The mad princess forces love upon him, and the aloof imperial advisor trembles every night.

That's too late!

If the heavenly lightning strikes, not only will he be severely injured, but Chu Qingyue will also be affected. Their mortal bodies will be reduced to ashes in an instant!

A resolute glint flashed in Si Chen's eyes.

He silently recited the forbidden incantation, sacrificing a century of cultivation to forcibly break the seal on the golden chain!

With each incantation he uttered, he could clearly feel countless cracks appearing in his four-hundred-year-old Dao foundation, with spiritual energy leaking out wildly from the cracks like shattered porcelain.

The pain wasn't physical, but a trembling sensation as if his soul were being torn apart—but he couldn't care less.

The moment the chains shattered, a backlash of spiritual energy surged forth like a tidal wave. He groaned and spat out another mouthful of blood, which splattered onto Chu Qingyue's snow-white shoulder, the red and white intertwining to form a shocking pattern.

Chu Qingyue was shocked to see him vomit blood.

She knew the price of breaking through the golden chain—at best, it would cost her a hundred years of cultivation; at worst, it would severely damage her foundation and could even destroy her cultivation entirely!

"You—" Before she could finish speaking, Si Chen used his remaining spiritual power to snatch the wedding dress that she had torn to shreds with her own hands.

The red silk quickly reformed and stitched itself in the air, restoring itself to its original state in the blink of an eye, and wrapped around his tall and slender body.

The movement was so fast that it left only a crimson afterimage in the candlelight.

She grabbed her outer robe from the ground and wrapped it around her body as quickly as possible, her voice trembling with fear and anger:

"Si Chen! You'd rather sacrifice a century of cultivation and risk the collapse of your Dao foundation... than take me... is that it?!"

Si Chen stood in the center of the secret room with his back to her.

Her wedding dress was as red as blood, and her silver hair was as white as snow.

Outside the window, the thunder grew closer, and purple lightning had pierced through the clouds, illuminating the night sky with an eerie bright purple hue.

He could feel that the heavenly tribulation had locked onto him and was gathering its last strength, getting closer with every breath.

"I have cultivated the Path of Ruthlessness for four hundred years," he said, his voice icy and devoid of any warmth, as if the person who had just been trembling and groaning beneath her was not him at all.

"I have witnessed countless entanglements of love and hate in the world, and I have seen dynasties rise and fall and the land crumble."

He paused for a moment, the candlelight flickering in his eyes, yet unable to illuminate the depths of his gaze.

"To me, Your Highness is no different from the wind, frost, rain, snow, mountains, and grass in this world. They are all fleeting clouds and do not enter my heart."

Every word was like an icicle, precisely piercing Chu Qingyue's heart.

Chu Qingyue picked up the broken gold chain from the ground—the chain had lost its spiritual power and become ordinary iron.

With a flick of her wrist, the chain coiled around his wrist like a serpent, the cool metallic touch against his warm pulse.

"We've already gone through the wedding ceremony," she said, each word seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth, laced with blood and hatred.

"Heaven and earth bear witness, the sun and moon are my witness. This chain may be broken, but the marriage contract remains. Si Chen, you are not allowed to leave."

Si Chen looked down at the gold chain wrapped around his wrist.

The chain was already broken; it was only loosely wrapped around the object and could be easily broken free with a struggle.

Just like the pitiful, fragile connection between them—it began with a meticulously planned act of plunder and ended with an inviolable law of nature.

It will break completely with the slightest touch, leaving not even a trace.

"Wedding ceremony?" He repeated the two words softly, a hint of emotion finally appearing in his voice—a mixture of irony, helplessness, and a profound sorrow.

"The life of an ordinary person is but a mere hundred years, born in the morning and dying at dusk, like a fleeting moment in the life of a flower."

He turned around.

In the candlelight, his face was as pale as paper, and there were still traces of blood on his lips.

But those eyes returned to their usual indifference—no, colder than before, as cold as ice that had been frozen for ten thousand years, with surging undercurrents hidden beneath, never to break through the ice again.

"You and I, one trapped in worldly love and hate, the other seeking immortality and eternal life..."

He paused, each word seeming to be squeezed out from under immense pressure.

"Absolutely impossible."

"Don't mention it again."

Eight words, each one like a knife, sentenced him to death.

Chu Qingyue felt anger rising in her heart and hatred welling up in her gut.

The golden chain in his hand swung out suddenly, striking him hard on the back!

"Snapped!"

The sound of tearing fabric rang out again, and the newly repaired wedding dress ripped once more. A bloodstain stretched from the shoulder blade all the way to the waist, and the bright red blood quickly soaked through the red dress, spreading into a darker color, like a hideous blood flower blooming on the wedding dress.

Si Chen swayed slightly, but did not dodge.

He didn't even frown, as if the whip wasn't striking his body, but rather an unfeeling shell.

"Is the princess satisfied?" he asked calmly, his voice as indifferent as if he were asking about the weather. "If so, I shall take my leave."

"If you dare to leave," Chu Qingyue stared at his retreating figure, each word dripping with blood and hatred, a hatred so intense it almost seemed tangible.

"I will slaughter the royal family! Starting with the guards on duty tonight, I will leave no one alive! I will make the entire capital pay for your death!"

Si Chen paused in his steps.

He saw that the purple lightning had already taken shape, with purple electric light rolling in the clouds, ready to strike at any moment.

Heavenly calamity waits for no one; if we don't leave now, it will truly be too late.

His cold voice came through clearly, not loud, but every word pierced the heart:

"...Chu Qingyue, if you dare to kill your brother again, or indiscriminately slaughter innocent people and commit further atrocities..."

He turned around and looked at her one last time.

In those icy eyes, something shattered, and something else solidified anew—it was a resolute determination colder than ice and harder than iron, the final thought of a cultivator severing ties with the mortal world.

"I will personally... deliver you."

Crossing.

In Buddhist terminology, it means to deliver the souls of the deceased to a state of blissful rebirth.

But when he said it, it became the cruelest threat—to kill you with my own hands and send you to your death.

It's not a threat to kill you, but a threat to "save" you. Even her life and death are defined and controlled by him, under the guise of transcendence.

How cruel, how... resolute.

Chu Qingyue's pupils contracted sharply, as if someone had grabbed her throat.

She opened her mouth, as if to say something, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn't make a sound.

Only the tears that welled up in her eyes were stubbornly evaporated by her inner strength, turning into an invisible wisp of mist.

Si Chen stopped looking at her.

He raised his hand, his fingertip touching the air. An invisible barrier instantly unfolded, isolating her inside.

The barrier was transparent yet indestructible, an impenetrable barrier she could never break through—just like the door to his heart that he had closed to her at this moment.

Then he turned around and took a step forward.

His figure transformed into a streak of light, instantly breaking through the rooftop and disappearing into the stormy night sky.

"Si Chen—!!!"

Chu Qingyue's screams were trapped inside the barrier and could not be heard out. They echoed in the enclosed space, making her own eardrums ache.

"Come back—!!"

"I will definitely kill you! Kill you—!!!"