Noble Consort Jing appeared in the doorway.

She stared wide-eyed, her gaze instantly shifting from anxiety to bewilderment. Clearly such a scene left her completely unable to react for a moment, frozen there.

But Murong Yi’s rigid spine relaxed slightly in an instant.

He remained silent, head lowered, looking at the dagger buried to its hilt.

Finally he withdrew his hand without pulling out the blade, slowly turning his head toward Noble Consort Jing.

Noble Consort Jing finally recovered from her tremendous shock. The bewilderment in her eyes gradually turned to despair and terror. She suddenly opened her mouth, about to scream.

A figure flashed, and Murong Yi had already appeared ghostlike before her, raising his hand to grasp her throat.

His blood immediately splattered Noble Consort Jing with red.

Noble Consort Jing could no longer make a sound. She stared at him in terror, reaching up to desperately claw at his hand, trying to pry it away, but how could she manage it?

Murong Yi felt as if ten thousand knives were stabbing and stirring in his mind, or as if red-hot branding irons were burning every inch of his muscles and bones, causing him such agony he wished for death.

Having endured the hardest hardships in the world since childhood, at this moment he wanted nothing more than a blade to end it all.

Countless noises clamored in his mind, but only one voice was clearest.

Whispering in his ear.

Kill her, kill her, then leave quickly. That way no one can accuse you of being the murderer.

Tie Ci is a clear-minded person who won’t easily misunderstand you. As long as you don’t stay here, as long as you’re not seen, the court ministers can’t accuse you. You’ll have a chance to explain, and Tie Ci won’t face pressure from the ministers because of this.

Kill her, kill her and there’s still a chance!

His bloodstained fingers trembled, constantly tightening.

Noble Consort Jing’s face turned from white to blue, from blue to purple. Her hands clawed weakly, her sharp fingernails scratching countless bloody marks on the back of Murong Yi’s hand.

Her eyes gradually widened, the light in them about to fade.

But at this moment Murong Yi slowly raised his eyes, looking into her eyes, his heart shaking.

Those were eyes extremely similar to Tie Ci’s.

Now opened wide, slightly tearful, reflecting his blood-soaked figure and cold gaze in their light.

Murong Yi was as if struck by lightning, suddenly releasing his grip.

Noble Consort Jing collapsed softly to the ground, covering her throat and coughing continuously.

Murong Yi leaned against the door frame and slid softly to the ground—one outside the threshold, one inside.

He lowered his head, looking at his still-bleeding wound, and said softly, “She has no father anymore…”

“She can’t lose her mother too…”

Someone walked over.

The hem of the cloak swept past broken walls and bloodstains, still unstained by dust.

Below the cloak, round pearls on phoenix-head shoes gleamed brightly.

Murong Yi leaned against the partition, slowly raising his head to look at the Empress Dowager walking over unhurriedly through the seemingly endless wind and snow.

So this old woman had been here all along.

Yet she watched coldly as he attacked Noble Consort Jing, neither shouting nor calling out.

Murong Yi’s gaze passed over her toward the vast central courtyard in the snow.

Tonight’s Chongming Palace seemed sealed, without sound or people. Everyone was trapped in nightmares, unable to struggle free.

When would they wake from the dream?

Perhaps they’d have to wait for Tie Ci to appear.

And he could no longer leave.

He coughed and laughed, each cough spraying pink foam.

The Empress Dowager walked over, helped up Noble Consort Jing, who leaned limply against her, not daring to open her eyes, tears streaming down.

The Empress Dowager snorted coldly, actually dragging her to step over Murong Yi and enter the hall.

Her luxurious dress hem brushed past Murong Yi, staining it a deep red.

Murong Yi didn’t move, head lowered, as if he had already fainted.

The Empress Dowager dragged Noble Consort Jing to Tie Yan’s corpse. Noble Consort Jing opened her eyes and let out a piercing scream.

“Your Majesty—”

She threw herself over, prostrating on Tie Yan’s corpse and weeping bitterly.

The Empress Dowager crouched beside her and said coldly, “What are you crying for? The murderer hasn’t been caught yet.”

Noble Consort Jing suddenly turned back, looking at Murong Yi by the door, and yanked out her hairpin to rise.

But the Empress Dowager said eerily behind her, “I’m not talking only about him.”

She rose, moved close to Noble Consort Jing, and whispered in her ear, “There’s also you.”

“…”

As if a long time had passed, yet as if only an instant.

Noble Consort Jing slowly turned her head, looking at the Empress Dowager in bewilderment. Her mouth opened but made no sound.

The Empress Dowager whispered with a smile by her ear.

“See the pustules on His Majesty’s face and neck?”

“It’s this thing that made him gradually weaken, made him contract a strange disease, made him want to abdicate early, made him so weak today that he could be cursed through walls without escape, until death.”

“Chongming Palace’s defenses are too tight, and he’s very wary. Murong Yi even more so. To cast spells on them, we could only work through walls, and only when Murong Yi was in a weakened state could we possibly succeed.”

