The civil and military officials hesitated for a moment, then, led by Zhang Yi Cheng, departed from the imperial study.
The palace attendants also quickly withdrew.
Zhu Ying looked at the person on the high platform and walked towards him step by step.
Bai Li Chong Yan's heart suddenly raced, a sense of panic seizing him.
In his haste, Zhu Ying had already reached him.
"You wish for eternal life?"
Bai Li Chong Yan dared not speak.
"Why?"
Zhu Ying did not understand why he would desire immortality. Humans and gods were different. Though humans had a lifespan of only a century, they experienced a hundred reincarnations, while gods, with their millennia of existence, could only die once.
Each had their pros and cons. Why would a mortal like him wish for eternal life?
Bai Li Chong Yan finally looked up and answered cautiously, "I'm afraid."
"Afraid of what?"
"I'm afraid of dying alone. I don't want to die. I want to be with you forever."
"I will die too."
"No, you won't. You are a god. You won't die. You will live forever."
Forever in this state. He had known her for so many years, been married for so many years, eating and living together daily, sharing the same bed nightly, and he saw it clearly.
This person showed no change.
Time seemed to stand still for her, leaving her eternally in this form.
And him? Although his body had been repaired by her, made whole and flawless, he still fell ill, grew old, and one day, he would die, slowly decay, and turn to dust.
He was unwilling.
Utterly unwilling.
That was why he sought eternal life.
Zhu Ying looked at the flustered, fearful person before her and finally understood the source of his panic, falling silent for a moment.
She thought she had given him enough comfort and security, yet the mere slowing of aging had frightened him. At such a young age, he was already contemplating the elixir of immortality; it was an obsession.
Zhu Ying cupped Bai Li Chong Yan's head, making him meet her gaze, and said, "I will die. I will accompany you through this life, and then I will die. Be good, don't be so frivolous."
For a mortal to seek immortality was to defy the heavens.
She could achieve it, but she did not want his already incomplete soul to be further tainted with darkness and sin.
"I'm not being frivolous."
Bai Li Chong Yan looked at her with tear-filled eyes, his voice filled with pain.
Zhu Ying's heart ached, and she pulled him into a hug. "You're not being frivolous. I was wrong. I swear, I will die with you. A'Yan, don't worry, trust me."
Bai Li Chong Yan held her, silent.
Zhu Ying had no choice but to resort to her ultimate weapon. "When we are both dead, I will extract your soul and keep it with me. We will be together forever, alright?"
She had, in fact, already decided that after their deaths, she would take this man's fragmented soul and keep it close, as a memento for herself.
"Really?" Bai Li Chong Yan's tear-misted eyes lit up with a smile. "You will always keep me with you, and never abandon me?"
"Yes, I swear. Zhu Ying will always keep Chong Yan and will not abandon him. If I break this oath, may I be struck by lightning and perish."
An invisible contract was thus formed.
For the first time in the years since they had returned to the capital, Bai Li Chong Yan felt a sense of peace.
He did not fear death; he feared loneliness, feared the disappearance of the only light in his life!
The emperor's desire for immortality was thus resolved.
He reverted to being a wise ruler, one who refused to hold imperial selections to fill the harem and propagate the royal lineage, but was otherwise exemplary.
Later, when they conquered the capital, the old emperor was still alive.
He lived to witness his empire crumble, to see his most detested son become the ruler of the world, to see him enfeoff the descendants of the Zhang family as crown princes, thus severing the Bai Li family's claim to the throne.
The pampered, well-fed old emperor choked to death on the day Zhang Yao ascended the throne.
Bai Li Chong Yan abdicated in favor of Zhang Yao and traveled the world with Zhu Ying. Spring trees in Wei Bei, twilight clouds in Jiang Dong, the water towns of Jiang Nan, the winds and sands of the desert – they journeyed through it all, both in haste and at leisure.
Time felt too short; he felt it was not enough.
As death approached, he looked at the person before him, wanting to say something, but his voice failed him. He could only gaze at her silently, his eyes filled with expectation.
Zhu Ying, shedding her aged skin, instantly transformed back to her appearance from their first meeting.
Amidst Bai Li Chong Yan's astonished gaze, she picked him up and slowly walked towards their coffin.
She placed him inside, then lay down herself, side by side with him, still holding his hand.
The lid of the coffin was closed.
Her voice, as clear as when they first met, said, "Shh, I'm here."
Bai Li Chong Yan finally let go, his heart at ease, and slowly closed his eyes.
In the empty mausoleum, a voice sounded: [Target's blackening value -1, current blackening value 0. Congratulations to the host, mission complete.]