Chapter 156: Sacrificing Love?

“How could I abandon my woman and escape alone?” Zu An said in a deep voice.

Gazing at the pale face of the beautiful woman in his arms and the specks of blood on her dress, he felt a surge of pity. He quickly took out some healing medicine from his pocket and brought it to her lips: “Quick, take this medicine. Although it’s not as miraculous as the previous bottle, these are potent elixirs from Divine Doctor Ji, and they will greatly aid in your recovery.”

Many of these medicines were originally given to him by Ji Xiaoxi. He figured that the healing medicines Divine Doctor Ji prepared for his own daughter wouldn’t be lacking in quality or quantity.

“It’s no use. My prime meridians are completely destroyed. These medicines won’t save me,” Chu Chuyan shook her head, her voice extremely flat and cold, devoid of any vitality.

“Who said you can’t be saved? There’s always a way! We’ll go find Divine Doctor Ji; he’s sure to cure you!” Without further ado, Zu An pushed the best pill into her mouth. Although Divine Doctor Ji was somewhat lecherous, his medical skills were undeniably superb. And even if he couldn’t cure her, this cultivation world is vast; someone out there is bound to be able to.

Even taking ten thousand steps back, he still had his “Keyboard Warrior System” cheat. Perhaps in the future, he could draw something that would heal her.

“Cough, cough.” Chu Chuyan had never been treated so roughly. She felt both embarrassed and anxious, but unfortunately, she was completely powerless, unable to move, let alone resist.

“It seems you and Ji Xiaoxi are truly close,” Chu Chuyan observed, noticing the floral embroidery and faint fragrance on the pouch where he kept the medicine bottles, clearly the work of a woman.

“I already told you, your husband has excellent luck with women,” Zu An teased subconsciously. But realizing her current condition might not tolerate such remarks, he quickly added, “Earlier in the valley, we encountered an army of zombies. When I went to distract the pursuers, she was worried and gave me these medicines.”

Chu Chuyan said faintly, “Why are you explaining so much to me?”

Zu An chuckled awkwardly, “Aren’t I afraid you’d get jealous?”

Chu Chuyan fell silent, clearly having lost interest in further conversation.

At this moment, Shi Kun and his group walked over. His face was so grim it looked as if water might drip from it. “Miss Chu, I must admire you. You actually possessed such a deadly move, capable of eliminating even the Devouring Kun. However, in doing so, you’ve completely crippled yourself. Was it worth it?”

He had gone to great lengths, hoping to win her favor and considering Chu Chuyan the perfect wife. But now she was crippled, and his family would never agree to him marrying such a disabled person.

Originally, with her peerless beauty, even if she were crippled, she could have been kept as a plaything or favored concubine. But with her current injuries, her chances of survival were slim.

He had exhausted his efforts, plotted for years, and now, after such significant losses in this secret realm, he had gained nothing. How could he not be disappointed, how could he not be furious?

Qiao Xueying’s expression was even more complex. Although she had entered the Chu clan with a mission, after so many years with Chu Chuyan, they were mistress and servant in name, but sisters in reality. Deep down, she wished Chu Chuyan would marry her young master.

In her view, only the Sixth Young Master of the Shi clan was the perfect match for her young lady. That fellow named Zu was unworthy of her in every respect.

But now, it had come to this. Chu Chuyan was so resolute she preferred to be shattered jade rather than intact tile. Qiao Xueying felt a sudden pang of loss. Having pushed her young lady to this point, she felt largely responsible and was filled with self-reproach.

Hearing Shi Kun’s questions, Chu Chuyan’s eyes vaguely gazed at the sky, showing no interest in answering.

Only Zu An noticed that her pupils were unfocused. Clearly, she wasn’t truly looking at the sky; her heart must have turned to ashes.

At this moment, Chu Chuyan’s body temperature was frighteningly low. Zu An held her as if embracing a thousand-year-old block of ice; the waves of cold emanating from her chilled him to the bone. If he felt this cold just holding her, she herself must have been experiencing unimaginable cold.

In that brief moment, Zu An had taken the opportunity to examine her internal condition. If the prime meridians in a normal person’s body were vibrant with life, then her internal state was like the aftermath of a nuclear explosion: fragmented, filled with destruction and deathly aura.

In her current state, let alone resuming cultivation, she couldn’t even compare to an ordinary person. Her meridians were completely destroyed, and her entire being was like someone paralyzed from head to toe.

Zu An even suspected that if he hadn’t given her “Trust Spring Brother” earlier, she might have died on the spot after performing that forbidden technique.

Seeing Chu Chuyan didn’t answer him, Shi Kun didn’t get too angry. He murmured to himself, “You are the number one prodigy in Brightmoon City, and even looking across the entire world, you are a top existence among your peers. You used to be high above, revered by thousands. Now, you can only become a cripple—no, not even a cripple. Looking at you, you can’t even take care of yourself…”

“Shut up! No one will think you’re mute if you don’t speak!” Zu An was annoyed. At this moment, his biggest worry was that Chu Chuyan would lose the will to live. Based on his past life’s medical experience, recovery was heavily dependent on the patient’s own will.

If the patient themselves gave up, then there would be no hope.

