Without Her, Ye Xuan Is Nothing

Lengyue Peak. To countless disciples of the Azure Cloud Sect, this spiritual mountain was akin to a fairyland. Yet, to Ye Xuan, it was nothing more than an exquisitely gorgeous gilded cage built of mist and spiritual energy.

He had been settled into a side courtyard next to the main cave dwelling. The environment was secluded and tranquil, and the density of its spiritual energy was more than a hundred times that of the servant compound.

The furnishings within the room, from the warm jade bed to the wooden tables and chairs that exuded a calming, mind-soothing fragrance, were all extraordinary items.

However, Ye Xuan felt no joy at all.

He had completely transformed into a cultivation madman.

In his world, only three things remained: cultivation, more cultivation, and asking Xia Lengyue for more cultivation resources.

During his first month on Lengyue Peak, he lived almost like a shadow.

In the early mornings, he would silently sweep the courtyard, returning every fallen leaf to the earth.

In the afternoons, he would silently water the herbs in the spirit fields with spirit spring water, his movements precise and mechanical.

At dusk, he would silently light beast-repelling incense in front of Xia Lengyue's cave dwelling, then retreat to his side courtyard without a word.

At any other time outside of these chores, he was cultivating.

Initially, Xia Lengyue quite enjoyed this state of affairs.

She liked to sit by the window of her cave dwelling, quietly watching this familiar figure busy himself in the courtyard.

He belonged right here, as close to her as possible, where she could see him the moment she looked up.

This feeling of firmly controlling a lost and regained treasure provided a sliver of twisted, sickly comfort to her heart, which was riddled with holes from the regrets of her past life.

However, as time went by, she gradually sensed that something was wrong.

Ye Xuan was too silent.

The look in his eyes when he saw her no longer held the trepidation and curiosity of their first meeting; there was not even the slightest ripple of emotion.

He never initiated a conversation with her. The only times he spoke were when his cultivation resources ran out.

Senior Sister Xia, the spirit stones are gone.

Senior Sister Xia, I have used up the body-tempering pills.

His tone was as calm as a pool of stagnant water, as if he wasn't making a request, but merely stating a fact that had nothing to do with him.

Whenever this happened, Xia Lengyue would bring out resources far exceeding what he needed. Yet, the nearly imperceptible gleam that flashed in his eyes was not due to her generosity, but purely out of a thirst for resources.

Upon receiving the items, he would say, Many thanks, Senior Sister, and turn to leave, too lazy to utter a single extra word.

The joy of a controller in Xia Lengyue's heart slowly began to spoil, fermenting into an indescribable irritation.

She did not want a cultivation puppet!

She wanted the husband from her past life—the one who would smile foolishly at her, blush at a single word from her, and revere her like a god!

She wanted his gaze, his emotions, his everything to revolve around her!

But now, he only cared about cultivation.

One afternoon, Xia Lengyue could finally no longer endure this suffocating silence.

She walked up to Ye Xuan, who was watering a stalk of Ice Heart Grass, and asked in a cold, clear voice, How is your cultivation progressing?

Acceptable. Ye Xuan did not even raise his head, sparing his words like gold.

Besides cultivation, do you have nothing else you want to say to me? A trace of suppressed anger tainted Xia Lengyue's tone.

Ye Xuan's watering paused. He looked up, and for the first time, a look of confusion appeared on his ordinary face, as if asking: Between us, other than cultivation and resources, what else is there to discuss?

This expression was like a sharp thorn, ruthlessly piercing Xia Lengyue's heart.

She felt a surge of rage rush straight to her head.

Good, very good. Don't you think cultivation can give you everything? Don't you think that with strength, you can possess everything?

Then I will let you experience firsthand just how laughable and fragile your so-called strength is without my protection!

A glint of icy chill flashed through the depths of Xia Lengyue's eyes. She said nothing more, turning and walking away with a flick of her sleeves.

The next day, Ye Xuan was assigned an errand by a steward to distribute pills at the outer sect.

Just as he reached the valley where the outer sect disciples resided, his path was blocked by several idle-looking outer sect disciples.

