"Are you still going to come at me?" At this moment, aside from the skirt that still preserved a semblance of her original appearance, the clothing on Chu Lian's arms and back had been torn open. Wounds crisscrossed her body, blood flowing freely. Holding Cold Beauty in hand, she stared straight at the ghosts before her and asked softly.
"Leave..." To her surprise, after the brutal clash, most of the ghosts had perished. The few remaining did not step forward to attack her again, even though she was already covered in wounds.
Those Heaven-rank ghosts who had been watching from the sidelines and only occasionally launched attacks exchanged glances. Then a female ghost with long hair covering her face stepped forward and spoke to her.
"Alright." Chu Lian lowered Cold Beauty, holding it loosely as she walked forward. Though the ghosts still harbored intense killing intent, under the strict control of the Heaven-rank ghosts, they could only abandon the idea of attacking again. Reluctantly, they opened a path for her to leave.
"That girl... she may become our mistress in the future. To possess such strength at this age—how high will her achievements be? It's just a pity... she's too sentimental. Otherwise, she wouldn't have ended up like this." The long-haired female ghost shook her head and sighed, looking at Chu Lian's retreating figure with a hint of pity.
"We're all bound here by him anyway. None of us are free, so why think so much?" Another ghost couldn't be bothered with such thoughts. Suppressing his own urge to kill was already difficult enough—he had no energy for anything else.
Still, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly. If she returned after growing stronger, she might be able to free them all from this place instead of leaving them trapped here.
"I've arrived..." Following the main road forward, Chu Lian finally stopped before a luxurious mansion resembling the residence of nobility. Looking at the tightly closed gates, she spoke.
"That's beyond my expectations. None of the obstacles seemed to trouble you much?" The ghost cultivator's voice rang out once more, though he did not appear. Clearly, he was waiting for her here.
"For the sake of someone I care about, what does any of that matter?" Chu Lian smiled faintly. At this point, when everything felt futile, she chose to smile—using that smile to bring her back.
"Haha, well said. Unfortunately, this will be the last time you cling to your pride. Become my wife, Xiang Yu. Once you know my identity and strength, you won't say you're unworthy anymore, will you?"
His voice carried no expectation, no joy—barely any emotion at all. Rather than a question, it sounded more like a command. She had no choice but to comply.
"Is that so..." Chu Lian gently pushed open the door, which had already cracked open slightly. Cold Beauty in her hand transformed into a blade-jade and wrapped around her wrist. At this point, fighting held no meaning.
Creaaak... The wooden gates let out a drawn-out groan as they opened. Chu Lian's figure slowly appeared before the two people seated in the main hall. Though the distance was only a hundred meters, it felt like an insurmountable chasm awaiting her.
"So it has come to this..." Li Xiu'er could not see Chu Lian, but she knew—she had come. She had come to save her.
"So this is the end... Why didn't you run? As long as you didn't come, he couldn't harm you. Nether City is both his domain and his prison—you must have realized that... yet you still came..." Li Xiu'er said nothing. Words felt pale and powerless. She could only blame her silently in her heart.
Compared to someone insignificant like herself, Chu Lian was far more important. Why would she do this? Didn't she know she carried the hopes of so many people? If she were completely bound here, everything would be over.
Her dreams, their dreams—even her own—would all end in failure.
If you can't leave here, have you thought about how they would feel? Though I would be happy to live and die with you, that's not what I truly want... because that would be too selfish.
Lowering her head, only she understood her own feelings. She made no movement, said nothing—as if she didn't care that Chu Lian had entered.
"It won't take long now. Come—my wife. Once I've enjoyed both of you, I'll achieve the supreme path and leave this place. As for those fools from the Li family—what they want? Hah, I'll just toss them something and be done with it. If they dare ask for more, I'll wipe out their entire bloodline. To think they'd try to use this favor to threaten me... how foolish."
Watching Chu Lian approach step by step, the ghost cultivator grew increasingly excited. That was Xiang Yu—the former number one beauty in the world, once the dream of countless men across the three realms. And soon, she would belong to him.
"Given the situation, there's only one way left to leave..." Chu Lian thought. One hand hidden behind her back now held a fan. All she could do was pray that she would come.
Within the dimensional space, in a certain world, a blonde girl who had been sleeping suddenly opened her eyes, revealing a playful smile. "Oh? It seems the girl has encountered a life-or-death situation. Interesting, interesting. The killing intent on that little one is quite heavy—no less than some great demons who've lived for thousands of years. Looks like she's quite promising. Though her temperament is a bit too twisted... still, it might be fun to go take a look."
"While I'm at it, I might as well save her. Then I can go play in her world—it'll be far less boring than this. Life in Gensokyo is just too peaceful." Yawning, the blonde girl stretched out her arms clad in white lace gloves, tore open a gap in space, held her parasol, and leapt inside.
