Liao Tingyan alternated between playing dead and acting coquettish, finally managing to soften her half-crazed ancestor’s resolve.

He fixed her with that terrifyingly intense gaze for a moment, his eyebrows moving almost imperceptibly before bending down to lift her into his arms. Liao Tingyan knew he had given up on forcing her to take revenge with her own hands, and she relaxed, placing her hand gently on her stomach while drawing in a sharp breath. The pain was genuine, not pretended.

In this world, perhaps someday when forced into a desperate situation with no way out, she might kill someone for self-preservation. But under current circumstances, being forced to kill with someone guiding her hand—she would not comply.

Of course, this was mainly because the person pressuring her now could be considered someone she was quite intimate with. She knew clearly he wouldn’t truly harm her, so she felt secure enough to act spoiled and coquettish.

Although her technique wasn’t practiced, it proved effective nonetheless.

Sima Jiao carried Liao Tingyan over to where Yue Chuhui stood. Yue Chuhui grew increasingly terrified and began to cry out, “Spare me! Don’t kill me! I’m the Young Mistress of the Moon Palace! If you release me, my mother will give you many precious treasures—Heaven-grade cultivation techniques, spiritual weapons, and elixirs, anything you want!”

She was immobilized by Sima Jiao’s power, unable to move, only able to watch as death approached. She broke down in tears. For many years, she had enjoyed a noble status, living a carefree life, revered by everyone. She never imagined that simply because she threw a tantrum and punished a woman of lower status, she would invite such a deadly calamity.

Even now, she still had no idea who these two people were.

Sima Jiao had no intention of engaging in further conversation with her. He coldly raised his foot and stepped on Yue Chuhui’s face.

Yue Chuhui let out a miserable scream and cried even more frantically, “If you kill me, you’ll be making an enemy of the Moon Palace! My mother absolutely won’t let this go! If you spare me now, I’ll forget everything that happened, and even grant you status and prestige… Yong Lingchun, isn’t it? Help me plead for mercy, and I’ll have my mother assist the Night Wandering Palace!”

Liao Tingyan buried her face against Sima Jiao’s chest, not wanting to witness the bloody scene.

She merely refused to kill with her own hands, which simply meant she wasn’t accustomed to this world’s principles. She had no intention of imposing her standards on others’ actions. Besides, she was technically aligned with the villain faction now—how could she possibly plead for someone who had harmed her? She knew perfectly well where her loyalties should lie.

“Splat.”

The sound was like a watermelon being crushed, accompanied by a slightly sticky liquid noise.

Sima Jiao had crushed Yue Chuhui’s beautiful head with one stomp, simultaneously destroying her escaping soul.

Liao Tingyan remained motionless, cradled in his arms as they left the Cloud Terrace Palace. Along the way, she didn’t raise her head to look at their surroundings, as this entire area was a bloody scene—the kind that would likely give her nightmares if she glimpsed it.

The large black snake waited outside, looking troubled at the pile of corpses. It was hard to describe how a snake could appear “troubled,” but it was facing those corpses with its mouth open, hesitating.

Having been raised by Sima Jiao for so long at Three Saints Mountain, it had become accustomed to being a garbage disposal, responsible for consuming corpses to keep its master’s living environment clean and tidy. Thus, it had developed the habit of automatically devouring any corpses it encountered.

In the past when there was nothing else to eat, this was acceptable, but after following Liao Tingyan and being fed so many delicious things, any of which tasted better than corpses, it truly detested these “leftovers” and didn’t want to eat them anymore.

Yet if it didn’t eat them, it feared its master would become angry. While hesitating, Sima Jiao returned with Liao Tingyan.

The large black snake, sensing its master’s familiar and terrifying aura, immediately became submissive and opened its huge mouth, preparing to swallow the corpses.

Seeing this, Sima Jiao scolded, “Stop eating such filthy things!”

The black snake thought: “…That’s not what you used to say. Snake feels so wronged.”

But not having to eat these corpses made it happy.

Liao Tingyan finally got her wish to bathe and return to her soft, large bed, feeling the pain throughout her body somewhat relieved. Sima Jiao, who had disappeared while she bathed, returned with several medicinal pills—in this short time, who knows which treasure vault he had visited.

