Nine-Nether Blood Begonia: Ye Qinru's Past

"Hmm, that is indeed the logical approach. Let us first sound out his attitude; if he is willing, that would naturally be for the best."

"If he is unwilling, there is no need to force him. I will have a word with Dugu Bo and have him spend more time with you, so as to bridge the gap between you."

In the end, Xue Ye chose a middle-ground approach, yet he simultaneously signaled his intent.

He would absolutely not let Fang Xuan go; no matter what method he had to use, he had to pull the boy to his side.

"By the way, keep him away from that old fox Ning Fengzhi. That fellow's hands are not clean."

Xue Ye still held his self-appointed Crown Prince's teacher in high 'regard'.

Placing the final piece, Xue Ye rose and departed.

The absorption of the immortal herbs was swift; by the time dusk approached, the process was complete.

As Fang Xuan had anticipated, the martial souls of both Ye Qinru and Ye Lingling underwent a transformation.

The nine stamens of Ye Lingling's original Nine-Heart Begonia had increased to twelve.

As for Ye Qinru's Nine-Heart Begonia, while the number of stamens remained unchanged, their color was vastly different from before.

The original Nine-Heart Begonia had been composed of pale white and pink, but now, that touch of pink had turned into a piercing, scarlet red.

The entire flower looked more bewitching and carried an eerie quality, having completely lost its initial sanctity.

"Mother, your martial soul..."

Ye Qinru's martial soul mutation exceeded Fang Xuan's expectations; it seemed to be developing in a sinister direction.

"Mother, how could your martial soul become like this? And the aura coming from you..."

Ye Lingling was also startled by her mother's martial soul.

As for Ye Qinru herself, her expression was terrifyingly calm.

At this moment, she gently stroked the blood-red petals, her eyes misting over. She did not finish her sentence, merely gazing silently at the mutated Nine-Heart Begonia in her hand.

No, to be precise, it could no longer be called a Nine-Heart Begonia; it was a Nine-Nether Blood Begonia.

"Is this fate? Even after so many years, I still cannot escape it."

Ye Qinru stood there muttering to herself, her expression dazed, standing in place like one possessed.

Seeing this, Ye Lingling grew incredibly anxious.

Just as she was about to step forward to say something, she saw Ye Qinru suddenly look up at her.

A single tear slid silently down her cheek. At this moment, she appeared incredibly fragile, as if she had become a different person.

"Lingling, you have always wanted to know about your father. Now that you have started a family of your own, it is time I told you everything."

"Son-in-law, you come too."

Seeing this, Fang Xuan merely nodded silently, stepped forward to take Ye Lingling's slightly cold hand, and followed Ye Qinru as she left.

The three arrived at the bedroom where Ye Qinru resided, and she sat down slowly before her vanity.

She then pulled at several inconspicuous wooden strips on the dressing table.

Her movements were light, yet her fingers trembled unconsciously, as if she were afraid of something.

Ye Lingling sensed her mother's current agony and wanted to step forward to stop her, but was held back by Fang Xuan.

She looked at Fang Xuan with anxiety, but he merely shook his head at her, saying nothing.

Creak—!

The sound of a mechanism echoed. Ye Qinru stopped her movements, and an hidden compartment appeared on the vanity before her.

Ye Qinru reached inside, fumbled for a moment, and withdrew a blood-stained longsword and a broken jade hairpin.

The blood on the longsword had long since dried and congealed, yet it remained bright red; even from this distance, one could smell a faint, metallic tang.

Fang Xuan stared at the longsword in Ye Qinru's hand, then at the broken jade hairpin, and in that moment, he seemed to understand everything.

"Lingling, I killed your father with my own hands. This sword is the weapon I used to kill him."

As the words fell, Ye Lingling felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Her legs went weak, and she nearly collapsed, only saved by Fang Xuan, who caught her in time. Her eyes, however, were filled with shock.

Seeing this, Ye Qinru gave a bitter smile and continued.

"I had intended to keep this a secret for my entire life, but it seems I can no longer hide it."

"I cannot lie to myself, and I certainly cannot lie to the past."

The Nine-Nether Blood Begonia in her hand bloomed once more, its scarlet petals appearing even more vivid than before, as if fresh blood had truly been dripped upon them.

"Why? You told me he abandoned us! Is the truth not like that?"

Ye Lingling's lips trembled violently, her eyes fixed intently on the longsword in Ye Qinru's hand.

The dried bloodstains upon it were like a hideous scar branded onto her pupils.

Hearing this, Ye Qinru gave a miserable laugh, her voice carrying a trace of faint bitterness and desolation.

"I did not lie to you. He did abandon us; he betrayed me, and he abandoned you as well."

"He was unworthy of being a husband, and even less worthy of being your father, so I killed him, and in doing so, I killed myself as well."

The possessors of the Nine-Heart Begonia possess weak combat prowess; killing a Soul Master of the same rank, or even one a rank lower, is an incredibly difficult feat.

