Chapter 259: Absolute Survival Against All Odds

Xia Qingyue touched her cheek, feeling a trail of cold tears.

She froze, seemingly unable to believe that she was actually crying.

Tears were alien to her. After a big cry at the age of four, she had never shed another tear. The Ice Cloud Asgard's Ice Heart Art allowed her to calm her emotions in any environment, experiencing no joy, no sorrow, no grief, and no anger. Under the influence of the Ice Cloud Art, her heart had always been cool and ethereal, with almost nothing able to stir her inner peace… except when she faced Yun Che.

...And only when she faced Yun Che.

She didn't even know why.

But now, touching the tear stains on her cheek, she finally understood a little of the reason...

Her jade-like hand slowly lowered, gently resting on Yun Che's face. Her vision was blurred by tears, and through the haze, she no longer saw a completely stiff face, but rather a series of faces: sometimes resolute, sometimes indifferent, sometimes furrowed in thought, sometimes grinning mischievously...

In her world, Yun Che was a very special presence, not just because of their marital bond, but also because he was unlike any other man she had ever met. The men who faced her either trembled and dared not meet her gaze, or painstakingly tried to present themselves as refined gentlemen, yet could not conceal the burning light in their eyes that disgusted her. Only Yun Che... stood before her without pretense or disguise. Even in his most desperate moments, he never showed any self-consciousness or shame in front of her. Sometimes he was incredibly mysterious, making her want, for the first time, to know everything about a man. Sometimes his calmness astonished her. Sometimes he spoke and acted as recklessly as a child, and other times like a scoundrel. Yet, she found herself able to remember every one of his expressions, recalling them unintentionally again and again.

However, she was destined to pursue the pinnacle of the Profound Way. To reach that height, she was willing to give up everything, and naturally resisted this image that had unconsciously imprinted itself on her heart.

Yet, not everything in this world could be controlled by will.

After the first tear fell, her tears flowed like a stream breaking through an obstacle, uncontrolled, quickly wetting her entire face.

"Yun Che... there's no need to wait for another life... In truth... on the Sword Discussion Stage, the moment you defeated me, you had already conquered me..."

"No matter how much I tried to calm my heart... I could never truly close off my emotions completely. My consistent coldness was merely my selfish escape..."

"You once overexerted yourself to open all my profound entrances, almost leaving yourself with permanent damage. Without you, there would be no Xia Qingyue today... On the Sword Discussion Stage, you fought so desperately just to prove your worth as my husband, yet you chose to intensify your exhaustion and internal injuries by redirecting your attacks rather than harm me... Now, to protect me, you've poured out all your strength and life... You're so intelligent, yet you truly believe that after doing all this for a woman... which woman wouldn't be conquered by you?"

Xia Qingyue slowly stood up, placing her hands on her chest. She closed her eyes and softly said, "Yun Che, you are the man Xia Qingyue married. How can you fall here... A husband is the wife's guide, yet I have never once fulfilled my duty as a wife..."

"At least this once, I want you to know... I, Xia Qingyue... am willing to be your wife..."

A faint blue light slowly emerged from Xia Qingyue's body, gradually intensifying and illuminating the cold space with an ethereal glow. This blue light lingered for a long time, then, guided by Xia Qingyue, it converged entirely onto her hands, making her two jade-like hands simultaneously radiate a nearly blinding icy-blue light.

Xia Qingyue gently leaned down, placing her hands over his chest. Her eyes glazed over as she silently watched the blue light from her hands flow like water onto Yun Che's chest, gradually sinking into his body. Soon, a faint blue aura shimmered on his skin.

The light dimmed, and a soft, faint glow illuminated Xia Qingyue's incredibly serene face. She gently closed her eyes. In that moment, her beauty was indescribable, reaching an ultimate peak.

Yun Che had already fallen into the abyss of death. At the moment his consciousness completely dissipated, he thought he would never wake again.

Yet, from beneath the abyss of death, he suddenly began to feel his body's presence. The cold sensation on his skin became increasingly clear, no longer an unbearable chill...

Had he arrived in a cold hell?

...He had killed so many people in life; after death, he would surely descend into hell...

A sharp pain faintly emanated from his chest, making Yun Che's consciousness clearer and clearer. Slowly, he opened his eyes, vaguely catching sight of a faint blue light.

"You're finally awake, hmph! To survive even that, your life truly is tenacious."

Jasmine's voice reached his ears. Though it sounded indignant, it couldn't hide the joy and relief within it.

"I... didn't die?" Yun Che strained to open his eyes, whispering in disbelief. Although his internal organs ached, it wasn't the agonizing, shattering pain from before. The air was cold, but no longer bitingly so; instead, he felt a faint warmth on his skin. His five senses returned to normal, his torso and limbs regained sensation, and his previously depleted body now held a slight sense of strength.

