Covering the Sky: The Years I Was the Empress's Strictest Master

Her mind returned to her body and she found herself still leaning against the corner of the stone platform in the tomb, still holding the white jade porcelain bottle in her hand, but her back was soaked with cold sweat.

shuh...

She suddenly looked up at the center of the stone platform.

Li Qingjue remained seated cross-legged, his eyes closed and his breathing steady, as if he had never woken up.

It was as if all the terrifying intimidation and confrontation just now were just her illusion?

But Shao Hanyun knew that it wasn't her imagination.

That lonely gaze, those indifferent words, and that undisguised murderous intent were all incredibly real.

This Devouring Demon was indeed as terrifying as the rumors suggested, with a personality that was almost unfathomable. He also seemed somewhat obsessive about certain things and people, to the point that even when he was severely injured...

And what the other party said at the end...

It was more like a thorn, piercing deeply into Shao Hanyun's heart.

Shao Hanyun's face turned pale and then red, and for the first time, a hint of dejection and resentment appeared on her alluring face.

Because what the other party said was indeed the "truth," and the reason why she had been troubled before might also be partly due to the fact that she had fallen in love with someone but did not receive an "equal" response.

She looked at Li Qingjue, who was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, pretending that he had never woken up, and silently took a deep breath.

She had to admit that, following that senior "Gu Qingying," she had once again encountered someone who posed a challenge for her.

Fortunately, when it comes to her relationship with Tan Lin, her "status" is clearly superior this time!

Thoughts wandered, and just then,

"cough……"

A soft cough broke the subtle, deathly silence in the tomb.

Shao Hanyun's eyelashes trembled slightly. She noticed that Tan Lin, who was sitting cross-legged, suddenly frowned.

Then,

The aura around him, which had been relatively stable, suddenly fluctuated.

Immediately afterwards, a faint, extremely subtle imperial aura, which made both Shao Hanyun and Li Qingjue, who had already "awakened," feel a chill, flashed by.

next moment,

Tan Lin suddenly opened his tightly closed eyes, a burst of golden light flashing within them before quickly receding.

However, his face was even paler than before he went into seclusion to recuperate, and fine beads of sweat even seeped from his forehead.

"Master!"

Seeing this, Li Qingjue, who had been "unconscious" on the stone platform,

She couldn't even maintain her facade after intimidating Shao Hanyun; she opened her eyes almost the instant Tan Lin coughed.

She quickly stood up, her eyes filled with barely suppressed worry and excitement, as well as a sense of unease as if she feared losing the reunion again!

not far away,

Shao Hanyun's heart tightened, and she subconsciously stared at Tan Lin, temporarily putting aside her "confrontation" with Li Qingjue.

"call……"

In the eyes of the two women

Tan Lin slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, which contained tiny specks of dim golden light.

The subsequent derivation of the "All Self" Great Way, and the preceding work of perfecting the scriptures, is immense.

He hadn't fully healed his Dao injuries; he had only stabilized them initially. The reason he woke up was because of a slight, stinging warning signal he had received from the Zhuyin Soul Pearl.

This forced him to forcibly exit his deep meditative state.

rustling... rustling...

His gaze swept across the tomb chamber, first landing on Li Qingjue, who had already risen and come to stand before him.

His deep eyes flickered slightly, glancing again at Shao Hanyun, whose expression was somewhat unnatural in the corner, before finally returning to calm.

"you're awake."

He spoke to Li Qingjue in a flat voice, devoid of much emotion, as if he were simply stating a fact.

But Li Qingjue's eyes instantly reddened because of his words.

Da...da...

Her bare feet touched the ground, and she moved with light steps, her black dress trailing on the ground. Her originally pale face flushed with an unnatural redness due to excitement.

At this moment, in front of someone, all the loneliness and ruthlessness in her eyes disappeared, replaced by the clarity she had possessed for countless years. She simply stared intently at Tan Lin.

My eyes were now brimming with tears, a complex mix of emotions surging within me: longing, resentment, lingering fear, and joy...

Overwhelmed by a mix of emotions, she was speechless for a moment.

She stared intently at Tan Lin's face, which was increasingly resembling the remnant soul from many years ago, as if trying to etch every feature of him into the depths of her consciousness.

Wow!

Thoughts churned in his mind.

Her words before she fell into a coma, probing whether the other person had truly "returned," and their sparing "I am here," now echoed repeatedly in her mind like thunderclaps.

Is it "him"?

Is it really Master?!

The person who guided her during the darkest, lowest, and most helpless moments of her life more than a hundred years ago, but disappeared more than a decade later, has been the one she has missed for a century...

Is he really back?

Although she was already 90% certain based on the other party's actions and words at the previous entrance to the tunnel, she still wanted to confirm it one more time.

This century-long wait may be but a fleeting moment for her in the future, but for her at this moment, it has already occupied eight or nine tenths of her life!

She knew all too well that the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.

She hesitated, wanting to continue forward, but a distance of ten feet wasn't enough, nor three feet.

She wanted to crouch down and hug the figure in front of her tightly, just like she had done years ago outside the Crimson Cloud River in the Southern Region of the Eastern Wilderness!

