For Xiao Yuyan, sleep was not a necessity.
But because Xu Wanci was accustomed to deep slumber at night, the celestial realm adopted day and night—and he would accompany her in rest.
Yet this time, when he awoke, the comforting presence beside him was gone.
All memories had faded into monochrome, leaving only shades of gray.
As if every moment of beauty had been nothing but a dream he alone had drowned in.
When he opened his eyes, Xiao Yuyan saw only endless emptiness.
No color, no warmth, no time—only chaos.
This place, which should have been most familiar to him, suddenly felt unbearable.
Because something was missing…
What was it?
Her.
Her scent, her voice, her figure.
In his memories, from the moment he first stirred awake, even before his consciousness fully coalesced, his gaze had always been fixed upon her.
This was the first time his vision held no trace of her.
With this thought, Xiao Yuyan felt the countless invisible shackles binding his body as he slowly sat up.
The unseen chains shattered inch by inch with his movement.
Pain akin to tearing his soul apart did not so much as flicker across his expression.
By the time he rose, his body and soul were both "drenched in blood," yet he smiled faintly, thinking:
If she knew, she would grieve again.
But he had promised never to hide anything from her.
Hmm… then he would simply downplay the pain when speaking of it.
After all, such agony meant nothing to him.
Xiao Yuyan finally steadied his mind. Facing the surging heavenly forces around him—eager to exploit his weakness and devour him—he unleashed his spiritual energy, suppressing them completely.
He did not linger to absorb the subdued heavenly power.
Instead, he left with near desperation.
He had to find her.
Yet…
Nowhere carried her presence.
Not the Taiqing Sect, not the hidden realms, not the four extreme lands, nor any river, lake, mountain, or field.
The disciples of the Taiqing Sect claimed she had long perished in the Sea of Chaos.
Impossible.
Xiao Yuyan scoured the souls of every last one, only to witness the same scene.
But the figure in that scene… was not her.
Only when he saw the terror in their eyes did he finally glance at the sect—half-destroyed under the tempest of his unrestrained energy.
The Taiqing Sect’s protective formation stood no chance against him.
And it was not just the sect; the entire cultivation world trembled in the aftermath.
This realm was already barely holding onto fragile stability. If he acted recklessly, it might collapse entirely.
Above, the heavenly forces gathered into thunder-laden clouds, seeking to erase Xiao Yuyan as a threat.
Yet even it knew: even with its full strength, stopping him was far from certain.
Amid the roaring chaos around him, Xiao Yuyan remained unmoved.
He stared blankly at the spiritual energy swirling in his palm, the unfamiliar hollowness in his chest making coherent thought impossible.
Only one instinct remained:
She… cared for them.
If he destroyed this place, she would be furious when she returned.
Under the despairing gazes of all, the energy in his hand dissipated.
Then, he vanished.
In the void, he stood quietly, obediently.
Here, he could see every blade of grass, every soul in the cultivation world.
For days, in this decaying realm, he exhausted every method.
All that remained was waiting.
He could only wait.
Sunrise and sunset, tides rising and falling.
Fields of rain-summoning epiphyllum blooms, crafted from spiritual energy, blossomed endlessly in the void.
The heavenly forces watched him warily, both wary and covetous, yet never daring to act.
A single misstep might awaken the madness in this lunatic—or plunge him deeper into it.
The cultivation world could endure no further upheaval.
All it could do was endure, waiting for a moment of vulnerability.
No one knew how much time passed.
The once-chaotic void was now filled with millions of blue epiphyllums, their glow dyeing the sky cerulean.
And Xiao Yuyan finally stilled his hands.
A world without her was no different from the void.
Neither fields of flowers nor hidden realms held meaning.
None of the sights they once cherished together could stir even the faintest ripple in his heart.
Xiao Yuyan gazed at the sea of blooms around him, then lowered his hands and bowed his head calmly:
He had waited too long.
He no longer wanted to wait.
Though he knew his cultivation made him impervious to illusions, he closed his eyes.
He told himself this world was merely a nightmare.
When he woke, she would be beside him again.
After all, in his last memory, they had fallen asleep in each other’s arms.
A world without her could only be a dream.
In the end, he let himself dissolve into the void.
No one could kill him—not even the heavens.
Unless he chose death himself.
After an eternity of darkness, Xiao Yuyan opened his eyes again.
The morning sun spilled into the room, gilding everything in soft gold.
Just a glance was enough to feel its warmth.
This was a world utterly unlike the desolate void.
Beside him, soft breaths rose and fell.
Her hand held his, its warmth seeping into his ice-cold body, thawing him slowly.
Xiao Yuyan turned, watching Xu Wanci sleep peacefully.
His hand lifted, hovering—too afraid to touch.
Finally, after a long moment, he pulled her into an embrace so gentle it trembled.
His chaotic, despairing heartbeat finally stilled.
A dream.
It really was just a dream.
Xu Wanci was naturally a light sleeper. Only beside Xiao Yuyan could she rest so deeply.
Sensing the cool, snow-laced aura enveloping her, she blinked awake, rubbing her eyes in confusion.
"Yuyan, did something happen?"
Her head rested against his chest, where she heard the erratic pounding of his heart, felt the faint tremors in his body.
In an instant, she was fully awake, lifting her head to look at him.
