463: Agreed to go to Northern Xinjiang

Situ Jun seemed to see through her thoughts. He did not press her further, merely watching her quietly, his fingertips tracing the rim of the teacup, giving her time to weigh the options and make a choice.

The candlelight in the hall flickered, emitting faint crackling sounds, casting the shadows of the two people to alternately brighten and darken, intertwining on the wall.

For a long, long time.

It was so long that when Xia Wei thought the candle flame was about to burn out, she slowly raised her hand and wiped the tear stains from her face with her cuff.

Her movements were slow, very slow, yet they carried a decisive finality, like she was erasing her past self.

When she lowered her hand, the tears in her eyes had dried up, leaving only a sense of calm and a subtle, hard-to-detect stubbornness.

Her almond eyes had shed their panic and despair, gaining a measure of resolve:

“I'll go with you.”

After a pause, her voice was soft but unusually firm, every word clear and resounding:

“But I have one condition.”

Situ Jun raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes:

“Speak.”

“I want the Xia Family to be safe and secure for generations. I want Your Majesty to keep his promise, bestow a Death-Exemption Medallion, grant vast wealth, and not trouble the Xia Family in the slightest.”

Xia Wei looked straight into his eyes, her gaze holding a hint of pleading and a trace of wariness, afraid he might treat the matter lightly:

“And... on the day I start cultivation, if I wish to return home to visit my parents, you must not stop me.”

“I agree to both these conditions.”

Situ Jun agreed immediately without the slightest hesitation, his tone resolute:

“Tomorrow morning, you will personally supervise Your Majesty fulfilling his promise. If he dares to prevaricate, I will step forward on your behalf.”

Having received the promise, Xia Wei's taut body finally relaxed completely.

She looked as if she had shed a thousand pounds of burden, or perhaps severed all ties to the past, her spine slightly slumped, revealing a degree of exhaustion.

She looked at Situ Jun, suddenly stood up, and walked with slightly unsteady steps toward him, bending her knees slightly to perform a standard Court Bow, her movements graceful yet somewhat distant.

“Xia Wei thanks City Lord Situ for his benevolence.”

Her voice had returned to calm, even carrying a hint of intentional distance, as if reminding herself that from now on, the relationship between them was merely a transaction.

Situ Jun looked at her, a fleeting smile flashing in his eyes.

“Now, is there still resentment in your heart?”

Xia Wei's body trembled, and she abruptly looked up, meeting Situ Jun's profound gaze.

Those eyes seemed to hold a vast sea of stars, causing her to momentarily lose herself.

She opened her mouth, and only after a long time did she whisper:

“I... don't know.”

“Don't know?”

Situ Jun curved his lips into an extremely faint arc, carrying a hint of amusement:

“That counts as being honest. It's much better than those who are full of lies and say one thing while meaning another.”

He pointed to the chair opposite him, his tone calm:

“Sit.”

Xia Wei hesitated for a moment, then sat down as instructed, but only on the edge of the chair, her back straight, her hands neatly placed on her lap, like a prisoner awaiting judgment, showing restraint and unease.

Seeing her demeanor, Situ Jun chuckled softly, his tone gaining warmth and losing some of its distance:

“Do the words you spoke just now still count?”

Xia Wei froze, first confused, then realizing what he was referring to.

Her cheeks instantly flushed crimson, the color spreading from her cheeks all the way to her earlobes, like blooming rouge, exceptionally beautiful.

She lowered her gaze, her long eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings, her voice as thin as a mosquito's buzz:

“...Tonight, This Concubine... will obey the City Lord's command.”

As soon as she spoke, even the warm yellow candlelight in the room became suggestive, the dancing light and shadow seeming to hold a kind of seductive power.

Situ Jun reached out and took the hand she had placed on her lap.

It was a pair of soft, fair, slender jade hands, the fingertips slightly cool, the skin delicate like fine Mutton-Fat Jade.

He could clearly feel the light sweat in Xia Wei's palm, and the slight trembling.

Xia Wei's body suddenly stiffened, and she tried to pull her hand back, but Situ Jun gripped it tighter.

The warmth in Situ Jun's palm carried a masculine heat, slowly seeping through her skin and into her limbs and organs.

Situ Jun surprisingly felt a touch of pity in his heart.

He knew that in this chaotic world, pity was the most useless thing.

Only by letting her truly grow and possess enough power could she establish herself in this cruel Cultivation World and truly control her own destiny.

He exerted a slight force and pulled her into his embrace.

Xia Wei's body stiffened again; all the blood in her body seemed to have frozen at that moment.

She could smell the faint sandalwood scent on him, mixed with a cool bamboo fragrance—his unique aura.

The unfamiliar masculine aura enveloped her, making her feel flustered, yet strangely, she felt a trace of security.

She hesitated for a moment, but finally relaxed, closing her eyes and pressing her cheek against his chest, listening to his steady, powerful heartbeat, beat after beat, as if carrying a strange rhythm that smoothed away the panic and unease in her heart.

At this moment, she knew that her life had completely shifted tracks.

Her former dream of being empress, her former glory and wealth, were all fleeting clouds.

From now on, her path was the immortal path, the Dao, and also... the unknown abyss.

Situ Jun said no more, extending his fingertip, and a wisp of pure, gentle Spiritual Energy slowly flowed into the Meridians of Xia Wei's wrist.

This Spiritual Energy was completely different from the feeling he gave off; it was warm and inclusive, flowing slowly like spring sunlight. Wherever it passed, it dispersed the coldness and tension generated in Xia Wei's body by crying and fear, and even made her feel an unprecedented sense of comfort, like soaking in warm spring water, every pore of her body opening up.

The Pure Yin Power within Xia Wei's body seemed to be awakened by this external Yang Harmony Spiritual Energy, gently rippling, like throwing a stone into a calm lake, creating layers of ripples.

The Pure Yin Power did not repel this Yang Harmony Spiritual Energy; instead, it had an instinctive desire for closeness and fusion, like dry earth encountering sweet rain, absorbing it greedily.

Faint wisps of ethereal blue glow uncontrollably seeped out from beneath her skin, enveloping her body, as if she were draped in a thin veil.

Situ Jun closed his eyes to sense it, praising silently in his heart.

As expected, it was an extremely pure Pure Yin Precious Physique, with abundant primordial yin and a solid Foundation. With a little guidance, she could become an excellent Dual Cultivation partner, whose benefit to him would be far greater than anticipated.

As the Spiritual Energy investigation deepened, the auras of the two people began to merge unintentionally.

The Yang Harmony Spiritual Energy and the Pure Yin Power intertwined, attracted each other, and nourished each other, forming a subtle cycle between the two.

Xia Wei only felt a warm current spreading from her wrist to her limbs and organs, finally converging at her Dantian in her lower abdomen, bringing a strange sensation of soreness, swelling, and warmth.

That feeling was unfamiliar and novel, causing a layer of fine sweat to break out all over her body. Her originally pale complexion gradually took on a healthy blush, and her breathing unconsciously became rapid, her chest slightly rising and falling.

Her body felt slightly weak, and she leaned backward involuntarily, fitting perfectly into Situ Jun's embrace, where she was caught steadily by his strong arm.