“Do you know how many people, how many forces, spent how much time and effort on today’s situation?”

“Someone handled Tie Ci, someone handled Murong Yi, someone played weak, someone planted people, and I… was responsible for making you, this fool, infect the Emperor with that filthy thing.”

“It wasn’t poison, just a drug catalyst refined from a vile disease. Hidden in the whitening cream I gave you, letting you pass that thing to the Emperor bit by bit during your intimate moments.”

“Why didn’t you get sick? Of course you couldn’t be infected—Tie Ci would discover it quickly. So the antidote was hidden in your medicinal bath formula.”

“Tie Ci guards Chongming Palace like an iron barrel. Poisoning the Emperor directly was too difficult, so we had to work through you. After all, no matter who Tie Ci guards against, she can’t guard against her own mother.”

“Actually she did guard against you, but you were too worthless. Our brilliant Crown Princess surely never imagined that unable to enter Ciren Palace, you could still exchange whitening cream with me through the underground sewers.”

“Tell me, if Tie Ci discovers this disgusting thing on her Father Emperor, discovers this caused her Father Emperor’s weakness and made him vulnerable, discovers that you made her most beloved Father Emperor die dishonorably, how will she see you? How will she treat you?”

“From now on, even in death, you cannot be buried beside His Majesty!”

“Ah—”

A heart-rending scream pierced like a sharp sword through this murderous dark night.

Noble Consort Jing suddenly turned, staggered to her feet, ran two steps and tripped. Without looking, she scrambled up and rushed to the inner hall.

The Empress Dowager smiled coldly, rose, glanced at Tie Yan, glanced at Murong Yi who seemed also dead, then looked at this majestic imperial city covered in heavy snow.

Her eyes showed both hatred and satisfaction.

“So what if you laugh for a moment?”

“You’ll eventually learn that some people, some things in this world, cannot be blocked, cannot be endured, cannot be overcome.”

She stood quietly in the hall for a while, enjoying the intoxicating feeling of controlling the world.

She knew she was safe now.

At the palace gates, someone was restraining Tie Ci—of course, they would let her escape when the time came.

In the hall, someone held up barriers while others lurked within. Chongming Palace was sealed in wind, snow, and darkness. Until blood burst forth, no one would be alarmed.

The wind and snow poured straight into her chest at this moment—cold, yet fire burned in her heart.

Only when the subtle movements in the inner hall ceased did she slowly turn and walk in.

Something swayed gently from the rafters. A pale pink mandarin duck embroidered shoe had fallen to the ground.

On the writing desk, on the rice paper, a line of characters written in fresh blood, dripping red.

“Murong Yi murdered the Emperor!”

In a woman’s elegant script, yet written with killing intent and hatred.

The Empress Dowager stared at those five characters, mockery blooming at the corners of her lips.

“You’ve always been so selfish and cowardly.”

“Unable to bear such consequences, you choose death, yet fear taking blame for harming the Emperor, fear ruining your posthumous reputation. So regardless of everything, you want Murong Yi to bear it all.”

“But you won’t think how Tie Ci will endure this, how your only daughter will endure?”

“Tie Ci’s luck in having a mother like you is truly wonderful.”

“Of course, I’m happy to see it happen.”

She moved the documents on the desk to weigh down the paper, preventing it from being blown away. Without another glance at the figure in the rafters, she turned to leave.

Passing by Murong Yi, she paused, pursing her lips slightly, a flash of killing intent in her eyes.

But at this moment, someone stepped over the threshold, blocking her path.

The Empress Dowager looked up, her gaze flickering, and said softly, “Grand Chancellor.”

The much-aged man stood opposite her, giving her a half-smile but saying nothing, stepping aside to let her pass first.

The Empress Dowager stepped over the threshold, walked two steps then suddenly turned back, “Doesn’t the Grand Chancellor plan to take him away?”

“Naturally I must take him.” The old man said gently, “But now isn’t the time yet.”

He smiled.

“We must wait for the young couple to meet and completely break apart.”

The Empress Dowager’s lips curved stiffly, and she quickly descended the steps.

The old man bent down, feeling around in Murong Yi’s chest, pulling out a small box. Opening it revealed a black pill inside.

“Indeed he didn’t take it,” he said softly. “Even in such circumstances, he held back from taking it.”

“The Great King will be very pleased.”

“His heir is sufficiently resolute and strong. Having endured such harm and temptation, he won’t fear being controlled by anything in the future.”

“However…”

He smiled, stuffing the pill into Murong Yi’s mouth.

“I pity you, so I’ll give it to you anyway.”

“After all, as a minister, having too powerful a master isn’t a good thing.”

…

Tie Ci had teleported seventeen times.

The first few times were manageable, but when she reached the Imperial Garden, she felt something crack inside her body. The reverse flow that had long lurked in her dantian surged upward, almost instantly rushing through the twelve major acupoints. Her entire body’s qi and blood boiled, bringing a sweet metallic taste to her throat.

