“If this is too heavy a burden for you to carry, you still have time to change your mind,” Empress Xue Tong continued. “I can wipe the memories of all that you’ve seen and heard today, annulling the proposed marriage between you and Li Mo.”

“This doesn’t frighten me, and I won’t regret my decision. I intend and am willing to share Li Mo’s responsibilities,” Yun Ruoyan replied without any hesitation. She turned to Li Mo. “Li Mo, will you make me regret my decision? As long as your heart is mine, I will shoulder this burden with you.”

Yun Ruoyan’s goal in this life was to live a better life than she had in the past. Now, she had voluntarily chosen to share in Li Mo’s calling.

Li Mo’s dark pupils were so bright as to be shocking. “I, Li Mo, swear on the name of my father, the Beast King, that I shall never turn my back on you in this life. If I forswear myself, may I—”

Li Mo was just about to recite a litany of curses when Yun Ruoyan cupped his mouth and continued, “If you turn your back on me, may you and I never meet again, forever separated in life and death, in all future reincarnations, with the heaven and earth as our witnesses!”

Li Mo frowned and grasped Yun Ruoyan’s hand. Her words were truly far more damning than any sort of curse could be—to be separated from his beloved Yan’er would truly be more heartwrenching than a thunderstrike from the heavens, than being pierced through the heart, than having his body torn apart…

“I accept!” Li Mo forced out.

“My son has found a true companion,” Empress Xue Tong exclaimed, gratified. “Su Bei!”

“Yes, Madam!”

“Bring over the gifts that I’ve prepared for Miss Yun.”

Su Bei rushed into a side chamber, then returned with an oblong box inlaid with jade. When he opened it in front of her, a bright red glow forced her to shield her eyes with her hand. It faded, revealing a blood-red spiritual sword.

“This sword bears the name of Scarlet Eye,” Empress Xue Tong announced. “It was a sword that my consort, Li Mo’s father, the deceased Beast King, used in his prime. After he mastered his main cultivation technique, he no longer found use for the sword, and it’s been kept here ever since.”

Yun Ruoyan glanced at the Scarlet Eye, clearly sensing the concentrated fire-attuned spiritual energy within it. Furthermore, this fire-attuned energy seemed to resonate with that within her qilin beads.

The moment this thought became fully formed in her mind, the beads on her wrist turned a scorching red. At the same time, she felt the fire-attuned spiritual energy in her spiritual vortex begin to froth. It wasn’t an uncomfortable sensation, but rather one of excitement.

The red glow that the Scarlet Eye had initially given off seemed to re-emerge, though far gentler than before—a rosy hue that reminded one of dawn, which seemed to compel Yun Ruoyan to reach out and take the blade.

The qilin beads on her wrist had been forged by the Beast King himself, and the Scarlet Eye was likewise his sword. Because so much of Yun Ruoyan’s pillmaster cultivation had been performed with help from the beads, her spiritual energy had taken on some of the Beast King’s innate quality.

“This is incredible,” Yun Ruoyan breathed, and even Su Bei seemed awed by the sight.

“This sword is truly drawn to you by fate,” Empress Xue Tong murmured, after recovering from her temporary shock.

“Does this sword have any special properties beyond being concentrated with fire-attuned spiritual energy?” Everyone seemed shocked that she could handle it directly.

“Miss Yun, you might be unaware of this, but this Scarlet Eye was forged by my consort in his prime, out of spiritsteel taken from a volcano’s core. The sword itself burns with immense heat, one that would prevent anyone else from even touching it. When it glows, this heat soars to an unimaginable extent, and only this box made with thousand-year-old frosted jade can counteract this heat. I had imagined that, except for my consort, no one else on the continent would ever be able to use it again.”

“So it’s that powerful…” Yun Ruoyan held the sword with her right hand, then tentatively touched the blade with her left. She felt no warmth at all, but instead a faint coldness.

“My gratitude, Your Highness. This is truly a remarkable sword.”

Empress Xue Tong smiled. “I heard Li Mo mention that you were now an eighth-rank blademaster.”

Eighth-rank and above blademasters would be able to train with a spiritual sword and have it serve as a flying device. However, those swords that met this criterion were undoubtedly rare and precious treasures, and commonly had very stringent requirements with regard to cultivation technique and spiritual energy attunement.

