Her Love Is Mixed with Too Much

Ye Qingcheng felt as if someone had clamped a vice around her heart, the pain so sharp she could barely draw breath.

She gritted her teeth, her entire body shaking violently as she curled her hands into fists. Her nails dug deep into the flesh of her palms, and fresh blood dripped down through the gaps of her fingers.

She could hold back no longer.

"Ye Xuan! After everything you've done to me, I have no choice but to seal you away!" Ye Qingcheng roared, lifting her hand sharply. A swirl of dark purple demonic energy coalesced in her palm, and she was just about to strike.

But in that exact second.

A overwhelming sense of danger washed over her.

It was a shudder that originated deep in her soul, as if she had been locked in the sights of a primeval feral beast. Her whole body froze up at once.

Her hand hung suspended in mid-air, the mass of demonic energy in her palm roiling wildly, yet she did not dare push it forward even an inch.

Her pupils contracted sharply, every hair on her body stood on end, and cold sweat instantly soaked through the back of her robes.

She could feel it.

From the dark depths of the secret chamber, a gaze was fixed coldly upon her.

If she dared to make a real move, the fate that awaited her would be nothing less than total annihilation, her soul and body scattered to nothing.

Ye Qingcheng slowly lowered her hand.

Her body swayed, nearly tipping over as she struggled to stay on her feet.

She took a deep breath, forcing down the terror and fury surging in her chest, and lifted her head to look at Ye Xuan.

Ye Xuan still stood there, his hands clasped behind his back, his face completely devoid of expression, as if none of what had just happened had ever taken place.

But a flicker of mockery flashed across his eyes.

"What's the matter? Too scared to make a move now?" His voice was eerily calm. "Weren't you so full of backbone just a moment ago?"

Ye Qingcheng bit her lip and did not reply.

She knew she had acted on impulse.

This was the Sword God Palace, Ye Jiuhuang's domain. The entire palace was shrouded in Ye Jiuhuang's sword formation. If she made the slightest unusual move, Ye Jiuhuang's blade would press against her throat in an instant.

She was not afraid of death.

But she did not want to die.

She had gone through so much to find Ye Xuan, to finally stay by his side. To die like this, it was unacceptable.

"I..." Ye Qingcheng opened her mouth, trying to say something.

"Squeak!" The door to the secret chamber creaked open once more.

A light, graceful figure stepped inside.

It was a young girl in a goose-yellow dress, her face pretty and charming, a pair of big watery eyes brimming with innocence and guilelessness.

It was Ying'er.

In her hands she carried a jade tray, on which rested several plates of exquisitely made pastries and a pot of spirit tea.

She moved with gentle, dainty steps over to Ye Xuan, and set the jade tray down on the stone table beside him.

"Husband, I've come to attend to you," Ying'er said with a bright smile, her voice sweet as honey.

Ye Xuan nodded, the cold edge on his face softening just a little. He reached out to take the teacup Ying'er handed him, and sipped it gently.

Then he glanced at Ye Qingcheng, and said coldly, "You can get out now."

Ye Qingcheng stood frozen in place, watching Ying'er stand beside Ye Xuan, adjusting his robes, pouring his tea, and wiping the corners of his mouth for him.

Her heart felt as if it was being stabbed by thousands of knives all at once, the pain so intense she nearly screamed out loud.

Why?

Why did this girl get to stand openly by Ye Xuan's side, enjoying his tenderness and care?

While she, who had once been the woman he loved the most, did not even have the right to draw near to him now?

Tears welled up in Ye Qingcheng's eyes once more. She bit down hard on her lip to stop herself from crying out.

She gave Ye Xuan one long, deep look, then turned and stumbled toward the door.

Each step she took felt as heavy as if she was dragging a thousand-pound boulder.

Her hand trailed along the wall, her fingertips leaving deep bloody marks on the cold stone surface.

When she reached the doorway, she stopped, turned her head, and took one last look at Ye Xuan inside the secret chamber.

Ye Xuan was sitting on a meditation cushion, and Ying'er was kneeling behind him, kneading his shoulders.

The two of them were chatting and laughing, their close, intimate gesture stinging Ye Qingcheng's eyes so badly it hurt.

Finally, she turned away and stepped out of the secret chamber.

Bang. The stone door of the chamber slammed shut behind her with a dull thud.

Ye Qingcheng leaned against the wall outside, her legs giving out, and she slowly slid down to sit on the ground.

She wrapped her arms around her knees, buried her face in them, and wept silently.

Tears soaked through her skirt, spreading into dark splotches across the purple fabric.

Her shoulders shook violently, her whole body huddled into a tight ball, like a wounded little beast, licking its wounds all alone in the dark.

"Why... why..." she sobbed, her voice breaking in short, ragged gasps. "What did I do wrong... for you to treat me like this..."

"I truly love you..."

"I'd do anything for you... why won't you ever forgive me..."

After crying for a very long time, Ye Qingcheng slowly lifted her head.

Her eyes were puffy and red, her face streaked with tears, her makeup completely smudged.

Her hair was a mess, several strands sticking to her damp cheeks, leaving her looking utterly dishevelled and miserable.

She stared at the stone door of the secret chamber, her eyes filled with despair and unyielding resentment.

Inside the chamber.

Ying'er stopped the movements of her hands and sighed.

"Husband, why be so cruel to Ye Qingcheng?" There was a hint of pity in Ying'er's voice. "She truly does love you, after all."

Ye Xuan set down his teacup, his expression full of disdain.

"Her mind is tangled with all sorts of selfish schemes. If she wasn't still useful to me, I would have killed her long ago."

"Alas, she is nothing but a hopelessly infatuated person in the end," Ying'er remarked with a shake of her head.

"She is not infatuated at all."

Ye Xuan let out a cold sneer, a glint of sharp icy light flashing in his eyes. "Her so-called infatuation is all because of my innate ability 'One Conquest, Eternal Conquest'. If that wasn't the case, she never would have accepted the Heavenly Desire Sect's legacy back then."

He paused, his tone growing even colder. "Just like the Azure Emperor, she is someone who puts cultivation and power above everything else."

Ying'er was silent for a moment, then nodded. "That's true. The love they claim to have for you is tainted with far too many impure motives."

"That is why I have no need for their love," Ye Xuan closed his eyes and said calmly. "All I need is the value they can offer me, to be put to use."