She slowly swallowed it down, then again.

Again.

By the fifth swallow, and the twelfth teleportation, Tie Ci staggered onto a stretch of glazed tiles. Her foot stepped through with a crack, shattering a large area of tiles.

Something immediately attacked in the darkness.

Cold, and so fast that wherever it passed, the black fog churned, revealing a trace of white airflow.

That was snow from outside.

Tie Ci neither attacked nor lingered, flashing again.

This time she heard a scream right on her intended path.

Not good—about to collide with someone.

Carrying black fog at this moment, whoever she hit would surely die.

Without thinking, Tie Ci forcibly twisted her body and flashed consecutively again.

This time when she landed, her legs gave way and she fell into knee-deep snow. Looking down, bright red splashed across the snow.

A thunderous sound within her body—that familiar feeling of waves crashing and reverse currents rushing through major acupoints came again. In an instant, the reverse flow coursed through the twelve major acupoints once more, but unlike before, this time was more painful, as if countless small knives scraped backward through her meridians. On her skin, meridians protruded visibly.

Tie Ci struggled to take a breath, wondering what ability had been unlocked this time.

Since understanding that unlocking innate abilities brought her no benefit, she had locked away her powers. There had never been any danger that forced her to fight with everything she had. She hadn’t expected that today, once opened, it would be at the end of her rope.

Sang Tang’s true ability was too unreasonable. Actually, even in direct combat, she might not be so embarrassed. But Sang Tang didn’t need to appear at all, forcibly trapping her there where her martial skills couldn’t be deployed.

But obviously, the more unreasonable the ability, the more limitations it had. Just as she couldn’t easily use teleportation, Sang Tang’s night-like power surely couldn’t be maintained for long.

At least now, though she was embarrassed, Sang Tang’s mass of darkness was shrinking, its lethality weakening. When encountering people, it no longer drew them in.

Tie Ci waited a while. After suppressing the pain in her internal organs, she didn’t feel any changes in herself.

The palace gates weren’t far away. She took a breath, about to continue.

Suddenly her heart began beating violently, chaotic and uncontrolled.

She turned around abruptly, looking toward Chongming Palace through the darkness.

…

Murong Yi slowly awakened.

Almost the instant he woke, the excruciating pain throughout his body nearly made him faint again.

His teeth bit into his lip until it bled, using that moment’s shock to suppress the terrifying waves of agony.

Then he realized that although still painful, the maddening discomfort that had plagued his body earlier had subsided considerably.

There was still no one around, and Noble Consort Jing was gone too.

Murong Yi’s vision kept going black, unable to think clearly. He struggled to crawl up, wanting to step over the threshold.

He knew escape wasn’t a good solution, but people would likely come soon. He couldn’t stay here and put Tie Ci in a passive position.

However, his legs couldn’t even cross the one-foot-high threshold.

He had suffered worse injuries than today before, but had never been so weak.

He smiled bitterly.

Closed his eyes.

If he truly couldn’t leave.

Then dying by her hand, dying beside her, would be acceptable too.

Suddenly there was a thud from the inner hall, like something hitting the wall.

He turned back.

Wind and snow poured through the broken wall opening, blowing apart the bead curtains with rustling sounds.

A figure swayed gently in the air.

His pupils dilated slightly.

For an instant, he thought—so blood could turn cold in a flash, so despair could deepen layer by layer.

But then dense pain rose from his heart like a tide threatening to drown him. He began trembling slightly—headache, nausea, all his blood seeming to rush to his throat, ready to spray out in an instant.

In the spinning dizziness, one thought suddenly emerged.

No.

He couldn’t let Tie Ci see this.

He couldn’t let her see her mother hanging after seeing her father’s corpse.

He couldn’t be so cruel.

He could no longer salvage today’s situation, nor could he imagine what Tie Ci would face. But if he could make things even slightly better for Tie Ci, even just a little bit.

He would do it even unto death.

He struggled up, supporting himself against the wall, the screen, the stool, moving along.

Everywhere he passed—walls, screens, stools—were stained with blood traces.

Finally he reached Noble Consort Jing’s feet, pulled over a stool, and with difficulty climbed up to take her down.

Lacking strength to hold the body, he pulled Noble Consort Jing’s corpse down with him as he fell.

He struggled to push Noble Consort Jing’s body aside, his fingers twitching as he pulled away the white silk.

Just then.

Wind whistled sharply.

Chongming Palace, sealed like under a spell, seemed to awaken instantly.

Voices, shouts, footsteps, sounds of clashing blades—all erupted and pressed closer.

Murong Yi listened intently but didn’t hear Tie Ci’s footsteps.

Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief.

The next moment, bells chimed rapidly, bead curtains swept up and crashed against the wall.

A figure stood between the inner and outer halls.

Before her, Noble Consort Jing’s corpse was visible.

Behind her lay Tie Yan, long dead.

She stood between them.

She was Tie Ci.