These fairies want me to deal with them every day.

"why?"

"Because I'm not sure if the next one... can do what I have."

What a clever...yet somewhat foolish girl. PS: This chapter was really difficult to write; it nearly drove me crazy, but thankfully I managed to sort it out. I hope you can understand it since it's written so clearly. This is also a major theme that runs throughout the entire book. Headache.

24 Are you serious?!

"came back?"

Ye Bingluan slept for a while, but didn't fall asleep completely.

Perhaps it was just a light sleep, but when she opened her eyes in bed, she saw the handsome young man sitting opposite her, lost in thought, seemingly pondering something.

She had to admit that the scene was beautiful; the boy's very existence seemed to be a manifestation of beauty.

It seemed that Ye Bingluan could sense the unique aura of a so-called immortal from him.

It seems that lying tenderly in bed, gazing at his face, is enough to pass the boring days.

However, she was not in the mood to appreciate it in the current situation. Perhaps she was more concerned about the ten miles of peach blossoms in the Shang Kingdom than about the breathtaking beauty of a young immortal.

So she spoke up and broke the silence.

Wei Tu snapped out of his daze, glanced at Ye Bingluan, and then nodded.

"Ah."

"Any clues?"

Ye Bingluan thought for a moment and asked.

Wei Tu chuckled. "If I found a clue just by going out, wouldn't that make you look incredibly embarrassed?"

Ye Bingluan frowned. "Do you think I still care about these things now?"

Indeed, the girl's body was covered in bloodstains, and even her clothes were stained with blood. If an empress doesn't even care about her demeanor, what else could she care about?

Wei Tu smiled and then pointed behind the screen.

"I've boiled some water for you, and there are some clothes you can change into on the screen. You can wash up first, and we can talk while you wash."

"you……"

Ye Bingluan suddenly thought of a bad scenario. Although she felt that the other party might not mean that, and there was no ambiguity, she still felt that this ambiguity was already growing, and growing at an inopportune time.

Wei Tu understood what she was thinking, so he said, "Don't worry, I don't mean anything by it. It's a medicinal bath inside, which will have a good effect on your wounds."

Ye Bingluan thought about it and decided not to be coy. The feeling of her body being sticky with scabbed blood was indeed unpleasant.

So she moved to get out of bed.

Then suddenly I remembered something.

"My leg..." she said, but she had already stood up.

There was an awkward moment, then she saw the boy's smiling face.

Instantly, Ye Bingluan blushed uncontrollably.

"..."

She quickly walked towards the screen, not even glancing at her own long, beautiful legs, which seemed to have been lost and then regained.

The boy's laughter came from behind.

"Hey, a dignified empress like you, and you don't even say thank you?"

Ye Bingluan almost tripped and fell; anyone who didn't know better would have thought she was unsteady on her feet because the facilities weren't compatible.

A while later...

slam-la-

The water in the bathtub rippled gently, reflecting the flawless white skin of a young girl.

It cannot be described as flawless, because it has at least too many bloody scars.

But now, under the baptism of the medicinal bath, the scars resembled alluring tattoos.

Her full breasts were partially visible above and below the water's surface, and strands of hair gently clung to her fair neck.

Looking at her reflection in the water, Ye Bingluan felt that she shouldn't have been born so beautiful. Although no woman doesn't love beauty, for the first time she felt that beauty might be the most useless thing to her, or the most useful thing.

One is what you think, and the other is what others think.

Ye Bingluan raised her head slightly, gently stretched out her palm, cupped a pool of water and splashed it on her neck. The crystal-clear water droplets slid smoothly down her slender neck and slid down her delicate collarbone.

Then it gradually disappeared into the snow-white valley.

She felt a little uneasy, because she knew that there was a man who was only separated from her by a screen.

What did you do while you were out?

It felt more awkward to remain silent than to speak, because you had no idea what the other person was doing or what they were going to do, so Ye Bingluan simply spoke up.

She wasn't a particularly effeminate woman.