This powerful figure entered the treasury of Gengchen Immortal Mansion as casually as if entering his backyard, coming and going freely. Liao Tingyan took two white pills he offered, feeling a warm sensation spread through her body as the stagnant lightning spiritual power in her wounds dissipated.

These injuries had been inflicted by a Lightning Cultivator at the Divine Transformation realm. Because Yue Chuhui felt Liao Tingyan was disobedient, she ordered the Lightning Cultivator to whip her. To please the young princess, he had deliberately forced explosive lightning spiritual energy into the wounds, causing pain that nearly made her faint.

Sima Jiao placed his hand on her injuries and moved it slowly. His hand was cold, but as he moved it, he drew out the remaining chaotic lightning spiritual power, making her spiritual veins feel much better. With the medicine’s effects, the damaged areas began to heal gradually.

Her previously blocked spiritual energy started flowing smoothly again, naturally repairing her body’s injuries. Another severe wound was on her abdomen, inflicted by an Earth Cultivator in Yue Chuhui’s entourage.

That short, pudgy man’s kicks were extremely painful. If she hadn’t already reached Divine Transformation cultivation, he probably would have ruptured her stomach with one kick. Even now, it wasn’t much better—her internal organs were damaged, and her stomach showed a dark blue-black bruise. Perhaps that fat man had used some special ability; it looked particularly terrifying and caused a persistent, dragging pain.

When Sima Jiao lifted her clothes to examine the wound, his expression darkened, and he said coldly, “I dealt with them too simply earlier. Had I known they injured you like this, I should have made their deaths more agonizing.”

Liao Tingyan thought: “…How could they die more horribly? Weren’t those gentlemen’s deaths terrible enough? Not to mention others, just that Lightning Cultivator—you poured violent lightning into his crown chakra, shattering both his brain and spiritual veins. And that Earth Cultivator, you tore open his spiritual residence, ripped open his stomach, and pulled out a long stretch of intestines which you used to strangle his brother.”

“Ugh.” She couldn’t bear to recall it; she felt like vomiting.

Even now, as Sima Jiao gently caressed her stomach with the same hands that had disemboweled others, she felt goosebumps and feared he might suddenly perform the “black tiger tears out heart” technique on her. He had been so enraged earlier that he threatened to kill her, and he still looked angry now—ripping out her stomach seemed entirely possible.

Besides, he had been smiling while tearing open that person’s stomach, but now as he touched her belly, his expression was even more grim than when he’d disemboweled the other man.

Perhaps sensing her tension, Sima Jiao narrowed his eyes, covering her stomach with his large hand, his fingers tracing along the edges of her wound as he leaned down to ask, “Are you afraid?”

Feeling this was a question where telling the truth might cost her life, and since there was no requirement for honesty, indicating the ancestor permitted survival through lies, Liao Tingyan said, “No, I’m not afraid.”

Sima Jiao replied, “Even now, you still don’t know fear.”

His tone was eerily calm as he said this, so calm it was frightening. Liao Tingyan thought, “Did I choose the wrong answer?!”

Sima Jiao placed one hand on her face, touching the wound there. “You should receive some punishment.”

Liao Tingyan thought: “…???!” What did I do wrong to deserve punishment?

What kind of punishment? Is he going to disembowel me? Please don’t, after gutting me you’d just have to heal me again. Liao Tingyan nervously covered her stomach, but her clothes were removed.

For a moment, her feelings were quite complex. If that’s what you meant by “punishment,” you should have said so earlier, instead of making me so nervous.

Sima Jiao remarked, “You don’t seem inclined to struggle.”

Liao Tingyan replied, “Ah? If that’s what you require, I can try.”

She halfheartedly wiggled a bit and said, “Don’t do this, stop right now.”

The enraged Sima Jiao almost laughed at her antics, but his expression twisted briefly as he held it back. He pinched her face and said, “Don’t try to make me laugh.”

Liao Tingyan thought: How could I know where your peculiar sense of humor lies? You’re really difficult to please, you know that?

Sima Jiao commanded, “Don’t struggle.”

But when he lowered his head to kiss the wounds on her stomach, Liao Tingyan couldn’t help but struggle a little—the sensation was too strange. However, with her waist firmly in his grip, she couldn’t move much.

“Your face is very red,” Sima Jiao raised his head, stroking her cheek with his thumb before leaning down to kiss her.

