigh of relief, his gaze fixed on her.

The person in his arms slowly opened her eyes, but her gaze was scattered, dull, and lifeless, as if her soul had left her, reflecting Kangxi's face in her eyes, but without any spark.

The soaked clothes on Kangxi had already dampened the dry clothes of the person he was holding, but the usually fussy person would have started complaining by now, not remaining so quiet.

Kangxi waved his hand in front of her eyes, and the person in his arms did react, her gaze moving slowly, but it looked so dull, like a soulless shell, yet with a faint breath.

"Consort?" Kangxi called out softly once more.

Hearing the voice, those vacant eyes turned towards the sound, responding sluggishly, "...Hmm." But there was still no spark of vitality in her eyes.

She was still breathing, still responding, but anyone could see that something was very wrong with her.

Kangxi held her hand, his fingers caressing the back of her hand. The skin under his fingertips remained smooth and soft, yet it was icy cold.

The hand that Kangxi held was slowly gripping back, as if responding instinctively.

"...What's wrong with you?"

As Kangxi's breath brushed past her ear, even without any spark in her eyes, her body shivered unconsciously, and a hint of pink appeared behind her ear. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, only faint, incoherent whimpers escaped her throat.

She leaned against Kangxi's chest, unresisting, like a fragile, lifeless jade doll.

Kangxi seemed to be restraining some emotion, his face expressionless. In the dim light, he appeared somewhat shadowy, his gaze cold and calm, his expression inscrutable.

After a moment, he let go of the person in his arms and stood up. Without support, her body slumped down again, only capable of basic, instinctive responses, like closing her eyes when lying down.

The person who fell back slowly closed her eyes, lying there motionless, as if devoid of life, just as Kangxi had seen when he arrived.