I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

Su Yao paused slightly. She carefully recalled the conversation in the square and realized that Qin Yuan was right—every time the details of identity and integration were mentioned, the gray-robed old man would pick up the gourd.

"What is he hiding?"

"I don't know." Qin Yuan picked up the black crystal and placed it in his palm. "But I won't give it to him until he gets his hands on it."

Night falls.

Qin Yuan sat alone on the edge of the cliff at Guanlan Peak, his bone blade resting across his knees. The moon peeked through the clouds, its light illuminating the blade and revealing the dense, intricate patterns on it. More than twenty-three million. He couldn't quite remember the exact number; he only remembered that with each swing, each slash, a new pattern would appear on the blade.

Faint footsteps echoed from the bamboo forest behind her. Qin Yuan didn't turn around; she knew who it was just by the sound of the footsteps—the left foot was slightly heavier than the right, showing signs of a fracture that had healed. In the sealed palace dungeon, her left foot had been broken by chains.

"Su Yao said you're not allowed to get out of bed for three days, and today is the second day," Qin Yuan said.

"She doesn't have the final say." Yan Yue walked to his side and sat down, leaning on her wooden cane. Her movements were slow, and every time she bent her knee, she gasped in pain, but she still managed to sit down, side by side with Qin Yuan on the edge of the cliff, their feet dangling over a bottomless abyss.

Under the moonlight, her profile was pale yet defiant. Years ago, atop the imperial city of the Great Yan Dynasty, she wore the same expression, standing before Qin Yuan, facing the vast army of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

"While I was in the dungeon, I kept thinking about something." Yan Yue didn't look at him, but gazed at the bamboo forest in the distance. Her voice was much softer than usual. "If I died in there, would you even know I was dead?"

Qin Yuan's fingers paused on the bone blade for a moment.

"Yes," he said.

"how long?"

"soon."

Yan Yue's lips curved slightly, but the curve was so small that it was almost invisible in the moonlight.

"In the dungeon, when that thing was going through my memories, I wasn't actually afraid of what secrets it would discover," Yan Yue's voice continued. "What I was afraid of was something else. I was afraid that after it found my memories, it would realize that I wasn't important to you. Then it wouldn't use me to threaten you; I wouldn't even have any value as a hostage."

She paused.

"Later I found out it was happy after going through my memories, so I was relieved."

Qin Yuan remained silent for a long time.

Yan Yue fell silent. She simply sat quietly beside him, her feet dangling over the edge of the cliff, feeling the night wind brush against her face. It had been a long time since she had felt such a breeze. There was no wind in the dungeon of the Heavenly Mystery Sect, only the stench of surging demonic energy.

"The Ninth Princess of the Great Yan Dynasty," Qin Yuan suddenly spoke.

Yan Yue was stunned for a moment: "What?"

"That status is very prestigious." Qin Yuan turned to look at her. His expression remained calm in the moonlight, but there was a subtle change in his tone. "But to me, who you are is not important. It's enough that you are Yan Yue."

Yan Yue's eyes immediately reddened.

She kept her head down, not wanting Qin Yuan to see her expression. The moonlight cast her shadow on the rocks at the edge of the cliff, and the shadow's shoulders trembled slightly.

"Qin Yuan," she said.

"Um."

"You're the kind of person who really makes people want to punch you."

Qin Yuan's lips twitched, but he didn't say anything.

Yan Yue took a deep breath, forced back her tears, then raised her head and resumed her cold expression.

"Once this is over, I need to return to the Great Yan Dynasty. My father's health is poor, and my brother, the Crown Prince, can't manage the court alone. I have to go back and help him." She paused, "After dealing with matters in court..."

She didn't finish speaking, but Qin Yuan understood.

"The Guixu Hall is very large," Qin Yuan said. "It has many empty rooms."

Yan Yue paused for a moment, then chuckled softly. It wasn't a cold laugh, nor a bitter laugh; it was a genuine laugh. When she laughed, her eyes curved upwards, softening her cold and aloof demeanor considerably.

"I never said I was going to live in the Guixu Palace."

"Then let's stay at the Heavenly Sword Holy Land," Qin Yuan said. "The Sword Maniac owes me a favor, so it won't be difficult to get him to vacate a peak."

"you--"

Enraged, Yan Yue raised her wooden cane to hit him, but she slipped and nearly fell off the cliff. Qin Yuan reached out and caught her around the waist, pulling her back.

Yan Yue's face was only a palm's distance from Qin Yuan's. In the moonlight, she could clearly see the emotions in Qin Yuan's eyes. Beneath that unchanging calm, there was some unease.

"You're worried about that old man," Yan Yue said.

"Um."

How worried are you?

"I'm more worried about it than about demons."

Yan Yue fell silent. The Qin Yuan she knew, the Qin Yuan who would never flinch in front of anyone, was expressing concern for the Chaos Elder. This meant that the Chaos Elder was far more dangerous than the Demon God.

"So what do you plan to do?" Yan Yue asked.

"Let's see what he wants in three days." Qin Yuan released her hand, helping her sit up straight. "If all he wants is the Chaos Core, I'll make demands. But if he wants more than just the Chaos Core—"

He didn't finish speaking, but Yan Yue saw the answer in his eyes.

Three days later, at dawn, the gray-robed old man appeared on time at Jian Ge Square.

He changed into a cleaner gray robe—still gray—and combed his hair a little, so he didn't look so slovenly. The purple gourd was still hanging at his waist, swaying gently with his steps.

Qin Yuan was already waiting in the square. The seven women and Yan Yue stood behind him, while Jian Chi led the core disciples of the Heavenly Sword Holy Land in formation to his side. The atmosphere in the entire Sword Pavilion Square was even more solemn than when they first met.

"Three days have passed." The gray-robed elder looked at Qin Yuan with a smile. "Have you made up your mind?"

"I've made up my mind." Qin Yuan took out a black crystal from his robes and held it in his palm. "I can give you the Chaos Core, but on a few conditions."

"Speak."

"First, answer one question," Qin Yuan said, "Who exactly are you?"

The old man in the gray robe sighed, picked the purple gourd, and took a sip.

"You insist on asking this." He wiped his mouth. "Fine. My name was 'Yuan Chu' at the beginning of chaos. Chaos Elder and Ancient Desolate Man are aliases I used later. The Seven Goddesses called me the Source of Chaos, and the Demon God called me the Other Half of Chaos. I was the first being to possess self-awareness at the beginning of chaos. Later, chaos split off into a chaotic side, which is what you call the Demon God. It wanted to devour everything, and I couldn't stop it. I could only transform the power of the orderly side into the Nine Transformations of Chaos, searching for someone who could inherit it."

"Why did you choose me?" Qin Yuan asked.

"Because you're ruthless enough." The gray-robed elder—Yuan Chu—grinned. "The Nine Transformations of Chaos isn't something a soft-hearted person can master. You fought your way up from an outer disciple, and the blood on your hands is more than I've ever seen. But you're not a mindless killer. You're ruthless to your enemies, ruthless to your own people, and even more ruthless to yourself. This kind of person is best suited for the Nine Transformations of Chaos. And as it turns out, I wasn't wrong about you."