It is evident that Ye Qinru must have paid a certain price to succeed back then.

"Son-in-law, do you know why I was so repulsed when I first met you?"

Fang Xuan remained silent at these words, then shook his head.

Perhaps he had already guessed something, but some things were better heard from the person themselves.

"Because he used the same methods as you, and I, like Lingling, chose to believe him—only for the final result to be betrayal."

As she spoke, Ye Qinru's eyes brimmed with tears, her hoarse voice laced with deep-seated hatred and resentment.

"Just because Lingling was a daughter, and because the fate of the Nine-Heart Begonia destined that I would struggle to bear a second child, he abandoned me without a shred of mercy."

"The day after Lingling was born, he went to find another woman. So, I killed him. I plunged this sword into his chest with my own hands and pierced his heart with this hairpin he had once gifted me."

Hearing this, Fang Xuan understood everything.

The Nine-Heart Begonia was born for healing, and its possessors are naturally kind-hearted; Ye Qinru's actions undoubtedly violated the very nature of her Martial Soul.

A Nine-Heart Begonia stained with blood and hatred was likely no longer what it once was.

"Since that day, my body has changed, my Martial Soul has been tainted, and my Soul Power has remained forever stuck at the Soul Emperor rank, unable to advance even half a step further."

Ye Lingling's body trembled violently, as if all her strength had been drained away.

She opened her mouth, but no sound came out; she simply stared fixedly at the blood-stained sword in her mother's hand.

Fang Xuan pulled her tightly into his arms, feeling the chill of her fingertips against his palm. He said nothing, silently bearing the weight of her wordless collapse.

Watching her daughter, the tears in Ye Qinru's eyes finally broke their dam.

She lowered her head and, with trembling hands, placed the broken jade hairpin and the sword back into the hidden box, her movements incredibly light, as if afraid to wake a sleeping soul.

"Lingling, Mother has failed you." Her voice was so hoarse it was barely audible. "But I do not regret it."

Ye Lingling snapped her head up, her red-rimmed eyes locked onto Ye Qinru.

"By what right did you make that decision for me? By what right did you bear it all alone? Do you know how these years... why did you lie to me every time I asked about him?"

"Because I hate him."

Ye Qinru's voice rose sharply, carrying a roar suppressed for years.

"I hate myself even more for being blind back then. But I hated the thought of you hating me even more, and I didn't want you to live in the shadow of a mother who killed her father."

Her chest heaved violently, and the Nine-Nether Blood Begonia manifested uncontrollably. The scarlet petals trembled in the air, emitting a heart-wrenching aura.

Ye Qinru closed her eyes, steadying herself for a moment before speaking again, her voice as weary as a dying old woman.

"I thought I could hide it for a lifetime, but the appearance of the Nine-Nether Blood Begonia tells me... blood debts can never be covered up."

"The mutation of my Martial Soul is the curse I earned for killing my husband, and it is a reminder to never forget that sin."

Having said this, she slowly stood up and walked to the window.

The sunset's afterglow fell upon her through the window lattice, yet it could not reach the abyss in her eyes.

"Actually, I have wondered all these years: if I hadn't killed him that day, but let him go instead, would you have lived a better life?"

Ye Qinru's voice was as soft as a self-muttered whisper.

"But every time I think of the look in his eyes before he left... that contempt and disgust, I know that even if I had to do it a hundred times over, I would still draw my sword."

Ye Lingling was bathed in tears, yet she could not utter a single word.

Fang Xuan finally released Ye Lingling and stepped forward, his tone steady but carrying an irrefutable weight.

"Mother, the Nine-Nether Blood Begonia is the product of your inner turmoil, but the mutation of your Martial Soul is not necessarily a curse."

"If you hadn't killed him back then, would you have let Lingling grow up in hatred?"

"Everything you did might have been wrong, but it was the choice you made as a mother."

Ye Qinru looked back at him, a flicker of light appearing in her clouded eyes for a brief moment.

Fang Xuan continued.

"Now that the Nine-Nether Blood Begonia has awakened within you, it shows that fate has not let you go, but it does not mean it cannot be turned around by you."

"Since the blood-red color was born of resentment, why can it not be extinguished by love? I am willing to stay with Lingling and walk through this karma with you."

Ye Qinru stared at him blankly, her lips moving for a long time before it finally turned into a low, long sigh.

Behind Fang Xuan, Ye Lingling wiped away her tears, stepped forward, and took Ye Qinru's cold hand.

"Mother," her voice was still choked with sobs, but it was much firmer than before, "from now on... don't carry it all alone."

Tears fell from Ye Qinru's eyes once more, but this time she did not pull away; instead, she gripped her daughter's hand tightly.

This night was destined to be sleepless, but fortunately, with family by her side, it was no longer unbearable.

The next day's sun rose as usual, and everything seemed unchanged.

As Fang Xuan sat at the dining table enjoying his breakfast, a knock sounded at the door, followed immediately by Dugu Yan's voice from outside.

"Lingling, I've come to play with you. Open the door!"