Tianren raised a hand, silencing the court with a gesture. His voice, deep and commanding, echoed across the palace floor. "Then, let this day be remembered—when two families unite under the heavens, when fate twists and forms a new bond."
As his words fell, several cultivators dressed in ceremonial robes stepped forward, carrying two ancient jade tablets wrapped in spiritual threads. Their aura alone proved these weren't mere props—they were ancestral items meant to bind oaths with heavenly resonance. A contract of Qi, made under the heavens and witnessed by those gathered.
Ling Xue blinked, her fingers trembling slightly as she reached forward. This wasn't just formality. No, this was real now. Her heart pounded, yet amidst the tension, a strange calm settled over her.
She looked at Zheng Xie.
And he… he just smiled.
That smile—gentle, unshaken, mysterious—was like a river calmly flowing through the chaos of her thoughts.
'Am I truly making this choice?' she asked herself. But her heart had already decided. Just because of that strange, inescapable pull toward this man who always seemed to see through her.
"Place your hand on the Jade Oath Tablet," the officiator said in a serene voice.
Zheng Xie nodded and gently placed his palm onto the tablet. A surge of golden light rippled from its center. Next was Ling Xue. Her breath hitched, but she pressed her hand on the opposite side.
Immediately, the spiritual threads unfurled like blooming lotuses, dancing in the air. A powerful wave of Qi circled them, brushing against every cultivator present. The heavens themselves bore witness.
"Do you, Zheng Xie, accept Ling Xue as your cultivation partner and Dao Companion, to stand by her through the hardships of the path?"
Zheng Xie's voice was calm, yet carried weight that silenced the room.
"I do."
"And do you, Ling Xue, accept Zheng Xie, as your cultivation partner and Dao Companion, willing to intertwine your fates and share your heavenly tribulations?"
Ling Xue hesitated, but not because of doubt. The weight of the moment gripped her chest. Still, she straightened, facing the officiator and the heavens above.
"I do."
With her words, the jade tablets gleamed—now joined by a ribbon of silver Qi that connected both hands. The ancestral oath had been accepted.
There was a breathless silence.
Then Tianren clapped.
The rest followed. Cheers, claps, even a few respectful bows.
Ling Kong, still smiling on the outside, held in his fury. His heart raged—how could things spiral out of his control so quickly? He had watched over every step of his daughter's life. Yet now, the one thing that mattered most had escaped his grasp.
And the one responsible?
Zheng. Damn. Xie.
Still, he offered a respectful nod toward the pair. "Congratulations… to both of you."
The crowd applauded louder.
Ling Xue turned to face them all, but her eyes eventually returned to the one standing beside her. "I… I didn't expect it to be this fast," she whispered.
Zheng Xie leaned slightly, his voice low, brushing her ear like a soft breeze. "Sometimes… when fate strikes, there is no point in waiting."
Her face went red again. She smacked his shoulder lightly, but even that gesture had an odd warmth to it.
But unbeknownst to her, Zheng Xie's thoughts were already wandering—his mind pulled toward darker tides. Memories resurfaced. Of the darkness. Of Leader.
And that cursed sentence—
"The Heavens cry when it awakens…"
But now, recalling it, Zheng Xie found himself unshaken. That same overwhelming dread, that suffocating sense of reality bending around the words—it no longer gripped him.
He whispered internally, 'Even though I repeat it now... I don't feel the same pain. My body doesn't twist. My chest doesn't cave. It's like… the weight has lifted.'
Then, a realization struck him with the clarity of cold steel. 'It was the tone. It wasn't the sentence. It was the tone in which he said it… That's what did it. That's what cracked my spirit.'
His lips curled as he bit down, frustration brewing. 'He knew it wouldn't kill me. He knew I'd survive. He played me… like a damned marionette.'
A hand across his neck jolted him out of the storming thoughts.
A familiar voice, light as silk and laced with mischief, purred near his ear. "Hey, what's up? You've got a real nasty look. Don't tell me you're having second thoughts now? Brother, you're done for…"
Zheng Xie turned, already recognizing the presence before seeing the face.
