Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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This was the day Zhuang Tian’er and Qin Shi were to be executed. Zhuang Laoda, the old lady Zhuang, and the old master Zhuang, who were supposed to see them off, were nowhere to be seen. Instead, all the villagers of Luoxia Village came, carrying filthy things like mud balls and rotten vegetable leaves, throwing them along the way as the two women’s prison cart moved.
Qin Shi kept dodging, her face showing a timid and fearful expression.
Zhuang Tian’er’s face was numb, her eyes unfocused, and she seemed lost in thought.
She had another dream last night.
Unlike her previous two dreams, this one was uneventful and without any dramatic twists or turns. She had been reborn, but without the ability to bewitch people. Therefore, she had no ambition or aspirations, and only wanted to live a peaceful and stable life.
Grateful for her mother’s kindness in her previous life, she strove to be filial to her mother and, under her mother’s guidance and teachings, becomes increasingly calm and serene. She had changed from the inside out.
The resentment in her heart disappeared, and the dust in her soul was washed away by her mother’s unreserved love.
She didn’t ruin Zhuang Li and Zhuang Jiuge’s future, so the two successfully passed the imperial examinations, becoming the top scholar and third-ranked scholar, and still becoming high-ranking officials. Zhuang Tian’er didn’t want to marry the philandering scholar again, so she chose a seventh-rank military officer as her husband.
The man was of humble origin and had no background or wealth, but he was exceptionally honest and kind. He was devoted to Zhuang Tian’er and cared for her in every way. He never took a concubine and raised their son and daughter together with Zhuang Tian’er. Even in his old age, with his hair turned white, he still treated Zhuang Tian’er like a young girl.
Before she awoke from her dream, her dying husband held Zhuang Tian’er’s hand, pointed to a star outside the window, and said gently, “I’m leaving now. When you’re sad or upset, look at this star. If it’s twinkling, it means I’m watching over you.”
That was Polaris[1], visible year-round and constantly twinkling.
Even on his deathbed, her husband wrapped Zhuang Tian’er in the most tender promises.
Zhuang Tian’er, also with white hair, held her husband’s hand tightly. She felt a pang of sorrow welling up inside, but a happy smile graced her face. She knew that if she shed even a single tear, her husband would not rest in peace.
They deceived each other, yet they also loved each other deeply.
They never achieved much in their lives, nor did they amass great wealth or wield immense power, yet they lived such happy lives.
After waking up from that dream, Zhuang Tian’er never uttered another word. She had a vague premonition that this dream might very well be a part of her own life. If she hadn’t been given the power to bewitch people by the heavens, and given how terribly wrong she was in her previous life, she would have no choice but to start over honestly and dutifully in this one.
So this was what the peaceful life my mother longed for was like? So ordinary, yet so warm.
So what exactly did I miss? Zhuang Tian’er’s heart skipped a beat, then her eyes widened, revealing a horrified expression.
If last night’s dream was the life she was meant to experience, then were those eyes that could control people’s hearts a gift from God or a gift from the devil? If God truly favored her, He wouldn’t have deliberately thrown out a bait for her to jump into the abyss.
So, she must really have been possessed! Her older brother was a powerful official who had risen to the position of prime minister and wielded immense influence in the court; he had never made a mistake in his words.
These eyes! These eyes are truly evil! It’s all because of these eyes that I’ve been ruined! The more Zhuang Tian’er thought about it, the more terrified and remorseful she became. After being dragged to the execution platform by the yamen runners, she stretched out two fingers and gouged out her own eyes.
Her self-harming outburst stunned those around her and surprised Zhuang Li as well.
“She is truly possessed by an evil spirit,” Qi Wang sighed, shaking his head.
Zhuang Li pursed his lips and remained silent, but inwardly he held Zhuang Tian’er in higher regard. He had killed countless chosen ones, but when it came to ruthlessness and decisiveness, Zhuang Tian’er, a seemingly weak woman, was unparalleled.
7480: “…” Well, another chosen one has been driven mad! Who said they were weak?
Zhuang Tian’er, who had gouged out her own eyes, turned to her mother and shouted, “Mother, I’ve wronged you in both my lives! If I have a chance in the next life, I will definitely be a good daughter, and I will definitely let you live a peaceful life. We won’t covet power or money, we’ll just live a good life together.”
“Tian’er, Tian’er! What are you doing, Sweetie!” Qin Shi’s maternal love was awakened by this tragic scene. She stumbled forward, hugged her blood-soaked daughter tightly, and cried uncontrollably.
The onlookers, who had been throwing vegetable leaves at the two women, gradually quieted down and looked at the mother and daughter with pity.
At the same time, 7480 said emotionlessly, “Ding~ An E-level cheat code, advanced hypnosis, has been detected. Please retrieve it as soon as possible, Master.”
On the execution platform, Qin Shi and Zhuang Tian’er held hands as they went to the underworld together. Zhuang Li helped them collect their bodies and took the golden finger, integrating it into his energy bar.
….
A year later, Zhuang Jiuge participated in the imperial examination and successfully became the top scholar.
Only then did Zhuang Lao Er put down his work at the dock and prepare to move to the capital with his wife to reunite with his two sons. Before leaving, he originally planned to take Old Master Zhuang and Old Madam Zhuang with him, but he learned that the two had accepted gifts from court officials, totaling tens of thousands of taels of silver.
This is outrageous! Even Zhuang Lao Er, who had hosted a thank-you banquet for his youngest son’s teachers, dared not accept so much money!
The only problem was that the eldest son was a favorite of the Qi Wang and was officially appointed as the Grand Tutor by the young emperor, making him a highly sought-after figure in the officialdom.