Before she could see his expression, his lips captured hers.
The kiss burned, his arms locking around her waist as if to fuse her into his bones—tight enough to shake.
Only after what felt like an eternity did he finally pull back slightly, pressing his forehead to hers, his voice trembling with the joy of recovery:
"Wanci."
Though she didn’t know what had happened while she slept, Xu Wanci could sense the turmoil in him.
Her arms tightened around him, her voice soft, reassuring:
"I'm here."
A few days later, Xu Wanci finally learned from Xiao Yuyan the reason behind his loss of control.
A dream.
A dream without her.
As if struck by a thought, her fingers twitched almost imperceptibly.
She rose from the swing and turned her head, catching sight of his figure standing stubbornly beneath the shade of the tree, his gaze fixed intently on her.
Once, Xiao Yuyan had simply clung to her.
But now, even a moment without her in his sight filled him with panic.
So, she made sure to always remain within his line of sight.
She dashed over to him, stood on her tiptoes, and affectionately nuzzled his cheek.
"Why didn’t you come push me on the swing?"
The moment she turned to him, the hollow ache in Xiao Yuyan’s heart was filled. Though he had already confirmed her reality, the fear of losing her still lingered.
Fortunately, she indulged him in every way.
Yet, he couldn’t help but worry—that his excessive attention might displease her.
He pressed a kiss to the side of her face.
"Just seeing Wanci is enough to make me happy."
"Then pushing me on the swing doesn’t make you happy?" Xu Wanci seized the opportunity, pulling him toward the swing.
"Either you push me, or I push you. Choose."
With a gentle surge of spiritual energy, Xiao Yuyan lifted her onto the swing.
It took Xu Wanci a long time to finally convince Xiao Yuyan that the bond between them was unbreakable, untouched by dreams.
But still…
She thought of her past life—though acknowledged by the cultivation world, she remained different from everyone else.
Perhaps with a single misstep, she might never have existed in this world at all.
That dream felt more like the reality of another world.
Lowering her eyes, she concealed the obsession within them.
From the very beginning, the one unwilling to let go wasn’t just him.
When she looked up again, her expression had returned to calm.
Gazing at Xiao Yuyan in the distance, she rested her chin thoughtfully on her hand.
It seemed like it had been a while since she last prepared a surprise for him.
But surprises, of course, required secrecy.
After being together for so long, Xu Wanci knew exactly how to divert Xiao Yuyan’s attention.
Without moving, she mused aloud as if to herself,
"I’ve heard that Jade Spirit Cakes made with spiritual energy don’t taste as good as handmade ones."
"I wonder if that’s true."
Jade Spirit Cakes were sweet—a treat Xiao Yuyan preferred.
But because she wasn’t particularly fond of them, he rarely brought them to her.
Out of the corner of her eye, Xu Wanci noticed his fingers unconsciously rubbing together. Smiling, she lowered her hand from her chin.
It seemed Xiao Yuyan would have his own task to occupy him for a while.
What she sought was far too elusive.
Even though her cultivation had reached Xiao Yuyan’s level, and her sensitivity to spiritual energy surpassed his, the search was still painstakingly difficult.
Time and again, she traversed the faint rifts between dimensions, yet it still took her half a month to find the legendary Thread of Karma—said to bind two souls across lifetimes.
A treasure rumored to transcend time and space, connecting cultivators eternally.
Xu Wanci tethered a wisp of her soul to it, then carried it carefully to Xiao Yuyan.
He had known she was busy during this time, but the security she gave him allowed him to wait patiently.
Still…
No matter how reassured he felt, he couldn’t help but long to see her.
Suppressing the unease rising in his chest, he quietly brewed the spiritual tea she had wanted that day.
Just then, her familiar presence drew near.
Xu Wanci extended her hands, offering the Thread of Karma to Xiao Yuyan.
Her voice was light yet resolute:
"Xiao Yuyan, my soul is tied to this Thread of Karma."
"Will you join me?"
Together—never to part.
Xiao Yuyan’s hands stilled abruptly. He looked up, his eyes dazed with disbelief.
Of course, he knew what the Thread of Karma meant, and how rare it was—spoken of only in legends.
So all this time, she had been searching for it.
She wanted them to be bound together, lifetime after lifetime.
His throat tightened with emotion. Pressing his lips together, he merged his own soul with the thread, his movements trembling slightly.
Yet his expression was so tender it could bring one to tears.
The Thread of Karma, now woven with their souls, transformed into delicate bracelets around their wrists.
Xu Wanci studied the slender thread on her wrist, then suddenly coughed and said,
"Just so you know, I might not appear in my current form in the next life."
She grasped his wrist and spoke with exaggerated solemnity:
"If I become a tree in your dreams, remember to chase away any bugs that try to bite me."
"Okay."
"If I turn into a spirit herb, you must water me with spiritual energy every day."
"Okay."
"And if I become a cloud, you absolutely mustn’t make me cry—clouds shrink when they weep!"
"I won’t."
"I will never let you shed a single tear."
Xu Wanci laughed and embraced him, sensing he hadn’t fully processed everything yet.
"Still afraid of nightmares?"
Xiao Yuyan closed his eyes, the rims faintly red. Softly, he whispered:
"Not anymore."
"Never again."