Casanova.
"I'm not getting second thoughts," Zheng said, trying to brush his hand away. "Just... something that's been bugging me."
Ling Xue's gaze sharpened. She had been watching. The closeness between the two, the casual intimacy, the whispered exchange. Questions started forming in her head about the unknown man.
"Brother Xie," she asked cautiously, "do you know him? Who is he?"
Zheng Xie gave Casanova a sly glance, lips twitching. "Aww… not popular, are you? That must've stung a little. Tsk tsk…"
Casanova's grip tightened around his neck. "Oh, don't worry about that. Not everyone knows me yet. But they will. Sister Ling Xue will remember me well once the examinations begin."
Ling Xue's brows furrowed. "Wait… Are you from the Moonveil Pavilion? But that's an all-girls sect, isn't it? Why would a man be part of it?"
Zheng Xie's expression remained deathly serious. "Because he's a girl on the inside. His body's just… confused."
Casanova flinched. "You—!" He tightened his grip, mock-outraged. "You bastard! What kind of nonsense are you feeding Sister-in-law? Sister Ling Xue, don't listen to him! I'm a man. A real one—head to toe, mind and body!"
That finally cracked Ling Xue's composure. She stifled a laugh, turning her face away. But it was too late—her shoulders shook.
Both of them turned to her, blinking.
"What's so funny?" Zheng asked, puzzled.
Ling Xue waved a hand. "It's just… you two. Brother Xie is really close with you. I've never seen him this comfortable, even with people from the sect. It's… fun to see."
Casanova's smugness bloomed. He placed a hand over his chest dramatically. "Aw~ poor Zheng Xie has favorites. I'm touched. I really am."
Then, like a perfectly timed play cue, a voice called out—soft, elegant, yet lined with undeniable authority.
"Zheng Xie, Ling Xue—come here."
It was Mei Xiu, Zheng Xie's mother.
Zheng Xie rolled his eyes and shoved Casanova's arm off his shoulder. The latter stepped away with exaggerated grace.
He and Ling Xue walked toward Mei Xiu, standing side by side.
"Yes, Mother?" Zheng Xie asked.
Mei Xiu looked at the two of them—no, at them, together. Her eyes held too many emotions to name: pride, wistfulness, even the quiet ache of change. Her son had grown, and now… now he belonged not just to her.
"The greeting ceremony for your engagement is about to begin," she said gently. "You don't have to do much. Just stand together. Everyone will come forward to congratulate you."
Ling Xue straightened her posture and bowed slightly. "As you wish… A-Aunt Mei Xiu…"
Zheng Xie leaned in, whispering with the tact of a devil on her shoulder,
"Call her 'Mother,' or she'll be offended. And trust me, when she's angry… she's ten times scarier than she looks. Don't let that kind face fool you."
Mei Xiu pinched his ear with pinpoint precision.
"Ow—!"
She scolded lightly, "What foul nonsense are you whispering into my daughter-in-law's ear? Don't listen to him, Ling Xue. He's always been mischievous like this, ever since he was a child."
Zheng Xie rubbed his ear, muttering something about maternal violence.
Ling Xue giggled behind her hand, and for a moment, everything else faded. Only memories of her own mother remained… 'Hah… I would have loved to have you here, Mother.'
Before the self deprecating thoughts came in, Zheng Xie took her hands and started following his mother… her mother. His figure seemed to coincide with her mother, a smile formed deep within her heart. 'I didn't make a mistake, right mother? I too deserve some happiness right? I'm not cursed… right?'
…
While Zheng Xie and Ling Xue were busy being bombarded with congratulations for their engagement—and Shuheng, for finally being officially named the heir—there was one person who seemed completely detached from it all.
Casanova sat quietly at a corner table, swirling his wine, eyes half-lidded as if he was lost in thought. The festive noise, the laughter, the flattery—it all passed over him like background static.
