A Twisted Vow and a Rain-Soaked Resolve

“Be with me… for a lifetime…”

The words drifted from her lips, light as a sigh.

Even Qi Yue’an herself was momentarily startled, unable to comprehend why, in this moment and under these circumstances, she had uttered such a blunt, almost desperate vow.

Yet, this was far from a rash impulse; it was the singular, all-encompassing decision she could make, one destined to define the rest of her life, born from a profound introspection of her past, her present, and a future she believed had been irrevocably seized.

She did not deny her longing for Xiyin, Bai Jin, and Bai Zhi, nor her yearning to return to their lively shared cottage.

However, cold reason told her that her return would only draw them into an even deeper abyss of peril.

From the ‘Greedy Wolf’ squad’s frantic pursuit of the Holy Artifacts, and the fact that the bizarre rule-space originated from the projection of her own consciousness, it was clear she was already ensnared at the very heart of fate’s maelstrom.

The only sanctuary capable of holding her, a place of relative ‘safety,’ was this gilded cage that now imprisoned her.

Whether she faced death or continued to live like this, it seemed there were no regrets left, for she had made her choice.

At this moment, she lay in the same room as Lin Xiao, and strangely, the anticipated awkwardness, humiliation, or the familiar waves of melancholy and confusion that often swept over her, were utterly absent.

Instead, there was a sensation akin to self-flagellation… a perverse exhilaration.

This exhilaration stemmed not from any physical pleasure, for despite her ambiguous words, Lin Xiao had not dared to cross the line, merely assenting silently to her sole request: ‘only to share a bed.’

The moonlight outside the window was crisp and cold, sifting through the intricately carved window frame to cast a scattering of fine silver frost upon the floor, its glow slowly creeping until it softly reached the edge of the bed.

Qi Yue’an lay on her side, her gaze silently tracing the contours of Lin Xiao’s profile.

He slept soundly, his breathing even and deep, stripped of all the unfathomable depth and oppressive weight he bore as the ‘Demon Lord.’

Moonlight cascaded over his brow, starkly outlining the faint furrow that, even in slumber, never quite relaxed.

Beneath it, his eyelids bore a faint, bruised shadow—an indelible mark of exhaustion etched by countless cycles of reincarnation, a vulnerability she had never had the chance to truly observe during their waking confrontations.

In a daze, she recalled a time long ago, when Lin Xiao was not yet a demon, but merely an ordinary boy who always stood before her, dispelling her gloom.

He always found her precisely when she was curled up alone in some corner, barging into her small world without a word, temporarily isolating her from all worries.

Even now, having reached this desolate juncture, she found herself incapable of harboring pure hatred for him.

Even if his words were laced with lies, even if he had imprisoned her and stripped away all her hopes and possibilities, he was still the one who had initially pulled her back from an inhuman solitude, allowing her to experience ‘human’ emotions for the very first time.

Had he not deceived her initially, but instead directly informed her that he needed her life to achieve his purpose, she thought she might not have objected.

“Why… did you hesitate?”

Her fingertips, light as if fearing to disturb a phantom, brushed his cheek.

In the depths of her silver eyes, a profound, ominous flicker of dark violet flame subtly bled outwards.

“Why didn’t you simply agree?”

Her voice, thin as a mosquito’s hum, carried a bone-deep yearning, laced with an ineffable, profound terror of being abandoned once more.

“Do you know? My only extravagance once was never having to be alone again for the rest of my life, to forever remain in that time when you protected me…”

“Now, you hold my past, you’ve stripped away my future, yet you… refuse to grant me this one request…”

That earlier, desperate suicide had unexpectedly bought her this brief moment of tenderness, his promise to no longer force her ‘completion,’ and his words, ‘What I need is the you of now.’

A surge of wild elation had indeed washed over her heart in that instant, yet it was swiftly followed by an even deeper tide of apprehension.

What if… this was still a lie?

What if, it was simply because the ‘her of now’ was the indispensable key to awakening that more perfect ‘shadow’?

The mere thought of this possibility made her tremble uncontrollably.

Uncontrollable jealousy and a deep-seated inferiority, rooted in her very soul, surged like a black tide, threatening to drown her mind.

She did not fear him falling for someone else; she feared being forgotten by him, being abandoned by him, fearing that her insignificant self would ultimately be replaced, subsumed, as if she had never existed.

“Love…”

“If only I could make you love me… if only we could forge a deeper, inseparable bond… then you wouldn’t forget me, would you? Then… I would be safe, wouldn’t I?”

This thought lingered, yet brought no solace.

