Jiang Chen didn't know whether to hate her, admire her, or despise her.
If you said her love was selfish, then yes—it was selfish. She had wanted to follow him to the Yellow Springs without the Peerless Emperor's consent. That was clearly an act of jealous selfishness.
Yet, even in the depths of such profound love, she had harbored no resentment toward her rival and had continued to care for Lady Yun with meticulous devotion. That alone spoke to the purity of her character and the value she placed on sisterhood. From beginning to end, she had never once spoken a bad word about Lady Yun, admitting only that she had lost because she had met Brother Mo too late.
Any ordinary woman in her position would have hated her rival, convinced that the other had stolen her love. But Lady Qing had never entertained such a thought.
She hadn't even been willing to drag an innocent bystander like Jiang Chen into the affair. Her fundamental nature was kind—she was nothing like those venomous, heartless women.
In that moment, Jiang Chen seemed to understand something.
Why had Lady Qing tried to send him away? Why had she urged him not to treat Lady Yun's injuries? Because if he truly healed Lady Yun, Brother Mo would surely take her and leave.
And then Lady Qing would be left here all alone, watching the man she loved walk away with another woman.
Perhaps it was his very arrival that had accelerated Lady Qing's descent into madness?
At that thought, Jiang Chen felt a pang of guilt. A resolve took root in his heart: he absolutely could not let Brother Mo leave this world without knowing the truth.
He had to save Brother Mo!
"Lady Qing, actually… there's something I've never told you…" Jiang Chen spoke suddenly.
Lady Qing was completely immersed in her own world, a faint smile on her face, waiting for death to arrive. She had clearly poisoned the Peerless Emperor, and poisoned herself as well.
She had simply taken her own dose later, so she hadn't yet fallen into unconsciousness.
Hearing Jiang Chen speak, she showed little reaction, offering a weary smile. "What?"
"If you want to be with Brother Mo, why wait for the next life? Or the life after that?"
"Heh, little one, I know you're trying to get me to change my mind, but it's no use… Brother Mo's heart belongs only to Sister Yun. Besides, I would never share Brother Mo with anyone—even if Sister Yun and I are as close as sisters. Love is selfish." Lady Qing shook her head.
In this world, it was actually quite common for powerful male cultivators to have multiple partners. But Lady Qing was clearly unwilling to share her beloved with another woman.
Of course, in truth, this could only be called unrequited love, because Mo Wushuang might never have known about Lady Qing's feelings at all, let alone accepted them.
"Lady Qing, you say you love Brother Mo, but does he know? You've never let him know—how could he possibly understand your feelings? Brother Mo has loved Lady Yun in this life, and in the next he will surely love her still." Jiang Chen pressed on gently. "All I know is that if you love him, you should at least let him know. You should have confessed boldly—rather than harboring a secret crush in the shadows, only to destroy those feelings in this way."
Lady Qing let out a soft sigh. "It's too late now. Nothing matters anymore. There's no time. I used the Seven Emotions Poison—all seven emotions severed, six senses obliterated. The toxin has already reached his heart. It's too late."
"The Seven Emotions Poison?" Jiang Chen exclaimed. "Is it the Seven Emotions Poison refined from those substances that sever all feeling?"
Lady Qing gave a sorrowful smile. "You know quite a lot, it seems. What a pity—you're so young, yet you'll perish here. Sigh… Back then, by the shores of Shilang Lake, our two hearts gazed upon each other, moving as one. After he departed, my unspoken feelings could not be untangled, so I gave them to the seven-stringed zither. Again and again I tuned the strings, again and again I tried the notes, but I could never play a song of longing…"
As she spoke, Lady Qing began to sing softly to herself, her voice desolate and full of sorrow, yet at times breaking into a faint, mirthless smile…
Jiang Chen could no longer spare her a thought. He strode past Lady Qing and walked straight into the room.
There he found the Peerless Emperor sitting cross-legged before the bed, still as a statue—his divine consciousness had clearly been sealed by the Seven Emotions Poison.
Lady Yun lay on her side on the bed. Her complexion was much improved from before, but her divine consciousness had likewise been shut away.
Jiang Chen didn't hesitate. He slung both of them over his shoulders and carried them outside. Seeing that Lady Qing had gradually lapsed into unconsciousness, he sighed, unable to bring himself to abandon her. With one hand gripping Lady Qing, he strode out of the secluded courtyard.
Jiang Chen made his way to a grand inn in Frost Moon City and immediately booked several of the finest rooms.
In Frost Moon City, strange occurrences happened every year—a man carrying a few people over his shoulder was hardly remarkable. The proprietor, the attendants, nobody gave it a second glance.
Of course, the main reason was that Jiang Chen cut an impressive figure and was generous with his money, slapping down a million Sacred Spirit Stones to prepay a full month's rent without batting an eye.
Such a decisive guest was every innkeeper's dream.
Once they were settled in the rooms, Jiang Chen was about to head out, but after a moment's thought he summoned Long Xiaoxuan instead. "Brother Long, keep an eye on things here for me. I need to visit a local Spirit Medicine shop."
Jiang Chen was familiar with the Seven Emotions Poison, but he wasn't taking any chances. He extracted blood samples from both the Peerless Emperor and Lady Yun to analyze.
He needed to determine exactly which seven substances had been fused to create this particular variant of the Seven Emotions Poison.
The Seven Emotions Poison was a rare and fearsome toxin—not only was its toxicity terrifying and difficult to counter, but it was also extremely covert. An ordinary person would never even detect it.