You're too dirty, I don't like it.

Shen Qingshuang said nothing. She merely wrapped her arms gently around Ye Xuan.

She buried her cheek in the crook of Ye Xuan’s neck, breathing in his masculine scent and listening to the powerful, steady beat of his heart. Her body, which had been trembling in fear, miraculously began to calm.

Yes. She was different from that foolish woman.

That woman had been stripped of her dignity and turned into a dog. She, on the other hand, had willingly submitted at this man’s feet, becoming his woman.

No one could resist Ye Xuan’s charm, and she was no exception.

This man was like a bottomless black hole. He was domineering, cold, and cruel, yet at the most appropriate moments, he could offer her absolute protection and a touch of lethal tenderness.

Shen Qingshuang was astonished to discover that the longer she remained by Ye Xuan’s side, the more incapable she became of leaving him.

The beliefs that had once sustained her, along with those icy memories of the past eight thousand years, had all been washed away by Ye Xuan’s forceful possession, leaving not a trace behind.

She had not even thought about Ye Jiuhuang for a very long time.

The Unrivaled Sword Emperor who had once made her love him to the depths of her soul—and later hate him just as deeply—now existed in her memory only as a vague figure dressed in white. He could no longer stir even the slightest ripple of emotion within her.

Ye Xuan stroked her smooth, silky hair, his eyes gentle.

Deep within his gaze flickered the wisdom of one who saw through everything, as well as an intense desire for control.

Shen Qingshuang had always been utterly loyal. Once she accepted someone, she would devote herself to him without reservation.

Ye Xuan knew this perfectly well. The effect of “One Conquest, Eternal Submission” on her was just as overbearing and impossible to resist as it had been on Bai Qianqiu.

In a short time, it had been enough to make her wholeheartedly devoted to him. This subtle transformation at the level of her soul, combined with Ye Xuan’s complete conquest of her body and mind in reality, had already reshaped Shen Qingshuang entirely in his image.

At the thought, Ye Xuan put an arm around her and lightly rested his chin against her forehead. In a tone that seemed casual yet was filled with scrutiny, he said,

“Is there anything you’d like to say about your husband, Ye Jiuhuang?”

Unexpectedly, Shen Qingshuang remained perfectly calm.

There was no pain, no struggle, not even the slightest trace of hatred.

The figure that had once haunted her dreams had gradually blurred. She raised her head slightly and looked at Ye Xuan’s flawless, godlike face. Her cool eyes now held nothing but pure infatuation and tenderness.

“My only husband is you.”

Shen Qingshuang parted her red lips. Her voice was gentle yet utterly firm, as though she were stating a self-evident truth.

Then her tone shifted slightly. On that noble and breathtakingly beautiful face appeared a coquettish pout and a sense of release that belonged only to Ye Xuan’s women.

“As for Ye Jiuhuang… I suppose we’ll be sisters.”

Upon hearing this answer, Ye Xuan nodded in satisfaction.

A trace of pleasure, imperceptible to others, flashed through his deep eyes.

Although Ye Jiuhuang was also his woman—and although the woman who had once been the lofty Sword God Palace Master was now more docile than even the lowliest servant—he still wanted the hearts of his women to belong to him alone.

Not the slightest remnant of distracting thoughts from the past was permitted to remain.

“Very good.”

Ye Xuan lowered his head and pressed a rewarding kiss to Shen Qingshuang’s smooth forehead. Then he kicked away Ye Qingcheng, who was still frantically slapping herself, wrapped an arm around Shen Qingshuang’s slender waist, and strode toward the spirit pool in the distance.

“The sun is lovely today. Come bathe with me.”

“Yes, husband…”

Behind them, Ye Qingcheng stopped slapping herself, her mouth stained with blood.

Like an abandoned stray dog left by the roadside, she stared blankly at Ye Xuan’s retreating figure as he held another woman in his arms. Two streams of murky blood tears ran down from the corners of her eyes.

Then she once again numbly shifted forward on her knees, dragging a long bloodstain across the white jade tiles as she obediently followed after them.

Time passed swiftly. As that earth-shaking wedding drew near, the atmosphere throughout the Sword God Palace grew increasingly feverish and tumultuous.

The once-proud and aloof Sword God Palace Master, now Ye Jiuhuang, who had willingly degraded herself into the Empress, was frantically occupied everywhere.

To prove her worth to Ye Xuan—and to preserve the hard-won position of principal wife—she had practically gone mad.

She personally led the three thousand Blood Guards of the Sword God Palace. Not only did they exterminate the Ice Phoenix clan of the North Sea, they also looted nearly every secret realm throughout the Central Province, all in search of the finest immortal treasures to adorn this unprecedented wedding.

Ye Xuan, however, showed little reaction to all the preparations taking place outside.

Every day, apart from cultivating, he simply remained idle, allowing the terrifying power that had devoured countless spiritual veins and the origins of countless powerful experts to roar and settle within every part of his body.

Inside the main hall, the light of the merfolk candles swayed gracefully, illuminating the luxurious palace until it seemed like a realm of immortals.

Ye Xuan sat upon the throne, propping his chin up with one hand. His eyes were slightly narrowed, while wisps of black law energy visibly coiled around his body.

Below the throne, Ye Qingcheng was massaging his legs.

Although her hands were covered in blood and wounds, her movements were exceptionally gentle as she kneaded Ye Xuan’s legs.

She raised her head slightly, gazing at him with infatuation.

The once-cool and proud peach-blossom eyes now held nothing but a madness and humility so extreme that they bordered on the pathological.

During these days of torment, her twisted state of mind had not been completely destroyed. Instead, amid this endless humiliation, she had found a kind of presence that made her tremble.

As long as she could still touch him, as long as she could still feel his body heat, she believed she still had value.

Ye Qingcheng’s throat moved. It seemed to take enormous courage for her to stop massaging his legs. She gently placed both hands on Ye Xuan’s knees and spoke softly, her voice nearly reduced to dust by its own humility, yet carrying an alluring undertone.

“Master, the primordial yin within me has been accumulating for a long time.”

A sacrificial, fervent light burned in her eyes. If Ye Xuan merely nodded, she would even be willing to offer up her soul along with it.

“If you perform energy harvesting on me, the benefits will surely far surpass years of bitter cultivation.”

She possessed the Nine-Yin Enchanting Physique. The pure primordial yin hidden deep within her body, which she had protected at the cost of her life, was an unparalleled elixir capable of driving any cultivator mad with desire.

She had believed that, considering its value to his cultivation, Ye Xuan would at least spare her a glance. Surely he would accept this “pure” offering of hers.

Yet Ye Xuan did not even open his eyes.

He merely glanced at her with utter indifference. His gaze was like that of someone looking at the most revolting sludge in a filthy ditch.

“You’re too dirty. I don’t like it.”

Those few weightless words were like a sharp blade, instantly piercing through the last defenses of Ye Qingcheng’s mind.