The Human Emperor was practically dead from shock... even though he no longer possessed a heart.
"Has she truly married?"
His voice, at this moment, was devoid of its usual lighthearted, ever-smiling lilt. It was deep and resonant, like thick venom slithering across the ground, leaving a corrosive trail.
With a casual snatching motion, Gu Junshi pulled over Gu Er, who had been eavesdropping for a considerable time. With a leap, the Flying Corpse was whisked from the "Gate of the Yellow Springs" to her side.
Gu Er's waist-length hair cascaded down, smooth and straight, gleaming with an obsidian luster. His pale face was devoid of expression, his limbs stiff, his back rigid, exuding a sharp, austere aura.
"Gu Er, tell him."
Gu Junshi's voice was calm and unfaltering in his ears.
Having listened in for so long, Gu Er had a rough idea of the situation.
Being caught red-handed, he felt no embarrassment.
Naturally, whatever his sister said was the truth. Moreover, he held a deep contempt for this unsightly, plague-ridden skeleton daring to covet his sister.
His long, slightly pointed eyes flicked up, and he said coldly, "Yes, I have a brother-in-law now."
The Human Emperor did not know Gu Er, nor did he care who he was. However, the other's confirmation struck him like a fatal blow.
The pristine white bones of his body dulled, inch by inch, as if his heart, submerged in dark waters, was finally denied daylight.
Gu Junshi furrowed her brow slightly. He was already so dejected at the start. It seemed that besides extinguishing his love, she would also need to encourage him to find a new focus, perhaps reclaiming his kingdom and building an empire.
She said, "Human Emperor, your fated connection with Ah Miao has ended. You should focus on your cultivation. Nothing in this world can compare to the joy of achieving great power. Does the exhilaration of holding heaven and earth, of commanding ten thousand miles of mountains and rivers within your grasp, not fill the void left by your lost love?"
She couldn't comprehend what kind of success a monarch obsessed with romantic love could achieve.
However, these words stirred the hidden darkness within the skeleton.
It was the same with his ambitious younger brother in those days, who had murdered his king and usurped the throne, disregarding all human decency, all for the sake of attaining supreme power.
Would "Ah Miao," even after reincarnation, still prefer men like that?
The Human Emperor trembled, his bones rattling. Dark red mist seeped from his bone joints, and a chilling, rampant wind blew through, carrying a dangerous aura.
"Heheheh, so be it, they are married. I was just late. After all... if I just kill him, the problem will be solved."
For he was the Human Emperor reborn from a vengeful soul and fierce bones. When normal, he possessed human thoughts, but when his emotions collapsed, he lost all reason, resorting only to killing to end things. He had already mistaken the man Gu Junshi married for his own imperial brother.
Gu Er, currently only at the Flying Corpse level, could not withstand the chilling, malevolent aura emanating from the Ghost King. His stiff limbs shivered, and he felt his worldview shattered.
Killing to seize a wife – how dare he spout such nonsense in front of his sister.
Based on his superficial understanding of his sister, she didn't like anyone being more arrogant than her.
It was as if Gu Er and Gu Junshi, a sister and brother of the soul, could understand each other without words.
The next second, Gu Junshi leaned closer to the Human Emperor. Gu Junshi was significantly taller than the average woman. Standing before the Human Emperor, he was only half a head taller than her.
She tilted her chin slightly, gazing at his cold, skeletal skull. She had seen his face, reshaped from bones, but that wasn't his true face. It was the face of the person he most despised.
He had the sadistic pleasure of wearing such a face to seek the reincarnation of Nan Wengmiao, and it was unclear whether he was disgusting himself or others.
The Human Emperor became somewhat stiff at her sudden proximity, even harboring a subconscious wariness.
He never expected Gu Junshi's hand to reach out and touch his face.
More accurately, his bones.
Her hand was not like that of a pampered noblewoman, with fingers like delicate orchids, exuding gentleness and serenity.
But it was undeniably beautiful, clean and elegant, with bones and flesh distributed with perfect precision, balanced and fair.
As such a hand traced the curves of his bone structure, even without feeling the warmth or texture, it made the Human Emperor's entire frame go weak.
But when he looked into her eyes, his heart plunged into a cold abyss, pierced by a sharp knife.
The depth in her gaze was too profound. He heard her say, very softly, very slowly, "Human Emperor, you must be obedient. Don't force me to destroy you myself."
She could tolerate being his "substitute" once, merely as a demonstration of his masochistic compliance. But if he crossed her bottom line... even him, she would show no mercy.
***
For a long time after Gu Junshi left, the Human Emperor remained motionless, standing there like a sculpture of human bones, soulless.
Gu Er, based on his own kind's sensing abilities, felt the other was likely some sort of villainous entity. He felt a headache coming on. Why did his sister always pick up dangerous things from outside and place them in her spiritual consciousness?
He thought of his yet-unmet brother-in-law... could someone who caught his sister's eye also be an ultimate demon who smiled as he twisted off people's heads?
"Hey, what's your name?"
"She's your sister?"
The two broke the silence almost simultaneously.
"Who is your brother-in-law?" The Human Emperor squatted down, his bony hand dangling, as if bored or perhaps calculating something with precision.
Gu Er lay on the ground. Now possessing zombie habits, he preferred to stay close to the earth: "..."
He also wanted to know who his brother-in-law was.
The Human Emperor shuffled his emaciated skeletal frame closer, trying to ingratiate himself: "From now on, don't call him. Only recognize me."
Gu Er opened his eyes. Unable to move his facial muscles, he simply opened his mouth and let out a burst of "Hahahahaha—" laughter. But in the next instant, his playful expression vanished, his eyes sharp as lightning. "Who are you? Do you think anyone is qualified to be my brother-in-law?"
He hadn't expected the one who acted like a harmless lamb in front of his sister to be a wolf with fangs and bloodshot eyes in private.
What was the Human Emperor's level? Naturally, he was not intimidated by the bared fangs of a small wolf.
He extended his bony hand, on which a strange and alluring power was slowly gathering.
"You are a Flying Corpse now, aren't you? If you help me... I can let you become a Hanba earlier. Then you can leave here openly and stand in the light with your sister."
The skeleton possessed a soul technique called "Heart Nightmare," which could bewitch and probe the human heart.
He knew that Gu Er's greatest concern was his sister, and his greatest desire was to be with her forever.
Gu Er's face suddenly darkened.
The Human Emperor's words were like a celestial silk ribbon being thrown into his heart, churning the calm waters of his emotions.
***
The Eternal Night Dark Realm of Du Sheng Temple seemed to have no end. Three days had passed, and Elder Chang Li and the disciples of the Void Sect had searched almost the entire Du Sheng Daoist Temple but still could not find another teleportation array exit.
It seemed there was only one exit.
They were reluctantly forced to return to the "Questioning Heart" cliff with the suspension bridge.
Fortunately, upon their return this time, they encountered no malevolent spirits or wailing ghosts. The entire suspension bridge was clear and bright, as if purified by water, exuding a fresh cleanness.
Strange.