“Hmph, a low-level good-for-nothing like you naturally wouldn’t understand the troubles of us geniuses,” Shi Kun looked at him coldly. “For people like us, who have been exceptional since childhood, becoming crippled and having to lie in bed for the rest of our lives, accepting the pity and sympathy of others, is simply worse than death. Even if you exert all your effort to save her life, you would only be torturing her.”

“I don’t disagree that my wife is a genius, but how do *you* qualify as one? You brought so many people and couldn’t even defeat my injured wife, even needing to call for backup. What about being a ninth-rank cultivator? My wife still instantly defeated you with one move. Can *you* do that? If not, what right do you have to compare yourself to her?” Seeing Chu Chuyan’s condition, Zu An was already feeling terrible, and this guy was buzzing around like a fly, which made him erupt into a rapid-fire barrage of insults.

Shi Kun: “…”

Being accused of not being a genius by a petty scoundrel he despised, an evil fire surged within him. Yet, compared to Chu Chuyan, he truly was inferior, and he couldn’t refute what Zu An had said.

Anger value from Shi Kun: 314!

“Look at you, bragging! That’s Chu Chuyan’s power, not yours. What are you gloating about?”

Shi Kun could only comfort himself this way, constantly telling himself not to bother with such a petty person. After calming himself, he finally said, “Although I, Shi, am not particularly talented, I have a vast family behind me. The starting point of my life is an endpoint you could never achieve in your entire life, no matter how hard you struggle.”

“I’m not saying this to brag, but simply stating a fact: I have far, far more resources at my disposal than you. Perhaps you won’t be able to cure her even with all your might, but for me, it would be much easier.”

“I can not only save her life but also potentially heal her prime meridians. So, if you truly love her, hand her over to me instead of selfishly keeping her and ruining her future.”

Qiao Xueying echoed, “Precisely. The Shi clan has extensive connections in the capital and is acquainted with the imperial physicians. They also have countless rare treasures at their disposal. The resources they can mobilize are far beyond what the Chu clan of Brightmoon City can compare to. If Young Lady is handed over to the Shi clan, Young Master will certainly find a way to cure her.”

Seeing Zu An fall silent in thought, a faint smile appeared on Shi Kun’s lips. As a person in power, one often doesn’t need to rely on brute force. Sometimes, leveraging the banner of morality and one’s own advantages can save a lot of trouble.

Once Chu Chuyan was in his hands, he would certainly try to treat her. Although the chances of a complete recovery were slim, saving her life shouldn’t be difficult. At that point, she could be kept in his chambers as a concubine.

The only pity was that she wouldn’t be able to move, which would certainly lessen the enjoyment.

Believing Zu An was truly swayed, a flicker of panic finally appeared in Chu Chuyan’s ashen eyes. She said weakly, “No... don’t, don’t hand me over to anyone.”

She didn’t know why, but while she usually disliked Zu An’s unreliability, at this very moment, she felt safest only when he was by her side. She was afraid he would be swayed by Shi Kun’s words and hand her over.

Zu An showed a faint smile. “Don’t worry, wife. How could I ever hand you over to someone else? I was just thinking about something else.”

Shi Kun’s expression changed. “You, Zu, are you really going to destroy Miss Chu’s future because of your own selfishness?!”

Zu An rolled his eyes. “This is a tired trope from those heart-wrenching romance dramas from years ago. Do you really think such rhetoric can fool me? You stand on the moral high ground, vehemently accusing me, but you’re just hiding your own sordid intentions. Do you think I don’t know? My own wife, I’ll take responsibility for curing her. No outsider needs to worry.”

Shi Kun’s expression finally turned cold. “Such big words! You can’t even protect her now, let alone talk about curing her. Miss Chu, perhaps you’ll blame me now, but in the future, you’ll understand that I was doing this for your own good.”

With a wave of his hand, he signaled his subordinates to kill Zu An. Although he guessed that Zu An couldn’t use that “stare-and-impregnate” ability arbitrarily, the pain from earlier was still fresh in his memory, and he truly didn’t want to risk it. So, he had two subordinates test the waters first, while he himself would seize the opportunity to launch a surprise attack and end Zu An’s life.

“Wait… wait,” Chu Chuyan weakly uttered.

Shi Kun’s face brightened, and he quickly waved his hand, stopping his subordinates. “What, has Miss Chu come to her senses?”

Chu Chuyan ignored him and looked at Zu An instead. “Kill me.”

Zu An’s face was bewildered. “???”

He truly couldn’t understand why she would make such a request.

Chu Chuyan grew anxious and quickly said in a low voice, “I’m crippled now, and you alone are no match for them. Do you want to see me fall into another man’s hands and be humiliated? Kill me, then escape quickly yourself. Tell my parents everything that happened here, and ask them to avenge me.”

Zu An remained silent, slowly raising his sword.

Chu Chuyan closed her eyes, a serene, peaceful smile on her face, awaiting the coming sword strike.

“You, Zu, how dare you!” Shi Kun roared. Despite the urgency, he dared not rush forward immediately, fearing Zu An might truly carry out the act.

Ignoring him, Zu An turned the long sword and plunged it directly into his own chest.

Shi Kun, Qiao Xueying, and the others opposite them were all dumbfounded, not expecting such a turn of events. What was he trying to do?

Qiao Xueying even wondered if, seeing the hopelessness of the situation, he was going to commit suicide for her young lady. Although he was somewhat annoying, she never imagined his feelings ran so deep.