Xuanqing Peak, Purple Bamboo Pavilion.
"Young Master Xuanyuan, is this... convenient?" Mu Qingxue asked hesitantly.
"Of course." Xuanyuan Che smiled faintly, leaving Mu Qingxue dazed for a moment.
She swore she was absolutely not someone obsessed with looks, but sometimes, there was simply no refusing...
Ever since Xuanyuan Che had properly settled down in Purple Bamboo Pavilion, he had grown too lazy to keep hiding his face.
What crime was there in being handsome? If anyone wanted to blame someone, they could blame his parents.
Provided they could beat the two of them.
The two sat down beside the stone table in the courtyard. Mu Qingxue fell silent for a moment, seemingly organizing her thoughts.
Xuanyuan Che did not rush her and merely waited quietly. He knew that since Mu Qingxue had come looking for him, she had not come merely to offer thanks.
After a while, Mu Qingxue slowly spoke. Her voice was cold and clear, carrying an almost imperceptible bitterness. "There truly is a marriage contract between Nangong Yan and me..."
Xuanyuan Che raised a brow. "Forced?"
Mu Qingxue gently shook her head. "No."
Xuanyuan Che's heart stirred.
"Thirty years ago, my Mu Family ancestor made progress within the Saint realm and went to a Creation Land in search of an opportunity.
"Yet, for some unknown reason and from some unknown place, he provoked a great expert. A few days later, our ancestor dragged his battered body back to the Mu Family and entered secluded life-or-death cultivation.
"Our ancestor was the Mu Family's sole Saint. If he were to perish, the Mu Family would not have an easy time.
"At our most desperate moment, an ancestor of the Nangong Family happened to pass through the Eastern Wasteland Domain and intervened to save him."
"That ancestor is the very Attendant of Sky Burning Hall within the Nangong Family today. It is said that he has long since reached the very peak of the Saint realm and has faintly touched the threshold of the Supreme realm!
"Our Mu Family ancestor thus escaped mortal danger and continued supporting the Mu Family." Mu Qingxue's voice lowered. "After recovering, in order to repay that favor, our ancestor personally went to the Nangong Family in the Central Continent and requested this marriage contract."
"At that time, I was still in my mother's womb."
After a pause, Mu Qingxue continued.
"Our ancestor hoped to use this opportunity to forge good ties with the Nangong Family and help the Mu Family secure its foundation in the Eastern Wasteland Domain." Mu Qingxue raised her head and looked toward the sea of clouds at the end of the distant mountains, her gaze complicated.
"So, rather than saying this marriage contract was something the Nangong Family demanded, it would be more accurate to say that the Mu Family actively sought it."
As she said this, Mu Qingxue's tone carried a trace of helplessness and self-mockery.
"From the very beginning, this marriage contract was never for any one person. It was for the family's interests. I was merely a chosen chess piece, a tool used to sustain the family's survival."
Xuanyuan Che frowned slightly upon hearing this. Political marriages were not uncommon in the cultivation world.
Though he himself had never seen or experienced such things, his eldest brother and second sister would tell Xuanyuan Che about their experiences while traveling.
The weak were prey to the strong; the strong were revered!
The world of cultivators was truly cruel. Sacrificing personal happiness for the sake of family interests was indeed common.
It was only that when such a thing fell upon a cold, proud woman like Mu Qingxue, it seemed somewhat tragic.
The evening breeze brushed past, stirring Mu Qingxue's dark hair and scattering the sighs within her words.
"Thank you for saving me today, Young Master. But from here on, I will not trouble you further. There are many things I need to settle with my own hands."
Mu Qingxue turned her head, her beautiful eyes smiling.
"I presume it was also you, Young Master, who caused the Wuchen Sword to leave its sheath on the day we entered the academy."
Xuanyuan Che nodded.
"I hope you can enlighten me."
Mu Qingxue's expression was solemn. She knew that what awaited her was likely a perilous fate, but no matter what, the sword at her waist was what concerned her most.
If she could touch even a trace of Guixu Sword Intent, she would have no regrets.
"Sister Mu, there is no need for you to be in such a hurry," Xuanyuan Che said.
