Only after blocking the Divine Punishment did I know your will, Hu Liena: Shen Yichen, I concede!

The night deepened, the sounds of patrols outside the Pope Palace drifting in from far away, leaving the bedchamber so quiet that only her own breathing remained.

The string that had been pulled taut all day finally went slack.

Hu Liena walked slowly to the window and sat down.

Moonlight spilled in through the lattice, coating her skirt and fox tails.

Five snow-white fox tails hung behind her, their tips lacking their usual liveliness, unnervingly still.

She raised her right hand.

On the inside of her wrist, the Sword Mark of the Severing Thought Sword glowed with a cold, white light.

Beside it lay that Pine Needle Leaf, the one Ye Lingling had brought from Taixu Temple.

Hu Liena stared at it for a long time.

Taixu Temple.

Tiandang Mountain.

Spirit Crane Valley.

Old Pine Tree.

Stone Chamber.

And that man she had never met, yet who had saved her life twice.

Shen Yichen.

As the name rolled through her heart, her eyes grew warmer with every passing moment.

How pathetic.

Hu Liena bit her lower lip.

Even though they had never even seen each other.

Even though, at the very beginning, she had felt that this Marriage Contract was overbearing and utterly inexplicable.

Eighteen Betrothal Gifts had fallen from the sky, and with the entire continent watching the spectacle, she had been pushed to the forefront, denied even the chance to refuse.

Back then, she had wondered many times.

By what right?

By what right did you, Shen Yichen, emerge from a century of seclusion only to dictate the course of my life?

By what right did you not ask if I was willing?

By what right must I accept it just because the whole world calls me the Dao Companion of the Celestial Master?

But now, Hu Liena could no longer ask those questions.

Because every single item he had sent was no empty gesture.

The Primordial Spirit Bead had triggered her Martial Soul Evolution.

The Fate-Suppressing Cauldron had suppressed Tang San's fortune for her.

The Severing Thought Sword had severed Tang Hao's arm and shielded her from a Divine Soul death trap.

The Star River Map had pushed her step by step toward becoming a Titled Douluo.

The Tribulation-Avoiding Garment was even more outrageous.

It had even swallowed the Divine Punishment of a God King.

This was no mere betrothal gift.

This was him protecting her life, inch by inch.

Hu Liena lowered her head, her fingertips gently stroking the back of the Golden Toad.

"Shen Yichen."

She spoke the name.

Her voice was very low.

So low, it was as if she were afraid of disturbing someone.

"Just how many things have you prepared for me?"

There was no answer from outside the window.

Moonlight fell upon her hair, and her fox ears poked out from her temples, their tips still tinged with a flush that hadn't faded since the day.

Hu Liena didn't even notice it herself.

When she said that name, her voice softened.

It was soft, not like the Martial Soul Hall Saintess.

It was more like a young girl who had finally let down her guard.

"Just how much do you care about me?"

As these words left her lips, Hu Liena's fingertips froze.

How much did she care?

She had never dared to think about it before.

Nor had she been willing to.

Because to think about it was to admit that she cared.

But today was different.

The moment the Divine Punishment descended, her mind went blank.

There was no Martial Soul Hall.

No path to godhood.

No Tang San.

No so-called status as a Saintess.

There was only one thought.

Shen Yichen, save me.

She had saved that name for the very last moment.

And he had truly saved her.

Hu Liena's tears fell without warning, splashing onto the lapel of the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment.

The Golden Toad pattern flared briefly; before the droplet could slide away, it was caught by a wisp of auspicious energy, dissolving into a faint shimmer of light that vanished into the fabric.

Hu Liena was stunned.

Then, her tears fell even harder.

"You even control this?"

She raised a hand to wipe the corners of her eyes, her voice raspy.

"Shen Yichen, aren't you being too overbearing?"

No one answered her.

But the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment was warm.

So warm that she could no longer hold back.

From childhood to the present, it wasn't as if she had lacked protection.

Bibi Dong was strict with her, but beneath that severity lay genuine affection.

When the Divine Punishment fell today, Bibi Dong had stood before her, even knowing she couldn't block it.

At that moment, Hu Liena's heart had ached.

Xie Yue loved her too.

Her brother never said much, keeping a cold face on most days, but whenever real trouble struck, he was always the one standing in front of her.