'Hah… sometimes I really do miss Earth,' he thought, tilting his head lazily. 'At least back there, I could coop up in my room, binge games on my PC, eat cup noodles, and scream into my pillow about life being unfair. Here? You can't do shit. No internet, no entertainment, and my stupid system's as good as dead weight... Hushhh… truly, the life of a villain. So many goddamn difficulties, and not even one benefit. Tsk, tsk.'
Just as he was having a sweet nostalgic moment, reminiscing about the simpler chaos of his past life, a firm hand patted him on the back.
He jolted upright, spilling a little of his wine on the table. His eyes narrowed on the culprit, only to widen the moment he saw her—golden fox mask, emerald eyes, silky blond hair.
"…Mystic?" he muttered, brows raised. "What the hell are you doing here?"
The woman pulled out the chair beside him and sat with a soft sigh. "Leader sent me," she replied with a huff. "Apparently Mask didn't complete a task. Now the Leader's suspicious, so I've been assigned to monitor him."
Casanova gaped. "No way. Mask? That guy practically worships the Leader. He'd slit his own throat if it meant scoring brownie points. Why would he go against orders?"
Mystic shrugged and leaned back. "I thought the same. But apparently he did. Straight-up ignored a command. I'm still trying to process it myself… that man's never disobeyed anything before."
Casanova rubbed his chin, now fully engaged. "Maybe Leader asked for Ling Xue? You know his habits. He's got a thing for kidnapping random people. Probably figured Mask would deliver her like usual."
"Could be," Mystic muttered, propping her head up with a palm. "But I feel like something else is going on. I was on vacation, damn it. You know how long it took me to get that approved? Now I'm stuck here playing the watchdog."
Casanova snorted. "You should start acting like the rest of us brats. It's the only way to survive."
Mystic shot him a look, then buried her face into her folded arms on the table. "You guys are so trash," she grumbled, muffled.
He chuckled, taking another slow sip of wine, leaving her to her misery.
As the minutes passed, Casanova's eyes wandered over the crowd again. A moment later, his expression shifted—mild amusement gave way to curiosity.
'Strange… some of these people… they've got fragments of Zheng Xie's Thousand Body Soul in them.'
His eyes narrowed.
'Not all of them. Just a select bunch… around 120, give or take. What the hell are you planning now, bastard?'
The initial dullness of the night was replaced by a growing sense of intrigue. A grin tugged at his lips.
'Maybe this party won't be as boring as I thought.'
He took another sip, eyes now fully alert. From his seat, he watched people approach Zheng Xie and Ling Xue, offering blessings, flattery, and political gifts. Even his own Master, the 'Fox Empress', had gone up with his three Junior Sisters to offer their congratulations.
It was all playing out like a typical high-society farce—until a thought struck him. One that made him pause mid-sip.
'Li Hao…'
Casanova slowly lowered his cup, eyes scanning the crowd.
'Where is that lovestruck bastard? No way he just rolled over and gave up because Ling Xue said "no." He's way too prideful. He must be plotting something.'
He stood up and began weaving through the crowd. It didn't take long to find Li Hao—after all, someone that arrogant had a tendency to glow like a sore thumb in formal gatherings.
Li Hao was standing not far from the stage, clutching a wine glass in one hand, making his way toward the couple—probably to offer congratulations of his own.
But Casanova froze.
His eyes widened.
'No. No way—what the hell is that…?'
His gaze locked onto Li Hao's head, and what he saw made his blood run cold.
'That's… Zheng Xie's soul… so many fragments…'
Roughly 350 pieces.
That number shouldn't be possible. Not unless Zheng Xie had deliberately injected them into him multiple time. His eyes darted toward Zheng Xie.
And sure enough, the bastard met his gaze… and gave him a small, almost apologetic smile.
"F—" Casanova didn't even finish the word.
Because at that very instant, Li Hao's body twitched.
Confusion briefly flickered across the proud young man's face—as if something inside him snapped.
And then…
A blinding flash of sword light burst from his hand.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Before anyone could fully process what had happened, the sword energy shot forward—straight toward Zheng Xie and Ling Xue.
Casanova erupted in laughter, half in awe, half in shock. "This bastard!"