If you can't find the book by searching its title, try searching for the author. It may simply have been renamed!
"Aren't you curious why that Saint of the Nangong Family would save your ancestor for no reason?
"And where did the inexplicable power of your Betrothal Jade Pendant come from?"
Xuanyuan Che's tone grew slightly heavier.
"Sister Mu, you might as well think it over before making a decision."
Mu Qingxue froze. Before, she had only been unwilling to accept having her marriage controlled at others' whims, so she resisted. Yet she had never considered why all of this had happened.
Xuanyuan Che's questions sent her mind racing. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that something was wrong.
Nine times out of ten, something was very wrong!
"Sister Mu, do you know of the Sword Devouring Gu?" Xuanyuan Che asked.
Mu Qingxue's delicate body trembled. She raised her head and looked at Xuanyuan Che in disbelief. "You mean..."
Xuanyuan Che smiled. "The Sword Devouring Gu. It feeds on the Essence Blood of sword cultivators and uses Sword Souls as nourishment. The Nangong Family is famed for fire arts, yet it is so interested in the sword path. Presumably, it is for some special purpose."
"For generations, the Mu Family has been on good terms with the Sword Pavilion, which has yet to be destroyed, and has considerable attainments in the sword path.
"And you, as the daughter of the current Mu Family head, possess a Sword Bone and are a sword-path genius. To the Nangong Family, you are undoubtedly the finest furnace."
Mu Qingxue fell silent. Her mind was in chaos, yet she could not deny it, because Xuanyuan Che's words were not empty speculation.
"And the fate of one used as a furnace is to become... a Sword Slave."
Sword Slave! As Xuanyuan Che spoke of this, a cold gleam flashed through his eyes. Refining living people into soulless puppets—such methods were simply utterly devoid of conscience.
He recalled the first time he had read those words in ancient texts. What an immense shock his young heart had suffered.
Ji Liuli had needed to coax him for ages afterward before he was finally better.
"The Sword Devouring Gu has already been raised to its eighth transformation," Xuanyuan Che said.
"What?" Mu Qingxue cried out, covering her cherry lips.
"In theory, it still lacks three Sword Souls before the ninth transformation is complete. But Sister, your Guixu Sword Body alone is enough."
"So that is why they are so desperate to marry me—they want me for the final transformation of the Sword Devouring Gu." Mu Qingxue's delicate body trembled slightly.
The truth was not frightening. What was truly frightening was the human heart.
Even though she knew that once she married into the Nangong Family, endless darkness and pain would await her. She would be imprisoned, exploited, and ultimately reduced to a worthless chess piece.
"Yes, and no." Xuanyuan Che suddenly coughed twice and looked at Mu Qingxue with a faintly amused smile.
"That Nangong Yan may truly have taken a liking to you." As he spoke, Xuanyuan Che took out that damaged token.
"Fine Sword Souls are difficult to find, but not impossible. Yet he has delayed acting against you for so long. My guess is..."
"Young Master, you jest." Mu Qingxue was rather helpless. The outrageously handsome youth before her was always so calm and detached, and his words were often unreliable as well.
"Here, take this. It can unseal the jade pendant on your body." Xuanyuan Che handed her the token.
As though sensing something, the jade pendant and token suddenly reacted. A burst of dark-red light flashed, and both turned into fragments that scattered to the ground.
"Your kindness is something Qingxue has no way to repay. I..."
"It's nothing. Mother taught me from childhood that helping others is a virtue. If the Nangong Family had not been so morally rotten, I would not have helped you. Though you are rather pretty."
Mu Qingxue burst into laughter and rolled her eyes at Xuanyuan Che.
"Leave what comes next to me,"
The corners of Xuanyuan Che's lips curled upward, revealing a brilliant smile. "Since the Nangong Family is so overbearing and unreasonable, then... let them pay the price."
"Some people are just wasting air by staying alive."
Xuanyuan Che's voice was calm, carrying a power that put one at ease.
Mu Qingxue looked at him, and a complicated light flashed through her cool eyes.
She could not see through this young man. He carried far too many secrets, but she felt that he was very, very good.
Good in every way.
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