Even after being severely wounded by Tang San, he had nearly dragged his unhealed body out the moment he heard she was targeted by the Divine Punishment.

She knew all of this.

She was not an ungrateful person.

But Shen Yichen was different.

Bibi Dong and Xie Yue protected her because they had walked together for many years.

And Shen Yichen?

He had never met her.

He had never heard her voice.

He had never seen her gritting her teeth to endure the hardships of cultivation, nor had he seen her maintaining the aloof facade of a Saintess in the Pope Palace, so cold that no one dared to approach.

Yet, he kept sending one supreme treasure after another into her hands.

And not just randomly.

Each piece arrived exactly when she needed it most.

When she lacked a foundation, he gave her the Primordial Spirit Bead.

When she was suppressed by Tang San's destiny, he gave her the Fate-Suppressing Cauldron.

When she faced the murderous intent of Tang Hao and Tang San's Divine Soul, he gave her the Severing Thought Sword.

When she needed to reach the barrier of godhood, he gave her the Star River Map.

When the Asura God sought to kill her, he sent the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment in advance.

It was too precise.

So precise that Hu Liena was even a little afraid.

Is there truly someone in this world capable of calculating another person's life and death, cultivation, and tribulations to such an extent?

If so.

When he sent the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment, had he already foreseen this Divine Punishment today?

If he had seen it, what was he thinking at that time?

Hu Liena's fingers tightened against her lapel.

"Did you know all along that I would be afraid?"

Her voice was even softer.

The moment the lightning fell during the day, she was indeed afraid.

Afraid of death.

Afraid of never seeing her teacher again.

Afraid that Martial Soul Hall would be crushed because of the Divine Punishment aimed at her.

And even more afraid of dying before the Pope Palace without ever having met Shen Yichen.

That thought was too filled with unwillingness.

So much so that even now, thinking of it made her chest ache.

"I haven't even been to Taixu Temple yet."

Hu Liena looked out the window.

The night in Martial Soul City was not exactly clear; there were lights in the distance, and the moonlight in the sky was sliced into pieces by the corners of the palace halls.

Yet, in this sliver of moonlight, she saw the Cloud Sea that Ye Lingling had described.

Spiritual cranes flapping their wings.

The Old Pine Tree standing at the entrance of the Seclusion Chamber.

Straw mats spread over the stone slabs.

And a man in white, sitting lazily on a Prayer Mat, pointing a finger to make the God King cough up blood.

Thinking of this, the corners of Hu Liena's mouth suddenly curved upward.

"You..."

She raised her hand to wipe the tears from her face.

"Even though you didn't come, you are everywhere."

The Sword Mark on her wrist felt slightly cool.

The Tribulation-Avoiding Garment warmed her chest.

The Pine Needle Leaf pressed against her pulse.

The Star River Map remained suspended in the Cultivation Room.

The fortune of the Fate-Suppressing Cauldron still supported her.

These items were laid out one by one, as if Shen Yichen had silently placed the entire world as a barrier between her and the outside.

Whoever wanted to kill her would have to collide with them first.

Whoever wanted to scheme against her would be crushed first.

Hu Liena used to think this kind of protectiveness was too overbearing.

But now, she felt.

It was wonderful.

So this is what it feels like to be protected by someone.

It is not being locked away.

It is knowing that she can move forward.

Because there is someone behind her to catch her if she falls.

Her tears finally stopped.

Hu Liena stood up and walked to the window.

She pushed the window sash open a little further, and the night wind poured in, blowing the stray hairs by her ears.

Five fox tails slowly unfurled behind her, the tips glowing with a silvery-white light once more.

She did not want to hide anymore.

Nor did she want to be stubborn.

When Shen Yichen sent the Marriage Contract, she could resist.

When the first layer of betrothal gifts arrived, she could be suspicious.

When the Severing Thought Sword repelled Tang San for her, she could say it was just his arrangement.

But today, as the Divine Punishment descended, the moment she cried out that name in her heart, she could no longer deceive herself.

She accepted it.

She accepted this Marriage Contract.

She accepted these Eighteen Betrothal Gifts.

And she accepted the man she had yet to meet, who had already shielded her to such an extent.

Hu Liena raised her hand, pressing it against the Golden Toad pattern over her heart.

"Shen Yichen."

She gazed at the moonlight outside the window, speaking each word softly, yet without a shred of hesitation.

"I will wait for you to come and marry me."