"Cough, cough..."
On the sickbed, Li Kun, ruler of Great Rui, had long since lost his former majesty and bearing. He looked haggard and aged, his prematurely white hair revealing just how greatly his vital energy had been depleted.
Beside him, several imperial physicians hurried about, drenched in sweat with anxiety yet not daring to pause for even a moment. The heavy medicinal scent filling the hall constantly reminded everyone that the man residing within was gravely ill beyond cure.
By rights, at the emperor's age, Li Kun should have been in the full vigor of his prime. Even if he had been frail by nature, he should not have become like this. But several years ago, he had died in an accident, only to have his soul forcibly drawn into Blood Purgatory. Though he had ultimately returned to life, his body's essence and vital energy had suffered enormous losses, and even his soul had sustained considerable damage. Had Qiu Yan not intervened, he would likely have died long ago.
Even so, many hidden dangers remained afterward, and at most, he had only four or five years of lifespan left.
But an emperor was, after all, an emperor—the center of all mortal things beneath heaven. Seated at the root of Dragon Qi and governing the dynasty, he could gather the resources of the realm to nourish himself.
Thus, through the supplements of countless precious medicinal ingredients and even heavenly treasures, Li Kun's lifespan had been extended considerably. Not to mention that many of those medicines had been personally selected and cultivated by Qiu Yan, precisely tailored from the beginning to prolong the emperor's life.
Yet birth, aging, illness, and death were part of Heaven and Earth's Principle. Even cultivators who sought immortality and long life had to endure countless calamities,