These officials went to extreme lengths to curry favor with the eldest son. They tried to give money to Zhuang Lao Er, but he refused to accept it, so they all went to Old Madam Zhuang instead.
Old Madam Zhuang was incredibly audacious. As long as she was paid enough money, she would agree to anything, including buying and selling official positions and interfering with lawsuits.
Upon receiving the news, Zhuang Lao Er was nearly driven to death by anger at his mother. How could he dare take such foolish and greedy people to the capital? Countless eyes in the capital were watching his two sons, waiting to find fault with them.
Zhuang Lao Er was truly terrified. He borrowed a group of guards from the Qi Wang, stormed into Old Madam Zhuang’s house, looted all the silver, and returned it all to its rightful owner. He also hired several very capable old palace maids, ostensibly to take care of his mother, but in reality to keep her under strict control.
In the end, he left with his wife, leaving his parents, brother, and nephew behind in his hometown.
If a few old palace maids could even handle the emperor’s favorite concubine, how could they possibly not be able to control Old Madam Zhuang?
From then on, Old Madam Zhuang finally calmed down. She no longer had wealth and luxury, but she was never short of food or clothing and had no worries about anything.
As Qi Wang grew older and the young emperor matured, the shift in power inevitably led to numerous conflicts between them. Just when everyone thought Qi Wang and Zhuang Li would meet a terrible end, Zhuang Jiuge unexpectedly rose to prominence, becoming the powerful prime minister.
He used the Empress Dowager’s ambition to sideline the young emperor after he grew up, allowing the Zhuang family’s glory to continue for several more decades.
But he ultimately failed to fulfill his childhood wish of snatching his brother back from the Qi Wang.
Those two were inseparable. Even in death, it was as if they had agreed: one closed their eyes first, and the other held their hand tightly, smiling as they stopped breathing.
When collecting the bodies, Zhuang Jiuge couldn’t pry his brother’s and Qi Wang’s hands apart no matter what he did, so he had to make a double coffin and hold his own nose[2] so they could be buried together.
….
Blood shrouded this desolate land.
In the ruins filled with smoke and craters, a two-meter-tall giant gripped a man’s head with one hand, his fingertips applying constant pressure as if trying to create immense pressure to crush the man’s skull.
The man, covered in blood, was in so much pain that his vocal cords were spasming. A bloody hole had been smashed open in his chest by the giant’s huge fist, and a white rib was protruding from the hole, its sharp end dripping blood.
A group of mission takers bombarded the giant relentlessly, some using superpowers, some casting spells, and others wielding high-tech weapons.
But the giant’s body, transformed by divine blood, was indestructible. Cannonballs, magic, and supernatural powers struck him as if they were mere tickles.
“If you want to cross the territory of the Lord of the Spirit Mirror, you’ll have to step over my Blood Demon’s corpse first,” the giant laughed arrogantly.
“Captain, you must hold on! We’re coming to save you right away!” The blond-haired boy used all his strength to activate his superpower, his face showing a resolute expression of facing death.
They came to this inferno not to climb higher, but to travel back in time. Unlike all other mission takers, they were destined to be enemies of the entire world. For them, the distant past was the most precious thing. Give me liberty or give me death!
The immense pressure caused blood to flow from the man’s ears. He had lost all five senses; he could neither hear nor see anything, only his heart continued to beat faintly. In his daze, he felt his soul being torn apart— a sign that death was imminent.
However, as the excruciating pain spread throughout his body, a chain suddenly appeared inside the man’s body, wrapping around his heart again and again, layer upon layer.
The agony of impending death was instantly replaced by overwhelming peace and an urgent longing. A voice echoed in his mind again and again: “Wait for me, you must wait for me! You cannot die if I don’t come!”
Whose voice does this belong to?
It belongs to my beloved! He is my heart, my life, and half of my soul. How can I die if he does not come?
Thinking of this, the man suddenly opened his eyes, plunged his right hand into his shattered chest, broke off the broken rib completely, and used it as a dagger to stab the giant’s arm.
The giant’s seemingly indestructible body was pierced by this ordinary broken bone, and blood flowed out. The excruciating pain, which he hadn’t felt in a long time, caused him to involuntarily release the man’s head.
The man had barely landed on the ground when he bent his knees and leaped into the air, plunging the broken bone into the giant’s left eye and then into its brain, where he churned it around.
The giant, his brains a jumbled mess, crashed to the ground and instantly turned into a pile of putrid, stinking flesh. A moment later, a drop of glowing blood rose slowly from the rotting flesh.
“Divine Blood!” The stunned team members exclaimed in unison.
“You can divide this drop of blood among yourselves. Those who need to level up, level up; those who need to temper their bodies, temper your bodies.” The man collected the drop of blood in a special container and handed it to the team members, showing no sign of reluctance.
The team members were deeply moved. Looking at his bloodied and mangled chest, they said, “Captain, please take this drop of divine blood to heal your wounds.”
The man waved his hand, too weary to speak. Just then, the rib he was holding tightly in his hand began to feel slightly warm, and then a ship’s anchor symbol slowly appeared, radiating a barely perceptible golden light.
Upon seeing the anchor, the man paused for a moment, then smiled happily. The anchor planted by his lover had unexpectedly catalyzed his divine power at the crucial moment, allowing him to turn defeat into victory.
This anchor was the mark left by his divine power.
The man lifted the rib and kissed it gently, shaking his head and whispering, “I don’t need this drop of divine blood; I have already received the best gift.”
This was his rib, a miracle gifted by his lover across time and space.
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[1] Polaris most commonly refers to the North Star, Earth’s current northern pole star located in the constellation Ursa Minor.
[2] The Chinese expression corresponding to “hold one’s nose” (doing something reluctantly or enduring an unpleasant task)