The leader was a burly man with a face full of fierce, fleshy folds. He was at the sixth level of Qi Condensation, one minor realm higher than Ye Xuan.

Squinting his eyes, he spoke in an utterly mocking tone, Yo, isn't this the dog kept by Senior Sister Xia? What, they didn't leash you today and let you run out on your own?

Ye Xuan could not even be bothered to bat an eyelid. He only wanted to finish his task quickly and return to cultivate. He turned sideways to bypass them.

Halt!

The burly man grabbed his shoulder. What? After playing the dog for a few days, can you no longer understand human speech? Your daddy is talking to you!

Ye Xuan frowned slightly. He smelled a conspiracy.

This clumsy provocation, this perfectly timed location—if this wasn't arranged by Xia Lengyue, he would write his name backwards.

Too lazy to get tangled up, he said flatly, I have a task to complete. Please step aside.

A task? The burly man burst into exaggerated laughter. A useless gigolo who lives off a woman has the nerve to talk about tasks? Let me tell you, your grandpas are in a bad mood today and want to find a punching bag for practice. And you look just right for the job!

With that said, he didn't give Ye Xuan any chance to react and threw a punch straight at Ye Xuan's face!

The fist wind howled, carrying the spiritual energy fluctuations of a sixth-level Qi Condensation cultivator.

Ye Xuan's pupils shrank fiercely.

In that split second, the Five Elements Chaos Art within his body circulated madly, and a five-colored sword qi almost took shape at his fingertips.

With the sharpness of the Daluo Limitless Sword Qi, he was absolutely certain he could pierce through the opponent's wrist before the fist even touched him!

But, he couldn't.

If he exposed his strength, Xia Lengyue would become alert. Her desire for control would grow stronger and lose all boundaries.

Now was not the time.

This thought flashed like lightning. The sharpness in Ye Xuan's eyes instantly faded, replaced by sheer panic. He clumsily raised his arm to block.

Bang!

The fist, as large as a clay pot, smashed solidly against his arm.

Crack! With a crisp sound, the bone in Ye Xuan's left arm snapped!

Intense pain surged, but he gritted his teeth and did not utter a single sound.

Oh? Quite resilient, aren't you? Seeing him so tough, the burly man's viciousness was roused instead.

Let me see just how hard your bones really are!

Punches and kicks rained down like a storm.

Ye Xuan abandoned all effective resistance. He simply hugged his head and curled up on the ground, allowing those fists and those spiritually infused kicks to strike his back, legs, and stomach again and again.

He locked his spiritual energy firmly within his dantian, enduring the blows solely with his physical flesh.

Every strike brought bone-deep agony.

The cracking of breaking bones and the muffled thuds of flesh being kicked echoed clearly in his ears.

His consciousness darkened in waves due to the severe pain, and the blood seeping from the corner of his mouth tasted of rust.

Yet in his heart, there was a stretch of icy clarity.

In the intervals of excruciating pain, Ye Xuan's mind was unprecedentedly awake and lucid.

He calculated the force of every falling punch and the impact point of every landing kick. He carefully guarded his Dantian and the vital points of his head, ensuring that the seemingly severe injuries were strictly confined to his flesh and bones.

He was savoring it.

Savoring this long-lost sense of humiliation from being wantonly bullied.

How similar this feeling was to the "Ye Xuan" in the game, who had silently endured for a hundred and fifty years.

Only this time, his heart was no longer filled with numbness and despair, but was rather an icy wasteland burning with black flames.

He was waiting.

Waiting for the woman who was bound to make her appearance.

Sure enough, just as he felt his consciousness about to be submerged by the pain, his performance hitting the perfect note, a bone-chilling yet heavenly shout rang out right on cue.

"Stop!"

The temperature of the surrounding air plummeted.

Xia Lengyue had arrived.

Clad in a black dress, she appeared silently at the entrance of the valley. Her beautiful face was frosty, and her stunning eyes burned with a fury fierce enough to freeze a person into an ice sculpture.

The outer sect disciples, who had been ferocious just a second ago, were frightened out of their wits the moment they saw her. All the color drained from their faces, like mice spotting a cat.

