Zi Ling held Chu Feng tightly, her embrace so desperate it was as if she feared that the slightest release would cause him to slip away.
In contrast, Yu Ting looked at Chu Feng with eyes still carrying a trace of doubt, questioning whether he was real.
But Zi Ling had already firmly believed that the Chu Feng before her was the same Chu Feng she had yearned for day and night, the one she dreamed of seeing.
And Chu Feng, too, held Zi Ling tightly in his arms.
As he held her, he gently stroked her long hair.
The delicate fragrance drifting from her silky tresses, and the softness pressed against him— Everything was so familiar.
That familiar feeling, in but a single instant, pulled Chu Feng's memories back to the time of the Nine Provinces Continent...
On the Nine Provinces Continent, in Qingzhou, within the forbidden grounds of the Bai Hu Villa.
That was where Chu Feng and Zi Ling had first met.
Their first meeting was far from harmonious—they had fought each other as enemies, competing for the legendary Bai Hu Battle Technique.
Later, Chu Feng traveled to Qinzhou, where he encountered Zi Ling once again at the marriage tournament hosted by Qinzhou's ruler, the Supreme Villa.
As for what came after, through one life-and-death ordeal after another, Chu Feng and Zi Ling grew not only more familiar with each other, but also developed feelings of love.
And so, when the Six Great Powers placed a bounty on Chu Feng, when everyone was eagerly anticipating who the chosen candidate at that marriage tournament would be— Zi Ling stood before the assembled powers and spoke those words: "The one I love is named Chu Feng."
At that time, Chu Feng had been smeared by the Six Great Powers, branded as a despicable, shameless creature whom the whole world wanted dead.
One could well imagine the reaction when those words left Zi Ling's mouth.
Some found it inconceivable. Others thought they had misheard.
In that situation, for Zi Ling—a disciple of the Supreme Villa—to declare that her beloved was Chu Feng was not merely a public declaration of her feelings. It was a direct challenge to the authority of the Six Great Powers.
But just as everyone was questioning, struggling to believe what they had heard, Zi Ling spoke once more, her voice resolute: "The one I love is Chu Feng. No matter how the world sees him, how it despises him, how it hates him..."
"I, Zi Ling, have set my heart upon him and him alone. Only he has my heart."
"No person can sway my heart. No thing can sway my heart. For this lifetime and the next, I, Zi Ling, will love only Chu Feng—willingly, without regret."
"Today, I, Zi Ling, sever my ties with the Supreme Villa. From this moment forth, I am no longer its disciple, nor am I the adopted daughter of Villa Master Qin Lei. Whatever becomes of me from now on, I will have no further connection to the Supreme Villa."
That was Zi Ling's stance at the time—even if it meant leaving the Supreme Villa, even if it meant standing against the entire world, she would stand beside Chu Feng.
Zi Ling's devotion to Chu Feng shocked everyone, and at the same time, earned their deepest respect.
Of course, the Chu Feng who came after did not disappoint Zi Ling. He cared for her just as deeply.
In the battle at Sword God Valley, Zi Ling had been captured and tormented by the Sword God Valley's ancestor. That fury drove Chu Feng into his first bloodline rampage.
Before destroying the Sword God Valley, he declared before all: "One day, the heavens will shatter because of me. The earth will collapse because of me. The sun, the moon, and the stars will change because of me."
"If that day comes and my beloved is no longer here, then I shall bring down every last soul under heaven to perish with her!"
Though Chu Feng had nearly lost his consciousness at the time, and had since forgotten the incident— Those words perfectly matched the state of his heart in that moment.
Had anything truly happened to Zi Ling, the Chu Feng of that day would have waged a merciless slaughter without pause or discrimination!!!
Yet despite the years of separation, Chu Feng's love for Zi Ling had not diminished by even a fraction. And naturally... Zi Ling felt the same.
"You must have suffered so much, haven't you?"
As he held Zi Ling, Chu Feng's face suddenly filled with heartache.
Zi Ling's talent had been exceptional during their time on the Nine Provinces Continent, but as the years passed, it had grown increasingly strained.
If one were being honest, Zi Ling's talent paled in comparison to the geniuses of the Hundred Refinements Ordinary Realm, let alone a place like the Wolong Martial Sect.
Though she had received her father's help, the achievements she had reached today must have come at the cost of immense suffering.
Suffering that no ordinary person could endure, that no one else could even imagine.
"I haven't suffered at all. Now that I've found you again, how could I possibly suffer?"