Wei Tu's voice came from behind the screen.

"I went out for a walk to see if there was any exit from the array's core."

"Did you find it?"

"Of course not."

Ye Bingluan wasn't too disappointed; this was indeed within her expectations.

Those two must be people who aren't even afraid of immortals, so how could they have left such a big flaw? Besides, this boy... is just a boy about the same age as me.

Perhaps the hope was never great to begin with; it was just something we imposed upon ourselves.

"Oh...right, I haven't asked the immortal master's name yet."

Ye Bingluan spoke calmly, seemingly unaffected by the situation.

Like everything else in this dead city, there is no sunlight, and it's unclear when dawn will break.

Wei Tu could also hear the indifference in the other person's words.

"No need to call me Immortal Master, just call me Wei Tu. And don't think I'm some kind of great power who can reverse aging, I'm just an ordinary disciple of the Yuanjian Sect."

Wei Tu said casually.

Ye Bingluan couldn't relax at all, but the gentle warmth of the water enveloped her, making her feel quite languid and comfortable.

"Is that so...? Why did Young Master Wei from the Yuanjian Sect come?"

"I don't know, maybe they're busy and don't have time."

"Perhaps they just don't think it's a big deal."

Although Wei Tu said that, Ye Bingluan wasn't stupid and could guess some of it.

Wei Tu smiled.

"The affairs of the mortal world are insignificant to the Immortal Continent. Don't think that so-called immortal masters are worthy of respect. Cultivators are nothing special. Apart from their different lifestyles, they are also selfish and have desires."

Why does he have to bring up lust... Is he implying something to me?

Ye Bingluan was somewhat annoyed, but she didn't show it. Instead, she said...

"Actually, I also thought about cultivating immortality when I was a child."

"Oh? Is that so?"

Wei Tu gave a casual reply.

Ye Bingluan could tell that the other person's words were perfunctory, but she didn't care. In this situation, people might just need to say something, regardless of how long they had known each other. It was better to say it than to keep it to themselves, especially since there might never be another chance to say it.

"Yes. Because I am a woman. When I was a child, I felt that power would have nothing to do with me. I didn't even dare to think about ascending the throne. I had heard some things about you immortals, so I had this idea and almost succeeded."

"Oh, you're my betrothed junior sister?"

Wei Tu said casually, but in reality, he was multitasking, thinking about every detail of his entry into Jiuyang City while listening to the other party's reply.

However, Ye Bingluan found this casualness rather strange.

What the heck is this "unmarried junior sister" thing...? Isn't there only such a thing as an unmarried wife...?

Ye Bingluan frowned.

"It might not necessarily be the Yuanjian Sect. It could be another immortal sect."

"Oh. Do you want to achieve immortality, or do you want to become an invincible female knight-errant or sword immortal?"

Wei Tu asked with a smile, looking at the figure that was faintly visible behind the screen.

Actually, there was no spring scenery at all, after all, there was such a big bathtub.

It's better to imagine it than nothing.

It's much prettier than the dark sky outside this window.

Ye Bingluan shook her head.

"I just think it'll be fun. It should be more fun than the palace, since the most boring place in the world is probably the palace, right?"

"Why do I feel that way? For ordinary people, the imperial family is something they wouldn't even dare to dream of."

"Ha ha……"

Ye Bingluan smiled and then said, "What's so good about being in the royal family? Besides, as a woman, your fate is really just a little bit of power to command others. In the future, you still can't escape being a means and tool for peace between countries through marriage. You have no freedom at all. You're even worse off than a caged bird."

Hearing the sarcasm in the girl's mouth, Wei Tu knew that this was indeed the reality for most women in imperial families.

"But you're doing really well now, you've even become the emperor, who can control your thoughts?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Bingluan retorted irritably, "Do you really think I'm doing so well right now?"

Wei Tu thought for a moment.

"At least we're in the same situation, you should feel comforted, even honored."

"Honor? Just because you and I are stuck in the same place?"