A piercing shriek echoed relentlessly through her mind, already a labyrinth of thorns, preventing her from falling into a deep sleep for a long time.

“No… it’s still not enough…”

Qi Yue’an could no longer trust herself.

Perhaps, even if they truly reached that stage, even if she occupied the most important position by his side, one day, she would still, with her own hands, destroy everything because of her clumsiness, her incompleteness, or some incurable flaw.

Then, a mad notion, like a poisonous mushroom burgeoning in darkness, quietly broke through the soil of her consciousness, then spread with an unstoppable force, consuming her every thought.

She would pour out everything, dedicating all the beauty of her remaining life to him, crafting the most exquisite happiness and splendid memories.

And then, when all of it reached its pinnacle, its most magnificent moment—she would sacrifice herself, for him and for the world he so stubbornly protected, to personally open the path to the future.

Only in this way, by imprinting her entire being into his eyes, his heart, and even the depths of his soul in the most absolute and brilliant manner, could she perhaps attain eternal security.

That would be the most twisted, yet utterly complete, act of love and retribution she could offer.

At this realization, she wanted to laugh for the first time, to laugh like a mischievous witch.

The dark thoughts that had previously surged like an undercurrent within her finally broke free of all constraints.

They twisted the already shattered soul of the girl, filling her eyes with a fervent desire.

She ceased her wild conjectures, instead pulling up the corner of the quilt that had slipped, then pressed her body, clad only in her undergarments, against him, freely reveling in his warmth and scent.

Though she had only been whispering, her previous movements had awakened him from his light sleep.

However, she felt not a shred of shame or inclination to retreat; instead, she found joy in his gaze.

“Xiao, I’m cold.”

She chose the most clumsy of excuses, yet he remained in a state where he could not refuse, still affected by her sudden suicide attempt earlier.

“So… let’s sleep together.”

Qi Yue’an’s voice was sweet.

Lying in his arms, she gently pecked his neck.

****

Xiyin harbored a deep aversion to rainy days, for every profound loss she had endured seemed inevitably accompanied by a sudden downpour.

The explosion had not left her unharmed; the flower had only protected her core soul gem, but it could do nothing for her bodily injuries.

She tore the clothes she was wearing, which they had bought together previously, into strips, then bound them around her wounds.

She then reset her backward-folded leg bone and secured it with a makeshift wooden stick.

Her injuries could not impede her progress; she needed to return quickly to ensure the safety of her other companions and attend to the next matters.

“Damn it…”

She cursed under her breath, hobbling into the misty rain, leaning on her rough, temporary crutch.

The rain instantly soaked her light blue hair, pressing it tightly against her pale cheeks.

More unbearable than her physical wounds was the sense of internal defeat.

The most important friend, the girl she had sworn to protect, had, right before her eyes, desperately and humbly pleaded with Lin Xiao, and she, Xiyin, had not even had a chance to react.

He seemed to anticipate her every move, stopping her precisely and coldly.

This sensation of powerlessness, for Xiyin, who had once lived as a man, was more humiliating than death itself.

It was a deeper blow to her dignity, a negation of her very existence.

The cold rain seemed to penetrate her bones, attempting to freeze all passion and drive, yet this chill could not extinguish the burning flame within her heart.

Unlike Qi Yue’an, who easily succumbed to pessimism and fatalism, Xiyin had never believed in destiny.

From the moment she had resolutely left the home that could not comprehend her, choosing to face the world alone, she had never once bowed her head to any seemingly predetermined ‘ending.’

Her path was one she had forged step by step herself; her music, her dreams, her very existence as ‘Xiyin’ were all proof of her defiance.

Therefore, this time, she would absolutely not allow Qi Yue’an to sink into that man’s lies and paranoia.

She would never stand by and watch the girl, who had finally found a glimmer of light, be dragged back into darkness once more.

Gritting her teeth against the intense pain, she channeled her remaining magic, guiding her magical girl’s superhuman recovery abilities to slowly mend her bodily wounds.

Each step was arduous, yet her stride was exceptionally firm.

However, just as she passed through a more desolate, almost abandoned street, a figure stood silently ahead in the rain, as if they had been waiting there for a long time.

The person held a small parasol, incongruous with the surroundings.

The brim of the parasol was slightly raised, revealing Xiao Ru’s face, framed by an unsettling innocence.

Her eyes shone strikingly bright in the dim, rainy landscape, staring directly at the disheveled Xiyin.

“Sister Xiyin…”

Xiao Ru’s voice carried through the rain.

Her voice, though clear, carried a chilling undertone.

“You look… very badly hurt… Where… did she go?”