Marking Each Other, Final Farewell

"Xiao Li, why are you here? I..."

"What, you were leaving without even saying goodbye to us? So you never considered us family after all? That really hurts me."

The moment Tang Li's faintly regretful tone reached Na'er's ears, the tears she had held back for so long finally spilled over. Na'er rushed forward and hugged Tang Li tightly.

Crystal tears soaked Tang Li's clothes in an instant. Choking back sobs, Na'er said, "It's not like that, Xiao Li! Na'er never thought that way! Na'er doesn't want to leave you either!"

Tang Li gently patted Na'er's back, his voice carrying its usual warmth.

"Then why didn't you say goodbye if you couldn't bear to leave? Do you know how much Wulin cares about you? If you disappeared without a word, she would be heartbroken."

"I can't bear to leave you and Sister Wulin either, or Father and Mother. But I have to go. I can't drag you down with me. I have my own fate to face. Xiao Li, I have no choice..."

Na'er's voice was full of reluctance. She did not want to leave this warm home either. She had so many wonderful memories here, and every day she had spent with her family had been happy.

"I understand, but think carefully. If you leave this time, then when we meet again, we may already be strangers!"

Tang Li still spoke as though coaxing a child. He knew Gu Yue could not forcibly merge Na'er's portion of consciousness unless Na'er willingly became one with her.

At that, Na'er held him even tighter, afraid that Tang Li would forget her the moment she let go.

"No! Na'er doesn't want that! Xiao Li, you definitely won't forget Na'er, right?"

"Who can say for sure what will happen in the future? But if Na'er is willing, Brother can put a mark on you. Then, no matter how far apart we are, Brother will be able to sense you. Are you willing?"

At last, after all that preparation, Tang Li revealed his true purpose.

Naturally, he had not run out in the middle of the night merely to say goodbye to Na'er. As long as he left a mark on her, even Gu Yue, the Silver Dragon King, would never be able to do anything to Na'er.

"If you mark me, you won't forget Na'er? Na'er is willing!"

Na'er did not hesitate for even a second before agreeing. She believed Tang Li would never hurt her.

"Good! Demon-Sealing Pot, rise!" Tang Li shouted softly. The mouth of the Demon-Sealing Pot above his head released a dense ball of dark cyan light.

That light contained a core imprint of the Demon-Sealing Pot. Once someone fused with this imprint, they would carry a trace of the Demon-Sealing Pot's divine might. That faint divine might alone was enough to subdue all demons, fiends, and spirits.

With Tang Li's current status as the master of the Demon-Sealing Pot, he could at most separate a single imprint. This imprint was also one of the abilities he had gained after his Soul Power cultivation reached level thirty.

Now, giving this imprint to Na'er was his way of giving her protection.

Under the moonlight, the dark cyan ball of light slowly merged into Na'er's brow. The dazzling radiance transformed into an ancient, mysterious imprint engraved upon her forehead.

This imprint bore an uncanny resemblance to the ancient inscriptions on the Demon-Sealing Pot and was exceedingly profound.

After separating this imprint, the Demon-Sealing Pot immediately withdrew into Tang Li's body. Tang Li's aura weakened with it, and his face turned pale as gold paper. His body swayed, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.

Na'er quickly caught Tang Li. She helped him sit on a patch of Blue Silver Grass, carefully wiped the sweat from his forehead, and spoke with deep distress.

"Xiao Li, you didn't have to go this far. Na'er will be fine."

The instant she fused with the imprint, Na'er understood its purpose and Tang Li's painstaking intentions.

Though she did not know exactly what Tang Li knew, none of that mattered to her. She would soon seal all those memories deep within her heart. Even Gu Yue would never learn of those sealed memories!

"You're my little sister. When you're out there, safety comes first. Since I can't stay by your side as your brother, I naturally have to find a way to protect you."

Tang Li was incredibly weak, but his gaze toward Na'er remained as gentle as ever.

"All right, go find your subordinates. I'll just rest here for a while."

Na'er shook her head. She knelt on the grass and let Tang Li rest against her legs. Beneath the bright moonlight, Na'er's body rapidly matured, and within a few breaths, she had become a woman with a graceful figure.

Silver splendor mingled with moonlight, becoming her clothes and covering her delicate body.

Tang Li could barely keep his eyes open by then. The weakness in his Spiritual Power left him unbearably drowsy, and he did not notice Na'er's transformation at all.

Na'er's movements were exceedingly gentle, as if she were handling a fragile porcelain treasure. She carefully leaned down and "placed a mark" on Tang Li's forehead as well.

A silver dragon pattern gleaming with seven-colored rainbow light was left between Tang Li's brows with Na'er's kiss. Under the frosty moonlight, it silently merged into Tang Li's body.

As the kiss fell, the stabbing pain in Tang Li's mind gradually calmed. Na'er gently massaged the pressure points on his head, and before long, Tang Li fell into a deep sleep.

After an unknown amount of time, a tall purple-haired woman with an extraordinary presence stepped out of the shadows. When she saw a human man resting on Na'er's lap, killing intent flashed through her eyes before vanishing. She respectfully said,

"Miss, it is time for us to leave."

How could that trace of killing intent possibly escape Na'er's senses? Her slender hand brushed over Tang Li's face, and with a flash of silver light, Tang Li was teleported back to his room.

The instant Tang Li disappeared, the tenderness in Na'er's eyes turned icy. Her sharp gaze, like a blade, fixed on the purple-haired woman.

"I don't need you to tell me what I should do!"

"Miss, my lord's divine might cannot be defiled by mortals. Even if that mortal escapes disaster today, he will surely one day... Urgh!"

Before Zi JI could finish speaking, Na'er had already appeared before her. An indescribable pressure filled Na'er's purple eyes as space condensed into an invisible giant hand that seized Zi JI.

"I have already bestowed my blessing upon him. Nothing that happens here can escape my eyes. If anything happens to him, then you will be swept into history's garbage heap along with the hope of the Soul Beast race!"

Zi JI's True Dragon body creaked beneath Na'er's invisible hand. She had the strange illusion that this incarnation of her lord before her possessed an even more terrifying pressure than her lord herself.

This terrifying majesty, like heaven and abyss collapsing together, could never possibly belong to an incarnation possessing only thirty percent of her lord's origin!

"Miss, you..."

"For the sake of you being one of the few remaining True Dragons in this age, I will spare your life. But while you may escape death, you will not escape punishment."

With that, Na'er raised a hand toward Zi JI and tapped the air several times. Strands of silver light entered Zi JI's body, transforming into silver threads that drilled into her Spirit Sea and altered this portion of her memories into what Na'er wanted.

Then, Na'er took one final look at the little home where she had lived for three years. After softly saying goodbye, she left with Zi JI.

In the room, Tang Li slept soundly...