This fierce man’s actions had a gentleness and tenderness completely at odds with his personality.

However, Liao Tingyan understood why he described this as punishment.

“Do all women suffer like this with the men of the Sima family?!” Liao Tingyan finally couldn’t help crying out, her arms around Sima Jiao’s neck as she squeezed his shoulders and pulled his hair.

Her skin had turned completely red, feeling as if it were on fire. Uncomfortable, she knocked her head against Sima Jiao’s chin, crying incoherently, “I’m burning to death!”

The Sima clan rarely mixed with outsiders, partly because the Feng Mountain spiritual blood in their bodies carried the essence of spiritual fire, making it difficult for people of other clans to endure. Especially the first time—calling it “punishment” was no exaggeration. If Liao Tingyan hadn’t previously drunk so much of Sima Jiao’s blood, she absolutely couldn’t have withstood this burning sensation of spiritual fire today.

Yet this sensation was what Sima Jiao had been enduring day and night for many years.

“I originally didn’t want you to suffer like this, but you made me unhappy, so this time it’s punishment you must endure, understand?” He kissed Liao Tingyan’s flushed forehead and said hoarsely.

Liao Tingyan uncomfortably wrapped her arms around his neck, seemingly intent on strangling him atop her, as if she hadn’t heard him.

Sima Jiao bit her cheek, then licked the droplet of blood that oozed from the wound, like an adult beast soothing an injured cub, yet unable to restrain his ferocious nature, always wanting to inflict some pain on her.

He brushed aside the loose strands of hair from Liao Tingyan’s cheeks and pressed his face against hers.

This wasn’t their first spiritual communion, but experiencing it alongside physical intimacy was a first. Liao Tingyan was utterly bewildered by this advanced configuration.

“Don’t be afraid, I’m here. No one will ever hurt you again.”

“This kind of pain, you won’t feel it again in the future.”

“Cry to me, don’t hold it in.”

“Don’t ever make me feel pain again.”

Sima Jiao was vengeful by nature—he would kill anyone who caused him suffering, but Liao Tingyan also caused him pain, yet he couldn’t kill her. He could only endure the anguish she brought him.

How infuriating.

“If there’s a next time, I’ll kill you.” Only Sima Jiao could make a death threat sound like words of love.

Liao Tingyan sensed his true inner thoughts through their spiritual communion and trembled. Great lord, so you were serious.

Yet, not only was she unafraid, she felt a tightness in her nose, almost moved to tears.

She recalled what her teacher had taught about the “side effects” of spiritual communion. The deeper the feelings, the more one cared for the other, the phrase “your wound, my pain” became more than just words—it became reality. Otherwise, why would those couples who had been companions in love for many years choose to end their own lives after their beloved died?

Living and dying together wasn’t some forced mechanism, but simply a matter of feelings reaching such depths that one couldn’t bear to live alone.

She had unconsciously grown increasingly dependent on Sima Jiao. This emotion was mutually influential—she didn’t know whether she influenced Sima Jiao more, or he influenced her more.

Love grew and blossomed in their hearts, each spiritual communion acting as nourishing rain, causing it to flourish outward.

Liao Tingyan’s spiritual residence had once been a vast blue sky, but somehow, at some point, large patches of flowers had appeared. Whenever Sima Jiao’s soul came to rest in her spiritual residence, he liked to settle among those flowers.

Sima Jiao’s spiritual residence was a scorched wasteland, but somehow, a patch of pure land had appeared. There was no red karmic fire there, no dried and blackened earth—just a cluster of flowers enjoying the only ray of sunlight.

After Liao Tingyan fell into exhausted sleep, Sima Jiao felt her forehead’s temperature.

Changes were occurring within her body. After this, her body would become more special than ordinary cultivators’, and she would recover quickly from future injuries.

Interestingly, the stronger the Sima clan’s bloodline, the harder it was for their bodies to heal when injured, yet they possessed the ability to grant rapid healing to others.

Sima Jiao took down the pheasant cage hanging outside and emptied the two mountain pheasants, allowing them to return to human form.

The siblings Yong Lingchun and Yong Shiqiu would return to their original identities, with no memory of what had happened during this period, while all traces of his and Liao Tingyan’s activities would be buried here.

They needed to leave this place now.