"You absolutely should have died, but this woman gave you all of her profound energy to seal your internal injuries and block out the cold here. That's why you're temporarily alive again. However, this is inside the body of that Overlord Profound Beast; you two can't possibly escape. So, in the end, you'll both still die... the only difference is the order. She will die before you."

It was... Qingyue?

She... gave all her profound energy to me?

Yun Che's heart jolted. Clenching his jaw, he propped himself up. Under the faint blue light, he saw Xia Qingyue quietly lying draped over him, her snow-white face incredibly calm and peaceful, devoid of any discernible emotion, yet subtly revealing an inexplicable trace of satisfaction.

"Qingyue! Qing..."

Yun Che's hand touched Xia Qingyue's, then quickly recoiled, his face filled with dismay. Due to her cultivation of the Ice Cloud Art, Xia Qingyue's body was naturally cool, but never cold in an uncomfortable way; it was a pleasant coolness. Now, however, her body was as cold as profound ice.

"She used all her profound energy to stabilize your internal injuries, resist the cold, and restore your life force. Without profound energy to protect herself, she cannot withstand the cold here at all. If her body hadn't been accustomed to icy temperatures year-round, she would have frozen to death before you even woke up. Even now, she's barely clinging to life... This is an ice-element Overlord Profound Beast; the cold within its body is far beyond what you two can endure!" Jasmine stated, her brow furrowed with coldness.

"Qing... yue..." Yun Che laboriously straightened his upper body, his hand slowly reaching out to touch Xia Qingyue's cheek. His movements were incredibly gentle, for the current Xia Qingyue was like a fragile ice beauty, causing a suffocating ache in his heart.

She, who had always been distant towards him, was willing to secretly follow and protect him while he was gravely injured, to appear and take him away when he faced danger... and now, to save him, she was sacrificing her own life force.

He couldn't understand her constant coldness and indifference, but now, he clearly saw the heart like a bright moon beneath her aloof exterior.

"Qingyue! Wake up... Qingyue, quickly, wake up!"

Gently shaking Xia Qingyue's upper body, Yun Che called out urgently. Suddenly, something occurred to him, and he frantically pulled out a large pile of clothes from the Sky Poison Pearl, covering Xia Qingyue with all of them until he had no more left. In the end, he even took out Jasmine's pink blanket and wrapped it tightly around Xia Qingyue.

However, the temperature here was terrifyingly low. The cold permeated Xia Qingyue's body like a nightmare, steadily draining her dwindling life force.

"No... I have to get out! Staying here means waiting for death... I must get out!!" Yun Che gritted his teeth firmly. He tried to stand, but a sharp pain shot through his chest and back, and his stiff limbs refused to fully obey, making him fall back heavily. Just as he was about to struggle again, he suddenly noticed that in this dark space, there was not only the blue light on his body's surface but also a faint green glow.

Yun Che swiftly raised his left hand, startled to see the Sky Poison Pearl flashing with an eerie green light.

This was the Sky Poison Pearl's detection light, and its intense green flashes indicated that whatever it was sensing was very close to his location, perhaps only a few steps away!

"Is there some hidden treasure in here?" Yun Che asked subconsciously.

Jasmine materialized, glanced at Xia Qingyue, then at the Sky Poison Pearl's light, and said coldly, "This ice profound beast can swallow half a mountain in one gulp. It's not at all surprising for a rare heavenly treasure to end up in its belly."

Yun Che took a deep, gasping breath, then suddenly pointed forward. "Jasmine, help me check over there to see what the Sky Poison Pearl has detected... The light from the Sky Poison Pearl is very strange this time; it's not only intense but also flickering at a very high frequency. Perhaps it's something extraordinary."

"You're practically dying, and you're still worried about some exotic treasure?" Jasmine's delicate brows furrowed tightly, her voice somewhat angry.

"I'm not worried about an exotic treasure... I'm worried about every possible hope!" Yun Che gasped. "I have nothing on me that can get Qingyue and me out of this danger... Right now, the only thing that could save us is something related to teleportation... What if... what if it's a treasure with spatial properties!?"

"Naive! Do you really believe something this coincidental would happen in this world?" Jasmine muttered, yet she still walked in the direction Yun Che pointed. Her delicate, slender red figure quickly vanished into the darkness. A moment later, a surprised "Ah!" came from ahead.

Yun Che's spirits instantly lifted. For Jasmine to utter a sound of surprise, it was indeed no ordinary object. He eagerly asked, "What did you find? Is it truly a spatial treasure?"

Jasmine's voice, tinged with a strange emotion, replied, "Your life is so stubborn it makes me jealous! Although it's not the spatial treasure you wanted, it can still save you from death... No wonder an ice-element Overlord Profound Beast appeared here; it turns out it swallowed 'it'! It has been absorbing its overflowing power for years... Yun Che! Catch it, then swallow it immediately!"

In Jasmine's half-excited, half-solemn voice, a cyan-blue speck of light flew from the darkness and landed in Yun Che's palm.