She knew the upcoming plot.
Cangshu Bai would return wounded, but Luo Yuntao would break his promise for his daughter's sake. As a result, Cangshu Bai would battle the Qingtian Sect. When he was heavily surrounded and on the verge of death, Luo Qingniao would rush into the battlefield, shielding him with her body and threatening her own life to force Luo Yuntao to let Cangshu Bai go.
Then, Cangshu Bai would say those words.
He was willing to give her a proper status.
Mu Ran hugged her knees, staring blankly at her own unconscious body.
In this small world without the cycle of day and night, she had lost her perception of the passage of time. She did not know how long it had been—perhaps a year or two. When she sensed Cangshu Bai's aura again, the surrounding space twisted, and she saw the light of day once more.
And she saw him once again.
As the light at the exit of the secret realm gradually faded, everyone from the Qingtian Sect rushed over.
Slowly, a solitary figure stepped out.
Cangshu Bai was still wearing that same black attire, but now it was thoroughly soaked in blood. Patches of dark red bloomed across the deep black fabric, a shocking sight to behold.
His white hair hung messily, a few strands clinging to his bloodstained forehead. His originally aloof and handsome face bore scars of varying depths, and wet blood still lingered at the corners of his lips.
The spiritual energy around him was in chaos. Every step he took seemed as if he were walking on the tips of blades, yet his back remained perfectly straight, not showing the slightest hunch of weakness.
Even though he was bathed in blood and looked as if he were on the brink of death from severe injuries, the depths of his eyes still held that same dead, icy stillness. There was no sorrow or joy, no pain or anger, as if those bone-deep wounds had merely been inflicted on someone else.
Even Luo Yuntao could not help but feel a wave of shock in his heart.
Cangshu Bai reached out his hand, and a cyan jade pendant floated in the air. He said, Here is what you wanted. Now, give me what I want.
Luo Yuntao eagerly collected the jade pendant and said, Cangshu Bai, you have been gone for three years. I will not go back on my promise to you, but I think you should go see someone first.
Cangshu Bai furrowed his brows slightly.
The person Luo Yuntao wanted Cangshu Bai to see was Luo Qingniao.
It had only been three years, yet Luo Qingniao was now emaciated and bedridden. The lively and adorable little girl from back then seemed to have had all her vibrant radiance ground away by illness.
Outside the sickroom, Luo Yuntao said, She blamed me for forcing you to go to the Haotian Secret Realm back then. Coupled with her worry for your safety, her heart became tied in knots. Suffering day and night, her body grew weaker by the day.
He gazed at the churning sea of clouds in the distance, his fingertips curling slightly. When he spoke again, all his oppressive aura and coldness had faded, leaving only a helpless father.
Cangshu Bai, my daughter is deeply passionate and loves you profoundly. Seeing her in this state now, are you truly not moved at all?
Cangshu Bai merely replied, According to our agreement, you should give me the Soul Pivot Lotus Platform.
Luo Yuntao flew into a rage. Cangshu Bai, do you really have a heart of stone?! Can it be that my daughter cannot even compare to a dead person!?
Cangshu Bai clenched his fists, his eyes darkening. You want to break our agreement?
I, Luo Yuntao, a grandmaster of a sect, naturally would not break an agreement, Luo Yuntao said with a stern face. I can give the item to you, but only after you marry my daughter. At that time, if you still want to resurrect that dead person, I will have no objections. Furthermore, once she is resurrected, my daughter will not hold it against her and is willing to let you give her the status of a secondary wife.
He was willing to facilitate the marriage between Cangshu Bai and Luo Qingniao firstly because Luo Qingniao refused to marry anyone else. Her obsession had seeped into her bones, and he had no choice but to fulfill her wish. The other reason was that he had seen Cangshu Bai's strength.
If Cangshu Bai joined the Qingtian Sect, it would absolutely be a good thing for the sect.
But in Cangshu Bai's eyes, which had been dead and still for years, an almost tyrannical cold light surged for the first time.
Yet he quickly restrained himself. Raising his eyes to look directly at Luo Yuntao, his white hair lifting slightly in the wind, he said, Your daughter's life or death has nothing to do with me.
Luo Yuntao angrily retorted, Then even if I must bear the name of an oath-breaker, I will not give you the Soul Pivot Lotus Platform!
Cangshu Bai did not say another word. He cast a fleeting glance at Wumu, who was harboring deep resentment toward him in the shadows, and turned to leave.
On a secluded mountain peak, braving the wind and frost, Han Yu popped out again, its eyes revealing worry.
Cangshu Bai was meditating to heal his wounds, seemingly oblivious to the invasion of the biting cold.
Mu Ran sat beside him, resting her head on his shoulder, as if she could feel the same wind as he did.
She said, Jinzhi, how much longer can you belong to me?
No one answered her.
Soon, she put on a strong smile. But there is nothing that can be done about it, right? I am already dead. It is common for other men to remarry just a few months after losing their wives. You have been a widower for five hundred years; that is already incredibly admirable!
Mu Ran raised her eyes to look at his profile, only feeling that compared to before, his aura had become much sharper.
She held his hand and whispered, You must have liked me, really liked me a lot, to remember me for five hundred years. I am already very satisfied.
Just as flowers wither, grass dries up, and rivers eventually run dry, there is nothing that cannot change. Human emotions are naturally the same.
Even if someone else were to move into Cangshu Bai's heart one day in the future, the fact that he once loved only her would remain an unchangeable truth.
Mu Ran secretly kissed him. Jinzhi, thank you for loving me for so long.
As if sensing something, Cangshu Bai opened his eyes, but before him lay only the mountains and the sea of clouds.
That momentary flutter in his heart seemed like nothing more than an illusion.
In the dead of night, Cangshu Bai appeared at the Qingtian Sect's treasure pavilion. He looked at the restrictions on the door, remaining silent.
Slowly, another figure walked out from the darkness of the night.
Wumu tightened his grip on the sword in his hand. Cangshu Bai, you really did come to steal the treasure. The Qingtian Sect's treasure pavilion has a bloodline restriction. Only those acknowledged by the Qingtian Sect can enter. Even if your strength reaches the heavens, you are not a member of the Qingtian Sect, so you cannot go in.
Cangshu Bai asked calmly, Are you saying that the only way for me to get what I want is to marry the person you love and be acknowledged by the Qingtian Sect?
Wumu gritted his teeth. If the young miss had not fallen ill from longing for you, how could I ever tolerate an outsider like you marrying her!
Mu Ran watched as they were about to start fighting, but then she heard Cangshu Bai say:
Perhaps there is a second method.
What method?
Mu Ran did not wait to hear the rest. In the blink of an eye, she was pulled back into the small world.
It was her body attracting her soul, as if trying hard to make her soul return to its rightful place sooner.
But Mu Ran tried many more times. Every time she seemed on the verge of returning to her body, she would always be rejected because she lacked just a tiny bit of strength.
She sighed deeply, looking at her own body, feeling an immense sense of helplessness.
She did not know how much longer she drifted in the void before her soul was suddenly and violently yanked out by a tyrannical force.
Instantly, the deafening sounds of clashing metal and heaven-shaking battle cries exploded in her ears.