"What's wrong? Not happy about becoming my wife? But I'm very pleased. To obtain you—how many people could only dream of it?" Standing before him, Chu Lian, barely 1.4 meters tall, looked pitifully small compared to the ghost cultivator, who stood over 1.7 meters.
He lifted her delicate chin with his fan, gazing into her stubborn eyes. He felt both fondness and satisfaction.
"I'm sorry, but I'm here to take Xiu'er away—not to waste words with you." Chu Lian shook her head, brushing aside the teasing motion of his fan. Then she turned to Li Xiu'er and said gently, "Xiu'er, let's go home."
"Chu Lian..." Removing her bridal veil, Li Xiu'er—dressed in wedding attire with light makeup—revealed trembling long lashes and soft, crimson lips like blooming petals. She looked at her quietly, her gaze filled with tenderness.
"Mhm... let's go home..." Chu Lian walked over, took Li Xiu'er's small hand, and felt its icy coldness. She knew—her soul had already become the same ghostly form as these spirits. But she did not give up. It would work. It had to.
"You two... are you really ignoring me like this?" If this had been after he had already taken both girls, he would have enjoyed such a scene.
But the problem was, he hadn't obtained either of them—he hadn't even touched them. Their current attitude was nothing short of treating him as if he didn't exist.
He had never been a patient man. By nature, he was violent and irritable. After becoming a ghost cultivator, that temperament had only worsened. It was only because he hadn't been angered for thousands of years that he had appeared so calm at first.
Yet the scene Chu Lian and Li Xiu'er were acting out together had completely enraged him.
"Hmph. It seems I need to teach you a lesson so you remember who you're dealing with." He snapped his fan shut and raised his hand, intending to slap both Chu Lian and Li Xiu'er.
At that very moment, a crack filled with countless eyes suddenly opened above his head. Before he could even react, a blonde girl in a purple dress, holding a parasol, stepped out and crushed him beneath her foot.
"Hi there, little girl. Long time no see. Did you miss me? Otherwise, why would you call for me?" Yukari Yakumo waved with a smile, as if she hadn't even noticed she was stepping on someone.
"Yukari-nee, long time no see. I'll have to trouble you again this time." Chu Lian didn't hide her intentions. She believed the girl before her would understand everything.
"Well, I was feeling a bit stiff from sleeping, so I came out to stretch a little. Didn't expect to end up in such a gloomy place—I really don't like it." As she spoke, she casually opened a gap in the sky and said to Chu Lian, "Go on, leave. I've already removed the restrictions binding you here. As for your abnormal condition, you'll have to deal with that yourself."
"Thank you..." Chu Lian truly had nothing to offer in return—aside from those words, she found herself unable to say anything more. Grasping the somewhat stunned Li Xiu'er's hand—the girl who had already believed she would never return—Chu Lian stomped the ground and shot toward the sky. She would... she would definitely regain her freedom.
"Argh! You've infuriated me to death! You old hag—get off me this instant!" As Yukari Yakumo smiled and watched Chu Lian and Li Xiu'er's departing figures, a furious roar erupted from beneath her foot.
Being inexplicably stepped on, and then having his two destined brides escape—how could he not be enraged?
Once the restraints placed by Yukari Yakumo disappeared, he immediately scrambled out from beneath her boot. Looking at her, then up at the two girls about to escape, his expression turned extremely ugly.
"You forced my hand! Master, lend me your strength!" From what had just happened, he knew he couldn't defeat Yukari Yakumo—but that didn't mean he would allow the two girls to escape, nor would he let this woman who dared to step on him go unpunished.
"Old hag..." Yukari Yakumo's expression darkened the moment he uttered those words. Now, hearing him again, her violet eyes widened abruptly, and a strange smile appeared on her face—half anger, half cruelty.
"Xiu'er!" Yukari Yakumo's composure shattered, but Chu Lian and Li Xiu'er's danger had not yet passed.
The moment the ghost cultivator cried out for his master, a giant hand formed from dark clouds appeared in the sky, smashing down toward Chu Lian and the others.
Seeing the incoming attack, Chu Lian decisively pulled Xiu'er into her arms and turned her back to take the blow. Blood burst from her mouth, splattering across Li Xiu'er's face and leaving the girl completely stunned.
Fortunately, Chu Lian had positioned herself perfectly. After taking the hit, the force propelled their bodies straight into the closing gap. In an instant, they vanished from Nether City, leaving behind a furious roar echoing in the sky: "Damn it...!"
"It seems that if I don't get serious, you'll all think I'm easy to bully." Chu Lian and the others had left, but Yukari Yakumo remained. Looking at the figure descending from the sky and the ghost cultivator laughing madly, she made the first move...