"Senior... Senior Sister Xia..." the leading burly man stammered, his calves trembling.

Xia Lengyue ignored them. Her gaze immediately fell upon Ye Xuan, who was curled up on the ground, covered in blood, his left arm twisted at a bizarre angle.

The instant she saw his miserable state, Xia Lengyue felt as if an invisible giant hand had ruthlessly squeezed her heart. A sharp, familiar surge of agonizing pain washed over her.

This scene...

This scene of him covered in bruises and lacerations, lying helplessly in a pool of blood...

How similar it was to the scene in her previous life at the Soul-Severing Cliff, where he had been bombarded by thousands of magical treasures to protect her, ultimately dying in her arms!

"No..."

Xia Lengyue let out a somnambulistic wail. Her face turned deathly pale in an instant, and her body swayed uncontrollably.

The regret and agony of her past life broke through all her composure at this moment, like a bursting dam.

She rushed over, ignoring the filthy dirt on the ground, and dropped to one knee. With trembling hands, she wanted to help Ye Xuan up but was afraid of touching his wounds.

"Ye Xuan... Ye Xuan, how are you?" Her voice carried a crying tone, revealing a fear and heartache that stemmed from the very depths of her soul.

Ye Xuan struggled to open his "weak" eyes, looking at the exquisitely beautiful face before him, bathed in tears and etched with panic and pain.

He sneered in his heart, but on his face, he forced a weak smile that was uglier than crying.

"Senior Sister... I... I'm fine..."

The more he said this, the more Xia Lengyue's heart ached.

She carefully sent a trace of spiritual energy into Ye Xuan's body, discovering that seven or eight of his bones were broken and his internal organs were concussed. His injuries looked extremely severe.

Overcome by a rush of fury, Xia Lengyue snapped her head back. Her tear-stained eyes shot forth terrifying killing intent, locking dead onto the leading burly man.

"Who gave you the nerve!"

The burly man dropped straight to his knees with a thud, kowtowing like a pounding pestle. "Spare me, Senior Sister! Spare me! It was this disciple who had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai! This disciple will never dare do it again!"

"Will you do it yourself, or shall I?" Xia Lengyue's voice was freezing, devoid of the slightest emotion.

The burly man trembled all over. He knew that if he didn't give her an answer today, it would be absolutely impossible for him to leave alive.

Gritting his teeth, a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes. He suddenly raised his right hand, gathered all his spiritual energy, and viciously struck his own Dantian with a palm!

With a muffled bang, the burly man spat out a mouthful of blood. Like a deflated balloon, he instantly withered.

His cultivation base had been crippled by his own hands.

Having done all this, he collapsed on the ground, his face ashen.

Xia Lengyue didn't even spare him another glance, as if she had merely crushed an ant.

From her storage bag, she took out a jade-green pill radiating a rich aura of life and shoved it into Ye Xuan's mouth without a word.

The pill melted upon entering his mouth, transforming into a warm torrent that flowed through all the limbs and bones of Ye Xuan's body.

His fractured bones crackled as they began to mend at a visible rate, and his internal injuries rapidly recovered.

"Don't be afraid, it's alright now." Xia Lengyue gently helped him up and pulled him into her embrace, her movements as tender as if she were cherishing a rare treasure.

While wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, she softly comforted him by his ear.

Ye Xuan leaned "weakly" into her soft, fragrant embrace, but deep in his eyes lay a bottomless well of mockery.

He knew that his act had been a success.

Xia Lengyue had indeed personally shattered his pride, only to descend as a savior to make him rely on her even more.

Back at Cold Moon Peak, Xia Lengyue personally tended to Ye Xuan's wounds.

Her slender, jade-like hands, which were meant to weave supreme dharma seals, were now stained with medicinal ointment as she carefully applied it to every bruise on his body.

Her movements were very light, and her eyes were filled with tenderness and self-blame.

"I'm sorry... I failed to protect you."

Ye Xuan lowered his head, remaining silent.

Looking at his despondent appearance, Xia Lengyue felt a sting in her heart, yet a trace of secret satisfaction quietly rose within her.

This was exactly the effect she wanted—to make him understand that without her, he was nothing.