Chapter 2609: Betrayal

Zu'an was momentarily stunned. He realized he had been caught in a mental trap, always fixated on reuniting with them in his own timeline. But since doing so in his current timeline was inherently very difficult, he wondered why he hadn't considered a different approach: returning to their timeline.

While traversing time and space was incredibly difficult, it wasn't impossible. Certain secret realms offered similar capabilities, and some magical artifacts, like the Creation Treasure Box he once possessed, also had this function. Even though the Creation Treasure Box had turned to stone, perhaps other methods existed. This thought revitalized him completely, dispelling his earlier gloom. His sudden change, however, immediately drew gasps from the two sisters.

The following day, Zu'an arrived at the Thousand Dragons' Tomb, with Shang Hongyu by his side. The previous day, caught up in the moment, Shang Liuyu had, in a daze, helped him with something intimate. While it hadn't seemed like much at the time, afterward, she was so utterly mortified that she wished she could disappear, adamantly refusing to see Zu'an.

"Though she puts on a carefree front, she's actually very sensitive," Shang Hongyu said, her brows arching with a mischievous smile. "Don't take it to heart; her embarrassment will pass in a few days." Clearly, successfully teasing her sister yesterday gave her a great sense of accomplishment.

Zu'an recalled Shang Liuyu's awkwardness and innocence from the previous day, a gentle smile gracing his lips. Truth be told, there had always been an unspoken barrier between them, one that was only finally shattered yesterday. However, the rapid progression seemed to have startled her.

"How should you thank—" Before Shang Hongyu could finish her sentence, she let out a gasp as Zu'an pulled her into his embrace and kissed her. Her graceful form quickly softened, and her beautiful eyes seemed veiled with a misty sheen. "You practically harassed me to death yesterday; haven't you had enough?"

Yesterday, Shang Liuyu had initially been playing the zither, but as the music reached its peak, her inexperience left her unable to escape the ensuing situation. Overwhelmed with shame, she had fled to clean herself up and hadn't returned. Ultimately, she was the one who had to clean up the mess. Recalling all the sensual moments, her heart was still pounding.

Zu'an mentally called her a temptress. This woman truly knew how to bewitch. Yesterday, she had kept switching between herself and Xi He, constantly changing roles—how could he possibly resist? Still, this was the Sea Race's most sacred Thousand Dragons' Tomb, and some ancestors of the Mermaid Clan were interred here, making it an inappropriate place for them to act wantonly.

Continuing on, Zu'an reached the statue of the Mermaid Queen Ancestor. He used to wonder why the statue bore such a striking resemblance to Shang Liuyu; now he finally understood that it had been carved in her image. He had even personally supervised its creation during the ancient era. Gently running his hand over the Mermaid Queen's statue, he noticed the stone bore the marks of time, yet her face remained strikingly beautiful.

Shang Hongyu couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy. "Oh my, you even had a statue carved as a memorial for my sister's previous life," she teased. "How come I've never seen you make one for my previous incarnation?"

Zu'an immediately broke into a cold sweat. He replied awkwardly, "In that era, you were the Solar Saintess and the Heavenly Empress, after all. If word got out, it wouldn't have been a good look."

"Hmph, what's wrong with being a married woman?" Shang Hongyu scoffed. "In this era, I'm also a descendant of the Sea Race, and I haven't seen you have any reservations." What started as a joke quickly turned serious; as she spoke, she genuinely became emotional and inexplicably sad. It was clearly a story of three, yet she felt she didn't even deserve a mention.

Zu'an realized his actions had indeed been somewhat insensitive. He pulled her into his embrace and softly comforted her.

"Forget it," Shang Hongyu said, gently pushing him away. "Go explore on your own now; I won't accompany you." With a twist of her waist, she quickly vanished into the distance, leaving a trail of shimmering pearls in the dark palace.

Zu'an wanted to stop her but found himself at a loss for words, seeing how genuinely upset she was. In truth, while he and Xi He had shared the most intimate relationship in their past lives, they had been more like enemies and rivals than lovers, unlike the close bond he shared with Shang Hongyu in this world. Yet, speaking these truths would only deepen her sadness; it might even be better if she simply hated him.

Zu'an sighed and continued deeper into the Thousand Dragons' Tomb, reaching the altar where the Law Beacon had once been kept. The time loop had closed, and the Law Beacon was now back under his control.

However, he was here to verify something. He could still sense the aura of the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb in the environment, causing him to frown slightly. He recalled that in the ancient Heavenly Court, he had personally entrusted the seed of the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb to the Mermaid Queen for safekeeping. Under duress from Pang Meng, she had been forced to swallow the herb and subsequently ascended to Guanghan Palace. Later, when he and the Sea Race constructed the Thousand Dragons' Tomb, there had been no replacement immortality herb. He even feared this might alter history, leading to the disappearance of the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb from this world. Yet now, the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb had still come into his possession, just as history dictated. But hadn't that same herb been swallowed by Gong Suyin?

Suddenly, a realization struck him: since the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb still existed, there were only two possibilities. The first was that two such herbs existed in the world, but immortality herbs were primordial, each one unique. This left only one other possibility: Gong Suyin had come here at a later time. She had likely heard him recount this history, prompting her to deliberately plant the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb's seed here, thus closing the time loop.

The thought that Gong Suyin had also journeyed through the river of time to this place, seeing her own statue, instantly thrilled Zu'an. If she could come here, did that mean she had already escaped the confines of Guanghan Palace? Could it be that Mo Xi's strength had increased, finally allowing her to perform the "Farewell at Nanchao"?

These thoughts made Zu'an increasingly agitated, and he searched tirelessly in all directions, but ultimately found nothing. He was utterly perplexed. If Gong Suyin had been here, why hadn't she left him any clues? Was she unable to leave them, or simply forbidden to?

Troubled, he continued deeper, swiftly passing through the undersea abyss to reach the Underworld. He first arrived beneath the Bridge of Helplessness, where he saw Chuyan still cultivating with closed eyes in the River of Oblivion. He hesitated for a moment, choosing not to disturb her. The River of Oblivion was extremely detrimental to all soul entities. Even with him, the Lord of the Underworld, making an exception, she still needed to rely on cultivation through a deep, slumbering state to pass the vast stretches of time. If he were to wake her, the awareness of time's swift passage in the real world would only cause her greater torment.

Next, he quickly made his way to the Reincarnation Platform. In the ancient world, he had specifically instructed Ox-Head and Horse-Face that if any major upheaval occurred in the Underworld in the future, they were to leave information there. They wouldn't have left nothing, would they, just like Gong Suyin?

A feeling of apprehension settled over Zu'an. He reached the Reincarnation Platform, found their agreed-upon hidden corner, and suddenly his entire body jolted. There, he found two tiny, crudely carved Witch Clan characters, clearly etched in great haste. The two Witch Clan characters spelled out "Betrayal"!