"Master..."

Li Qingjue stood three feet in front of Tan Lin, her voice trembling slightly, choked with emotion. Her slender, voluptuous body, like a treasure vase of the Great Dao, gracefully bent down beneath her black dress, about to perform the disciple's salute to Tan Lin.

however,

Before she could make a move, Tan Lin slightly raised his hand, and a gentle yet irresistible force supported her.

"No need for such formalities."

Tan Lin's voice remained calm, even carrying a hint of detachment:

"Although I was once your teacher, all I did was guide you through the initial stages of cultivation. Your achievements today are entirely due to your own efforts. Even without me, you could have reached this point..."

As he spoke, he watched as Li Qingjue's body stiffened as if struck by a heavy blow upon hearing his words, and his once clear eyes dimmed instantly, filled with sadness and helplessness.

He sighed silently to himself, but his tone remained calm:

"In some aspects, you have already surpassed your teacher, and I... am very pleased."

I didn't teach you much in the past; I merely guided you onto the path of spiritual practice and lit a lamp for you.

The path ahead is entirely your own to forge, overcoming obstacles along the way. From now on, you don't need to be fixated on 'whose disciple you are,' just be yourself.

These words, seemingly comforting, actually carry a clear intention to sever ties.

He was unwilling, or rather unable, to bind the other person in the capacity of a "master," nor did he want the other person, who had finally become independent, to fall back into a situation of dependence on others.

Ultimately, the other person must walk their own path. Having served as their mentor for ten years, he naturally hopes that in the same amount of time, the other person will achieve even greater things and reach even higher levels than before.

His arrival, this variable, has had a butterfly effect across five generations since ancient times, far too many to bear, and he doesn't want to interfere with it too much.

Li Qingjue's delicate body trembled, her face turned even paler, and tears welled up in her eyes.

She bit her lower lip hard, stubbornly shaking her head, her voice trembling with suppressed sobs:

"No... Once a teacher, always a teacher. If it weren't for Master's guidance back then, Qingjue would have been a desolate grave and withered bones long ago. How could he be here today?"

"Master is Master. Whether you acknowledge it or not, no matter who you become, in Qingjue's heart, you will always be Qingjue's Master!"

After all,

She broke free from Tan Lin's gentle support, forced herself to stand up, and despite her injuries, gracefully bowed to Tan Lin.

Her black dress trailed on the ground, like a blooming ink lotus, her posture respectful yet resolute.

Tan Lin looked at the woman who stubbornly bowed before him, a barely perceptible glint flashing in the depths of his eyes.

But in the end, he did not stop her, and simply accepted her bow in silence.

Shao Hanyun was stunned. Was the woman in the black dress the same one who had intimidated her just now?

…………

Chapter 228 Master, is it really that hard to admit you care about me? (Please subscribe!)

After the ceremony,

Li Qingjue slowly straightened up, but did not step back. Instead, she stood gracefully in front of Tan Lin, her stunningly beautiful face looking up at him.

At that moment, her eyes were brimming with emotions, but ultimately a deep sense of loss and unease filled most of them.

"Master..."

She lowered her head, her voice barely audible.

At this moment, she was completely different from her usual self; she resembled a girl who had done something wrong, filled with a sense of "fear."

“Disciple…disciple has lost the bronze mask that you gave me.”

That mask was the first and only item that her master gave her during their master-disciple journey, when his soul was in its remnant state in a previous life.

For her, it held extraordinary significance, second only to the bronze ring that contained memories of her, her brother, and her master.

Yet this very important thing, in the previous attack by the "Supreme Artifact," had a wisp of its clear light burst forth in order to protect her, and then the mask completely shattered.

That day, she was filled with self-blame and sadness, which has lasted until now.

She really cares.

in place,

Upon hearing this, Tan Lin remained silent for a moment.

Then, his deep gaze fell on the empty space of the tomb chamber, as if he were pondering something, or as if it was just an unintentional action.

In the end, he simply said:

"It's just a mask. Once it's broken, it's broken. The old things are gone, there's no need to dwell on them and disturb your peace of mind. Besides, 'your teacher'... I never said that I gave that mask to you."

"The mask was a gift you obtained by chance in that training tower years ago. As for the wisp of clear light contained within it, although it was my work in my past life, it was nothing more than a casual touch..."

His tone was indifferent, and his words conveyed a strong sense of nonchalance.

However, as soon as these words were spoken,

Li Qingjue's heart clenched suddenly at those words, as if pricked by needles, and he felt inexplicably suffocated.

She looked up at Tan Lin's handsome profile, which remained devoid of any emotion.

In an instant, a tremendous sense of grievance and bitterness transformed into a resentment that surged into her heart.

Master... is he unwilling to admit it?

Why is that?

Everything is so obvious. Is it really that hard to admit that "he" has always cared about her?

What's there to avoid about this?

Just to maintain a "strict teacher" image from beginning to end?

But she's not the naive little girl she was years ago!

I will no longer let superficial appearances of things temporarily cloud my mind and vision.