Despite this difficulty, only those cultivators who had mastered a sword would be considered true blademasters. As a result, despite there being quite a number of eighth-rank blademasters on the Chenyuan continent, relatively few were true blademasters. A significant portion of blademasters remained unable to find one of these rare swords, made even rarer by the need for compatibility.

As a result, despite being eighth-rank, Yun Ruoyan didn’t hold high hopes for finding a sword that would match her aptitude so quickly—until today.

“Initially, I had intended on handing you this box of frosted jade to be made into a sheath on your behalf, but to think that you would be able to use it directly… Well, this certainly saves some effort.”

Yun Ruoyan reluctantly replaced the Scarlet Eye back in the box of frosted jade before thanking Empress Xue Tong once more.

“Yan’er, this is Mother’s welcoming gift for you. If you thank her too much, it’ll make it seem as though you’re still viewed as an outsider,” Li Mo reminded her from the side.

“Exactly so,” Empress Xue Tong said. “I certainly won’t be able to attend your wedding in such a state. This Scarlet Eye is a present for you from your future mother-in-law.”

“You honor me, Your Highness.” Yun Ruoyan still couldn’t resist the ingrained compulsion to bow. From the side, Li Mo began to smile even as he shook his head.

“Yan’er, why do you still address me as Your Highness?” Xue Tong called her by her nickname, just as Li Mo did. “You should call me Mother.”

Yun Ruoyan turned toward Li Mo, who nodded at her. He stepped forward and stood beside Yun Ruoyan, tugged on her hand, then knelt down. “Mother, please accept my and Yan’er’s kowtows in advance.”

“Yan’er pays her respects to her mother,” Yun Ruoyan added, mimicking Li Mo’s gestures.

“Rise, rise, my dear children.” Empress Xue Tong seemed a little overwhelmed, and even her usually cold voice had begun to tremble.

The three of them then discussed their wedding preparations further. Although Yun Lan hadn’t given Li Mo a definitive answer to his proposal, Li Mo was quite confident that the betrothal gift would be sufficient incentive for him to do so.

As for the emperor Li Xiu, who had always been courteous and respectful to Li Mo, Li Mo didn’t think him a significant obstacle. While there would surely be rumors about their master-disciple relationship, neither Li Mo nor Yun Ruoyan paid much mind to their name.

What they instead discussed was the date of the wedding. Li Mo wanted it as soon as possible, whereas Yun Ruoyan didn’t have much of a preference. In the end, Empress Xue Tong decided on next spring, the day after her fifteenth birthday.

“I’m sure this place is too far for the two of you to get to frequently,” she commented. “Now that you’ve already kowtowed to me, there’s no need for you to return here after the wedding to do so as well.”

“Mother, Yan’er and I will be starting a new training session after the wedding before entering the alternate dimension directly. I don’t know how long it’ll take us to return, so please take good care of yourself,” Li Mo finally said.

Then, the two of them left the secret vault.

“Congratulations on your upcoming wedding, Your Highness,” Su Bei said, right as they left the castle. Li Mo nodded, then removed a cerulean sword from his storage ring. “This is a wood-attuned spiritual sword. Now that Zhuo Yifeng’s also an eighth-rank blademaster, he’ll be a suitable successor for it.”

“My gratitude, Your Highness!” Su Bei took the sword reverently, his tone impassioned.

“A year from now, Zhuo Yifeng will enter the alternate dimension with us. Take this opportunity to spend time with him before then.”

Su Bei nodded, not saying anything more.

As a green aura flashed from the sword underneath his feet, Li Mo left soaring with Yun Ruoyan, rushing in the direction of the capital. The sun was already rising, and the first thing that they had to do was to inform Yun Lan of the upcoming marriage.

Not long after Yun Ruoyan and Li Mo left, a white-robed, white-haired elder stepped out from the empress’ secret vault—the first elder of Kongming Academy.

“Empress, the plans you’ve set in motion will undoubtedly lead to Xun Mo’s resentment. Please reconsider, Your Highness.”

“First Elder, you need not repeat yourself.” Her words were colder than before. “I am perfectly willing to suffer my son’s resentment if it means that I can avenge my consort. Have you dealt with the matters with which I tasked you?”

“I have gone to the demonic dragon grotto within the trial grounds, and I have transmitted your message to the demonic dragon souls,” the first elder replied.

“And?”

“They would like to meet with you personally to discuss matters.”